Chapter 36

Professor Chen's face turned green with anger when he saw his student Hao Aiguo acting crazy and picking a fight with people again.

They needed these men to help them find Jingjue Ancient City, and Professor Chen himself had been careful not to slight the three brothers. Yet Hao Aiguo had managed to offend all three of them at once, even under these circumstances.

"Brother Wang, Brother Hu, and Brother Ming, my teacher meant no harm. Please don't take it to heart."

"Right, Brother Wang. I apologize on my teacher's behalf."

Sa Dipeng and Chu Jian apologized to the two brothers, the Fatty and Hu Ming.

Then they exchanged glances and sighed helplessly. Their teacher was far too good at offending people.

"What's going on?" Yang Xueli came over, her gaze dark as it lingered on the Fatty.

"Nothing, nothing. Anyway, everyone, let's keep moving. Be careful."

The Fatty felt a little guilty under Yang Xueli's dark gaze. He quickly called out to everyone, then patted his chest.

Beep, beep. Just then, the radio crackled.

Everyone turned toward the sound. Hu Bayi pulled out the radio and pressed the talk button.

"Brother Hu, are you all right? Stay safe, and keep in touch with me. Over."

"Roger, roger. Over."

After he finished, Hu Bayi tucked the radio away and glanced at Shirley Yang, suspicion flickering in his eyes. He didn't say anything, though. Then he turned to Hao Aiguo, his gaze distinctly unfriendly.

"Professor Hao, the three of us came here because Miss Yang paid us. It's not the way you think. I hope you'll watch what you say."

The three brothers always stood together when dealing with outsiders.

"All right, all right. Brother Hu, let's go," Gawa urged, nudging Hu Bayi.

Hu Ming nodded at Hu Bayi. Then he and Hu Bayi continued leading the way, with the Fatty following behind them this time.

The Fatty quietly told the two of them, "I saw Yang Xueli slip into a little cave earlier, so I followed her in. There were a few bodies inside. While she wasn't looking, I took a small patterned disc from beneath one of them."

Lin Xuan nodded when he heard that, then said, "Keep it hidden. Once we get out, show it to me."

The Fatty nodded, then added, "That American woman seemed to be looking for something. She rummaged around the bodies, but she didn't find the disc."

Hu Ming nodded. Hu Bayi asked in confusion, "We didn't see any caves up ahead."

The Fatty shot Hu Bayi a glance. "The entrance was covered in snow, with just a little opening left. I can't believe that American woman spotted it."

"Who cares what she's looking for? That's her business, not ours," Hu Bayi said righteously.

Hu Ming gave him a somewhat disdainful look. It was obvious the guy had taken a fancy to her.

The three of them chatted as they led the others onward.

A river lay ahead. The group stood on the bank, shining their flashlights over the water. The river flowed so slowly that it was almost impossible to tell it was moving, and the water was crystal clear.

Hu Ming also saw more than a dozen skeletons on the riverbed. Their bones had clearly been gnawed on.

But the flashlight beams reflected off the surface and seemed to sink into the water, leaving everything murky and making it hard to see what was happening below.

Hu Bayi and Hu Ming exchanged a glance and came to the same conclusion: this river wasn't safe.

"Everyone, take a break here. The Fatty, Mingzi, and I will scout the river."

Hu Ming called to the Fatty, rolled up his trouser legs, and took an ice axe as they waded into the river to look for a shallow stretch.

"Xiao Sa, come here!"

Sa Dipeng hurried over when he heard his teacher call him.

Professor Chen and Hao Aiguo stood before a stone wall, visibly excited. It was covered in densely packed writing.

Yang Xueli glanced over at the Fatty and the other two, who were standing at a distance.

She hadn't expected Hu Bayi and the other two to keep an eye on her, and it infuriated her. She had already decided that once they reached Jingjue Ancient City and broke her curse, she would return to America. As for the rest of Hu Bayi and the others' wages, there was no contract, so she had no intention of paying them the balance.

If Hu Ming knew about this, he'd only say the American woman was naive. If breaking her curse were that easy, her ancestors would have done it long ago.

Besides, Hu Bayi and the other two had already made up their minds: if they really found Jingjue Ancient City, the three brothers would sneak off to collect the antique artifacts without hesitation. Hu Ming would do most of the collecting, while the other two bought him time. By then, Yang Xueli's payment would just be a little extra money to them.

But all of that depended on finding Jingjue Ancient City.

"Holy crap, Mingzi, this water's so warm! Why don't I take a bath first?" The Fatty put his hand in the water.

Hu Ming frowned and said seriously, "That's enough. If you find it comfortable, then so will anything else in there."

The Fatty froze for a moment. Seeing Hu Ming's serious expression, he knew he wasn't joking.

"Let's get back to the bank first. Something feels wrong."

Hu Bayi glanced toward the deeper water, his brows knitted tight. This sense of danger had been honed amid a hail of bullets, a sixth sense forged atop countless corpses.

Hu Ming and the Fatty nodded, and the three of them headed back. When they reached the bank, they found Yang Xueli staring at them with an expressionless face.

Everyone else was looking at a section of the stone wall, while the two tall soldiers stood guard over them.

Seeing Yang Xueli's expression, Hu Bayi dried himself off and went to apologize to her for the Fatty's behavior.

Watching Hu Bayi, the Fatty frowned. "What's Old Hu doing? Why's he siding with an outsider?"

Hu Ming smiled. "Old Hu's got a thing for her. He wants to make that American woman his wife. Besides, she might become our sister-in-law someday, so stop keeping an eye on her. Old Hu will get mad if you do."

The Fatty rubbed his nose. "All right, I'll listen to you, Mingzi."