Chapter 76: Secrets (1)

It was 2:00 a.m. The quiet Miao village of Heiyan was like a sleeping giant. The deep darkness seemed to swallow people up, but it was also eerie and quiet.

I laughed at myself, not knowing if it was because I was about to take a risk that I had this fear of scaring myself.

Before leaving, I went to see Huigen. The little brat was sleeping very badly, kicking the quilt off the ground. After helping him cover the quilt, I left a note next to Huigen’s pillow, explaining the location of the will. I hope I won’t need it.

I carefully walked through the woods, hiding my tracks carefully in the shadows between the trees. Those responsible for the night watch seemed to be very tired late at night, and one by one they were absent-minded. Some were already dozing off. No wonder Gao Ning would choose this time.

It took me more than 20 minutes to reach the cliff, which was only a 10-minute walk away. The biggest reason was that I didn’t want to be seen.

When I arrived at the destination, I looked around, but Gao Ning was not there. I looked at the time, it was a little after 2:50, a few minutes before the agreed time, so I was happy to rest.

At 3 o’clock, Gao Ning did not arrive. After waiting patiently for another five minutes, I finally heard the sound of footsteps coming from the other side of the grove. When I looked back, who was it but Gao Ning?

Gao Ning arrived at the place and invited me to hide with him on a large rock by the cliff. He lit a cigarette and, after waiting for his breathing to calm down a little, whispered to me, “I’m late. I need to avoid other people’s eyes and ears.”

I nodded in understanding and then asked Gao Ning, “What secret can’t you tell me?”

Gao Ning looked around carefully, then whispered in my ear, “I can’t explain it clearly. If you and I go there in person, you’ll understand. If you can get back before 10 o’clock tomorrow morning, you should be fine. Then Boqie won’t find out that you’re missing.”

I was silent and did not answer, secretly surprised that Gao Ning had such an extraordinary ability to observe. Yes, in the morning, no one would come to my room except for a maid who delivered breakfast.

Because of the blood tests, I have been sleeping most mornings. Hui Gen usually gets breakfast, and if I’m not there, he won’t bother to call me.

At around 10 a.m., two black Miao men would usually come to check up on things, and that’s when I would usually get up.

I looked at the time and realized that there were still less than seven hours before the appointed time. I suddenly said to Gao Ning, “Will it be in time?”

“If everything goes well, we’ll have time. This time, nothing will happen. We’re just going to take you around to get you familiar with the environment. Next time, we’ll take action.” Gao Ning’s face had an inexplicable excitement.

I looked at Gao Ning’s face and always felt that this guy had a lot of secrets. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t tell me, and I had no way of knowing.Taoist priest

I and Gao Ning were lying on the ground of the ancestral hall, looking at the cemetery not far away, waiting silently.

The ancestral hall is also a stilted building, so Gao Ning and I can lie down underneath it. I have never been here before because this is an absolute forbidden area for my “mobile blood bank.”

What I didn’t expect was that there was a graveyard behind the ancestral hall.

Gao Ning seemed to be very familiar with this place. I originally thought it would be difficult to get here, but I didn’t expect Gao Ning to take me on a 78,000-mile journey here in less than 20 minutes, and he also avoided people’s eyes and ears.

“You’re amazing, you can find such a secret route?” I whispered in Gao Ning’s ear.

“Do you think I came here after three years in this village and paid such a high price just to come here for nothing?” Gao Ning said in a low voice.

“Is this where you wanted to bring me?” I was puzzled. He had planned this operation for so long, and now he was just going to bring me to the bottom of the ancestral hall to lie down and look at this graveyard?

“Don’t worry, there’s not much time left.” Gao Ning took a careful look at his watch. The hands were luminous, and it was only a few minutes before 4 a.m.

It was very uncomfortable to be led around by the nose without knowing anything, but I had already come this far, so what else could I say? I could only follow Gao Ning and wait quietly.

At around 4:00 a.m., the four Hmu men who had been guarding the cemetery suddenly left. I was confused and didn’t know what was going on, but Gao Ning pulled me by the arm and whispered, “Hurry, in less than ten minutes, another group of people will come.”

I was surprised. If it was a shift change, why did they leave without changing positions, and why did a group of people leave and a group of people come? And what is there to guard in this broken graveyard?

No doubt, Gao Ning would not explain to me at this time, and I would not be stupid enough to ask. I just followed Gao Ning behind me and quickly climbed towards the cemetery.

After climbing over the fence, we could walk with our backs bent. Gao Ning was walking between the graves, and I followed behind. Suddenly, I stared at a tombstone and froze.

Because I saw that the tombstone was inscribed with the Chinese characters Qiaolan’s Tomb.

Which Qiaolan? Could it be the same person? I was confused. Gao Ning saw that I was stunned and hurriedly pulled me, then whispered, “I’ll explain to you later. Hurry up.”

I had to follow Gao Ning and walk quickly behind him. We walked all the way to a large, nameless, unmarked grave. Gao Ning stopped and then started digging in front of the grave.

I was shocked to see Gao Ning remove a clump of weeds, revealing a hole in the grave that was large enough for one person to climb in. Was Gao Ning taking me to rob a tomb?

Gao Ning would not answer my questions now, but climbed straight in. Seeing that I was not moving, he whispered to me in the grave, “Follow me, remember to move the grass over to cover it.”

I gritted my teeth and climbed in. Once inside, I discovered that after climbing through the tunnel, which was about one meter long, there was a space inside the tunnel that was similar to a cave. It was not small, just big enough for two people to turn around. It was not stuffy inside, and when I looked up, I discovered that there was a relatively hidden air vent.

“Go, cover the door.” Gao Ning squatted on the ground and, without knowing where he got it from, took out a small flashlight and held it in his mouth, then gave me vague instructions.

I turned around, climbed out again, pulled the tuft of grass over the hole, and then retreated. I thought to myself, no wonder this nameless grave is so big, it turns out there is another world inside.

What was surprising was that there were four other obvious holes in the cave floor, leading to who knows where.

Back in the cave, I saw Gao Ning fumbling around. I pointed to the four holes and asked Gao Ning, “Why don’t you go look inside these holes?”

Gao Ning took the flashlight from his mouth and said to me, “If you are interested in climbing into someone else’s coffin, then you can climb into these four holes and take a look. But the premise is that you don’t get lost.”

I was a little surprised. Are these four holes leading to the bottom of the tombs outside? Is the underground a labyrinth with many exits?

But Gao Ning was in a different kind of excitement at the moment, and it was impossible for him to answer my question. I wouldn’t ask him anything that would make me look stupid. At that moment, Gao Ning whispered a cheer: “I finally found it.”

I saw that he had found something that looked like a handle, buried in the soil. If you weren’t paying attention, you really wouldn’t find it. Gao Ning excitedly dug up the soil while explaining to me, “I’ve only been here twice, so it’s understandable that I can’t remember where the handle is.”

I nodded in understanding, and at this time, Gao Ning had completely pulled out the handle, and then said to me, “Brother, come over and give me a hand.”

I felt a vague excitement in my heart. I felt that this trip with Gao Ning might be able to unlock the secret of the Black Rock Miao Village, so I didn’t hesitate to walk forward and hold the handle with Gao Ning, and then moved it back with difficulty.

The handle was attached to what looked like a small stone door, and it was not light. Gao Ning said to me, “These Miao people are so cautious that it would be impossible for two strong men to pull this stone door.”

I puffed up my cheeks and pulled hard. Finally, the stone door began to slowly move backwards. Gao Ning and I looked at each other in surprise, and the two of us let out a dull and suppressed cry, then exerted ourselves at the same time, and the stone door was finally opened by us.

And under the stone door was a dark hole.