Chapter 451

The visitor carefully examined the papers on the desk.

Beneath the layer of paper Su Qiao had taken away to copy, there was another sheet, one stained through with quite a bit of ink, lying on top.

The visitor studied this sheet carefully.

After a moment's hesitation, he still carefully picked up this sheet of paper and tucked it into his bosom.

Then, taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, he quietly left the study.

……

Su Qiao was at this moment entirely unaware of what had happened in the study.

He had found Liu Rushi and was now with her, studying the copied sacrificial text together.

Just as he had guessed.

Liu Rushi was extremely interested in this thing, especially upon learning that the sacrificial text contained a hidden secret.

She was practically as if she had found a new pleasure, nearly becoming obsessed.

Holding the sacrificial text, she kept muttering to herself.

Which likewise dragged Su Qiao into having to study it together with her.

At the beginning, Su Qiao thought it would be something like an acrostic or telestich poem.

But he found he had still underestimated the wisdom of the ancients.

How could an unlock code be that simple?!

Afterwards Su Qiao and Liu Rushi tried using transliteration—seeing if the sounds matched even though the content differed.

The result was still complete nonsense.

Then Su Qiao decided to set this aside for now and first study the location of the Buddhist temple.

Liu Rushi agreed.

Su Qiao had Ma Kui go find a map of Yangzhou.

In the room, Su Qiao said to Liu Rushi: "During the Sui dynasty, Emperor Yang of Sui, in order to win over Jiangnan, had numerous Daoist temples and Buddhist temples built lavishly throughout the Jiangnan region. This matter shouldn't be a secret, it can be looked up, right?"

Liu Rushi nodded and said: "This matter this concubine has read about; it was done to pacify the people of Jiangnan."

"That's right. The Qiling Temple in Yangzhou, which enjoys a great reputation, was renovated and built under the decree of Emperor Yang of Sui! Moreover, when Emperor Yang of Sui went south to Jiangnan for the second time, he already had the idea of finding himself a way out!"

Su Qiao explained to Liu Rushi.

"This concubine has heard that on Shugang, not far from Qiling Temple in the outskirts of Yangzhou, Yang Guang visited several times. It seems there was an enlightened sage there who was very efficacious!"

Liu Rushi had lived in the Suzhou-Yangzhou area, so she was fairly familiar with some of the legends or rumors from there.

"This Qiling Temple is right within Shugang!"

Su Qiao pointed at the location marked on the map and said..........

Although the current map was admittedly rather sketch-like.

There were also supplementary materials—generally fragments dictated by scouts or the like, describing terrain.

When Ma Kui went looking for the Yangzhou map for Su Qiao, these things naturally came along as well.

"I've heard the location of Shugang is rather peculiar; building a temple there struck quite a few people as strange."

Liu Rushi said, a strange look in her eyes.

Su Qiao was taken aback upon hearing this, then curiously pressed: "How so?"

"Of course, this is also something this concubine heard from others' analysis. They say that in the eyes of military strategists, Shugang is a typical position—easy to defend, hard to attack! Occupying Shugang is equivalent to splitting Suzhou and Yangzhou, and here rivers converge, even able to flow into the sea—one could say it's very well connected!"

As she spoke, she used paper and pen to sketch a simple map of Shugang for Su Qiao.

The more Su Qiao looked, the more certain he became that this was where Emperor Yang of Sui had buried his treasure!

But what was the deal with this sacrificial text?

Did opening the treasure require a specific mechanism?

While Su Qiao was puzzling over it.

He didn't know whether Liu Rushi had somehow achieved a sudden breakthrough in her martial arts cultivation!

She suddenly cried out in delighted surprise: "Husband! I know, this concubine understands!"

"Mm, understand what?"

Su Qiao was a bit bewildered by her excited state.

It was really that Liu Rushi had always been extremely 0.3 dignified in front of Su Qiao.

When had she ever been like a little child, hopping and jumping about?

It practically blinded Su Qiao's eyes!

Liu Rushi seemed to notice Su Qiao's strange gaze, and shyly hurried to cover her pretty face with her sleeve.

"Aiya, how embarrassing!"

Ying ying ying……

Su Qiao's mouth twitched.

One punch, one 'ying ying' monster!

But comfort was still needed; now was the time to change the subject.

"It's nothing, we're an old married couple by now. Rushi, hurry and tell me what you discovered that's got you so excited?"

Prompted by Su Qiao, Liu Rushi came back to her senses and hurriedly said: "Husband, I've discovered the secret of the sacrificial text. This concubine will now unveil it for you to see!"

"Good!"

"Mm?! You've cracked it?"

Su Qiao hadn't reacted at first.

When he came back to his senses, he was truly delighted.

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