The little fox, as soon as the idea formed in its mind, immediately quickened its pace, hurrying towards Ye Tiancheng and Fatty.
Ye Tiancheng had been waiting for quite some time before the little fox returned.
From afar, he saw the little fox's figure. Once he was sure the little fox could hear him, Ye Tiancheng couldn't help but call out loudly, "Why are you back so late? Did something happen on the way?"
As the little fox got closer, Ye Tiancheng couldn't help but frown.
The little fox's appearance immediately told anyone that it had likely encountered some trouble.
The little fox looked a bit disheveled, at least compared to how it looked before leaving. This was because the plastic bag had torn, and the drinks had rolled all over the ground. In its haste to pick them up, the drinks had rolled around again, and when picked up, they were covered in dust.
By the time the little fox had gathered the drinks, it had to hold them in its arms, and the dust had transferred onto its body, making the little fox appear even more disheveled.
Fatty, upon seeing the little fox's state, was also slightly surprised and asked, "What happened?"
Hearing Ye Tiancheng and Fatty speak to it, the little fox immediately picked up its pace and ran towards them.
Seeing that the little fox was still running despite its condition, Ye Tiancheng couldn't help but worry and quickly called out to stop it, "Slow down, don't fall!"
Hearing Ye Tiancheng's concerned words, the little fox finally slowed down and steadily walked to Ye Tiancheng's side before sitting down. Ye Tiancheng and Fatty both reached out to take the drinks from the little fox's arms, freeing up its hands.
The little fox returned, somewhat breathless from its excursion.
After Ye Tiancheng and the little fox were settled, Ye Tiancheng asked, "What were you doing? You're covered in dust... Did someone bully you? Or did you fall?"
The little fox explained to Ye Tiancheng, "Oh, no, that's not it. It's just that there were too many tourists here. On the way back, they jostled me, and the plastic bag holding the drinks tore. I had to pick them up, which is why I got a bit messy."
Ye Tiancheng felt a little relieved that no one had bullied the little fox.
The little fox patted the dust off its body and continued, "But I did discover something quite important, so I rushed back to tell you, Big Brother."
Ye Tiancheng took the little fox's words seriously and immediately said, "What is it? Tell me."
The little fox began to tell Ye Tiancheng, "Big Brother, do you remember last night when I told you I saw Boss Mei from the guesthouse by the window, helping a man walk downstairs? I told you then that I thought that man was probably Boss Mei's husband."
Fatty asked curiously, "There was something like that? What about it?"
Ye Tiancheng also said, "I remember. We even sighed then about how difficult Boss Mei's life must be."
The little fox then said to Ye Tiancheng and Fatty, "Earlier, when I was coming back with the drinks, the bag broke and the drinks rolled everywhere?"
"Then I went to pick them up. When I was picking up the last bottle, someone picked it up before me and handed it to me. After I thanked him, he left directly."
Ye Tiancheng knew that the little fox wouldn't mention someone without reason. If that person were Boss Mei, the first thing the little fox would have said would be that it had encountered Boss Mei at the farmstay. But by specifically mentioning last night's events, Ye Tiancheng suspected that the person the little fox met was the man who was with Boss Mei last night.
Ye Tiancheng confirmed with the little fox, "Was the man who helped you the same one you saw Boss Mei supporting last night?"
The little fox confirmed, "It was indeed him."
"At first, I just thought he looked familiar. Then I couldn't help but look again. By then, he had already turned to leave, and I only saw his back, but it felt even more familiar. Then, combining it with my memory, I realized that person's back matched the person I saw last night."
"Moreover, there's something that made me very uncomfortable. Before I picked up the last bottle of drinks, and before that person appeared, I felt a prickling sensation, a chill from the bones, as if something was watching me."
"That gaze was particularly disgusting, circling around me, like being licked by a wet tongue. It made me sick!"
As the little fox spoke, its tone was still somewhat indignant, "However, that gaze disappeared before I could look for it, and after that person appeared, it was gone. I couldn't feel it anymore."
After listening, Fatty asked the little fox, "You mean, the man you saw was not only the man you suspected to be Boss Mei's husband last night, but you also suspect that the person who looked at you with that disgusting gaze not long ago was also him?"
The little fox replied to Fatty, "I didn't say that. I just think it's too coincidental. There must be some connection, but I can't pinpoint the owner of that gaze."
However, both Ye Tiancheng and Fatty knew that even though the little fox couldn't confirm the latter, the former – that the man was the one Boss Mei was supporting last night – was beyond doubt for the little fox.
The little fox was very certain that these two were the same person.
Ye Tiancheng immediately recognized the value of this information and asked the little fox, "How did that man look to you? Especially physically... did he seem seriously ill for a long time? Or did he have any other problems?"
The little fox recalled carefully and then shook its head.
"I didn't feel anything wrong with him. He seemed like a normal, healthy person. He didn't look weak at all; he looked very healthy."
If that was the case, then the identity of him being Boss Mei's husband could basically be ruled out.
If that were the case, then it was very strange.
According to rumors, Boss Mei and her husband had been childhood sweethearts with deep affection for each other. Even after her husband fell seriously ill, she remained devoted, working hard to earn money to support the family and treat her husband. Ye Tiancheng and the others would have believed this based on appearances.
But what about this man?
The little fox described to Ye Tiancheng and Fatty how Boss Mei had supported that man last night, noting the intimacy of the gesture.
Given Boss Mei's position, it was already easy to attract gossip. Why would Boss Mei act this way, not fearing misunderstandings from others? Did she believe in "the clear will clear itself," or did she think no one would see?
Combined with the doubts Ye Tiancheng had developed that morning, the situation seemed to become even more bizarre.
Fatty thought for a moment and hesitantly interjected, "I think we shouldn't be too hasty. Perhaps that man has some familial relationship with Boss Mei; maybe he's Boss Mei's relative?"
This possibility couldn't be ruled out. Ye Tiancheng and the little fox weren't planning to jump to conclusions.
The little fox said, "That's possible. We need to investigate and verify one by one. Isn't there a saying that there are coincidences in the world, but not so many coincidences?"
Their current situation was special, and there was no reason to ignore any suspicious points that warranted investigation.
The main reason was that they had absolutely no clues about the fragments of the Fuxi Qin, so they had to focus their efforts elsewhere. Perhaps they could find some clues. If they easily let it go, it would be a waste of time and effort.
Ye Tiancheng said, "Let's investigate first and eliminate possibilities. If it's ultimately determined that this person has no value to our investigation, we don't need to pursue it further. For now, we cannot let it go."
Fatty and the little fox both nodded.
Ye Tiancheng said to the little fox, "Can you roughly describe what that person looked like, so that Fatty and I don't run into him and mistake him for someone else?"
This was clearly very necessary, as, apart from the little fox, Ye Tiancheng and Fatty had not seen even a glimpse of that person. Even if they met him face-to-face later, they would surely not recognize him.
The little fox nodded, thought for a moment, and then described the person's appearance to Ye Tiancheng and Fatty.
"He was thin and tall, not very strong, with slightly sallow skin, triangular eyes, a flat nose, a rather large mouth with thick lips... And, below his ear! There was a small black mole."
Fatty couldn't help but imagine it and then blurted out, "He sounds a bit ugly. Then why did you think he was Boss Mei's husband last night?"
The little fox retorted with some exasperation, "Don't forget which floor we're staying on. I saw him from my window upstairs. They were on the first floor, so I could only see a silhouette. How could I see his face? If I had seen his face last night, I wouldn't have thought he was Boss Mei's husband."
Fatty found this to be very reasonable. Boss Mei, the guesthouse owner, was so beautiful. If she were paired with someone like that, it would be more than just a case of a flower stuck in cow dung.
Ye Tiancheng thought for a moment and said, "I think it's hard to guess if he's Boss Mei's husband. After all, some people don't care about looks. You see some beautiful women whose husbands aren't necessarily good-looking. Perhaps they value inner qualities over appearance."
"As for Fatty, you suggested he might be Boss Mei's relative. I think that's unlikely. I don't believe a relative who is so close to Boss Mei would look so ugly."
This also made a lot of sense. After all, they were family. No matter how much genetics mutated, they shouldn't be so different.
Fatty was momentarily speechless and couldn't help but argue, "If this person isn't Boss Mei's relative, I also don't think he's Boss Mei's husband. Big Brother Ye, you said some beautiful women marry ugly men, but those ugly men are rich. Is Boss Mei's husband one of them?"
"Boss Mei's husband is seriously ill and bedridden, unable to earn money, and relies on Boss Mei to earn a living. If he's also this ugly, wouldn't that be even more unreasonable?"