Chapter 47 Being A Bad Man

"Ba Niao Chao Feng (Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix)."

"Oh, do you know the altitude?"

"I don't know."

"How do you know it's Ba Niao Chao Feng?"

"Well, it just looks like it."

I didn't understand why he was asking me these random questions. I faintly heard a commotion behind me. Ah Tian shouted, "So, what about the treasure? Give it to me. Shut it down!" Then I saw a small black object flying past me and crashing onto a rock, breaking into pieces.

A man's voice said, "My phone! I... I... Ah!"

"Behave, or I'll shoot you. I've killed people before." Then the second phone was thrown at us. I wanted to turn around and see what was happening, but Su Haicheng tightened his grip on my body, preventing me from turning. He continued asking, "Will the descendants of someone buried in this kind of grave become officials?"

I became impatient. I had already answered these questions before. "Let go of me."

Ah Tian continued, "The three of you, behave and help us carry the things to the designated place. You'll each get 300 yuan a day, plus an additional 1,000 yuan to buy new phones. Kakashi, bring your tablet!"

"Me?! Dude, are you suspecting me of being a traitor?" Kakashi shouted, followed by his cries of pain. I couldn't turn around, nor could I see what Ah Tian did to him. I only heard Ah Tian say, "If you don't give it to me, I'll throw you down just like them. I'll compensate you with a better one when we go back. Hmph, I can afford a few bucks like that."

"You arrogant jerk! Why don't you go smash Siyi's phone? Go ahead! It would be even better if you pushed Siyi down the mountain. Su, you're useless! Can't you control your soldiers?"

I also became impatient. "Hey, Su Haicheng..."

"It's fine. Let's continue our conversation. Ba Niao Chao Feng. Will his descendants become high-ranking officials?"

"Su Haicheng! What are you guys doing?" Listening to the voices behind us, it seemed like the boss was more cooperative and had shut down his phone directly, saying, "Carrying a few phones alone, don't complain about the weight."

"Don't worry, when they become a burden, I'll throw them all down the slide. I'll compensate you with a better one when we go back. Tsk tsk, you're a university teacher, and your phone is already so run-down."

I was almost on the verge of tears. Ah Tian was clearly doing something illegal and unruly. "What are you guys doing?" I shouted loudly, struggling to break free.

Su Haicheng suddenly hugged me and said, "Be careful not to fall!" Then he leaned close to my ear and whispered, "If no one had informed the military, they wouldn't have received the information so quickly. When our troops arrived at that village incident, it was already several days later. The snake rolled down this morning, and now it's already noon, yet they've already sent people. The mole is among them."

I was stunned. I hadn't even considered the possibility of someone directly contacting the military. After all, these people didn't seem like they had such connections. I quickly lowered my voice and said, "Kakashi and the boss are definitely not involved."

He let go of me but shifted to hold onto my shoulder from a different angle, allowing me to see those people. "Alright, Ah Tian. What are you up to?"

He actually asked such an obvious question. Wasn't it obvious or just an act?

Ah Tian played along and said, "I haven't done anything. Just let out a fart. Do you need to analyze it? Let's go, hurry up. We only have 24 hours."

Kakashi was glaring at Ah Tian, looking displeased, while the boss remained relatively calm. The three men showed a sense of panic. No matter how burly and strong they looked, they were still intimidated when faced with a gun.

Su Haicheng reached into my pocket and took out my phone, then turned it off and put it in his own pocket, saying, "I'll hold onto it, not because I suspect you, but because I'm worried about tracking."

Could I refuse? Because I saw that even Ah Tian was turning off his phone. Now, we were really playing hide-and-seek in this mountain.

The order of the group changed this time, with the three men at the front, followed by Ah Tian with the gun. Then came Kakashi and the boss, and finally, it was me and Su Haicheng.

Since we were walking at the back, I spoke to him in a low voice, "When did you and Ah Tian plan this?"

"Early this morning while you were asleep."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Ah Tian is now a bar owner. If he robs someone, it won't make the news. But if I do it, I'll probably make headlines."

Kakashi, who was in front of me, complained, "My tablet, he didn't even put a case on it and just threw it in his bag. Do you know what's in his bag? Knives, guns, and bullets. He scratched my screen, so he owes me a new one!"

The mountain road was difficult, but with a gun behind us, we walked in relative peace. After a few initial exchanges, nobody spoke. Everyone walked silently, and our pace picked up significantly.

We walked under the scorching sun until around three in the afternoon. Kakashi sat on a roadside rock, gasping for breath, saying he needed a break. He said, "If I really pass out here, you'll have to send someone to carry me. It's not cost-effective. Let's rest for a while!"

Ah Tian said, "If you pass out, I'll kick you from here, and you'll be gone. Why bother carrying you? Alright, rest. Drink water, pee, and we'll continue in twenty minutes."

They were treating us like soldiers, setting strict time limits.

I quickly found a place to sit down and instinctively reached for my phone to check the time, only to realize it was gone. It felt strange. As I watched Ah Tian approach Su Haicheng, the two of them began conversing. "It's been a while since we had this kind of exhilarating feeling. I really miss the days when we served in the military together."

Taking advantage of their distraction, I squeezed next to Kakashi and asked in a low voice, "What did you find out about the person I asked you to investigate?"

The boss also joined in, leaning closer. "What are you two arguing about? Now we're all in the same boat. If something happens to Su Haicheng and the others, we're done for. If we really get caught by the military, I'll lose my job, and you can forget about graduating."

"Boss," Kakashi said, "I think this trip is worth it for graduation. This kind of life experience is definitely movie-worthy. After it's over, I'll write a novel and try to make a movie. By then, I won't care if I graduate or not when I have fame and fortune."

The boss whispered to me, "Siyi, how far have you and Su Haicheng gone? Although it's not appropriate for me to ask from my position, as your teacher, I still want to remind you to be rational sometimes."

I nodded without saying anything. I knew he meant for me to let go, but it's not easy for me to do so now. First of all, I do feel a certain connection with Su Haicheng, like between lovers, though not necessarily love. But that night, when he threw himself at me and fell down the mountain, I was genuinely moved. Moreover, now his grandparents and parents believe that I'm carrying his child in my belly. Just for that reason, I can't simply walk away.

The rest time ended quickly, and when Ah Tian urged us to continue, Kakashi found a chance to say to me, "I found something, but couldn't see it clearly. There are five or six leaders whose hometowns are here, and the highest-ranking one is a general."

After Kakashi said those words, he hurriedly joined the group. Su Haicheng patted me and asked, "What's wrong? What did that guy tell you?"

"Nothing? Nothing? Kakashi often talks nonsense, don't mind him." We caught up with the group. However, as we walked, the image of the tombstone we saw for the first time kept playing in my mind. I asked if they recognized the person's name on the tombstone, and just as Ah Tian was about to read the name, Su Haicheng interrupted him and said loudly, "Don't know!" At the time, I didn't think much of it, but now, looking back, Su Haicheng deliberately spoke loudly to cut off Ah Tian, to stop him from saying more. If the name on the tombstone was that of a general from the military, maybe they really did know him.

Qin? Q? Q General? No, Q General couldn't be dead! So what exactly is the connection here?