The human heart is insatiable, like a snake attempting to devour an elephant. Especially in our line of work, where nine out of ten tombs turn out to be empty, the situation where a succulent piece of meat remains untouched is considered a rare gem.
Therefore, it is imperative to maximize our gains. The coffins of the two empresses are undoubtedly considered delicacies, ones we cannot afford to abandon.
Just as we pried open Empress Yefu's coffin, the red light on the walkie-talkie blinked a few times, accompanied by a burst of static, but no one spoke.
"Old Ding, Lingjie, is something wrong? Speak up."
After a moment of waiting, there was no response.
Zhang Wenjie grabbed the walkie-talkie and exclaimed urgently, "Lingzi, Old Ding, respond, please respond."
There was still no reply from the other end.
Such a situation was almost impossible to occur unless there was an emergency situation, where there was simply no time to speak.
Exchanging glances, a sinister atmosphere silently spread, and everyone realized that something might have gone wrong above.
"Quick, let's get out."
Zhang Wenjie placed the gold foil in a spectacle case, and we carried the woven bags into the thieves' hole. The climbing rope was still there, and a voice came from above.
"Is everyone tied up? I'll pull."
Hearing Old Ding's voice, we felt relieved.
Chen Duoyu cursed, "You old rascal, where were you? You scared us to death."
"The walkie-talkie ran out of battery; I just recharged it."
One by one, the woven bags were pulled up, and finally, another woven bag was lowered, bulging and heavy-looking.
Reaching out to touch it, the texture felt different. The accompanying items were hard, uneven, while this bag was smooth and soft to the touch.
My mind went blank, and my scalp went numb.
"Something's not right. It seems like there's someone inside!"
Hearing this, everyone's expression changed drastically. Zhang Wenjie immediately drew his dagger, slashing open the woven bag, and a person rolled out.
It was Zhang Ling!
"Lingzi, wake up."
"Lingjie, please wake up."
...
Everyone clamored, but I gestured for silence, bending down to listen to Zhang Ling's breath while checking for any movement in her chest.
"No breathing or heartbeat." I shook my head, tears almost welling up.
"You said you could bring back the dead, so if you could save me, you could definitely save Lingzi. Hurry, save her."
Chen Laoda panicked and mistakenly referred to CPR as reviving the dead.
"But the golden rescue time for CPR is only four minutes. I'm afraid..."
Zhang Wenjie shouted at me, "Why bother with all that? We need to act quickly, or it'll be too late."
Saving lives was paramount. I picked up Zhang Ling, found a flat area, and began CPR.
The situation was urgent, and gender differences were disregarded. I operated swiftly and decisively, touching what needed to be touched and doing what needed to be done, regardless of propriety.
Suddenly, Zhang Ling's body trembled, and she began coughing violently.
"Lingjie, you're awake. It's truly a relief."
Zhang Ling glanced at the unbuttoned buttons on her chest and the slightly reddened skin where I had pressed, seemingly understanding something.
"Old Ding, you had a terrible death."
Upon hearing Chen Duoyu's voice, we hurried over to find another woven bag, this time containing Old Ding. There was a bloody hole in his chest, and he was completely lifeless.
Simultaneously, a glaring light beamed down, followed by a chilling and terrifying laughter.
"Zhang Wenjie, Chen Tianfu, Chen Duoyu, long time no see. I hope you are well," the voice echoed.
The light was too intense, blinding us like headlights shining into our eyes, rendering everything invisible.
Zhang Wenjie questioned sharply, "Who are you?"
A smug laughter followed, accompanied by various sounds of animals, human voices, and even aircraft and cannons.
"Is it Liu Zui?" Zhang Wenjie inquired.
This person was well-known in the industry for his ability to mimic various sounds flawlessly, earning him the nickname "Liu Zui," as few knew his real name.
"Haha, Mr. Zhang, you recognized me," came the reply.
"What's this? The White Gang has stretched their hands into our territory? Have you forgotten the agreement between Madame Bai and our ancestors?" Zhang Wenjie retorted.
"Hmph, Madame Bai and your ancestors agreed that this area would be jointly developed. However, that short-lived fellow surnamed Du has already been shot dead. There's only one Madame Bai left in the Guanzhong region. It's your ignorance and arrogance that refuse to submit to the White Gang," the voice replied.
"Madame Bai is here too?" Zhang Wenjie inquired.
Liu Zui didn't answer but instead said, "I'll thank you on behalf of Madame for the generous gift you've sent. Tomorrow will be your anniversary, and you'll die. Farewell."
As soon as the words fell, soil began to pour down from above the thieves' hole, and then the collapse began.
"Danger! Quickly, back inside," we were forced to retreat back into the underground palace, watching helplessly as the thieves' hole was sealed shut, cutting off our escape route.
The situation was as follows.
The stray old lady that Zhang Ling had seen the previous night was actually disguised as Madame Bai.
In fact, the White Gang had long established a stronghold in the scenic forest of Pailing, secretly monitoring our every move, hoping to reap the benefits.
Madame Bai had an even more malicious ultimate goal. Since the gang was unwilling to be absorbed by them, they planned to capture us all and then dominate the region, enjoying the treasures hidden underground in the Guanzhong area.
Zhang Ling deeply regretted not killing Madame Bai at the time, to prevent future troubles. She blamed her momentary kindness for causing the death of Old Ding and leaving us in a life-and-death situation.
"Now what's the use of saying all this? Lingzi, forgive me for saying this, but it's truly a woman's folly," Chen Duoyu sighed heavily, squatting against the wall, sulking alone.
"It's all my fault. I've let everyone down."
"Lingjie, don't be sad. They are too cunning," Zhang Wenjie comforted.
"Alright, let's stop here," Zhang Wenjie looked at Chen Laoda and asked, "What are the chances of digging out a way?."
Chen Laoda pondered for a moment, sighed, and said, "The likelihood is slim. Without proper tools, relying solely on our hands would be futile, and we'd eventually exhaust ourselves to death."
This was a deadlock, with almost no possibility of breaking through.
Suddenly, Zhang Wenjie slapped his thigh. "This is a central-type tomb with passages in front and behind. The front is blocked, so let's check behind."
With a glimmer of hope, we immediately went inside the main tomb chamber to search for another entrance to the passage.
"Wait!"
Chen Laoda's expression turned grave as he poured cold water on everyone.
"This is a quicksand tomb. When we entered, I almost ended up in hot water. Even if we find another entrance, there's no guarantee we can open the diamond wall. And even if we do, we'll be buried alive."
His words were true. During the excavation of Ding Tomb in the Ming Tombs, it took the archaeological team nearly three months to open the diamond wall.
We had also entered by circumventing the diamond wall in the front chamber.
The flicker of hope that had just ignited was mercilessly extinguished, and death was slowly closing in.