Throughout the journey, Captain Wu drove while briefing them about the sudden incident.
Huo Sining had heard a few things about it from Zhou Shitao when he was at the Zhou Family, but listening now, he couldn’t help but be astonished.
It turned out the place they were heading to was a small village near Taicheng that had been set for development into a large leisure and holiday resort, hence the land in the village had already been sold to developers, and almost all of the residents had moved away, with only a few stubborn holdouts still wrangling with the developers.
Two days ago, according to the schedule of the investors, construction work for the resort officially commenced.
The developer had deployed dozens of excavators for preliminary digging in the village, but this action uncovered a big problem.
An excavator operator found numerous broken pieces of pottery among the excavated soil and rubble, immediately sensing something was amiss and hurriedly reported to the person in charge.
Experts soon arrived at the site for inspection and, upon seeing the shattered ceramic pots, conducted tests right away, determining that there was likely an ancient tomb buried underground.
The excavator had actually unearthed an ancient tomb in the village, and the developer immediately realized the severity of the issue, strictly guarding the information.
Unfortunately, these subsequent measures were ineffective, and they couldn’t prevent those looking to make a fortune by selling antiques on the black market. By the time the relevant authorities were alerted and urgently dispatched personnel to handle the situation, people had already secretly broken into the tomb and stolen numerous valuable artifacts.
According to national regulations, all artifacts unearthed within the country, except for those ancient artifacts otherwise specified by the state, belong to the nation and must not be privately collected or sold, let alone illegally exported. Violators will be fined or even sentenced to jail depending on the circumstances.
Thus, as soon as the police learned of the incident, they immediately commenced an investigation, while the Taicheng Cultural Relics Research Institute swiftly mobilized their staff to investigate, initially estimating that the tomb belonged to the burial mound of a royal noble from the Tang Dynasty.
Fearing mishandling could lead to further loss, the institute’s staff also dared not act rashly and sealed off the entire village’s exit and the tomb’s entrance, waiting for experts from the capital’s archaeological team to arrive before discussing further action.
Rushing nonstop to Taicheng, their flight arrived at nine in the evening; on the road, the three were unable to stop for food, managing only to grab a bowl of instant noodles.
However, aware of the serious nature of the incident, none of them complained; whether it was Captain Wu or Senior Brother Ji Kun, they all hoped to reach the scene of the accident as quickly as possible.
At the airport were officials on standby, and from there they directly took a private car, speeding to the site, enduring over three hours of bumpy travel. A little after midnight, the car quietly entered a village, reaching their destination.
Without mentioning rest, this was a critical moment, where every second counted in saving the artifacts inside the tomb. Led by the staff, Huo Sining and his companion entered a construction site’s prefab house.
Upon seeing Ji Kun enter, the group of people sitting there lifted their heads, one of whom was Su Qingqing’s master, Professor Xie.
Perhaps not expecting Huo Sining to be there, Professor Xie was taken aback, but in the blink of an eye, he regained his composure and smiled at Ji Kun,
"Professor Ji, you all made good time. I thought you wouldn’t get here until daylight at the earliest. It’s just as well we’ve only just sat down. Let’s study this topographical map together!"
Although Ji Kun was young, his achievements in the past few years were indeed impressive, earning him a significant reputation in the field, so no one looked down on him for his age.
Because of the sudden nature of the incident, Taicheng had also contacted several well-known archaeological experts from various provinces and cities, many of whom had brought students with them, so seeing Huo Sining behind Ji Kun, they assumed she was his student and paid it no mind.
The heating inside the house was quite strong, and Ji Kun took off his winter coat as he entered.
It was then that Huo Sining noticed several professors sitting inside, huddled around a table studying a huge draft sketch of the ancient tomb’s layout.
Most of the professors had one or two young assistants with them, mostly outstanding students from under the professors’ tutelage.
Professor Xie had also brought a disciple, Ding Liang, who, at around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, was older than most of the other students present and was a doctoral student under Professor Xie.
While studying in school, students could only rely on their professors to impart knowledge and experience of archaeological work through texts and images; getting hands-on experience with real ancient tomb excavations was very difficult.
Especially as the country increasingly prioritizes the preservation of cultural artifacts, many ancient tombs, even if surveyed, would be sealed and protected and not readily excavated.
This Tang Dynasty tomb, if not for the special circumstances, would have definitely been a focus of protection by the archaeological research institute.
So, while the professors looked solemn, the fortunate students who had come along to learn couldn’t help but reveal excitement in their eyes.
After all, not everyone is so lucky as to be at the site of an ancient tomb for excavation and rescue work; even if only there to help, it’s a tremendous honor.
Of course, Huo Sining knew very well that the students these professors had brought were anything but simple characters; compared to her, these students likely had more experience and qualifications, and she was just relying on having "Heavenly Eye," a sort of cheat code.
When Ji Kun entered, the older professors all welcomed him with smiles. The students, recognizing Ji Kun, couldn’t help but start whispering among themselves.
"Professor Ji Kun is here too?"
"That female student he brought looks like a high schooler."
Ding Liang couldn’t help but look up at Huo Sining. As Professor Xie’s favored student, Ding Liang often frequented the Xie Family residence.
Huo Sining occasionally visited to deliver fresh seafood to Gan Lijun and had met Ding Liang at the Xie Family home a few times.
So, seeing Huo Sining here, a flash of surprise crossed Ding Liang’s face. Nevertheless, he smiled slightly and gave a light nod to Huo Sining as a greeting.
Huo Sining naturally couldn’t join Ji Kun sitting next to the professors. Noticing an empty seat beside Ding Liang, she quickly sat down next to him, naturally addressing him, "Senior Brother Ding."
They were all distinguished figures in the archaeological research circle, and these students, having participated in such work multiple times, were of course acquainted with each other, hence there was some comradeship.
Seeing Huo Sining as an outsider, these students couldn’t help but feel somewhat dismissive, especially as Huo Sining looked so young; thus, they naturally regarded her with a sense of disdain.