Chapter Ten: Thousand Silver Peak (Broadcast Resumes at Dawn~~~~~~~)

Returning from the Great Ci’en Temple, everyone was downcast. We had finally found a lead, only to be blocked by ten feet of solid granite. To trigger the mechanism, we required the long-lost Imperial Jade Seal—an impossible task. It seemed the Ming Fourteen Tombs were destined to remain just out of reach; visible, yet entirely inaccessible.

My mood lifted slightly upon returning to the hotel and finding Liu Hao sitting in the lobby.

"What wind blew you here? Did Brother Ting worry things weren't going smoothly and send his imperial envoy to supervise? Haha."

"Don't mock me," Liu Hao said with a smile, hooking my arm. "I’m just a laborer. Brother Ting was worried you were too much of a scholar for the dirty, heavy work, so he sent me."

Back in the room, I explained our progress. Liu Hao just laughed it off.

"I thought it was something difficult. Why are you all so anxious? How much security could there be at the Great Ci’en Temple? I’ll take my men and break in overnight. I could dig up a bank vault, let alone some underground palace."

"It’s ten feet of granite," I said, shaking my head. "I believe you can get your men in, but digging inside would be too loud. Do you think the monks are deaf?"

"No noise? That's simple," Liu Hao replied dismissively. "If we can't dig from inside, we’ll dig from below. We can't cut through the granite, but surely we can dig through the dirt?"

"Do you think this is a guerrilla tunnel war?" Yue Qianling said helplessly. "We have no blueprints, no landmarks. You go digging blindly, and the police will be waiting for you the moment you surface."

People with simple minds often have simple ideas, but sometimes, simple methods are the most practical. My eyes lit up. I paced the room, lost in thought. "This idea seems whimsical, but it might actually be feasible."

"You... you aren't actually thinking of digging a tunnel, are you?!" Yue Qianling snapped.

Qiu Nuo chimed in with a smile. "We wouldn't even need to dig a new tunnel. Jingzhao’s current drainage system still uses the foundation of the Tang Dynasty’s Chang'an system. The Great Ci’en Temple has one too. If we find the right spot, this method could work."

After discussing Liu Hao’s proposal, it seemed theoretically sound, but we lacked two things: the current drainage blueprints of Jingzhao and the original construction plans for the Great Ci’en Temple.

Liu Hao took responsibility for the first, promising to have it by noon the next day. As for the construction plans, it was tricky, but Qiu Nuo said she would find a way.

When Liu Hao triumphantly placed the drainage maps on the table the next day, I wasn't surprised—in this day and age, money solves everything. However, when Qiu Nuo unrolled a yellowed scroll, I was left speechless, caught between laughter and tears.

"This... don't tell me you scavenged this from your Aunt Qingyang too?"

"I was just trying my luck. I didn't expect her to actually have it."

The paper was yellowed with age but pristine, containing only architectural drawings with no text, clearly the final draft. A seal in the bottom left corner was sharp and clear: *Supervised by Fan Zhong, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue!*

This blueprint was worth its weight in gold—the original plans from the temple's construction. My interest in Qingyang grew; she was a constant source of surprises, each one more unexpected than the last.

Comparing the drainage maps with the original temple plans, I quickly identified the optimal excavation point. Liu Hao arranged the crew, selecting only his most trusted men brought from Rongcheng to prevent leaks.

As a precaution, I arranged for Qiu Nuo and Yue Qianling to accompany Gu Anqi to the temple. As a welcomed guest, Gu Anqi could move freely without suspicion, providing cover if anything went wrong.

The excavation was set for three days later. I had checked the forecast; heavy rain would mask the sound of our work.

Progress was smoother than expected. We hit blue flagstones by the third day—the same type I had seen in the palace, confirming we had reached the base.

Liu Hao brought in a cutter. The stones were too large to move manually, so cutting them was the most efficient way. Just as the machine sawed through the final layer, the operator shut it off and whispered, "Brother Hao, look. Something is leaking from above."

"Damn it, forget what’s leaking, just finish cutting!" Liu Hao growled.

I paused. The secret chamber should have been waterproofed like the palace. If there was no water, what was leaking? "Stop! Everyone, don't move." I felt something was wrong.

I crawled to the end of the tunnel and asked the operator, "What is it?"

"I don't know. It’s hard to see, but it doesn't look like water."

I reached up to touch the gap in the stone. A viscous, smooth liquid was seeping through. Liu Hao shone his flashlight, and I gasped. "Mercury!"

"Don't be so dramatic," Liu Hao said. "I've dug plenty of tombs; mercury is common for preservation."

"You're talking about tombs! This is a secret chamber, not a burial site! Why use mercury here?" I took a sharp breath, then shouted, "Stop! Don't dig any further! Fill it back in exactly as it was!"

My urgency shocked Liu Hao. "Yinghui, what are you doing? We’re almost there!"

"It’s a trap called 'The Thousand-Silver Ceiling.' There’s a thick layer of mercury between the foundation and the chamber to prevent tunneling from below. Zhu Yuanzhang was incredibly paranoid; if we keep digging, the whole chamber will collapse, and we’ll be buried alive!"

Liu Hao realized the gravity of the situation and immediately ordered the tunnel backfilled. I felt a pang of regret; I had underestimated Zhu Yuanzhang. Why would such a suspicious emperor leave himself vulnerable?

I walked out of the sewer to catch some air, only to find a man leaning against a car, smoking nonchalantly. Seeing Wei Yong was a surprise, but not entirely unexpected. Since he had tasked me with finding the tombs, my every move was clearly under his watch.

"I didn't think Secretary Wei, with his busy schedule, would have time for Jingzhao," I said, dusting off the mud. "And it's quite a coincidence you found me so quickly."

"I heard there were interesting things happening in Jingzhao, even the Buddha's relics appearing," Wei Yong said, exhaling smoke. "It’s good to see you again. Otherwise, I’d have to reconsider my plans."

His words carried a double meaning. "Are you worried you won't see me again?"

"Of course," he replied, checking his watch. "I was thinking, if you hadn't come out by now, I might never see you again."

"You... you knew there was mercury under the chamber?!" I asked, stunned.

"The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda has been tilting since the Kangxi era. During restoration, experts found mercury in the soil, so they stopped the project. There is a massive amount of mercury buried in a fifty-meter radius around the palace, and the pagoda sits right on top of it."

"If you knew it was that dangerous, why didn't you warn me?" I asked, incensed.

"I need someone smart enough to find the Ming Fourteen Tombs," Wei Yong said, his smile vanishing. "If you had died, it would just mean you weren't the person I needed. There is no loss for me."

A chill ran down my spine. He was cold and brutal, but he was right—I had been careless.

"Since I'm still alive," I said coldly, "you can wait a little longer to collect my body."

"Heh. Since you're still here, it proves you are smart enough," Wei Yong said. "So, I’ve come to tell you something."

"What is it?"

"How to enter the secret chamber."