In the conference hall, Lao Jiang looked serious, and He Lanxue also sat aside with a stern expression.
There was silence in Xixiali, except for the breathing of two people!
Adhering to the principle that the smaller the noise, the bigger the problem, my heart suddenly lifted, and I carefully placed the snacks I bought on the table, for fear of being scolded by Lao Jiang.
But he didn't mention a word at all, he just asked Yin Ling'er and me: "Are you ready?"
Yin Ling'er and I looked at each other and said in unison: "Alright... ready."
Lao Jiang nodded, a white curtain slowly lowered, and then the first slide was inserted into the instrument.
What comes into view is a desolate grotto. The yellow sand blocks out the sun around the grotto, and there are dead trees everywhere. But on the grotto, there are lifelike murals painted with amazing brushwork! The murals are composed of red, yellow and green colors, and most of the Buddhist allusions are painted, including dancing goddesses, Buddha preaching, and listening Bodhisattvas.
Looking from a distance, it looks like a sect of ten thousand Buddhas, which is deeply shocking.
"This is a mural from Dunhuang." Lao Jiang introduced.
"The painting depicts the story of Sakyamuni and his followers, who saved all sentient beings. It has a history of more than a thousand years."
Yin Ling'er and I listened attentively. Suddenly, Lao Jiang changed the subject and asked a strange question: "Do you think this mural is beautiful?"
I nodded: "It's so beautiful! Even I, a non-Buddhist, would have the urge to shave my head and become a monk when I saw it. If I were met by a Buddhist, I would probably go crazy."
Lao Jiang snorted and said, "Yes, precisely because these murals are unique in the world, they have attracted groups of tomb robbers, and the largest group of tomb robbers... even come from abroad."
My heart skipped a beat, here comes the topic!
"Li Jinglan, from today on you must remember one name: Warner." He Lanxue, who had not spoken for a long time, suddenly spoke.
Warner?
I chewed on this name carefully, but I didn't know what the special meaning was.
But I could feel the sudden killing intent in the conference hall, which was Qilin's deep hatred for him.
"Warner, a world-famous explorer and philanthropist, is actually a notorious international thief! He controls the largest tomb robbery group in Europe: Ghost. In the name of exploration, he has traveled to the Nile River, South Africa, the Amazon rainforest, and ancient times. Maya and others have robbed countless ancient tombs and used extremely cruel methods." Lao Jiang said as he inserted the second slide, and a blond old man suddenly appeared behind the curtain.
"In order to obtain the royal gold objects in the Golden Valley, he drove hundreds of workers into the tomb to exhaust the mechanisms."
"In order to get the knight's sword that was buried with the German prince, he blew up a small town."
"Do you know what he did to take away the mummy of an ancient Egyptian princess?"
"What?" I asked curiously.
Lao Jiang sneered: "He ordered his men to kill all the natives along the Nile River so that his ship could sail unimpeded! At that time, he was still giving out candies to children with a smile on his face, took photos, and published them in The Times superior."
"Hiss..." I couldn't help but take a breath, this guy is too cruel!
Hypocritical people who kill people while pretending to be philanthropists are often the most difficult to deal with.
"Has no one revealed his true identity since that song?" Yin Ling'er asked at this time.
He Lanxue shook his head: "Because he has been engaged in tomb robbing for a long time, and the objects he targets are often legendary and mysterious monuments, so Warner has accumulated treasures that are extremely rich! Anyone who can catch him has long been bribed. Clean, have you seen him robbing the tomb in the front and General Xiaoguo helping to carry the coffin? "He did it."
"What's even more terrifying is that the ghost in his hand has gathered desperadoes from all over the world. It has harvested countless lives over the years. Even Qilin can't find out the details of that group of people."
Yin Ling'er and I looked at each other, he was rich, powerful, and had a terrifying force working for him.
No wonder Warner makes Qilin deeply afraid!
Lao Jiang said that originally, Warner was robbing tombs abroad, and he and Qilin were on the same page. But he never expected that he would actually set his sights on Dunhuang in western China, and under the guise of adventure, he began his treasure-stealing journey.
In recent years, Warner stole hundreds of murals by hiring local tomb robbers, coercion and inducement, and even claimed that these were his greatest discoveries of this century.
"This old bastard is really shameless when he opens the door for little shameless boy. He's so shameless!" I couldn't help but slap the table, wishing I could rip off Warner's head and use it as a chamber pot.
Old Jiang was also very angry, but he continued: "Because Warner sneaked in secretly at that time, the stolen murals could no longer be recovered, but just half a month ago, this terrifying force came again!"
And this is the focus of this meeting.
Half a month ago, Warner went deep into the vast desert and opened an ancient tomb that had been covered in dust for thousands of years. The moment the ancient tomb was exposed to the light again, it actually burst into golden light, which almost blinded the person!
It turns out that there is a sleeping Buddha statue made of white jade in the center of the main tomb chamber, with a solemn and crystal clear face.
It is exactly what the Buddha looked like when he passed away, because Buddhist allusions record that Sakyamuni died in his sleep.
I don’t know the origin of the owner of the tomb. In addition to the jade Buddha, there are also thirteen golden coffins surrounding it!
It is rare to use gold to make coffins, but these coffins are still surrounding the Buddha. It looks weird, as if the Buddha is deliberately suppressing something.
But Warner was a Westerner and was not taboo about these things. He asked workers to tie the ropes that day and go down to collect the funerary objects.
Because the Buddha statue was too big to be shipped out, Warner sawed off the Buddha's head.
Hearing this, I was shocked: "They actually cut off Buddha's head? Aren't they afraid of retribution?"
Lao Jiang smiled bitterly: "Yes, their retribution will come soon..."
Warner and others worked hard all day and finally got the Buddha's head out. When the sky was getting dark, they ordered their men to camp in place and wait until the next day to continue to pry open the thirteen golden coffins.
Excavating countless historical relics for the first time told him that there must be a major secret hidden in the coffin!
However, when he woke up, he found that the tents near the entrance of the tomb were all empty. The twelve workers who participated in the excavation yesterday were not alive or dead. There was not even a trace of struggle or blood on the scene.
At that time, Warner thought he had been retaliated against. In anger, he asked his men to search back and forth in the desert with guns in hand. But where were the enemies in the vast desert?
Finally, Warner turned his attention back to the thirteen golden coffins in the ancient tomb with some fear.
"Are the twelve missing workers all in coffins?" I asked with a frown.
This thing is too bizarre, but it seems to be the only place where the body can be hidden.
"Yes!" Lao Jiang replied: "After Warner opened the golden coffin, he saw a worker lying in each coffin. There were no wounds on the workers' bodies, but there was a strange smile on the corners of their mouths. The smile is both peaceful and eerie, and it actually looks exactly like the sawed-off Buddha head..."
This scene scared Warner's men out of their wits, and they all shouted: Buddha demands his life!
They did not dare to stay longer in the tomb, but Warner insisted on opening the thirteenth golden coffin. He believed that the truth about the deaths of the twelve workers, including the secret of the entire tomb, must be inside.
"Has the thirteenth coffin been opened?" Yin Ling'er and I asked nervously.
Lao Jiang sighed: "It's opened! But no one knew what Warner saw at that time. They only knew that this coffin made the notorious international thief die, as if he saw the most terrifying thing in the world! Even the equipment I didn’t want anything anymore and escaped from the desert at night.”
It was at that time that a group of patriots received intelligence and, with the help of the local army, successfully intercepted Warner and recaptured the Buddha's head and other funerary objects.
This group of patriots was called the "Free Commune" and was composed of folk strangers and students and teachers.
They plan to send the Buddha head to Peiping by train and donate it to the Peking Museum to tell the world that they should stop coveting China's treasures, otherwise they will be severely punished!
Lao Jiang told us: "This is the first time that Chinese people have successfully prevented the leakage of Dunhuang cultural relics. It is a historic moment! Not only celebrities in the industry, but also many literati and journalists will be at the station to welcome the national treasure home."
"So you invited us, right?" I nodded and asked.
Lao Jiang hummed, but his frown did not relax for a moment: "Qilin means that we should go west as representatives."
I understood that there was something behind Lao Jiang’s words, so I took the initiative to ask, “Are you worried about an accident?”
Lao Jiang was addicted to cigarettes and was about to touch a cigarette when he was stopped by He Lanxue's cough. He could only smile and explain: "Warner and his ghost have never failed for decades. He did it for that ancient tomb." How could we just give up after spending so much energy and money and causing loss of life?”
"The boss was worried that something might happen during the handover of the cultural relics, so he sent me and Ximei to take care of it. This is also to demonstrate Qilin's position to the outside world. Anyone who dares to covet Dunhuang again will be the enemy of the entire Qilin!"
I secretly glanced at Yin Ling'er and found that Yin Ling'er also happened to be looking in my direction. When her eyes came into contact, she turned her head sharply and avoided my gaze.
At this time, I had a particularly strong feeling: the short and peaceful days were about to be broken!
