On the way, Wang An thought about it and decided to speak up about the stone mountain.
Based on Wang An's life experience from his previous life, keeping a matter like this secret was pointless; it would absolutely be a great calamity rather than a great fortune!
Given the scale of this stone mountain, even if there were treasures inside, it wasn't something one person could enjoy alone. Getting the items out would be a major problem in itself! Most importantly, they hadn't even found the entrance yet!
However, they absolutely could not let more people find out. Who knew what was inside?
After all, several caves or pits left behind by the Japanese had already been discovered in these mountains. It was said that they contained gold, silver, jewelry, antiques, calligraphy, firearms, bombs, and vast quantities of various poisons.
Actually, it wasn't just "said"; it wasn't a secret at all, but a fact everyone knew. In previous years, a group of highly professional people, led by several hunters, had searched these mountains thoroughly several times.
During that time, several caves and pits were discovered. Naturally, quite a few people were sacrificed in the process, as the poisons and viruses left behind by those creatures—who were worse than livestock—were truly devastating.
In truth, the items in those caves and pits had been plundered and seized by the Japanese. It was only because they were in a rush to flee that some things couldn't be transported back; the items in these caves were just a small fraction of the loot.
One had to realize that even a fraction of a fraction of what had been discovered was already a considerable amount!
It was evident that the amount of treasures those scumbags had plundered from the land of Huaxia during those years was simply immeasurable!
In the Northeast, such sites existed not only in the Lesser Khingan Mountains but also in the Changbai Mountains.
When Wang An finished speaking, both Mu Xueli and Wang Li looked excited. Who wouldn't want to possess such heaven-sent wealth?
However, Wang An repeatedly urged them not to tell their families for the time being. In a couple of days, the three of them would come back to look for the entrance again. If they still couldn't find it, they would have to think of other methods.
Although the two were still excited, they were very obedient to Wang An's words. After all, they weren't children anymore and could weigh the gravity of the situation.
Since he had to drop Mu Xueli off at home first, they headed toward Sujiatun. As they reached the entrance of the village, a pretty and sweet-looking young woman, over 1.6 meters tall, came running toward the sledge, shouting, "Xueli, Xueli!"
Wang An took one look and knew this must be his brother-in-law's partner.
Sure enough, Mu Xueli, with a face flushed red, stopped the sledge and said to Wang An, "Brother-in-law, this is my partner, Li Xiuhong. I'll get off here and stroll back with her."
After speaking, Mu Xueli untied the three green dogs from the back of the sledge.
Wang An didn't understand why his brother-in-law was being shy, so he asked with a chuckle, "Isn't this great? You're a grown man, what's there to be shy about? Where's that usual swagger of yours?"
"No, I'm not... why would I be shy? I—I'm not shy at all," Mu Xueli explained, stammering but stubborn.
Seeing his brother-in-law like this, Wang An didn't press further. At that moment, Li Xiuhong arrived.
Li Xiuhong greeted him generously, saying, "You must be the brother-in-law. I often hear Xueli mention you."
Wang An pretended to be surprised and asked, "Is that so? What kind of bad things has he been saying about me?"
Hearing this, before Li Xiuhong could answer, Mu Xueli hurriedly interjected, "Brother-in-law, I never said anything bad about you!"
Seeing Mu Xueli speak, Li Xiuhong didn't reply further, but gave Mu Xueli a sweet smile. It was clear that Li Xiuhong's heart was full of love for him.
Wang An found Mu Xueli's reaction quite amusing; this was a textbook example of "engagement first, dating later!"
He laughed and said, "Hahaha, you should learn from your wife. Be generous. You're a grown man, look at how cowardly you're acting."
Li Xiuhong smiled, but her voice carried a hint of dissatisfaction as she said, "He was this cowardly when he was studying. Even after he graduated, he didn't bother with the matchmaker; I, a young lady, had to be the one to push the matchmaker to find him!"
Eh?? Hearing this, Wang An's brow furrowed, his mind filling with question marks.
Was Li Xiuhong praising Mu Xueli or taking a jab at him? She had mentioned the word "matchmaker" twice in one sentence, emphasizing the words clearly. What did that mean??
After all, before he got married, his relatives had sought matchmakers everywhere to find him a wife, to the point where it had become gossip in every village. Was Li Xiuhong blaming him for just teasing Mu Xueli?
He suddenly felt that his brother-in-law's partner was not a simple-minded woman!
But he couldn't exactly get into an argument with a seventeen-year-old child.
Wang An didn't say much more, instead giving a forced laugh of agreement: "Oh, is that so? Hehehe."
"Anyway, Xueli, take what you need quickly. Take a couple of jumping cats for your partner's family to eat," Wang An continued.
Inside, however, he felt quite aggrieved. He was being mocked by her, yet he still had to give her things! What a day!
Since she was his brother-in-law's partner, he had to save face for him. Even if he wasn't over-analyzing her words, she really hadn't said anything explicitly wrong.
Either way, it felt damn uncomfortable, and the worst part was that he had to put up with it!
Hearing Wang An's words, Mu Xueli gave him an apologetic smile, then kept six jumping cats, two wild pheasants, and two flying dragons.
Wang An acted as if he didn't mind, said his goodbyes, and drove the sledge away with Wang Li.
Only after Wang An's sledge turned the corner and disappeared from sight did Mu Xueli drop the smile. With a serious face, he said to Li Xiuhong, "Li Xiuhong, what was that supposed to mean? How can you talk to Brother-in-law like that? Is that something you should be saying?"
Li Xiuhong pouted and whispered, "Who told him to tease you?"
Mu Xueli became even more serious. "He's my brother-in-law, that's why he can tease me. If it were anyone else, do you think he'd even look at them? And here you are, badmouthing him to his face."
Li Xiuhong lowered her head and mumbled, "Well... maybe he didn't know what I meant?"
Mu Xueli was so angry he almost laughed. He said helplessly, "Brother-in-law is sharper than a monkey when it comes to these things. You think he didn't understand? What nonsense are you talking? If it comes to playing mind games, ten people like you wouldn't stand a chance."
Because she had been defending Mu Xueli, Li Xiuhong ended up getting lectured by him. Now, feeling aggrieved with her eyes turning red, she said, "I—I was wrong, okay?"
Mu Xueli wasn't a dominating person by nature. Seeing her like this, he sighed and said, "Fine, stop this act. Think before you speak in the future; don't just blindly clash with everyone."
Hearing this, Li Xiuhong immediately held up the jumping cats, a smile returning to her face. "Brother-in-law is actually quite good to you, giving you so much face and even giving me two rabbits."
"So don't talk nonsense anymore. If my sister hears you talking about Brother-in-law like that, she'll dare to go to your house and scratch you."
As Mu Xueli spoke, he walked toward the village, leading three dogs with his left hand and carrying a sack in his right. Li Xiuhong followed closely behind, a blissful smile on her face.
On the way back, Wang Li kept staring at Wang An. Puzzled, Wang An asked, "Why do you keep looking at me?"
"Fourth Brother, why weren't you angry when Brother Mu's fiancée spoke to you like that?" Wang Li asked curiously.
Wang An smiled and said, "What's the point of getting angry at a woman? Besides, your Brother Mu definitely lectured her. Didn't you see his face? It was practically twisting with anger, gahahaha..."
"Yeah, I was just worried Brother Mu wouldn't have the guts..."
"Haha, then you've underestimated your Brother Mu."
(End of Chapter)