Summer stretched out the daylight hours, and the setting sun was on its last breath.
The reluctant sunset cast long shadows of houses and trees, plating them with golden light. Tired, quiet… A car sped past, swirling up discarded paper and plastic bags from the roadside, bringing a brief clamor to the tranquility.
The jeep gradually slowed down, finally stopping behind a congested road.
"Lü Ang, Su Man, go ahead and see how far the traffic jam extends," Yan Qingwen instructed. "If it's not too long, we'll move the cars blocking the way. If it's too long, we'll take another route."
The stout man and the woman in red got out of the car as instructed, each taking their weapons to scout ahead.
Yan Qingwen took out a map to look at it. The man and woman in the back seat also got out of the car and said, "Brother Yan, we'll go around nearby and see if there's any water."
They had plenty of food, but clean drinking water was always welcome.
"Don't go too far, Zhu Shu's injury has just healed," Yan Qingwen reminded them lightly.
"Understood." The man grinned and left with the woman.
Not long after the pair left, the stout man, Lü Ang, and the woman in red, Su Man, returned.
"How's the road ahead?" Yan Qingwen asked them.
Lü Ang wiped the sweat from his face, his thick beard also glistening with perspiration. He shook his head and said, "The jam isn't too long, but there are puppets. It's almost certain to trigger a game. We should take a detour."
Su Man got into the car and, seeing the back seat empty, asked, "Where did Li Li and Zhu Shu go?"
Lü Ang laughed, "Where else could they have gone? On a date, of course! They're always stuck together like glue. They finally got a chance to be alone while we were gone! Hahahaha!"
Su Man's face turned ugly, and she frowned at Yan Qingwen. "Brother Yan, why don't you do something about them?"
Yan Qingwen looked at the map impassively. "What should I do about them? They're adults, not three-year-olds."
Su Man pursed her lips, still feeling unhappy. She mumbled, "What if they encounter danger…?"
"Oh! If you're so worried about him, go and check on them~" Lü Ang said bluntly, without any reservation. "You clearly like him, but you refuse to say it. Now it's too late; someone else has snatched him up~"
Su Man glared fiercely at the stout man. "Who likes him?! I'm worried that something will happen to them, and it'll end up dragging us down!"
The stout man scratched his ear. "Alright, alright, whatever you say…"
"Brother Yan!!!"
A shout came from the distance.
The three people in the car turned their heads and saw a man and a woman running hurriedly towards them.
Yan Qingwen frowned, opened the door, and got out of the car.
"What's going on?"
"Brother Yan, you… you have to see this!" Li Li was out of breath, pointing into the distance. "The fog in Hangzhou… it's gone!"
"Huh?" Lü Ang burst into laughter, his voice booming. "Li Li, did you get heatstroke and start seeing things? Hahahaha!…"
"See for yourself!" Li Li pushed the woman beside him forward. "Zhu Shu saw it too! We were just on that building over there, and we saw it clearly!"
The petite young woman nodded, patting her chest and taking small breaths. "It's gone… There was a huge patch of fog, and now it's gone."
Yan Qingwen frowned, returned to the car to retrieve his binoculars, stepped onto the car's roof, and looked towards Hangzhou.
The others gathered around him and asked, "Well? Is it gone?"
Yan Qingwen observed for a while, then lowered the binoculars. His expression shifted, a mix of uncertainty and contemplation. "…It seems someone has cleared the Hangzhou maze."
Li Li said, "We didn't see anyone else when we cleared it. If they entered the maze after us, that means they completed it in less than four hours! How is that possible?!"
Yan Qingwen looked up and asked, "How long did it take us?"
Li Li answered, "6 hours and 27 minutes."
"No way…" Lü Ang said, "They only used half the time we did?"
Everyone looked at each other.
Several faces came to their minds simultaneously…