Chapter Ninety-Seven: The Nine-Scale Cheng Rui Disc

I asked Xiao Lianshan to call Qiu Nuo over. Yue Qianling hadn’t been happy all morning, and I couldn’t understand what she saw in Qiu Nuo— even Xiao Lianshan smiled brightly when he saw her.

Qiu Nuo’s poised and graceful demeanor earned the favor of Yue Leiting as well. She seemed like the epitome of an elegant and intelligent lady from a respected family. As Yue Leiting put it, if Qiu Nuo had lived in ancient times, she would surely have been a talented woman of letters. Hearing this made Yue Qianling grind her teeth in frustration.

While everyone else gathered in the living room watching Qiu Nuo clean the Nine-Qilin Chengrui Plate, Yue Qianling sat alone, brooding and sullen.

“Qiu Nuo once produced the ‘Three Rivers Facing the River Painting’ to prove my innocence. Both Lianshan and I owe her a debt of gratitude. Besides, without the other ancient text she found, the Luo Xuan Divine Strategy, we wouldn’t even have any clues about the Ming Dynasty’s Fourteen Tombs,” I said with a cheerful smile, noticing Yue Qianling’s dour expression. “Qiu Nuo specializes in artifact authentication. Although we have the White Jade Tofu and the Nine-Qilin Chengrui Plate, we still don’t know what clues they might hold. Having one more person on our side is only helpful.”

“Oh, so you consider Qiu Nuo your benefactor now? Then don’t stay at my house anymore. Go live with her—this temple is too small to hold a Buddha like you,” Yue Qianling snapped bitterly.

“You just haven’t been to her place. Qiu Nuo’s home is much bigger than this one. If I had to choose, I’d honestly pick her house. It’s more comfortable,” I replied with a smile.

Just as Yue Qianling was about to lash out again, Qiu Nuo, having put down her tools, spoke from the living room.

“Brother Yan Hui, I’ve finished cleaning. From the shape and craftsmanship, both artifacts date back to the early Ming Dynasty. This kind of workmanship was reserved for the royal court and was likely made by the Silver Workshop Bureau. But why have I never seen any written records of these two items?”

“These are sacrificial offerings with special significance; it’s normal that there are no written records,” I explained as I examined the newly cleaned Nine-Qilin Chengrui Plate. The beast heads were raised, mouths open. I carefully placed nine luminous pearls into their mouths, each fitting perfectly. Then, I set the White Jade Tofu on the stand formed by the intertwined whiskers of the qilin, and asked Xiao Lianshan to draw the curtains and turn off the lights.

In the pitch-dark room, faint points of light gradually grew brighter. The nine luminous pearls glowed vividly, standing out in the darkness.

The White Jade Tofu in the center, illuminated by the pearls’ glow, slowly turned white and radiant. Eventually, it seemed to absorb all the light from the nine pearls, its translucent, pure white marble surface shining like freshly made tofu, lifelike and exquisite.

Yue Leiting had seen countless antiques, yet few had ever amazed him so deeply. For a moment, he lost his usual composure.

“I’ve sold countless antiques myself, but none compare to this thing. This is what rare treasure means—see for yourself, this is a rare treasure!”

Unlike Yue Leiting’s appraisal, Qiu Nuo, who usually favored Tang Dynasty artifacts, was equally stunned by this piece. Whether from the perspective of craftsmanship or artistry, this artifact deserved to be called a masterpiece of unparalleled skill.

I stared intently for a long while, my brow gradually furrowing. After examining it from several angles, I still wasn’t satisfied and asked persistently, “Did any of you see anything… like hints or clues?”

Hearing my question, everyone snapped out of their daze. They carefully re-examined the White Jade Tofu, but aside from its shining surface, there was nothing else remarkable.

I rubbed my brow, muttering thoughtfully, “Since this relates to the Ming Dynasty’s Fourteen Tombs, there must be some clues.”

“Clues…” Qiu Nuo seemed to remember something. She switched on the light and pointed to the Nine-Qilin Chengrui Plate. “When I was cleaning it earlier, I noticed some writing on the bottom.”

I quickly flipped the plate over. There were four lines of small characters:

“Flat as a plain, Three Dukes and Nine Ministers. Five sons passing the imperial examination, Seven captures and seven releases.”

These four idioms, each containing numbers, were engraved on such a masterfully crafted relic. They seemed oddly out of place. I repeated the lines under my breath, then looked up.

“Qiu Nuo, you’re an expert in artifact authentication. Although the Nine-Qilin Chengrui Plate and White Jade Tofu have no written records, they were made by the Silver Workshop Bureau. In Ming artifacts, have you ever seen similar craftsmanship?”

Qiu Nuo thought for a moment, uncertain. “Now that you mention it, I recall something from unofficial Ming history. It’s well known Zhu Yuanzhang favored Zhu Yunwen. To test his intelligence before passing on the throne, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the Silver Workshop Bureau to craft a golden box with the twelve zodiac animals vividly depicted. Each zodiac represented a number, accompanied by a poem of four lines, each line representing a number. Only by turning the zodiac signs corresponding to these numbers in the correct order could the box be opened. Zhu Yunwen, being clever, deciphered the poem and unlocked the box, which led Zhu Yuanzhang to pass the throne to him.”

I immediately examined the Nine-Qilin Chengrui Plate again. Sure enough, each qilin’s belly was inscribed with a number from one to nine. As I set it down, I accidentally touched one of the qilin’s heads and discovered it could rotate. In fact, all the qilin heads could turn.

Previously, the nine qilins were connected head to tail. After turning, their heads aligned perfectly with the White Jade Tofu on the stand.

Suddenly, I understood. The four idioms below contained four numbers. By turning the qilin heads corresponding to these numbers, the light from the luminous pearls would shift its focus.

Qiu Nuo agreed with my theory. She explained that the craftsmanship likely used a mid-Song Dynasty double-layer hollow carving technique. The White Jade Tofu was actually made of two pieces of jade, one large and one small. The smaller jade was carved first, with the clues engraved on it. It was then encased by a larger, perfectly fitting piece and sealed together. Under specific lighting, the hidden clues would be revealed.

“That sounds easy, but among nine digits, how many combinations are there to find the correct one?” Yue Qianling couldn’t help but interject.

“That’s no problem,” Yue Leiting said seriously, pointing at the Nine-Qilin Chengrui Plate. “Each idiom starts with a number: ‘flat’ suggests one, ‘three’ from ‘Three Dukes,’ ‘five’ from ‘Five Sons,’ and ‘seven’ from ‘Seven Captures.’ That gives us four numbers right there.”

“Leiting, if Zhu Yuanzhang really left clues like this, he’d have to change his name,” I said with a wry smile.

“Change it to what?” Xiao Lianshan asked.

“Pig Yuanzhang,” I deadpanned.

Everyone burst out laughing, trying to find some humor in the tense situation. After the laughter subsided, someone reflected, “Everything found in the imperial tombs relates to feng shui and mysticism. It shows how deeply Zhu Yuanzhang believed in these arts. These four idioms probably have something to do with geomancy as well.”

“‘Flat as a plain’ doesn’t seem related to your feng shui mumbo jumbo at all,” Yue Qianling muttered.

I paced back and forth, murmuring to myself.

“‘Flat as a plain’… ‘horse’… in the Bagua, Qian represents the horse. ‘Plain’… plain river? ‘River plain’ reversed is ‘plain river’—that’s three. Three in the Bagua corresponds to Qian, the first trigram of the I Ching, representing heaven. Heaven is supreme and has nine numbers, which is the sacred number in the Luo River numerical system… The first number is nine!”

Although Xiao Lianshan didn’t understand my mumbling, he never doubted my words.

“As for ‘Three Dukes and Nine Ministers’… what does that mean?” I asked, feeling stuck.

“I know this one,” Yue Qianling said, tilting her head with a smile.

“You know?” I thought to myself, grateful she wasn’t causing trouble for once.

“The second number is six!” she declared confidently.

“Qianling, stop joking. This isn’t mahjong. Just because there’s a three and a nine doesn’t mean you can randomly say the answer is six,” Yue Leiting rolled his eyes.

“I’m not joking,” Yue Qianling snapped back proudly. “The ‘Three Dukes and Nine Ministers’ was an official system dating back to the Qin Dynasty. The basic structure lasted through the Qin, Han, and Jin dynasties until Emperor Wen of the Sui established the Three Departments and Six Ministries system. By the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang abolished the Central Secretariat, the Department of State Affairs, and the Chancellery. The Six Ministries reported directly to the emperor.”

“I get it now. Since the ‘Three Dukes and Nine Ministers’ system was abolished, only the Six Ministries remain. So the number here is six,” Xiao Lianshan said, suddenly enlightened.

Yue Qianling gave him a sharp look and said irritably, “Wait for me to finish. It’s rare I get to have my moment in the spotlight, and you just stole it.”