"Xiang Wan, Xiang Wan, wake up!"
Before she even opened her eyes, Xiang Wan felt someone shaking her shoulders, and her whole body ached as if it were falling apart.
"Stop shaking her, she's about to wake up."
"Quickly give him some water."
"Her health is so poor, yet she still insisted on coming down. Not only did she cause us trouble, but we also had to take care of her. How could she have such a big face?"
"Say less. She's our cash cow. If something happens to her, none of us will have an easy time."
The cacophony of voices gave Xiang Wan a headache. She didn't even have the strength to open her eyes; moving a finger felt like all her strength was being drained.
A stream of cool water was fed into her mouth, and Xiang Wan swallowed it in large gulps. It took her a while to feel better.
"You're awake?"
The speaker was a man in his thirties, wearing a headlamp that he didn't turn on. His rough face was covered in stubble, and his eyes held a calm yet worried expression. Xiang Wan had regained some strength and tried to sit up. The man placed his hand on her back and helped her lean against a stone wall.
After adjusting to the light, Xiang Wan took in her surroundings. She was sitting in a passageway, surrounded by darkness except for a spotlight in the distance. Several people sat around the spotlight; when they saw Xiang Wan was awake, they glanced in her direction before casually looking away. Xiang Wan thought to herself, "The original owner of this body probably wasn't well-liked."
"Are you hungry? Have something to eat."
The man who spoke to her first handed her a pack of compressed biscuits and a bottle of water.
"Professor Liu, you're too kind."
Someone grumbled in dissatisfaction, but Xiang Wan pretended not to hear. She smiled slightly at the man in front of her, took the food, and slowly swallowed it with water. The hunger in her stomach was intense, with a burning sensation in her heart. If she didn't eat something soon, Xiang Wan wondered if she could survive.
After eating a little something, Xiang Wan finally felt better. She slowed down her eating pace and began to look at the people in front of her.
Aside from the person who was just called Professor Liu, there were four other people—three men and one woman—who sat quietly eating, occasionally exchanging small conversations, all whispering to each other as if afraid that Xiang Wan would overhear.
The woman was about twenty years old, with her hair tied in a ponytail. Because she was sitting sideways, Xiang Wan couldn't see her face clearly, only her profile, which was very pretty. The other three men glanced at her from time to time, happily offering her water and fetching her things.
"Don't be sad. They only have opinions about you because they don't understand you. We're all on the same team, and unity is the most important thing." Professor Liu thought Xiang Wan was upset, so he sat down next to her and comforted her.
Xiang Wan glanced at Professor Liu. He exuded a peaceful and approachable aura that made anyone who got close to him unconsciously relax. Not yet processing the plot, Xiang Wan didn't know how to react, so she simply nodded and leaned against the wall to rest for a while.
They were likely in an underground tunnel, surrounded by several large backpacks, professional shovels and digging tools, as well as electronic devices and instruments. Each person wore a small pendant with a flashing red light. They were dressed in sturdy windproof jackets, thick-soled leather boots, and wore watches on their wrists, which looked like waterproof military watches.
Xiang Wan looked at her wrist and then felt her pockets, but didn't find her watch.
Professor Liu noticed her movement, so he took off his watch and handed it to Xiang Wan: "Use mine."
Xiang Wan hesitated for a moment, looking at Professor Liu, but didn't take it. Professor Liu smiled and said, "Take it, it'll be convenient for keeping track of the time. I don't need it, I'm not used to it."
"No need, I'm just looking."
With that, Xiang Wan pushed the watch back. She didn't want to become the target of everyone's criticism. She was already unpopular, and if she took something from someone else, her situation would probably become even more difficult.
"Professor Liu, you can't be biased. My watch is also broken, so why don't you give it to me?"
The only two women in the group spoke up, and everyone gathered around, looking at Xiang Wan with displeasure. When they saw that Professor Liu had indeed handed the watch to the woman, the three men snorted and turned their heads away.
Xiang Wan was puzzled. How much did she attract hatred that a broken watch could cause such dissatisfaction? Since that was the case, she couldn't let that woman get away with it. She stood up, decisively snatched the watch back, and shoved it into Professor Liu's hand, saying, "Even if you don't like using it, you can't throw it away to feed the dogs."
"Wu Xiangwan, who are you calling a dog? It's one thing to be incompetent, but what right do you have to steal my things?"
The woman was furious; she pointed at Xiang Wan and almost poked her face.
Xiang Wan was not afraid and slapped her hand away, saying coldly, "Is it yours? If you want to take advantage of someone's misfortune, you should at least see if you have the ability. You dare to take the captain's watch? You really have a death wish."
"What's wrong with having a watch? What can a broken watch do? It's still better than some people who have their food and belongings waited on them. Are you trying to get us to die with you by staying here? Tsk tsk, with your appearance, even a ghost wouldn't want you. You still have the nerve to argue with me?"
"I don't want to have your face; even ghosts would hate it."
"Pfft!" Someone couldn't help but laugh out loud, then immediately stopped.
"Alright, alright, stop arguing. We're all on the same team. Can't we talk about this outside?"
Professor Liu spoke up at the right moment, and the woman's chest heaved with anger, but she managed to hold back. Even through the dim light, Xiang Wan could feel the woman's unfriendly gaze.
"Professor, do you think we can still get out?"
"Pah, pah, pah, don't say things like that anymore, it's bad luck."
"We'll definitely get out of here, Buddha bless us."
"Come on, even if Buddha is in the country, how can he possibly manage things abroad?"
"Then God help me, I also want to find a beautiful girlfriend to take home for the New Year."
The other three joked around, and the argument was over. Professor Liu looked at Xiang Wan with concern, and seeing that she had almost recovered her strength, he told everyone to take their backpacks and tools, and they planned to continue on their way.
Xiang Wan looked around and saw that everyone had a bag on their backs except for a large, heavy one that no one was carrying. She figured that this must be the original owner's bag, so she went over and decided to carry it on her back.
"Let me do it. You've just recovered and shouldn't do any heavy physical work."
Professor Liu shoved his backpack behind him. Someone nearby snorted and muttered, "Some people are just too delicate."
If you don't like someone, everything they do is wrong. Xiang Wan didn't want to show off just because she was misunderstood, but she also didn't want Professor Liu to carry too much, so she took the bag, shared some of the load with Professor Liu, and carried the rest according to her own physical strength.
"You don't need to worry about them, I'll handle it." Professor Liu reached out again, but Xiang Wan refused.
"No, I can't be a burden to you."
The group of people slowly walked into the darkness, guided by a single lamp.
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