After investigation

  After examination 12

  Seeing Lin Ruoshui's expression, I can tell that the person she is talking about must be someone she will never forget. Is it her master who brought her into this line of tomb raiding? But why can't I find any information on who Lin Ruoshui's master is? Even her sudden appearance in the tomb raiding world was a miracle, but now I know that person occupies a large part of her heart. Just thinking about her having someone she loves makes me feel uncomfortable.

  "If I couldn't find anyone else right now, I wouldn't let you two in either. Anyway, since you're here to open an antique shop, take a look at this thing." As she spoke, Lin Ruoshui picked up a package from the bed beside her and gently placed it on the table.

  "Uh, I don't own an antique shop, my name is Jile Tian, you can call me Letian. This is my cousin Chen Momomo, just call her Momomo. I explained somewhat awkwardly, up until now she hadn't even asked our names, as if she didn't care."

  "It doesn't matter, let's just take a look at this treasure and see how much you know about it." Lin Ruoshui opened the package, and with the light shining in from the window, I saw that on the table was placed a bronze ladle, which, whether in shape or color, had some resemblance to the Xinghou ladle that Grandfather always talked about.

  "Could this be the Xing Hou Yi that she stole from the British Museum? Heaven won't let me see it so easily, will it? Now that I have evidence, can I arrest her immediately? As I thought about this, I looked at Chen Mo and saw that she had already put her hand into her bag and was rummaging for something. She wouldn't be pulling out a gun now, would she? Just looking at Wu Liu Qi standing there is enough to take down three of me. Moreover, we don't have any backup behind us. If we engage in a firefight here, we'll definitely be the ones to suffer. I haven't even had a chance to spend enough time with this beauty yet. At least let me stay with her for a few more days before arresting her."

  "Don't be in a hurry, my eyesight hasn't run away." I pressed down on the thing Chen Mo was about to take out and said to Lin Ruoshui at the same time.

  "Who?" Chen was silent for a moment, seemingly anxious to make an arrest and bring the two tomb raiders to justice immediately.

  "This is called Xinghou Gui, one of the representative vessels of our Xingtai City. It belongs to the early Western Zhou period and features a high 20 cm, four beasts hanging ears, mouth drum abdomen, abdominal body decorated with elephant patterns, foot decorated, it was specially made by Xing Hou Ji Yan for his father Zhou Gong to commemorate him. That Zhou Gong surnamed Ji named Dan, was one of the meritorious officials who assisted King Wu of Zhou in destroying the Shang Dynasty. Later, after the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, he also assisted King Cheng of Zhou in handling state affairs. As a result, King Cheng thanked him and enfeoffed his son Ji Yan as Xing Hou, which is the origin of this Xinghou Gui. However, according to what I know, this Xinghou Gui was stored in the Yuanmingyuan, but later it was taken away by the Eight-Nation Alliance and is now in the British Museum. How did it end up here?" I said with a pretended puzzled expression, looking at Lin Ruoshui on the side.

  "Hmm, well said. Don't think it's fake, this is the real Xinghou Gui, which I specially borrowed from the British Museum." Lin Ruoshui said.

  "Borrow? They would lend it to you that easily? I was browsing the internet a few days ago and saw that the British Museum had been robbed, and what was stolen was precisely this Xinghou Gui." My tone suddenly changed, and at the same time Wu Liuqi had already pulled out a short knife and placed it horizontally across my neck.

  When faced with this situation, Chen Mo was somewhat panicked. With no experience at all, she had no idea what to do. Her hand stretched into her bag, but neither taking it out nor leaving it in seemed like the right option.

  "What? Want to kill me to silence me? Or are you afraid I'll go report it to the police? Since I dared to reveal where this thing came from, I'm not afraid of you taking action. However, I can guarantee that whether or not I will speak out, and you're not just looking for a buyer, right?"

  "Oh? Why are you so sure?" Lin Ruoshui looked at me with an air of interest, it was the first time she had ever looked at me with such deep emotion, that gaze made me feel like I would be willing to die for her.

  Because the older generation in Xingtai City all knew that there were two Xinghou Gui, when they were first unearthed from the tomb of Marquis Xing, the bronze wares had clear records because there was a specialized burial record. At that time, it was recorded that there were two Xinghou Gui, and during transportation, none were lost. Therefore, only one was sent to the Yuanmingyuan Garden, while the other was not lost but secretly kept by the transporting officer at the time. Later, he feared that superiors would investigate and put the object back into the tomb of Marquis Xing because the most dangerous place is also the safest. When he waited for the storm to pass and went to look for the Xinghou Gui again, even the graveyard could not be found. The marks left behind were still there, but underground was just yellow soil, where was the shadow of the tomb of Marquis Xing? Thus, the Xinghou Gui returned to the tomb, and no one ever excavated the tomb of Marquis Xing again.

  I softly finished telling the story I heard from my grandfather, but concealed what happened after he found the tomb of Marquis Xing and took out the Xinghou Gui. I believe that this alone would be enough for Lin Ruoshui to trust me.

  "The story sounds nice, but it doesn't prove you won't betray me." Lin Ruoshui said.

  "You brought the rubbing of Xing Hou's gui to me, asking if I'd buy it. In fact, you weren't selling anything, but looking for something. You wanted to know the whereabouts of another Xing Hou gui, that's why you appeared in the antique market. But now, seeing that you haven't found any leads, you're certain that the other Xing Hou gui is still in the tomb, and that's why you're seeking help to open the Xing Hou tomb and find the other gui. Right? Honestly, I'm just a businessman. If I had money, I wouldn't recognize anyone. If I reported you, at most I'd get a good citizen award. But if I helped you, I might get a sum of money that would last me the rest of my life. Which one would you choose if you were me?" I smiled and looked at her, and Lin Ruoshui's expression seemed to change slightly, but her gaze was somewhat dull, as if she was looking at an old friend.

  "Everyone is for money, as long as there's enough money, I don't care about laws and regulations. People are almost starving to death, what's the point of talking about laws?" I emphasized my tone a bit more, as if I was making a vow to her.

  "Let him go, the test is passed." Lin Ruoshui said.