The golden light of the evening sun came through the curtains, making the wooden floor in Grandma’s study shine warmly. The room smelled like old books and dried flowers. This was one of Noah’s favorite places. He loved exploring here because Grandma always had interesting old things—like pictures from when she was young or mysterious handwritten notes.

Grandma’s corgi, Xiaolong, loved the study too. He was lying on a rug in the corner, stretching lazily and letting out a small yawn.

Noah moved aside a stack of books and found a thick photo album. He flipped through a few pages and saw some old, yellowed photos. In the pictures, Grandma looked much younger and was with some people Noah didn’t recognize. It seemed like they were in a faraway country.

Under the album, a strange piece of paper stuck out. It had some lines drawn on it.

“Huh? What’s this?” Noah said to himself. He pulled the paper out and unfolded it. It looked like a very old map. The edges were yellow and folded in some places. The map was full of lines and symbols. The names of cities stood out the most—Nanjing, Hangzhou, Kunming. Noah remembered hearing about these places in geography class, but he didn’t know much about them.

He stared at the map for a long time, feeling more curious the longer he looked at it.

“Grandma! Come and see this!” he called excitedly toward the kitchen.

Soon, Grandma walked into the study holding a cup of tea. Her steps were slow, and her eyes followed Noah’s voice to the desk. When she saw the map, her expression changed. The calm look on her face turned into one of surprise and maybe a little worry.

“Where did you find this?” Grandma asked, her voice suddenly quieter.

“It was under the photo album,” Noah said, looking up at her. “It looks like a treasure map, doesn’t it?”

Grandma didn’t answer right away. She slowly sat down, placing her tea on the desk. Her hand reached out, her fingers gently touching the edge of the map, as if it held a memory she hadn’t thought about in a long time.

“This is not just a normal map, Noah,” she said after a moment. Her voice had a serious tone. “It’s... a secret. A story I’ve never told you before.”

Noah’s eyes lit up. He scooted his chair closer to Grandma. “What kind of story? You have to tell me!”

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Grandma stayed quiet for a little while, looking like she was thinking about the past. Finally, she began to speak.

“This map is something I found a long time ago when I was in my twenties. I discovered it with an old friend, a professor from China—Professor Li. We were searching for something very important.”

“What was it?” Noah asked eagerly.

Grandma glanced at him. Her eyes seemed unsure, but then she sighed and said,

“They were treasures—ancient ones. They were connected to something called the ‘Eight Trigrams.’ The legend says that if all the pieces are found, they will reveal a great secret, one that even has ties to Emperor Qin Shi Huang.”

Noah’s mouth dropped open. “Eight Trigrams? Emperor Qin Shi Huang? That sounds like something from a movie!”

Grandma gave a small smile. “It does sound like a movie, but back then, it wasn’t fun or exciting. It was... dangerous.”

“Why dangerous?” Noah asked, stopping his hands from fidgeting with the map.

Grandma took a deep breath, her voice lowering.

“Because there were people who wanted to use the treasures for bad things. We met someone named Kane. He was a relic hunter who didn’t care about hurting people to get what he wanted. His men attacked our group... and even killed one of our team members.”

Noah froze. He hadn’t expected the story to take such a serious turn. “What happened next?” he asked quietly.

“After that, Professor Li and I decided to split up the map. I brought one half back to the U.S., and he kept the other half in China,” Grandma explained. Her voice carried a note of sadness. “We knew if we kept going, we might not survive.”

“So, you gave up?” Noah frowned.

Grandma nodded. “Sometimes giving up isn’t failing, Noah. It’s about keeping people safe.”

Noah stared down at the map, his mind filling with images of Grandma as a young adventurer. His fingers traced the names of the cities on the map. Then, an idea began to form in his head. He looked up, his eyes full of determination.

“Grandma, I can finish what you started! I can find the treasures and protect them!”

Grandma’s eyes widened at his words. But then, she shook her head firmly. “No, Noah. This is not something you should get involved in. It’s too dangerous, and there are still bad people out there looking for this map.”

“But I could go on the adventure myself!” Noah protested, his voice growing louder.

“No!” Grandma’s voice was sharp now. She stood up, folded the map carefully, and placed it in the desk drawer. “I don’t want to lose anyone else, Noah. This story is over. You need to forget about it.”

Noah didn’t argue anymore. He just watched as Grandma locked the drawer. He understood why she was worried, but the feeling inside him wouldn’t go away. It grew stronger.

Outside, the sky was turning dark. Xiaolong came over to Noah and nudged his hand with a wet nose, as if trying to comfort him. Noah bent down and patted Xiaolong’s head gently. In his heart, he made a silent promise: this wasn’t just Grandma’s story—it was his adventure too. He would find a way to make it happen.