Chapter 315: Cultural Relics Can Speak

Just dug up from Qing Xiling?

A plain and simple sentence, like a thunderclap on flat ground, shook Ma Shan's heart and soul, his brain booming with noise.

His complexion changed abruptly, his eyes like two deep wells, his neck straining forward, his gaze piercing Lin Sicheng's face like an arrow.

He knew this was a Xinjiang Red Coin, and he knew this was a Yarkand coin, but he did not know that this was tribute money minted by melting down the enemy's cannons after Zhaohui pacified the Dzungar.

The problem was, this coin was indeed dug out from Qing Xiling, and it had been dug up only recently.

But how did this kid know, and even know it was Xiling?

A lucky guess?

Amidst his shock and suspicion, Ma Shan bit the tip of his tongue, struggling to calm down: "I open my doors to do business; if there is goods, I collect, if there is money, I earn. It's just a Qianlong Tongbao, who cares if it's a red coin or a green coin, or if it's from the Eastern Tombs or Western Tombs?"

"Is that so?" Lin Sicheng slowly turned the copper coin, "Then what about the absolute rarities, the Yellow Dragon?"

"It was just a missed treasure, I was just angry in my heart, so I deliberately exaggerated!" Ma Shan leaned back: "A whole box of copper coins mixed together, every single one shiny and bright, who could manage to look closely, and who could remember clearly?"

Isn't this bullshit?

Who in the antique business doesn't examine and verify the items in their hands over and over again?

Lin Sicheng sighed: "Where it was collected from, Ma Jianzuo should at least be able to remember that, right?"

"Yuanliang is the top expert, and he does the needle-point work, so he surely understands the principles better than I do!" Ma Shan laughed, "In this line of work, who asks about the origin of things and people?"

You don't need to ask about things that come from the shadows, but this is pure, raw, unearthered Raw Pit Goods, worth tens of millions; how could one not ask clearly?

To put it in layman's terms: if it isn't Raw Pit Goods, who dares to guarantee its authenticity, and who dares to accept it?

It was even nine-to-one likely that Ma Shan was the one who hired people to open the well and dig the pit.

But this man was a rogue, an old slicker, and a scoundrel; conventional methods were useless against him.

Lin Sicheng didn't speak again, playing with the copper coin nonchalantly.

The atmosphere turned stagnant, eerily quiet.

Yan Wenjing seemed to wake from a dream, exchanged a glance with the Clerk, and a glimmer of excitement flashed in their pupils.

They had been interrogating him for a week; they had used almost every method they could think of, whether usable or not.

But Ma Shan either bit his tongue and refused to speak, or made wild accusations, clearly displaying the attitude of "If you push me too hard, I'll bite back, at worst you can take my life."

He had only confessed to a few trivial matters, such as selling fakes as genuine or selling low-priced items as high-priced ones. The most serious charge was actually his instigation of Ma Long to kidnap and injure Lin Sicheng.

By comparison, his crimes were even lighter than those of Ma Long and Jiu Gui.

But Yan Wenjing knew that Ma Shan's affairs were not that small: one couldn't be this arrogant and this tough without having a few lives on their hands and having been in prison three or five times. It was even less likely that he would be so knowledgeable about police methods and the inner workings of the system.

Therefore, he was not just difficult to interrogate; even after a week, Yan Wenjing hadn't found a single useful clue: what crimes Ma Shan had committed before, which places had processed him, how many times he had been inside, and so on.

His resume was unimaginably clean: an orphan, no father or mother, no direct relatives. He had been out wandering society since he was ten or so, and had worked in every trade.

He arrived in Beijing ten years ago, started by carrying goods for people in Panjiayuan, then became an Apprentice, then worked behind the counter, and later set up stalls and opened shops. After closing his shop, he started working as a middleman, specializing in flipping goods.

According to his story, Guyi Zhai—the box of copper coins that the woman intercepted—was something he had flipped. He had only put it in the shop for consignment, but the clerk was negligent, and it was swindled away by that woman...

Yan Wenjing knew very well that there wasn't a word of truth in Ma Shan's mouth; these resumes were all forged. And it was very likely, just as Lin Sicheng guessed: Ma Shan was someone's glove, and before he became a Jianzuo, he had already scrubbed his identity clean.

It was even possible that the name Ma Shan was fake.

Yan Wenjing also believed that he would eventually dig out Ma Shan's background, but the problem was, it required time.

By the time they found out, the opportunity would have long passed.

Therefore, Yan Wenjing's pressure was immense; he was exhausted day and night, and his hair was falling out in clumps.

But just as he was at his wit's end, with no strategy left, Lin Sicheng descended from the heavens.

Counting from the night he was brought in, today was the ninth day, and this was the first time he had seen Ma Shan's emotions fluctuate so violently.

Having worked in investigation for nearly ten years, Yan Wenjing knew exactly what this meant: Lin Sicheng had guessed correctly.

This copper coin was indeed dug from the Qing tombs, and it had been dug up only recently. It was even very likely that Ma Shan had hired people to dig it.

As the saying goes, pull the gourd and the vine comes with it; once this one case was verified, a whole string of things could be pulled out later. Yan Wenjing did not believe that since he had opened the well and entered the pit, he had only robbed it this once?

Don't joke around: this was an Imperial Tomb...

His spirit lifted, and the decadence of the past few days was swept away.

The Clerk kept signaling with his eyes, but Yan Wenjing shook his head: Lin Sicheng dared to come here, so he must have made full preparations; he couldn't have just bluffed with this one sentence.

Let Lin Sicheng ask first; it wouldn't be too late to interrogate and investigate after he finished asking...

Separated by a wall, eight large screens covered three walls. Ma Shan's head, front, back, and sides were all captured clearly.

Staring at the one in the very center, several Experts looked at each other.

They were all interrogation Experts specially invited from the Municipal Bureau; micro-expressions and body language were just their basic skills.

But they couldn't help it when they encountered a rogue; if I can hold out, I will, and if I can't, I'll just rot; anyway, I won't admit to anything asked.

The arrogant fear the reckless, and the reckless fear those who don't value their lives. No matter how impressive the Expert, they could only stare when meeting a scoundrel. If he was willing to throw his life away, no matter how brilliant the technique, it was useless against him.

Suddenly, the General Team invited an expert who understood Cultural Relics; within three minutes of entering, he made the psychological defenses of this rogue loosen.

And it happened twice.

Once was when he first sat down, when Lin Sicheng introduced himself. The second time was when Lin Sicheng took out that copper coin and said it was just dug out from Qing Xiling.

Since he was an Expert, he was certainly more professional than Yan Wenjing: the copper coin held by this impossibly young expert, and the mention of Qing Xiling, were very likely the breakthrough point.

Suddenly, several Experts turned their heads in unison to look at the General Team and Branch leaders.

But the two leaders were unmoved, glancing at Ma Shan on the screen, then at Lin Sicheng sitting opposite him, and then turning back to glance at Wang Qi Zhi, who was sitting steadily.

Before Lin Sicheng came, they hadn't failed to guess: was this kid holding a grudge and wanting to take revenge on this Ma Shan?

Young people, after all, are hot-blooded; they don't let a grudge last overnight, so it wasn't strange to have such thoughts.

Yan Wenjing reported to the Branch, the Branch reported to the General Team, and the General Team reported to the Municipal Bureau. The leaders' intention was that it was fine to meet, because the case had such high attention, and if they could appease the involved party, it was best to do so.

Of course, they couldn't let Lin Sicheng run wild, and they were afraid that Yan Wenjing would get hot-headed and open a Backdoor, so not only did the Branch Captain come, but a Deputy Team Leader also came.

To ensure the mission had a legitimate basis, they even made special arrangements to appoint Lin Sicheng and Wang Qi Zhi as Consultants.

But no one expected that when Lin Sicheng arrived, he would actually come to "consult"?

He was unusually calm: upon seeing Ma Shan, it was as if he were meeting an old friend, his face wearing a smile, his tone gentle, chatting and laughing pleasantly.

Let alone hatred, one couldn't even find a trace of resentment. Who could tell that he was facing the enemy who had hacked him with a flurry of blades and nearly taken his life?

He was also unusually knowledgeable: he spoke the jargon with ease, and his hand signals were dazzling to behold. The Branch Captain had spent half a lifetime on cultural relic cases and had encountered countless underworld figures, yet he could only understand half of what was said.

And he was even more unusually professional: the layman watches the show, the expert watches the technique. The so-called "beating the grass to startle the snake" or "knocking on the mountain to shake the tiger"—whether it was his self-introduction upon entering or the chat about that copper coin, it was clearly all meticulously designed by Lin Sicheng.

Without professional interrogation training, how could he do this?

The two leaders exchanged a glance: had they found a treasure?

They exchanged another look, and the Branch Captain grabbed the walkie-talkie: "Yan Wenjing, do not interfere with Teacher Lin!"

Yan Wenjing did not speak, merely tapping the microphone lightly.

Silence remained, and the quiet atmosphere continued to spread.

Yan Wenjing and the Clerk remained motionless, just staring at Ma Shan.

Ma Shan kept his head lowered, likewise motionless.

Only Lin Sicheng, turning it suddenly and then flicking it, played with that copper coin over and over.

After another few minutes, he stopped abruptly and looked up: "Ma Jianzuo must be thinking, 'This kid barely has hair on his lip, yet he dares to talk about Cai Ziyuan and needle-point work?'"

"You must also be thinking, 'How can I be so sure that this is Raw Pit Goods newly unearthed from an imperial mausoleum? And furthermore, that it is from the Qing Xiling, rather than the Qing Dongling?'"

Ma Shan paused, glanced at him, and lowered his head again.

Lin Sicheng continued: "Zhaohui only minted 10,800 of these Yarkand Tribute Coins. On the night they were sent into the palace, Empress Xiaoyichun (Concubine Wei Jia Shi, biological mother of Emperor Jiaqing) gave birth to her fourteenth son, Yong Lu (Jiaqing's elder brother)."

"Qianlong viewed it as an auspicious sign and ordered the Imperial Household Department to hang all the tribute coins on Palace Lanterns, suspended outside the Yangxin Hall (Qianlong's main bedchamber) and the main hall of the Yongshou Palace (the bedchamber of Concubine Wei Jia Shi when she was a consort)."

"A few months later, the thirteenth son, Yong Jing, died prematurely, and a portion was buried with him. Three years later, the fourteenth son, Yong Lu, died prematurely, and another portion was buried. Thereafter, intermittently, until the Daoguang period, these copper coins were basically all used as burial goods for princes and concubines."

"There are some in the Dongling, some in the Xiling, and even more in the Qianlong Prince Mausoleum (Chaoyang District Cao Bali Tun Garden), but why am I so certain this one came from the Xiling? Because, Cultural Relics can speak!"

Lin Sicheng flicked it again; with a "Clang," the copper coin began to spin on the table.

"Although both are in Hebei, the environments of the two imperial mausoleums are worlds apart: the Dongling is in Zunhua, the parent material layer is weathered limestone from the Yanshan range, the surface appearance is leached brown soil, containing Calcite debris deposited by rainwater washing the mountain, feeling slippery like incense ash to the touch, with white alkaline veins appearing after rain..."

"The Xiling is in Baoding Yixian, the parent material layer is alluvial gravel rock from the Taihang Mountain, the surface appearance is humus-rich brown soil, and the water structure is fissure water, embedded with Quartz particles, feeling prickly and angular when gripped, cracking into a web when dry, weakly acidic..."

"The water quality of the Dongling is plain pore water, high-calcium hard water, weakly alkaline... and the key to the difference between the two lies in the soil and water quality..."

Seeing Ma Shan's blank expression, Lin Sicheng paused: "Don't understand?"

How could he understand a damn thing? Which Grave-robbing thief does Artifact Research on this?

Let alone him not understanding, even Yan Wenjing nearby and the Branch Captain next door were listening in a fog.

"Fine, then I'll put it simply: if it were in the Xiling, it would be a weakly acidic environment, and the surface of the copper coin would develop loose green basic copper chloride, or even toxic copper acetate. Most of the copper coins would be so corroded that the characters wouldn't even be visible..."

"But if it were the weakly alkaline environment of the Dongling, the surface of the copper coin would mostly develop a stable thin layer of cuprous oxide. Just like the copper coins unearthed in the tomb passage of Qianlong's Yuling, buried for hundreds of years, they still show a red luster..."

Ma Shan looked bewildered, half-believing and half-doubting.

Including Yan Wenjing, and the Branch Captain next door.

They didn't really understand what weak alkalinity, weak acidity, copper chloride, or cuprous oxide were. But at least they knew: among the Qing dynasty Grave-robbing cases solved in both places, the proportion of copper coins unearthed from the Baoding Xiling was much lower than those from the Zunhua Dongling.

And the quality was generally worse.

But to say that one could determine Dongling or Xiling based solely on this, Ma Shan still felt it was somewhat unlikely.

Yan Wenjing also felt it wasn't very convincing; the main thing was that he discovered Lin Sicheng was contradicting himself: the Dongling is a weakly alkaline environment, good for preservation, while the Xiling is a weakly acidic environment, difficult for preservation. If that were the case, this copper coin should have come from the Dongling, not the Xiling.

Did Lin Sicheng get it backward, or was it intentional?

Ma Shan also reacted, his eyes flickering, shifting uncertainly.

"Do you think I'm talking nonsense, completely off the mark? Because nothing is absolute!"

Lin Sicheng smiled, "Although the Xiling is in the acidic rock area of the Taihang Mountain, Daoguang's Mu Mausoleum happens to be situated on a hidden limestone fault, where dissolution reactions release calcium carbonate, causing the soil and groundwater to become alkaline..."

"What's more coincidental is that national power was waning during the Daoguang period, and to save costs, Daoguang's Mu Mausoleum used only a small amount of stone bricks, with most of it being Sanhe Soil. Among it, lime accounted for over forty percent, which is equivalent to adding alkali to alkali..."

"Consequently, although the Mu Mausoleum is in the west, its pH value is even lower than that of the Dongling, and coupled with the fact that it hadn't been robbed before, the tomb chamber was unventilated, the environment was stable, and the temperature was moderate, creating conditions for the copper coin to generate cuprous oxide even better than in the Dongling. Just like this one, with a date-red base and metallic luster, it looks even more like new than a new one..."

"Of course, you probably don't have the technology to rob the Mu Mausoleum yet, and I estimate you don't have the guts either. I imagine you must have robbed that auxiliary mausoleum. But there are only a few of Daoguang's auxiliary mausoleums that haven't been robbed..."

As he spoke, Lin Sicheng picked up the copper coin again, "Come, Ma Jianzuo, let's chat some more, which one did you rob?"

At first it was fine; although Ma Shan was shocked, he could at least hold it together. Unlike just now when he heard "Xiling," his face had changed in fright.

But when he heard the words "Mu Mausoleum," it was as if two fists had smashed into his face, leaving him dizzy and seeing stars.

His two eyes widened with effort, his hands shackled to the table clenched into fists, trembling uncontrollably.

Could this son of a bitch really deduce so much just from one copper coin?

It wasn't that Ma Shan hadn't seen experts or encountered masters, but even for a master, guessing that this copper coin was newly unearthed and guessing it was dug from the Xiling was already pushing it to the limit.

This kid was just like a ghost; not only did he point straight to the Mu Mausoleum, but he also concluded it was an auxiliary mausoleum?

And how many tombs are there in the Xiling? There are at least two hundred existing ones. It was as if this tomb had been robbed by him...

Seeing Ma Shan panic like this, Lin Sicheng's heart stirred: he hadn't just robbed the Mu Mausoleum; even if it were an imperial mausoleum, twenty years was the absolute limit.

Ma Shan definitely had more to hide!

He thought for a moment: "Ma Jianzuo has wandered the underworld for many years, is well-traveled and experienced, and his will is as firm as iron. If you only robbed an auxiliary mausoleum, it wouldn't be enough to make you lose your composure... let me think..."

Lin Sicheng pinched the bridge of his nose, pondered for a moment, and a flash of inspiration crossed his mind: "I suppose there was a loss of life... hmm, was there internal strife when the goods were brought out, and someone was buried in the tunnel?"

Ma Shan's body couldn't stop shaking, his face deathly pale: who the hell could hold it together anymore?

He wished he could stand up and rush out to cover Lin Sicheng's mouth.

And thinking back to just now: how old are you, talking about Cai Ziyuan and needle-point work? Laughable.

But now: what is Cai Ziyuan worth? With this kind of person, this kind of eye for detail, this kind of ability, Wang Yaozi isn't even fit to carry his shoes.

But that day, why was I so blind, so convinced that he was an accomplice of Wang Yaozi?

If he hadn't robbed him, hadn't touched him, at worst it would just be a loss of tens of millions in goods, which he could earn back in a year or eighteen months at most.

Now look at this: he could deduce the Mu Mausoleum based on a single copper coin, and even guess that there was infighting, silencing his accomplice in the Tomb Tunnel?

And just as he said, the Mu Mausoleum is only so big, and there are only a few mausoleums that have never been robbed and never had the Wind let in; is it really that hard for him to find it?

Then, by coordinating with the Public Security Bureau, following the trail to find the tomb, and digging up the accomplice he personally buried alive in a living stake...

For a moment, Ma Shan was filled with both regret and hatred, wishing he could slap himself twice.

Yan Wenjing and the Clerk were like statues frozen in place: this time, Ma Shan's emotional fluctuation was even greater and more intense than the last.

There was absolutely no need for an Expert, let alone observing any micro-expressions; anyone with eyes could see: this son of a bitch's face had turned white with fear.

What does this mean? Does it mean Ma Shan really did rob the Mu Mausoleum?

Even if it is a companion tomb, it is still an emperor's companion tomb. And counting through the Qing Dongling and Qing Xiling, imperial mausoleums, empress mausoleums, prince mausoleums, large tombs, small tombs, and Princess Tomb, totaling about five hundred, how many have never been robbed?

Sentencing him to twenty years would be easy.

And, did he really kill someone?

If this were verified, Ma Shan eating three servings of lead bullets would be an understatement...

Next door, a group of Experts plus two leaders looked at each other.

Just relying on a single copper coin?

Having worked on cases for so many years, this really opened their eyes: it is the first time they have ever seen someone with absolutely no evidence, not even a single clue, relying purely on conjecture and bluffing, yet scaring a suspect into such a panic and total loss of composure.

And this is a thoroughly rotten old hand, a hardened criminal with extremely rich anti-investigation experience who isn't even afraid of death.

In just a few words, he was bluffed into revealing his flaws?

While secretly astonished, the Clerk in the monitoring room raised their head, looking conflicted: "Leader, how do I record this?"

The Deputy Team Leader let out a "Ha": "Record my ass!"

This is nakedly inducing a confession; how are you supposed to record it?

The key is that the suspect didn't open their mouth at all; only Lin Sicheng was talking there, so what use is it if you record it?

Record how wide his mouth opened or how round his eyes stared?

The point is how to investigate further from here.

Glaring at the Clerk, the Deputy Team Leader reached out and sighed deeply: "Professor Wang, I am ashamed!"

Indeed, one should be ashamed.

Before, it could be said that it was their momentary negligence that caused the incident. But after the person was caught and they had been busy for over a week, a group of people racked their brains and exhausted all methods, yet progress was minimal.

Lin Sicheng arrives, uses a couple of tricks, and suddenly the situation turns around and the clouds part to reveal the sun?

It is not that there are no precedents for victims assisting the police in solving cases, but how many times has the effect been so immediate, with such a stark contrast before and after?

Wang Qi Zhi nodded: "Leader, you are too polite. Why do I feel like it wasn't that hard?"

The group was stunned, not knowing what to say.

Professor Wang, are you pretending to understand when you don't, or do you have a grudge in your heart and are intentionally twisting the knife in people's chests?

If it wasn't hard, could so many people have interrogated him for a week, and could Ma Shan have been so arrogant?

If it wasn't hard, could Yan Wenjing have lost so much weight that he looked like a different person?

They knew very well that even if Ma Shan provided zero confession, they could still convict him. Because eventually, they would be able to find clues and evidence of his crimes.

But the question is, when?

There is a saying: weeds are hard to eradicate, and the poison spreads endlessly.

At best, Ma Shan is just a glove; if they don't dig out the people behind him, don't squeeze out the internal pus, and cut away the rotten flesh, once Ma Shan is gone, there will be Niu Shan, Zhu Shan, and Yang Shan.

It would just be changing to another person, another identity, and another place.

Therefore, the most urgent thing now is how to make Ma Shan open his mouth and spill everything.

Seven or ten years is certainly not enough, and even a life sentence might not be enough. But if they can verify a capital crime, they don't believe he won't talk.

He says he isn't afraid of death, but when he knows he is truly going to die, why don't you let him try it?

For this kind of lowlife who digs up ancestral graves, what kind of benevolence or morality is there to speak of? Never mind his boss, he would even sell his own father and mother.

The problem is, how to let Ma Shan know that if he doesn't confess now, he is facing death and won't even have the chance to confess later.

Then again: is it that Yan Wenjing and so many Experts don't know that attacking the heart is the best strategy, or that they don't know about using the false and the real?

As long as the case can be solved, what does a couple of bluffs matter? The problem is, what do they have to bluff with?

Ma Shan is not an idiot; on the contrary, he is cunning and slippery: if you just say he robbed a tomb and killed someone, but don't say which one he robbed or where he killed, do you believe he would laugh his teeth out?

Therefore, even if you are bluffing, you must at least have a basis to make him believe it. So, it is not that Yan Wenjing's ability is insufficient, and certainly not that the Experts are unprofessional. It is that there were no leads, let alone a direction, so there was nowhere to even begin the bluff.

Fortunately, when the mountains and rivers seemed to end, there was a new path. Now they know: Ma Shan robbed a companion tomb of the Mu Mausoleum, and the silenced accomplice is in the Tomb Tunnel.

From Beijing to Baoding is over a hundred kilometers; the Mu Mausoleum is only so big, and in three to five days at most, they can find the tomb and dig up the corpse...

Secretly sighing with emotion, the Deputy Team Leader sighed: "Professor Wang thinks it isn't hard, but for us, it is incredibly difficult. What is even harder is that we don't have a talent like Teacher Lin..."

Damn it, here we go again?

Wang Qi Zhi's heart skipped a beat: it was like this in Xijing, and it's like this again in Beijing.

Lin Sicheng is like the flesh of the Tang Monk; why does everyone who sees him have designs on him?

The Cultural Relics Bureau, the Cultural Relics Research Institute, the Forbidden City, and now there is one more, the Public Security Bureau...

(End of this chapter)