"Let's not jump to conclusions yet. It's indeed abnormal that he hasn't come back at this time, but it doesn't necessarily mean that he ran away. Let's split up to look for him, and if there's any news, we’ll give each other a call."
Gideon nodded. "I agree."
Vickie also raised her hand in agreement.
Seeing that everyone had agreed, Gregory saw did not say anything.
Nell later said, "If you find him, don't get mad just yet. Bring him back here first."
Gregory looked at Nell and snorted, but in the end, he did not argue.
The group split up to look for the old man. Naturally, Vickie and Gregory went to look in one direction, and Nell and Gideon the other.
Earlier that morning, they had done a lot of manual labor, so by this time, they were all very tired. However, the Arcane Jade was in the hands of the old man. If they did not find him, they would not be able to rest easy.
At this time, most of the houses in the village had already turned off their lights.
The four of them looked for the old man for a long time and they seemed to have searched the entire village until at last, Gideon found him at a cemetery.
As soon as he spotted the old man, he immediately called Gregory.
Fortunately, Gregory and Vickie's location was not far from them, so they immediately rushed over.
The surrounding area felt eerie as it was full of graves. Unlike cremation, which was popular in the city, the village still used old-fashioned earth burials.
The entire village’s graves were there. The four of them saw that in the middle of the cemetery, an old rickety old man was leaning against a tombstone saying something to himself. The night breeze was chilly and night owls were hooting. However, when they looked at it, this scene was so weird that it gave them goosebumps.
Vickie whispered, "What is he doing?"
Gideon and Nell both shook their heads.
Gregory's face was glum and he took a step forward, wanting to confront the old man, but Nell held him back.
"What do you want to do?"
Gregory said coldly, "If he dares to fool us, I'll catch him and take him back."
With a frown, Nell pulled him tightly and said in a lowered voice, "Don't be rash. This might be a misunderstanding. No matter what, let's go back and talk about it."
Vickie echoed, "Yes, the atmosphere here is so eerie. Let's not start a conflict here. We’ll talk about everything when we go back."
Gregory looked at her, and only then did he keep his mouth shut and walk over with them.
Perhaps the old man had heard their footsteps as he knew it was them coming even without turning his head.
In the middle of the night, the old man in his 90s sat next to the tombstone with a gray futon underneath him and a jug of wine next to him. The night breeze blew his white hair, which gave off a sense of sorrow.
"So many of you came to see me. What? Afraid I'll run away?"
The old man said as he drank his wine.
Nell pursed her lips and stepped forward.
"Grandpa, we came back to find you gone, so we were worried that something might’ve happened to you."
"Worried that something might happen to me?"
The old man sneered like he had heard a big joke.
"You’re not honest, little girl. I know you’re not really worried about me. You can honestly say that you’re worried about that piece of jade. Why do you need to act? Who are you acting for?"
Grandpa Brooks took another sip of wine as he said that.
The old man touched the tombstone for a while like he was unwilling to part with her. Then, he sighed and said, "Old lady, I'm going back. You stay here by yourself. Don't worry, I'll come down sooner or later to accompany you, then you won't be so lonely anymore."
His words made Nell and Vickie sniffled.
They were both women. Although they were strong and cold in their daily lives, they were still softies inside.
They may not like Grandpa Brooks because he was stubborn and difficult, but that did not mean they could not feel for him.
Especially when they saw an old man in his final years saying these words to another old lady who had been buried for 40 years, their hearts were filled with a mix of emotions.
Nell sighed. She then stepped forward and helped Grandpa Brooks up.
"Grandpa, let's take you back."
The old man looked at her and did not refuse in the end. He only nodded his head.
When the group returned to the villa, Grandpa Brooks sat on a chair in the living room and smoked a pipe in silence.
At the side, Gideon and the few of them stared at the old man with no signs of movement.
Nell said, “Grandpa, we came this time because we really need your help. We know that you’re not an unfriendly person and we’re not greedy people. This Arcane Jade is just an antique in your hands, but in our hands, it can save a life.
“As the saying goes, saving a life is better than building a temple. Your partner has been dead for many years, and you also hope to accumulate some good karma and meet her in the next life, right? Please be merciful and bring out the jade. We’re willing to agree to any of your conditions."
Grandpa Brooks looked askance at her and scoffed nonchalantly.
"Accumulate good karma? Do you think I’d believe that?"
In the meantime, he knocked on the pipe and put some new tobacco into it.
As he added more tobacco, he said, “I’ve lived for more than 90 years and I’ve seen all kinds of people and I’ve experienced all kinds of things in this world. Now you guys said that saving a life is better than building a temple… Ha!”
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