67: Chapter 67: How Could it be Such a Coincidence 67: Chapter 67: How Could it be Such a Coincidence Back at the hotel, everyone was gathered together.
Gu Fan unfolded the two maps.
After staring, studying, and deliberating for a good while, they all ca to one chilling conclusion: they could not decipher them.
“I can’t believe there’s a basent beneath this palace, Gu Fan, you’re a relic thief.
I am going to arrest you,” Su Hui exclaid, half-jokingly.
Gu Fan could only laugh it off, though, unable to find humor at the mont.
Lin Xi suggested, “It’s clear that the maps alone aren’t enough – we need an expert in foreign cultures and history to help us understand their anings.”
“Such people do exist, but they’re experts.
We don’t know them,” Gu Fan scratched his head, expressing frustration.
Unable to hold back, Lu Yi asked, “What does the second drawing an?
Is that Empress sothing a demon?
Can she cast magic?”
“I don’t know what these drawings an, but whatever it is, it’s not going to be easy to deal with,” said Gu Fan, shaking his head, viewing the map of foreign geographical locations in his hand as the most valuable reference material.
Among the crowd, Du Jun scrutinized the maps most carefully, then said, “If these maps genuinely help us find so clues, I can use my father’s connections to find an expert in foreign matters.”
“That’s right.
A wealthy guy like you, with all your connections, surely this is your ti to shine.” Gu Fan, Lu Yi and Lin Xi had to concede that Du Jun, indeed, had a role to play.
“Why don’t you give the maps, Gu Fan?
I’ll take them to an expert,” Du Jun blurted out, giving off a sowhat show-off vibe.
His face was filled with a sense of superiority, as though saying that without him, they would not be able to solve this.
However, Gu Fan put away the maps, “Let’s find the expert first, then we can take the maps and pay him a visit.”
Having heard this, Du Jun’s outstretched arm froze in mid-air, his face looking sowhat unsatisfied.
He initially intended to gain control of the situation by handing over the maps to the experts and leading everyone to solve the riddles.
But Gu Fan did not give him that chance.
Gu Fan, deep in thought, was contemplating.
If Du Jun fails to find an expert in foreign cultures, his only hope lies in a history teacher at his school.
It was that sa history teacher who had prompted Gu Fan’s shift of focus to foreign cultures while talking about their history and perhaps could provide even more insight.
However, Jie threw in a comnt, “In fact, we’re simply ignorant of the foreign script.
Perhaps we can decipher these maps if we were able to understand it.
We can look for annotations in the library or online.”
Gu Fan shook his head to that, “No, it’s not just about the characters.
The geography also matters.
We definitely need an expert here.
Since there is a museum of foreign cultures here, maybe an expert resides here too.”
“Yeah, that’s a possibility,” everyone agreed.
However, Du Jun objected, “I think it would be better if we followed up our connections back ho.
Don’t forget that Xia Yue vanished here.
If locals learned that Gu Fan is also carrying a map, we might get in trouble.”
Upon hearing this, Gu Fan grew heavy-hearted, wondering how he had not thought about it.
Everybody, in general, agreed with Du Jun’s perspective.
It’s best to head back ho first.
Then Du Jun ntioned sothing crucial, “There’s also the issue of explaining to Xia Yue’s parents.”
The room plunged into a stifling silence, everyone sinking deeper into their gloom.
Gu Fan gave a glance that reflected despair and sighed, “Xia Yue wasn’t the first to disappear.
We’ll handle it the sa way we did the previous tis.”
“Guess we have no choice then,” every heart in the room was heavy, drained and desperate for the nightmare to end.
It was already late into the night.
Everyone decided to retire for the night, even though trouble sleeping was likely an understatent due to Xia Yue’s disappearance.
But at this point, they could only leave things to the police.
After everyone else returned to their rooms, Gu Fan, unable to sleep, mumbled a few words to Lu Yi and then went out.
He was restless and needed a walk.
Too many people and especially too much talk from Lu Yi crowded the room, making it impossible for Gu Fan to calm down and think things through.
There were a lot of things he needed to sort out – he needed to check for any oversights.
He traced his thoughts back to the beginning – the journey that had seen them reroute to the ancient town due to a sudden earthquake that destroyed the road.
If it weren’t for the earthquake, they would not have ended up in the ancient town.
“Earthquake?
Could it be…” thought Gu Fan.
Was soone or sothing manipulating the earthquakes?
Coercing them towards the ancient town?
That seed too extraordinary.
Yet, upon further thought, there was Lin Xi’s ntion of the eerie secret chamber, and the books that spoke of the Empress Qianye seeking eternal life.
If all these assumptions were true, it suggested the existence of inexplicable powers.
Hence, the idea of soone controlling earthquakes might not be entirely absurd.
Well, you could surmise that an earthquake happened, but then how would the people behind the scenes know that their group was going on a trip, passing through the ancient town, and that soone was waiting for them at the disembarking point when they returned from the trip, tracking their movents?
“Wait a second, besides us college students, there was also a bus driver, a tour company bus driver.” The thought made Gu Fan’s heart sink; how had he overlooked this person?
Presu, the masterminds had been waiting for a group of young people to pass through the ancient town.
This group of young people didn’t need to specifically be Gu Fan and his college friends.
It could be anyone, as long as they made up twelve people in total.
And the bus driver, who constantly ran this tourist route, was the informant.
Once he found a group that t the criteria, he would call the people pulling the strings behind the scenes.
Then, once everyone arrived, the puppeteers would trigger a major earthquake, destroying the road, forcing everyone to go to the ancient town.
“Yes, we should investigate this bus driver.” Gu Fan thought about this possibility.
If they could break through the case using the bus driver, then the whole incident could potentially be upended, even without having to clarify its connection with a foreign region.
As Gu Fan was pondering, he saw a familiar figure.
With her cold and stunning appearance, intimidating air, and tall stature, she would stand out even in a crowd of beautiful won.
“It’s you?” The icy beauty recognized Gu Fan, and he gave forced laughter.
“You couldn’t sleep either, could you?
Having nightmares, and like , coming out to contemplate life?”
Hearing this, the icy beauty couldn’t help but laugh, and her frosty deanor disappeared, replaced with a friendly smile.
It seed she wasn’t rejecting Gu Fan anymore.
“I haven’t properly thanked you for what happened during the day.
Consider this a token of gratitude.” The icy beauty took out two cans of beer from her plastic bag and handed one to Gu Fan, who was surprised.
“I didn’t expect that you, who look so demure, would enjoy drinking.”
The icy beauty snorted in response, “What’s wrong with drinking?
Drinking isn’t solely a male activity.”
Gu Fan laughed, “In my imagination, only wild won would drink and smoke.
Your ethereal deanor seems at odds with beer.”
“That’s just a man’s imagination, also who said it ruins a woman’s image to drink beer?” Having said this, the icy beauty even opened the beer can for Gu Fan, inviting him to drink freely, to his amused helplessness.
The icy beauty added, “By the way, I noticed you arguing with the security guard and nearly getting into a fight.
What happened?”
Gu Fan chuckled awkwardly, “Sothing bad happened.
One of my friends disappeared in the museum.
I got anxious and wanted to find him.”
“No wonder there were so many police officers.
The spectators who don’t know the full story thought that you were caught stealing artifacts by the security guard.” At the icy beauty’s words, Gu Fan felt embarrassed since he technically did steal an item.
The security guard should’ve apprehended him.
Gu Fan chuckled again, “You onlookers sure know how to whip up rumors.”
The icy beauty quickly explained, “It wasn’t who started the rumor, it was others.
I just heard it, but I never spread it.”
“Alright, I believe you’re innocent, and thank you for believing in .” Having said this, Gu Fan raised his can of beer, and the icy beauty generously clinked her can against his.
They both took a sip.
The icy beauty continued, “Strange, how did your friend disappear, and in a museum at that?”
In response, Gu Fan stamred.
He certainly couldn’t talk about any conspiracy.
All he could say was that they sohow got separated, then waited for a long ti without seeing his friend.
He couldn’t reach him on the phone and felt sothing awful had happened.
But the security guard wouldn’t listen, so he had to call the police.
“Seems like it’s really important to be cautious when traveling.
By the way, is your friend male or female?” The icy beauty’s question made Gu Fan feel awkward again.
After hesitating for a mont, he answered, “He’s a male classmate.”
Upon hearing this, the icy beauty looked perplexed, “Really?
Even n aren’t safe now.
I thought only won and children get abducted.
What’s the use of kidnapping n?”
“Yes, I don’t get it either, I just hope the police will solve the case soon.” Gu Fan sighed.
He couldn’t tell the icy beauty that this matter was related to so foreign region, sothing about immortality, and sothing about twelve sacrifices.
“Since you invited to drink, now invite to smoke.” Gu Fan quickly changed the topic, but the icy beauty gave him a doubtful look then shook her head, “Sorry, I don’t smoke.
I’m afraid I’ve disappointed you.”
“Actually, I don’t smoke either.
Seems like we have sothing in common.” Gu Fan’s forced attempt at finding a commonality left the icy beauty speechless, realizing she’d been teased, she couldn’t help but laugh.
Seeing this, Gu Fan inwardly exclaid, “My goodness, she’s so pretty when she laughs.
Why is she always so icy?”
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