Li Ke hid behind several guards and pulled Qin Mubai over to accompany him. Looking at the five-step poisonous snakes that were killed by the guards, his face turned a little pale and he kept breathing cold air. He was really frightened.
Zhao Chong glanced back at him and kept sneering.
Li Ke was a little annoyed and scolded: "Why are you laughing? Have you heard of Yuchi Jingde?"
Zhao Chong turned around with interest and asked: "Of course I have heard of him, like thunder! He is a hero as famous as General Qin's father."
"Hmph! Yuchi Jingde is afraid of dogs. You must have never heard of it, right?" Li Ke snorted, "Such a fierce general who killed many people on the battlefield would be so frightened by dogs that his legs would become weak. Sometimes he would even be chased by dogs. I have to cry for my father and my mother, so why should I be afraid of snakes?”
"Did I say this is weird? You really didn't bring it upon yourself." Zhao Chong laughed a few times and walked forward Shi Shiran.
Li Ke rolled his eyes in annoyance and said to Qin Mubai, "Mubai, this guy is a bit hateful!"
"Haha, don't let a trivial matter ruin your interest in adventure. Let's go!" Qin Mubai said haha and said in his heart: It seems that Li Ke hates people grabbing his little whip to talk things out. In fact, this is just human nature. No one likes to have their weaknesses and flaws discovered and openly made fun of them. Especially a noble person like Li Ke, who loves face more, hates and even hates being made fun of in public.
"That's right, I don't have the same knowledge as him. Let's start hunting for treasure!" Li Ke was generous, rubbed his hands and said with a smile, "Where to start digging?"
Qin Mubai bent down, picked up a stone, and smashed it on the ground. It made a loud bang as the ground was extremely hard.
"How do you dig this?" Qin Mubai stood up and clapped his hands, shaking his head.
"What should we do?" Li Ke also frowned.
Zhao Chong came forward and said: "General Qin, there are dozens of acres of land around here. Can you determine where it is? If you can determine it, even if Foolish Old Man moved the mountains, there is still hope if you dig slowly."
"Yes, determine the location first." Li Ke said the same. The two looked at each other, curled their lips, and then changed their eyes.
Qin Mubai took out a map and looked at it in detail. Unfortunately, the map only depicted the distribution of waterways in Caozhong, West Road, and did not explain in detail the location of the treasure. Those few short poems were like a sponge, and Qin Mubai was about to wring out the last drop of water. He really couldn't think of anything else worth exploring.
"Such a large rocky mountain is covered with weeds and poisonous snakes, and there is nothing particularly distinctive about it. I really can't think of anything at the moment." Qin Mubai also shook his head.
"Then let's forget it?" Li Ke couldn't help but feel a little disappointed and said, "How about if we look around again, we might find some mechanism, entrance or the like?"
"Okay, let's search separately. Be sure to pay attention to safety and sprinkle more realgar to prevent venomous snakes!" Qin Mubai said.
"General Qin, I'm going with you. Lest anyone worry that I will take the opportunity to escape." Zhao Chong said.
Qin Mubai smiled: "That's fine. Let's go look for it separately."
Everyone then split up to search, and even after spending a long time searching over dozens of acres of land, no clues were found.
Everyone gathered together again and shook their heads.
The entire stone mountain is like a big stone. Not to mention the entrance to the mechanism, there are no caves, and even poisonous snakes only live in the rock crevices.
"Hey, it seems that I am destined not to solve this puzzle left by my ancestors." Zhao Chong said to Qin Mubai with regret, "General Qin, I can only ask you to spend more time to solve it. This secret. Even if you can't see the result while you are alive, it will be a comfort to know the good news under the spring a few years after your death."
"Don't be discouraged, maybe there will be another surprise when?" Qin Mubai could only comfort him like this.
"It's strange to say that there are no trees growing in this place, only some weeds. It seems that they are all made up of huge rocks." Li Ke said, "I have never seen such hillside mounds. , there’s no soil at all, it’s all stone. Mu Bai, don’t you think this is strange?”
"It's a bit strange." Qin Mubai said, "The West River Trough is full of swamp mud, but here it is full of stones, which looks very strange. If a large number of treasures are to be buried, how much effort will it take to dig holes?"
Li Ke shook his head: "Even if you know that there are countless treasures buried under it, you still can't take it out. Is it true that the Foolish Old Man moved the mountains? I am not so leisurely. Maybe there will be nothing in the end, so what? Don’t be depressed to death.”
"Haha, that's right." Qin Mubai said this, but he said in his heart: I don't care about treasures or anything like that. Of course it's better if I have them, but it doesn't matter if I don't have them. I kind of enjoyed the process of solving the mystery. This is probably the difference in mentality between him and me. Li Ke is obviously more pragmatic and pursues practical benefits; while I am more playful and casual.
"General Qin, you're not going to give up like this, are you?" Zhao Chong said anxiously, "Maybe there are countless treasures buried underneath. Just waiting to be taken out, you will be as rich as the enemy!"
Qin Mubai smiled, waved his hand to signal him not to worry, stood on a rock and climbed a little higher, looking around. Gradually, his expression became a little calm and serious.
"What's wrong?" everyone asked in shock.
"It's nothing." Qin Mubai smiled casually and said, "It's getting late. If we don't leave, there will be fog in the canal, which will make it inconvenient to sail. That's it for today. Let's go back first!"
Li Ke knew that he had something to say, probably because there were too many people present, so he didn't ask further questions. He waved his hand and said, "Okay, go back first!"
Zhao Chong was left dejected and extremely disappointed.
After driving all the way back to the Governor's Mansion by boat, Zhao Chong was still taken to prison, waiting to be taken to the capital tomorrow. Li Ke caught Qin Mubai and asked him to have dinner with him. As soon as the food and wine were placed, he hurriedly pushed away the others and asked, "You seemed to have unfinished words just now?"
"Yes." Qin Mubai did not deny it and nodded, "There are many people with mixed eyesight, and some things cannot be said casually."
"What did you find so serious?" Li Ke became curious and asked.
Qin Mubai twisted his head, moved the dishes, bowls, chopsticks and other items on the table for a while, and said, "Your Highness, come and see."
"Um, what?"
"For example, this plate of steamed fish is the gravel slope we climbed on, these chopsticks are the surrounding rivers, this is the mound not far away with sycamore trees growing on it, and this is the other mound covered with reeds It's bigger and taller than Wutong Mountain, right?" Qin Mubai said.
Li Ke looked at it carefully for a while and said: "It should be right! You know, I am not good at remembering directions. But if you say it is, then it must be. You showed rare surprise at that time, so you should remember it correctly ”
"Actually, I'm a half-hearted person. I can only make wild guesses." Qin Mubai stared at the table and said as if talking to himself.
"What half a jar, what speculation?"
"Feng Shui!"
"Feng Shui? Do you still know this?" Li Ke couldn't help but be a little surprised.
"It can only be said that I know a little bit about it. Among the art of war passed down to me by Li Jing, there are many things about Yin and Yang and the Five Elements, Qimen Dunjia, weather, hydrology, and earth veins. They are profound and difficult to understand. I haven't been reading for a long time, although I asked him repeatedly, but didn’t pay much attention to it,” Qin Mubai said, “However, the landforms and hydrology in front of me really surprised me!”
"What exactly is it? Tell me quickly!" Li Ke urged.
"Look -" Qin Mubai pointed to the table and said, "Wutong Mountain in the west is the backing, which also corresponds to the phrase 'Western Mountain Phoenix'; the high hills and reed slopes in the east correspond to the Qinglong God Isn't it the Yujing Dragon? The Xishan Phoenix and the Yujing Dragon look at each other day and night, and the stone mountain is located between them. Therefore, the treasure can definitely be found here. I will interpret the following two sentences as homonyms. 'Looking west, there are three lines within', which means counting from west to east, the third river bend faces Shizi Mountain - that is, here!"
After saying that, Qin Mubai banged his knuckles heavily on one side of the steamed fish plate.
Li Ke's eyes widened in surprise: "That makes sense, it seems to be right - then why didn't you point out the explanation just now?"
"Can't say." Qin Mubai's expression turned serious.
"Why?" Li Ke asked in surprise.
"Because..." Qin Mubai took a deep breath, "The landform here is extraordinary! Wutong Mountain, Shizi Mountain, and Reed Slope to the west should be connected into one. If it weren't for the rising water during the flood season, you should be able to see it. . Maybe there was no river bend here many years ago, but the water level of the Han River changed here. In other words, these three slopes may be three undulating mountains. "
"What does that mean?"
Qin Mubai's face darkened and he said: "Your Highness, haven't you thought of it yet? This is both a dragon and a phoenix. Is it something that ordinary people should mention? And these three mountains facing south and north, Is it common to see a treasure buried in the middle?”
"You mean!..." Li Ke was also taken aback and lowered his voice in surprise, "This is an emperor's tomb?!"
"Isn't it?" Qin Mubai said, "Wutong Mountain is the tail, and the phoenix is the yin, which should be the dragon's queen; the reed slope is the head, which should be the dragon's head; the middle runs through the gravel slope, plus 'the mountain is surrounded by water, carrying the yin and embracing the yang' ’, isn’t it a dragon vein of ‘harmony between man and nature’?”
"It's true!" Li Ke's eyes widened in astonishment, "I said... I said why there are no trees growing on this stone mountain, only snakes. It's just because there is dragon energy running freely, and the vegetation defeats itself. Snakes are in the shape of a dragon, so Shouwang! ... Mubai, why do I suddenly feel a sense of fear?"
"Now you understand why I suddenly showed such an expression, right?" Qin Mubai said.
"I understand..." Li Ke's expression became solemn and he whispered, "In today's Tang Dynasty, who of my Li family dares to be so rebellious and build a Dragon Vein Mausoleum here? This is not to harm me, Li. Tang Jiangshan? Mu Bai, could it be that... this time, we have encountered a bigger problem? "
"It's hard to say whether it's wealth or disaster." Qin Mubai said, "This map was left by Zhao Chong's grandfather. Maybe his grandfather didn't know the reason and was only responsible for passing it on to future generations. Unfortunately, the old man came to I didn't take a breath before I died, and I forgot to leave what I needed to say. Now, unless we find out what's under the gravel slope, we will never know what secrets are buried there. But according to my guess, there is something underneath. , at least it shouldn’t be from this dynasty.”
"It makes sense." Li Ke nodded and said, "It has only been twelve years since my father ascended the throne, and it has only been more than twenty years since the founding of the Tang Dynasty. However, this drawing has been passed down by Zhao Chong's father and his father for at least twenty years. That's it. Speaking of which, it should be possible to rule out that someone has malicious intentions and has evil intentions in gathering dragon energy here? "
"It should be okay." Qin Mubai nodded and smiled.
Li Ke wiped a cold sweat: "Then I can finally feel relieved. Otherwise... I'm really afraid that such a big thing happens to me in Xiangzhou, and I can't afford it. But having said that, dragon energy is the most important thing in my Li family. How can I let someone else absorb this thing? No matter what, I must get rid of this thing under the gravel slope at any cost!"
"It's best to be quiet at the beginning and not disturb too many people. It won't be too late to report the matter to the imperial court after the matter comes to light." Qin Mubai said.
"I agree." Li Ke nodded with deep approval, "It's enough for the two of us to know about this matter now and work on it secretly. I'm not interested in finding any treasures now. In comparison, that little gold and silver jewelry is bigger than me. In terms of Jiangshan Sheji in the Tang Dynasty, it's all down to you. I don't know anything about the wind, weather, and hydrology. But when you say this, I think of it. With such a customary structure, the possibility of that place being an emperor's tomb is extremely high, and we must dig it out!"
Qin Mubai nodded, pointed to the edge of the fish basin that he had just tapped with his knuckles, and said: "The emperor's mausoleum faces north and south. The entrance is also a little more special than ordinary mausoleums. They are generally heavily guarded to prevent tomb robbers. . Since the Zhao family’s ancestral drawings allude to this place, I guess it’s very likely that this is the entrance.”
"I didn't say anything, send troops to dig out! It will take ten and a half months or even half a year to dig out the exit!" Li Ke said decisively.
"It's better not to dig into it. After all this trouble, not all Xiangzhou knows about it, and the whole world spreads it?" Qin Mubai shook his head, "Either we don't do it, or we do it; we must take it down quickly!"
"Then what should we do?" Li Ke looked confused, "Can you ask God to send a yellow scarf warrior to break open a mountain pass for you like you did for Yu Gong?"
"That's not necessary. His old man is so busy, I'm too embarrassed to bother him." Qin Mubai smiled and said, "I'll do it myself."
"You?" Li Ke was startled at first, and then smiled, "You have given me enough surprises, so stop joking."
"Haha, believe me, it's no problem." Qin Mubai laughed.
"What do you want to do?"
"Old rules, after all the hard work, I'll give you some good news. How about we eat first? I'm really hungry!"
"Okay, eat!—Then it's all up to you!"
That night, Qin Mubai went to sleep in the governor's mansion, having a full night's rest and replenishing his energy. Early the next morning, he took several local government officials as his entourage and arrived at Xiangyang Port City.
"The general came here early in the morning. Could it be that he wanted to buy something? If necessary, just ask us servants to do it." The officials said.
"It's okay, I'll just go out for a walk. Because I'm not familiar with the ground, I asked you to guide me." Qin Mubai said casually, "By the way, it's almost the Dragon Boat Festival. There is a custom of dragon boat racing in Xiangzhou, right?"
"Yes! Although it's not as lively as the one in Miluo, Tanzhou, it's still pretty good." The Yamen servant replied.
"The palace must have prepared a few dragon boats for the competition, right?" Qin Mubai asked again.
"Yes!" The government officials became excited when they talked about this, laughing loudly, "We are all target shooters!"
"Target man?"
"They are dragon boat sailors paddling, we are used to saying that!" the officials laughed.
"Haha!" Qin Mubai laughed and said, "I heard that dragon boat rowing is not only a physical activity, but also requires skills. First of all, you have to work together, and you can't miss even half a step in the pace, otherwise it will be chaos. Yes. Yes, there are firecrackers on the dragon boats, right? How about the firecrackers in Xiangzhou?”
"Oh, it's called 'firecrackers' here. Every year during the Dragon Boat Festival, there are many firecrackers for sale." The government officials replied.
"Miner? That's right." Qin Mubai grinned and thought to himself: Although gunpowder had been invented in the Tang Dynasty, it had not been used in the military. It was generally only used to make fireworks, but it was not very popular. At least Qin Mubai has been in Xiangzhou for so long that he hasn't seen any households setting off firecrackers or any such specialized shops. It's quite common in Chang'an.
Occasionally, gunpowder from the Tang Dynasty was also used for mining, but it was not very powerful and the smoke was very black, so it was also called black gunpowder.
People in the Tang Dynasty couldn't produce high-purity and powerful explosives, so why couldn't Qin Mubai do it? Otherwise, several years of studying defense engineering would have been wasted
"I can't make airplanes, cannons, or glass cement. I can always make some time to prepare explosives." Qin Mubai laughed secretly and said, "Take me to buy some firecrackers. It's the Dragon Boat Festival, and I'm going to join in the fun. No. The dragon boat will be the target shooter and let’s set off firecrackers to cheer you up!”
"Okay!" The officials smiled happily, "There are no firecrackers for sale in Hong Kong because they are rarely used. They are also relatively expensive and most people cannot afford them. They are probably only available in some government-run mines. To help with mining, they also make some firecrackers during the solar terms.”
"What are you waiting for? Find a mine!" Qin Mubai ordered.
"Huh?" The officials said in surprise, "General, I just want a few strings of firecrackers. Do you need to go to the mine? Let the villain go and get them. Then he whipped his whip and patted the horse and came back. After a cup of tea, ”
"Then you don't understand." Qin Mubai smiled a little unpredictably and said, "Stop talking nonsense and lead the way!"
"yes!"
The group also rented a carriage and headed to an iron mine in the suburbs. The copper and iron of the Tang Dynasty were all strictly controlled by the government. Fortunately for someone like Qin Mubai, otherwise, how could the mine be a place where he could just enter it
"General, you are here for something else, right?" On the way, a government official finally couldn't help but ask.
Qin Mubai waved his hand and smiled without saying a word. Naturally, the man did not dare to ask any more questions. Qin Mubai thought to himself: Of course there is something important. A skillful woman cannot make a meal without rice. To prepare explosives, you must have raw materials and tools. It is best to have a few experienced old miners to help, because the "inventor" only has rich theoretical knowledge.
Only here in the mine, everything is ready!