The day’s gathering came to an end, and everyone bid farewell, returning to their respective homes.
Rong Song had originally planned to report the incident to the Anomaly Suppression Office, but since he had run into Du Huanzhen, he no longer needed to make the trip.
As for Rong Song, he naturally stayed at Lu Zheng’s home.
…
“Let me experience Brother Lu’s chess skills!”
…
“Brother Lu, I’m off to continue my travels and won’t stay long in Tonglin County!”
…
Lu Zheng accompanied Rong Song in playing chess, discussing the Dao, and sightseeing. He also took him to Shaotong Mountain for mutual visits between Daoist sects.
Rong Song stayed for seven or eight days before taking his leave to continue his travels.
…
“Finally gone…”
Lu Zheng let out a long sigh. Noticing it was still early, he returned to his house and crossed over to the modern world.
In recent days, his time in the modern world had been brief, appearing and disappearing like a dragon’s head. He hadn’t even had a proper meal with Lin Wan. Today, with Rong Song gone and it being a Friday, he decided to make plans.
“Tonight, I’ll pick you up. Shall we watch a movie and grab dinner?”
“Great, great!” Lin Wan’s voice was full of excitement, followed by teasing sounds from the other end of the phone.
The next moment, a series of “tap tap tap” footsteps echoed, and Lin Wan’s soft voice came through. “When are you coming? Where are we eating tonight?”
“You’re off work already? Can you just leave your post anytime now?” Lu Zheng asked curiously.
“Hehe, I had an off-site task today and just got back, so… giggle…” Lin Wan laughed quietly. “Guess what my task was about?”
“How would I kn—” Lu Zheng paused, his eyes shifting. “Could it be that the batch of artefacts from last time has been returned?”
“How did you guess so accurately!” Lin Wan was quite surprised.
“If you’re asking me to guess, it must be related to me. And since it’s your work and connected to me, what else could it be besides that case?”
“Hehe, clever you,” Lin Wan said with a smile. “The items have been returned. Since I was involved in the case, I attended the handover ceremony today. The artefacts have been transferred from customs to the Zhejiang Cultural Heritage Bureau. They’re probably on their way back to Hangzhou now.”
Lu Zheng nodded. “Good to know they’re back.”
“And it’s not just one batch. This was Allen Company’s stock, but there are also the artefacts they sold, which have transaction records. More will be tracked down gradually, with the embassy following up. There’s still more to come.”
Lu Zheng pursed his lips. “Those people are all high-profile collectors and elites. Getting them to hand over the artefacts won’t be easy.”
“That depends on the Beacon Country’s police, plus the pressure we’re applying.”
“Is there pressure?”
“Of course. Many companies or relatives with business ties to them have interests in our country. They have no reason to anger us over some artefact collections and risk ending up on our blacklist,” Lin Wan said. “If there’s no evidence, they can play dumb. But once evidence is found, if they dare to keep pretending, they’ll pay a price.”
Lu Zheng nodded. “Alright, keep an eye on it. If anyone tries to play dumb, let me know.”
On the other end of the phone, seeing Lu Zheng’s bold attitude, Lin Wan’s lips curled into a smile. “Okay, I’ll follow up. Maybe we’ll even get to travel to Beacon Country again.”
At that moment, Lin Wan suddenly remembered something. “There’s something you might not know since you don’t go online much.”
“What’s that?”
“The San Miguel treasure has been revealed.”
“Oh? It’s out?”
“Yeah, Grant leaked the news himself,” Lin Wan said. “He registered an offshore company in a Pacific island nation to handle it, avoiding Beacon Country’s taxes while paying a small protection fee to the state government to fend off Spain’s official claims.”
“Tch, what a talent. Beacon Country is far more shameless than us, perfect for handling this,” Lu Zheng remarked.
“Exactly,” Lin Wan laughed. “I got some internal info. Grant’s working with Sotheby’s to hold a San Miguel treasure auction this autumn, inviting major Western tycoons and collectors. The auction will last a whole week, with over ten thousand items already compiled into an electronic catalogue, freely browsable online.”
“Keeping up with the times, huh?”
“It’s practically a carnival. After all, it’s a historically famous treasure. Experts estimate the total auction turnover will exceed one billion USD.”
“Damn, we’re rich then?”
“You’re rich.”
“What’s mine is yours, right?” Lu Zheng chuckled. “We’ve got to eat something fancy tonight to celebrate.”
“Where are we eating?”
“Wherever’s expensive!” Lu Zheng declared firmly. “Let me check, I’ll let you know soon.”
“Alright,” Lin Wan laughed. “I’m hanging up. Come pick me up.”
“Got it!”
Lu Zheng hung up, changed clothes, and searched for a restaurant on a review site, finding the most expensive private dining venue and calling to book.
No tables available…
They required reservations three days in advance…
“Damn it!” Lu Zheng hung up helplessly and searched again, finally finding a restaurant that didn’t require days of advance booking.
Wangjiang Pavilion.
Serving Chinese and Western cuisine with signature dishes, using premium ingredients, defined by one word.
Expensive!
No, fresh, exquisite, unique!
How many words was that?
…
Having reserved a table, Lu Zheng left his neighbourhood, hailed a taxi, and headed to Lin Wan’s workplace.
What? Go invisible? Fly?
Heh, it’s the new century. With taxis so convenient, why fly? Got nothing better to do?
Then…
Lu Zheng got stuck in traffic…
“It’s only four in the afternoon. Why is it so jammed?” Lu Zheng groaned.
“Chill, young man. It’s Friday, and the Dragon Boat Festival three-day holiday is coming up. People taking half a day off early is normal,” the driver said nonchalantly, used to traffic since it kept the meter running.
Lu Zheng rolled his eyes.
I can fly, and I’m stuck in traffic?
His phone rang. Lin Wan.
“Where are you? I’m off work and at the entrance,” she said.
“I’m stuck in traffic,” Lu Zheng replied.
“You’re… pfft, haha… you’re stuck in traffic… hehe… traffic?”
Lu Zheng sighed, glanced at the taxi meter, paid the driver, and got out.
“Young man, it’s still far from your destination, and it’s hard to get a cab now,” the driver said, showing concern.
Lu Zheng nodded. “I know.”
Then, he started running!
“Good grief, possessed by Bolt, huh? The power of love is something else.”
The driver shook his head, then his phone pinged with a new ride request.
“Man, I love traffic. More rides, more jams, and I can delay going home and avoid my ‘taxes’ for a bit.”
