Chapter 112: A Birdcage?
Xu Youyou hesitated for a moment but ultimately dismissed the idea. While she liked taking beautiful photos, she had no intention of becoming an influencer or celebrity, so there was no need to keep such a team.
Her slow-paced strolling was in stark contrast to Guai Guai, who was running around like an unbridled horse.
Aunt Liu, being elderly, simply couldn’t keep up with Guai Guai. If not for the tracker on its collar, the dog would have been lost several times.
After spending a day and a half looking after Guai Guai, Aunt Liu was visibly exhausted.
Yet, the old lady was stubborn and extremely fond of Guai Guai. Even though her legs were trembling, she refused to back down.
Even when Xu Youyou suggested she take a break, Aunt Liu shook her head and insisted, “Guai Guai is used to me taking care of it. If someone else takes over suddenly, it won’t be happy.”
Xu Youyou glanced at Guai Guai, who was sticking closely to Aunt Liu, and whispered, “Guai Guai, let’s give Grandma Liu a day off, okay? She’s old and needs to rest.”
Guai Guai looked at Xu Youyou, then at Aunt Liu, before silently walking over and sitting down beside Xu Fang.
Xu Youyou immediately said, “See, Aunt Liu? Guai Guai is fine with Sister Xu looking after it. You don’t have to worry.”
Xu Fang also chimed in, “That’s right, Aunt Liu. Don’t you trust me to take good care of it?”
Only then did Aunt Liu agree, though she hesitated before saying, “Miss Xu, you are very kind. You brought me to the capital to take care of Guai Guai, but now that you’ve given me a break, I was thinking of visiting some old friends here…”
This trip wasn’t originally in Aunt Liu’s plans. Now that she had a day off, she wanted to take the opportunity to see her friends in the city and mustered the courage to bring it up with Xu Youyou.
Xu Youyou had seen how much care Aunt Liu put into looking after Guai Guai and wouldn’t be so petty over such a small request. She waved a hand and smiled. “Aunt Liu, I gave you time off so you could rest. What you do with it is none of my business.”
Though she said she wouldn’t interfere, she still instructed Xu Fang to call a car for Aunt Liu.
Xu Youyou’s original plan for the day was to visit the Summer Palace, but just as she stepped out of the hotel, a system notification popped up in front of her.
[A rare treasure-hunting mission has begun. Please proceed to the target location immediately.]
After dealing with the system for so long, Xu Youyou immediately understood the meaning behind the long directional arrow—it was quite a distance away.
“Change course. We’re going somewhere else,” she instructed Xu Fang, who had just started the car.
Xu Fang was momentarily surprised but quickly responded. She was already used to Xu Youyou’s sudden whims.
The tour guide in the car, however, was baffled. “Miss Xu, where exactly are we going?”
Xu Youyou didn’t like having outsiders around when she was on a treasure hunt. She decisively told the guide, “You’ll still get paid, but consider today a day off. I’ll contact you tomorrow.”
After driving for a few dozen meters, Xu Fang stopped the car again.
The tour guide got out, looking utterly confused. The rest of the team followed suit, equally puzzled about Xu Youyou’s sudden change of plans.
Though they didn’t understand what was happening, the payment was real.
They hadn’t even done any work yet, and they were already getting their 100,000 yuan for the day. The guide could only grin and remark, “Rich people sure are capricious.”
Back in the car, Xu Youyou was busy navigating.
“Turn left at the next intersection.”
“Go straight.”
“Take the middle lane.”
She felt like a walking GPS.
Even Xu Fang, who was driving, couldn’t help but wonder—hadn’t Xu Youyou never been to the capital before? How did she seem so familiar with the roads?
Traffic in the capital was always bad in the mornings. What should have been a 30-minute drive took over an hour.
When Xu Youyou finally saw the large characters on the destination sign, she was momentarily stunned.
“Another flower and bird market?” she asked the system in her mind.
The system remained silent.
Xu Youyou didn’t press further. Instead, she followed the system’s guidance inside, picking up speed as she walked.
Xu Fang and the bodyguards exchanged curious glances behind her.
Previously, in Gansu, Xu Youyou had suddenly rushed into a flower and bird market to buy a potted plant. That was odd enough. Now, it was happening again.
The system’s notifications kept flashing, the frequency increasing rapidly. It even played an intense background track in her mind, making Xu Youyou even more anxious—if she was too slow, the good stuff might be snatched away by someone else.
“How much is this bird?”
Xu Youyou, slightly out of breath, rushed into a bird shop just in time to hear someone else asking for the price. Without thinking, she blurted out, “I want to buy it too! I’ll pay double!”
The man who had spoken before her was a middle-aged man in his forties, dressed in a white linen Tang suit. A string of prayer beads hung around his neck, and he twirled a pair of rosewood meditation balls in his hands. He had a leisurely, refined demeanor.
Hearing Xu Youyou’s interruption, he wasn’t angry. Instead, he chuckled. “Young lady, are you trying to compete with me?”
The shop owner also laughed. “I never thought this ordinary dumb bird would become so popular.”
Only then did Xu Youyou realize—the bird the shopkeeper was holding wasn’t what the system had targeted.
The system’s golden pointer was actually fixed on something behind the bird!
