156: If you don't have many secrets, you're not the big brother.

“Hey!”

Just as Zhuang Sanming was meticulously examining the locks, someone suddenly patted his shoulder.

Startled, Zhuang Sanming quickly turned his head and, seeing that it was Tao Erbao who had patted him, he let out a sigh of relief: “Why are you here?”

He had been scared to death, thinking it was Steward Xiao He!

Instead, Tao Erbao stood behind him, grinning, and asked when he saw him startled: “I woke myself up with my own snoring while sleeping, then I found you weren’t there, so I hurried out to look for you. I didn’t expect you to be here.”

Zhuang Sanming paused, then said: “I just couldn’t sleep, so I came out for a walk. Let’s go, go back and rest.”

“Oh.” Tao Erbao didn’t know what Zhuang Sanming was doing here, but he didn’t ask further.

Big Brother always had secrets that others didn't know.

It wouldn’t be Big Brother if he didn’t have many secrets… Su Duo was still following the four mercenaries on the outskirts of the forest. She had been following for so long that she was tired, and the soles of her feet hurt.

But she didn't complain about the hardship or fatigue. This was a task her cousin had given her, and no matter how difficult, she had to complete it.

The third-tier wasteland snake that Su Duo had ordered had already been found, and they were currently fighting it.

Su Duo did not participate, but watched from the side.

After they killed the third-tier wasteland snake, they put its body into the container they carried with them. The container looked similar to the one previously used to hold the Five Thunder Rat.

As for the third-tier beast crystal, their captain tossed it into a storage bag.

Su Duo thought that after they completed her order, they would immediately return to the office, but they showed no intention of returning and instead continued to walk forward.

Su Duo was very confused, but since they weren't speaking, she didn't dare to ask.

Hopefully, Ximen Chuifeng's army of ants can discover something… Guild, Mall.

“What did you say? Our Sanming… was hired by the Alchemy Hall?!”

Father Su was shocked by the news Mother Su told him, completely not expecting Zhuang Sanming to be hired as an Alchemy Hall employee.

“It’s true, if you don’t believe me, look at this.” Mother Su handed the letter to Father Su.

Father Su took it and, seeing the words written on the envelope, finally truly believed: “I never thought, I really never thought, Sanming is indeed promising, to actually be hired by the Alchemy Hall.”

Although Zhuang Sanming wasn't his son, he still felt honored.

“Hmph, what’s there to show off about? Isn’t it just being hired by the Alchemy Hall? If he doesn’t do well in the future, won’t he still be fired? Besides, what does a nephew joining the Alchemy Hall have to do with you two? I really don’t know what you’re so happy about.”

Mother Su’s “nemesis,” Qi Feifei, was shopping at the Mall when she overheard many people discussing this matter, so she came over to find Mother Su, wanting to thoroughly provoke her.

As long as Mother Su was unhappy, she was happy.

But was Mother Su someone so easily provoked?

Clearly not.

So Mother Su turned around, put her hands on her hips, and sneered: “Oh, I thought it was someone else, turns out it’s our gold-digger Miss Feifei. What, my nephew can be hired by the Alchemy Hall, can your son? Can your rich patron?”

“You…” Qi Feifei indeed couldn’t answer this question, but how could she willingly show weakness? She immediately counterattacked from another angle, “So what? You wouldn’t think your nephew will be filial to you after going to the Alchemy Hall, would you? Haha, what a huge joke!”

She originally thought Mother Su would be offended, but Mother Su looked puzzled after hearing her words: “What are you talking about? We never expected Sanming to be filial to us in the future.”

“Right, Old Su?” Mother Su turned to Father Su.

Father Su nodded without thinking: “That’s right, we’ll all be happy for Sanming if he has a better future, but we have our own daughter, and it’ll be enough for her to be filial to us in the future.”

“You, you… Hmph! Just wait, you’ll regret it later!”

Qi Feifei, unable to win the argument, could only resort to threats. After saying this, she quickly slipped away.

“This woman, all she knows is to mock others. If she’s so capable, why doesn’t she train her own son?” Mother Su crossed her arms, clearly disdaining Qi Feifei.

“Alright, why are you getting angry with her? I don’t know when Sanming will be back, and Su Duo has also disappeared somewhere. Let’s wait until she returns before we talk.”

“Mm.”

…Su Duo waited for a long time before the four mercenaries finally started heading back.

She was exhausted.

“Little girl, I told you not to follow, look how tired you are,” one of the mercenaries said with a smile.

Su Duo shook her head and said nothing.

The more she spoke, the more mistakes she might make. For her cousin's plan to proceed smoothly, she would remain silent when she shouldn't speak.

The captain glared at the mercenary: “Did what I told you go in one ear and out the other again?”

The man quickly lowered his head.

“Little girl, don’t mind him. We’re going back now to submit the order, and then you can take the wasteland snake’s body,” the captain said to Su Duo, deliberately softening his tone.

“Mm.” Su Duo just hummed in response, not daring to say much more.

The journey back was long, but once inside the Wall, they could take a vehicle. Only after Su Duo got on the vehicle could she finally rest her legs and feet.

She thought to herself, after this is done and she returns home, she must soak her feet in hot water and then sleep for an eternity.

Su Duo and the four mercenaries sat on the same bus. The buses inside the Wall could only carry seven or eight people at a time; the space was cramped, not as large as the green train in the forest.

None of the five noticed the several black ants crawling in the corner of the bus.

They seemed to blend in with the black interior… 155 Fortress, City Lord’s Mansion.

Chu Yun, seated at the head of the table, had a serious expression. They had been tracking the Person with bamboo hat for a day, but still had no results.

This person seemed to have vanished into thin air, without a trace.

“The Person with bamboo hat’s identity is currently unknown, and there are no clues to find him. Several high-talented youngsters within the Wall have been abducted by him, and we must continue the investigation, otherwise, next time, it might be the younger generation from our Three Great Powers who go missing.”

Chu Yun looked at the people seated in the hall, which included not only those from his City Lord’s Mansion but also people from the Beast Taming Bureau and the Martial Artist Training Base.

The Director of the Beast Taming Bureau and the Principal of the Martial Artist Training Base had both come, showing the seriousness with which they regarded this matter.

“Such a dangerous person must not be let go. City Lord Chu, I remember that the Person with bamboo hat was injured by a phantom you had placed on the outskirts and then fled in a panic, right? That means his true strength is not high,” Principal Liu of the Martial Artist Training Base analyzed.

“I agree with that point.” Chu Yun nodded, “He should have been afraid of me arriving, so he fled immediately, even at the risk of being injured.”