Reborn 73 years later, he takes his mother-in-law hunting in the mountains.

Chapter 733 Yuan Tianshu's Mission

If I could only read one urban novel in my lifetime, it would probably be "Reborn in 73, Taking My Mother-in-Law Hunting in the Mountains".

Lu Yao took out the photos he had taken.

Find a secluded spot; the street scenes I took are useless, so I'll burn them all.

Then they used fire to smoke those silk landscape paintings they had photographed.

Then I put these sheets on the ground and made them all dirty before letting them air dry.

This is called "antiquing".

There are a total of four photos, taken from different corners.

The two pieces can form a complete picture.

Lu Yao kept two bills in his pocket and hid the other two under the car seat cushion.

Only then did he get on the bus.

Upon arriving at the timber company, Yuan Hai called him into his office:

"Xiao Lu, actually, I didn't call you here for work-related matters."

"So, what's up?"

"The old man asked you and me to do something for him."

As expected.

Lu Yao now believes that Yuan Hai's opening of a factory in Jiapigou is just a cover-up.

It must have been Yuan Tianshu who instructed him to do this.

The specific purpose is unclear, but it certainly isn't for the company's development.

Yuan Hai still pretended to be an elder:

"We'll discuss the specifics when we meet the old man, but before we go, I'd like to talk to you about something."

As she spoke, she poured Lu Yao a glass of water:

"Xiao Lu, I want to ask you, what did the old man say to you?"

Lu Yao smiled and said, "It's nothing, Uncle. Why don't you ask the old man?"

They were both laughing and talking, but they were actually wary of each other.

No one will easily tell the other the truth.

Yuan Hai had no desire to be Yuan Tianshu's puppet.

Lu Yao had his own agenda.

Yuan Hai wanted to get information out of Lu Yao, while Lu Yao wanted to get information out of the couple.

So the two talked for about five minutes, which was basically an ineffective exchange.

Neither of them was willing to be the first to break the ice.

Lu Yao knew that Fan Suzhen disliked Yuan Tianshu, and she didn't tell Lu Yao the truth, so she didn't know Yuan Hai's true intentions.

Finally, Yuan Hai checked the time: "Let's go, the old man is waiting at home."

Seeing that Lu Yao had driven, Yuan Hai didn't ride his bike either, but instead took his car home.

Yuan Tianchu was standing at the door selling orders.

On the surface, he was just strolling around in front of the house, basking in the sun, but in reality, he was anxious.

After hiding for so many years, all for the sake of finding those items, I finally know where the map is.

Training a big-bearded Chen won't get you anywhere. He couldn't subdue Li Poxi for so long, and after Li Poxi died, no one knows where that map went.

If the Public Security Bureau doesn't have it, then it might be in the hands of Zhao Wanli, who is handling the case.

He knew that Zhao Wanli liked painting and calligraphy. He used to be a member of the city's calligraphy association, but he became less high-profile after the Federation of Literary and Art Circles disbanded.

Yuan Tianchu deliberately approached Zhao Wanli during this period, and he had his own agenda.

I once tried to find out if he liked Xu Beihong's paintings.

Zhao Wanli's behavior is hard to predict.

However, Yuan Tianshu reasoned that, based on human nature, such a person would certainly not disregard Xu Beihong's authentic works.

In Liaochun, there were instances where officials secretly kept confiscated cultural relics and paintings, which were later exposed after being reported. They all claimed that they were doing it to protect the cultural relics.

Zhao Wanli appears upright and honest; he may not be corrupt, and perhaps he's simply trying to protect others.

Because after they were handed over, many good things were considered the dregs of feudal society and were immediately burned.

While a few items are considered to have historical value, it's difficult to guarantee they won't be swapped out or stolen. This is because current management is truly a mess.

The more Yuan Tianshu thought about it, the more he felt that the painting must be in Zhao Wanli's hands.

Therefore, it was decided to let Lu Yao and the others take the risk and search Zhao Wanli's house.

He was getting a little anxious as the sun still hadn't risen by this time.

I came out and paced around the doorway.

He couldn't help but secretly blame himself for being too impatient.

I've never been this nervous when Deng Shifu's troops surrounded the mountain back then.

Is it really because I'm getting old and can't handle anything anymore?

Seeing that Lu Yao had arrived in a Jeep again, this time in a car from the Education and Health Bureau, Yuan Tianshu admired Lu Yao's extensive social connections.

Quickly lead the two of them inside.

He told Yuan Hai to wait in the outer room, and then pulled Lu Yao into the inner room.

Although he is currently employing two people, he cannot be completely honest with both of them, and he does not want the two of them to work together.

He had already told Yuan Hai what the mission was, and Yuan Hai didn't need to know what Lu Yao was going to do.

Upon entering the inner room, Yuan Tianchu closed the door, his expression grave.

"Xiao Lu, another letter has arrived."

Seeing him so earnestly deceiving himself, Lu Yao could only suppress his laughter.

He Yongshun was acting according to his instructions, pretending to be a mysterious person to blackmail Yuan Tianshu and Lu Yao. In fact, it was all Yuan Tianshu's own doing, just to control Lu Yao.

However, Lu Yao also had to cooperate with him, showing a nervous expression:

"How so?"

Yuan Tianshu then took out the photo of the Eight Horses painting again:

This photo is also very old; it was taken before the liberation.

This is not the original painting by Xu Beihong, but a fake that Yuan Tianshu specifically chose and photographed to help people find the painting.

At that time, not everyone knew of Xu Beihong's existence, let alone recognized his painting "Eight Horses".

At least Chen the Beard didn't know.

Yuan Tianshu also showed him this photo.

Now take it out and show it to Lu Yao again:

"The person wrote that the painting is likely in someone's house, so I want you to sneak into that person's house and look for it."

"Whose house is this?"

"Deputy Director Zhao of the Public Security Bureau."

"Huh? Breaking into someone's house to look for someone, that's a serious offense, isn't it?"

Lu Yao feigned nervousness.

Yuan Tianchu's face showed slight displeasure:

"Xiao Lu, the reason I befriended you is because I believe you are extraordinary. You are a courageous and capable young man, someone who can accomplish great things, and you cannot be bound by trivialities!"

Lu Yao nodded: "But, the other party is the police chief, isn't he?"

Yuan Tianchu smiled and patted him on the shoulder, a classic gesture Lu Yao made towards his juniors.

"Xiao Lu, don't worry, I know Zhao Wanli's routine. We'll wait until he leaves, then you and I will proceed. The only problem is if his son is also there; that would make things a bit more complicated."

"Please speak."

"Hmm," Yuan Tianchu placed his hand on Lu Yao's shoulder, "He has two sons. The eldest and second eldest used to be wrestlers. Now one works at the police station and the other is the head of the security department. They both have guns. The youngest and second eldest are both unemployed at home. Both of them have bad tempers and are quite skilled."

Lu Yao asked疑惑地问道, "Do you want me to fight them?"

Yuan Tianchu shook his head: "No, no, no, we can't be rash. I'm just telling you their background so you won't act rashly. We need to cooperate."

Lu Yao nodded: "Okay, I'll follow your arrangements."

Yuan Tianchu patiently explained to Lu Yao how to proceed before bringing him out.

Call Yuan Hai.

Driving there would be too conspicuous, so all three of us walked. It's only a fifteen-minute walk from here to Zhao Wanli's house on Sandao Street.

The Zhao family mansion was once the residence of a capitalist. After liberation, it became public housing and was later allocated to Zhao Wanli.

Zhao Wanli had distinguished himself in battle before liberation and was also a veteran revolutionary. His family had many members and housing was scarce, so the organization allocated him a place to live.

The main building, constructed of large blue bricks, has three rooms, two side rooms, and a storage room, with courtyards in the front and back.

Today is Friday, and the whole family was together at lunchtime.

Zhao Wanli and Liu Yaqin, a married couple.

Zhao Xiwen, Zhao Xiwu, Zhao Xibing, and Zhao Ximin were all there, along with their little sister Zhao Yanni.

A family of seven was eating around the table, creating a lively atmosphere.