Those Classmates who Suddenly Disappeared
Chapter 195 Precious Information

Chapter 195: Chapter 195 Precious Information

Professor Luo has been exceptionally busy lately, rarely seeing guests and burying himself in his work. Aware that his time left is limited, he is eager to accomplish something significant.

Today, however, a special guest arrived. This guest was special enough to make him pause his work, as their arrival promised immense value.

With her legs crossed, Lin Xi sat, thoroughly intrigued as she watched Professor Luo and said, "Long time no see, Professor. I heard you were looking to unearth my royal mausoleum again. How did that go?"

Professor Luo grimaced at her words, "The mausoleum has collapsed, utterly buried. How could I possibly unearth anything?"

"It doesn’t matter if you found nothing. I can tell you anything you want to know. There’s more to the foreign land than my ancient Qian Ye kingdom, including other hidden histories and cultures. I can show you everything you would need to complete your grand archeological work." Lin Xi looked at Professor Luo with hopeful eyes after saying this.

Professor Luo’s eyes were practically shining. If Lin Xi’s words were true, then it would be a priceless treasure in the history of archaeology. His heart was surging with an emotion akin to the vitality of youth, causing him to feel inexplicably exhilarated.

However, he quickly calmed down. Nothing ever falls from the sky without a catch, he thought. Barely suppressing his inner desire and excitement, he said nonchalantly, "You wouldn’t give me such a large gift for nothing. What do you want me to do?"

Lin Xi replied candidly, "Firstly, I genuinely admire your dedication to archaeology, Professor Luo. Secondly, indeed I do seek a favor from you. Consider it an exchange, if you will." Finishing these words, she handed over a long box to Professor Luo, before saying, "This item here is very important, I hope you can look after it, then pass it to Gu Fan."

Professor Luo found this strange, "Why don’t you give it to Gu Fan directly? Why should I do it for you?"

Lin Xi sighed, "I also have my unspeakable difficulties—reasons that prevent me from doing so myself—who else can I entrust this to than you, Professor Luo, someone I trust."

Looking at the box, Professor Luo couldn’t help but ask out of curiosity, "What’s in the box?"

Lin Xi responded with a slight smile, "I don’t mind telling you, but it’s half a blueprint. It includes a sacrificial method, a mantra, and the formula to an elixir of life, but it’s only half."

With a gleam in his eyes, Professor Luo looked incredulous, "You’re entrusting me with these things. Aren’t you afraid of me swallowing them?"

In reply, Lin Xi shook her head. "I came to you because I trust in your impartiality. You are someone who would go to great lengths, even risking your life, to combat grave robbers. Besides, this blueprint is only half, it’s useless to you. Even if it were useful, you’d need to find twelve people born on the same day as you for the sacrifice. I believe you cannot do such a thing, Professor Luo."

"Is that the case?" Professor Luo sighed, then, with relief in his smile, said, "Alright, I promise to guard this for now, and I’ll hand it over to Gu Fan when the time is right."

"Then I thank you, Professor Luo." As she finished, Lin Xi prepared to leave. In a hurry, Professor Luo stopped her, "Didn’t you say you were going to share a lot of information about foreign lands?"

"Sorry, I completely forgot when I got excited. Excuse me." Lin Xi replied cheekily, sticking her tongue out, leaving Professor Luo speechless.

There was too much to share about the foreign lands, requiring quite some time from Lin Xi. Meanwhile, Du Jun, who was waiting impatiently outside, was growing increasingly frustrated. Why wasn’t he being allowed inside? What was Lin Xi’s intention?

Just as Du Jun was almost at the end of his patience, Qin Jia, holding her books and sporting her glasses, entered with an elegant demeanour.

"It’s you?" Qin Jia expressed surprise. Her impression of him was that he had transitioned from an archaeology team member to a traitor. Now seeing the "traitor" unabashedly sitting outside Professor Luo’s office, she couldn’t help but express her astonishment.

Du Jun too was a little embarassed, "I...I came to visit Professor Luo. Actually, about that time...I..." At a loss for words and unable to face Qin Jia’s questioning gaze, Du Jun didn’t know what to say.

Back in the foreign land, Du Jun had expressed interest in Qin Jia, who hadn’t shown any signs of rejection. He had assumed their relationship was destined to blossom, but then all those events happened, abruptly ending their budding relationship.

Du Jun was at a loss for words—he truly didn’t know how to explain. After a pause, he heard Qin Jia ask, "Is the professor inside?"

"Yes! You’re here to see Professor Luo..." Du Jun was cut off mid-sentence as Qin Jia barged in. Worried that she might interrupt the conversation between Lin Xi and Professor Luo, he hastily followed her in.

Seeing Du Jun and Qin Jia enter the office one after the other, Lin Xi stood up and even gave Qin Jia a small smile.

Startled, Qin Jia pointing at Lin Xi, stuttered, "You... Lin Xi... You...".

"What, it’s only been a while but you’ve already forgotten your sister who’s been with you through thick and thin?" Lin Xi asked, and after finishing the sentence, she opened her arms and hugged Qin Jia. This action made Qin Jia’s mind blank and she couldn’t make sense of it.

Feeling her confusion wasn’t adequately addressed, Lin Xi whispered into Qin Jia’s ear, "Despite our changes, our friendship during that time was real. You, Qin Jia, will always be my good sister".

"Really?" Qin Jia found it hard to believe that the reincarnated Queen Qianye could still be her good sister.

At this moment, Lin Xi noticed Du Jun standing to the side wanting to say something but finding no avenue to interject. Recognizing the awkwardness she tried to smooth things over. "I know there’s been a misunderstanding with Du Jun. In fact, he was just carrying out his duty and never intended to harm anyone. In the end, everyone returned safe and sound, didn’t they?"

"That seems to be the case..." Not knowing what else to say, Qin Jia could only nod stiffly in agreement.

After some small talk, Lin Xi told Qin Jia to visit often so they could go shopping and hang out together more frequently. Du Jun would take care of the expenses.

When Lin Xi and Du Jun left, Du Jun and Qin Jia couldn’t help but share a glance. They immediately averted their eyes when their gazes met, leading to an awkward atmosphere.

During the car ride back, Du Jun was silent, creating a heavy atmosphere. Noticing this, Lin Xi couldn’t resist asking, "What’s wrong? You look unhappy. Do you have any objections to my decision?"

"Why did you insist on matchmaking between me and Qin Jia?" Du Jun’s cold voice expressed his dissatisfaction, surprising Lin Xi. She replied with a bitter laugh, "Because I believe Qin Jia is a good woman who deserves your appreciation. After all the things you’ve done for me, it’s about time I did something for you".

Upon hearing this, Du Jun felt a wave of desolation washing over him. He had secretly harbored hopes for Lin Xi after she broke up with Gu Fan, but now recognized the absurdity of his fantasies.

"Thanks, I’ll appreciate it." Du Jun suppressed all unrealistic expectations. He was still in love with Lin Xi and was willing to do everything for her. Nonetheless, their relationship remained one of master and servant, being friends would be a difficult feat.

"That’s good." Noticing Du Jun’s dissatisfaction had alleviated, Lin Xi breathed a sigh of relief. Du Jun was currently her most reliable and trustworthy comrade. She didn’t want to risk losing him due to emotional issues. To prevent Du Jun from harboring any illusions, Lin Xi decided to play matchmaker between Du Jun and Qin Jia.

After Du Jun and Lin Xi left, Professor Luo kept looking at the rectangular box with a trace of worry in his eyes.

Unable to contain her curiosity, Qin Jia asked, "Strange, why did Lin Xi entrust this important thing to you, Professor Luo, why didn’t she give it to Gu Fan directly?"

"Lin Xi must have her reasons. Let’s do as she said." After saying this, Professor Luo looked up and met the focused gaze of Qin Jia. He knew what she was thinking and warned her, "There are things we are not supposed to touch, they are dangerous."

Qin Jia only responded with an "Oh". She was indeed interested in the elixir of eternal life and youth, although eternal life may seem illusory as compared to being forever young. She began thinking about Lin Xi, wondering whether her close sister friend could teach her a few tricks.

Professor Luo once again recalled Lin Xi’s words about the sacrifice needed for the elixir of eternal life and youth. It would take a ruthless heart to carry it out.

"Do you really trust me with complete altruism and keep your promise to help you keep this safe, or are you testing me? Or should I say, if I become selfish and try to have it for myself, there will be terrible consequences awaiting me. But at my age, what’s there to be afraid of?" Just as Professor Luo was pondering, Qin Jia exclaimed in surprise, "My God, Professor, what is written on your notebook? How come I’ve never seen these before?"

Professor Luo was jolted awake by this, thinking to himself, "Yes, this is what matters. With the valuable information Lin Xi provided, many lost foreign cultural history could be pieced together which will leave a strong mark in archeological history. This would definitely make it to headlines".

"Qin Jia, summon Xu Haowen too, we have lots of work to do." The professor was thrilled and felt fortunate that although their previous archaeological expedition was not very successful, they were able to witness the reincarnation of Queen Qianye and acquire such valuable information. The value of these far exceeded the discovery of the ancient Qianye kingdom by at least tenfold. Finally, he understood the saying, ’every cloud has a silver lining’.