Chapter 56: Also Harbouring Intentions

The voice of the person shouting was very familiar. After a brief moment of identification, Cheng Xiangru recognized it as Tan Cheng.

Hiding in the shadows, Cheng Xiangru did not even dare to breathe heavily. He gently nudged Leng Ying beside him, as if asking for her opinion.

Leng Ying raised a hand, making a gesture to stay calm and not be impatient, and continued to wait quietly.

Boss Zhou’s side waited for a moment. Seeing no response whatsoever, they seemed to have lost their patience.

Several flashlight beams stabbed into the pine and cypress forest, tearing through the darkness and mystery, searching for the source of all this unsettling disturbance.

Cheng Xiangru found it completely baffling. He and Leng Ying had been extremely careful and cautious all the way here; exactly where had they slipped up to be discovered?

Seeing so many people already searching all around, Cheng Xiangru knew that if they continued to hide, they would be dragged out sooner or later. Anxiety gripped his heart.

Leng Ying quietly unzipped her travel bag, pulled out the red-tasseled spear, assembled it, and struck a combat-ready stance.

Since they were all on the same side, Cheng Xiangru did not want to see friendly fire. He pressed down on Leng Ying, who was just about to stand up, quickly stripped off the blue burial shroud he was wearing, and whispered in a low voice, "Forget it, there's no need. Fatty Lan is out of the game, you hurry up and take off this outfit too."

Leng Ying was somewhat annoyed, but upon seeing people rapidly closing in following the sound, she had no choice but to reluctantly strip off the red burial shroud as well.

"Uncle Zhou, it's me, Cheng Xiangru!" Cheng Xiangru raised both hands, shouting loudly as he walked out from the darkness into the area illuminated by the flashlight beams.

Soon, several of Boss Zhou’s subordinates swarmed over. Upon recognizing Cheng Xiangru and Leng Ying, they all let out sighs of relief and tucked their guns back into their waistbands.

Amidst hasty and chaotic footsteps, Boss Zhou led Chen Shangke and the others over.

"You child, why did you still follow us here? This... isn't this just messing around!" Boss Zhou was clearly quite angry.

Tan Cheng let out a long puff of white smoke, the glowing red tip of his cigarette seemingly fueled by anger: "I followed you two the whole way. I almost made a move several times, but thankfully I held back, otherwise the consequences would have been unimaginable! Do you guys know that?"

Hearing this, Cheng Xiangru froze and turned to look at Leng Ying beside him, only to see her eyes wide open with extreme astonishment.

The two of them had tracked all the way here without even turning on a flashlight, relying entirely on the moonlight to find their way, yet they never imagined that someone had been tailing them the entire time.

Tan Cheng was armed with a gun; if he had truly made a move from the shadows, Cheng Xiangru and Leng Ying probably would not have had any chance to evade it and would have suffered severe injuries, if not death.

"Nonsense! Send the two of them back!" Boss Zhou turned around with his hands behind his back and walked away, seemingly unwilling to listen to any explanations.

Cheng Xiangru was deeply panicked. He stepped forward and said, "Uncle Zhou, I want to go down with you! This time I came to look for clues about my dad, and before we left, you promised to take me with you. No matter what the reason was last time, I was pushed aside. This time, I must come along!"

Boss Zhou’s footsteps paused. After pondering for a few seconds, he walked away without looking back, saying, "Xiao Cheng, come here. I have something to tell you privately."

Cheng Xiangru glanced at Leng Ying, and seeing her give him a slight nod, he quickly hurried to Boss Zhou's side.

The two of them walked side by side towards the front, continuing for a long distance before stopping.

Tan Cheng walked over to Leng Ying with a cigarette in his mouth and chuckled, "You two are really something, acting so recklessly. Luckily the wind was strong and I was worried I couldn't hit you from too far away, otherwise I would have given each of you a bullet a long time ago."

"When did you start following us?" Leng Ying truly could not comprehend this.

Tan Cheng blew out a choking puff of thick smoke: "Never mind about that. Anyway, you two can't pull a stunt like this again. If I had accidentally injured you two, the boss would skin me alive. Oh, by the way, did you two change clothes?"

"No... no we didn't!" Leng Ying secretly glanced at Chen Shangke not far away.

Chen Shangke should remember that a pair of "enemies" wearing red and blue couple's burial shrouds had beaten him up. If Tan Cheng were to expose them now, it would be impossible to explain.

Tan Cheng flicked away his cigarette butt: "That's not right, I remember..."

Leng Ying hurriedly raised a hand to point at the horizon and interrupted: "Look quickly, there's a shooting star! Make a wish!"

Everyone turned their heads to look at the horizon, only to see a starry sky—where was any shooting star? Turning back to look at Leng Ying, they saw the girl with her hands clasped together, bowing her head to make a wish.

"There really is a shooting star? How come I didn't see it?" Tan Cheng blinked, extremely confused.

Leng Ying raised her head, opened her eyes, and spoke with a sincere tone: "Of course there was, I already made my wish. I wish everyone good health, all the best in everything, family harmony, the blessing of the koi fish, peace and safety year after year, early blessed with children, great wealth and prosperity..."

"A... alright then. Thank you!" Tan Cheng scratched his head, feeling as though he had wanted to ask something just a moment ago, but after being interrupted by Leng Ying like this, he had completely forgotten.

Forget it. If he couldn't remember, it wasn't important. Since she had bestowed so many idioms upon him, what a great person she was; it was better to ask fewer unimportant things.

In the distance, Cheng Xiangru looked anxiously at the tips of his shoes, like a child who had done something wrong.

He had thought Boss Zhou would severely scold him or offer earnest, persuasive advice, but his own internal attitude was firm—he had resolved to join the tomb descent and would never back down.

However, to Cheng Xiangru's surprise, neither the scolding nor the persuasion he expected ever came.

"Xiao Cheng, how much do you actually know about that girl named Leng Ying?"

Cheng Xiangru looked up, staring at Boss Zhou in astonishment: "I... I..."

He did not know how to answer.

Say he knew her very well?

Yet he had not known Leng Ying for long, and everything he knew about her came from her own mouth—it was hard to tell what was true and what was false.

Say he didn't know her well?

Yet Leng Ying had risked her life to save him, helped him, was willing to take risks to protect him, accompanied him, and had even told him all her secrets with complete candor.

Boss Zhou gently sighed, his face filled with paternal affection: "Child, you have had too little contact with society. Your mind is innocent and your heart is kind, making it very easy for you to treat everyone who approaches you with a smile as someone very close to you. You are not at fault. However, you are already an adult, a grown man. You should have a more mature judgment regarding all people and all things."

Hearing the hidden meaning in Boss Zhou's words, Cheng Xiangru fell into a dazed silence, waiting for what came next.

Boss Zhou produced a cigarette, lit it, took a deep drag, and let out a long breath. Seeming to have choked slightly on the cold air, he coughed several times before stopping.

"Actually, I originally intended to tell you after returning to Rongcheng, but since things have reached this point, I feel I must say it." Boss Zhou paused, then took another puff: "Your dad wasn't alone; he had four other companions. Among them was a couple, Hong Cui and Huang Jin. Due to health reasons, the two of them could never have children, but Hong Cui loved kids, so they adopted a girl."

Hearing this, Cheng Xiangru's breathing grew rapid. He knew that everything Boss Zhou was about to say next would be the crucial points.

"Hong Cui and Huang Jin always treated that girl as their own flesh and blood, and your dad and the others also cherished her deeply, teaching her all their skills. But for some unknown reason, they later had a massive falling out. After severely injuring Hong Cui, the girl stole a very valuable item from your dad and then disappeared."

Cheng Xiangru felt as though his heart had been struck by a heavy blow, leaving him completely frozen in place.

"In fact, I always used to think that your dad and the others had been searching for that girl all these years, until Leng Ying appeared by your side and got so close to you, that I realized I was wrong. Originally, I planned to return to Rongcheng upon being discharged from the hospital, but after meeting Leng Ying, I changed my mind. I feel we still need to find the Dragon Vein of the Great Qing, go down there, and clear up the doubts that have been plaguing me, while hopefully finding some traces of your dad's whereabouts."

Boss Zhou raised a hand and gently patted Cheng Xiangru's shoulder, lowering his voice to say: "Child, I understand your feelings. Since you've followed us here, I'll take you down with us. But you must remember to stick close to me, and you must be on guard against Leng Ying! I suspect that her coming close to you must be driven by some ulterior motives!"