Chapter 155: Struck it Rich!

For a moment, no one spoke; there was only the sound of heavy breathing, perhaps from the exhaustion of chiseling the mountain wall, or perhaps from being overly excited.

Commander Lei took down his bow and picked up the arrow. His gaze carefully traveled from the arrowhead to the fletching.

He nocked the arrow and fired.

He watched the arrow fly far away. There was no need to see exactly where the arrow landed; just by the feel of it—

"It's these!" he said excitedly.

Ming Tiao and Yu He also reached out impatiently, digging into the hole they had chiseled open.

Everything they pulled out were arrows, and they all tried them out personally.

"It really is!"

"They were manufactured by the official workshops!"

They had all come from the Border Army, and only they themselves knew what kind of bitter days they had lived through before.

The weapons used by the Border Army were mainly manufactured by official workshops and distributed uniformly.

The quantity allocated from there might have been sufficient, but as for how many actually reached the hands of the Border Army, that was unknown.

Due to the infiltration of corruption, embezzlement, and dereliction of duty, the fine equipment that should have reached the Border Army flowed elsewhere.

"Deputy Envoy, it's those military supplies!"

"Keep chiseling, see how much is hidden inside," Wen Gu said.

Seeing these arrows, they felt as if the physical strength they had just consumed chiseling the mountain had instantly returned.

Not only did they recover their strength, but they were so mentally invigorated that it seemed as if even more energy had been born within them.

They gathered those who were searching the mountain elsewhere to come over and continue chiseling the mountain.

The hole in the mountain wall was too small; they couldn't wait to see how many secrets were hidden in the cavity within the mountain!

The opened cavity grew larger and larger. When it was big enough for a person to crawl through, Ming Tiao went in first to take a look, to get a clear idea of the general situation inside and rule out danger.

The opening was expanded again, and Wen Gu and the other two Commanders also entered the cave.

Inside the cave, there were concealed ventilation holes.

A large quantity of weapons was stacked up, and the scent of metal and wood, along with the residual smell left by weapon maintenance, flowed slowly within this cavity and entered their nostrils.

"This is the smell!"

The three Commanders didn't care if the air was foul or not; they took a deep breath and wore dreamy expressions on their faces.

The other members of the Patrol Guard Division who followed them in were much the same.

Back when there was war at the border, they had dreamed of this smell!

Their eyes were burning, and they wished they could press their faces against the weapons and kiss them.

It was very dark inside the cave; they were not burning torches, but a type of specially made lantern with an outer casing made of metal wire, which was safer.

The few of them walked forward along the slope of the cave, looking as they went.

Sabers, arrows, shields, clubs, horse lances, long spears, hammers, axes, bows, and crossbows, offensive and defensive equipment—and there was also a lot of armor!

There were stone chambers chiseled inside the cave, and one of them was even stacked with Fire Powder products!

The craftsmanship was not as good as what they had now. In the chaotic times, for the sake of survival, weapon craftsmanship had been constantly improved, and the Zhao Family's military workshops were already building tubular firearms.

Although what was stacked here was a bit backward, as long as it could be used, that was fine!

From the details, one could see that the stored weapons had been managed and maintained by someone in the past; after the world turned chaotic, this aspect had been neglected.

Fortunately, it hadn't been too long, and they would certainly treat them well once they took over!

Looking at so many weapons in the cave, they were both happy and resentful.

The happiness went without saying; the resentment, of course, was because they recalled the bitter days of fighting at the border, when these things were what they should have been using long ago, and the casualties of war wouldn't have needed to be so high.

Besides weapons, there were, of course, areas for storing grain!

The grain storage area had moisture-proof and insect-proof measures taken; there were so many grain bins piled full that they couldn't count them for a moment.

Everyone's breathing became even more rapid.

From the big picture, it could alleviate the grain crisis in Xinzhou.

From a personal interest perspective, a portion of this was their bonus!

They had struck it rich!!

In such times as these, only with grain could one feel at ease!

The cave was very long, and they hadn't finished walking through it yet, but what they had already seen was enough to drive people crazy!

This scale was indeed far beyond what the Gao Family Cellar could compare to!

Commander Lei was currently rejoicing in his heart that it was truly wise for the head to transfer him over to follow up!

Not even three days, and he had picked up such a huge merit!

Wen Gu had been observing the cave walls.

There were very obvious traces of manual chiseling. He didn't know if it was because they weren't careful when chiseling, but the cavity within the mountain should have spiraled upward; however, at the location of the stone statue, the outward arc was a bit too large, meaning that where the statue was, the cave was too close to the mountain wall.

Perhaps because of this, after the people guarding here discovered it, it was inconvenient to fill it from the inside, so they carved a stone statue on the outside.

Most people wouldn't be so resolute as to hammer a statue of a deity. Even if they were venting their anger and wanted to destroy the statue, without experience in this area, they might not be able to hear the abnormality in the sound conduction.

There were also Copper Bells outside the Danguan on the mountainside, and the sound would interfere and cover it up.

Perhaps, at the time, "Tian Tu" only wanted to worship the gods and pray for blessings here, but because of their extraordinary hearing, they accidentally discovered the situation.

No one knew what exactly happened here, but judging from the current result, "Tian Tu" had likely already met with misfortune and had their identity stolen.

Continuing forward along the cave for another stretch, they found traces of people having lived there.

"They should have been hiding here half a year ago," Ming Tiao said, pointing to a stone chamber.

"This is close to the foot of the mountain," Yu He estimated and said.

Lei Da, meanwhile, carefully observed the traces on the cave walls and ceiling: "This section of the cave has been chiseled for a long time; it wasn't just chiseled in recent years."

Perhaps hundreds of years ago, or even longer.

Looking at some of the inscriptions and patterns left on the cave walls, it might have been a bandit den a long time ago.

Searching further around, they discovered that there should have originally been an exit at the foot of the mountain, but it had been blocked by a landslide; as hundreds of years passed, if viewed from the outside, the area covered by rock and soil had grown all sorts of vegetation, blending perfectly with the surroundings, so naturally, it was very difficult to discover any anomalies when searching the mountain.

Over several hundred years, the masters of this place must have changed many times; this can be seen from the fonts and drawings on the cave walls.

The existing entrance and exit are not here, but in a tunnel at the foot of another nearby mountain.

No wonder they couldn't find the entrance or exit no matter how they searched in Jinchan Hu.

A portion of the missing military supplies has been found; although not all of them were recovered, this large rock cave warehouse they pried open is already very encouraging!

Those weapons and the grain in the Granary can alleviate the plight of Xinzhou.

The investigation of Jinchan must continue, but the subsequent matters are not things the refugees can participate in. The less they know, the safer it is for them.

Therefore, Wen Gu had people send them back to Xinzhou City, and after registering them there, they would be distributed to nearby villages.

If not for the information provided by Tian Kou, the symbols left by Tian Tu, and that miraculous fall of Tian Kou, they would certainly have found the cave eventually, but it is hard to say how much time it would have taken.

Merit must, of course, be rewarded.

Tian Kou chiseled the part of the mountain wall with the symbols off the mountain and brought the stone down the mountain.

Wherever he goes in the future, he will take this stone with him!

This was left by his brother!

No one knows what exactly happened at that time.

However, Tian Kou feels that his brother was very likely murdered right here.

When he first came here years ago, he felt physically unwell. Not going up the mountain and not disappearing along with the other villagers was his brother protecting him.

The official said that because he performed a meritorious service this time, there would be a reward.

Although he had offended them with a blade before, he at least admitted his mistake in time.

Having performed meritorious service to atone for his crimes, his merits outweighed his faults, and after the faults were offset, he could still receive some rewards.

Wen Gu gave him a few options, and Tian Kou didn't hesitate much; he chose a house and farmland!

His original intention remained unchanged!

He only wanted a safe place to farm; it would be even better if he could be allotted fertile land.

Come to think of it————

His brother still allowed him to live a good life.

The next day, the Patrol Guard Division sent people to escort them to Xinzhou City.

As Tian Kou walked, he turned back again, knelt down at the location where Wen Gu was, and kowtowed.

He knew that this official might not truly be a kind person, but he still gave a small person like him a chance.

If someone else had been in the official's position, he would have been finished the day he charged toward the small courtyard with a blade.

Small people like them are just like a speck of dust on this mountain. When the nobles pass by on horseback, they can blow them away to another place.

If it were only himself, he might never know in this lifetime what exactly happened to his brother.

To die without a clear explanation, and to have to carry a load of grievances.

Even if he knew, he could not do anything.

He heard from a Commander that the person who impersonated his brother had already died under the official's sword.

Even if that person was not the murderer, he was one of the accomplices.

It could be considered avenging his brother.

Tian Kou does not know the final answer to this matter, but he is already very satisfied with what he has obtained so far.

His brother has been vindicated. He is not a person who forgets kindness!

He has been allotted fertile land and can live the good life he has looked forward to for many years.

He heard that soldiers often come to the village to patrol and kill Plague Ghosts.

He is a timid person and has no great ambitions; being able to have a quiet place to farm in this chaotic world where Ghost run rampant is enough!

Tian Kou stood up and returned to the ranks.

He touched a small metal plaque he was carrying on his person.

Before leaving, Wen Gu gave him this small plaque engraved with characters and told him that if he encountered trouble he couldn't solve, he could go to the Patrol Guard Division in Xinzhou City.

What kind of place the Patrol Guard Division is, he does not know.

It must be the kind of yamen where upright officials reside and can uphold justice for the people, right?

Thinking this, Tian Kou suddenly felt confident.

If he encounters difficulties or crises in the future, he knows where to go for help.

About to become a small landowner, Tian Kou is well-versed in the survival philosophy of not flaunting one's wealth, so he did not tell anyone along the way about the reward he received this time. The other refugees traveling with him did not know either.

Not until he entered the Outer City District of Xinzhou City for quarantine, completed the registration, was allotted the land and house he wanted, and received the Deed.

Tian Kou was practically moved to tears.

One reason was that he finally obtained the wealth he wanted, and the other was that he finally saw so many normal living people!

He quickly cast aside the gloom in his heart and started talking to the people nearby.

There were also some people in the quarantine area who had come from other towns; although their accents had slight differences, it did not hinder their communication.

After getting familiar with chatting, the first thing Tian Kou wanted to inquire about was his own backer.

"Hey brother, let me ask you one more thing, do you know what the Patrol Guard Division does?"

The man looked as if he had heard some sensitive word, looked around vigilantly, and then lowered his voice and said: "They confiscate property!"

Tian Kou:??!

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