Zhou Huan entered the vault area. Two burly security guards sat by the door, and slowly, a young man wearing glasses and looking scholarly emerged from behind them.

“Sir, this section holds the Diamond VIP storage lockers. I am the dedicated manager here, and I will personally escort you while you retrieve your items,” the young man spoke with utmost courtesy.

Zhou Huan glanced at the key in his hand, then at the number on the slip of paper. “Oh, thank you. I need to find the locker corresponding to this barcode.” He handed the slip to the so-called manager.

After reviewing the number, the manager’s demeanor became even more deferential, bowing and gesturing extravagantly. “Ah, sir, a Platinum Diamond VIP client! Please, follow me.” The manager then whispered a few words to the guards before leading Zhou Huan through the vault area.

The two proceeded into a highly concealed passage. After the manager unlocked the door with his fingerprint, he paused, blocking Zhou Huan outside. Then, two uniformed security guards emerged from the passage, holding scanners, and approached Zhou Huan to begin the sweep.

“Sir, I apologize, but this is a necessary procedure. This is all for security purposes; we ask for your understanding!” the manager explained.

Zhou Huan replied, “It’s fine; I understand.”

The two guards finished their check, gave Zhou Huan a very polite salute, and said, “Sir, everything is clear. You may enter.”

The manager then continued leading Zhou Huan deeper, to the end of the passage where a massive vault door stood. The manager first entered a code, then pressed his fingerprint, and finally turned to Zhou Huan. “Sir, it’s your turn to enter the code now!”

“A code? What code do I need to enter?” Zhou Huan had no idea what the password was; the old woman hadn't told him anything, just mentioned that one sentence. After a moment’s thought, he asked the manager, “Is the password numeric?”

This time, the manager displayed surprise, his alertness instantly spiking to red. He scrutinized Zhou Huan again. “You don’t know the password? This safe is specifically prepared for our most distinguished clients. You have three minutes; if you don't have the code, I will have to ask you to leave.”

“Oh, please wait a moment.” Zhou Huan frantically racked his brain, gripping the key tightly in his hand. Suddenly, he felt something pricking his palm. He looked down closely and saw several small horizontal protrusions sticking out from the side of the key.

Zhou Huan stared intently at the key. He saw several characters etched onto it: “Seven seven eight five one one nine.” This must be the password. Seeing this, Zhou Huan pocketed the key and stepped forward to open the door. As Zhou Huan’s final finger pressed the keypad, the huge vault door slowly creaked open with a kaka sound.

“Heh heh, I knew it, sir. You couldn’t possibly enter without knowing the code,” the manager finally let out a breath of relief, as he had genuinely feared Zhou Huan might be some kind of robber.

What was revealed before them was a large hall, entirely covered in surveillance cameras. Professional security personnel were stationed at the entrances and exits of the passage. Behind the main door was another checkpoint, and after passing that, just a few steps led to a series of small rooms, each door bearing a room number and locked tightly.

Zhou Huan was escorted to Room 113. The manager stopped at the threshold, turned to Zhou Huan, and said, “There are only two keys to these rooms: one is in your possession, and the other is kept in the key repository. It cannot be retrieved unless the principal client claims it. Therefore, I can only escort you this far. How you retrieve the contents inside and operate the mechanism is now up to you. I will wait for you here.”

“Oh, thank you; you’ve troubled yourself enough!” As Zhou Huan spoke, he pulled the key from his pocket and smoothly unlocked the door. Zhou Huan stepped inside, while the manager closed the door from the outside, speaking to Zhou Huan through an intercom: “Just unlock it again when you exit.”

Zhou Huan gave the manager a token nod and walked further in. After about twenty meters, at the far end of the room, sat a safe, welded into the wall. Two surveillance cameras monitored either side of the safe.

Reaching this point, Zhou Huan couldn't help but exclaim, “The security measures here are first-rate.” He then slowly crouched down, inserted the key in his hand into the safe's keyhole. Next, a small computer keyboard popped out of a notch above the keyhole. Suddenly, the wall before Zhou Huan lit up, displaying only a single dialogue box with the instruction: Please enter the password here.

Zhou Huan clearly recalled the last sentence on the old woman’s note: Thank you for opening the door for me; I couldn't reach it!

When the password was entered into the dialogue box, the safe door groaned open with a zhiga sound. Inside, there was a box and a book.

Zhou Huan picked up the book first to examine it. It was very old, thread-bound, a pirated edition, written entirely with a brush: The Golden Plan Map (Jin Biantu). Zhou Huan opened the box, and a beam of golden light shot out. It was the necklace the old woman had been wearing when she first met Zhou Huan. Beneath the necklace lay a check and an MP3 player.

Zhou Huan inserted the MP3 earbuds into his ears, and the old woman’s voice sounded clear and real: “Master Zhou, everything here is yours now. That book is my family’s inherited metallurgy secret—various formulas on how to combine gold and diamonds more perfectly. This book is from the Ming Dynasty. As for the necklace, I gift it to Master Zhou, along with this twenty thousand yuan check as your payment. I have already donated my multi-million-yuan estate to charity, so I can depart with ease. Master Zhou, thank you truly!”

Zhou Huan collected all the items. He then closed the safe and strode out of the room.

“Sir, are you finished?” The manager hurried forward to greet him as Zhou Huan emerged.

Zhou Huan nodded and casually asked, “Do you have a bag here? Give me one so I can pack my things.”

“Oh, you’ve taken everything?”

“Yes, the safe is empty. Do I need to complete any further procedures?” Zhou Huan inquired.

The manager said formally, “I can handle the procedures for you, but you must hand over the key. Afterward, you need to collect your security deposit for safekeeping.”

“Deposit? How much is it?” Zhou Huan asked the manager.

This manager was quite astute. Seeing Zhou Huan ask, it was clear he knew nothing about the deposit. His greed immediately surfaced, and he casually told Zhou Huan, “Oh, the deposit isn't much, but this is your money. Since you’ve emptied the safe, we’re returning the unused portion of the safety fee. Here you go!” With that, the manager pulled out a hundred-yuan note and a fifty-yuan note from his pocket and handed them to Zhou Huan.

Zhou Huan reached out, accepted the money, tucked it into his pocket, and turned to leave. The manager stopped him. “You need to sign here to confirm you have received the money.”

“Heh heh, no problem!” Zhou Huan picked up the pen and signed. When he looked back at the manager, he noticed a dark cloudiness over the manager’s Yintang acupoint, but he said nothing. After signing, he wrote out a talisman and handed it to the manager. “Keep this on you; it will ensure your safety.”

“Yes, yes, thank you, sir, please!” The manager was practically leaning over to escort Zhou Huan out the door. He was ecstatic; this residual amount wasn't insignificant, and he was trying to exploit Zhou Huan’s ignorance to pocket the rest of the money.

Zhou Huan strode out, got into his car outside the main hall, but as he settled in, he noticed a gust of icy wind rush into the area where he had just exited.

“No good, something is wrong with that manager. That wind was quite strong!” Zhou Huan got out of the car again and rushed back into the hall.

The moment Zhou Huan left, the manager was beside himself with glee, clutching the signed slip of paper. He then took out a pen and wrote a few characters on the slip: The remaining balance for the safe rental will be managed by Manager Qi. Below that, it read: Authorized By: Zhou Huan.

“What? Zhou Huan?” The manager, in his elation, froze when he saw the name. He then pulled out the talisman Zhou Huan had given him earlier. He looked at it, quickly threw it away—a clear sign of a guilty conscience.

The instant he discarded the talisman, he heard a cold gust of wind whistle past his ear, followed by two sharp slapping sounds: “Pa pa!”

These two slaps shattered the manager’s glasses into pieces. The manager panicked. “Who? Who hit me?” His shout wasn't very loud, as the security guards were sitting far from him by the door.

Just then, Zhou Huan rushed back in from outside. “Sir…” Seeing the manager’s state, Zhou Huan almost laughed but suppressed it out of decorum.

“Mas… Master Zhou, wh-why are you back!” The guilty always avert their gaze.

Zhou Huan leaned close to the manager, then rubbed his eyes and suddenly jerked backward.

“Manager, did you just throw away the talisman I gave you?” Zhou Huan asked, observing the manager’s condition.

The manager stammered, “Yes, I threw it away. I don’t believe in that kind of thing. Why would I need it?”

“You don’t believe it? You were just struck by a ghost; don’t tell me you didn’t feel it. She’s right behind you now!” Zhou Huan said, pointing behind the manager.

“Ah!” The manager gasped, immediately pressing closer to Zhou Huan. “What? I don’t believe it. Who?”

When the manager moved aside, clearing the view for Zhou Huan, Zhou Huan saw something that was both surprisingly shocking and exhilarating.

Seeing Zhou Huan’s expression, the manager was terrified. He couldn't believe what Zhou Huan was saying, watching him mutter and gesture as if talking to himself. He straightened his clothes, rubbed his face, and tried to compose himself. “Master Zhou, you’re not trying to fool me, are you? I truly don’t believe it.” As he spoke, sweat beads the size of soybeans began to roll down his forehead.

The manager slowly turned around, his body trembling uncontrollably. The paper in his hand was crumpled into tiny pieces, and his heart began to thump wildly like a ratchet drum.