Du Lanyue knew Gu Qingcheng was very successful in her career. Before, she thought Gu Qingcheng's success was due to her family's background and influence. But now, she felt that Gu Qingcheng could forge her own path even without her family's support.
If Du Lanyue knew that Gu Qingcheng's "family" plus herself only numbered three people, she would have admired her own deduction.
Gu Qingcheng had essentially saved tens of thousands of lives through her own efforts.
"How was it? Am I strong?"
Gu Qingcheng couldn't help but sigh again.
"Strong, very strong."
Du Lanyue nodded in agreement.
Gu Qingcheng chuckled and suddenly slapped her forehead, saying,
"Right, Sister Lanyue, let's check the river again. I have a feeling there's more than one treasure chest inside."
"No way? There's more?"
Du Lanyue had already considered getting this chest an unexpected surprise. She hadn't expected Gu Qingcheng to have even bigger ambitions.
"Let's go and see. When I got the chest just now, I didn't have time to explore elsewhere."
After speaking, Gu Qingcheng grabbed two more candles and walked back to the underground river with Du Lanyue.
When she lit all the candles, the entire cave room was brightly illuminated, and the illuminated area on the opposite side of the underground river also increased significantly.
Gu Qingcheng took off her outer jacket.
Du Lanyue's eyes widened in shock. She couldn't react for a moment, thinking he was going to strip naked.
Fortunately, Gu Qingcheng only took off her cumbersome outer jacket and then plunged into the underground river with a "plop."
Her physique had been modified by the Great Strength Pill and was now extraordinary. Therefore, even though the underground river was cold, she could still endure it.
She dove into the water.
Du Lanyue watched from the bank, her heart filled with trepidation.
Time seemed to stand still.
She felt as if time was passing very slowly, and Gu Qingcheng hadn't resurfaced for a long time.
After diving underwater, Gu Qingcheng swam towards where the chest had been buried. She saw a pile of supplies covered with waterproof oilcloth at the spot where the chest had been buried.
Gu Qingcheng pulled open the oilcloth and saw many chests, jars, and cans in front of her.
Seeing the sheer quantity, Gu Qingcheng wondered if it would take a lot of effort to haul them ashore one by one.
So, she left one chest behind and stored the rest in her storage cabinet.
She had practiced diving and holding her breath with Mi Guo before, and could hold her breath for a long time. While she was busy underwater, time naturally seemed to fly by, but Du Lanyue on the shore was panicking.
Could something have happened to Young Master Gu underwater?
Du Lanyue clutched her heart, regretting not having persuaded Gu Qingcheng not to take the risk earlier.
The depth of the underground river was unknown, and the presence of any undercurrents was also unknown. What if Gu Qingcheng was sucked in by an undercurrent?
Du Lanyue silently counted from one to ten. If Gu Qingcheng still showed no signs of movement, she would jump into the river to search for him.
"One, two... nine." Just as Du Lanyue was about to jump into the river, there was a huge splash in the river, as if something was about to surface.
A moment later, Gu Qingcheng's head emerged from the water. She wiped her face and then smiled at Du Lanyue, saying,
"Sister Lanyue, I did find something."
"Get out of there quickly!"
Du Lanyue couldn't care about any discoveries at this moment. Her only concern was his safety.
Gu Qingcheng swam towards the shore with a "splash." At the same time, she was dragging a chest behind her, which was tied to a rope around her waist and being pulled towards the shore.
It turned out that Gu Qingcheng had been underwater for so long because she had found over a dozen chests underwater and had stored them all in her storage cabinet. She had only left one chest, similar to the one containing gold bars earlier, tied with a rope and pulled out of the water.
Du Lanyue had no idea where the rope came from. Seeing Gu Qingcheng come ashore, her eyes turned red, and she said,
"I thought you weren't coming back up."
As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt they were ominous and quickly fell silent, rushing to pull Gu Qingcheng ashore.
As soon as Gu Qingcheng was on land, Du Lanyue, disregarding that she was soaking wet, hugged her tightly.
Gu Qingcheng had been happy, but when Du Lanyue hugged her, she felt her trembling in her arms and realized that Du Lanyue had been terrified by her actions.
"Sister Lanyue, it's okay. My swimming and floating skills are very good. I can hold my breath underwater for the time it takes an incense stick to burn. It was my fault for not informing you beforehand, which caused you to worry."
Seeing how anxious she was, Gu Qingcheng was deeply moved.
Only when one considers someone their best friend would they be so invested and anxious.
It felt good to have a good friend caring about her.
Gu Qingcheng suddenly rediscovered the profound friendship she had shared with her teammates when she was on the archery team, that sense of mutual support.
She couldn't help but silently vow that Du Lanyue was the first close friend she had made here, and she would protect her for the rest of her life.
No matter what kind of family Du Lanyue came from, with this generous inheritance from the unknown benefactor, she would surely have no worries about food and clothing in the future, and would be able to live a wealthy life.
Gu Qingcheng showed her affection by hugging Du Lanyue's waist tightly. She felt Du Lanyue's body suddenly freeze, and Gu Qingcheng was very pleased, believing her comfort was effective.
Thus, Gu Qingcheng intensified her actions, hugging Du Lanyue and gently patting her back with both hands, saying,
"There, there, don't be scared, don't be scared. With me here, how could anything happen to me?"
When Gu Qingcheng surfaced, she had already seen Du Lanyue's anxious expression and her eagerness to jump into the water.
Gu Qingcheng had shouted as soon as she surfaced precisely because she had seen Du Lanyue about to jump in, wanting to prevent her from actually doing so.
She had dry clothes with her, and also clothes for Du Lanyue. However, she could take out her own clothes to wear, but if Du Lanyue's clothes appeared, how would she explain it?
She couldn't exactly tell Du Lanyue that she had brought them along because she had foreseen her jumping into the water.
Such an explanation would be too bizarre.
Du Lanyue's body froze because she hadn't expected Gu Qingcheng to hug her like that, and then pat and comfort her like her mother used to do when she was sick and uncomfortable as a child.
Du Lanyue felt her soul leave her body, and it took a while for her to snap back to reality.
She felt her heart completely surrender.
Even if Gu Qingcheng didn't confess, she would still hold onto Gu Qingcheng tightly.
"I, I almost jumped into the water just now. I thought you weren't coming back up."
Du Lanyue's words confirmed Gu Qingcheng's thoughts and made her very satisfied. Indeed, a true best friend, Sister Lanyue!
She had really been brave enough to jump!
Gu Qingcheng hugged Du Lanyue tighter with a satisfied expression and said,
"Silly girl, remember from now on, I'm Superman. I only do things I'm sure of, so you don't need to worry about me."
"Superman? What does that mean?"
Du Lanyue's face turned red as she was hugged tighter. But after the near-death experience she had just undergone, she really didn't want to let go of her now. She simply closed her eyes, letting her hug her to her heart's content.
Speaking softly, she also quietly wrapped her arms around Gu Qingcheng's waist.