Returning to Heng City, the former Prefect’s Office was being used as Yuan Cheng and Jin Yin’s place for handling official business and lodging. The two had been away for several days, and much military intelligence had piled up, so as soon as they appeared, they were invited away by Zhang Zhen and the others.
Mo Zi and Dou Lu returned to the temporarily arranged side rooms. Luo Ying and Xiao Yi asked about the situation in Song County.
Mo Zi gave a general account, then said, “Yuan Cheng and I have both decided to conceal the treasure matter from outsiders. You must not mention it again.” As for Prince Su and Wang Yang, they certainly wouldn’t publicize it everywhere either.
Xiao Yi had no interest in the treasure. She looked at Mo Zi, then at Dou Lu. “You two are the Min family’s granddaughters and the Wang family’s external granddaughters. Speaking such an identity would scare people to death. Mo Zi, if Sanniang knew, how smug would she be? She’d definitely laugh loudly saying a daughter of a thousand gold served her as a maid.”
“I acknowledge the Min family, but forget about the Wang family. Besides, with Wang Yang’s personality, he won’t tell his family about my mother’s affairs.” This way, no one would ever know about her and Dou Lu’s other half of their bloodline. “Sanniang already sensed I was unusual, which is precisely why she wanted to suppress me more.” Unbalanced, ha!
“Elder Sister, I don’t understand. They’ve already obtained the Water Purification Pearls and have the key. Why did you say they can’t find the treasure?” Dou Lu had been holding back this question for a long time.
“I also want to know why.” Jin Yin stepped through the door. “Preoccupied with this matter, I had no heart to listen to all those tedious official affairs. Couldn’t speak on the road—can we speak now?”
“Where’s my husband?” Mo Zi asked.
“Is he the curious type? If this city can’t be defended, he’ll definitely be the last one to move.” A face that remained calm even if the sky fell was an existence that stabilized the army’s morale. “Besides, you two are husband and wife. What words can’t be said slowly by the pillow?”
Mo Zi gave Jin Yin a look and called out, “Zan Jin!”
Zan Jin’s shadow was cast by sunlight on the rice paper. “Here.”
“Stand guard. Don’t let anyone approach.” Mo Zi instructed.
Zan Jin responded affirmatively.
“Don’t worry, Bailiang and Qianliang are both outside.” The twins’ martial skills needed improvement, but their ears and eyes were sharp.
“Xiao Yi and I will guard the back.” Luo Ying pulled away Xiao Yi, who had been pricking up her ears.
Mo Zi took out a small package from the luggage. Inside was soft cotton, which she gently opened. “Look at this.”
Jin Yin’s mouth fell open. “This… didn’t you give them to them?”
Ten jade-smooth Water Purification Pearls sat steadily cushioned by soft cotton.
“Fake.” Mo Zi found a box and placed the pearls inside.
“What?!” Jin Yin couldn’t believe it. “How could they be fake? I was standing not far away at the time. I also saw those pearls lose their jade color in Wang Yang’s hands. And could fake ones fool Wang Yang? No, that’s not right—no one can replicate Water Purification Pearls at all.” If they could be replicated, they’d long ago be worthless.
“Others cannot replicate them, but one person could.” Mo Zi sighed quietly.
“Was it Father?” Dou Lu guessed.
Mo Zi nodded. “It was our father.”
Jin Yin slumped into a chair, half-sighing, half-laughing. “Too incredible. Min Zhen spent ten years making ten pearls, and your father succeeded before he was even thirty. Does Heaven envy talent, so he left so early?”
Dou Lu’s eyes moistened.
“When Foster Father gave them to me, I was also extremely surprised, thinking I was seeing an illusion before my eyes.” But they were as real as could be.
“Since he could already make Water Purification Pearls, why didn’t he hand them over when Prince Su sent people to snatch them?” Jin Yin’s mind turned quickly.
“If he handed them over, would Prince Su have spared him and Mother?” Whether he handed them over or not, the result would still be losing their lives. “Moreover, fake ones cannot become real.”
“What do you mean?” The more Jin Yin listened, the more confused he became.
“The fundamental difference between Min Zhen’s Water Purification Pearls and my father’s Water Purification Pearls is that the former secretly concealed a map of the treasure, while the latter did not.” Mo Zi saw Jin Yin’s dumbstruck expression. She didn’t know how many shocking secrets existed in the world, but this one happened around her, so it was earth-shattering.
“A map?” Jin Yin was weak and breathless. Too, too, too incredible.
“A map.” Mo Zi confirmed for him. “Without a map, it’s impossible to obtain the treasure.”
“How do you know all this?” Jin Yin was dying of curiosity.
“Mother left Dou Lu a book on flower cultivation. Inside was hidden a page with a story.” Mo Zi gestured to Dou Lu.
Dou Lu placed the book on the table.
No matter how Jin Yin looked at it, it was just a very ordinary old book.
Mo Zi turned to the middle, selected a page, and gently separated it with her fingertip. One sheet of paper became two. “My father originally didn’t believe that Great-Grandfather Min Zhen had hidden a secret in the Water Purification Pearls. Not until he followed Great-Grandfather’s footsteps and began traveling did he discover that the places Great-Grandfather most frequently visited all had one thing in common—they would pass through Song County. He even found one of Great-Grandfather’s woodblock prints. What he had thought were famous rivers and great mountains were actually Song County scenery. Later, when he and Mother eloped, they chose to settle in Song County. The mountains were numerous and people sparse here—suitable for living in seclusion and also suitable for excavating secrets. He quickly found Crescent Moon Mountain, which is Min Mountain. There he discovered the material for making the Water Purification Pearl shells, and even found a door. He used Great-Grandfather’s woodblock print to fit into the mechanism and open the door, but he only went in three zhang before withdrawing, and never went in again after that.”
“Because there was no map?” Dou Lu also became curious.
“Not because there was no map, but because Great-Grandfather left behind a stone tablet with carved characters. He probably anticipated that future descendants would sooner or later suspect the Min family’s history of making their fortune, then follow the clues he left to find this place, so he gave future generations a warning.” The most magical and wonderful story in the world happened right beside her—from now on, no need to tell other stories. “There were only a few characters on it: This cave has no treasure, Water Purification does not guide. Min Zhen’s words.”
“Who would believe that!” Jin Yin laughed. “When your old ancestor said those words, nine out of ten treasure seekers wouldn’t turn back.”
“My father turned back.” Dou Lu worshipped her birth father, birth mother, and birth sister.
“He turned back because he believed Min Zhen wouldn’t make such a joke. Also, there was something strange—why was the key to open the door Min Zhen’s woodblock print? The treasure clearly didn’t belong to Min Zhen. The key should be more ancient. This question, until my father’s death, never received an answer. The only thing he could guess was that perhaps the earliest stone door key broke and was repaired anew by Min Zhen. That is to say, the earliest woodblock print was carved by Min Zhen’s father. Moreover, I estimate that jade stone that changes color when warm was deliberately placed in the Crescent Moon Mountain cave.”
“If there’s no treasure in the cave, then your old ancestor was still deceiving people?” That couldn’t be. Jin Yin was confused up to now.
“Listen clearly to what I said—this cave has no treasure.” Mo Zi smiled. “This cave doesn’t have it, but other caves might.”
“Ah?” Jin Yin started slapping his forehead.
“How could the treasure Wu Zetian wanted to hide be so easily discovered?” Mo Zi felt this was very understandable.
“This is still called easy?” Are you dizzy?
“Great-Grandfather Min Zhen’s brilliant achievements overshadowed the true founding ancestor of the Min family’s accomplishments. This Director of Imperial Manufactories that Prince Su spoke of was no insignificant nobody. He used the water-shadow method, creating one real place and one false place. One with treasure, one without treasure.” Having said this much, she had to take a drink of water.
“Does the water-shadow method mean the entity above water and the shadow in water, deliberately creating an illusion?” Dou Lu asked.
“That’s roughly the meaning. However, Min Zhen’s father—” Not knowing the great-great-ancestor’s name, she could only use this designation. “His brilliance lay in turning the entity above water into the false one and turning the shadow in water into the real one. Even more wonderful, the shadow is not the reflection of the entity you see.”
Jin Yin had nothing to say. Every sentence he spoke showed his stupidity once.
Mo Zi didn’t plan to keep them in suspense. “The reflection is the reflection of the real Ming Mountain. Water shadows are inherently different from entities. This method of concealment, without extreme care, would be impossible to detect.”
“Then did your father say where it is?” One page of paper—everything should be explained clearly, right?
“My father only said he wouldn’t enter the false cave again. Just one sentence remained, saying those with fate will obtain it.” The water-shadow method was her deduction. The greatest gain from going to Song County was discovering the information hidden in the woodblock print.
“After talking for so long, there’s nothing.” Jin Yin’s head was throbbing.
“After saying so much, if you haven’t heard anything, Young Master Jin, you should just go be emperor.” Basically, being emperor was a simple job anyone could do. As long as you were the emperor’s son, one kowtow and you’re emperor—completely relying on pick-one-from-several luck, no need for intelligence or ability or anything.
“Father actually already knew where the treasure was, right?” Dou Lu enunciated carefully. “But he didn’t have the real Water Purification Pearls, so he didn’t go in.”
“Or perhaps he simply didn’t want to go in. He just wanted to find an answer. Once the answer was found, he was satisfied. With idle time, he carved out ten pearls.” Mo Zi could almost imagine that Min family Fifth Young Master’s handsome and cheerful appearance and playful, somewhat mischievous personality. “He and Mother must have lived leisurely days like immortals.”
“Fine, I don’t care where the real treasure is now, as long as Prince Su can’t find it.” Infuriate that old fellow—probably trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice, even exhausting the Daqiu King’s last bit of tolerance toward him. Losing the Daqiu King’s protection, sooner or later he’ll meet a dismal end.
“I’m afraid they won’t be able to come out.” Mo Zi’s words were shocking again. “This cave has no treasure, Water Purification does not guide. Even if it’s a false cave, when building it, would they consider letting people leave smoothly? If a map is needed, inside there must be mechanisms everywhere, extremely dangerous.”
Jin Yin looked at Dou Lu. The two looked at each other, not having anticipated such a possible outcome, but with just a little thought, they felt Mo Zi was right—people entering the false cave would have more bad luck than good.
“External… Wang… Old Mister…” Dou Lu wanted to say grandfather but felt calling him by name directly wasn’t good. “Will he die?”
Mo Zi looked at this kind-hearted younger sister. No one could deny natural blood ties—even with such a broken family relation, there was still concern in her heart.
“I don’t know. Everything depends on Heaven’s will.” After Mo Zi finished speaking, she tidied up her things and walked outside.
Jin Yin called to her, “Where are you going?”
“To carve wood and find treasure.” Father had found it but wasn’t curious because he wanted a leisurely life, but she, for the sake of a leisurely life, couldn’t possibly miss the opportunity before her eyes.
If peace in the realm was necessary for freedom and ease, she would dig out this golden mountain and beat everyone until they didn’t dare cause trouble anymore!