Ning Yitao kept ruminating on what Zhaocai had told her, pondering over the details.
She stared blankly at Zhaocai with her head down. Her complexion was as fair as white jade, her face exquisitely beautiful like snow jade. But her pupils were like deep pools, unfathomable, and a hint of coldness emanated from her brows.
She sorted out the sequence of events.
As it seemed now, the so - called "high - ranking master" from the temple must have been the one who had targeted Duan Qinghuai.
However, the methods of this "high - ranking master" were quite similar to those of the so - called "noble person".
Perhaps these were just two identities of the same person, and it was also this person who had turned Yin Huan into what she was now.
The "noble person" had planned out Duan Qinghuai's life meticulously, taking advantage of his father's identity and keeping him firmly under control.
If it hadn't been for her appearance, Duan Qinghuai's life would have been predictable, and his life would have been exploited.
This person had grand schemes and always kept himself out of the limelight, pushing forward scapegoats to do his dirty work.
In this regard, the seal on Duan Qinghuai must have been set by him. Duan Qinghuai was just one of his many "puppets", but also the most peculiar one.
As for what this person was really up to, Ning Yitao had no idea.
Uncle Cao wasn't possessed either. As for what in that room had attracted him, they just had to wait for him to explain.
Ning Yitao was a hundred percent sure that Uncle Cao would come to find her.
As she thought about it, she turned to Zhaocai and said,
"It's not your fault this time. You really had no way to resist what was in that room. You should be glad that you only had a bit of your yin energy taken. It could have been much worse. If they had really wanted to make things difficult for you, you wouldn't have been able to walk out of that room intact."
Zhaocai got all worked up upon hearing this and shouted,
"What do you mean? Taotao, it wasn't just a bit of yin energy! It took me so much hard work to save up that yin energy..."
Under Ning Yitao's gaze, Zhaocai's excited voice gradually faded away. He lost his confidence and swallowed back all the words he wanted to retort.
In the end, Zhaocai still wasn't convinced and mumbled incoherently, "It's true. I worked so hard."
Just as Ning Yitao was about to say something,
her phone in her pocket rang abruptly.
The caller ID showed it was Mu Momo, her little assistant whom she hadn't seen for a long time.
Zhaocai naturally saw it too and asked in confusion, "Why is she calling you in the middle of the night?"
Ning Yitao raised a finger, signaling Zhaocai to be quiet, and then answered the phone.
On the other end of the phone came Mu Momo's sobbing.
Ning Yitao frowned and asked, "Don't cry. Take your time and talk. I'm listening."
Mu Momo tried desperately to hold back her sobs, but she couldn't control her emotions. Her crying grew louder as she vented her feelings freely.
All Ning Yitao could hear on her end was the increasing sobbing, and she could tell that Mu Momo was on the verge of a breakdown.
Ning Yitao didn't say anything else. She just held the phone and quietly accompanied her, knowing that interrupting at this moment would be useless and would only make Mu Momo feel worse.
Ning Yitao's breathing sound came through the phone to Mu Momo's ears, giving her a great sense of security.
Ning Yitao listened as Mu Momo's emotions gradually calmed down. Then there was a rustling noise on her end.
Just when Ning Yitao thought Mu Momo was about to speak, a few seconds later, unexpectedly, someone else answered the phone.
The person on the other end said,
"Hello, this is Hua Yi."
With Hua Yi's appearance, everything that had happened to Mu Momo recently could be sorted out.
*************
It turned out that after Mu Momo had rushed back to the company last time.
Her superior, Ye Quan, had arranged for her to go to the mountains with two male colleagues to collect data and scout the location for the next episode of a variety show for the company.
Mu Momo had been so busy that she was dizzy, but finally she and her colleagues had caught the train to the mountains.
Her phone had run out of battery long ago, and when they arrived at the destination, there was no signal.
This task should have been done by the male colleagues. The conditions in the mountains were poor and it was remote. If it hadn't been for Ye Quan's interference, Mu Momo would never have been on the list.
But she didn't complain. She endured all the hardships along the way. After getting off the plane, she took a crowded bus,
and even a bullock cart full of cow dung. Then she walked on the mountain road in the wilderness for half a night. She almost slipped and fell into the valley several times.
Thankfully, her two colleagues had always been there to help her. Mu Momo loved her job.
Unlike her two colleagues who were negative and pessimistic, she had a very high tolerance for these hardships.
She even enjoyed the hardships, believing that they were all things that would help her improve.
Finally, they reached the small mountain village. Although all the houses in front of them were earthen and tile - roofed, looking rickety and making people feel as if they had returned to the era of mud - brick houses.
Mu Momo and her group had carried their filming equipment there to record the real situation here.
It was for the stars to come here to experience life and feel the hardships of the mountain people. It was also a way to promote this small village.
Once the village became well - known and tourists came, there would naturally be income, and the villagers would have another way to get out of poverty.
At first, the villagers were extremely polite, which made Mu Momo feel that the local customs here were simple and honest.
The villagers of course knew that this was a chance for them to get out of the mountains.
They had given the best houses in the village for them to live in, and each family had taken turns to send them food, as well as local specialties and customs for them to film and collect data.
After a few days, Mu Momo had gotten along very harmoniously with the villagers.
The villagers didn't have mobile phones or televisions and had no way to communicate with the outside world.
But they didn't give in to their situation. They wanted to get out of the mountains and integrate into modern society.
With the help of the villagers, Mu Momo's work seemed to be going very smoothly.
But Mu Momo always felt that something was off. The housing here didn't have good protective measures. Every time Mu Momo took a shower at night, she always felt that someone was peeping at her.
But every time she went out to check, she didn't see anyone. Mu Momo suspected that she was just being paranoid and tried to suppress her uneasiness.
Later, one time when she was taking a shower, she was attracted by the sudden quarrel outside the door. She went out to check.
She found that one of her colleagues, Qiao You, was arguing and scuffling with the village head's son, Shitou.
The two young men were punching each other hard, and blood was flying. The scene looked extremely chaotic.
Mu Momo quickly stepped forward to separate them and pulled Qiao You aside. She said to him nervously in a low voice,
"What are you doing? You can't cause trouble in the village, especially not with the village head's son. Don't you remember that they value their heir very much in this village?"
Qiao You pointed angrily at Shitou and said, "Do you know what this bastard was doing? He was peeping at you while you were taking a shower! Don't you think he deserves a beating?"
Mu Momo's head buzzed. The uneasiness she had felt all this time finally had an answer.
But she still forced herself to calm down and not be impulsive.
The data collection would only take about five days. Mu Momo thought she just had to wait a little longer and they could leave soon.
But what she didn't know was that the villagers had already prepared to trap her here...