Chapter 287: Please Me (9)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
An Xiaoning turned over and glared at him slightly, then said to Gu Beicheng on the other end of the line, “Let’s meet at the foot of the hill then, I’ll head over right now.”
“… Alright.”
After hanging up the phone, An Xiaoning said leisurely to the man beside her, “How childish.”
“How was I being childish?”
“You intentionally said things like wiping your back, isn’t that being childish?” She rapidly changed into a set of clothes. “I’m going to Master’s grave. Gu Beicheng said someone guarding it noticed a figure there. Ordinary people would not be able to see it, I think someone came across it and wanted to steal from the grave. I really can’t think of anything else. But, we still have to take a look, otherwise, the luck there might be destroyed by other people.”
“Should I go with you?”
She pressed down his shoulders. “Be good and sleep at home. You still have work tomorrow morning, don’t you want to go to work anymore?”
“Can you handle it by yourself?”
“How could I possibly go alone? I’m bringing three others there.” An Xiaoning placed her gun near her chest area and placed a dagger in her sleeve pocket. She even attached a whip near her waist. Jin Qingyan, who was watching her, became more assured instantly.
She put on a face mask and cap before going downstairs, then brought three others as she drove to the foot of the hill.
The car drove past smooth traffic and arrived at the destination. Gu Beicheng was already there.
He wore a thick, dark blue coat and a white polo-neck sweater, which brightened up his whole look.
As she got down the car, he joked, “Jin Qingyan is really quite ridiculous.”
“Right? I think so too.” An Xiaoning laughed. “He’s just like a child.”
“The two of you stay together every night now?”
An Xiaoning was slightly embarrassed. “Yeah, he said he wants to protect me.”
“Even his excuse is childish, exactly how old is he this year?”
“He’s three years old. Jin Three Years, alright.”
An Xiaoning tucked her hands into her pocket, walking up the hill with the people she brought.
The pathway was rather slippery, so the group walked at a very slow pace.
“I heard something happened at the Jin family.”
An Xiaoning was surprised. “How come you know everything?”
Gu Beicheng grinned. “This is what makes me powerful.”
“I really hand it to you.”
“Didn’t it cross your mind? You got thrown into prison for no reason, so I had to use so many of my connections. If not for me, the media would probably still be reporting it right now. No matter how Jin Qingyan abused his power, would it be possible for everyone’s mouths to be sealed? For you to be safe and sound now, half of this credit goes to your brother.”
If he had not revealed this, An Xiaoning would’ve remained unaware of it. She was instantly full of gratitude towards him. “How sweet, it’s really great to have a brother.”
“Since we’re here, tell me three things to make me happy.”
How difficult was that?
She knew how to sweet talk.
“Beicheng.”
“Umm?”
“There’s a place in my heart for you that no one can ever replace. I already treat you as family; this place is one reserved for those dear to me.”
Gu Beicheng’s heart stirred. “What’s the second thing?”
“If there’s any problem in the future that the Gu family cannot solve and I just happen to be able to lend a hand, I’ll help the Gu family settle it at all costs. As long as I can do it, what I promised Grandfather, I won’t forget.”
“What about the third thing?”
An Xiaoning hesitated for a moment, then said, “The world is so big. For us to meet, it’s really not easy. I’m happy to have met you.”
Gu Beicheng looked up at the sky, the ends of his lips curling into a smile. “Whether they’re coming from your heart or just words to humor me, I’m taking them for real.”
An Xiaoning quickened her pace. “Why would I say them to humor you? I don’t know why, but having seen through so many people, I still want to be someone who can trust others.”
Gu Beicheng looked at her, his heart thoroughly warmed by her words.
Even though he knew that he had already lost her to Jin Qingyan, being able to have such a close family member, he felt, was good as well.
The group finally arrived at the entrance of the temple.
Gu Beicheng knocked on the door. “Open up!”
Hurried footsteps came from inside, and the door was flung open. The graveyard-keeper looked at them, his face becoming calmer. “Young Sir, you’re here at last.”
“What’s the situation like?”
“Let’s go in and talk.”
“Okay.”
When they were inside, the graveyard-keeper said, “After it turned dark, the two of us went to stand guard. But not long after sitting down, we saw a figure near your grandfather’s grave. At first, I thought that I must have been seeing things, but when I asked my wife if she’d seen it too, she replied yes. We were both shaken and didn’t dare to go and check, so we hurriedly called you.”
“Let’s go and take a look.”
An Xiaoning was not scared at all. One of the graves was old Mr. Gu’s, while the other was her master’s. What was there to be afraid of?
After bringing her people to the back of the house, they went up the stairs. An Xiaoning and Gu Beicheng went to check the place the graveyard-keeper mentioned, using huge lamps to light up the way. The two saw footprints on the ground.
As it had just snowed, the snow on the ground had yet to melt, and with mud added on, the footprints were exceptionally prominent.
“Have some of you checked this area?”
“No, we didn’t dare to check,” the graveyard-keeper answered frankly.
An Xiaoning eyed the footprints; the path it led to went a distance away. “Don’t step over these, let’s go there to look.”
In the end, they realized that the footprints disappeared at a place where there was a stone slab.
An Xiaoning looked at the people behind her. “Move this stone slab away.”
“Yes, Ms. An.”
A few people went forward and moved the stone slab away. To their surprise, they found that there was a secret passageway they did not know existed.
It was really a huge eye-opener.
This group of grave-robbers actually dug a secret tunnel all the way here. One look and it was obvious this tunnel led to the grave.
If that was the case, then on the surface, the grave might have looked intact. But, in reality…
Looking at the situation, the tunnel had not extended to the grave yet. However, someone must have been checking the location of the grave at night and was mistaken as a ghost by the graveyard-keeper.
Gu Beicheng was suddenly angered and told An Xiaoning, “I’ll go down to see.”
An Xiaoning took the torch. “I’ll go with you, the rest wait up here.”
Gu Beicheng jumped down first, while An Xiaoning followed closely behind.
When they went down, they realized it was very spacious down there, but it was pitch black.
The tunnel had indeed not been dug up to the grave yet, so Gu Beicheng and An Xiaoning followed the tunnel and went towards the opposite direction from the grave.
It was chilly inside the secret passageway.
The passageway was very long, and no one seemed to be inside.
The two took light steps and kept silent; neither of them said a word.
After walking for a very long time, they gradually heard some noises.
An Xiaoning grabbed hold of Gu Beicheng’s arm and said in a low voice, “I think that would be those workers. I know a way to make them crawl out themselves. Let’s go back first.”
Seeing the sparkle in her eyes, Gu Beicheng agreed and made his way out of the tunnel with her.
After they had gone out, An Xiaoning instructed, “Beicheng, call someone to get two hundred people and make them transport a hundred bags of cement here. All of them need to be careful with their movements. The rest of the people wait here. We’ll follow the path we took just now and wait for the people arriving at the exit, then use the cement to seal up the passageway there.”