Chapter 401 – What a Coincidence

Not long after, the sound of footsteps suddenly grew near. Li Yiyi, who had just been lying with her eyes open, immediately shut them, pretending to be asleep.

Even though her eyes were closed, the rustling noises by her side came through loud and clear.

Soon enough, she heard the distinct sound of a zipper being opened. Li Yiyi knew right away—the thief was going through her backpack.

Sensing the timing was just right, she silently counted to three in her mind, then suddenly sat up from her sleeping spot.

At the same moment she rose, Jiang Hong, who had been keeping watch nearby, rushed over. The young couple swiftly blocked the thief, who had been trying to escape.

In the dark of night, cold sweat dripped down Ye Fan’s face as he stared at the couple who had suddenly intercepted him.

He knew he was finished this time. Still, he wasn’t willing to give up just like that. He wanted to try one last time—maybe, just maybe, he could still talk his way out of this.

“What a coincidence, you two. How come you’re still awake this late at night?” His voice trembled slightly as he looked at them.

Jiang Hong stared at him coldly and said, “Ye Fan, this isn’t a coincidence. We stayed up on purpose, waiting here for you to show up.”

Ye Fan’s smile vanished instantly, replaced by a harsh, cold expression.

After a moment, he let out a self-mocking laugh. “When did you start suspecting something was off with me?”

Li Yiyi looked at him—no longer hiding his true face—and said, “You thought you were being sneaky, but in reality, you were full of holes from the start. You just didn’t realize it.”

“Who exactly are you?” she asked, eyes narrowing at him.

“Comrade Li, our boss truly appreciates your talents. If you’re willing to join us, he’s prepared to support your medical career unconditionally,” Ye Fan said seriously.

Hearing this, Li Yiyi narrowed her eyes. “You’re from R Country?”

“That’s right. Our great R Empire has advanced technology. As long as you’re willing to side with us, we can grant you boundless riches and glory,” Ye Fan said, no longer hiding his identity now that he’d been exposed.

Li Yiyi didn’t seem to hear his promise. Instead, she appeared deep in thought. “That doesn’t add up. You clearly grew up here. How could you be from R Country? Unless… you took someone else’s identity to live here?”

Ye Fan saw that she was thinking it through, so he generously explained, “My parents came here during the war. After their defeat, they left me in the care of a local farming family. But I was already old enough to understand—I’ve always known I was from R Country.”

Li Yiyi’s expression turned stern. “So when you said you wanted to study medicine to help the villagers here, that was a lie too?”

“No! That part is true! I really do want to learn medicine from you to help these people!” Ye Fan shouted, unwilling to let his sincerity be questioned.

His shout woke up many of the people who had been fast asleep.

“What’s going on? Why all the noise? Are they arguing or something?”

“Are you people crazy? It’s the middle of the night! Why aren’t you asleep? What’s with all the shouting?” Liu Caifeng, also awakened by the commotion, started grumbling loudly.

Li Yiyi and Jiang Hong glanced at the group of people who had woken up. The couple exchanged a look and made a silent decision.

“Good, you’re all awake,” Li Yiyi called out to the crowd. “Someone snuck over in the middle of the night and tried to steal from my bag. That backpack on the ground is my proof.”

“What kind of person does this? Sneaking into a woman’s camp at night to steal? Shameful!”

“But think about it—why would someone go through Comrade Li’s backpack? Did you all forget what she put in there today?” someone in the crowd asked, excitedly connecting the dots.

“The Hundred-Immortal Herb! I remember now—Comrade Li put the herb she dug up earlier into her backpack. That thief must’ve been after the herb!”

Hearing their deductions, Li Yiyi smiled faintly. “That’s right. Someone’s already figured it out—he came for the Hundred-Immortal Herb I dug up today.”

“So it was for the herb! Who is it? How shameless can someone be, stealing like that?”

As the crowd’s anger grew, Li Yiyi glanced sideways at Ye Fan with a half-smile. Her gaze lingered meaningfully on him.

Everyone noticed where she was looking. At that point, there was no more doubt about who the shameless thief was.

“Comrade Ye… you’re not the thief Comrade Li’s talking about, are you?” someone asked cautiously.

Ye Fan stammered, eyes darting nervously, avoiding their stares.

“So it is you! Comrade Ye, how could you be that kind of person? What were you planning to do with the Hundred-Immortal Herb?”

“What else? Probably planning to sell it for money. If that’s really a Hundred-Immortal Herb, it’d fetch a fortune out there.”

Hearing their chatter, Ye Fan interrupted coldly, his voice laced with contempt. “Shut up, all of you! What do you know? You’re just a bunch of ignorant fools. None of you deserve to possess the Hundred-Immortal Herb—it should belong to our R Empire!”

“R—R Country? You’re from R Country?” someone asked in disbelief, pointing at him.

Ye Fan, realizing he couldn’t hide it any longer, stared back defiantly. “That’s right, I’m from R Country. So what? The Hundred-Immortal Herb belongs to us. You don’t deserve it.”

Then, taking advantage of the crowd’s distraction, he lunged forward, grabbed the backpack on the ground, shoved aside a few people, and bolted into the forest.

“He stole the herb! We can’t just let him get away!” someone shouted.

Just as people started to chase after him, Jiang Hong stopped them. “No need to chase. The backpack he took is empty—there’s nothing inside.”

Hearing this, the group came to a halt.

“Oh, thank goodness. I thought we really lost the herb.”

Jiang Hong glanced at the sky. In the dead of night, with Ye Fan running off without beast-repellent incense, the odds were heavily stacked against him.

“Alright, everything’s fine now. Everyone, go back and get some rest. After breakfast tomorrow, we’ll head out on schedule,” he announced.

Some people cheered at the news, while others looked disappointed.

After the crowd dispersed, Li Yiyi called out to Jiang Hong, who was about to go on patrol.