Departure is set for three days from now. Liu Qi has sufficient personnel, and the route down the Harlo Highway is well-suited. Chang Dong has prepared a map and secured a supply point near Bai Long Dui: water, fuel, and food, replenished weekly. This frees the off-road vehicle from carrying cargo. Chang Dong has added extra water tanks to the vehicle, installed a heater, and equipped it with a built-in shower head. With careful water conservation, bathing needs are largely met. Fei Tang’s vehicle was less practical, but since Hami is not far from Liuyuan, Liu Qi’s team helped return it and arranged for a Jiangling model. The vehicle is nearly stripped down—except for the driver’s seat—fitted with a bed mattress, and the ceiling is equipped with suspension rings that allow the interior partitions to be removed as needed to create flexible spaces. The engineering work is taking place at a car parts shop right next to the hotel. Chang Dong has been on-site for an extended period with Fei Tang, while Ye Liuxi acts more like a manager—she visits daily to check on progress, and the more she runs around, the more frequent her visits become. Chang Dong suspects she’s bored—since receiving the money from Liu Qi, she’s stopped working at her regular job, and now feels half her life’s purpose has vanished. Ye Liu Xi thought for a moment and didn't raise any objections: having such access to water in such a place was already quite luxurious. ... For lunch, they booked a buffet at the hotel restaurant. Fei Tang asked them to go first, saying he would return to his room to take a shower and arrive later—his whole morning had been spent running back and forth under the train cars, and he was now so dirty he couldn't bear to look at himself. Chang Dong and Ye Liu Xi sat at a four-person table. The restaurant was not crowded, and the guests were spaced out, so the occasional clink of cutlery didn't disturb them, but instead sounded pleasant. Ye Liu Xi finished her meal first, set down her fork and knife, and took a long, deep breath. Chang Dong slightly lifted his eyelids. "What's wrong?" "I can't eat," she replied. "Not being able to eat well usually refers to someone who has something on their mind and can't eat; you, who've just eaten too much, don't quite fit that description." Ye Liu Xi leaned back, resting her hand on her chin. "We're going to be separated. You haven't even acted like yourself yet." Changdong said, "We've only just started getting to know both Liu Qi and Ding Liu. There's no major conflict between us, and in such a short time, they certainly couldn't have planned a well-thought-out, step-by-step scheme." "Ding Liu is still young. She feels a bit uncomfortable seeing us treat her with courtesy, and she wants to make an impression on her adoptive father. She believes she can accomplish anything—she just wants to step onto the stage and perform. If we simply don't pay attention to her, that's enough." As he spoke, Fei Tang came over with a tray. Changdong watched him sit down, then suddenly remembered something: "Have you made contact with the fortune teller yet?" Among the three of them, only Fei Tang was active on QQ. After Liu Qi's number was provided, it was naturally handed over to him for follow-up. Not mentioning it hadn't been an issue—once he brought it up, however, Fei Tang became quite upset. "I've sent several friend requests, but he's been so cold—none of them have been accepted." "Has he possibly abandoned the account?" "No!" Fei Tang shook "He complained: 'The signature's odd—something about "to be liberated without eating chicken." Dong, does this person still live in the old society? We've been liberated for decades now.' 'Perhaps the number has changed... What did your friend request say?' 'It simply said I'm a friend of Liu Qi.' Chang Dong pondered. This soothsayer—should he truly, as Liu Qi claims, have traveled throughout the south and north, seeking out odd people and remarkable events—would surely have accumulated countless tales over the years. Liu Qi, after all, used to just catch snakes. To a soothsayer, that wasn't particularly remarkable. He might not even remember it. 'So, send another message. Say you discovered a coffin in the White Dragon Dune outside the Jade Gate Pass, inside which were nine shadow figures dressed in Tang-style robes. Include the folk song, "With chains on, we enter the pass, tears streaming down." If one message isn't enough, send it in two parts. If he doesn't reply, then fine.' Over more than a decade, it's hard to say whether someone's interests might not change. But if the soothsayer still possessed the patience to engage an elder in hand-to-hand conversation for an entire day, just to discuss a legendary tale, then—well, he should have replied by now. —At 10 a.m. the following day, two groups met at the entrance of the Tian Shan Ke Hotel. On Ding Liu’s side, there were two vehicles: one was a Jeep Commander, large and imposing with sharp lines, regarded by some players as second only to the Hummer; the other was a more ordinary sedan, simply sufficient for navigation, convenient for later supply deliveries. Chang Dong approached steadily without stopping, simply pressed down the window, waved his arm to indicate he wanted to follow, then turned around and headed off. Fei Tang followed closely behind, and in his rearview mirror, he noticed the other two vehicles had clearly not reacted yet—only after a while did they finally catch up. Ye Liuxi glanced at Chang Dong. “Didn’t they say anything to greet as they approached?” “There was nothing much to say. Too much chatter would only tire them out.” He remained focused on driving, his gaze fixed straight ahead, the shadow of his hat casting a subtle shade around Ye Liuxi said, "You should shave." Chang Dong reached up to feel his chin: "Shave today, grow tomorrow—men's beards grow faster than hair. Does it look awkward?" He glanced at Ye Liuxi. Ye Liuxi shook her head, her gaze instinctively avoiding his, feeling something subtle: she thought it was just right, unsure of the texture when touched—probably slightly prickly, and if she had to rub against her neck, it would be unbearable. She felt a bit uncomfortable, reaching to smooth her hair, her fingertips brushing warmly against the base of her ear, quickly brushing her hair over to cover it. Suddenly, the air inside the car felt stuffy. Ye Liuxi said, "Let's stop for a moment—get some fresh air." Chang Dong pulled over. Ye Liuxi stepped out and used her hand to fan herself. As soon as the front car stopped, the rest of the vehicles behind also came to a halt, giving the Jeep Commander just enough room to overtake. It must have been a long, frustrating journey with constant stop-and-go. Fei Tang leaned out of the window: "Xī Sister, why did we stop?" Ye Liuxi sighed: " Ye Liuxi picked up a stone, ready to throw it, but Fat Tang’s head suddenly retracted. The Jeep commander’s vehicle stopped side by side with Chang Dong’s. Ye Liuxi heard the sound of the door opening and turned around, pausing momentarily. Inside sat a girl in her late teens or early twenties, with fair, clean skin, a fresh-faced appearance, delicate eyes slightly curved at the ends, with a long eye tail—her smile was particularly engaging. She wore a white, coarse-knitted sweater, black jeans, white canvas shoes, and a yellow duck-shaped acrylic hair clip. Out of place among the surrounding scenery—the desolate highway, the barren mountain ranges, and the rugged vehicles. She spoke to Chang Dong, “Dong-guo.” It was Ding Liu. Chang Dong nodded. “Why didn’t you stop at all this morning? My father-in-law had prepared firecrackers. In our tradition, we set off fireworks when leaving for distant journeys—it’s considered auspicious.” “We’re in a hurry.” Ding Liu was well-informed and perceptive, noticing Chang Dong's reserved demeanor. She smiled gently and slowly closed the car door. Ye Liuxi paid attention to Gao Shen—clearly, he had exhaled a deep relief, gently licking his lips and then wiping his chin with the back of his hand. Chang Dong had made one misstep: by setting up the stage and staging the performance, both within and beyond the play, he couldn’t simply ignore it. She settled back into the副 driver’s seat, while Chang Dong waited for her to fasten her seatbelt before starting the car. Suddenly, Fei Tang’s voice crackled through the radio: “East brother, stop, stop, stop—The ‘mystic’ has responded!” —— Though the ‘mystic’ had actually responded quite early, the signal along the route had been weak, causing delays in transmission. Plus, Fei Tang had been fully focused on driving and hadn’t checked his phone much, so it wasn’t until now that he saw the message. The message read simply: “Don’t worry about it.” Fei Tang felt a bit uneasy: “East brother, what does ‘don’t worry about it’ mean?” Chang Dong replied: "Get in my car, and we'll reverse and go back—wherever the signal's good, we'll stop and ask." Guan must have known something; otherwise, he wouldn't have said, "Don't worry about it." Suddenly, the lead car turned around, and Gao Shen grew a bit annoyed. As he leaned out, Chang Dong's car happened to pass by, slowing down to allow Fei Tang to get on. Chang Dong pressed down the window and said, "If you want to save time, just wait here—we'll come back. If you're not comfortable, just follow along—your choice." Gao Shen gritted his teeth, about to reach for the steering wheel, when Ding Liu said, "They're playing games with us—just wait here. We're not people who give up easily." She held a cigarette between her lips, looked down, and with a crisp click, the flame from her lighter leapt up and touched the tip of the cigarette. Gao Shen saw this in his rearview mirror. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Little Liu, you might want to cut back on the smoking a bit." Ding Liu took a slow draw, then exhaled slowly, "What's it — Chang Dong kept retreating until he reached the soil mine near the earth house. The asphalt road snaked through the brown-gray desert like a black serpent, and deep within the mining area, the roar of machinery echoed, with dust plumes rising from the excavated stone resembling small mushroom clouds. The soil was too thick; Chang Dong closed all the car windows, and through the glass, he could see mud and dust settling visibly onto the hood of the vehicle. Another message arrived: it was very dangerous. Chang Dong took over Fei Tang’s phone and composed the message to send. — Can we talk on the phone? A series of phone numbers came back from the other end. Chang Dong quickly dialed them and switched the speaker on. He first mentioned Liu Qi, the snake hunter from Luo Bu Poh over a decade ago, then spoke about the shadow puppet coffin. The spiritual healer listened attentively, and finally asked, “What proof do you have that this is real?” Chang Dong was momentarily stunned. Fei Tang gently reminded him, “Photos, Dong, I have photos of the shadow puppet coffin in my phone—exactly the ones I sent over via Bluetooth earlier.” Chang Dong returned the phone to Fei Tang, asking him to operate it, and then sent over two more photos of the interior of the shadow coffin, requesting he forward them. The phone call remained uninterrupted, with the breathing on the other end coming and going in intensity. After a while, the soothsayer said, “Wait a moment, I need to go through my notes… I’ve recorded things as stories, not necessarily as facts. But if you’ve actually unearthed the shadow coffin, that’s definitely worth investigating.” “Besides what Liu Qi has told you, I also recall one other version.” “It says that after the construction of Yumen Pass, there were three days of massive sandstorms. The sky turned a dusty yellow, so that beyond a distance of more than ten paces, people could no longer be seen. And the storm’s reach was vast—spreading not only across Dunhuang, but all the way eastward, nearly covering the entire Hexi Corridor.” "Over these three days, many common people along the way heard the sounds of carriages, footsteps, and cries, as well as the sharp commands of soldiers beating people with their whips. Frightened, the villagers dared not approach, only peeping through door cracks, their vision blurred by sand and mist. They could only see groups of prisoners, bound and shackled, marching westward, and thus speculated that these must be convicts being sent to serve as border guards." The imperial decree stated: "The emperor's merits shall be upheld; any critic shall face death. In the Han dynasty, 'death' specifically meant beheading. Thus, the events that unfolded over these three days constituted the emperor's great merits, and no speculation or commentary was permitted—otherwise, those who did so would be executed."