Review

We spent a day repairing in the woods and took a good half day to return to Suk. As expected, the old soldier was nowhere to be found, and we discovered that the house was in disarray. Someone had searched it in advance and taken some things. Both Big Head and Old Wan vowed not to let him off. They decided to inquire about the old man's identity upon returning, stating that blood debts must be repaid with blood. I also expressed our stance; Dragon Mountain Pavilion would assist in the investigation, and if there were any leads, we would share them.

Dragon Mountain Pavilion's carriage awaited us at the village entrance, and after driving for five or six hours, we returned to Dabancheng. Before leaving, Big Head handed the bag of artifacts to the local representative of Dragon Mountain Pavilion. The goods would be transported back to Beijing through channels, and the payment would be made once a suitable buyer was found.

Han Sheng and I had been through a lot these days, especially me. My entire body felt like it was falling apart. Instead of taking the train, we arranged for someone to escort us to Urumqi, and from there, we flew directly back to Beijing.

Upon landing, Xiao He came to pick us up. Seeing my weathered appearance, he sighed and remarked, "It's only been a few days, and you look like Xili Ge. It seems you've had an adventurous time in Tibet."

I touched my stubble and smiled bitterly, "Don't mention it. We're lucky to have returned alive. By the way, how's the shop?"

He sighed again, saying it wasn't great. With the news of the Second Master's trouble, several shops near Baoguo Temple had been putting pressure on them. Some old fellows who had been dealt with by the Second Master also joined forces to suppress us. If it weren't for the Second Master's firm stance at that time, we would have already fallen apart.

I assured him not to worry and mentioned that this time, we had brought back a batch of high-quality goods. Xiao He nodded, saying that the goods from Xinjiang would take a few more days to arrive by land, and with this batch, Dragon Mountain Pavilion could take a breather. Those guys only cared about money; as long as there was profit, they would be cooperative.

"Oh, one more thing." I suddenly remembered and handed over Han Sheng's photo. While driving, Xiao He took a look and commented, "This photo is quite old."

"Did you notice the old man on the left? He should also be in our line of work. Help me find out more about him, the more detailed, the better."

Xiao He looked at me through the rearview mirror, nodded, and agreed.

Back in Haiwang Village, as soon as Old He saw our appearance, he knew we had suffered. While expressing relief that we hadn't lost any limbs, he told us to rest in the backyard and sleep well. Whenever we felt like eating, just call out, and the cook would prepare something fresh.

I didn't insist and, after eating and sleeping in turns for two or three days, finally regained some strength. For someone like me, a half-hearted individual, this scale of struggle was hard to adapt to. If it weren't for Han Sheng, Big Head, and the others saving us multiple times, we might have been left in Xinjiang, our bodies never to be found.

I asked if Han Sheng and Xiao Nan had woken up. Xiao Nan, looking at me with a serious expression, said, "Not everyone can sleep as well as you. Han Sheng woke up on the second day after returning and is chatting with the assistant shopkeeper now."

I awkwardly smiled, went to Old He's courtyard, and saw the two of them talking under the pavilion. When Old He saw me approaching, he revealed a relieved smile, patting my shoulder and saying, "It's great to see you're fine. If you keep being dazed like this, I might have to take you to see a doctor. Since you're here, Han Sheng is telling me about your experiences. You share your side too."

I had a sip of tea, narrating everything we had seen and speculated on the way. Old He listened with closed eyes, pondered for a moment, and then spoke, "Little Cao, regarding the Cao family matters you mentioned, I won't say much. The Second Master didn't involve me in those affairs when he was around, and now that he's gone, you're free to investigate. If there's a significant issue, Dragon Mountain Pavilion will bear it."

"Secondly, what concerns me is the old soldier. Did he really say he was 'dying for the previous Second Master'? It indicates that this Hu Hu King's tomb is a trap. If the Second Master were still alive, he might have fallen into it too. People in our line of work risk their lives for money, and there's hardly anyone who can't be negotiated with for money. If they had a simple conflict of interest with Dragon Mountain Pavilion, they wouldn't set up such a long scheme. Those guys would have dug their own holes long ago."

"I think this matter is not simple. This old soldier ambushed you, or rather, planned to ambush the Second Master. There are other motives involved. As you know, the Second Master hasn't been involved in shop matters for years; he has been collecting clues about your father's case from many years ago. So, I boldly speculate that the old soldier is related to the events of those years, and even to your Cao family. Someone doesn't want you to continue the investigation."

Han Sheng and I exchanged glances. I guessed he also remembered the person who had been to the Second Master's hidden compartment. Someone had taken away some important clues, perhaps even clues pointing to the truth.

It seemed that since we returned from Chaoxian Tomb, someone had been keeping an eye on us. Old He's analysis was accurate, and there was an invisible force obstructing us. The Second Master had left, and now it was our turn to be targeted.

"I heard Xiao He say you asked him to investigate someone?" 

I nodded, replying, "It's that old soldier. I feel he's not simple. If we can uncover his identity, we might be able to find the mastermind behind the scenes."

Old He made a sound of agreement, lit a cigarette, and fell into thought. After chatting for a while, he said he was tired and went back to rest. This time seeing him, I felt that he had aged a lot. The pressure on the shop was immense, and the people under him were stretching their necks for meals. This was something he had to worry about. Although I was the Second Master, the person enduring the storm on the stake was him. I couldn't help but feel emotional. Old He was using his remaining wings to shield me from the wind and rain.

I sighed, and Han Sheng put down the teacup, asking me what was wrong. I told him that I felt a bit sorry for Old He. We didn't help much, but instead, we made the shop divert its energy to assist us.

Han Sheng patted my shoulder, telling me not to overthink it and to focus on investigating the Cao family matters. I told him it wasn't that easy. Dragon

 Mountain Pavilion was different from before, and we needed to be cautious about investigating certain individuals.

Idle and with nothing else to do, I suggested to Han Sheng that we review our recent tomb raid. There were still some questions that I couldn't explain.

We returned to my room, most of the things here were moved from the Second Master's room by Zhao Gu. This included the old table from the Second Master. I pushed aside some materials and old books, took out a piece of paper, and began sketching a mind map:

Firstly, I drew a person in the middle of the paper, labeled as mysterious person A, with a note stating: From Bashu, holds the formula for creating living dead, unknown purpose, possibly related to the Taoist in Chaoxian Tomb. This was the origin of the entire story.

The second step, I drew a crown next to him, representing the Hu Hu King. Deceived and coerced by mysterious person A using the longevity technique, the Uyghur people were forced to build the Town Spirit Altar, and in the end, the Hu Hu King disappeared or died. I put a question mark here.

The third step, below the crown, I drew a circle representing Yushan. After some thought, I drew a larger circle outside with mysterious person B labeled, linking mysterious person B to mysterious person A with an arrow, indicating a connection.

The whole Yushan, including Cao Tongbing, was a pawn of B. He knew about the Hu Hu King's tomb very early and knew what was inside. In other words, although A and B were separated by a thousand years, they had already calculated it. Of course, this kind of inheritance was not the work of one or two people; it must have been passed down through generations or some kind of formation.

However, judging from the situation encountered in the Town Spirit Altar, it seemed that B's entry into the tomb to take things did not go smoothly. In other words, there were some circumstances beyond the agreement made over a thousand years ago.

I thought for a moment, drew a diagonal line from the crown, passing through the arrow between A and B. I felt that this intersection was the "fork" that appeared, and this "fork" was most likely caused by the Hu Hu King. After all, after the large tomb was sealed, there were only the Hu Hu King and A inside. If the Hu Hu King found out he was deceived or, more speculatively, if the Hu Hu King discovered A's conspiracy, he took some action, leading to the appearance of the "fork."

The fourth step, the old soldier. I thought for a long time, hesitated for a long time, and finally drew him below Yushan. I was not very willing to think that he was a continuation of B. I believed more that he was another force, a force that understood the "truth" of that year. I marked him as C.

The reason for this judgment was that I remembered the markings that Zhao Min found before entering the ancient tomb. It indicated that a team had walked in front of us, and the old soldier was likely one of them. Only someone who had entered would know it so well.

The fifth step, us. There was only us left, and I didn't know how to position ourselves. I looked up at Han Sheng. He took the pen, wrote "Second Master" next to the old soldier, and marked it with a D.

I looked at him in confusion, and he pointed at D, saying, "Actually, our goal is the same as C's, or rather, the Second Master's goal is the same as theirs. We all found something unusual, and think about it, who else is missing from this structure?"

I frowned, thought carefully, and cautiously guessed, "The Cao family?"

"Yes," he stared at C and said, "Although there is no direct evidence, C may come from within the Cao family. In fact, not only the Second Master, but some people from the Cao family have also been investigating your father's case in recent years. Originally, with the Second Master leading the way, now... it won't be long before someone comes looking for you."

I sighed helplessly. It seemed that I had picked up a hot potato. Just when I was about to take a smoke to ease my mind, a random thought popped up, and I casually asked, "Han Sheng, do you know Cao Tongbing from Yushan? The skilled one, also called Han Sheng."

I distinctly felt Han Sheng's body tremble when his back was turned to me. Immediately after, he returned to normal.

Something was strange! I guessed right. I was sure that Han Sheng definitely knew something.