Chapter 110: I Have a Third Uncle...

“Those four words, ‘Southern Faction Third Uncle,’ have absolutely nothing to do with you. There’s no way you’d use that as a pen name without reason.”

“By my guess, you must have a relative like that, and what you wrote in the novel is probably connected to him.”

“Am I wrong?”

Captain Liu spoke with unreserved confidence.

Then he stood up, turning his back to Bai Qingming, leaving only a profile visible as he began to put on an act.

After hearing Captain Liu’s words, Bai Qingming was utterly shocked.

What a talent!

To come up with something like that!

He was an orphan; where would a third uncle come from?

But since you say he exists, then so be it.

You’re the boss, you call the shots.

Although Liu’s speculation was nowhere near the truth, it sounded plausible and flawless.

Frankly, Bai Qingming almost believed it.

Unfortunately, it was just a bit off.

He was worried about how to explain this matter, but Liu had already crafted an excuse for him.

Very good, very good.

In an instant, Bai Qingming knew exactly how to explain it.

After a long silence, Liu turned back around.

Seeing Bai Qingming’s reaction, he smiled with a knowing expression.

Clearly, his guess had hit the mark.

But that was expected.

Since childhood, Captain Liu had a fondness for detective comics and novels like Detective Conan and Sherlock Holmes.

There was nothing to brag about; these were professional skills any excellent policeman should possess.

It just proved that all those years of reading comics and novels weren’t wasted—basic skills, nothing impressive.

Having such a figure in the police force was truly bad luck for criminals.

Thinking this, Liu suddenly felt the weight of responsibility on his shoulders, as if a great mission rested upon him.

To forge the glory of the police force, it was their unshirkable duty.

He looked at Bai Qingming, waiting for his explanation.

In just a few seconds, without much thought, Bai Qingming had already decided what to say next.

“I didn’t expect you to guess all this. I’m impressed.”

He said this first, immediately lifting Liu onto a pedestal.

Then Bai Qingming put on a serious expression and spoke solemnly:

“Originally, I didn’t want to say anything, but since you asked, I’ll tell the truth.

You’re right; I do have a third uncle, and the content in the novel does come from him.”

Hearing this, Captain Liu immediately grew excited.

From Bai Qingming’s words, he sensed something.

“And then? Go on. Did he tell you about the Nine-Dragon Coffin himself?”

Faced with Liu’s question, Bai Qingming calmly shook his head.

“No, my third uncle didn’t tell me directly. I found it in a diary while helping him sort through his things. At first, I thought he was just writing for fun and didn’t think much of it. Later, when writing the novel, I just used it.”

“What does your third uncle do? Where is he now?”

Liu quickly pressed on.

No doubt, Bai Qingming’s third uncle was suspicious.

Anyone who could write such a diary was practically proven to be a tomb raider.

“Unfortunately,”

Bai Qingming paused, then began to spin a serious tale, “my third uncle passed away long ago. From what I know, he was an ordinary farmer but had a strange character. He lived alone in a very remote place.”

Hearing this, Liu showed disappointment.

But he didn’t give up and continued, “What about that diary?”

Bai Qingming shook his head again, naturally continuing the story: “When my third uncle found out I had read his diary, he was furious. After a big outburst, he tore it up and threw it away. At the time, I didn’t understand why, but now I think I do.”

After those words, Liu fell silent.

Bai Qingming breathed a sigh of relief.

He had managed to cover it up.

All his explanations sounded reasonable, except for one small flaw—he grew up in an orphanage, so why would a mysterious third uncle suddenly appear?

But thinking carefully, even for someone raised in an orphanage, it wasn’t unreasonable to find a relative after searching as an adult.

Even if the police verified and found nothing, it wasn’t a concern. In some remote areas, population censuses were still backward; many people’s information wasn’t registered, making someone very hard to track down.

With that, Bai Qingming was free of worries.

He even wanted to shout out loud.

Is that all?

Another ten minutes passed.

Liu stood up and went out for a while. When he returned, his brow was still tightly furrowed—obviously, no results had been found.

Under such circumstances, with a reasonable explanation and no evidence of Bai Qingming tomb raiding, the police station had no choice but to let him go.

“Your third uncle is very likely a notorious tomb raider. If you recall any clues about him, please be sure to contact us.”

Before leaving, Liu reminded him.

Bai Qingming could only nod repeatedly.

Just as he reached the door, a jeep drove through the police station’s gate.

Then, an elderly man with thick glasses and graying hair stepped out of the back seat.

It was Professor Gu.

As soon as he got out, he started shouting.

“Where’s that tomb raider who writes novels?”

Seeing this, Captain Liu quickly brought Bai Qingming forward and explained everything.

After a thorough explanation, it was clear Bai Qingming was not a tomb raider.

At that moment, Professor Gu suddenly spoke.

“May I have a few words alone with this young man?”

He pointed at Bai Qingming.

Curious, Bai Qingming didn’t know what the professor wanted to discuss, so he followed him into the jeep.

The car stopped in place, the two alone inside.

At first, neither spoke; the atmosphere was somewhat tense.

“Say what you want.”

Bai Qingming couldn’t hold back and spoke first.

“To be honest, I came here to ask—where is the main character in your next book going?”

Professor Gu responded:

“What’s wrong?”

Bai Qingming suddenly felt a jolt.

“Is what I’m about to write related to your archaeological research?”

He suddenly understood.

The old professor must think the next plot he’d write still came from the ‘third uncle’s’ diary and wanted to subtly investigate if there was a chance to excavate something, some archaeological site.

But honestly, Bai Qingming no longer intended to update the novel “The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles.”

Not because he didn’t want to, but because he couldn’t.

This time, the story involved an ancient Xia Dynasty tomb with the Nine-Dragon Coffin; the next stories about underwater tombs, the Cloud Summit Palace, and Bronze Gates could all become reality.

Just thinking about it was terrifying.

Who would dare to continue writing?

Unless they wanted to go to jail.

If archaeologists confirmed these places truly existed, the ‘third uncle’s diary’ excuse probably wouldn’t work anymore.

Anyway, whoever wants to write, let them; he wasn’t done living yet.

On the other side, facing Bai Qingming’s question, Professor Gu cleared his throat slightly.

“It’s not that there’s a connection. There’s just something... hard to say.”

“What is it?”

Bai Qingming was puzzled.

After a pause, Professor Gu slowly said:

“To be honest, your novel is so good that I wanted to... um, urge you to update it. Is that okay?”

Bai Qingming: “...”