Chapter Ninety-Three: The Shwedagon Pagoda
Mo Yan returned to the Yegu Inn, his heart was very heavy, the Holy Infant of the Yin Gate, this Yu'er with the face of a little girl, was such a bloody and cruel demon. The red-haired foreigner pregnant woman was also an innocent person, and she was actually sucked alive by those babies, even the fetus in her womb.
Mo Mo secretly made up his mind that if he had the chance, he would definitely kill this little devil.
"Dongdong, we're going to Burma. Mo Yan told the little mountain ghost.
The two packed their bags, settled the bill, walked out of the Yaku Inn, hired a carriage, left the ancient city of Ayutthaya and headed west, crossing the Chao Phraya River via Suphan Buri, and arriving at the Sam Pagoda Pass on the border between Siam and Burma in a few days.
Relations between the two countries have been tense because of the war 20 years ago, and the soldiers on both sides of the pass are so strict that they cannot get by without warrants issued by both countries.
Mo Yan sent the hired carriage away, and then climbed towards Birao Mountain with the little mountain ghost, preparing to bypass the checkpoint from the inaccessible high mountain forest to Burma.
Dongdong was very happy to see the mountains and forests, and ran in front of them for more than a day, and in the evening they finally bypassed the border checkpoint and came to Yecheng in Burma, which was still six or seven hundred miles away from the city of Daguang they were going to.
During the Yuan Dynasty, the "Burma Central Province" was set up to administer the northeastern region of Burma, and the king of the Gongbang Dynasty, Meng Yun, accepted the imperial title of the Qing court again in the 34th year of Qianlong, and became a vassal state of the Qing Dynasty. They were both respectful and fearful of the powerful suzerainty of the north, so the Chinese and the Qing merchants who came to Burma were treated with special respect.
On the way from Yecheng to Daguang City, Mo Yan and Xiaoshan Ghost were dressed in the clothes of the Qing Dynasty and the long braids on the back of his head, which was very convenient for eating or staying in the hotel, and no one checked him, on the contrary, if the Siamese were in Burma, it would be very troublesome.
Located on the banks of the Irrawaddy River, the capital of the country, Daguang City is surrounded by water on three sides, full of flowers, green trees and pagodas, and the scenery is very beautiful.
When the two came to the city, they first found an inn to live in, Mo Yan let the little mountain ghost stay in the room, and walked to the Shwedagon Pagoda alone.
Legend has it that the Shwedagon Pagoda was built 2,500 years ago, with a height of more than 30 zhang, and from a distance, it is shining with golden light against the blue sky, as if you are in the kingdom of heaven, which makes people awe-inspiring.
Niang said that the crown of Ayutthaya was treasured in this tower, but where would such a big golden pagoda be hidden? Mo Yan wanted to know more about the background, so he came to a shop in front of the tower that made and sold gold and silver jewelry, and the shopkeeper saw that it was a customer from the Qing Dynasty, and introduced the goods in the store very enthusiastically.
"Is this a crown?" Mo asked, pointing to a beautifully decorated crown on top of the cabinet.
"The guest officer really has an eye, this is a replica of the Ayutthaya crown, the gold and silver inlaid on it are all genuine, of course, the price is not expensive, but it is definitely worth the money. The shopkeeper boasted.
"Ayutthaya Crown, what is that?" Mo Yan pretended not to understand.
"Yo, its origin is great, it is the crown of the 33rd generation of kings of the Ayutthaya Dynasty of Siam, and the spoils captured by the Burmese army in the capture of Ayutthaya 20 years ago are now enshrined in the Shwedagon Pagoda, which is a symbol of victory. ”
"How much?"
"Converted into the currency of the Great Qing Kingdom, it is about eight hundred taels of silver. ”
"How do I know if it's similar to the real Ayutthaya crown, if it looks exactly like it, I can consider buying it. Mo Yan said.
The shopkeeper is a Burmese man in his fifties, who is experienced in observing words and feelings, and at a glance he knows that this person does not look ordinary clothes, but he is a rich man in tone.
"Don't worry, I won't tell you, I'm the only one in the entire city of light who has a replica of the Ayutthaya crown to sell, you see," the shopkeeper stepped on a stool and took off the crown, explaining, "I have inlaid the gold leaf little by little, and the ruby sapphire is the same size and color as the real crown, but it is carefully made of glass." Also, such a large bead is difficult to find in the world, so it has to be replaced by a glass ball, but you can rest assured, ordinary people will never be able to distinguish it from the appearance alone. ”
Mo Yan took out a silver ticket of one thousand taels from his bosom and asked, "Is the silver ticket of the Great Qing Kingdom good to use here?"
"It works, of course it works. The shopkeeper's eyes lit up and he said busily.
"But I haven't seen the real crown, and I'm still not sure if it's a replica. Mo Yan hesitated and stuffed the silver ticket back into his arms.
The shopkeeper was so anxious that he scratched his ears and cheeks, and he couldn't catch the deal he had, so he thought for a long time and finally made up his mind and said: "Guest officer, if you see that the real crown is exactly the same as it, can you definitely buy it?"
"Of course, as long as the two look roughly the same, I can buy it right away. ”
"Ten years ago, the Ayutthaya Crown was placed in the Shwedagon Pagoda for people to see, but later it was collected and no longer exhibited for safety. It was at that time that I drew a little bit of pen and paper and copied it. Now if you want to see the real crown, I'm afraid the guest officer will have to spend some money. ”
"No problem, as long as you can see the real Ayutthaya crown, is a hundred taels of silver enough?"
"Of course that's enough," the shopkeeper secretly rejoiced in his heart, this rich man from the Great Qing Kingdom, if he doesn't kill you, he won't have this good luck in the future, "Guest officer, the twelve warrior monks who guard the crown of the Shwedagon Pagoda, known as the 'Twelve Heads Tuo', are all top masters of martial arts in Myanmar, and one of them is my distant cousin, I will go to him first to discuss it and see if I can make an exception for you to take a sneak look." ”
"It's so good, when?" Mo was secretly happy in his heart.
"After the end of the night, you will come to my store to listen to the letter, if you do, it will be tonight. ”
"Okay, that's a deal. Mo Yan walked out of the store, and on the way, he kept thinking about how to snatch the crown at night.
Back at the inn, Mo Yan told the little mountain ghost to take action tonight, he would go into the Shwedagon Pagoda to snatch the crown of Ayuthaya, let the cave answer outside, and the two would sit and wait for the sun to set after dinner early.
Finally, the sky gradually darkened, and the two of them left the inn until they came to the Irrawaddy River, where the Shwedagon Pagoda was close at hand.
Mo Yan walked into the shop, and the owner was already waiting for him.
"Guest, you should be blessed, tonight happens to be my cousin's night, and it has been arranged, and in the first half of the night, we will enter the Shwedagon Pagoda, and Maung Xun will be waiting there. ”
"Good. Mo Yan sat in the store, and the owner closed to chat with him.
"Shopkeeper, did you hear you say that the bead in Ayutthaya's crown is very special?"
"Of course, such a large bead is rare in the world, and there is really no substitute for it. The shopkeeper said regretfully.
"What kind of bead is that?"
"I've been in the gold and silver jewelry business for decades, but I still can't tell whether there is water ripple and color in the pearl bar, and whether the night pearl bar doesn't shine, strange, I really have never seen it. ”
It seems that Niang Shu is right, it may be something from the spirit world.
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