Young Eagle

The price of Tourmaline depended not only on its color, but also on its clarity. The better its clarity, the higher its value.

Tourmaline had a trait distinct from other gemstones: its pyroelectricity. When heated, rubbed, or exposed to sunlight, its surface became electrically charged. These charges attracted opposite charges in the air, allowing it to absorb dust, scraps of paper, and other particles carrying opposite charges. This was a unique property of Tourmaline.

Zhao Chuan rambled on for quite a while before finally telling Ye Yuan, "Although this blue piece isn't as expensive as that Imperial Green you had last time, it's still worth more than Black Pearl. This black piece isn't bad either."

At that point, even he was a little uncertain. In the end, he called his family's appraiser. After a brief discussion, the two pieces of Tourmaline were valued at nine million yuan.

Ye Yuan was very satisfied. With that money added to the proceeds from the fish, there should be no problem with the island's construction in the near future.

By then, Mother Ye had finished preparing the meal. Just as the three brothers were about to sit down to eat, brother-in-law entered the villa with several people, all dressed in military uniforms.

When the leading officer saw Zhao Chuan there, he froze slightly before quickly recovering. Ye Yuan carefully studied the officer. Without a doubt, he was an outstanding soldier. He possessed the distinctive bearing of a serviceman—solemn and stern, composed and reserved. His cropped hair suited his square, military-style face.

After Zhao Chuan introduced him, Ye Yuan learned that the officer was Xu Hang, Grandpa Xu's biological grandson.

When Mother Ye saw several soldiers at her door, she hurriedly invited them to sit down and have a bite to eat. Xu Hang and the others declined her invitation, only asking Ye Yuan to find a quiet room so they could ask him a few questions.

Ye Yuan led them to a bedroom he had not yet used. Xu Hang instructed the others to remain outside the door before entering the room alone with Ye Yuan.

After entering, Xu Hang shut the door behind him and said to Ye Yuan, "Comrade Ye Yuan, the information you provided foiled a spy operation targeting our country. Due to your status, I cannot tell you the details. However, on behalf of the nation, I thank you for what you did."

With that, he gave Ye Yuan a standard military salute.

For some reason, seeing Xu Hang salute him made Ye Yuan's blood boil. He felt an urge to head straight to the front lines.

After saying that, Xu Hang's tone relaxed. The two sat down in chairs.

Xu Hang had come partly to express his gratitude to Ye Yuan, and partly to ask for specifics—how Ye Yuan had discovered that submarine in the first place.

Ye Yuan gathered his thoughts, then gave a half-true, half-false account. He concealed his sensory abilities and said that he loved diving. That day, while diving underwater, he had spotted a massive black shadow below. At first, he had assumed it was some large fish like a whale. But after returning to his boat, he found that the radar showed no activity from any large marine creatures.

He had found it very strange. By coincidence, he had met Grandpa Xu at Father Zhao's birthday banquet, so he reported the matter.

As Xu Hang listened to Ye Yuan's answer, he carefully recorded it in a notebook. In the end, he wrote the word "depth," circled it, and drew a large question mark behind it.

Seeing Xu Hang's action, Ye Yuan was startled. He had not expected his explanation to still arouse the other man's suspicions. Just as the saying went, one lie required countless lies to cover it up.

Xu Hang closed his notebook and gave Ye Yuan a meaningful look before patting him on the shoulder. Seeing Ye Yuan's somewhat unnatural expression, Xu Hang smiled for the first time since entering the room.

"I hope that someday, you can spar with our frogmen. I can tell you're a pretty good diver."

"Oh, and before I came, my grandfather asked me to pass along a message." He looked at Ye Yuan strangely, as though trying to read something from his face.

Ye Yuan wore an expression that said, Go on. I'm listening.

"My grandfather said that if you have the time, help him get a few interesting sea fish too."

After hearing Xu Hang's words, Ye Yuan inexplicably became more wary of Old Master Xu, whom he had met only once. Thinking back to the old man's gaze, it felt as if many of his secrets had already been exposed.

Thinking about this incident, Ye Yuan did not know whether he had done the right thing. But whenever he recalled those foreigners doing shady things in his territorial waters, the doubt vanished. If he had to do it again, he would still choose to report it.

Xu Hang and the others declined Ye Yuan's invitation to stay for dinner and left directly. Before departing, Xu Hang gave Ye Yuan his private phone number and told him that if anything happened at sea in the future, he could call him directly.

After they left, Zhao Chuan told Ye Yuan that Xu Hang was no ordinary man—he was a Navy Captain.

Reaching that position at his age was not merely because of his grandfather's influence. He had worked his way up step by step. However, when it came to Xu Hang's exact duties, Zhao Chuan said he did not know. It was best not to ask too much about certain matters within the military.

Ye Yuan had already made up his mind. In the future, he would try to avoid contact with that grandfather and grandson. In front of them, he felt as if he had been seen through completely, with nothing left to hide.

The three brothers ate a simple meal before returning to their rooms to rest. After all, Zhao Chuan and the other man had only arrived from Shangjing that day.

Just as Ye Yuan was about to return to his room, he felt something tugging at his pant leg. Looking down, he saw Big Yellow gripping his trouser leg in his mouth and pulling him outside.

He had not seen the fellow all afternoon, yet the moment he came back, it started dragging him away.

Ye Yuan knew Big Yellow would not pull him around for no reason. Something must have happened. Big Yellow was very intelligent now.

Following Big Yellow, he arrived at the foot of the mountain on the southern side of Fishing Bay Island. The mountain occupied half the island's area. Villagers had rarely come here in the past because the seaward side was all cliffs, and the mountain was filled with venomous snakes. Unless they had a reason, few villagers entered the mountain.

Ye Yuan had only been here a few times. Why had Big Yellow brought him here? Had it found something on the mountain? Ye Yuan took out a telescopic baton from his space. Ever since obtaining the space, he had kept food, drinking water, and daily necessities inside it, along with several items for self-defense.

Holding the baton, Ye Yuan followed Big Yellow up the mountain. Big Yellow led him all the way to the summit. At the edge of the peak stood a cliff dozens of meters high, and Big Yellow barked down toward its base.

Ye Yuan took out a flashlight, walked to the cliff's edge, and leaned out to look below.

On the sheer cliff face was a small recessed cave, and at its entrance was the nest of some bird.

Hearing the dog barking from above the cliff, several faint cries came from the nest. From the sound, they seemed to be the calls of a young bird.

The nest was two meters below the top of the cliff. Inside lay the corpse of an eagle. It had clearly been attacked by another bird of prey, and its body was covered in wounds that had already scabbed over. It appeared to have long lost all life. Hardly any feathers remained on its wings, making it easy to imagine how brutal the battle had been.

Beside the corpse, a young eagle was already at death's door. It appeared that it had not yet learned to fly and was unable to leave this place.

Thanks to brother 08a for the tip, and thanks as well to the brothers who voted with recommendation tickets. I saw several familiar names, which showed that you had been following my book all along. That was the greatest support for Fingertip, letting me know I was not writing alone. Today is National Day, and Fingertip wishes all brothers and sisters a happy National Day.