He took one look at the color of that person’s palm and was ninety percent sure it was the hand of a professional tomb raider, because the color on that hand looked very much like it had been infected by corpse qi.

Corpse qi sounds mysterious, but Eric Bennett certainly knew it was actually a kind of microbial reaction that occurs when a corpse is buried underground for a long time; the microbes infect the tomb raider’s palm, leaving stains that are very hard to wash off.

Judging by the look of this hand, if the person sitting in the sedan wasn’t a living corpse, then they must have decades of experience handling corpses.

Just now, Brian Carter made a digging gesture, and Eric Bennett felt he was talking about tomb raiding. He had already suspected this, and in fact, he’d had this idea even before he transmigrated to this era.

According to historical records, Cao Hong was a wealthy man. Back when Cao Cao was serving as Minister of Works, he would have the county magistrates report the officials’ family assets every year. When the magistrate told Cao Cao that Cao Hong’s family fortune was equal to that of a duke or marquis, Cao Cao replied, “How could my family’s wealth compare to Zilian’s!”

Zilian was Cao Hong’s courtesy name.

To put it plainly, what Cao Cao meant was—there’s no way I, old man Cao, am richer than that kid Cao Hong, Cao Zilian.

Of course, Cao Hong’s money didn’t just fall from the sky.

Recalling what Brian Carter had just said, Eric Bennett immediately thought—Master Cao Hong of the Cao household is a general, but Third Master Cao is a tomb raider. Could the person in the sedan be Third Master Cao? Could the “Mojin Xiaowei” and “Faqiu Zhonglangjiang” under Cao Cao’s command be related to this Third Master Cao?

Those Mojin Xiaowei were always a mysterious presence under Cao Cao’s command.

He thought of many things in that moment; his mind always worked faster than others’, otherwise he wouldn’t have been entrusted with such important responsibilities at the highest level. But all the others saw was Young Miss freeze for a moment when she saw that hand reach out, a hint of confusion in her eyes. Then, with a graceful twist of her waist, she turned her head and looked in the direction the hand was pointing. After a while, she said, “Who is Eric Bennett?”

The autumn wind was bleak, and everyone’s gaze immediately fell on the thin, somewhat inexperienced-looking youth. No one could figure out why Young Miss, who managed the finances of the Cao family, would be looking for this kid.

It certainly wasn’t a stroke of luck with women.

Everyone inwardly denied the idea. This kid was so unimpressive, he wasn’t even worthy of being called “cow dung.” Was Young Miss looking for him because she was annoyed and wanted to beat him up? Everyone secretly looked forward to it.

Young Miss followed everyone’s gaze, and when she saw Eric Bennett, her expression also showed a hint of surprise.

Relying on a woman’s intuition, that youth seemed a bit different, but she couldn’t quite say how. It wasn’t because he was handsome, nor because of his clothes, but somehow, standing among the household servants, he just looked different. What exactly was the issue?

Young Miss was puzzled, and Eric Bennett was also stunned, almost thinking he’d misheard. But then he heard Young Miss clearly say, “Eric Bennett, come here.”

Chapter Two: Assessment

Eric Bennett looked up at the sky, feeling it was still too early to be dreaming. He certainly didn’t think he was so charismatic that Young Miss would fall for him at first sight, but what did Young Miss want with him?

Judging by Young Miss’s tone, she didn’t even know whether he, Eric Bennett, was a cat or a dog. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have asked just now. Was it actually Third Master Cao in the sedan who wanted to see him?

Thinking it over, Eric Bennett still stepped out from the line of household servants, stopped three steps in front of Cao Young Miss, and respectfully said, “I wonder what instructions Young Miss has for me?”

In his own era, there weren’t many people who could make him lower himself like this. He believed in the principle of equality for all, but when in Rome, do as the Romans do. Since he had the identity of a household servant, he certainly couldn’t act like a master right now. Eric Bennett understood this, and didn’t want to bring trouble on himself. He considered himself quite talented at acting.

But when Cao Young Miss saw him like this, her beautiful eyes showed a hint of surprise. She really was just as Eric Bennett guessed—if her third uncle hadn’t mentioned it, she wouldn’t have even known there was a servant named Eric Bennett in the household. Normally, servants would rush forward to please her before she even called, so why did this Eric Bennett seem so indifferent when she summoned him?

The surprise flashed by, and Cao Young Miss said calmly, “Come with me.”

Eric Bennett, under the jealous gazes of the other servants, followed behind Young Miss and the sedan. They crossed the courtyard, passed through a winding corridor, and after going around a rock garden, finally stopped in front of a separate pavilion near the back garden.

“Wait here.” Cao Young Miss glanced back at Eric Bennett, seeing that he had quietly followed all the way, and frowned slightly.

Eric Bennett just nodded. He saw the sedan was actually carried straight into the pavilion. From beginning to end, apart from seeing Third Master Cao’s hand, he hadn’t seen anything else.

This Third Master Cao was even more mysterious than a woman.

Eric Bennett thought to himself mockingly, habitually surveying his surroundings.

Although Xudu would later become a famous ancient capital, it was only after Emperor Xian of Han, Liu Xie, moved the capital here a few years ago that Cao Cao expanded it. Now it was a new capital, and because of the Cao family, Cao Hong’s household had certainly grabbed a huge plot of land to expand their mansion. The layout of the mansion matched the image of this era in his mind: a hierarchical structure, main hall in front, private quarters in back, with towers and pavilions befitting a wealthy family. Only, this pavilion in front of him stood out abruptly, seeming a bit odd.

Eric Bennett looked at the pavilion, momentarily lost in thought. He suddenly realized a very interesting question: just how many floors did this pavilion have?

Others might think he was crazy for asking, but he knew for sure that wasn’t the case.