Chapter 176: The Past Too Painful to Recall

As I listened, I realized I had indeed misunderstood him. But that things had developed in such a way was truly unexpected. The cause was indeed that notebook, but the process was much more complicated. Before the notebook came into my hands, it had always been kept in a miscellaneous box in the attic of the old house. It wasn't until I learned to read and happened to come across it while rummaging through old things that it came into my possession. My father and Third Uncle had both read this notebook when they were young. Third Uncle couldn't recall clearly when he first saw the notebook; he only remembered that it was some time after he had started his career. By then he had gained some experience and heard many strange legends among his elders. He knew of the saying among the Changsha grave robbers: "Earth brings blood, corpses bring gold." So as soon as he saw the notebook, thinking that he had never found anything particularly remarkable, he was immediately attracted by what was recorded in it. Almost instantly, he got the idea to go back and take a look at Biaozi Ridge. Ancient tombs don't move. Even after many years, they should still be there. Moreover, in the early days after liberation, bandits still roamed deep in the mountains, so not many people would have entered. He believed there should still be something left in the tomb. However, Biaozi Ridge was just a local name for a place from Grandfather's childhood. Such names could refer to a small mound, an entire mountain, or even a whole area of unexplored primeval jungle. (When I went to the Qimeng Mountains in 1996, there was a place called "Layue Dam." I always thought "Layue Dam" was a large dam and its surrounding area, but later I found out that "Layue Dam" referred to all the inaccessible areas behind a mountain called Layue Mountain, simply summarized by that name because no one had been there.) So finding that ancient tomb relying solely on a place name was unrealistic. How then could the exact location be determined? Third Uncle pondered for a long time without any leads, until the year before he went to Xisha, when he finally got a clue. That year he went to Grandfather's hometown in Changsha, which was in the mountains. He traveled for four days on mountain paths to reach that remote village, where he asked the locals about the location of Biaozi Ridge. Although he didn't get direct information that time, he greatly familiarized himself with the local customs and geography. After returning, he studied the contents of the notebook again, and things became clearer. Based on other content in Grandfather's notebook, memories of eavesdropping on Grandfather's conversations as a child, and everything he had learned from the locals, he vaguely determined that the tomb should be located near Guizizhai in the Mang Mountains. Because in the notebook, Grandfather mentioned that both he and Great-Grandfather had been bitten by a kind of "iron-headed snake" while traveling through the python-infested forest. This snake often coiled under bushes and was hard to spot. At that time, it was a widespread hazard, but later a snake eradication campaign nearly drove it to extinction—but that's another story. The "iron-headed snake" was a mountain snake, not found in the fields. Most ancient tombs near Changsha were in the green wilderness of the plains, because in ancient times, only royalty or local magnates could afford to build large underground palace-like tombs in the mountains. These people were few, and mountain tombs were necessarily sturdy, built in inaccessible places, beyond the reach of ordinary scattered grave robbers. It was also hard for one or two people to carry out much loot. Considering economic efficiency and risk, grave robbers rarely went into the mountains—otherwise they would be called mountain robbers—and naturally they did not recognize this snake. The grave robbers of that time were hardy; after being bitten by a venomous snake, they would only suck out the venom, apply some tobacco leaves, and take some local herbal medicine, with no better treatment. If, after a few hours, the bitten person showed no poisoning reaction, they would be fine; otherwise, there was generally no remedy, and they had to accept their fate. The snakes that bit them were small, with shallow wounds, so Grandfather and the others didn't pay much attention. After simple treatment, they felt no particular discomfort and continued on their way. Unexpectedly, after walking two li, Grandfather suddenly collapsed and fell unconscious. They stopped and examined him, seeing his skin turning blue and convulsing continuously—clearly the snake venom had taken effect. Later, Great-Grandfather traveled dozens of li through the mountains to find local villagers, who used herbal medicine to save Grandfather's life. They rested there for two days, and according to Grandfather's description of a waterfall, they could confirm that the place they rested was Guizizhai. Four days after this incident, they finally reached the place called Biaozi Ridge. It was a plain in a valley surrounded by mountains, with dense python forests and many ancient vines. Only the most depressed part of the valley had no plants, revealing a patch of blood-red bare soil. The ancient tomb was beneath that valley. (Ironically, the snake that bit Grandfather is now an endangered species; the export value of an adult snake exceeds a million, far more than the price of ordinary burial objects.) With this, the hope of finding the place increased greatly. Although the primeval forest of the Mang Mountains was vast at that time, far larger than the current Guizizhai waterfall located in the heart of the forest, there were not many places with the inferred similar terrain, so it was not difficult to find. Third Uncle packed his gear and set off again. He was used to traveling alone, because he was too young and the older people didn't want to go out with him; none of his peers could match his skills.

However, after enduring countless hardships and crossing the nearly uninhabited Mang Mountain jungle, the sight that greeted his eyes was something he had never even dreamed of.

(To be continued. If you want to know what happens next, please visit www. CMFU. COM for more chapters. Support the author, support genuine reading!)