The Civil Servant's Job is to Raise The Furries!-Chapter 183 - 182: Return to the Surface

Under the beam of the flashlight, invaluable artifacts were piled up in the passageway, as if hastily placed aside due to time constraints.

The gilded bronze divine trees loomed indistinctly in the darkness, lacquered boxes inlaid with He Tian Jade stacked layer upon layer, and piles of Han slips wrapped in silk.

Even more shocking, several freshly packed bronze vessels lay in the corner, their fresh soil marks indicating they had just been excavated.

In the tomb-raiding business, the most cherished tombs among insiders are the Western Zhou Tomb and the Han Tomb, purely because of the highly valuable bronzes and ancient jades.

Therefore, tomb raiders dared to blast open a path to escape with these treasures, rather than surrender obediently.

They intended to blast a tunnel for escape but feared damaging the artifacts, so they temporarily hid them behind the traps.

The tomb raiders were left gaping, as if they had seen a ghost.

They couldn’t fathom how this girl with a youthful face managed to unravel their meticulously designed treasure cache in such a short time.

At this moment, they finally realized they had truly hit a wall this time.

After capturing the three tomb raiders, Xu Ying and her team escorted these petty criminals back the way they came.

Professor Mo and Lou Yiqun were already organizing the research site that had been damaged by the tomb raiders.

Seeing Xu Ying and her team had already apprehended the tomb raiders, Professor Mo widened his eyes in astonishment: "So quickly?"

Xu Ying explained the situation on site: "Yes, they were even planning to forcefully blast an exit to escape, but we caught them."

"Professor Mo, you and Qi Xiao can now go to the tomb chamber we visited."

"A lot of artifacts are piled up in the passage behind the trap; these three didn’t manage to transport them out."

Upon hearing this, Professor Mo and Lou Yiqun both got excited; they promptly stood up and followed Qi Xiao towards the place Xu Ying and her team had just been. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Soon after, Xu Ying heard both of them letting out cries of excitement.

She smiled upon hearing it, having already anticipated the scene.

When Xu Ying raised the corners of her mouth, she suddenly felt her facial muscles stiffen, her temples throbbing and swelling.

She removed the night vision goggles, gently massaging her brow bone with her fingertips.

The underground tomb had poor ventilation and low oxygen levels; staying there for a long period induced a spatial disorientation similar to seasickness—this was no place for the living to be.

"Not feeling well?" Chen Su’s voice came from beside her, standing closer than she realized.

His distinctly jointed hand hovered near her, the warmth subtly passing through his tactical gear, "Let’s escort them up first."

As he spoke, he slightly bowed his head, his breath brushing past her ear.

Xu Ying nodded, greeting Professor Mo and gesturing the three tomb raiders to the ground.

Upon returning to the surface, the night breeze carried the scent of grass and trees, blowing into their faces.

Xu Ying took a deep breath, the starlight falling on her quivering eyelashes.

From noon to twilight, the seven hours of darkness made the current moonlight feel luxurious.

"Feeling better?" Chen Su, seemingly from nowhere, produced a bottle of mineral water, unscrewing it and handing it over.

He leaned against the police car watching her, his tactical gear unbuttoned at two places revealing a long-standing scar across his collarbone.

The moonlight traced his outline sharply, yet his gaze was as soft as ink melting.

The staff at the police station had already set up camp; seeing them escort people up, they collectively froze.

Station Chief Wei was adjusting the searchlight’s angle, turning around in surprise: "All done?"

"Thanks to Little Xu Station Chief."

Chen Su laughed lightly: "Otherwise, by old practice, we’d be playing mahjong with our ancestors down there for three days."

Station Chief Wei clapped Xu Ying’s shoulder forcefully: "Girl, you scored again! Get ready for the bonus!" He turned to shout at his deputy, "Tell the heritage bureau’s Old Zhang, subsidies at the highest standard!"

"Thanks, Chief!" Xu Ying’s eyes lit up suddenly, like a little mouse sneaking oil.

She didn’t notice Chen Su wiping a bit of clay off her cheek with his fingertip, the motion as light as brushing away moonlight.

Until the three thieves were shoved into the police car, the warmth lingered on her face.

The police station had food preserved for them, kept warm in an insulated box, still hot.

Xu Ying ate the hot boxed meal with gusto, sitting next to Mountain Peak the camel: "Mountain Peak, do you have news of your companions?"

[Found them! A young man in uniform drove to fetch them!]

To shield against wind and sand, camels have long eyelashes, and Mountain Peak’s glossy eyes now showed joy and excitement, his long eyelashes fluttering, appearing harmless and gently endearing.

Xu Ying savored a large chunk of braised pork, finding special relish in a hot meal after labor.

As she munched on the rice, she retrieved a bag of fresh sea-buckthorn berries from the motorcycle, which she brought in the morning as rations for Mountain Peak.

Placing the sea-buckthorn in front of Mountain Peak: "Mountain Peak, have you eaten?"

Mountain Peak nodded: [I have, your friends are quite kind, finding me camel thorns and desert jujubes.]

Just as Xu Ying and Mountain Peak were finishing their meals, a police car returned, towing a small truck behind it.

Kong Cheng jumped out of the police car, his combat boots kicking up a flurry of fine sand.

"Little Xu Station Chief!"

The boy’s clear voice pierced the desert’s silence; he ran to Xu Ying in a few strides, sweat still on his forehead, "The camels are all brought back, right behind the truck... but they don’t seem well."

Xu Ying’s heart tightened, and she quickly walked toward the truck.

Five Bactrian camels huddled in the truck bed, resembling collapsed sand dunes.

What should have been towering humps were drooping sideways, salt stains encrusting their parched fur.

The water troughs prepared in the truck had already run dry, with lick marks still visible on the trough walls.

"These tomb raiders are just..." Xu Ying bit her lower lip.

Mountain Peak followed Xu Ying, his eyes brimming with tears upon seeing his companions’ conditions.

The mother camel on the outside detected movement, her eyelids trembling as they opened, her cloudy tears blocking half her vision.

That gaze reminded Xu Ying of the wild animals rescued from cages—not fear, but a numbness on the brink of collapse.

She climbed into the compartment gingerly, her tactical pants brushing against the camels’ dried mud.

Chen Su stood below, holding a medical box, his fingertips pale from gripping hard: "Need help?"

"Check for dehydration first."

Xu Ying’s voice was a tad lower than usual.

She knelt on one knee on the bed, gently cupping the closest camel’s chin.

The cracked nasal mirror felt like sandpaper, its breath unnaturally hot.

As her fingers ran over the ribs, she could clearly outline each bone.

The saline from Kong Cheng barely touched the camel’s lips before it began to tremble violently, a hoarse "gurgle" sounding in its throat.

"This one’s hoof is infected."

Chen Su squatted at the other end of the truck bed, gently lifting one of the camel’s hind legs.