I had initially thought Guan Zhenwan might know something about the people who came looking for my father back then, but she knew nothing.
Her information was insufficient; she only knew that my father had been searching for the Sui Hou Pearl.
She was completely unaware of who was causing trouble for my father or what he encountered during his search for the Sui Hou Pearl.
The reason she sought my cooperation was that my father was the most likely person to find the Sui Hou Pearl back then.
This was also why she had let Wu Tingxiu leave and kept me behind earlier.
Her true objective was to find the Qingming Shanghe Tu, and then cooperate with me to form the treasure hunting expedition team.
"What are the benefits of cooperating with you?" I asked Guan Zhenwan.
She smiled and said, "Benefits? Haven't you always wanted to find the Sui Hou Pearl? Now that I've given you the treasure map, isn't that a benefit?"
"Aren't you afraid I'll go back on my word after I get the treasure map?" I asked, looking at her thoughtfully.
She grinned, and I asked, somewhat puzzled, "What are you smiling about?"
"Mr. Xiang, you won't say that when you see the treasure map," she said.
"Where is the treasure map now?"
"I've already found experts to restore it. If all goes well, it will be ready in a month. This means you have another month to consider whether you want to cooperate with me. During this time, I hope Mr. Xiang will make up his mind."
Guan Zhenwan handed me a check. "This money is a deposit for our cooperation. Once we cooperate and the matter is settled, I will give you a considerable reward."
I glanced at it and realized the amount on the check was not small; it was a million.
I took a deep breath and said, "No need to consider. I can agree to cooperate with you."
The Sui Hou Pearl, and the people who came looking for my father back then, were all things I needed to get to the bottom of.
Why my father was so obsessed with finding the Sui Hou Pearl was a question I had always wanted to know.
Whether the Sui Hou Pearl could grant immortality, I didn't know, but the reason my father sought it was certainly not just for that.
And why did those people who sought my father back then resort to murder?
Until I figured out these two questions, I would never find peace.
I even vaguely felt that An Ying and the Sui Hou Pearl had some kind of special connection.
Before she lost her memory, she must have known something. And why was she looking for the Sui Hou Pearl?
Was it to understand why she herself could live forever?
Countless mysteries pointed to the Sui Hou Pearl; perhaps once the Sui Hou Pearl was found, all the riddles would be solved.
After staying in Yanjing for a few days, Fatty, An Ying, and I returned to Guangling.
An Ying, having lost her memory, trusted me the most.
I wanted to find an opportunity to explain things to her, but I felt it wasn't the right time. Her current state of amnesia might be a good thing for both of us.
Not long after returning to Guangling, Wu Tingxiu asked to meet me.
Wu Tingxiu, whom I hadn't seen in a while, still looked as cold and business-like as ever.
Sitting behind her desk, she smiled faintly at me and asked, "How has An Yuan Tang's business been lately?"
I hadn't expected her to ask about this; I thought she would ask about the Sui Hou Pearl.
Lately, I hadn't had the heart to manage An Yuan Tang's business, leaving it all to Hong Yunpeng.
"It's okay," I replied.
She smiled, took out a pack of ladies' cigarettes, lit one, and slowly smoked it. "Guan Zhenwan called me a few days ago and roughly explained the situation. What do you think about this expedition team?"
"She told you everything?" I asked, surprised.
Wu Tingxiu nodded. "Not only did she tell me what happened, but she also left a spot for me."
"A spot?"
She nodded. "A spot costing ten million."
Hearing this figure, I couldn't help but be startled. "Ten million?"
"That's the fee to join the treasure hunting expedition team she's organizing," Wu Tingxiu said.
"Did you give her the money?" I asked.
She nodded.
"Then who are you planning to send? Or are you going yourself?"
Wu Tingxiu replied, "I definitely can't go myself... so I wanted to ask for your opinion on who to send."
"My opinion?"
She shrugged. "I heard you reached an agreement with Guan Zhenwan, and you're the principal organizer of this treasure hunting expedition team. Of course, I have to ask for your opinion."
"I can't really say," I replied. "But if you're not going, I think Song Bing would be a good choice."
She exhaled a puff of smoke and chuckled. "That's what I was thinking. I'm preparing to send him."
"Don't you think you're spending this ten million too rashly?" I asked.
Wu Tingxiu raised an eyebrow at me. "What? Do you think there's something wrong with that treasure map?"
"I don't know if there's anything wrong with it, but this expedition team... spending so much money to search for something that might not even exist..."
Before I could finish, Wu Tingxiu interrupted me. "It seems Guan Zhenwan hasn't told you who she works for?"
I was a bit puzzled, not understanding what she meant. "Doesn't she run her own auction house?"
"She does run her own auction house, but she also has major shareholders..."
"Who are her major shareholders?" I asked.
"Sotheby's. You must have heard of it, right?"
I froze. "Sotheby's?!"
"Indeed," Wu Tingxiu smiled. "Given that name alone, do you think my ten million was worth spending?"
Sotheby's is one of the oldest auction houses, first established in a place called Covent Garden in London, England.
It is a world-class auction house, and countless artworks and antiques are auctioned off by Sotheby's every year.
I hadn't expected the backer behind this so-called treasure hunting expedition team to be Sotheby's!
With such a major backer as a guarantee, the treasure hunting expedition team was naturally trustworthy.
No wonder Guan Zhenwan had been so confident before; it turned out she was working for Sotheby's.
"What about your second uncle then?" I asked. "Didn't he always want to find the Sui Hou Pearl?"
Wu Tingxiu smiled. "While you were away in Guangling, I reached an agreement with my second uncle. Rest assured, he will no longer be interested in the Sui Hou Pearl."
I frowned slightly. "I still can't understand why you're willing to spend so much money to find the Sui Hou Pearl."
The smile on her face slowly faded, replaced by a look of helplessness. "I told you before, my grandfather's greatest wish was to catch a glimpse of the Sui Hou Pearl... Perhaps to you, making such a big fuss just to fulfill his old wish seems hard to justify, but I want to tell you, this is indeed my purpose."