The old man's words directly stumped Xiao Feng.

He understood the idea of scouting, but what was with the pot setting?

At this moment, Zhao Guo'an, who had been adventuring with his master since childhood, came over and explained in a low voice, "Pot setting is black market lingo, meaning setting up a team to raid tombs. He's mistaking us for fellow tomb raiders."

Only then did Xiao Feng realize that the old man was asking if they had come as a group to scout.

In fact, it's not that he was ignorant, but he had never encountered people from the tomb raiding industry. Moreover, this business is divided into northern and southern schools, and the slang varies by region. If you're not studying it, you simply won't understand.

Given Jiangcheng's proximity to here, otherwise Zhao Guo'an might not have known this black market term either.

"Do we look like people from your industry?" Xiao Feng asked the old man.

The old man smiled, as if certain that they were there to raid tombs, and confidently revealed his identity, "Young man, you must have heard of my reputation as Old Nine. As a senior, let me advise you, this place is not something you kids can mess with."

Xiao Feng pondered for a while and asked, "Do you have nine grandfathers?"

"..." Old Nine was rendered speechless.

After some explanation, Xiao Feng understood that Old Nine was the old man's alias in the underworld; back in the day, he was quite famous in this area, and several major tomb thefts in the vicinity were more or less related to him.

He was either asked to oversee things or consulted for his opinions, making him a legendary figure.

Of course, Xiao Feng didn't think there was anything respectable about such a legend—making a fortune by digging up other people's ancestral graves is lacking in virtue.

"I heard you say something about there really being big tombs around here?" Xiao Feng asked curiously.

Old Nine sneered, "Since you're not in this business, there's no need to know so much. Young people's curiosity shouldn't be too strong; it can easily bring trouble."

Xiao Feng was quite annoyed by this presumptuous elder's speaking style and stopped being so polite, asking instead, "Considering Jiuyou Town's re-planning, shouldn't abnormalities have been discovered during construction?"

"The situation here is complex, not something that can be explained in a few words. Let's just say, it's not a tomb." Old Nine replied vaguely and refused to say more, acting as though he wouldn't reveal another word no matter how much one tried to pry.

However, Xiao Feng and Zhao Guo'an didn't mind much, since their purpose wasn't tomb raiding anyway. Even if they knew where the tomb was, would they actually go and act as tomb robbers?

Soon, a little girl walked up to Xiao Feng with a serious expression, shaking her head and said, "Yueyue's information is very limited. I asked her to describe the appearance of the person who gave her the flower, and she only said it was an old woman with a lot of spots on her face, looking rather scary.

Xiao Feng brother, do you know this person?"

Xiao Feng shook his head, wondering where he would know her from. Devil's Concentration Camp had all kinds of people, including many foreigners. How could he possibly remember them all?

Wait!

Like realizing something, Xiao Feng suddenly looked at Old Nine sitting on the chair. This old fellow wasn't a saint, and it could very well be that the person who gave the girl the flower was looking for him.

Old Nine apparently read Xiao Feng's expression and his face changed immediately. His eyes flickered, as if recalling possible persons who might be after him.

Xiao Feng gathered everyone together to give brief instructions. After all, it's better to be safe than sorry. In the absence of knowing whom the old woman was after, they had to prepare for the worst and not disregard any details.

After giving instructions, Xiao Feng signaled to Lin Zhiyan with a glance, "Pay the bill."

Lin Zhiyan wasn't strongly opposed to Xiao Feng using her as a mobile wallet because she had promised to give him all her wealth in exchange for his agreement to save her sister.

Moreover, half of the purpose of this trip was due to her sister, so Lin Zhiyan naturally had no complaints.

...

Leaving the inn, it was already four-thirty in the afternoon.

One key feature of winter is short days and long nights, and it was getting dark quickly. Xiao Feng stopped two taxis and showed the drivers the navigation, then the group went directly to Huangshu Village without delay.

This was Xiao Feng's personality: finish what needs to be done properly, and then it doesn't matter if they stay and play for a few more days.

About ten minutes later, they arrived at Huangshu Village, finding it entirely different from the imagined poverty-stricken countryside.

Visible were rows of individual two-story houses neatly arranged, with a sign at the village entrance saying "Huangshu Village People Welcome You," appearing quite prosperous.

"Seems like the descendants of the legendary doctor are living well," Su Yuzhuo said, sitting in the wheelchair, pushed by Fujiwara Keiaki.

Xiao Feng chuckled, pointing at Zhao Guo'an, "Just look at him and you should know, there's nothing strange about it. Even those who half-trick and half-deceive can do well, let alone the descendants of a skilled doctor."

"Can you not mention me?" Zhao Guo'an looked angrily, what did he mean by half-trick and half-deceive, really thinking no medical skills were needed for treating people, just bluffing?

Xiao Feng's answer was straightforward, "No, I can't!"

Zhao Guo'an snorted, unwilling to argue with Xiao Feng, or perhaps he had become accustomed to such banter, developing natural immunity.

Having found the place, the next step was simple: just ask someone in the village. Since they're descendants of a legendary doctor, they're unlikely to be unrecognized.

At that moment, a family of three walked in from the village entrance, chatting happily.

"I'll go ask for directions," the little girl volunteered.

Xiao Feng stopped her and looked at Lu Yao, "Yaoyao, you go."

"Me?" Lu Yao was a bit surprised but soon understood Xiao Feng's intention—it was to develop her social skills.

Though Lu Yao wasn't as withdrawn as a severely internet-addicted teen, hesitant or shy, speaking confidently and effectively are entirely different concepts.

Just as the same words can produce different effects when spoken by different people, the influences affecting the outcome include tone, demeanor, and other factors, which require personal experience and observation.

The little girl naturally had advantages in this aspect and didn't need further development, whereas Lu Yao was lacking at it.

"Excuse me, are you residents of this village?" Lu Yao asked politely.

The woman tucked her hair behind her ear and nodded with a smile, "Do you need anything?"

"Do you know a person named Sun Shijie?" Lu Yao continued courteously, adding, "He's a Chinese medicine practitioner, very skilled."

"Sun Shijie?" The man furrowed his brow, looking at his wife, "Have you heard of this person?"

The woman shook her head and said to Lu Yao, "The person you're looking for might be in the old village. This is the new village, or you could ask someone older."

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