“There is indeed such a possibility. However, you can’t take her back. It’s best to find a place to settle her first.”
Jiang Yao also thought the same.
Seeing that the two people outside had already disappeared, she placed the woman in a hidden small pit and left a note for her.
After clapping her hands, she headed back toward the military camp.
The road at night was completely quiet. A full moon hung in the sky, making everything faintly visible.
【Wait until I get back before you touch it. I want to open it myself.】
Xiao Hei: 【At your speed, you’ll only get home at around three o’clock.】
It was currently one-thirty.
【Or… can you carry me back?】
Xiao Hei: 【……】
【You’re the cutest Xiao Hei in the world, please? Next time you take a bath, I’ll scrub your back.】
Xiao Hei: 【You said it.】
【Mm-hmm!】
A few seconds later, Xiao Hei transformed into Big Hei. A one-point-nine-meter-long black panther stared straight at her.
【Get on.】
【Yes, sir!】
It had been a long time since she rode the black panther, so she was a bit rusty. But with Xiao Hei’s help, Jiang Yao quickly arrived near the dog hole.
As soon as she got down, Xiao Hei returned to the space.
【Why don’t you try crawling through the dog hole yourself?】
Xiao Hei crossed its legs proudly.
【I’m not falling for your trick.】
Its noble black fur must not get dirty.
Xiao Hei: 【Find time to come bathe me.】
【Got it!】
After climbing back into the house, Jiang Yao quickly changed her clothes and entered the space.
Xiao Hei was already holding a pillow and preparing to sleep. When it saw her come in, it lazily lifted its eyelids.
Jiang Yao rubbed its head.
“Sleep. I’m going to enjoy opening my loot!”
Xiao Hei was too restricted in the space and could only take the form of a small dog. Only outside could it transform into a black panther.
Knowing it had used a lot of energy today, she even thoughtfully covered it with its favorite pink blanket.
The “secret treasure” she got from the Yang family was an old box with a rusty lock.
Jiang Yao poked it with a wire and opened it easily, then poured everything out.
There were paintings, small gold bars, gold necklaces, gold bracelets, and at the very back—a piece of jade.
But the moment she touched the jade, it suddenly disappeared. In its place appeared a large shopping mall, similar in layout to modern ones.
She walked in and saw no people, but everything she touched felt real.
In the supermarket below, there were all kinds of food. She tore open a bag of beef jerky and chewed a few bites.
“Delicious!”
Braised beef instant noodles? She cooked one and slurped it.
“Delicious!”
Octopus balls, self-serve counter.
“Delicious!”
It really was a treasure! Didn’t that mean she’d never have to worry about food and clothing again?
She could leave anytime she wanted. Why would she still need to dig graves or look for houses underground?
Just as she picked up a large braised pork elbow, planning to bring it to Xiao Hei for a late-night snack, a beeping sound came from the supermarket entrance.
“Insufficient balance! Insufficient balance!”
Only then did she notice the number on the panel.
“Fifty cents? What does that mean?”
Xiao Hei walked over slowly after hearing the noise.
“The money on that panel is your remaining balance from your previous tomb explorations.”
Jiang Yao tried to stay calm, but she simply couldn’t.
“Where is my money? Didn’t I earn almost two thousand yuan?”
Xiao Hei licked its lips.
“Well… you know, every time I trade with other systems, there are channel fees. And most of the money was spent on your husband. Just that bulletproof vest alone cost 1,500 yuan.”
“1,500? Are you robbing people?” Jiang Yao almost shouted.
Xiao Hei explained calmly, “You should’ve noticed the material. I traded it with a system from the 50th century. It’s top-tier armor. That was already the lowest price.”
A 1,500 yuan exchange for a 300,000-value high-tech bulletproof vest—it was already a huge bargain.
“So my money just disappeared? I only have fifty cents left?”
Xiao Hei showed her the expense record:
— Recipe book: 100
— Bulletproof vest: 1500
— Channel fee: 200
— Beef jerky: 0.5
— Braised beef noodles: 1
— Octopus balls: 1
— Ten jin of nitrate: free
Balance: 0.5
After reading it from top to bottom, Jiang Yao was so angry her nostrils almost flared.
“Why is a recipe book so expensive? Is it made of gold? And what kind of channel fee is that expensive?!”
Xiao Hei sniffed and explained, “The recipe was passed down from imperial chefs. I even bargained for it. As for the channel fee, it’s an annual membership of 200.”
Jiang Yao glared at it, then stared fiercely at the bulletproof vest price for a long time before finally squeezing out a sentence.
“Qin Mu is a money-losing husband!”
All the money she worked so hard to earn had disappeared just because of one bulletproof vest.
…
On the train sleeper carriage, Qin Mu and Wen Zhongcheng were eating steamed buns in the lower berth when Qin Mu suddenly sneezed several times.
Wen Zhongcheng teased him, asking if his wife was missing him.
Qin Mu thought of Jiang Yao’s face, feeling both helpless and worried.
He wondered if she had really followed all the instructions he gave her before leaving.
“Qin regiment commander has a wife?”
Bai Yuqing, who had come to deliver water, asked in surprise after hearing this.
This time, they were escorting people. Besides two elderly historians, there were also four researchers—one woman and three men.
Wen Zhongcheng had noticed since yesterday that the female researcher kept looking at Qin Mu.
So he deliberately brought it up.
Bai Yuqing poured water into their flask and asked calmly, “What kind of girl is she? If she can marry Commander Qin, she must be very capable, right?”
Qin Mu thought for a moment.
“Talkative, sweet-mouthed, a bit fierce.”
And also a female tomb robber.
Bai Yuqing sneered. Not a single compliment in that description.
Wen Zhongcheng: “……”
So this is the type Qin Mu likes? Wouldn’t that be noisy at home?
But Qin Mu was quiet—having a talkative one at home might balance things out.
Bai Yuqing originally wanted to ask more, but Qin Mu seriously said he was going to sleep, so she had no choice but to leave.
Two days later at midnight, the train arrived in Ning City. Qin Mu escorted the group to the military area.
After settling them in the military guesthouse, he and Wen Zhongcheng headed toward the family compound.
The two figures gradually moved away.
The male researcher Qiao Heng kindly reminded Bai Yuqing, “Yuqing, they’re already gone. You should go inside.”
Bai Yuqing glanced at him and said nothing, following the officer to her assigned room.
Behind them, Huo Yiheng put an arm around Qiao Heng’s shoulder and walked toward the room.
“Why did you even remind her? She doesn’t appreciate it. Let her feed the mosquitoes.”
Qiao Heng, Huo Yiheng, and Bai Yuqing were all children of military families. Their parents and grandparents were all soldiers. They came from proper military families. Getting into the research institute depended not only on ability but also family influence.
Qiao Heng sighed helplessly.
“Her father told me to take care of Yuqing.”
Huo Yiheng rolled his eyes.
“Your uncle said to take care of her when she’s in trouble—not when she’s staring at married men like she’s possessed. Why are you reminding her about that?”
Bai Yuqing is fake on the outside and inside—just unpleasant.
Qiao Heng pressed his lips together.
“…Alright.”
Watching them enter the room, Lu Zhiwei adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose, hiding the darkness in his eyes, and followed them in.