Solving Middle Age Crisis by Intelligence System-Chapter 538 - 353: Missing?

Inside the small clinic, Qi Yun had already dug about fifty to sixty centimeters deep around the apricot tree using a spade.

The soil here wasn’t sandy but rather clay, still quite firm, making the digging not so easy.

However, with Qi Yun’s current physical condition, it wasn’t too difficult.

"Clack!"

The tip of the spade seemed to hit something hard, but unlike a rock, it didn’t push back with much force.

Qi Yun immediately stopped, not daring to use strength, worried that he might damage whatever was inside the box. He had to hold the spade and slowly clear away the surrounding dirt.

After a few tries, a piece of blackened cloth appeared, long lost its original color, clearly buried for many years.

Qi Yun’s heart tightened; he quickly put down the spade, squatted to carefully scrape away the surrounding clumps of soil with his hands.

The cloth was tightly wrapped, layered several times. Bit by bit, he extracted what felt like a square object inside, roughly palm-sized.

At this moment, without minding the dirty cloth, he quickly tore it apart, revealing a small dark brown wooden box inside. The box, whose wood type was unknown, was somewhat moldy and deformed, but not completely ruined.

"Hope it’s not damaged..." Qi Yun prayed silently, worrying about moisture damage to the contents.

He hurriedly opened the box and saw ten dark red pills lying on the bottom lined with oiled paper.

These pills were about the size of small candies, each coated with a thin layer of wax. Although they appeared spotted and not as well-preserved as the last two Angong Niu Huang Pills, the coating effectively sealed them, keeping out moisture.

Thankfully... Qi Yun breathed a sigh of relief.

If such a treasure had been ruined by moisture, it would have been a real pity.

As the first batch of Yunnan Baiyao produced, though not particularly expensive at that time, these ten pills were far from affordable for ordinary people of an era when even food was a luxury.

Moreover, 1916 was marked by the death of Yuan Shikai, triggering the fragmentation of the Beiyang government, bringing chaos. The distance of J province from the Central Plains made trade very inconvenient. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Then... how did these ten pills end up here?

"Beep beep!"

Before Qi Yun could think further, the honking of a truck outside the yard interrupted him, followed by the clattering sound of a heavy vehicle.

To avoid complicating matters, Qi Yun quickly retrieved all ten Yunnan Baiyao pills, placing them into a prepared plastic bag, before picking up the spade again to fill back the surrounding soil.

Outside the yard, two vans had pulled up at the gate, unloading about a dozen workers, while two trucks behind them carried a small excavator, along with tools, cement, and other materials.

Liu Meng glanced back, noticing Qi Yun was nearly finished with his task, and stepped up to the foreman to assign tasks.

When Qi Yun came out, the excavator had already been unloaded from the truck, with some villagers gathered around to watch.

Qi Yun didn’t stay long. After reminding Liu Meng to be careful, he waved to the village chief and left first.

...

Meanwhile, Ah Jiao, having spent several hours on a plane, finally landed at Beijing Airport, where Li Yaohua personally came to pick her up.

The two had met before in Africa, hence were acquainted with each other.

"What did Qi Yun ask you to deliver to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment for inspection?" Li Yaohua asked curiously.

Ah Jiao didn’t hold back, handing over a bottle of mineral water brought on board through special channels: "Just this bottle of water."

Li Yaohua carefully examined it, seeing nothing unusual: "Is someone trying to poison Qi Yun?"

"No." Ah Jiao shook her head and explained, "There’s something special about this bottle of water; the boss wants a report."

"In what way special?" Li Yaoguang asked, full of suspicion, as it just looked like a regular bottle of mineral water.

"It supposedly claims to be the world’s best... I’m not entirely sure."

With Li Yaohua’s connections, the bottle of water was quickly expedited to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment for urgent testing. In just about an hour, an authoritative, professional inspection report was generated.

The lab technician, upon reviewing the water quality report, was so surprised his eyes nearly popped out. He triple-checked the data before submitting the report, which the head of the testing center then personally handed to Li Yaohua.

"Mr. Li, could you tell us where this water source is from?" the director asked out of curiosity.

Li Yaohua handed the report directly to Ah Jiao, standing by the side: "Can’t say for now. You must keep this confidential; no outside disclosure."

Hearing this, the director quickly masked his curiosity with a serious nod: "Rest assured, everything is strictly confidential. All testing data is encrypted and archived; no one else has access."

He hesitated for a moment, unable to resist adding, "It’s just that the water’s indicators are so unique; in my many years in the field, it’s the first I’ve ever seen. If there’s ever a need for further research, our center can always provide technical support."

Li Yaohua nodded, not saying anything further, gesturing for Ah Jiao to leave.

The two walked out of the testing center, got into a car, and headed straight to the airport.

Similarly busy were Chen Wei and Da Pao.

After arriving in Tokyo, Chen Wei had been attempting to contact lawyer Yamamoto Ichiro via phone but couldn’t reach him.

Frowning with unease, he didn’t waste any time. Not having even a bite to eat, he took a taxi directly to Anping Village in Chiba Prefecture.

Last night’s earthquake measured 7.2; along the way, he noticed many collapsed buildings.

Upon reaching the site of the old house, the scene that greeted him made Chen Wei knit his brows even tighter.

Where the two-story residence should have been had been leveled to the ground; even the rubble of the fallen courtyard wall had been cleared away.

Following Qi Yun’s instructions, Chen Wei went to where the ground floor storage room once was and began to inspect the floor closely.

With just a quick glance, he spotted a hidden compartment, but there was nothing inside...

Chen Wei immediately called Qi Yun to report the situation.

"Gone!?" Qi Yun’s eyes widened upon hearing the news.

Unable to reach Yamamoto Ichiro either, could it be that he had discovered the hidden item’s location and made off with it?

Damn it!

Qi Yun clenched his fists, his expression grim.

The unforeseen event left him with no other reliable contacts in Japan, leading him to count on Yamamoto Ichiro to secure the site.

Otherwise, if no one were watching, the villagers would likely investigate the collapsed house, exposing the item’s hidden place...

"Call Brother Hui, ask him to help trace Yamamoto Ichiro’s information, and make sure to find that guy!"