Su Yan returned, bringing a newly prepared list of cultural relics protection group members to Dong Xuebing for review.
“Do you think this one is okay?” Su Yan asked.
Dong Xuebing glanced at it. “A total of twenty-three people.” Su Yan observed Dong Xuebing’s expression, “Yes, thirteen from the cultural department, six from the public security department, and the remaining four are related staff members.”
Dong Xuebing nodded, “Alright, settle it then.”
Su Yan sought confirmation, “So, should they leave now or…”
“Have everyone leave now, take their equipment and gear, and control and protect the scene immediately. No unrelated personnel should enter.” Dong Xuebing said.
Dong Xuebing finally instructed, “And, for all personnel in this work group, the primary task is to be on Qingluan Mountain for the next few months. Without my orders, no one can move personnel freely.” This group might be a formality to others, but Dong Xuebing never saw it that way. He was extremely serious about this work. If the public security department wanted to pull someone from the cultural relics protection group for another task, Dong Xuebing would disagree. He needed to give everyone a warning in advance. In the Standing Committee meeting, Dong Xuebing had already subtly given this indication, which was why he didn’t hesitate to lead the group as its head personally.
Orders were issued one by one.
The people on the work group list all had complaints. “We’re going to Qingluan Mountain? It’s quite far.”
“I heard we might have to stay on the mountain. What about my family?”
“Oh, the list didn’t have me originally. Why was I suddenly added to it?”
“They say this time there will be over twenty people. Do we need that many? It’s just finding an antique. What are the leaders thinking?”
“Alright, stop complaining. The leaders must have their reasons.”
“Yeah, it seems order came from Secretary Dong himself. You know how he is—who doesn’t know his temper?”
“Okay, I’ll let my family know.”
In the preparation before the work group’s departure, the news spread. Many county cadres and civil servants found it inexplicable. Why was Secretary Dong so sure there was an ancient tomb on Qingluan Mountain? And it seemed he thought it was a valuable one. But the antique hadn’t even been authenticated—what basis did he have?
More than three o’clock.
Zhang Dongfang also came to Dong Xuebing’s office and expressed some dissent. “Why did the list suddenly add three times as many people?”
Dong Xuebing glanced at him, “I had them add them.”
Zhang Dongfang frowned. “I see everyone is quite unhappy. Secretary, shouldn’t this be reconsidered? What if there’s no tomb there? What’s going to happen if there’s nothing after all this commotion? It’s both laborious and costly, and if nothing is found, it will be a major embarrassment for our county.”
Dong Xuebing laughed, “Old Zhang, if I’m not confident, I won’t do it. I still feel like we don’t have enough people with these.” While speaking, his phone rang.
Ringtone, ring, ring.
It was Mu Zhengzhong’s call.
“Wait a moment, Old Zhang. I’ll take this call.” Dong Xuebing picked up his phone. “Hello, Teacher Mu. How did you find it?”
Mu Zhengzhong’s tone seemed slightly off, “Xiao Dong, tell me the truth—where did you get this thing?”
Dong Xuebing blinked and said, “It was dug up from Qingluan Mountain in our county, isn’t that right?”
“Are you sure?” Mu Zhengzhong asked.
“Of course, I’m sure.” Dong Xuebing replied.
“Send me the geographical location and detailed information of Qingluan Mountain—the most detailed one. My email is open, don’t hang up now.” Mu Zhengzhong instructed.
Zhang Dongfang listened in, curious who Dong Xuebing was talking to about Qingluan Mountain.
Dong Xuebing immediately checked the internal documents and sent the information about Qingluan Mountain to Mu Zhengzhong’s email, “Alright, Teacher Mu.”
“I received it. Wait.” After saying that, Mu Zhengzhong didn’t speak to Dong Xuebing but started exchanging a few words with the people on the other end of the line, though their voices were too soft for Dong Xuebing to hear clearly. After about five minutes, Mu Zhengzhong picked up the phone again, “Xiao Dong.”
“Eh, you’re saying.” Dong Xuebing eagerly responded.
Mu Zhengzhong took a deep breath, “You might have struck gold this time, this mirror isn’t just an ordinary antique—it's a Han Dynasty burial artifact. The carvings on it are quite unusual too. Then, my old friend from the archaeological team saw the geographical location and general feng shui of Qingluan Mountain you sent over, and they also found it unusual. But we can’t make any definitive conclusions without seeing it in person. Here’s what we’ll do: book the flights right now. Tell the car to pick us up in the provincial capital, we’ll be there tonight.”
Dong Xuebing exclaimed, “You coming over might be too much trouble for you.”
“No trouble at all, we…” Before Mu Zhengzhong could finish, an older man on the other end of the line took over the phone.
The older man said, “Comrade, we’ll get there as fast as possible. Remember, always protect the site first. Let’s talk about everything else when we arrive.”
Dong Xuebing replied, “Okay, I understand.”
“Remember to protect the site first.” The older man insisted, “I can almost tell you for certain now—if there really is a tomb below, this one is definitely not an ordinary one. It could be the biggest archaeological find in recent years.”
“Not possibly. It’s definitely.” Someone else on the other end spoke.
Mu Zhengzhong also said, “We can’t make conclusions without seeing it. Let’s go there first and assess it.”
“Alright, book the tickets quickly. I’ll call my family; I probably won’t be able to go home for a few days.” The person sounded a bit excited and thrilled.
The signal coming from the conversation gave Dong Xuebing a colossal sense of relief. Now, he felt genuinely reassured. Even the archaeological team’s old colleagues almost confirmed the historical value of the tomb—what did Dong Xuebing have to doubt?
He didn’t have time to address Zhang Dongfang’s concerns earlier; Dong Xuebing immediately called Su Yan, “Little Su, arrange a car to the provincial airport tonight. I’ll tell you the flight details later. Also, the cultural department must be informed that they must protect the site once they get to Qingluan Mountain. No digging; let the professional archaeologists handle it when they arrive.”