diskusbooks Chapter 213 The Child Has Grown Up
Chapter 213 The Child Has Grown Up
Just when Lawrence Lu was filled with frustration and was about to give up, the teahouse owner suddenly came over. He was an amiable middle-aged man wearing a plain Chinese robe with delicate cloud patterns embroidered on the cuffs.
His hair was neatly combed back, his eyes were wise and gentle, he slowly walked to Lawrence Lu, smiled and asked, “Kid, you look so anxious, are you looking for something important?”
Lawrence Lu nodded quickly and told his boss about his task, looking at him with expectation in his eyes.
The boss pondered for a moment, stroked his beard, and said, "I seem to remember seeing a strange object in that old cabinet before. Maybe it can be useful to you. Come on, kid, follow me."
As he spoke, the boss took steady steps and brought Lawrence Lu to an old cabinet in the corner.
There were some dusty things scattered on the cabinet, which looked like they had not been touched for a long time. Some of the things were old account books, the pages had turned yellow and the edges were slightly curled; some were chipped tea cups, the patterns on them were blurred.
A glimmer of hope surged in Lawrence Lu’s heart, and he looked at his boss nervously, his hands trembling slightly unconsciously.
The boss gently began to sort out the clutter on the cabinet, and every move seemed so careful. As he sorted, he said, "Don't worry, kid, we'll look for it slowly."
They carefully removed the sundries on the cabinet one by one. At the bottom of the sundries, an ancient compass lay quietly. The shell of the compass was a little worn, exuding the vicissitudes of time. The needle was shaking slightly, as if mysteriously pointing to a certain direction.
Lawrence Lu's eyes lit up instantly, and he carefully picked up the compass, as if holding a precious treasure. He looked at the compass carefully, and there were some strange symbols and patterns engraved on the disk, which were mysterious and simple.
"Does this compass have any special uses? Can it help us find treasure?"
Lawrence Lu’s fingers gently stroked the surface of the compass, his heart full of anticipation, and the joyful scene after finding the treasure emerged in his mind.
And the other side.
Lin Xiaoxuan was walking carefully in a narrow alley. Her footsteps were very light. The alley was very quiet. Only her footsteps were echoing, which were crisp and rhythmic.
The alley twists and turns like a sleeping dragon. The sunlight shines through the narrow gaps above the head, forming long and thin beams of light, in which the dust dances happily.
The walls are made of old bricks and stones, bearing traces of time. Some of the bricks and stones are loose, as if they may fall down at any time. In the corners, moss is quietly growing, a green patch, as if a soft carpet is covering the alley.
Suddenly, her eyes were attracted by a painting on the wall. The frame of the painting had faded a little, and some exquisite patterns were engraved on the wooden frame. Although it was blurred, her former exquisiteness could still be seen.
The scenery in the painting is beautiful and mysterious. A gorgeous sea of flowers sways gently in the breeze, and the colorful flowers bloom like bright gems. At the end of the sea of flowers is an ancient castle. The castle's towers are towering into the clouds, and the gray stone walls exude a solemn atmosphere.
The castle is surrounded by a clear river. The sparkling river reflects the blue sky, white clouds and the silhouette of the castle. In a corner of the picture, a colorful butterfly is dancing. The patterns on its wings are delicate and lifelike, as if it may fly out of the painting at any time.
Lin Xiaoxuan leaned closer to the painting and looked at every detail carefully. Her eyes were wide open, full of curiosity and confusion.
"There are cameras arranged by the production team around here. This painting must have some special meaning." Lin Xiaoxuan frowned and scratched her head but couldn't figure it out. She decided to take the painting back to show her other two friends.
After a while, the children returned to the gathering point excitedly with their discoveries, their faces filled with a sense of accomplishment and a strong curiosity about the unknown puzzles.
Huo Siqian took out the mysterious note first. The children sat around it, staring at the strange symbols on the note.
Huo Siqian frowned, tapped the symbols on the note with his little finger, and said, "What do these symbols mean? Could it be a code?"
Lawrence Lu also placed the compass in his hand in the middle, turning it constantly, and said thoughtfully: “Will this compass point to the direction of the treasure? Maybe these symbols can tell us how to interpret the direction of the compass.”
Lin Xiaoxuan spread the painting flat on the ground, and everyone's attention was attracted by the beautiful and mysterious scenery in the painting. Lin Xiaoxuan's eyes flickered with thought, and she said, "The scenery in this painting seems to have been seen somewhere in the mountain city. Should we go there to have a look? Maybe there will be clues to decipher these symbols and use the compass."
The children fell into deep thought, and they began to try to combine the three clues together.
Huo Siqian looked at the painting, then at the symbol on the note, and suddenly said, "Look, the shape of the castle in this painting is a bit like a certain symbol."
Lawrence Lu turned the compass and was pleasantly surprised to find that: “The direction pointed by the compass seems to have a certain relationship with the direction of the river in the painting.”
Lin Xiaoxuan carefully observed the symbols on the note and found that the lines of one of the symbols were similar to the outline of the flower in the painting.
They discussed excitedly, as if they had already seen the treasure waving to them.
At this moment, the "difficult problem" arranged by the program team appeared. A staff member pretended to be a passerby and deliberately walked in front of the children, muttering some strange words. The children did not care at first, but the staff member suddenly stopped and blocked their way.
"Children, what are you doing? Did you drop this note?" The staff took out a note with some wrong clues written on it.
Huo Siqian looked at the note in the staff's hand and immediately became alert. He carefully observed the expression and movements of this "passerby" and found that his eyes were flickering, not like a real passerby.
Huo Siqian's little head started working quickly. He remembered some puzzle shows he had seen on TV before, which also contained similar situations.
"Uncle, this is not our note. We are looking for treasure. Do you know where the treasure is?" Huo Siqian pretended to be innocent and tested the staff.
The "passerby" was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect Huo Siqian to be so smart. He shouted, "I don't know what treasure it is. You kids should stop looking for it. It's very dangerous."
Huo Siqian smiled and said, "Uncle, we are not afraid of danger. We are very brave. And we have clues, we will definitely find the treasure." After that, he turned around and left with his friends, no longer paying attention to the staff behind him.
Lawrence Lu and Lin Xiaoxuan were a little nervous at first, but they were relieved when they saw Huo Siqian was so calm. “Siqian, you are really amazing. You can tell that there is something wrong with that uncle right away.” Lawrence Lu said admiringly.
Lin Xiaoxuan also nodded in agreement, "Yes, Siqian, you are so smart. Let's continue looking for treasure."
however.
When passing a corner, Lin Xiaoxuan accidentally bumped into a fierce auntie. The auntie immediately looked at her with a frown and yelled at her: "How can you be so careless, you clumsy kid? Where are your eyes? Don't you have eyes when you walk?"
Lin Xiaoxuan was so frightened by this sudden accusation that she trembled all over and quickly apologized: "I'm sorry, Auntie, I didn't mean it."
But the aunt refused to give in and continued to yell, "Just say sorry and that's it? How can you be so uneducated? You hit someone and you think you can get away with it so easily? I think you did it on purpose! I have to call your parents today!"
Lin Xiaoxuan's face turned red after being scolded, and tears welled up in her eyes.
The auntie still had no intention of stopping, and she scolded more and more fiercely: "Look at you, you didn't repent after doing something wrong. Why are children nowadays so ignorant? You don't have any rules at all!"
Lin Xiaoxuan finally couldn't help crying, "I really didn't mean it, Auntie, please stop scolding me."
Meanwhile, three parents were watching the children not far away.
Lin Yue's eyes were fixed on her daughter, Lin Xiaoxuan. When she saw her daughter being scolded and cried by that fierce aunt, she felt so distressed as if a sharp knife was stirring in her heart. Her face turned pale in an instant, her brows were tightly furrowed, and her eyes were full of anxiety and worry.
Lin Yue stood up immediately, her body trembling slightly with anxiety. She wished she could rush over and hold her daughter tightly in her arms to shield her from all grievances and injuries.
However, just as she took the first step, Qiao Qin grabbed her and said softly with understanding and determination in her eyes: "Lin Yue, children have to learn to grow up. Let her face it herself."
Lin Yue's steps suddenly paused, her eyes full of struggle. She gritted her teeth, feeling extremely conflicted. On the one hand, she felt distressed for her daughter, but on the other hand, she understood that what Qiao Qin said made sense.
Finally, she didn't show up and slowly sat back down, but her eyes never left her daughter.
At this moment, Huo Siqian and Lawrence Lu bravely stood up for Lin Xiaoxuan.
Huo Siqian puffed out his small chest, his eyes burning with the flame of justice, and said loudly: "It was obviously she who bumped into me first, how could you be so unreasonable?"
Lawrence Lu was not to be outdone, and followed suit, “That’s right, you can’t bully people.”
The clear and firm voices of the two children echoed in the air, and passers-by also criticized the aunt's excessive behavior.
"You are going too far. How can you scold a child like that?"
"That's right, it was obviously her own carelessness."
Under the accusations of everyone, the aunt's face turned red. She opened her mouth and wanted to refute, but she didn't know what to say. In the end, she walked away embarrassedly.
Huo Siqian and Lawrence Lu hurriedly comforted Lin Xiaoxuan and said gently: "Xiaoxuan, don't be afraid, we will face it together." His eyes were full of concern, as if the warm sun in spring could melt all the ice and snow.
Lawrence Lu also nodded and said firmly: “Yes, we are a team, we will definitely find the treasure.”
With the comfort of her friends, Lin Xiaoxuan's trembling body gradually calmed down. She raised her head and looked at the sincere faces of her two friends, and the tears in her eyes slowly stopped.
She took a deep breath, and a feeling of warmth and strength surged in her heart. She gradually calmed down, cheered herself up again, and courage and determination rekindled in her eyes.