Immortality begins in Goose City

Chapter 22, Second Major Aperture: The Tomb of the Imperial Concubine Unearthed

Upon hearing this, Zhao Laowu was first taken aback, then his eyes flashed with wild joy, but this was quickly replaced by deeper worry.

Is joining the Huang family a blessing or a curse?

But right now, besides the Huang family, who else can stop Ba Qing's revenge?

He gritted his teeth, kowtowed again heavily, his forehead pressed against the cold ground, and choked out, "Thank... thank you for your great kindness, young master!"

Zhao Laowu kowtowed twice more before carefully getting up, hiding the silver dollar note close to his body, and staggering towards Goose City. His back was still hunched, but he seemed to have gained a bit more vitality.

Watching Zhao Laowu disappear into the forest path, Huang Shujian turned around and turned his gaze back to the small hill that was being cut down and burned.

"continue."

His voice was not loud, but it carried an undeniable authority.

"Speed ​​up! Today, even if the King of Heaven himself comes, we'll turn this mountain upside down!"

"Yes, young master!"

Everyone responded in unison, greatly boosting morale.

The sounds of felling, shouts, and the scraping of trees echoed through the mountains once again, even more intensely and urgently than before.

Huang Shujian walked back to the carriage, and Xiu'er quickly followed and lifted the curtain for him.

Sitting back on the soft couch, Huang Shujian picked up the slightly cooled goji berry tea and sipped it slowly, his eyes thoughtful.

"Young Master, why is Ba Qing so insistent on stopping us from digging up Consort Dong's tomb?"

Xiuer knelt down again, massaging Huang Shujian's legs while asking curiously.

"Could there really be some incredible treasure in this grave? Even the county magistrate's son is envious?"

……

Time passed amidst the clamor of logging and subsequent burning.

About an hour later, Huang Shujian was leaning against a soft couch, sipping a nourishing rice porridge that Xiuer had made with deer antler.

Xiuer knelt down beside him, using her soft little hands to gently massage his calves, relieving his muscles and bones.

The carriage was filled with the aroma of rice porridge and a faint smell of medicine.

suddenly!

Huang Shujian's right foot, which was resting on Xiu'er's legs, suddenly sprang upwards uncontrollably, and his toe struck Xiu'er's chest precisely as she was focused on massaging her legs.

"ah!"

Xiuer gasped in surprise, like a startled little rabbit, and jumped back quickly, instinctively covering her chest with her hands.

"Young Master!"

Huang Shujian ignored him, and instead of showing any remorse, he revealed an uncontrollable look of surprise on his face!

He sat up abruptly and looked down at his right foot.

Just a moment ago, he felt a burst of scorching heat erupt from the sole of his right foot, like a flood breaking through a dam, rushing upwards along specific meridian lines and instantly opening up the meridian!

The blood and qi throughout the body vibrated, and it seemed as if a "crack" sound, like an eggshell breaking, could be heard in the ears.

The second major acupoint—the Yongquan acupoint on the sole of the foot—is now open!

"Young Master, you...you've broken through again?"

Seeing the joy on Huang Shujian's face, Xiu'er immediately guessed what was going on and asked in surprise.

Huang Shujian let out a long sigh of relief, nodded, and a cheerful smile appeared on his face: "Yes, the second key point is clear."

"Congratulations, young master! You are truly amazing! You are a martial arts genius!"

Xiuer immediately clapped and cheered, completely forgetting about being kicked earlier.

Just as the master and servant were overjoyed at this unexpected breakthrough, a huge cheer suddenly came from outside the carriage!

"Found it!"

"It exploded!"

Immediately following was Wu Zhichong's signature loud voice, approaching from afar, filled with barely suppressed excitement:

"Young master! Young master! We've found it! The top of the tomb is visible!"

Huang Shujian's eyes flashed with a sharp light!

He finished the remaining deer antler porridge in the bowl in two gulps, wiped his mouth with a silk handkerchief, and suddenly stood up!

"Let's go take a look!"

He pushed open the carriage door, jumped off the carriage nimbly, and Xiu'er quickly followed.

The two quickly arrived at the small hill that had been completely altered.

The hill is no longer the lush and green place it once was.

All the trees, shrubs, and weeds on the surface were cut down and burned, exposing the dark brown soil and jagged rocks underneath.

The front of the hill was blasted open with a huge gap!

The soil and gravel were cleared to the sides, revealing what was buried underneath.

It was an arched dome made of huge, neatly cut blue stone blocks, meticulously stacked together!

The stone is fine and hard. Although it has been through the years, its extraordinary texture and meticulous craftsmanship can still be seen after the explosion and cleaning.

This is the top of the tomb!

However, the scale and grandeur of this dome far exceed that of ordinary wealthy families' tombs, bearing the clear mark of the regulations of the previous dynasty's officialdom.

Hu Laosan was excitedly circling the exposed bluestone dome, his fingers trembling as he stroked the cold stone surface.

"That's it! That's it! That's the one!"

Old Hu's voice trembled as he pointed to the dark red grout material that had dried and hardened between the stones.

"Look at this stone! It's top-quality Nanshan Green, reserved for royal architecture and tombs!"

"And this blood glutinous rice paste for filling the cracks, mixed with cinnabar and a secret medicine, is as hard as iron, preventing decay and insects!"

"This scale, this material—it's definitely the work of the former imperial family!"

"This is definitely Consort Dong's tomb!"

Huang Shujian looked at the tomb roof, which gleamed with a bluish-green luster in the sunlight, and a slow smile appeared on his lips.

"Very good." He then waved his hand. "Keep digging! Clear away all the soil around it."

"yes!"

The servants were even more enthusiastic, wielding shovels and picks, and began to carefully clear the accumulated soil around and below the tomb.

With many people working together, and with the previous explosion having loosened the soil, in just over half an hour, a large area of ​​soil around the top of the tomb was cleared away, revealing a more complete outer shell of the tomb.

It has an arched shape and is not particularly large in scale, but its structure is clear.

One can vaguely discern the location of the tomb entrance directly in front, a tomb passage, the main burial chamber in the center, and the symmetrical small side chambers on both sides.

The entire outer shell of the tomb is made entirely of thick bluestone, forming a seamless whole, resembling a stone fortress buried in the mountains.

Wu Zhichong walked to the tomb entrance and pushed the huge rock sealing the entrance with all his might, but it didn't budge.

He examined the traces left by the previous explosives again, shook his head, and said to Huang Shujian:

"Young master, this tomb door is made of a single piece of broken dragon stone, weighing at least a thousand pounds! There must be traps behind it to secure it."

"The explosives just now only blew away the topsoil; they didn't do much damage to the stone door."

Just then, Hu Laosan, who had been circling the side of the tomb, suddenly let out a soft cry of surprise:

"Over here! Come and see!"

Huang Shujian went over upon hearing the sound.

On the side wall of the tomb, there was a hole that was only big enough for one person to squeeze through!

The stones at the edge of the cave entrance bear marks of being chiseled with sharp tools and subjected to long-term friction, making them irregular and contrasting sharply with the surrounding neat bluestone.

This is a robbery hole!