The Fatty Finally Joined

Yang Xueli looked at Fatty expectantly. If this Mr. Fatty was also a man of profound ability, then she would have three experts on her side. With their help, how could she fail to uncover the secret of the Ghost Eye Curse? As long as Fatty had the skills, she didn't mind paying a few thousand dollars more.

Hearing Shirley Yang say that, Fatty felt as if a thousand horses had trampled him, and he nearly exploded on the spot.

"My brother's a good shot."

Seeing that Shirley Yang was testing Fatty, Hu Bayi hurriedly spoke up.

He knew Fatty didn't understand feng shui and had no other special skills. The only thing he could boast about was his marksmanship. What he didn't know was that marksmanship was precisely what Shirley Yang thought least of.

If they were talking about shooting, who here could compete with her?

"Marksmanship? We don't need that!" Fatty was just about to brag about how good a shot he was when Yang Xueli's words left him completely speechless.

They'd said they didn't need a good shot. What would be the point of boasting about his marksmanship now?

Looking at Fatty, Yang Xueli could tell he had no profound abilities. Disappointment welled up in her, and she turned to Hu Bayi and Hu Ming. "I'm sorry, but your friend doesn't have any particular skills and doesn't meet our requirements."

"If you don't want me, fine. As if I care." Fatty snorted, then said irritably, "Even if you begged Master Fatty, he wouldn't go."

With that, he looked at his two brothers. "Old Hu, Mingzi, you two go ahead. I'll wait for you to come back."

"Miss Yang, my brother's skilled and brave. The desert is full of danger, and he can protect us and clear the way. We need someone like him!"

Hu Bayi spoke earnestly to Shirley Yang. His meaning was clear: the three brothers wouldn't leave any one of them behind. She could either take all three of them or none of them would go with her.

Yang Xueli frowned slightly as she thought it over. She was about to agree to take Fatty along, even if he was just another mouth to feed.

"Fatty, show them your spoils from your campaign against bandits in the Western Regions. Let them see how good a shot you are." Hu Ming took a sip of tea and smiled faintly. Whether someone went or not was entirely up to him.

Spoils? Fatty thought it over. When had he ever gone to the Western Regions to fight bandits? What spoils?

Huh!?

It was his family heirloom, the jade. Fatty chuckled. Fine, just you wait. You'll see what happens when you underestimate Master Fatty.

Taking the pendant from around his neck, Fatty waved the seven-sided piece of jade in front of Yang Xueli and Professor Chen. "See this? I got this when I was fighting the bandits in the Western Regions. I was facing off against more than three hundred bandits, all by myself, with a Type 38 rifle in hand. It was a brutal battle. I charged forward while firing, and even blew the charge on a bugle with one hand..."

Hu Bayi was embarrassed for Fatty, and Hu Ming rubbed his forehead. But they noticed Yang Xueli and Professor Chen staring fixedly at the jade pendant in Fatty's hand, their eyes following it wherever he moved it.

"Comrade Fatty, where did you get this piece of jade?" Professor Chen interrupted Fatty, who was in the middle of bragging. Forget it. Clearly the old man hadn't been listening to a word Master Fatty said.

"Master Fatty already told you. I seized it as spoils after defeating the bandits. At the time, I fought a bloody battle..."

Hao Aiguo couldn't take it any longer and interrupted Fatty too. "Comrade Fatty, may I ask what year you were born? I remember the bandit raids in the Western Regions happened thirty years ago. You hadn't even been born yet, had you?"

Uh! Fatty was momentarily at a loss for words, not knowing how to respond.

Hu Ming, standing nearby, couldn't help the corner of his mouth twitching as he struggled to hold back a laugh.

Hao Aiguo didn't keep arguing with Fatty, though. Seeing the odd expressions on Professor Chen and Shirley Yang's faces, he focused on the jade. The middle of the seven-sided pendant had a small, four-sided hole. Fatty had threaded a little red cord through it, and the cord was caked in grime.

Clearly, Fatty hadn't washed the red cord in a long time. Delicate patterns were carved into the front of the pendant, interspersed with what looked like bloodstains. Four ancient symbols, resembling but not quite forming characters, were carved around the small hole. Yet on closer inspection, they seemed like writing.

No one knew what they meant. Seeing everyone staring at his pendant, Fatty grew even more pleased with himself and flipped it over to show the back.

A miniature ancient city was carved into the back with exquisite detail. Though the city had been carved on a piece of jade only four centimeters across, its grandeur was awe-inspiring.

Professor Chen's body trembled, and his lips quivered as he looked at Shirley Yang. His slightly cloudy eyes had lit up.

Yang Xueli was no less affected. Her pretty face was filled with shock, and she could hardly breathe. She drew a deep breath, nodded slightly to Professor Chen, and said to Fatty, "Mr. Wang, I'm willing to pay a high price for this piece of jade. Just name your price."

"I'm not selling." Fatty rejected her without a second thought. "Hah! I'd sooner give it to my brother or throw it in a river than sell it to you. Goodbye. Master Fatty's going home."

"Wait, Comrade Fatty, please don't go." Professor Chen grabbed Fatty and held on tight, determined not to let him leave. With a pleading look, he said, "Could you lend us the pendant so we can have a closer look?"

"Sure, just don't break it." Professor Chen took the pendant and went aside with Shirley Yang. They carefully examined the ancient city on the back with a magnifying glass, then studied the writing on the front. They returned more than ten minutes later.

As soon as they came back, Yang Xueli smiled courteously at Fatty. "Mr. Fatty, Mr. Wang and Mr. Hu are experts in feng shui. But you're a good shot, and you've fought bandits before. We'd like to hire you as our protector and have you join the archaeological team. The pay is thirty thousand dollars, and it'll double if we find Jingjue Ancient City. What do you think?"

What? Fatty wondered if he'd heard her wrong. She'd agreed to let him go to Jingjue Ancient City? And she was offering thirty thousand dollars. It was less than what Hu Bayi and the others were getting, but Fatty knew his own limitations.

Just then, Hu Ming shook his head. "Miss Yang, that's too little."

Yang Xueli raised her elegant brows. "Does Mr. Wang have some special ability, like the two of you?"

Hu Ming replied, "Fatty may not know feng shui, but whether we can get into Jingjue Ancient City depends on his family heirloom. Without this thing, even if we find the city, we won't be able to get inside."

Professor Chen, Yang Xueli, and the others were all taken aback. "Are you saying Mr. Wang's jade pendant is the key to opening Jingjue Ancient City?"

Hu Ming nodded and continued, "That's not all. Fatty's good in a fight and with a gun. Our team has three young people and two professors. Old Hu and I can barely manage on our own, and there are plenty of wolves, snakes, and other animals in the desert."

Yang Xueli nodded. "Then, Mr. Wang, how about you come along on the same terms as Mr. Hu?"

Fatty pretended to think it over for a moment, then said, "All right. I suppose I can make the effort to go with you."

Hu Bayi rolled his eyes at him.