The Lost Tomb Vol. 7

Chapter 15: Strange Description

"I have very strong instincts when it comes to many things in this industry. The building she drew... when I looked at it, I felt as if something was wrong. It had an odd shape, looked very uncomfortable, and had an evil air." The old woman continued, "I thought she was crazy about the project, so at that time, I had a good talk with her. But when I talked with her, I felt as if something was off and that she was behaving abnormally. It's a hard feeling to describe. She was nervous and not particularly focused. I later described her behavior at that time to others, and a friend summed up a description that made me feel very much like this was the case: 'It seems like another person is hiding in her room, and she doesn't want me to find out.'" The old woman took a sip of tea.

This was a very strange description. We usually used words like "nervous," "anxious," and "inattentive" to describe a strange state, but this description was very specific.

"Was she hiding her boyfriend in her room?" I couldn't help but ask. At that time, Granny Huo, the mother of an adolescent girl, like all mothers, was very concerned about her daughter's changes. I could understand how she must have felt.

"Our compound isn't accessible to ordinary people. If she was hiding someone in her room, we would definitely find out. Moreover, when she went out, I went in her room more than once. It would be obvious if there was anyone hiding inside. I was very worried and wanted to know what caused the change, so I sent someone to follow her. But it was at this time that she never came back. After she left home, she hasn't been seen since."

"Is she missing?"

The old lady sighed deeply and nodded before continuing: "In order to find her, I started sending my own people to investigate. I checked through the Zhang Jialou archaeological project in those days, but I only found that the project was very secretive and didn't look like it was conducting ordinary archaeological activities. Even with my connections, I couldn't get the information smoothly. And my daughter suddenly left no traces behind, as if she had never existed in this world. I spent countless efforts and got nothing. I don't know what happened after they went to Guangxi." She paused. "Over the years, I've been collecting anything related to this project. For more than twenty years, I've collected these drawings from the market one by one, up until this seventh one. I only hope to use these drawings to find this building and see what happened to them in my lifetime."

Looking at her expression, I immediately remembered Uncle Three's expression when he told me about Wen-Jin. My premonition was getting stronger and stronger, and I felt that things were suddenly connected. My mind began to get a little confused, but it wasn't normal confusion. It was just that everything was suddenly connected and I was sort of overwhelmed.

"Being sad... in fact, I'm used to it. I just want an answer before my old bones are buried. I just want to know whether she's dead, or if she's alive, how she's doing. Otherwise, I definitely won't close my eyes." She said. "So, it's not about the money, kid. Do you understand?"

I subconsciously nodded, and she made a gesture to show me out: "You can take your friends away. As your grandfather's friend, I'll give you a piece of advice. During this period of time, you'd better leave the country. I'll have to ask you to keep your word and send your Yangshi Lei to me."

I nodded, but I didn't want to go. I suddenly found that I had more questions that I needed answers to. Of course, now I had to test my ideas, so I asked, "Madam, is the place where they found the building in Banai, Guangxi?"

The old woman looked at me and her face changed: "Have you heard of that project?"

"Actually, I just came back from Guangxi." I said, "I met some strange things there that involved an archaeological team and a strange building."