Chapter 25

Chapter 25

As expected, her question received no answer from Fu Xun.

He was again in that high-and-mighty posture he had on the summit of Laji Mountain, a hint of casual laziness in his demeanor, quietly appraising her.

Qu Yixian couldn’t hold back and sneered coldly: “Do you know? Right now, you really look like a petty man enjoying his moment of success.”

Fu Xun smiled, a cold, sharp smile with not a trace of warmth. “You’re the one who tricked me into the car, you’re the one who ambushed me from the trunk. I’m just acting in self-defense—how is that petty man’s triumph?”

He tightened his grip on Qu Yixian’s wrists, leaning half over her, his gaze flickering with a deadly chill. “Bold, aren’t you? Did Peng Shen teach you this?”

Qu Yixian gritted her teeth and glared: “What does he have to do with our personal grudge?”

“Personal grudge?” Fu Xun’s tone was icy calm. “What do I owe you?”

Finally, he found the right moment for reckoning: “You privately called me a foolish rich man and treated me like an ATM. I haven’t settled that with you, yet you have the nerve to talk about personal grudges?”

Qu Yixian felt guilty.

Strictly speaking, Fu Xun truly didn’t owe her anything.

Regarding Jiang Yuan, although she had found Fu Xun’s actions disgusting, the day he chased her out from the Star-Picking Tower to explain, most of her anger dissipated. In hindsight, she was willing to believe there was an underlying reason and consistency. Even if Fu Xun were morally at fault, the cost of the rescue to find Jiang Yuan, as he said, was enough to balance things out.

She really had no ground to hold a grudge.

——

Outside the car, another fierce wind blew.

A pile of tools in the corner was toppled by the wind, clattering lightly.

Soon, the thick glass door of the inn’s guard post was pushed open, and someone ran in, cursing, pausing at the inn’s entrance: “Who parked the car in front?”

The voice drifted in just past her ear. The next second, the wind carried it away.

Silence followed.

Qu Yixian’s mind cleared considerably. She suddenly realized something and looked at Fu Xun, right beside her, saying: “I think I’ve figured out your intention. Let me say it, and you tell me if I’m right.”

Fu Xun gave nothing away, just handed her a look, signaling her to speak.

“In early July in Dunhuang, you said you came for a treasure hunt. I initially guessed you were after Gobi jade or mineral resources. But then I overturned that hypothesis. If you were really here to mine or find Gobi jade, you wouldn’t have agreed to let me ride along, nor would you have gone back to Nanjiang the day after finding Xun Haichao.”

When Qu Yixian hitched a ride at Shaliang, she hadn’t recognized Fu Xun, nor did she know he was an investor in the Xinghui Rescue Team. So, to achieve the goal of continuing the rescue by hitching a ride, she had to trade his time and vehicle for her knowledge of the terrain.

After the matter with Xun Haichao concluded, Fu Xun didn’t rush to have her fulfill her promise. Instead, he spoke a lot of inexplicable words and then flew off back to Nanjiang.

At first, she had fallen into a misconception.

Fu Xun used Jiang Yuan as a breakthrough to try to pique her curiosity. This behavior was almost a replica of how Qu Yixian leveraged her advantage in the desert to gain something, so—she mistakenly thought Fu Xun wanted to make a deal with her. Moreover, in this “deal,” she was crucial.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have deliberately held back, patiently stalling with him for two months.

“You knew I cared about Jiang Yuan and that I never gave up searching for her all these years. So you wanted to use the information you had about her to bait me. If I hadn’t controlled myself and sought you out first… you would have held that leverage, drained my value, and then decided whether to graciously reveal those clues you knew.”

Although this deduction was similar to her initial reasoning, analyzing it revealed significant differences.

Fu Xun’s attitude toward her gradually shifted from assessment to observation.

From the start, he held the initiative. Even now, Qu Yixian was at a disadvantage, letting him manipulate the situation.

If she hadn’t instinctively sensed danger and been clueless, she wouldn’t have impulsively planned this entire scheme.

Now, she was trapped.

She regretted it bitterly.

Fu Xun curled his lips slightly, neither confirming nor denying.

She had started the conversation, and he wasn’t in a hurry to give a conclusion.

Qu Yixian continued observing his emotional changes. Seeing his expression gradually become intriguing, she knew her deduction was correct.

She relaxed, and her tone softened: “Let me guess—why didn’t you just come to me openly from the start?”

Qu Yixian recalled the only piece of key information Fu Xun revealed after getting in the car: “June 25th, you took a job. The passenger was male, twenty-eight, alias Xiang Xiaolong.”

After that line, she instinctively responded, “How do you know?” Within a few seconds, Fu Xun suddenly struck, reversing the balance of power and taking the initiative.

She didn’t know about the “hidden weapon,” but judging by Fu Xun’s confident posture, even knowing it was a trap, he was clearly capable of using that large white rat’s element of surprise to escape.

So from the start, he had noticed the flaws and tricks in the setup and was cooperating voluntarily. That could only mean—like her, Fu Xun was looking for a breakthrough to unravel the problem.

Hence, he played along with the plan, feigning being trapped, acting as the victim.

She lifted her eyelids and shot Fu Xun a glare.

Despicable!

Shameless!

Bastard!

“Done cursing?” Fu Xun suddenly spoke.

The closer he got, the lower and more resonant his voice became.

Qu Yixian was startled and involuntarily admitted, “Did I say it out loud?”

“No.” Fu Xun’s tone was calm, teasing her with evident interest. “Your eye rolls have become very expressive. I can tell exactly what you’re thinking just by looking.”

At this moment, even under his disguise, he was completely exposed.

Fu Xun stopped hiding. All the disguised and polished flaws were fully revealed in front of her.

“Not going to continue?” he asked.

Qu Yixian instinctively sensed he hadn’t finished speaking, so she didn’t respond.

As expected.

Fu Xun’s next sentence: “If you’re not going to say it, I’ll solve tonight’s problem in my own way.”

“Give you an example.”

He paused for a few seconds, then said, “You should know what I do.” Otherwise, she wouldn’t have dared to let Yuan Ye make such a big request and apply to him for a rescue helicopter.

Qu Yixian nodded in acknowledgment.

Fu Xun continued, “The profession of a cultural relic appraiser sounds pretty safe, right?”

Qu Yixian: “…” She hadn’t done it herself; how would she know?

“You deal with relics; they won’t bite you.” Fu Xun paused, tone shifting slightly. “But do you think I look like someone in that profession?”

Qu Yixian remembered the photo she saw on Weibo.

Fu Xun wore a shirt and trousers, rimless glasses—a look very much like a research professor.

But she couldn’t pass up the chance to fire back at him. She opened her mouth: “No, you look like a local thug collecting protection money.”

Fu Xun’s hand, holding her wrist, slid downward, gripping her wrist bone with slight force.

Qu Yixian suppressed the impulse to curse, glaring at him angrily and warning, “Enough. Make me mad, and we’re done. Don’t think I don’t know—you still need something from me.”

If Yuan Ye heard that, he wouldn’t dare.

But with Fu Xun, Qu Yixian worried it might backfire…

So she cleared her throat and offered him a step down: “Go on.”

Fu Xun let go, but he didn’t give Qu Yixian room to resist. He crossed her hands behind her back.

This position was much more comfortable than being pinned. Even spitting in his face while resisting seemed far more feasible.

Qu Yixian was quite satisfied.

“Ten years ago, someone hired me for an appraisal at a high price. On the way, a group of people who didn’t want me to show up blocked the car, threatening me with my father’s life. Guess what happened?” Fu Xun asked.

Qu Yixian had loved solving riddles as a child, though as an adult, opportunities were scarce. She thought for a few seconds and tentatively answered: “They wouldn’t kill you… so… maimed you?”

Fu Xun’s tone was calm, without a trace of emotion: “Later, he lost everything, nearly died.”

Alright!

Scaring her, huh?

Her eyebrows drooped; she sounded reluctant: “Fine, you ask.”

Fu Xun doubted her sudden obedience.

But in the cramped car, there was no one else besides him. Tonight, he had all the patience to pry the truth from her mouth.

“Still the same question as before,” Fu Xun said. “Do you know Xiang Xiaolong?”

Qu Yixian confirmed that Fu Xun’s motive was indeed Xiang Xiaolong.

Speaking of Xiang Xiaolong, Qu Yixian did have a deep impression of him.

June wasn’t the peak travel season in the northwest, but because of the Tibetan antelope migration in May in Kekexili, many tourists came hoping to witness the spectacle.

This surge would continue until the end of June, giving the northwest caravans a short rest period before the peak tourism season in July.

For personal reasons, Qu Yixian only took jobs to Kekexili from early May to the end of June every year.

This year, June 25th happened to be the first day she returned from Kekexili to Dunhuang for a break.

Four years ago, Jiang Yuan disappeared. She also broke ties with her parents and left home.

The caravan’s income from taking tourists every year was considerable, but for Qu Yixian, who hadn’t given up searching for Jiang Yuan, it was far from enough.

Most leaders of the Xinghui caravan only took jobs during the northwest peak season and rested during the off-season.

Qu Yixian was the exception.

Especially when contrasted with Yuan Ye’s lazy personality, working only sporadically and idle more than working, she was practically the model worker of the caravan.

Whether it was airport transfers or full-day city tours, she took every job with boundless energy.

Xiang Xiaolong was the only Dunhuang city charter job Qu Yixian took in June this year.

On the day he chartered the cruiser, he only went to three places.

These three locations were in the north, east, and south corners of Dunhuang. If there was any commonality, it was that all were antique appraisal and auction offices.

——

A line in Qu Yixian’s mind gradually became clear.

She lifted her eyes, the corner of her lips curling into a cocky smile: “Want to know?” As she spoke, she shook the wrist he was holding, flipping over with a daring swagger: “Let go.”

Fu Xun raised an eyebrow, expressionless, meeting her gaze.

His eyes were dark and deep, like an abyss with no bottom.

Qu Yixian saw he didn’t move and was displeased: “You’d better be polite to me, or I won’t say a word.”

Fu Xun’s gaze darkened slightly, and he commented dryly: “Truly a petty man enjoying his moment of success.”