By the time they dismounted and checked into the waystation, it was already half past seven in the evening. Darkness had fallen completely, and moonlight spilled over the earth like water. Unable to contain her curiosity, Yenaier did not wash up and go straight to bed. Instead, she made her way to Zeng Mu's door.
"Knock, knock." She tapped lightly on the door. After a few knocks, it opened to reveal Zeng Mu's freshly washed, radiant face.
"I just finished bathing. Couldn't you wait a little?"
"Hurry up and come out. That's what you get for keeping me in suspense." As Yenaier spoke, her gaze kept wandering over his face and the bathrobe wrapped around him.
The door closed, then opened again half a minute later. Zeng Mu stepped out fully dressed and waved her along. "Come on. Let's go up to the roof."
The waystation was a three-story building six meters tall, with a pointed roof. An ordinary person would have needed a ladder to climb from the third floor onto the roof.
For Zeng Mu and Yenaier, however, it took no effort at all.
The two easily reached the roof. A brilliant river of stars stretched across the night sky, and the full moon shone overhead, like the flowing Ice River spilling its waters down-a breathtaking sight.
Zeng Mu took out the Ceramic Plate. Beneath the stars and moon, it reflected a distinctive, unadorned sheen, like reddish-brown clay that had only just been shaped.
"Everything you said before made sense, but it was still nothing more than speculation. Besides, I'm not interested in how Xia Bojin obtained it, how he made it, or why he couldn't recognize its value. What I want to know is, what exactly can this Ceramic Plate do for you?" Yenaier asked.
Zeng Mu