Guanzhong Tomb Robbery Notes

Boss Dong is indeed a shrewd businessman.

Not only did he not take advantage of others when they were in trouble, but he also provided timely assistance.

The proposed agreement was beneficial to me in every way, leaving me no reason to refuse.

"Brother Dong, your agreement is so considerate of me. I agree to it."

"Do I need to sign a written document or something?"

"Hahaha, I trust you. Let's just make a gentleman's agreement. No need for the hassle of paperwork."

"Then I'll offer you a glass of tea instead of wine."

We clinked tea glasses while Boss Dong counted the items and calculated the price, finally quoting a price of 150,000.

When he heard the price, Cui Hao was extremely excited.

"One hundred and fifty thousand, one hundred and fifty thousand!"

"Brother Dong, how many nights of fun can I have in Hong Kong Island with this 150,000? Calculated based on that red card you mentioned."

Boss Dong was extremely happy.

"You have to show up every day, appreciate the flower baskets, treat her to food and drinks, and even better, be able to flatter her with sweet talk. Even if you throw in 150,000, it might not be enough to hold her hand."

"What? This much money isn't enough to hold hands?!"

"Even if you were made entirely of gold, it wouldn't be that expensive."

At that time, Haozi and I could never imagine the extravagant life of Hong Kong Island.

It is even more unimaginable to see a rich man spending a fortune on a woman.

"You'll understand once you go to Hong Kong Island. I've just about finished packing up my things, so I need to go back to Hong Kong Island."

"I'll apply to the provincial government in the next couple of days to process the paperwork for your grandfather as a relative and send him to Hong Kong Island for medical treatment."

"Thank you, Brother Dong. I have something else to trouble you with."

I briefly talked about Professor Zhang.

Boss Dong immediately made a phone call, and soon the hospital received instructions to send Professor Zhang to the cadre ward.

Then we went to the bank to complete the transfer procedures.

Before we parted, Boss Dong reminded me: "It's best to do some business and benefit the village at the same time."

As you have more money, it is inevitable that you will be targeted by people with ulterior motives.

Doing business is undoubtedly the best way to cover up.

Later, I realized that the point of Boss Dong’s words was to benefit the community.

Only by benefiting the community can you gain fame.

Decades later, the vast majority of people who entered this industry at the same time as me either died or fled, or faced legal sanctions, and only a few made it out.

Those who have made it big basically start their business early on and benefit their hometown, and have earned various official titles.

Relying on his dazzling reputation, he openly runs private museums, auction houses, art brokerage companies, etc., but secretly controls his subordinates to rob tombs.

Although I didn't fully understand what Boss Dong meant at the time, I did what he said, and it really helped me avoid a lot of trouble later.

After Boss Dong left, Cui Hao and I were preparing to find a place to eat when a few familiar-looking people came over.

They were the tomb robbers I had seen at Boss Dong’s place before.

"Master Chen! I finally waited for you."

"We've been squatting opposite Boss Dong's hotel, just waiting for you."

Several people gathered around excitedly, and Cui Hao immediately stopped them.

"What are you doing in broad daylight? Are you trying to kidnap a man?"

They immediately shook their heads like rattles.

"No, no, we want to treat you two to a meal."

"Yes, we sincerely invite you to dinner."

"Please give me some face."

It is said that you should not hit someone who smiles at you. These people have really good attitudes.

After a moment of hesitation, I nodded in agreement.

"Okay, I'll have dinner with you guys."

"Great, this way please."

They surrounded me and walked into a restaurant not far away.

A few people murmured over the menu for a while, ordered eight dishes, four cold and four hot, and then gritted their teeth and took out their food coupons and Mao Zedong notes to pay for the dishes.

When the dishes were served, they introduced themselves first.

"My name is Lu Bin, and I'm from Lintong County."

"Wang Hu, Chang'an County."

"Liu Dongdong, also from Chang'an County..."

They came from surrounding counties and districts and were farmers before. They embarked on this path with the dream of getting rich.

The only problem is that we don’t have the technology to find big tombs, so let alone getting rich, we don’t even know where the money for our next meal will come from.

He was squatting there waiting for me, just wanting me to point out a big tomb.

"Master Chen, please have mercy on us. If we can't dig up anything good, our whole family will be left with nothing."

"As long as Master Chen shows us the way, we will be yours in life and your ghosts in death."

"That's right! I'm yours in life and yours in death! If anyone has second thoughts, I, Wang Hu, will be the first to kill him!"

Seeing that they were about to start a Liangshan uprising, I quickly waved my hand to stop them.

“Eat well wherever you eat.”

"Let's talk about the legends of your respective villages and the history. Let's start with you, Wang Hu."

I let them speak on purpose.

Before robbing a tomb, they usually conduct a site reconnaissance, and inquiring about local history and customs is an important part of this.

Information about large tombs is often hidden in local historical stories.

Later, the archaeological team also learned this trick.

Wang Hu and the others told stories one after another, but the content was mediocre and not what I wanted at all.

Soon it was Lu Bin's turn: "We have many treasures in Lintong County, such as the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, the Terracotta Warriors, and the Huaqing Hot Spring, all of which are world-famous."

"If we could dig up the tomb of Qin Shi Huang, we would find so many treasures."

Everyone booed him.

Who doesn't want to rob Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum? But no one has the ability to do so.

Later, I became a consultant to the Institute of Archaeology and went to the Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang to assist in scientific exploration.

Together with colleagues from the Qin Mausoleum Archaeological Institute, he led people to drill 400,000 exploratory holes in the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang.

You read that right, it’s really 400,000!

There is one hole every half a meter in front, behind, left and right.

By analyzing the soil brought out by the shovel, the underground scope of Qin Shihuang's Mausoleum, the rammed earth structure, and the condition of the tomb passage were determined. The final results were basically consistent with the remote sensing detection conducted many years ago.

The underground tomb chamber of the Qin Shihuang Mausoleum is divided into three levels of stairs that extend underground and penetrate three underground water belts, which is consistent with the "penetrating three springs" recorded in "Records of the Grand Historian".

It is basically not difficult to open the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang now. The difficult part is the protection of the cultural relics after opening.

It is difficult to preserve the precious cultural relics inside intact with current technology.

Lu Bin continued, "I also know that digging up Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum is a pipe dream, so let me tell you a story about Wu Zetian."

"I heard from the elders in the village that before Wu Zetian, there was no Qingshan in the Tang Dynasty, and there was no Qingshan in Lintong either."

"After Wu Zetian ascended the throne, an earthquake occurred in Lintong, and a mountain rose from the flat ground. This was reported as a good omen, and the mountain was named Qingshan, and the county's name was changed to Qingshan County."

"Later, she ordered the construction of Qingshan Temple, which became the imperial temple of the Tang Dynasty. It is said that during Wu Zetian's time, Qingshan Temple was even higher in rank than Famen Temple."

The story is well-told.

Everyone was intrigued and asked him where Qingshan Temple was and why they had never heard of it.

Logically speaking, any temple of higher grade than Famen Temple should be famous throughout the country.

"It's a pity that it was destroyed in the war. Now there's not even a trace left. I only heard from the old people that Qingshan Temple should be near our village."

"Oh, what's the point of talking about that? I still want to ask Buddha for protection." Cui Hao sighed.

But I laughed.

Isn't this an opportunity?

Such a high-standard royal temple must have a pagoda.

There is a 90% chance that there is an underground palace under the pagoda.

There must be treasures in the underground palace!