Lin Yue drank tea for five days, while the three of them exhausted themselves working hard for five days; the young certainly have boundless energy.
“That senior’s research was truly thorough!”
Chu Yunqing sighed in admiration after personally verifying the methods recorded in the notes.
“He divided this map into four parts—feng shui, astrology, text, and illustration—studying them separately and then mixing them together. Putting aside where he obtained a map of Great Qian, he compared it against maps of various regions across the country several times, integrated them into one, and then enlarged them into sketches of several scales for further study. His patience was truly incredible; he even flipped the drawings over to study them again from the back.”
“The sheepskin map has been roasted, sun-dried, and soaked in salt water and turmeric, yet no words or illustrations were revealed. They felt all over it, but nothing was hidden inside either.”
“This map looks simple, omitting cities, place names, and forests, showing only mountains and water. But the simpler the clues, the larger the range, and the harder it is to find,” Wang Jingche said.
“The drawings bought from the bookstore are generally the same as the depiction on the sheepskin. There are many bite marks on the sheepskin, and some strokes are simply missing.”
Xiang Cheng closed his eyes and rubbed his brow. He had been observing these two maps for days and was mentally fatigued. “Moreover, over three hundred years, rivers change course and mountains shift. Our Great Qian maps are updated every ten years. Most of these here were made fifty years ago; comparing the two will naturally reveal many changes.”
Chu Yunqing pouted and nodded, then let out another sigh.
“The ones preserved now date back a hundred years at most. River channels might have changed drastically over three hundred years, but the general positions of mountains should be roughly the same. Logically, one should be able to find this place on the map using them, but that senior didn't find it.”
“This can't be a map of our Great Qian. Even if minor mountains and rivers are omitted, it doesn't fit.”
Wang Jingche hummed in agreement and picked up the map to look. “Before we came, we searched with Ziliang and the others, but couldn't reach a conclusion either. It hides neither text nor images. If we follow the celestial indicators, the Emperor Star points to Qianyang Hall in the imperial palace.”
He paused, raised an eyebrow, and said softly, “People have searched there, but unfortunately, there was nothing besides an imperial decree.”
“If the mountains and rivers depicted in this map are real, perhaps it’s a map of another country, or the scale is immense.”
The three fell silent for a while before Xiang Cheng frowned and said, “The Zhou family said this map was found by an ancestor who got lost in the mountains while traveling. It was discovered in a cave. Besides recording that the sheepskin scroll hides a fortune, the cave provided no other clues. So much time has passed that the cave's location hasn't been handed down.”
“Before coming here, I visited the Records Bureau to flip through some maps of other countries, but saw none similar to this. For the past few hundred years, they have been restricted to border activities, and few could enter our Great Qian. If it’s a foreign map, the probability isn't high.”
“So, that treasure is within our Great Qian.” Chu Yunqing rested her face on one hand while stroking the sheepskin scroll with the other. It felt soft and mushy, with no discernible bumps.
She gently picked it up and walked out of the medicine shop. Under Lin Yue’s gaze, she held it into the sunlight to observe its shadow. It was dim and lacked luster; except for faint light marks where the insects had chewed through, no other patterns were visible.
She held it above her head and looked up at the map, but saw no other abnormalities besides the somewhat translucent soft light and the mottled light from the insect holes. After sunning it for a while, no writing appeared on the map either.
Turning around to sit at the door, she stared blankly at the sheepskin map.
The other two continued researching the drawings. With the previous research as a reference, they didn't need to start from scratch. This probably wasn't a map; the real clue might be hidden within the drawing itself. They might have missed something.
“Shopkeeper, have you researched it?” Chu Yunqing turned to look at Lin Yue, who was drinking tea while reading a miscellaneous book.
Lin Yue looked up. “I’ve glanced at it, but I have no leads.”
“Oh.”
Chu Yunqing nodded and picked up the sheepskin scroll to sniff it. It smelled of medicine. She placed it on her lap and leaned against the door, watching the few scattered pedestrians walk by. Suddenly, she asked.
“Shopkeeper, where are you from?”
“I am from Qingzhou.”
“Qingzhou? That’s quite far from here, across the Wangsu Stream. If you go around it, you have to travel for an extra half year.”
“Mm.”
“I’ve stayed in the capital since I was a child and never went on long trips. Coming here took over a month, and it's the farthest I've ever gone. Since you've traveled so far, Shopkeeper, you must have been to many places?” Her tone carried a bit of envy.
“When the road is long, you’re far from home. It's hard to go back. It's normal to be away for two or three years. Some travel so far they can't return; wherever they walk, they rest and take root. People of the jianghu make the world their home, but it's just not that home from one’s hometown.”
“Most of our time is spent on the road. What we have to consider every day is also basic needs—food, clothing, shelter, and travel. Most of the time, life is monotonous and dull, without that many thrills and spills.”
“Is that so!” Chu Yunqing’s eyes widened, and she turned around to say, “The things I’ve heard are all interesting stories about punishing evil and ridding the people of harm. I also went to see the Martial Arts Convention, and they spoke very brilliantly about outwitting bandits, capturing fierce tigers, and bounty heads...”
Lin Yue looked at her and smiled, saying, “That is only what is shown before others.”
“Most of the time is spent walking mountain paths with nowhere to rest. When sleeping, you can't sleep soundly because you have to guard against beast attacks. You rarely have a full meal, sometimes even going hungry; it’s easy for stomach problems to develop, and your feet get covered in blisters. Many people develop athlete’s foot.”
“If it rains, there’s no place to hide. Your clothes and bags get soaked, and you can only wear them until they air-dry. It's easy to fall ill, and you end up with chronic ailments that cause back and body aches when you’re old.”
“Sometimes you can't even bathe once a month, and you carry an unpleasant stench. You wear the same clothes for years, and if you don't groom your hair for a long time, lice and fleas will grow. If you're out in the sun for too long, your skin withers and turns yellow or black; you become an old crone in your forties while still young. Especially for good-looking girls—there are many swindlers out there, and being tricked and sold as someone’s wife is considered a light fate...”
Athlete’s foot? Not bathing? Lice? Turning dark? Chu Yunqing’s face turned pale as she listened, and her ears felt as if they were being polluted.
“There are many who turned dark, but I didn't see them smelling or being slovenly at the Martial Arts Convention. They were quite clean and polite, with at most a scent of sweat.”
“That’s because if they were too smelly or slovenly, the gatekeepers wouldn't let them in...”
Chu Yunqing was stunned for a moment and asked, “Shopkeeper, then why do you all still go out?”
“Us? Probably because we were bored.”
“...”
After working for several more days, the three still had no leads. The drawing wasn't a real map, and they couldn't see any hidden text or images. The sheepskin scroll underwent another round of scrutiny, yet they still found no issues.
At this time, Chu Yunqing proposed a bold idea that stunned the other two.
“Perhaps the answer lies within this sheepskin scroll itself. I once heard of a dye that is colorless and odorless. After it seeps into hide, the color only manifests after it is burned to ash.”
Lin Yue nodded and said calmly, “Mm, then burn it.”
“I should really burn it?”
“Burn it.”
“Alright!”
“Cutting off our retreat... we won't be beaten up, will we?” Wang Jingche sighed while waving his folding fan, though his tone carried a hint of excitement.
“Let’s go, we’ll help.”
They took the sheepskin scroll to the backyard. Two of them pulled at the four corners to keep it flat so it wouldn't curl too much while burning. Chu Yunqing took a candle and held the flame directly against the center of the sheepskin. After a moment, the smell of singed hair wafted out. The surface of the sheepskin curled and turned black, covering the ink marks on the map. She moved the candle, and after burning a small portion, a small white trace appeared amidst the black.
Chu Yunqing was overjoyed and let out a long breath. If it truly burned away and nothing remained, she would have felt quite guilty.
As a large area of the sheepskin was burned black, a brand-new landscape painting appeared before everyone's eyes. Mountains rolled and rose continuously, with pines hanging over cliffs. Below, a small path extended forward, disappearing at a corner and reappearing in the distance, with its end at a misty peak.
“Shopkeeper, look!” Chu Yunqing turned to look at Lin Yue, her smile blooming like a beautiful flower.
Lin Yue hummed and said with a light smile, “Congratulations. You are the ones destined for the treasure.”
“The shopkeeper jokes. We are hardly the destined ones; we merely came because of its reputation.”
Xiang Cheng held the sheepskin scroll out toward Lin Yue. “This treasure has little to do with us, and we have no way to enjoy wealth that sustains a family for a thousand years. Now that the map is solved, we shall take our leave.”
“Shopkeeper, Xiang Cheng is right. This sheepskin map belongs to you, so the treasure naturally belongs to you as well.”
“We only came here to have some fun. We aren't interested in the treasure.”
Lin Yue didn't take it but smiled generously. “What wealth for a thousand years? That’s all used to trick young people.”
“If you want it, then go get it. Whether it's treasure or a trap is unknown. Bring more people. If there really is some peerless cultivation technique, copy a version for me to see.”
She had bought the map on a whim; there were many such fake treasure maps on the market specifically designed to trick people.
Even if the clues on a treasure map were hidden, it was often just someone's twisted sense of humor. Lin Yue didn't think there would be any treasure; it could be a trap, it could be empty, and the best-case scenario was some gold and silver jewelry.
However, even if the jewelry was piled like a mountain, she wasn't going to build a nation, so it would be of no use to her.
“You keep busy. I’m going to check the shop.”
“Hey, Shopkeeper!”
“Shopkeeper!”
Seeing her turn to leave, the three called out but couldn't stop her.
“Is she for real?” Wang Jingche said.
“What do we do?” Chu Yunqing asked.
“I’ll copy it down.”
Xiang Cheng placed it on the table and held a brush to copy the landscape painting onto white paper. Those white traces would fall off with a touch, so he needed to draw them quickly.
“I’ve seen this mountain before...”
Wang Jingche looked at the drawing on the table, crossing his arms and pressing his folding fan against his chin in deep thought.
“The Changyun Mountains in Liangzhou.”
“The shopkeeper isn't preparing to silence us, is she?”
Chu Yunqing laughed. “Didn't you just praise her for having great spirit?”
“That's not the same.”
“I didn't sense anything unusual from her,” Xiang Cheng said. “But it's better to be careful.”
Chu Yunqing took a sip of tea, smacked her lips, and looked at the drawing on the white paper. “That’s even further north than the capital. It’s September now, and winter starts next month. Heavy snow will block the mountains. It would be better to wait until next spring to go.”
“You want to go?” Wang Jingche raised an eyebrow.
Chu Yunqing gave him a sidelong glance. “What, you don't?”
“It’s probably not a good idea for us to go by ourselves. If we bring people, will they believe us?”
“Your parents definitely won't believe it. Forget about my father. Xiang Cheng, you bring the men.”
“Alright.”
“It takes at least three months to get there from the capital. A round trip would take half a year. Will your father let you out?”
Chu Yunqing glanced at him and huffed. “He’s busy investigating cases and has no time to mind me. I’ll just sneak away.”
“Rather, what about you? Would your parents, with their explosive tempers, let you out?”
Wang Jingche snapped his fan shut and tapped it against his hand. “They can restrict my freedom, but they cannot restrict my heart. A good man’s ambitions lie in all directions!”
He pointed the fan to the side. “Once the departure time is set, remember to notify me two months in advance!”
“That’s too long. Only three days in advance.”
“...Fine, three days it is. Xiang Cheng, help me out then.”
“Not this time. If I help you again, your parents will come to cause a scene at my house.”
“Hiss, you’re not being loyal enough. Are we still brothers or what...”
“Shopkeeper!”
Seeing someone walk past the door, Chu Yunqing called out.
Lin Yue turned and walked in. “What is it?”
“When will the shopkeeper set out?”
Stunned for a moment, Lin Yue said, “My uncle said when he left—what is yours is yours. You go ahead.”
“Shopkeeper, how could we feel right going if you don't?”
“Even though we were the ones who solved the map, without that senior’s previous research and your permission to burn it, this treasure wouldn't have been found. You naturally deserve the largest share. We wouldn't dare take it if you don't. Besides, you and your uncle and aunt kept this map for so many years; are you really not going?” Chu Yunqing widened her eyes.
Lin Yue blinked. “We weren't keeping this map. Puning County is quiet. We just settled here because we were tired of the jianghu. There are only five of us left in the Lin and Han families; we cannot enjoy such a massive blessing.”
“If you feel bad about it, if you really find it, just send some to the shop. I’m already at this age; I won't go through the trouble with you.”
“Alright then.” Chu Yunqing nodded. “We plan to set out at the end of next February.”
“As you wish.”
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