From May to July, there was a lot of commotion in the city of Beijing, first the Feng army withdrew from Beijing, then Zhang Zuolin was killed, the National Revolutionary Army entered the city to take over, and immediately changed Beijing to Beiping. One big thing after another, making people dizzy.

In August, the people think it's time to stop, right?

But they never expected that at the beginning of August, the whole of Beijing was shaken by another **.

Reuters suddenly published a report, the author was anonymous, claiming that Zunhua Tanglin was tragically looted by tomb robbers, and national treasures were lost countless times. According to the report, villagers near Ma Lanyu entered Tanglin and found that the tombs of Cixi and Qianlong had been stolen, the underground palace had been opened, and all the burial goods inside had been emptied. The national government is urged to take action as soon as possible and send personnel to investigate.

The report caused an immediate uproar. In the past, there were frequent wars, and everyone couldn't take care of this stall, but now that the situation has stabilized, all attention immediately shifted to this. What's more, it was none other than the famous Cixi who robbed the tomb, which caused countless speculations. As soon as the news came out, newspapers in Beijing and even throughout the country reprinted it, and all sectors of society condemned it and urged that the case be solved as soon as possible. The common people are even more ear-to-ear, and all unreliable legends have been spread. Who are the tomb robbers, there are different opinions.

The clan also issued a statement, Pu Yi burst into tears, condemned the atrocities, made sacrifices in Tanglin, and sent several elders to submit petitions to the national government.

The Tanglin case soon became a hot topic in Beijing. Under the pressure of public opinion, the Garrison Command and the Beiping Field Political Affairs Committee announced that they had mobilized the elite of the Beijing Police Department, led by Wu Yuwen, the chief of the Investigation Division, to begin the investigation work. At the same time, Liu Renrui, a member of the state government, was entrusted to form an investigation team to go to Tanglin to investigate.

Within a few days, the National Police Agency's investigation progressed. One day in mid-July, Tan Wenjiang, commander of the Sixth Division of the 12th Army, took his wife to the front door to watch a movie. The detective team's detectives immediately closed the entire movie theater, entered the box, and found two night pearls from Mrs. Tan's embroidered shoes, which were identified by the clan and confirmed to be Cixi's funeral objects.

Liulichang has a Zun Gu Zhai specializing in antiques, and the boss is called Huang Baichuan. Coincidentally, on the same day that Tan Wenjiang was arrested, the Police Department also arrested Huang Baichuan and confessed that Tan Wenjiang had brought several rare treasures worth 100,000 yuan, which were also stolen from Cixi's tomb after investigation.

At the same time, there was also news from Qingdao Customs in Shandong. They caught two deserters on Chen Pingmaru's passenger liner and searched from them for the military insignia of the 12th Army and 36 Dongzhu. The deserter confessed that he had participated in the tomb robbery activities of Commander Sun in Tangling, picked up a handful of beads, and felt that he didn't want to sell his life anymore, so he secretly ran out.

The efficiency of the Jingshi Police Department was extremely slow in the past, but this time, with the help of God, one move and one style is very methodical, and major clues have been found one after another, as if there is some master's trick behind it. And every time there is progress in the investigation, it will be detected by the press. As a result, although Sun Dianying is the culprit of the tomb robbery in Tanglin, although it has not been confirmed by the court, it has become a hot topic on the streets.

Some military observers have even commented that this kind of motley army is unruly and unruly, and if it is not dealt with with heavy hands, it is only afraid that it will change between the elbows and armpits in the future, and every word will be punished.

As if God didn't think it was hot enough, he quickly poured a spoonful of hot oil on it.

"Shi Wu Bao" published an article signed by Wuyue Sanren, analyzing from the perspective of feng shui, saying that the Manchu Qing Dynasty chose Zunhua Ma Lanyu as a mausoleum in order to protect the imperial spirit of Beijing. Now Sun Dianying is stealing and digging Dongling, so that the imperial spirit is lost and flows south. Since then, Beijing has not been the imperial capital, and it has been reduced to an ordinary city in North China, all due to this.

In fact, the Nationalist Government announced as early as late June that Sun Dianying's tomb robbery was in early July. But the common people didn't care about this, and as soon as this article came out, it immediately exploded. Whether the mausoleum is stolen or not, that is the matter of the clan, whether the national treasure is lost or not, that is the matter of the state, but Beijing loses the status of the capital, which can affect the dignity of all the people living in the imperial city.

Everyone was holding their breath in their chests, and they had nowhere to vent, so with this reason, they naturally scolded without hesitation. This Sun Mazi actually dug up the imperial spirit of Beijing, lost his roots, and the six-hundred-year-old capital was destroyed in his hands. Our Son of Heaven has become a horn under his feet, and he has dropped a level in plain water, do you say that he should be killed or not? All of a sudden, the name Sun Dianying can be said to be stinking on the street, almost everyone shouts and beats it, and there is a momentum that not killing is not enough to be angry with the people.

"Linking the matter of moving the capital with the matter of robbing the tomb is extremely clever. Now that there is such a trouble, Sun Dianying will either surrender obediently, or fall into the grass, and there is no third way to choose. Yu Fang said to Xu Yicheng with a smile.

Xu Yicheng's face was cold, and he said lightly: "Self-inflicted, you can't live." ”

At this time, the two were sitting in a small teahouse. The small teahouse is a clan industry, and the pattern is not large, but it is extremely exquisite. Yu Fang made a special trip to set up a banquet to thank Xu Yicheng for his running during this time. Hai Lanzhu was also there, she changed into a cheongsam, revealing two white lotus-like arms to make tea for the two, with a smile in her eyes, low eyebrows, and a small jasper.

Yu Fang cocked his thumb: "Brother Yicheng, your methods are really good." A few shots made Sun Dianying restless. He'll definitely regret swearing to you now. ”

The previous series of dazzling public opinion combinations were quite methodical. Yu Fang didn't believe that this was a coincidence, and only Xu Yicheng had such means and insight to guide public opinion step by step, laying a net of heaven and earth, so that Sun Dianying had nowhere to escape.

Xu Yicheng sighed: "The big mistake was made, and now it's just a matter of making up for the dead, what kind of clever calculations are you talking about." Besides, I just came up with a few ideas, and if it wasn't for a big man above, it wouldn't have been so effective. ”

"Oh, who is it?" Yu Fang asked curiously, Xu Yicheng stretched out his finger and nodded upward, but did not answer.

Yu Fang knew that he didn't want to say, so he smiled and lowered his head to take a sip of tea to hide his embarrassment.

The clan originally entrusted Xu Yicheng to investigate the theft of the tomb of Emperor Shushen. This case has been found out to be committed by Wang Shaoyi, and later Wang Shaoyi handed over the Ming weapon inside to Xu Yicheng as a deposit for underwriting Dongling. Strictly speaking, the commission has been completed.

However, the clan behaved very disgusting in the matter of the theft of Tanglin, and would only look for scapegoats everywhere, some people thought that Yufang was not strict in discipline, some people were afraid that the national government would take advantage of this matter to further weaken their power, and some even accused Xu Yicheng of leading Sun Dianying away, and should be held accountable together. As Hai Lanzhu said, they are afraid, very afraid, and can only keep blaming others in exchange for some sense of security.

Yu Fang invited Xu Yicheng to end this entrustment. He drank all the tea in his hand and said to Xu Yicheng: "If such a big thing happens, the clan is disappointed by Mr., and Mr. is worthy of the clan." Yu Fang talked about a certain amount of honorarium, hoping that Mr. would accept it with a smile. After saying that, the servant brought a plate containing a bracelet of sixteen jade beads. These jade beads are all the size of copper coins, tourmaline texture, pinched in the hand, you can feel the faint vapor of water.

This is probably also a treasure hidden in the palace, and Yu Fang took this out, which can be regarded as sincere. Xu Yicheng put down the tea bowl, took the bead string and put it in his arms, and said unceremoniously: "The rich husband is buried in Mashen Bridge, I drew a map of the specific location, and your clan remembers to send someone to move it away." I still have something to do, so I'll go first. ”

He has no good feelings for the clan now, time is precious, and he is not interested in talking more.

Yu Fang saw that Xu Yicheng was leaving, and hurriedly glanced at Hai Lanzhu. Hai Lanzhu put down the tea set and said I'll send you a city. Xu Yicheng was noncommittal, and walked outside, and Hai Lanzhu followed quickly.

As she walked, Hai Lanzhu looked at Xu Yicheng curiously, feeling that his temperament seemed to be a little different from the original. But I can't say what the difference is. He is like ancient porcelain, deeply constricting the edge and fire, and the whole person is full of deep and hidden light.

"Condolences and change." Xu Yicheng suddenly said softly.

Hai Lanzhu smiled bitterly: "My father can be regarded as a well-deserved death. He was very painful during his lifetime, on the one hand, he couldn't give up his loyalty, and on the other hand, he watched the clan continue to degenerate and corrupt, so he was trapped in Tanglin, which can be regarded as an escape. This time he died protecting the mausoleum, which is finally a relief. ”

Xu Yicheng didn't say anything anymore and walked forward in silence.

"Are there any whereabouts for those Japanese?" Hai Lanzhu changed the subject.

Xu Yicheng shook his head, his expression slightly regretful.

After Sakai Daisuke and Sister Koji Yongde left Tanglin with the Nine Dragons Sword, they disappeared completely. Yakurai once went to the Majestic Hotel to inquire and learned that the entire Shina terroir expedition group, including Professor Kido, had also left suddenly, and their whereabouts were unknown.

"Oh, if they bring the sword back to China, they won't be able to recover it." Hai Lanzhu said worriedly.

Xu Yicheng pursed his lips: "No, my intuition tells me that these people haven't left yet, at least not yet." They must have hidden some motive behind the Nine Dragons Sword when they took away the Nine Dragons. There must be something else to the death of Wei Li. ”

Hai Lanzhu silently put her hand on his shoulder, and Xu Yicheng's footsteps stopped suddenly.

"Yicheng, don't be too tired, don't blame yourself for all these things." Hai Lanzhu said softly. Xu Yicheng smiled at her, raised his arms, crossed his two thumbs, crossed his eight fingers, bowed three times, flipped the back of his hand, and bowed three more times. Hai Lanzhu was stunned for a moment and asked him what he meant. Xu Yicheng said solemnly: "This is to worship Gu, to make a promise, and to die without regrets." I've done this before the Vellispirit card, and I'll be sure to follow it to the end. Until I find the truth and catch the real murderer, I will be in front of his grave, with the gesture reversed, to repay the wish. ”

Hai Lanzhu stared at him, knowing that this person was too stubborn, so she stopped persuading him. She felt that the atmosphere was too heavy, and she wanted to say something lighter, her eyes flowed, and she smiled: "You are bad enough in a city, you actually linked Sun Dianying and Beiping to move the capital together, but I don't know what the people are scolding." You're fooling people, but it's really unambiguous. ”

Xu Yicheng smiled bitterly: "It's just a matter of making amends." ”

The two walked to the door of the teahouse, Hai Lanzhu stood in the threshold, holding the door frame with her hand, and said quietly: "The commission of the clan has been completed, are we not having a chance to meet?" Xu Yicheng looked at her face, and after a long time, Fang Fang considered four vague words: "Not really." As soon as she heard this, Hai Lanzhu suddenly burst into a bright smile: "Don't worry, although we ...... in Ping'an City" She lowered her head slightly and looked away, "We have done a happy event, but it is an expedient measure to paralyze the enemy, it can't be done really, we are still friends - hey, by the way, your wife is about to give birth, right?" I'll put a long-life lock on you children. ”

"Thank you."

Xu Yicheng didn't say much, he gave his hand, then raised his hand to call a rickshaw and left directly. Hai Lanzhu watched his figure disappear, stunned, and silently turned around and walked into the teahouse.

The rickshaw traveled halfway through the city and finally stopped at Nanluoguxiang. There is a Yuan'en Temple Hutong here, also called Grace Garden, which is a large mansion with a combination of Chinese and Western styles. At this time, the front of this alley was blocked by a barricade, a temporary sentry post was erected, and there were heavy soldiers with loaded guns inside and outside, and the guard was tight, within a radius of 100 meters, not to mention small vendors, even pedestrians were few.

This was Chiang Kai-shek's camp in Beijing, and now he has returned to Nanjing, but the security has not been reduced.

Xu Yicheng walked to the outpost and reported a name. The sentry made a phone call, searched carefully, and respectfully let him go. As soon as he entered the house in the garden of grace, he immediately greeted a person. This person was wearing a Northern Expedition uniform, his lips were thin and straight, and his two eyebrows were like thick ink across the two sides, slightly upturned, and he looked high-spirited.

"Haha, Yicheng, you're here?" He let out a hearty laugh, held Xu Yicheng's hand, and shook it vigorously. Xu Yicheng also smiled: "Brother Yunong, fortunately you are still in Beijing." ”

"Gong Jiang is busy with state affairs, and there is still unfinished business here in Beijing, so I will stay for a few more days and leave quickly."

This person's surname is Dai Mingli, the word is Yunong, and he was the liaison staff officer of the General Headquarters of the National Revolutionary Army at that time.

The two exchanged a few words, and Dai Li invited Xu Yicheng into the side room. It was dimly lit and devoid of decoration, save for a black hand-cranked telephone, a military map, and an overwhelming array of materials. After sitting down, Xu Yicheng took out the sixteen tourmaline bead bracelet from his arms and handed it to Dai Li: "The matter of Tanglin, thanks to the full support of Brother Yunong, this is a little gratitude." ”

Dai Li took the string of hands, and his eyebrows did not move: "I just said hello to friends in the press a few times, and you really see a city." ”

"Where, this is given to me by the clan, just borrowing flowers to offer Buddha." Xu Yicheng said with a smile.

Dai Li smiled and put the bracelet on the table next to him.

Xu Yicheng knew that the strength of this liaison staff officer was much more terrifying than this title. He was in charge of only an investigative and communications team, nicknamed the Group of Ten, but he could reach the heavens, and was Chiang Kai-shek's private intelligence agency, with a humble and powerful position. In this part of Beijing, people with a little status are afraid of the energy of this liaison staff officer. After Chiang Kai-shek left, he lived alone in Enyuan, and from this detail you can see Dai Li's status in the eyes of the supreme leader.

Dai Li followed Chiang Kai-shek to Beijing this time in order to build the eyes and ears of the local leaders. After Xu Yicheng left Union Hospital, he immediately went to visit him. The two have an old and hit it off. The previous series of actions against Sun Dianying were all planned by Xu Yicheng in the center, and Dai Li greeted the Jingshi Police Department and major newspapers, otherwise those people would not have cooperated so smoothly.

"Oh, by the way, the Wu Yuwen you introduced came to visit yesterday, Sun Dianying's case is considered to have been solved by him, and he came to me to ask for credit." Dai Lia stomped Erlang's legs at will, and his expression was relaxed.

"What do you think of this person?"

"It's a vicious dog." Dai Li was unceremonious, "But I'm very knowledgeable about current affairs." This time, he worked so hard to help you solve the case, and he came for me. I negotiated with him and was going to give him a position as a deputy in the Central Military Police Teaching Corps. ”

Xu Yicheng "tsk", the Central Military Police Teaching Corps, that is Chiang Kai-shek's descendant, Wu Yuwen is really lucky, he found a good position under the new master so quickly. Dai Li leaned forward and looked at Xu Yicheng with a smile: "Yicheng, you don't have to be envious." As long as you say a word, I can promise you a better position. Xu Yicheng hurriedly waved his hand: "Haven't we talked about this?" I was preoccupied with academics and was not interested in political matters. ”

Dai Li leaned back and said regretfully: "As soon as your few press releases were issued, you forced Sun Dianying to almost wipe his neck and hang himself. If this method can be used in a big way, it will be a blessing for the leader and the country. ”

At the mention of Sun Dianying, Xu Yicheng's spirits perked: "What do you say about this case now?" He put so much effort into the hope that the tomb robbers who robbed the Tanglin would be severely punished and set an example. Dai Li seemed to have guessed his intention, and unhurriedly took an official letter from the table and handed it to Xu Yicheng. Xu Yicheng opened it and took a look, and there was a warrant for the dragon flying and the phoenix dancing-

"Submit stationery and equipment, and the general belongs to it, and it will be strictly arrested, and it will be investigated, and there will be no leniency." Signed by Jiang Zhongzheng.

"Chairman Jiang personally ordered, you can rest assured in a city, right?" Dai Li also took a few official documents, such as the dispatch order of the Beiping District Court to send personnel to Tanglin to collect evidence, the telegram order of Zhang Yinwu, the commander of the garrison of Hebei Province, Shang Zhen, to send troops to protect Dongling and Xiling, and the wanted notice for tomb robbery in Zunhua County, etc., in short, from Chiang Kai-shek onwards, senior officials at all levels spoke layer by layer, with amazing momentum, and it was put on hold in ancient times, which was equivalent to a major case tried by six ministries.

Xu Yicheng read it again, and felt a lot more down-to-earth in his heart. It's just that he found that Sun Dianying's name was not mentioned in all the official documents, but was replaced by vague words such as "Zhifeng Coalition Army", "A certain unit of the Counter Army" and "Liukou".

Dai Li saw his doubts: "The government must act in accordance with the legal system. Before the court pronounces the verdict, it is naturally not appropriate to reveal the name first. After speaking, he put away the official document, "It just so happens that you are here, someone recently stored an antique in my place, and asked me to transfer it to Jiang Gong." I ask you, the expert, to come and palm your eyes first, in case it is a fake, it will save me from embarrassment. ”

Xu Yicheng is interested, and he doesn't know what kind of good things he can send to Chiang Kai-shek. Dai Li smiled and took out something from the cabinet next to him. As soon as he saw this thing, Xu Yicheng seemed to have been stung by a wasp, Huo Ran got up, his face was pale, and he was so surprised that he couldn't speak.

Dai Li's hand is a short sword, the sword body is slightly curved, the scabbard is a shark leather sleeve texture, inlaid with various colored gemstones, there are nine Ming gold lines, the temperament is noble, and the hope is awe-inspiring. Even in such an ordinary, dark room, it still seems so graceful and unhurried.

Emperor Qianlong's Nine Dragons Sword?!

Xu Yicheng was horrified in his heart, and he could barely hide it. Hasn't this sword already been taken by Daisuke Sakai? How did it get into Dai Li's hands again? Could it be that the people of the China Terroir Investigation Group have been caught by Dai Li?

"Who sent this to you?" Xu Yicheng asked loudly regardless of politeness. Dai Li didn't expect Xu Yicheng to react so much, and he was a little at a loss for a moment, and said for a while: "This is sent by Sun Dianying, saying that it is obtained from chasing Ma Futian and Wang Shaoyi's gang." Why don't you take a look? After saying that, he handed it over.

Xu Yicheng was now putting all his thoughts on the Nine Dragons Sword, and he didn't hear Dai Li's voice at all. He unceremoniously grabbed the sword, placed it horizontally in front of him, and slowly rubbed the palm of his right hand from the tip of the sword down to the end of the hilt, and then clenched it tightly.

The origin of all these tragedies, the end of all these mysteries, was finally held in his hands.

Xu Yicheng narrowed his eyes, carefully observing every detail of it, and his attitude was more serious than ever. The hilt and lattice of the Nine Dragons Sword are carved from a single piece of fine jade, and there are no traces of splicing, which shows that the original jade is amazingly large. Such a large piece of the best raw jade, only carved into such a little, the jade material is not more than one, it is really extravagant and amazing. In addition, on the outside of the hilt, there is also a layer of decorative purple gold Lima bronze strip. This purple gold Lima copper is the Qing Palace's secret collection of copper, gold, silver, tin, iron, lead, mercury, five-color glass, diamond smelting, the output is extremely rare, generally used to cast the Buddha statue. The fact that this sword can be decorated with purple gold lima bronze shows that it is highly valued.

Xu Yicheng was like a demon, slowly removing the scabbard, revealing the sword body. The body of the Nine Dragons Sword is three points thicker than that of ordinary swords, and it looks quite heavy. The color of the sword body is dull, slightly curved, and there are no blades on both sides, and it does not have the sharp killing aura of ordinary blades, but it exudes a graceful ritual smell. Both sides of the sword body are covered with dense gold patterns, and the lines are fine, as if it is some kind of incantation, I don't know if it comes from Tantra.

It is not difficult to make a wrong gold pattern on a metal sword. The difficulty is to make such a compact and delicate pattern. You must know that the wrong gold must first be cut out of the groove, you have to dig a groove on both sides of the metal surface, chisel out the bottom of the groove, and then inlay the gold wire into the hammer. The tantric patterns on the Nine Dragons Sword are only the thickness of a human hair, and they are all squeezed together in one place, leaving very few gaps. You think how hard it is to pick this groove and how difficult it is to set the silk. The craftsmanship of this craftsman is truly astonishing.

Therefore, Xu Yicheng only had to see this wrong gold pattern to know that this Nine Dragons Sword was by no means a fake, and it was genuine.

The image of the sword drawn on Chen Weili's half of the letterhead has been deeply imprinted in Xu Yicheng's mind, and now in retrospect, it is completely consistent with the shape of this real thing, the only difference is that the picture drawn on the letterhead is a double sword body that has been bent.

The more true this sword is, the more confused Xu Yicheng is. Liu Yiming could see clearly in Tangling, Sakai Daisuke took out the sword from Qianlong's tomb and took it away, but Sun Dianying did not force it to stay. Why did this sword later fall into Sun Dianying's hands and give it to Dai Li?

Is it possible that Sun Dianying repented halfway and wiped out this group of Japanese? It couldn't be, because Yaolai did an investigation, and they later returned to the Majestic Hotel, and only left after checking out. With Sun Dianying's ruthlessness, if he robs the terroir investigation group, he will never leave a living mouth.

One conjecture after another swirled in Xu Yicheng's mind, and one by one it was denied. Dai Li urged a few words, and Xu Yicheng woke up like a dream and returned to reality.

"Something wrong with this thing?" Dai Li asked worriedly.

Xu Yicheng held the sword tighter: "Yunong, I have a reluctant request. ”

"But it doesn't hurt to say it."

"Can you lend me this sword for a few days?"

Dai Li's face suddenly became very embarrassed. If it's his own things, it's easy to do, but the key is that it's transferred to Jiang Gong, and he doesn't want to keep it privately. Xu Yicheng said eagerly: "I don't want to take it privately, but this thing is of great significance to me, and I will borrow it for a few days and return it without any damage." ”

Dai Li hesitated, "I'm not worried about this. But I'll be back to Nanjing tomorrow, will you be in time? Xu Yicheng immediately said: "After I finish using it, I will send it to Nanjing in person, what do you think?" His eyes were eager and stubborn, and he seemed to vow not to give up until he achieved his goal. Dai Li is a stubborn person, but he can't stand Xu Yicheng's gaze. He paced back and forth in the room with his back hand for a few steps, and finally said helplessly: "Okay, Yicheng, let's get to know each other, I know your character." I'll do you a favor - but I don't just want this sword to go to Nanjing. ”

Xu Yicheng nodded without hesitation, Dai Li couldn't help frowning, and was so angry that he almost laughed: "I have invited you sincerely many times, but it is not as convincing as a sword?" ”

Dai Li saw that Xu Yicheng's whole person was in a state of excitement, and he had no intention of talking about it at all, so he got up happily to see off the guests. Before leaving, Dai Li told him that when your business is over, come to Enyuan to find a person named Ma Hansan, who is his deputy who stayed in Beiping, and he will arrange for you to go to Nanjing.

Xu Yicheng left the Garden with the Nine Dragons Sword, his steps were frivolous, and he walked on the street as if he was drunk. His brain was so excited, but he couldn't focus, only endless questions came him, and he couldn't cope with it, and he couldn't think about it. The pedestrians around watched this person holding a sword, swaying around, and they all carefully dodged away, for fear that it was a drunkard who committed murder.

Xu Yicheng didn't tell anyone for the time being, he needed to be alone now. So he unconsciously returned to the two-story building in Tsinghua Park. Li Ji was presiding over the excavation work in Yinxu in Anyang at this time, and there was only one old teacher left behind in the entire building, quietly. Xu Yicheng returned to his office, and the first thing he saw was Chen Weili's tablet.

Xu Yicheng wiped the dust off the tablet, and then put the Nine Dragons Sword horizontally in front of the card, and simply sat cross-legged opposite, staring at the Nine Dragons Sword stupidly, this look was a whole day. Xu Yicheng didn't eat or drink, he just stared at it, as if Chen Weili's dead soul would emerge and explain all this to him.

It's a pity that the spirit card is always a spirit card, the sword is always a sword, and both of them are dead things, so I can't tell Xu Yicheng the story behind it.

In the evening, the old teacher knocked on the door cautiously, and Xu Yicheng reluctantly turned his neck to look over. The old teacher pushed open the door and said Mr. Xu, if you don't eat or drink this day, I'll come over and have a look. Xu Yicheng stiffly showed a smile and said I'm fine. The old teacher said that I would get off work first, and after he left, he suddenly came back: "Oh, by the way, Mr. Xu, you haven't come back before, someone sent you a letter, and I put it on the table." ”

"Oh, who is it?" Xu Yicheng's mind was now filled with the Nine Dragons Sword, and he didn't pay attention to these trivial matters.

"It's a Japanese, it's a weird name, what a wood......

Xu Yicheng's eyes instantly detonated two sparks, and he struggled to get up from the ground, shaking his numb legs and throwing himself on the table, seeing a light blue envelope resting on top. There was a neat line of ink on the envelope: "Mr. Xu Yicheng respectfully".

The old teacher was frightened by Xu Yicheng's sudden movements, and stayed where he was and didn't dare to leave. Xu Yicheng asked him when he sent it, and left nothing to say. The old teacher thought about it for a long time and said that it was about the 10th of July, and the person who sent it didn't leave anything else.

Xu Yicheng thought for a while, this happened to be the time when Sun Dianying had evacuated from Donglin after stealing it, and he was still unconscious in Union Hospital at that time.

The old teacher left in a panic, Xu Yicheng quickly opened the envelope, and saw that inside was a short Chinese letter, not elegant but basically smooth, sure enough, it was written by Professor Yuzo Kido.

In the letter, Kido Yuzo first thanked Xu Yicheng for saving his life, and then said that he had finished his expedition in China and returned to Japan first, hoping that Xu Yicheng would have the opportunity to visit Japan and start a formal academic exchange on archaeology. He said that China's own scholars should be involved in China's history, that talents like Xu Jun should play a greater role, and that China and Japan should join hands to break the monopoly of Westerners on East Asian historical research.

The letters were short, mostly polite. It can be seen that Professor Yuzo Kido is really an honest person, and he has always thought that he was participating in an ordinary field trip, and he actually happily left a letter to Xu Yicheng, looking forward to continuing academic exchanges with him. Professor Kido seems to be completely unaware of the open and secret battles surrounding Tanglin, and it seems that the only people in the delegation who know about Tanglin are Sakai Daisuke and Sister Koji Eitoku.

There was no valuable information in this letter, but Xu Yicheng read it several times and still sensed some clues revealed between the lines.

Xu Yicheng had talked to Kido three times, his specialty was ancient metal smelting and weapons research, and he boasted that no one in the entire expedition team was more professional than him. So, is it possible that Sakai Daisuke specially invited Professor Kido to join the delegation just for this Nine Dragons Sword? This sword may be hiding some secrets that only a veteran expert like Professor Kido can decipher.

Professor Kido is an academic idiot who is indifferent to anything but academics. Such a person is very suitable for Sakai Daisuke, and he can ask Professor Kido to do a study of the Nine Dragons Sword without revealing any information.

The theft of Tanglin was in early July, and then Sakai Daisuke returned to Beijing with the Nine Dragons Sword. Professor Kido left a book for Xu Yicheng on the 10th, and then returned to China. It should be noted that in this letter, Kido has three words for "return to Japan first", in other words, the expedition should have been divided into two parts at this time, Kido completed the research work, there was no need to stay, but there was still a group of people who did not leave, and stayed in China for the time being—most likely Sakai and Sister Koji, who were really involved in the Kowloon Project. In other words, in the past few days, Professor Kido has done some "research" on the Nine Dragons Sword, and after his value is used, he will be sent back to Japan immediately. And Sakai Daisuke and the others didn't know for what purpose, they returned the Nine Dragons Sword to Sun Dianying, and then quietly left, nowhere to be found.

Xu Yicheng picked up the Nine Dragons Sword and put it close to his eyes, his mind running at high speed. It seems that he once again misunderstood Daisuke Sakai's attempt. Xu Yicheng began to guess that his purpose was to accompany the burial treasures of the Qianlong Tomb of Tangling, and then guessed that it was Qianlong's Nine Dragons Sword, which was all wrong.

Sakai Daisuke had no interest in the Nine Dragons Sword itself. What he really wanted was some kind of information attached to the Nine Dragons Sword. When this information arrived, the Nine Dragons Sword was worthless to him, so he would happily return it to Sun Dianying. Perhaps Sakai Daisuke agreed with Sun Dianying that he would dig up Qianlong's tomb and borrow the Nine Dragons Sword for three days. With such generous conditions, Sun Dianying naturally would not agree.

A wry smile appeared on the corner of Xu Yicheng's mouth, he had been tracking for so long, and he had only just approached the enemy's true intentions until now.

Good guys, the Japanese used a lot of tobacco and political power, and spent so much trouble just for a secret on the Nine Dragons Sword? How staggering the secret.

He has always been very wary of the Japanese. Sun Dianying is greedy, but that is only the behavior of the Chinese after all, but the Japanese are crazy about Chinese culture, and if they are greedy, it will be an uncontrollable national disaster.

The more astonishing the secret, the greater the damage.

Now the question is, is this secret still in the Nine Dragons Sword?

Xu Yicheng turned the sword over and turned it over, looked back and forth a few times, but found nothing suspicious. He studied the patterns on the sword, and he was at a loss. Although he has superb methods of appreciating the ancients, this matter has little to do with the palm eye. Now I don't even know what to look for, let alone how to find it.

Ever since he realized that Daisuke Sakai had another conspiracy, Xu Ilcheng fell into another kind of anxiety. It's already August, and somewhere in the unknown, Daisuke Sakai must be moving towards his goal. He's in Beijing — no, now we're going to talk about Peking — and one more day of delay, and Daisuke Sakai has a better chance of success.

Xu Yicheng took the sword and looked at it, and after watching it for most of the night, he still found nothing. His eyes hurt so much that he had to rest for a while and wait for tomorrow. He narrowed his eyes and fumbled to pick up the scabbard and put the dagger on it. His fingers ran over the skin on the surface of the scabbard, and he suddenly let out an "um", and his heart moved.

The scabbard is made of shark skin, and it is also inlaid with colorful gemstones and bright yellow dragon patterns, and the workmanship is extremely fine. Shark skin, also known as mackerel skin, has thick and tough skin, fine particles like rice grains on the surface, and clustered fish scales form their own texture, even if they are stained with blood, they do not slip on their hands. The Qing Dynasty was very fond of using shark skins to decorate weapons with fierce meanings. The scabbard skin of this Nine Dragons Sword is made of the South China Sea mullet, and the particles on the skin are coarse, called king grains or stars, and the fingers will feel numb and crispy to the touch.

Xu Yicheng touched his fingertips just now, and found that in the part of the scabbard, the numbness of the shark skin was slightly interrupted, as if it was disturbed by something. He hurriedly lit the lamp, looked carefully, and finally found that in an inconspicuous place, he found a few lines that did not fit the texture of the fish skin. Because shark skin is very dark in color, the texture is hidden, and it is impossible to detect it without looking closely.

Xu Yicheng still uses the old method of rubbing, using ink to apply to shark skin, and then rubbing it onto paper. After the color is reversed to white, all the originally hidden line segments emerge. Xu Yicheng saw that between the semi-elliptical fish skin textures, a pattern appeared. The pattern is ingenious, and most of it makes use of the texture's own line segments, with only a few strokes added at key points.

This pattern Xu Yicheng has seen, four cirrus clouds gathered in one place, and there is an extra round of sun in the clouds.

This is no different from the small cowhide seal of the seabed needle, it is the Ouyang family's Sihe Ruyi Broken Cloud Pattern, and it will never be wrong.

This discovery greatly surprised Xu Yicheng. The undersea needle was made by a skilled craftsman of the Ouyang family for the five veins, which happened during the Qianlong period, and it coincided with the time when Qianlong ordered the casting of the Nine Dragons Sword. It seems that he not only made a submarine needle, but was also recruited by Qianlong to forge a sword.

Every craftsman has his own pride. Whether it's porcelain or bronze, they try to leave their name on it. This Ouyang craftsman is an unborn genius, and this pride should be even stronger. He created a seabed needle for the five veins, and did not forget to leave his own four-way wishful cloud-breaking pattern on the cowhide. When forging the Nine Dragons Sword for Qianlong, Craftsman Ouyang must have also wanted to leave his name on this sword.

However, this is a royal specialty, a weapon that Qianlong intends to use in the underworld, and every detail and style has a special meaning. Qianlong would never allow a craftsman to leave his name on it. This Ouyang craftsman was too bold, and he actually came up with the idea of using the texture of shark skin to secretly leave a Sihe Ruyi Broken Cloud Pattern on the Nine Dragons Sword.

Xu Yicheng looked at this mark and sighed at the courage and exquisite skills of Ouyang Craftsman.

But this discovery only excited Xu Yicheng for a short while.

It's an interesting coincidence that the Needle and the Sword of the Nine Dragons are from the same person, but so what? This has nothing to do with Daisuke Sakai's plan at all.

He was so tired that he put down the Nine Dragons Sword and fell to the floor, where he fell asleep in an instant.

When the morning light shone again, Xu Yicheng's body moved, he stayed for a long time, suddenly got up, grabbed the Nine Dragons Sword thrown on the ground, he looked red eyes, his hair was scattered, and he had completely lost his previous chic bearing.

Suddenly, a smell of porridge rushed into his nostrils, Xu Yicheng raised his head suspiciously, and found that there was an extra person in the office, who was looking at him with concern.

The person who came was Hai Lanzhu, who was carrying a lacquered snack box with a steaming bowl of red dates and white rice porridge, a plate of pea yellow, a few pickles and two fried dough sticks.

"Why are you here?" Xu Yicheng asked weakly. Hai Lanzhu put out all the things in the food box one by one, and said with a complaint as she put it away: "I see that you are a little uneasy when you leave the teahouse. After asking several people, I learned that you had returned to Tsinghua University. I'll come over and bring you something to eat by the way, you're definitely not going to make it yourself...... Ay? This one...... Could it be the Nine Dragons Sword? ”

Hai Lanzhu's eyes widened, and he leaned over to look at this legendary treasure, but Xu Yicheng held it. Hai Lanzhu raised her face and said angrily: "What are you doing? Are you afraid that I will tell Yufang and them to get this thing back? Xu Yicheng sighed, Hai Lanzhu's lips trembled: "I didn't expect that in your heart, I am just such a person!" She put the bowl down and turned to leave.

Xu Yicheng hurriedly grabbed her wrist: "I'm just thinking about things, I'm really sorry." Hai Lanzhu was so angry that there were tears in the corners of her eyes, and she said in a low voice: "When I was in Ping'an City, you didn't treat me like this......"

Halfway through speaking, Hai Lanzhu suddenly noticed that Xu Yicheng's expression was a little strange. His eyes were straight, not looking at himself, but muttering something in his mouth. Hai Lanzhu was a little scared: "Yicheng, what's wrong with you?" A city? Xu Yicheng suddenly stretched out his arms and grabbed Hai Lanzhu's shoulders tightly, and the tips of their noses were almost together. Hai Lanzhu's breathing became rapid, and her heart was about to explode out of her chest.

"Peace in the city! The shopkeeper who protects you! Ouyang shopkeeper! Xu Yicheng shouted out a different name.

Hai Lanzhu was stunned, not understanding why he suddenly mentioned this matter.

"Isn't he the descendant of the Ouyang family?" Xu Yicheng shouted excitedly. How could he ignore such an important matter! When they went to Ping'an City for the first time, Xu Yicheng showed the undersea needle in the Yin Division, and was recognized by Ouyang's shopkeeper as having the ancestor's Sihe Ruyi breaking cloud pattern on it, in order to repay the favor, Ouyang Shopkeeper promised to protect Hailanzhu's safety in Ping'an City. Thanks to his help, Hai Lanzhu saved a lot of trouble during her detention.

During the Qianlong period, the Ouyang craftsman was a genius, and his lineage has been passed down to this day, can he still have this craft? Can you tell the mystery of the Nine Dragons Sword?

Xu Yicheng didn't know, but he could only gamble - no, not even a gamble, this was the only option.

Thinking of this, Xu Yicheng suddenly didn't care about explaining to Hai Lanzhu, he took two mouthfuls of porridge indiscriminately, took his sword and hurriedly left Tsinghua. Hai Lanzhu was inexplicable, and she was afraid that something would happen to him, so she had to follow closely.

Xu Yicheng went to the Jingshi Police Department, and soon got the whereabouts of Ouyang's shopkeeper from there.

After Ping'an City was attacked by Sun Dianying, Ma Futian was killed in battle, Wang Shaoyi fled in a hurry, and the others were either killed or captured. Ouyang, as an important confidant of Wang Shaoyi, was also captured. Sun Dianying kept an eye on it, and did not execute them on the spot, but escorted these prisoners directly to the Jingshi Police Department, claiming a great victory in suppressing bandits.

Coincidentally, the fake antique dealer who was killed by Wang Shaoyi in the inn was a fine work of the Jin army, and it had something to do with Yan Xishan. Wang Shaoyi absconded, so this account was counted on Ouyang's shopkeeper. Coupled with the several old cases committed by Ma, Wang and others in Zhili before, this time they are all settled.

Now that Ouyang's shopkeeper has committed several crimes, the court has approved the document and allowed him to be shot. When Xu Yicheng learned the news, Ouyang's shopkeeper was already on his way to the execution ground.

Xu Yicheng was shocked when he heard this, and hurriedly went to find Wu Yuwen. Wu Yuwen found the right new master, it was when the spring breeze was proud, Xu Yicheng had the grace of recommendation, so he naturally didn't dare to slack off. However, he said that Ouyang's shopkeeper's case was too big, and how many bitter masters were waiting, and it was probably impossible to suspend the execution, and at most they were allowed to meet alone before the execution.

"Fortunately, after listening to Mr. Xu's words, Wu has today." Wu Yuwen picked up a tube of pens, issued a warrant, and handed it to him.

Xu Yicheng didn't have the heart to greet him, so he was about to leave as soon as he pulled the warrant. Wu Yuwen narrowed his eyes and looked at the wall next to him, but said something irrelevant: "In Ouyang's case, our Police Department is preparing a pennant, and we thank Commander Sun for his meritorious work in suppressing bandits and helping us solve the old case." As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Yicheng had already left in a hurry. Wu Yuwen shrugged his shoulders and said to himself, "I reminded you." He curled his wrist and hid a dazzling string of pearls back into his sleeve.