Chapter 3

"Second Brother, it's just that the kid swindled us out of eight thousand yuan. Can't we just find a place to do another deal and make it back? Why do we have to stake out here for a whole day?"

At the eastern exit of the Luochuan City antique market, two men squatted at the entrance of an alley, smoking cigarettes. The leaner one was the middle-aged man who had approached Su Xiaofan earlier, while the younger man beside him looked impatient. The weather was unusually hot this year, and even though it was only mid-May, the temperature at noon had already risen to over thirty degrees Celsius. Just squatting there without doing anything made them sweat profusely.

Su Xiaofan and Zheng Dangang hadn't misjudged; this group was indeed tomb raiders who profited from ancient treasures. Typically, those in this line of work were nocturnal, sleeping during the day and working at night. Today, however, they were out in the scorching heat, which made the young man very uncomfortable, and his impatience showed in his words.

"Do you think I'm doing this for the eight thousand yuan?"

Wu Chuanbao, known as Second Brother, took a harsh drag on his cigarette, stubbed it out on the sole of his shoe, and said irritably, "The bronze artifact that kid brought out has never appeared on the market or in any museum. Even if it's a fake, it must have been made based on a real one. As long as we stick to this kid, we can get the real thing."

"Second Brother, how much did they offer? Why are you so concerned?"

The young man was named Wu Chuanpeng, the fifth cousin of Wu Chuanbao. In their line of work, most people were from the same village or family, as outsiders couldn't be trusted. In the past, if a son were to dig in a tomb, the father would stand guard at the entrance, as sons sometimes betrayed their fathers for profit, but fathers never betrayed their sons. Over time, this became a rule in their trade.

Although this rule wasn't as strictly followed now, most tomb raiding gangs were still formed based on blood ties or village connections, rarely accepting outsiders. Wu Chuanbao's gang was no exception; everyone in the group was surnamed Wu and was related, even the most distant relatives being within the fifth degree of kinship.

"Old Five, the deal isn't done yet. Don't ask what you shouldn't. Have you forgotten the rules?"

Hearing Wu Chuanpeng's words, Wu Chuanbao's face darkened. In their line of work, roles were clearly defined: there were those who scouted for tombs, those who dug the tunnels, those who entered the tombs to retrieve artifacts, and those who found buyers. Each person was responsible for their own part, and no one could overstep their bounds.

Wu Chuanbao had been involved in the smuggling of antiques in the south for many years and had many channels. Naturally, he became the one responsible for finding buyers for the gang. Once the artifacts were retrieved, they were handed over to him, and he would take photos and send them to his clients. After a price was agreed upon, Wu Chuanbao would handle the transaction. This was the entire process.

Wu Chuanbao's gang could be considered a self-sufficient operation, maximizing profits. Some tomb raiding gangs, after going through great lengths to retrieve artifacts, had to sell them at low prices due to a lack of buyers, ultimately benefiting the middlemen.

"Second Brother, that's not what I meant." Seeing Wu Chuanbao's expression, Wu Chuanpeng felt a bit guilty. In their gang, after the elder they called "Third Uncle," Wu Chuanbao held the highest status. After all, the channels for selling the artifacts determined their profits, and if the prices were too low, they would all suffer.

"Old Five, this time, the artifact is specifically requested by someone in Hong Kong." Seeing his brother's reaction, Wu Chuanbao realized he had been too harsh. After all, the money from the sale would be distributed, and although the amounts would differ, the accounts were transparent, and Old Five had the right to know.

"They offered this much." Wu Chuanbao held up a hand and whispered, "And depending on the condition, the price can be increased. Old Five, can you see why I'm so concerned?"

"Fifty thousand?" Wu Chuanpeng was taken aback. A single artifact worth fifty thousand was already quite valuable.

"Fifty thousand? Old Five, you're too naive." Wu Chuanbao sneered.

"Five hundred thousand?" Wu Chuanpeng couldn't keep his voice down, but he quickly realized his mistake and looked around, lowering his voice. "Second Brother, this thing was just an ancient woman's headdress. How can it be worth so much?"

Wu Chuanpeng had been involved in tomb raiding for a few years and had some knowledge of the market. The best-selling items from tombs were jade and porcelain, which were highly sought after and had a large market both domestically and internationally.

The hardest items to find were paintings and calligraphy, as the damp conditions in tombs made it difficult to preserve them. Some paintings in tombs would deteriorate as soon as the tunnels were opened, but if a well-preserved piece by a famous artist was found, it could fetch a high price. As for bronze artifacts, while they were valuable, the government's crackdown made it risky to transport them, often leading to low prices.

"Who do I ask? They gave me a picture of the artifact, and that's why I was swindled by that kid."

Wu Chuanbao shook his head in frustration. He had been in this business for over twenty years and had handled countless artifacts. He could usually tell the authenticity of anything that came out of the ground, but he had been fooled by a young kid.

Losing eight thousand yuan was a minor issue, but the old customer in Hong Kong specifically wanted this artifact and had even raised the price by three hundred thousand. This forced Wu Chuanbao to return to Su Xiaofan, as the buyer believed that Su Xiaofan couldn't have made such a high-quality fake without the real artifact.

"Is that kid really capable of having the real thing?" Wu Chuanpeng glanced at the antique market. "Second Brother, why don't we just find more tombs? You said many Qin and Han tombs have this artifact."

Wu Chuanpeng knew that while they were in the business of raiding tombs, they weren't the most physically strong. He also knew that Su Xiaofan had connections in the antique market, and if they tried to force him, they might not have the upper hand.

"Do you think I don't know that?" Wu Chuanbao said irritably. "These artifacts are scattered in the tombs. Only archaeologists with detailed tools can find them. We'd be relying on luck to find a complete one. It's not as simple as you think."

Wu Chuanbao had seen similar artifacts before, but they were always incomplete. Such small items buried in the ground were hard to find without meticulous effort. Targeting Su Xiaofan was the most straightforward approach.

"Old Five, things have been uneasy in Mangshan recently. Third Uncle said we shouldn't go underground for a while." Wu Chuanbao's face showed a hint of fear.

"Second Brother, I'll follow your lead and Third Uncle's." Seeing Wu Chuanbao's expression, Wu Chuanpeng shivered. He knew what Second Brother was referring to.

Strangely, since the beginning of the year, many tomb raiders in the Luochuan area had met with misfortune, not from the police but from unexpected accidents during their raids.

First, a gang from northern Sichuan was buried alive when a tunnel they were digging into a Han tomb collapsed, killing all three members. The person guarding the entrance also didn't survive, and only the one responsible for selling the loot, who wasn't at the scene, escaped, but he was so frightened that he left Luochuan and disappeared.

Another gang from the western mountains spent six months digging into a large Qin tomb. The gang was well-equipped, with reinforced tunnels and oxygen masks. Five members went down, and three stayed above. Unexpectedly, after two hours, there was no sign of life. As dawn approached, the three above couldn't wait any longer and went down. In the end, only one of the eight came back, but he was insane, kneeling at the entrance and repeatedly bowing. He died there, and the nearby villagers found him.

The theft and deaths in the Qin tomb alarmed the authorities. The local archaeological department wanted to conduct a protective excavation, but on the first day, a worker from a nearby village died. The military was even alerted, and experts from Beijing determined that the tomb contained toxic mercury gas, making it unsafe to excavate. The tunnel was sealed.

These incidents caused a stir, especially among tomb raiders. Rumors spread that the spirits of Mangshan were punishing them, or that they had encountered zombies that drained their life force. Various rumors flew.

Those in the business of raiding tombs naturally had a healthy respect for the supernatural. After these incidents, almost no one dared to raid tombs in the Luochuan area. Many gangs moved to Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces, and the once rampant tomb raiding in Luochuan subsided, improving the local security.

"It is a bit strange. Recently, when we go into tombs, it feels like we're being watched. Second Brother, we should find a master to look at it and get some protective talismans." Even in the scorching sun, Wu Chuanpeng felt a chill.

Recently, in Luochuan, especially near Mangshan, strange things had been happening. A few days ago, in the village where Wu Chuanpeng and his gang were staying, a bizarre incident occurred. The village's largest chicken farmer's roosters, for unknown reasons, mated with thousands of hens in one night, causing chaos in the village.

This incident scared Wu Chuanbao and his gang so much that they immediately moved out of the village and into the city, which is where he encountered Su Xiaofan.