Naming Technique of the Night

Chapter 551 345. Seeing Yang Yang Again

Countdown 103:00:00.

Five oʼclock in the evening.

After the convoy left the boundaries of City 18, the road began to become rugged; a month had passed, yet the road was still unrepaired.

Fortunately, the old manʼs SUV had excellent suspension, making the bumpy road not much of a problem.

In contrast, the Freemasonryʼs convoy was different; after traveling just over forty kilometers, some started to have flat tires.

These students were impressive, not only in intelligence but also in practical skills. A group of them set up jacks and carried tools for vehicle repair, even able to handle tire repairs on their own.

Many people think of nerds when they imagine top students, but in this era of the Outer World, most top students possess a particular skill, and their ability to think and act is also very strong.

Qing Chen asked the old man out of curiosity, ”Itʼs strange, why is the tire technology in the Inner World almost the same as in the Outer World? Havenʼt they developed better materials that donʼt burst, for example?”

The old man laughed, ”If everyone installed indestructible tires, then when the time comes, everyone would buy second-hand ones. Who would buy new ones? Doing business that way, how would the consortiums make money? The Five Major Consortiums of the Federation control the patents for all consumables. Certain things that could affect the foundation of the industry have their patents bought and buried. After all, theyʼve made enough money; industrial change might bring about new uncertainties—itʼs sufficient if only the military can use the latest stuff.”

”So thatʼs how it is,” Qing Chen thought to himself; perhaps some things in the Federal Groupʼs military had already surpassed the times.

This was one of the downsides of the consortiums controlling the world; they would guide human development in a profitable but regressive direction. The path humanity took was carefully designed, not one that humans should naturally follow.

”By the way, have you dealt with this Shadow before?” Qing Chen asked curiously. ”What kind of person is he?”

The old man said, ”Qingʼs Shadow is the Family Headʼs ʼhired gun,ʼ all the dirty work must be done by the Shadow. People in this position are usually despised by both gods and men. Many Shadows in the past were like this. When they got old, they could only hide in Ginkgo Manor in City 10 owned by Qingʼs Family to avoid assassination. But then, itʼs just like being placed under house arrest there.”

The old man continued, ”For example, the previous Shadow pretended to travel to meditate, which is very likely to have changed his appearance and name, hiding somewhere to spend his old age. But it was strange for this Shadow; it seemed he was thinking of ways to avoid this fate even before becoming a Shadow. To this day, even no one knows who he really is.”

Qing Chen said, ”Is he not one of the last three survivals?”

The old man said meaningfully in a soft voice, ”Who said the Shadow has to be one of the living in the end?”

Qing Chen was stunned. Yes, in everyoneʼs view, the ninth Shadow candidate had already died in Prison 18, but had he?

No.

The old man continued, ”This current Shadow hasnʼt really done anything to outrage both heaven and man. It seems like Qingʼs Family is keeping a low profile; many things have turned clandestine and are hard to find out. Just like this time Qingʼs Family sent supplies to the wilderness, they had been sending for seven years before others knew about it, and you also donʼt know what exactly heʼs up to.”

Qing Chen mentally added, the other party was actually making deals with the Knight. Now thinking about it, Uncle Li Dongʼs friends might have been saved by that Shadow, but now he could not know the details of the transaction between the Shadow and Uncle Li Dong.

The old man chuckled, ”I always feel that this generationʼs Shadow has a bit of the spirit of Qingʼs ancestors. Jindai once said he is ʼQing Zhenʼ reincarnated. However, itʼs said that his life wonʼt be much longer than mine, only a few years more.”

Qing Zhen, that is, the ancestor of the ʼNew Qingʼs Familyʼ in the new human civilization era.

In conclusion, the old man said, ”You must be careful when dealing with such a person. This clever man has been lurking for over a decade; when he re-enters the stage, itʼs likely that everyone will be shocked.”

At night, Guo Huchan led the convoy to camp. While setting up the tents, the old man called over a few female students to tell stories.

He looked at Qing Chenʼs unflustered expression, then pointed at Qing Chen and said with a smile to the girls, ”What do you think of my grandson here? He doesnʼt have a partner yet, why donʼt you consider dating him? He is upright and of good character. Our family is very wealthy; when Iʼm gone, a lot of properties will be left to him. Iʼm not saying you should chase money, but isnʼt it nice to find a well-off family?”

The female students cautiously glanced at Qing Chen, who currently looked like Zard, so he really wasnʼt considered handsome, and he had been somewhat reticent and unsociable throughout the journey.

And then, Jiang Yichen had told them last night that this Qing Zade was very dangerous and probably had killed quite a few people.

By comparison, they thought Li Ke and Hu Xiaoniu seemed quite nice.

Qing Chen sat next to the old man and asked quietly, ”What are you trying to do?”

The old man chuckled heartily, ”Youʼre not getting any younger; back at your age, I already had...never mind, letʼs not talk about past braveries.”

”You donʼt need to worry about that, take care of yourself,” Qing Chen said helplessly.

The old man muttered softly, ”You need to get married soon, so Chang Qing wonʼt keep bothering you.”

Qing Chen: ”What are you talking about? She and I are just friends.”

Then, Qing Chen turned to the female students and said, ”Donʼt listen to my grandfatherʼs nonsense; I still have tens of millions in loans, and the house in the Microcosm Community was also bought on mortgage, paid just 10% down.”

The female students were all baffled, ”How did you get these tens of millions in loans?”

Qing Chen sighed, ”Iʼd like to know that too.”

However, the old man suddenly said softly, ”You donʼt have to worry about the loan.”

”Hmm?” Qing Chen was puzzled.

”I had Li Yunjing help you pay it off,” the old man whispered, ”I must give you something before leaving. Lao Qi can give you what I cannot, I am too poor to give anything but money.”

”I think the Heartless Bronze Bell is quite good,” Qing Chen said.

”When facing a Taboo, canʼt you act like a human for once?” the old man grumbled. ”Yun Shou isnʼt a Cultivator; the Heartless Bronze Bell must be kept to protect him.”

”Okay then,” Qing Chen said.

The old man continued, ”Also, City 10 has prepared two properties and a vehicle for you in the third district. That way, when you go to City 10, youʼll have a place to stay. Our Li Familyʼs children shouldnʼt become a laughingstock outside... Donʼt worry, I bought it all with my private funds, unlike your master.”

Qing Chen fell silent. Indeed, the old man truly considered him a junior.

But suddenly, he wondered if his master getting him to borrow money to buy things and the old man paying off his debts was a scheme they had arranged together, each trying to move him once?

Qing Chen thought about how he now was free of debt, how he could squander his money in the bank account freely and had two new properties, and his mood instantly cheered up.

”But why not buy properties in City 18 instead of City 10?” Qing Chen asked puzzledly.

”Thatʼs the political center of the Federation; youʼll have to go there sooner or later,” the old man confidently said.

Just then, Qing Chen turned to look around only to see a figure stealthily approaching where everyoneʼs vehicles were parked.

Wait, wasnʼt that Jiang Yichenʼs silhouette?

He saw the figure get into a vehicle, gently close the door, then suddenly turn on the headlights and drive off into the distance with roaring engines.

Qing Chen was stunned. He had said he would test Jiang Yichen to see if the man felt guilty.

But this was too guilty.

He had only let Hu Xiaoniu spread a little rumor and the man had fled instantly.

At this moment, he was quite certain that this guy was Lu Ya; the cautiousness he displayed when he had been at the rooftop of the grand hotel was identical to that of the masked man.

Everyone in the camp stood up and silently watched the SUV drive away.

Qi Duo looked toward Nan Gengchen, ”Should we chase him?”

”Letʼs not,” Nan Gengchen shook his head, ”It seems Hu Xiaoniu was right; this Jiang Yichen indeed has some issues. We just tried to probe him a little bit and it scared him off. Letʼs try to locate him in the Outer World and at the very least, get the money for the SUV back; he should not be lacking money in the Outer World.”

Qi Duo nodded, ”So, we can rely on Hu Xiaoniuʼs words for now?”

”Yeah, for the time being,” Nan Gengchen nodded, ”Letʼs seize opportunities to enhance our relationship on the road; after returning to the Outer World, we also need to think about how to recruit both him and that student Qing Chen into Freemasonry.”

”What about Nan Gengchen and Zhang Tianzhen?” Qi Duo asked.

”Zhang Tianzhen might be worth pulling in, but Nan Gengchen… letʼs keep it on hold,” Nan Gengchen said, ”However, if they insist on joining all four together, we can make an exception and accept Nan Gengchen.”

It was not that Freemasonry was being pretentious, but any organization with even a lick of ambition would have an entry threshold, and Nan Gengchenʼs scores on their behavior evaluation for intelligence wasnʼt exactly stellar…

The assessment was not wrong…

Jiang Yichenʼs SUV was heading farther north, but soon everyoneʼs attention turned south, as another vehicle was approaching closely.

Nan Gengchen instinctively looked toward Guo Huchan, only to see him standing by the roadside, rhythmically signaling with a strong flashlight.

The SUV stopped by the roadside, and a young man and woman got out from the vehicle.

Hu Xiaoniu was startled when he saw the people getting out of the car because he recognized them.

However, the next second his gaze shifted to Qing Chen, even though he didnʼt know why he looked at Qing Chen.

At that moment, Guo Huchan jovially said, ”Yanyan, Li Situ, why have you come ahead of time.”

Li Situ explained, ”Thereʼs been an outbreak of influenza in the wilderness; the medication is crucial, the boss was worried about any mishaps with this batch of drugs, so he had Yanyan come over early to support you, I have to rush to City 18.”

Qing Chen thought, your boss might as well have said he didnʼt trust Guo Huchan.

Indeed, if he were Xu Linsen, he wouldnʼt trust Guo Huchan, the simpleton either.

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Thanks to the new ally of this book, Forever Young 99, for their support. Boss is generous, may your courier packages never get lost!