As soon as the car stopped, Li Ningguang was eager to get out. He didn't want to stay in the car any longer; it was terrifying and agonizing. Wang Zhen quickly took out a large umbrella to hold up for Li Ningguang, as he was worried about getting soaked in the rain and catching a cold. Du Wenqiang carried two travel bags behind him. One bag was for Li Ningguang, and the other was for Wang Zhen and Du Wenqiang. Li Ningguang also prepared a small bag for Liu Dewang. After all, the medical expenses had already been paid, so what was a little extra money? Zhang Guodong had no objection to Li Ningguang taking care of all this and was happy to see it. But in their haste to get out of the car, they even forgot to change their shoes. The mud and water splashed everywhere, and their clothes, worth hundreds or thousands of yuan, were instantly covered in mud. "I've never been this unlucky before!" Li Ningguang's furious roar came from the rain. He was a mess, but he finally managed to run into the stone house. Zhang Guodong was the last one; he wasn't in a hurry. He took out his rain boots from his travel bag, put them on, then donned a raincoat, and finally grabbed a large umbrella. He called out to Lao Qing, and the two of them, one man and one wolf, got out of the car and headed towards the stone house. After a winter of filth, the air was now washed clean by the rain, and Zhang Guodong felt his breath was much fresher. Of course, the lightning overhead was a bad omen; Zhang Guodong wanted to stroll in the rain but was afraid of being struck by lightning. The stone house wasn't large; inside, stones served as stools and tables, and there was also a cleverly designed bluestone slab bed, though it was too small to fit more than one person. Everything was very rough; clearly, it was a makeshift solution put together by the road workers. A rough bluestone slab bed in the wilderness was certainly more comfortable than sleeping outdoors. Fortunately, there was no danger inside the stone house. When Zhang Guodong entered, Li Ningguang was awkwardly changing his shoes. "How could I forget about the rain boots?" Li Ningguang exclaimed in annoyance upon seeing Zhang Guodong wearing them. Wang Zhen and Du Wenqiang were even more embarrassed upon hearing this. Their boss was in a hurry to get down, so they had no choice but to accompany him, both getting soaked to the bone. "I was going to say something, but Boss Li, you've already run down—" Liu Dewang said, seizing the opportunity. Li Ningguang glared at him and scolded, "Then why didn't you say so earlier?" Liu Dewang's flattering words backfired, and he chuckled awkwardly, saying, "But it's more dangerous in the carriage. Boss Li's choice was right!" Zhang Guodong found it amusing. This old scoundrel's flattery skills were profound, blatant and without a hint of embarrassment. Li Ningguang was also amused and said, "You know how to read the wind, you've got potential!" "Hehe, thank you for the compliment, Boss Li. I still need Boss Li's guidance!" Liu Dewang immediately said cheerfully. This guy was quite a character! "Guodong, come sit down. It's good to have this stone house; in this heavy rain, the route is almost invisible!" Li Ningguang beckoned to Zhang Guodong, making room for a stone slab bed. Zhang Guodong nodded, glanced outside, and said, "Brother Li, judging from the situation, this rain won't stop anytime soon, especially in the mountains where it seems to rain quite often. If the ground doesn't dry, going into the mountains might be dangerous!" "Mr. Zhang is absolutely right; going into the mountains when it rains is very dangerous!" Liu Dewang immediately said. Of everyone present, only Liu Dewang, who lived at the foot of the mountain and only occasionally went in, had a deep understanding of some common sense. He just didn't know if Li Ningguang was familiar with this aspect. Zhang Guodong himself had no experience in this area; everything he knew came from the internet. If the rain lasted a long time, the soil on the mountain and the roads would become loose, making it dangerous to walk on. Not only was it slippery, but there was also a risk of collapse. "Will it delay our trip?" Li Ningguang frowned. "It shouldn't rain for that long, right? Liu Dewang, the cave you found won't be washed away by the flash flood, will it?" Liu Dewang immediately said, "No, Mr. Li, don't worry. If that place were going to be washed away, it would have been washed away long ago. It's not in a ravine; it's halfway up the mountain, and it's a very solid rock layer!" In that case, there was no need to worry about it being damaged. Everyone's hope now rested on that cave. But now, the weather has disrupted their plans, and it seems their journey will be delayed. "We'll just have to wait and see when this awful weather turns back!" Li Ningguang sighed helplessly. "Everyone, let's eat something to fill our stomachs first, and then we'll buy some more when we get to Qingyang—" Boom! Thunder rumbled and lightning flashed, and the rain intensified. Zhang Guodong and his group had prepared plenty of other things, but very little cooked food. Of course, Zhang Guodong himself was an exception; Taoyuan could store a lot of things. Li Ningguang had originally planned to buy things in Qingyang, so his travel bags were mostly filled with compressed food, just in case. But this "just in case" was not easy to eat, let alone taste or smell good. The only bread they had was eaten in the car, and there wasn't much left. They had no choice but to peel off some of the compressed food and eat it, along with some purified water. Zhang Guodong only drank some water, while Li Ningguang ate bread and drank yogurt, looking at Lao Qing and suddenly asked, "Guodong, what does Lao Qing usually eat?" Zhang Guodong was taken aback and said, "Raw meat, live fish—" "No wonder it looks fierce; it's a good wolfhound, even more like a wolf!" Li Ningguang said enviously. Zhang Guodong smiled but didn't reply. He then got up, opened his travel bag, and took out a plastic bag containing a small amount of water. Inside, something was struggling. Zhang Guodong thought to himself, "Good heavens! With a little spatial water, these two black fish won't suffocate even after several hours!" "Live fish?" Li Ningguang stared in astonishment at what Zhang Guodong had pulled out. "Lexun Bookstore text." "For Lao Qing. Lao Qing is quite picky about food, hehe!" Zhang Guodong walked over...

The plastic bag was opened and placed on the ground by the door. Old Qing, upon seeing the blackfish, immediately bit into it, tearing it in half and eating it bloodily. His eating style was extremely aggressive! Soon, another one was also in Old Qing's mouth. After eating two, Old Qing's stomach was only about half full; he usually ate three large blackfish in one meal. In a short while, only two incomplete fish bones remained on the ground. "It's a pity I forgot to bring a pot, otherwise I could have made fish soup!" Li Ningguang felt a chill run down his spine after watching Old Qing eat. Old Qing's fangs were extremely thick and sharp, and even while eating, his green eyes stared at people, constantly on guard—it was a habit. It was as if the fish weren't fish but his own arms and legs. Zhang Guodong pretended not to hear Li Ningguang's mutterings. After Old Qing finished eating, he said to Li Ningguang, "This rain will probably continue for quite a while. I'm going to the next room!" He thought to himself, "If I don't take Old Qing away, probably no one will dare to lie down and rest." His travel bag contained military bedding packed up. "Go ahead, there are two more rooms. Liu Dewang, take Master Lin to choose one. Wang Zhen and Wenqiang, choose one too. I'm staying here!" Li Ningguang said. "Wenqiang, go first, I'll stay!" Wang Zhen said, and Du Wenqiang nodded and went out. A qualified bodyguard can't be careless at any time. Although there wouldn't be any danger for Li Ningguang, Wang Zhen still insisted on staying. Li Ningguang didn't say much. Zhang Guodong was too lazy to look at Wang Zhen and the others' faces, as if he saw everyone as their enemy. He was very unhappy. Zhang Guodong was in the next room. This room was relatively dry. When Lao Qing was at the door, he shook off the rain splashing on his body before going in. He jumped up and easily climbed onto the stone table, then climbed down and pretended to sleep. Zhang Guodong noticed that after Lao Qing got out of the car, he finally stopped being anxious and restless. It seems that he was wrong. Did he think there would be any danger? Was Lao Qing's anxiety a sign of danger? Rumble! At this moment, thunder sounded all around, and the ground shook a few times. "What's wrong? What's wrong?" Li Ningguang had just made up the bedding and lay down when he felt the tremor. He hurriedly got out of bed and wanted to run outside. Not only him, but everyone else rushed out. At this moment, everyone was very sensitive to any noise. Zhang Guodong also felt that this shouldn't be thunder, right? Or was there a landslide somewhere? Lao Qing was actually the fastest to react. Before Li Ningguang could speak, he had already leaped to the door and was cautiously looking in one direction. That was the direction leading to Qingyang. "That didn't sound like thunder, it was an earthquake?" Zhang Guodong asked doubtfully. "Earthquake?!" Everyone was frightened. China had just experienced a major earthquake two years ago, with hundreds of thousands of deaths and injuries. Since then, everyone has become extremely sensitive to information about earthquakes and other disasters. "Impossible, how could there be an earthquake here?" Li Ningguang said, his mouth a little dry. If an earthquake happened on this rainy day, it would be a disaster. However, after the tremor, there was no further movement for a while. The driver, Lao Lin, said, "It's very likely that there's a landslide ahead, and the road is blocked!" This news was worse than an earthquake! If the road is blocked, how are they going to get through? There are still more than three hours to go. Everyone was now on a highway surrounded by mountains. Zhang Guodong thought that landslides were the most likely cause of such an incident. However, since everyone here felt the tremor, it was clear that the landslide ahead was very serious! Old Qing looked warily in Qingyang's direction; clearly, the problem had occurred there. Driver Lao Lin continued, "It seems quite far from here, but landslides usually happen on roads. If we hadn't stopped, it could have been very dangerous!" Indeed! If the landslide ahead was large, who could guarantee the car wouldn't be in that spot? Li Ningguang, upon hearing this, said dejectedly, "How unlucky are we? We've only gone a short distance, first we encountered a downpour, then almost got struck by lightning, and now the road is blocked?" Zhang Guodong laughed, "But we're alright now, which means our luck will improve!" The two exchanged a glance and laughed. "Guodong, I like hearing that. Which businessman doesn't hope for a good outcome? Even Tang Sanzang had eighty-one tribulations; good things come to those who wait. Let's get some sleep first!" Li Ningguang waved his hand, and everyone went back to their rooms to rest. Zhang Guodong glanced at the sky and frowned. How could he possibly rest well? That was just a reassuring remark; in this godforsaken place, anyone would feel frustrated.