Listening to Yun Jian’s analysis, the team thought that they had learned something valuable.
There was an assortment of maps for the nearby scenic areas in the car rental but no one else, except for Yun Jian, paid attention to it. No one had thought of taking a map to study it.
The map was universal. Although Liu Shiyun and the others did not understand the text printed on it, they were able to distinguish the icons. Besides, the maps were usually accompanied by English prints.
As for Yun Jian, she had taken a map once they got to the car rental and understood the geography. She also analyzed the geography and finally came to the conclusion.
In fact, there were a lot of things that no one could not find answers to, but one could find from the available environment.
Like the art thief, they would go to where there were signs of life unless he was suicidal.
There was no doubt that the direction hinting at a population was the south. It was obvious from the map that any other direction would bring a traveler to the borderless desert.
“Since we know where to go now, drive faster, Fang Xiaoran!” Chu Xiangnan added in delight.
“No need.” Yun Jian countered immediately.
She pressed her lips together before saying, “Drive slowly, no hurry. We don’t have to alert anyone. Right now, we’re just a bunch of tourists on our holiday in the Tiandi Canyon from the eyes of this thief.”
Yun Jian squinted at them after that. All of them understood what she meant.
She was saying that before they could determine who the art thief was, all of them were to pretend as students who came to the Tiandi Canyon for a vacation.
Fang Xiaoran drove the jeep and as instructed, he drove slowly.
After about an hour, the scenery in front of them changed when Yun Jian looked outside the window.
It was no longer barren land without a sprout of green or large pieces of oddly shaped rocks. There was a river and a large village on the opposite of it.
The group was delighted. Fang Xiaoran did not turn around but he asked Yun Jian, “Yun Jian, are we going into the village?”
“Yes. Let’s find a place to stay and rest,” Yun Jian replied with a nod.
The team then entered the village.
Men in Country A were used to wrap a turban around the top of their head while women covered their entire head other than their face with a scarf like they were wearing a hat. This was part of the culture of the nation.
As they alighted the jeep, Yun Jian asked for shelter from the village head on behalf of her squad.
The village chief and the villagers welcomed them warmly, receiving travelers abroad with passion. The chief ultimately separated the seven-member squad into four groups and sent them to stay with four different families in the village.
Yun Jian was arranged to stay alone with an impoverished family. The family was hospitable. The woman, Adiya, was in her forties while her daughter, Meiboba, was two years younger than Yun Jian.
Adiya’s husband had already passed away, so life was hard for Adiya to bring up her child, Meiboba, alone. In spite of it, she genuinely welcomed Yun Jian.
It took less than half a day when Meiboba got close to Yun Jian. In addition, the latter had no language barrier with people in Country A, so Meiboba seemed to like her as an elder sister very much.
“Big sister, can you go to the river with me to catch fish?” Meiboba shook Yun Jian’s arm, asking her with an anticipating gaze.
Yun Jian quite liked this little sister who was two years younger than her as well and nodded, following Meiboba to the river in the village.
There were already kids who were around Meiboba’s age by the riverbank. All of them were catching fish with the most primitive method, spearing the swimming fish in the shallow and clear river with a long bamboo stick that was shaved to a prickly point.
Just as Meiboba came to the riverside holding Yun Jian’s hand, they were surrounded by a group of rowdy boys.
“Meiboba, skinny and scrawny, without a daddy. She brought a foreigner to spear fish, hehehe!” The boys encircled Meiboba and taunted her with a rhyme they made up.
