"Let’s go over there together and see if they need two translators," Grace Winslow whispered to Joanne Chase. "If they do, we can observe them. If we confirm they’re actually smugglers, we’ll secretly report them to the police."

Joanne Chase immediately grew tense and afraid. "Grace, isn’t this too risky? I-I’m scared."

"Don’t be afraid. Just stick with me, translate what needs translating, do what you need to do, and don’t worry about anything else. I’ll memorize their faces. Leave reporting them to the police to me." Grace Winslow squeezed Joanne Chase’s hand.

Joanne Chase took a deep breath. "Grace, is doing something like this worth it?"

"Of course it’s worth it. These people are stealing our cultural relics and selling them abroad, making who knows how much dirty money. Those things are our national treasures! How can we just let them ship them away?"

"We can’t be sure about them yet, but if they really are smugglers, we can’t just look the other way now that we know."

"Don’t worry, I’ll be very careful. I absolutely won’t reveal my identity," Grace Winslow said, patting Joanne Chase’s shoulder.

Joanne Chase took a few deep, deliberate breaths. "Okay, I understand. I’ll cooperate with you."

Grace Winslow took Joanne Chase by the hand and walked over, confidently introducing herself in English.

Her spoken English was excellent now, with a pure Valorian accent that left the foreigners across from her looking pleasantly surprised.

Grace Winslow quickly negotiated the price: twenty US Dollars an hour to guide them through Emberwood Market and help them shop. If they did a good job, there would be an additional tip.

You could tell at a glance that these people were not short on cash.

Grace Winslow didn’t hold back at all when she stated her price.

They all agreed.

Joanne Chase and Grace Winslow would both go along, for the same rate.

Although Joanne Chase was a bit scared, she plucked up her courage and started talking to them, wanting to showcase her own abilities.

Her accent wasn’t as pure as Grace Winslow’s, but it was still quite good.

The foreigners were also very satisfied.

The group hailed two taxis by the roadside and headed straight for Emberwood Market.

At this time, Emberwood Market was a massive antiques market. You could find all sorts of things there; some people even sold furniture taken from their old family homes.

It was Grace Winslow’s first time here, but she remembered her role and didn’t let her eyes wander. She simply guided the group and gave them detailed explanations.

Occasionally, someone would approach them to hawk their wares. Grace Winslow would look at the so-called antiques that were obviously fake at a glance and would still honestly describe them.

’They’re just trying to rip off foreigners anyway, which spares our own people. And it’s not like these guys are good people. Let them get swindled.’

As they walked, the group bought quite a few things.

Porcelain, snuff bottles, jade ornaments, and some copper coins—soon, everyone’s hands were full.

Finally, they entered a shop that specialized in antiques: the Gilded Pavilion.

Grace Winslow glanced up and memorized the name of the shop.

The owner here seemed to know these people. He could speak a few words of English, but not fluently.

Grace Winslow acted as the interpreter, helping them translate.

However, she didn’t quite understand some of the things they were saying. It sounded a bit like code—probably special jargon they used for their deals.

The group had split up after entering Emberwood Market; Joanne Chase had taken another party elsewhere.

Soon, they told Grace Winslow they didn’t need her to follow them anymore. They generously gave her two hundred US Dollars and told her to leave first.

’They must be about to discuss their deal in private,’ Grace Winslow knew.

She accepted the money without a change in expression, thanked them for their generosity, and left immediately.

Just as she was leaving, the owner of the Gilded Pavilion frowned at her retreating back and whispered to the man opposite him, "Can she be trusted? Should we..."

He made a throat-slitting gesture.

"No need," the lead foreigner said in very fluent Chinese. "She’s just a university student trying to earn some extra cash. If we make a move, we’ll just stir up trouble. Her language skills are quite good, and she didn’t try to cheat us at all along the way."

"Alright, then. The items are inside. Freshly dug up from the ground. All good stuff, from the Jin Dynasty, too." The owner of the Gilded Pavilion nodded and led the men farther into the shop.

Grace Winslow didn’t linger. After leaving the shop, she went directly to meet up with Joanne Chase.

Joanne Chase had also been sent away, given one hundred US Dollars.

The two met up and quickly recapped. Joanne Chase was nervous. "Grace, what do we do now?"

"No rush. Let’s walk around Emberwood Market and see if there are any other foreigners around. We can earn a little more cash. We’ll head home around five," Grace Winslow said to Joanne Chase in a low voice.

Joanne Chase let out a breath, took Grace Winslow’s hand, and the two of them went back into Emberwood Market.

They made a circuit but only ran into one stingy foreigner and didn’t earn a single cent. In the end, Grace Winslow took a liking to a jade pendant and spent twenty yuan to buy it. She also picked out a few other interesting trinkets, spending over two hundred yuan in total.

Joanne Chase felt a pang of regret watching her spend the money and couldn’t help but mutter, "Grace, didn’t you say most of this stuff is fake? Why are you still buying it?"

"If it’s fake, it’s fake. It’s not expensive, and it’s fun to buy. If you see something you like, you should buy it too," Grace Winslow said with a dismissive wave.

’No wonder people love to come here treasure hunting. It really is kind of interesting.’

Everything looked so valuable to her that she couldn’t resist and ended up spending over two hundred.

’If a real expert came here, they’d probably spend even more.’

Joanne Chase shook her head. "I don’t see anything I like. Let’s just go back, it’s getting late."

Grace Winslow glanced at the time, nodded, and then took Joanne Chase’s hand as they left.

As they were leaving, they passed by the Gilded Pavilion just as the foreigners they had guided earlier were walking out.

Grace Winslow cheerfully pulled Joanne Chase along to greet them.

Seeing the things in Grace Winslow’s hands, William’s guard dropped completely. "Miss Winslow, you bought quite a lot. Find any good deals?"

Grace Winslow put on a frustrated expression. "Doesn’t seem like it. It’s all worthless stuff, and I spent a lot of money. You really need a good eye to find good things here. I just don’t have the talent for it."

"Are you heading back now? Do you need help hailing a taxi?"

"That would be a great help. Thank you for your hard work today," William said with a smile and a nod.

Grace Winslow led them to the roadside. There were many rickshaws and taxis available.

Grace Winslow hailed two taxis for them, gave the drivers the address, negotiated the fares, and then saw William and his group off into the cars.

William was indeed generous, giving her a ten-yuan tip. Grace Winslow accepted it cheerfully and waved them goodbye.

After they had gone, the smile vanished from her face. She grabbed Joanne Chase and hailed a rickshaw to go home.

The rickshaw puller glanced behind them and whispered a warning, "Ladies, it looks like someone’s following you."

Grace Winslow raised an eyebrow. "To Crestwood University, sir."

The driver gave a knowing smile and started pulling the rickshaw even faster.

He didn’t stop until they reached Crestwood University, where he let them down.

Grace Winslow paid him, thanked him, and pulled Joanne Chase onto the campus.

The person tailing them watched as they entered Crestwood University. After waiting outside all night without seeing them emerge, he finally turned and left.