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Bai Yujing booked a hotel by the riverside, with a room that overlooked the lake. When he opened the window, he could see the Ness River flowing around the city. Under the night sky, the stars reflected on the river's surface, creating a particularly romantic atmosphere.
"Okay, let's schedule a time to meet tomorrow afternoon."
"Sure!"
Bai Yujing stood by the window and turned to see Emma, dressed in a bathrobe, walking in after finishing her phone call. He asked, "What's up? Is someone looking for you tomorrow?"
Emma excitedly replied, "Ian, I have good news! Someone has offered three million pounds for the manuscript of Gulliver's Travels that we have. They will come to Inverness tomorrow to discuss this matter with us. Ian, we're going to get rich!"
Bai Yujing was taken aback for a moment but quickly became excited as well. The three million pounds was far beyond their expectations. They had originally hoped for one hundred thousand euros, which was just a thought; Bai Yujing had actually thought that getting a few tens of thousands of euros would be good enough. He didn't expect such good news to come so soon: "You got in touch with them that quickly? Your speed is incredible. Didn't you say you were going to contact your friend at the auction house for this?"
Emma shook her head. "It wasn't my friend who introduced them; they reached out to me. I was planning to get back to London and contact our friends to arrange this, but I didn't expect them to find me so soon."
Bai Yujing frowned; this was too strange. Could it be a scam? He immediately asked, "Did they say who wanted to buy the manuscript?"
Emma thought for a moment and replied, "A person named Burton MacLeod!"
Bai Yujing and Emma simultaneously looked at each other and exclaimed, "McLeod?"
Neither of them had expected that a term from their notes would suddenly appear before them. The McLeod Family was central to the entire notebook and story, being the mastermind behind the events and legends. Their sudden appearance left both of them somewhat stunned.
Emma seemed restless. "Why do you think they are looking for us? This feels like a conspiracy."
After thinking for a moment, Emma immediately stood up, looking hurried. Bai Yujing quickly grabbed her arm: "Where are you going now?"
Emma immediately said, "We should leave here and avoid contact with them. We need to stay away from them."
Bai Yujing did not expect Emma to be such a crisis-aware girl. After considering the decision, Bai Yujing shook his head and said, "I don't think that's a wise move. The fact that they were able to find out our identities, contact information, and address so quickly shows how capable they are. No matter where we run to, we won't be able to escape them; after all, we are not professionally trained agents."
Emma quickly asked, "So what should we do?"
Bai Yujing thought for a moment and replied, "We should first gather the information we got from Lemuel Gulliver, and then meet with them tomorrow. Since they have arranged to meet us for a face-to-face discussion, it means they are willing to sit down and talk with us. We can learn their intentions during the meeting. If it's just a simple purchase of the manuscript, we can sell it to them. If there are other motives, we can listen and then decide how to respond."
Emma nodded, "You make a good point, but I feel like their purpose for finding us isn't that simple."
"Then we'll find out when we meet them tomorrow."
-------------------
The next day, both Bai Yujing and Emma felt a bit nervous. Other than running around Inverness in the morning, they had been sitting together on the bed watching TV because it started raining early in the day and the weather was very cold.
Until Emma's phone rang. After answering it and saying a few words, she hung up.
Bai Yujing immediately asked, "What happened? Was it them calling?"
Emma nodded, "Yes, they arranged for us to meet at a hotel. They are already waiting for us there."
The two quickly set off. Bai Yujing carried a light brown backpack and wore a red windbreaker, while Emma donned pink sportswear and sneakers. After tidying themselves up, they headed out.
It was still raining outside, drenching the wet streets and lush green lawns. Bai Yujing held an umbrella as they walked and soon found the agreed meeting place.
"Hello, do you have a reservation?" the hotel staff asked.
This is a four-star hotel, and it should be the best in Inverness, considering it's just a small city with a population of a few tens of thousands.
"Hello, we were invited by Burton MacLeod!" Emma said to the staff.
"Alright, please follow me!"
Following the staff, they finally arrived at a private dining room on the fourth floor and sat down. Inside the room were already two people: an elderly, frail man who looked quite old, with graying hair but an imposing presence. Just sitting there gave off an aura of unintentional authority that was quite oppressive.
Next to him was a middle-aged man in a well-tailored suit, his hair meticulously styled, looking very capable. It was clear without saying that he was an aide, likely either a secretary or a lawyer.
Seeing Emma and Bai Yujing enter, the elderly man seemed surprised to see two people. However, after glancing at them, his expression didn't change much. He immediately stood up and said to Emma and Bai Yujing, "I'm glad you both could make it here. Burton MacLeod; this is my lawyer, Bivis. Miss Emma, may I ask who this is beside you?"
Emma quickly introduced, "This is my boyfriend; you can just call him Ian. He discovered this manuscript together with me."
"Hello, may I take a look at the manuscript first?" Burton MacLeod asked Bai Yujing. It was evident that he was somewhat rigid yet very proud; his speech was formal and precise. He seemed enthusiastic but gave off an air of being unapproachable.
"Of course." Bai Yujing took out an ancient leather-bound book from her bag and handed it to the elderly man. The old man put on his glasses and carefully flipped through the pages. After a long while, he nodded to his lawyer.
Lawyer Bivis immediately indicated his understanding and began discussing the transfer procedures with Bai Yujing and Emma. Since Emma had already consulted a friend at the auction house for an appraisal yesterday, they knew it would be difficult to sell at that price even through the auction house, which would also take a commission. Both Bai Yujing and Emma felt that three hundred thousand pounds was a sincere offer and saw no need to appear overly greedy, as it might provoke others and backfire.
With no interest in small talk, they briefly discussed matters and proceeded with the transfer process. After a notification pinged on their phones indicating that the money had indeed been transferred, both Bai Yujing and Emma became somewhat excited. This was real money—three hundred thousand pounds—which converted to over twenty million yuan; Bai Yujing would get half of that—ten million—and she had never seen so much money before.
After everything was completed, Bai Yujing and Emma expressed their gratitude to their benefactor Burton MacLeod and prepared to leave when unexpectedly, Burton MacLeod spoke up.
"Did you find anything else when you got this manuscript?" The old man's somewhat cold voice echoed in the private room.
The two immediately turned around, and Bai Yujing quickly said, "At that time, we only found this manuscript; after all, we didn't discover some kind of treasure, did we?"
Burton MacLeod immediately replied, "You initially found a box, right? A box that big surely contained more than just one manuscript. We've been searching for what Lemuel Gulliver left behind for many years."
Bai Yujing realized that his voice sounded dry. Although he forced himself to remain calm, he knew he must have shown signs of fear. It seemed that Burton MacLeod had seen right through them, fully aware of what they held and the information they possessed. This feeling of being passive and exposed made him uncomfortable: "I don't understand what you're talking about. We..."
"One hundred million!" The old man impatiently interrupted Bai Yujing.
"I'll offer one hundred million pounds, as long as you can help me find the Fountain of Youth; it will be yours!" After saying this, Burton MacLeod did not wait for Bai Yujing's response but stood up and walked toward the exit.
Bivis followed him but handed each of them a business card as he passed by Bai Yujing and Emma. Burton MacLeod turned back at the door: "If you come to a decision, feel free to call this number to contact me. I can provide you with everything you need."
Watching the two leave, Bai Yujing and Emma exchanged glances. After a long moment, Bai Yujing picked up the business card and glanced at it: "McLeod Medical Group!"
There was no job title written below, only Burton MacLeod's name. Bai Yujing swallowed hard: "What do you think? Should we do it?"
Emma turned back, her eyes sparkling as if filled with the glow of gold coins: "One hundred million! Why not? We were already planning to go to the island to find something anyway. Plus, he can help us prepare everything we need and want. Why not do it?"
Bai Yujing felt that Emma made a lot of sense. Well, one hundred million was indeed an eye-catching figure, and he clearly heard that it was pounds, not Vietnamese dong.
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