Seeing her expression, I immediately knew I had guessed right. With a sigh, I thought to myself: twists and turns in the road.

In fact, I had realized this earlier; the surname Huo is not common, but I had always assumed that Huo Laotai’s daughter would take her father’s surname. In other words, Huo Laotai became the head of the family simply because there were no males in this generation. I hadn’t expected that the Huo family was a matriarchal clan.

As soon as she mentioned that her daughter had suddenly gone missing during an archaeological event, I immediately thought of my third uncle’s archaeological expedition in the Xisha Islands. At that moment, I recalled that Huo Laotai’s surname was Huo, and among those who went missing in the Xisha Islands, there was someone named Huo Ling, who was the daughter of a high-ranking official. Additionally, the leader of the archaeological team in Guangxi back in the day was Chen Wenjin. All the information pointed to one conclusion.

In other circumstances, I might have thought it was just a coincidence, but amidst the intricate web of relationships, I suddenly realized something was amiss. To my surprise, when I asked, it turned out to be exactly as I thought.

The involvement of the Huo family matriarch in this matter seemed unexpected, but in fact, it was inevitable; however, Huo Laotai might not yet be entangled as deeply as I was.

So, it turns out that Huo Ling, like my third uncle, is also a descendant of the Old Nine Gates. With Jie Lianhuan also being involved, that makes three of them. What exactly is the composition of that archaeological team in the Xisha Islands?

As I pondered this, my thoughts began to diverge even further. I realized that not only Huo Ling, but Chen Wenjin also seemed to share the same surname as Chen Pi A Si. Was Chen Pi A Si called Chen because of his surname, or for some other reason? (To be honest, thinking of his appearance, he does have a bit of a resemblance to aged Chen Pi.) But he shouldn’t have been that old decades ago; Chen Pi A Si should be related to the Chen surname.

Chen Wenjin, Chen Pi A Si. Huo Ling, Huo Laotai. Wu Sanxing, Wu Laogou. Jie Lianhuan, Jie Jiuye.

Is this just a coincidence?

Jie Lianhuan and my third uncle share a deep connection. Their ties were strong even before the events began. It shouldn’t be surprising that they both appeared in the archaeological team, but I had always thought of Huo Ling as an outsider. The fact that she is also a descendant of the Old Nine Gates—could it really be a coincidence?

If she were a descendant of the Nanpazi from Shanxi or the Zoushanke from Lingnan, it might be explainable, as one might need some background to get involved in archaeology during that era. However, being a direct descendant of the same lineage of the Old Nine Gates—

There’s definitely something wrong.

I suddenly remembered that the “Menyouping” (the oil bottle) is no ordinary figure either. In a team of ten, five of their backgrounds are a mystery. It seems the remaining Li Si and the others are no ordinary people either. My third uncle once told me that this team claimed to have been formed by chance, but it seems that’s not entirely true.

Several possibilities flashed through my mind. One is that the archaeological institute back then might have been a cooperative of the Old Nine Gates, and it was essentially their own business. Alternatively, it could be that the descendants of this group all chose to pursue archaeology, and due to geographical reasons, they happened to gather in Changsha? Or, most likely, because of “a certain project,” this powerful underground family is using archaeology as a guise for criminal activities under the official pretense?

With my heart racing like lightning, a large piece of the puzzle suddenly fell into place, and I found myself at a loss for what to do next. I scratched my head, not wanting that sudden joy of realization to fade so quickly, when the old lady asked me, “How do you know these things?”

I shook my head, “My grandfather doesn’t often talk about your past. Honestly, I really don’t know how I found out. It’s quite puzzling. Grandma, I feel that it’s fate for us to meet today. How about we step aside for a moment? I need to tell you something related to your daughter.”

The old lady’s eyes suddenly flashed with disbelief as she looked at me, “What did you say?”

I said sincerely, “I think we can sit down and have a good talk; it might take some time.”

The old lady’s expression turned cold, “Kid, don’t speak carelessly. I might joke about many things, but if you dare joke about this, I won’t let you walk out of this door.”

I wasn’t in the mood to argue with her; I thought to myself that this wasn’t a costume drama. I said, “Let’s skip the small talk. I’m done speaking; I reckon you’ll have to keep me here even if I want to leave.”

She looked at me, momentarily unsure of my intentions. After a moment’s thought, she gestured for me to follow her. So, I left the room with her, making my way to the backyard, not knowing where we were headed. The old lady shot me a glare, “This way!”

The fat guy and the quiet oil bottle were still in the yard, with the fat guy idly observing what seemed to be orchids. I felt it was inappropriate, so I said to the old lady, “Both of my friends know about these matters; they can come in too. They can provide some supplementary information.”

The old lady clearly didn’t want to fuss over those details anymore, so she nodded. I whistled to the fat guy and followed the old lady into the living room.

The living room was quite large, a typical courtyard-style living room that hadn’t been renovated much. Everything looked old and somewhat plain, but those in the know would recognize that this courtyard was now worth a fortune in Beijing, especially if it had some significance. This house must have been renovated; otherwise, it wouldn’t be so sturdy. The renovation style was antique restoration, which would be costly, indicating that this house had a rich history. I even noticed some decorative elements on the doorframe that resembled those in the Forbidden City. The fat guy was in awe.

Without further ado, I was slightly surprised but didn’t have time to flatter. After taking my seat, I immediately laid out everything I had experienced.

Since the initial events had some details unrelated to the Huo family, the old lady grew a bit impatient but endured it. I spoke for a full hour, covering everything except the part about Huo Ling becoming a ghostly figure, and I kept it quite brief. After I finished, however, the old lady showed no reaction, her expression somewhat grim. I expected her to be very emotional, but to my surprise, her response was calm.

Perhaps she was stunned into silence, I thought to myself, and then continued, “Grandma, I originally planned to keep these matters to myself, as I didn’t know what would happen next. But seeing your reaction, I suddenly thought of my third uncle. Although I don’t know exactly who he is, I know his pain is real. So, I couldn’t bear to hide this from you. Your daughter is very likely no longer in this world. She was killed in Guangxi.”

The old lady remained silent, frowning at me.
“I believe that the person who returned from Guangxi is not your daughter. The reason you feel that way is because she is disguised, and when you were talking to her, she gave you the impression that there was someone else in her room because she is the one hiding in the room,” I said in one breath, stating my conclusion. “The person who returned from Guangxi has been hiding in her room. She is already an adult, and as long as she avoids any intimate or lengthy conversations with you, you won’t have the chance to recognize her,” I explained.
“Wait a minute!” The fat guy interjected, “Are you saying that the archaeological person from Xisha, named Huo Ling, is fake? She is not Huo Ling?”
I nodded, thinking that there must be more than just her; I had no idea how many people from the Guangxi Zhangjialou project were in the Xisha archaeological team, and even Wen Jin might be fake. Damn, this is a plot within a plot.
“Why do this?” The fat guy asked, puzzled. “What’s the purpose?”
“Clearly, there are two forces at play, and one force has replaced its people into the other force in this manner,” I said.
Uncle San was really lucky back then; he was on a real pirate ship with the one in the reconciliation plan.
However, the old lady ignored me, her expression very strange. After taking a sip of tea, she paused and then asked me, “Throughout the entire process you just described, there has been a person with a Qilin tattoo by your side. Where is that person now?”
I was taken aback, thinking, weren’t you worried about your daughter? Why suddenly ask about this? I couldn’t react immediately.
The fat guy, being his usual self, jumped in first and patted the sealed bottle beside him, saying, “Such a good thing, of course, he carries it with him. Isn’t this him? What, beautiful lady, do you want him to come out?”
I immediately bared my teeth at the fat guy, signaling him to mind the occasion.
Unexpectedly, when the old lady heard this, she seemed startled. She immediately looked up at the sealed bottle and stood up, walking straight in front of it.
“Is it him?”
We nodded. Looking at the old lady’s expression, I suddenly felt something was wrong, fearing she might shout something like, “Son, I miss you so much.”
The old lady trembled a bit and said to the sealed bottle, “Let me see your hand.” She grabbed the sealed bottle’s hand, and after just one glance, she stepped back a few paces, her face turning pale.
I thought to myself, this is not good; could there be some other grudge between them? To my surprise, the old lady suddenly knelt down, and even Huo Xiuxiu, who had been serving beside her, knelt down in confusion.