Chapter 1013 181:
No one was surprised that Li Sanjiang won the lottery.
The surprising thing was that the prize could really be redeemed promptly.
Of course, it wasn't as if the lottery team would personally take you on a trip. Instead, they connected you with a national tourism agency.
Traveling and undertaking construction are quite similar; layers of subcontracting are unavoidable.
But at the very least, it covered your basic travel expenses, food, and accommodation.
Li Zhiyuan and the others could indeed make their own way to the destination, but as this was also one of the clues, and the most explicit one, they had no choice but to follow it first.
The person who came to pick them up was a young guy, with dark skin that made his bright white teeth stand out.
The young man was from the Naxi ethnic group, cheerful and enthusiastic, and he would be the driver and guide for the coming days.
Well, the accommodations were at his home, as he had turned his family's earth house into a homestay.
When introducing this, the young man seemed quite proud, because although more locals were getting involved in tourism-related industries as the tourism sector rose, not many were willing to start their own businesses as small bosses.
The young man asked everyone to call him Brother Pang Jin.
Tan Wenbin jokingly asked if the woman should be called Pang Jinmei?
Brother Pang Jin responded affirmatively, saying that the older generation's tradition values being fat as beautiful and being dark as precious, believing that it was healthy, able to work, and suitable for childbearing.
While driving past a large construction site, Brother Pang Jin pointed to it and said,
"Next time you come to visit, you can fly directly to our Lijiang."
The beauty of Yunnan carries with it a purity and ethereal quality that is uniquely its own.
Even sitting roughly in a car, there was still a sense of walking in a fairytale.
Brother Pang Jin's home wasn't in the city nor near any attractions; it was in the village, which made it more tranquil.
When they stopped at the door of the house, it was Brother Pang Jin's parents who came forward to greet them. The old couple was now helping their son with his work.
Inside, there was a young girl, neither fat nor dark, appearing fair and delicate.
Brother Pang Jin said she was his fiancée, and they had already set the wedding for the end of the year.
Clearly, the young people know how to rebel against tradition.
The earthen house already had ethnic characteristics, and after the renovation, living there was quite convenient.
Brother Pang Jin originally planned to arrange for Li Zhiyuan and the others to stay on the second floor, making it convenient to enjoy the view from the rooftop terrace.
Tan Wenbin rejected this suggestion, requesting just three adjoining rooms on the first floor.
At the same time, Tan Wenbin also declined the tour plan Brother Pang Jin had made, saying they wanted to walk around on their own without a guide.
Brother Pang Jin tried to persuade them twice, then seeing their insistence, he smiled and dropped the matter.
His tour guiding work was a contract job, and since they didn't need him, he could use this time to take on other jobs.
Supper was local farmhouse cuisine, very hearty, especially the chicken stew made with a local mountain chicken, with a thick layer of oil floating on top as the casserole lid was lifted.
Everyone gathered around the charcoal burner, warming themselves and eating.
Notified in advance, Brother Pang Jin's parents prepared extra steamed rice, but they still underestimated the appetites of Run Sheng, Lin Shuyou, and Tan Wenbin.
The first two, being martial artists, naturally had large appetites, and Tan Wenbin ate like a pregnant woman carrying twins.
In the end, Brother Pang Jin's parents had to bring out dry rations from home, something like dried steamed buns, frying them in oil before serving.
When Tan Wenbin wanted to pay extra for the food, Brother Pang Jin's parents refused, speaking in their native dialect, while Brother Pang Jin translated, saying that his parents meant that it was a blessing for the host to have distinguished guests eat to their heart's content at home.
After the meal, the five of them went up to the roof for a small meeting.
There had been several meetings before they came.
Because this wave was quite special, with a high probability of many teams or individuals participating, especially with the inevitable fight for the three pieces of broken jade.
Li Zhiyuan took out a small black wooden box, inside of which lay a fragment of jade.
The box was made by Alii, using the ancestral tablets of the Qin and Liu Families, which naturally had a suppressive effect.
The Array pattern on top was carved and designed by Li Zhiyuan himself, with considerable effort.
Those few days before departure, most of Li Zhiyuan's energy was spent on this box.
The repeated battles of wits with the puzzle maker allowed Li Zhiyuan to attempt deducing their behavioral logic.
Under the large banner of protecting the Righteous Path, there were many constraints and taboos against internal fighting.
If he were the puzzle maker, he would first help everyone eliminate this difficulty, creating an environment more conducive to combat and struggle.
Setting up in other directions would be too abrupt, destroying the puzzle maker's aesthetics; plus, the initiative would not be strong. People aren't dumb, without enough incentive benefits, not many are willing to clash swords with other teams.
Thus, the piece of broken jade was the most suitable trigger for instigating this fighting opportunity.
The game of finding the broken jade was too monotonous and dull; before this wave started, it would either be given directly or already obtained by other teams in previous waves.
In total, there should be three teams, each carrying a piece of broken jade, coming to Lijiang.
And these three teams with the fragments of jade would become the center of fighting and competition.
Right now, the broken jade was in your hands, but once the door opens for the guests, whether you still have the jade in hand remains to be seen. Everyone, rely on your own skills.
As it turned out, this was indeed the case.
Not even within the borders of Lijiang, just nearing it, the piece of jade turned black, faintly emitting corpse energy.
