Ning County, Province M.

When Qi Yun and his group arrived here, it was already afternoon.

Since the first meeting with Yao Yuzhong didn't go smoothly, Qi Yun decided to take a different approach and investigate his hometown to see if he could find a breakthrough.

Ning County is a small industrial town, with chimneys standing tall and a faint scent of coal smoke lingering in the air. Old factories and newly built residential buildings are interspersed along the streets.

Yao Yuzhong's hometown is in the outskirts, at Yaojiawa. As the car left the city, the road gradually became bumpy.

Qi Yun looked out towards the distant hills, recalling the dossier on Yao Yuzhong in his mind.

His father was once the village's feng shui master. Whether building a house or handling weddings and funerals, everyone relied on Old Yao for choosing auspicious dates.

Calling him a feng shui master was perhaps overstating it, as his skills relied on an old almanac and his smooth-talking, which made him a respected figure in the village.

That old almanac also became the key to Yao Yuzhong entering the tomb raiding business.

As a child, with no entertainment options available and no novels like today, Yao Yuzhong often flipped through his father's almanac, dreaming of becoming a feng shui master someday.

Later, as he grew older, he made a living weaving mats, selling shoes, and doing hard labor at a brick kiln. But with his ambitious nature, Yao Yuzhong was unwilling to let his life slip away like this.

By chance, he met a Tomb Raider from a neighboring village, and thus joined their ranks.

Once in the business, Yao Yuzhong took on menial and exhausting side jobs, receiving the smallest share of money each time—just enough to scrape by while risking his neck.

After nearly two years of this life, his frustration grew until he decided to leave.

Back home, he frequently flipped through his father's almanac, and a new idea took root in his mind.

"Feng shui + tomb raiding, is there any potential?"

Back then, there was no internet, and even having a TV at home was rare, unlike the ease of acquiring knowledge now.

Driven by this idea, Yao Yuzhong went to great lengths to learn professional knowledge at museums and read extensively on feng shui, studying diligently for thirty years. Through practical experience with over two hundred ancient tombs, he ultimately earned his reputation as the First Man Beyond the Pass...

With such determination, he likely could have succeeded in any other field as well...

As the car drove into Yaojiawa, the sun was already setting in the west.

Under the old tree at the village entrance, a few toothless old men were chatting away. Seeing a foreign vehicle approaching, they all cast curious glances.

Qi Yun asked Xiao Wu to stop the car and walked over straightaway.

"Sir, I'm asking about something. Is Yao Yuzhong's house here?"

The old men exchanged glances, their eyes revealing perplexity.

An elderly man with gray hair took the cigarette offered by Qi Yun and slowly said, "You're looking for Yao Yuzhong? Isn't he already inside? What are you here for?"

"We're his old friends, just checking if he has any relatives left here." Qi Yun said, half-truthfully.

Mentioning Yao Yuzhong, the old man sighed, "Such a pity about that lad. Back in the day, Old Yao was so upright, who would've thought his son would stray, profiting from digging up ancestors' graves, and ended up taking a big fall."

"Exactly! I watched him grow up from a kid..."

The group started recalling Yao Yuzhong's past.

That's how villages are; good deeds don't travel far, but bad news does.

The old men, chatting one after another, even brought up childhood tales like Yao Yuzhong stealing chickens from someone's house, filled with an "I always knew he'd go astray" sentiment.

Qi Yun listened with a frown, noticing that as they lit the cigarettes he had given them, they thoroughly ignored him and enjoyed their conversation. Helplessly, he interrupted, "Sir, does anyone still live at his place now?"

"No." The old man shook his head, "Old Yao passed away a year after he was taken away, and his daughter handled the funeral before marrying into the city. She hasn't returned for years."

"His old house is by the brick kiln at the village's east end. You can go see it if you'd like."

Qi Yun thought for a moment and instructed Brother Quan to take a look, then continued asking the elder, "Do you know where his daughter got married?"

The old man scratched his head, recalling, "Seems like she went out of town, said she opened a small restaurant, but what's it called..."

....

Nighttime, a small restaurant by the county town's highway.

Qi Yun stepped out of the car and glanced at the sign, half-covered in dust, and walked inside.

The first floor was empty, with a few tables scattered about, while the cluttered cashier counter had shelves stocked with instant noodles and beer.

"Boss!" After scanning around, Qi Yun shouted. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

No response.

"Anyone here?"

"Boss!"

"Coming, coming, who is it?" An impatient voice answered from the stairs, and a middle-aged man with a protruding belly descended from the second floor.

"Ha, we're here to eat." Qi Yun replied while discreetly sizing up the man.

Normally, when a customer enters, as the owner, you might not be overly enthusiastic, but you'd at least greet them.

But this middle-aged man showed no hint of hospitality, his eyelids drooping, as he pointed to a makeshift menu on the wall, "Look for yourself, can't do anything complex, no stews, just quick fries."

Following his gesture, Qi Yun looked over and almost felt like he'd stumbled into a shady joint.

The cheapest shredded potatoes cost 28 RMB per plate!

Stir-fried chili pork is even 40 RMB!