Chapter 27

Hu Ming and Hu Bayi exchanged a glance. They could both see in each other's eyes that their bluff had worked.

"Professor Chen, you're too kind. Being able to help you serve the country is an honor," Hu Bayi said, and he meant it.

Hu Ming, however, said nothing. If I did, it'd be: Professor Chen, thanks for giving me the chance to come along. I'll take a few more treasures for myself. Otherwise, once you've all put them in a museum, where am I supposed to find any?

Professor Chen, you thought you were all so high-minded and honorable. Never thought you'd end up helping grave robbers this time, did you? Well, it's no big deal. You're digging up graves, too.

We're all in the same boat! Hu Ming laughed to himself. This was getting more and more interesting.

"Mr. Hu Ming, Mr. Hu, with both of you assisting us, I'm sure our expedition to Jingjue Ancient City will be a success."

A smile of delight appeared on Yang Xueli's lovely face. She was genuinely happy. She hadn't expected to recruit two experts who knew feng shui inside and out for this expedition to Jingjue Ancient City.

I have to do whatever it takes to win them over and get their help finding the treasure that can break the curse. Yang Xueli's beautiful eyes moved between Hu Ming and Hu Bayi. They had rare talents that were hard to come by.

She was a meticulous, quick-witted, decisive woman with a plan for everything.

Yang Xueli held out her fair hand to Hu Bayi. "Mr. Hu, welcome to our archaeological team. You're officially one of us now. Given your experience as a company commander, you'd be a good choice to lead us. I'm offering you fifty thousand dollars, and I'll double that once we find Jingjue Ancient City."

She was offering fifty thousand dollars to win Hu Bayi over.

Then she turned to Hu Ming. "Of course, Mr. Hu Ming's hundred thousand dollars is because he knows some secrets about Jingjue Ancient City and is worth that much. If Mr. Hu also knows any secrets about the city that could help us, I can offer you a hundred thousand dollars as well."

She'd left no room for objection. But Hu Bayi knew nothing about Jingjue Ancient City; he was hearing the name for the first time.

"Miss Yang, fifty thousand dollars is a little low, but I suppose I'll take the job." Though he said it with such swagger, Hu Bayi was stunned. He hadn't expected Shirley Yang to offer him fifty thousand dollars. All he'd done was recite his understanding of the Sixteen Character Yin Yang Feng Shui Secret Art and put on a bit of a show, and now he was getting fifty thousand dollars!

Where else could you find a deal like that?

Applause erupted.

The three students clapped, gazing at Hu Ming and Hu Bayi with admiration. They felt ashamed of how shallow they'd been earlier. Who would've thought the applicants who showed up today would be such experts?

Then the three of them introduced themselves to Hu Ming and Hu Bayi.

The fat man, who'd been ignored the whole time, felt pretty miserable.

What the hell? Wherever I go, people look down on me. Damn bunch of bookworms who think they're better than everyone else. They must've read so much they've fried their brains. And that foreign chick—coming all this way to our country to fund an archaeological expedition? She's definitely a grave robber.

She's got her eye on our country's treasures.

The fat man gave everyone a scornful look, then glared at Shirley Yang, clearly displeased. No matter how he looked at her, he thought she was up to no good. When Shirley Yang noticed him staring, she finally paid him some attention. If the fat man had known what she was thinking, he would've been furious.

Hu Ming and Hu Bayi are both skilled. This fat man came with them, and they seem as close as brothers. He must be capable, too, Yang Xueli thought.

So she walked over to the fat man. The moment Yang Xueli moved, everyone's eyes followed her.

The fat man couldn't help feeling a little nervous. As soon as Yang Xueli came up to him, he caught a fresh, clean fragrance that seemed to fill his lungs. It smelled wonderful. Even though he didn't like the look of her, he had to admit she was a natural beauty—the kind of woman any man would find irresistible.

"Miss Yang, hello. I'm Wang Kaixuan, though everyone calls me Fatty."

Fatty reached out to shake Yang Xueli's hand. He'd seen Shirley Yang shake hands with people several times already. It must be an American custom, so they ought to respect it.

Yang Xueli glanced at Fatty's somewhat chubby hand. After hesitating briefly, she shook it lightly, if only to show him some respect for Hu Ming and the others' sake.

"Mr. Hu Ming and Mr. Hu have both shown us their remarkable abilities. I wonder what your specialty is, Mr. Wang."

"We're going into the desert, not on vacation. Everyone applying needs to have some special skill. Why don't you show us what you can do, Mr. Wang?"

Yang Xueli watched Fatty expectantly.

If Mr. Wang is also highly skilled, then I'll have met three experts. With their help, how could I possibly fail to uncover the secrets of the Ghost Eye Curse?