Chapter 0888 – The Tip of the Iceberg (I)

“You …… guys are committing a crime!”

After tidying up the house, Professor Meng and Zhuang Rui and the others came together to the courtyard behind Zhang Da Niu’s house, where the ground was filled with the burial goods that the two Da Niu brothers had stolen from the tomb.

The courtyard was very bright with a big light bulb pulled by Old Zhang Tou, attracting many mosquitoes flying around the light bulb, and some of them landed on top of the objects in the courtyard.

These burial objects are mostly figures of ceramic figurines, vaguely from the glaze that has not completely fallen can be seen, these should be colored figurines, fifty or sixty colored figurines of different shapes, actually no one is the same.

Professor Meng looked greatly distressed, if the protective measures are done well, perhaps it can still retain the color on the terracotta figurines, but now it is impossible.

“Xiao Ren, Xiao Zhuang, look around and see if there are any objects like bamboo slips and jade buttons.”

In fact, one of the most valuable things is not those gold, silver and jewels, for archaeologists, seals that can prove the identity of the tomb owner, that’s the most important thing.

And the Han Dynasty is not too far away from the Qin Dynasty separated by the age, it is very likely to unearthed some now lost scriptures and ancient books, that is also valuable things.

However, bamboo slips are not easy to preserve, many large tombs can only see traces of bamboo slips rotting, unearthed in kind is very little, once some tombs unearthed the bamboo slips of Sun Tzu’s Art of War, but unfortunately, they are also mutilated.

“Teacher, no, there are only these ceramic figurines, and some silverware, no button seal of the owner was found.”

After Zhuang Rui and Ren Chunqiang carefully examined the area, neither of them were able to find any clues indicating the owner’s identity, these pottery figurines were common burial items in Han Dynasty tombs, they couldn’t explain anything.

“Da Niu, how many burial chambers have you guys chiseled in total?”

Prof. Meng pondered for a while, there were only dozens of burial items, a far cry from the emperor’s tomb in his mind, not to mention the emperor’s tomb, even a minister’s tomb, the burial items inside would be dozens of times more than this.

“Tomb room? What do you mean by burial chamber?” Da Niu was a little confused by Professor Meng’s words.

“It’s the place where the coffins are placed.” Zhuang Rui prompted from the side.

“Oh, there’s only one ah! Erniu and I broke through the two stone doors and saw a coffin, besides the coffin, there were only these things, and the two of us made several trips to move it before giving it out.”

Da Niu recalled the situation and suddenly said, “By the way, when breaking open the first stone door, we also found two dead people, their clothes were rotten and only bones were left.”

“Sinful oh you two disobedient things, old me I’ll beat you to death.”

Zhang Da Niu’s words to the side of the old Zhang Tou angry not light, pick up a broom on the yard chased up the son, for a time it is Zhang Da Niu said found the bones, bring the coldness of the crowd to wash away.

“This bastard thing, dead people tomb which can just enter? The east end of the village of the two strong son is not pickpocket a tomb, and then the body is up all the bag, people have not sent to the hospital on the death?”

After being persuaded by Zhuang Rui and the others, Old Zhang was still so angry that he was trembling, pointing at his two sons and cursing.

“Old Zhang, it’s fine, thousands of years down the line, what’s in the tomb just doesn’t work anymore, but you have to educate your children, you must not do this in the future.”

Prof. Meng also advised Old Zhang for a few words, he had excavated many ancient tombs and had seen countless organs and hidden weapons.

Poisoning was relatively common in tombs, only that the toxicity had almost evaporated over the ages, but it was the traps full of sharp instruments and the boulders placed above the canals that were more harmful to the tomb robbers.

“Da Niu, come on, tell me again how you found that tomb at that time and what exactly was going on inside.”

Prof. Meng had an intuition after seeing these things that the two Da Niu brothers didn’t discover the real tomb chamber, perhaps they were just at the entrance of the Treasure Mountain.

“There’s nothing going on! When I was picking herbs, I saw a cave exposed behind the vines, Erniu and I climbed in to see it, after walking three or four meters, there was a stone door, Erniu took an axe and gave it a chisel to open up, it was a passageway, aigoo, the smell in there was awful. We waited outside for a long time before we dared to go in, go inside about ten meters, there is another stone door, two dead people are there, don’t know how they died, after opening that stone door, we saw these things.”

Although the big ox is more sensible than the second ox, but these words are also said vaguely, but Professor Meng’s face has shown a happy color, according to his understanding of the Han tombs, the big ox brothers just found this do the tip of the iceberg of the tomb.

Professor Meng at this time the heart is very excited, can not wait to go to the scene of the tomb to look at some, after strong self-restraint, said to Zhuang Rui and others: “Well, the things sorted together, tomorrow there will be a local garrison to, let them bring to the local cultural relics department first.”

Zhuang Rui does not know how to do this work, looking at Ren Chunqiang and a few other staff members, very skillfully will be each object above the labeling, and do the classification, but more than half an hour on the busy work finished.

After a day of sitting in the car and working overtime at night, after the work was done, everyone went back to the packed house and went to sleep.

The sound of roosters crowing in the distance kicked off a day of labor in the countryside, a light mist wafted through the mountains, while the village at the foot of the mountains was filled with smoke rising from the cooking pots, and the chickens and dogs barking endlessly, a nice idyllic scene.

“Zhuang Rui, what? Didn’t sleep well?”

When Zhuang Rui came out, Dr. Ren was scrubbing beside the pressurized water well in the courtyard, while Professor Meng was playing taijiquan at the entrance of the courtyard, and Erniu, a simpleton, was following along with the lessons!

“There are too many mosquitoes, it’s only May, where do you get so many mosquitoes?”

Zhuang Rui rubbed the eyes full of blood, yesterday night is simply and mosquitoes fight, I do not know is not their own meat incense, mosquitoes are rushing to themselves, Hao Long is a good night’s sleep.

Old Zhang Tou who was chopping wood to prepare for breakfast heard Zhuang Rui’s words and hurriedly came over, embarrassedly said, “Little brother, the mosquitoes come early in the countryside, in the afternoon I’ll take mugwort to smoke the room for you guys, and there’ll be no mosquitoes in the night.”

Professor Meng heard their conversation, also put away his fist, came over and said with a smile, “Oh, Zhuang Rui, the mountains are full of mosquitoes, sometimes in the winter, our country is still considered good, I once went to the Amazon jungle to do scientific research, I have personally seen that the mosquitoes that cover the sky, live to bite a cow to death.”

“Mosquitoes biting a cow to death?”

If this is not the tutor said out, Zhuang Rui quasi thought it was a fantasy, the cow so thick skin, is not a mosquito can bite through?

“Zhuang Rui, what the teacher said is true, when you are in the field scientific research, you have to pay attention to it, being stared at by mosquitoes, it is easy to cause all kinds of diseases.”

Dr. Ren taught his youngest brother another trick, don’t look at Dr. Ren is very high, but the experience of field survival is very rich, generally the ancient tombs are in the farmland and mountains, there are many mosquitoes, insects, snakes and rats, some field knowledge is necessary to master.

“Well, old brother, all come and have breakfast!”

A few people were chatting when Old Zhang Tou’s voice shouted.

In the morning the food was sweet potato boiled thin rice and Old Zhangtou’s own home pickled dried radish, the flavor was very good, a big pot of thin rice was eaten clean by several people.

After eating, Prof. Meng contacted him by phone, and after waiting for more than half an hour, three locals with five armed police soldiers with loaded guns came to Lao Zhangtou’s house.

Both sides introduced, those locals are the staff of the local cultural relics department, one surnamed Wu, is the director of the local cultural relics administration bureau, more than forty years old, the other several are young people.

The armed police is led by a lieutenant platoon leader called Wei Qiang, responsible for the archaeological excavation of the site protection work, a few armed police are carrying a tent package, they are going to live in the night near the archaeological site.

Professor Meng saw people are all here, divided the work, this courtyard full of antiques put, his heart is not implemented, and then said: “Wu ah! You and Xiao Zhao stay, notify your county, send people to pull these things back first for safekeeping, they two young people with us on the mountain on the line, in addition to send people stationed here, if there is another cultural relics unearthed, must be the first time to get the proper custody.”

Professor Meng saw Director Wu’s pot-bellied appearance and knew that this person would definitely not be able to accompany himself to the burial place, so he simply let him be in charge of the logistics.

“Professor Meng, don’t worry, I’ll make sure to make the arrangements, Little Liu, be at Professor Meng’s beck and call.”

As soon as Director Wu heard that he didn’t need to go up the mountain, he immediately nodded his head and called over a young man who looked quite resourceful, allowing him to accompany the science team into the mountain.

“Xiao Zhuang, I didn’t see it, you have a refined appearance, but your strength is not small!”

After having breakfast, the group was ready to go up the mountain, Zhuang Rui carried forty to fifty kilograms of stuff on his body alone, and it didn’t seem strenuous at all, which made Prof. Meng and the others very surprised.

According to what they thought, Zhuang Rui has a good background, and has such a rich family, must be used to pampering, I did not expect that the rest of the archaeological team a few often in the field, compared to the strength of the people, but not as good as Zhuang Rui.

But this also makes Professor Meng more and more satisfied, scientific research work, although it sounds mysterious, but it is very boring and tasteless, and all day through the mountains walking in no man’s land, you must be able to bear hardships and stand hard work.

“Oh, I was born with great strength, this weight is nothing.”

Zhuang Rui walked in the middle of the team, the forefront of the lead is the two brothers Da Niu, both of them are now considered to be the archaeological team of supernumerary staff, every day there are 100 dollars of wages to take, is also very hard work.

North Mang Mountain is not treacherous, but the mountain rolling, like a coiled dragon around, along those who do not know whether it is by the mountain people or grave robbers stepped out of the path, a group of people gradually into the deep mountains.