False evidence

Chapter 337 Fishing for Spiritual Bones at the Dragon Ascension Pavilion (8)

Under the fluorescent light, a person was clearly hidden behind the stairs!

The man was about thirty years old, dressed in ancient clothes, and looked like a man, but his face was so smooth that it resembled that of a woman.

I felt that this person looked familiar. When I saw him looking at us with the same fear, I suddenly realized that he was the dead eunuch from above.
Liu the Blind also came back. The three of them exchanged glances and all understood that this was not a living person, but a ghost eunuch!

"Don't be afraid. We're just here to find something," Liu the Blind said calmly.

The eunuch's overly clever eyes darted around. "Are you three heroes of the Outlaws? Have you come here seeking wealth?"

Before we could speak, he shook his head and said, "It shouldn't be."

He glanced sideways at the glow sticks on the ground. "I've been in the palace since I was seven, and I've never seen such a luminous pearl. But the shape of this pearl is rather strange. You three must not have come here for money to possess such a rare treasure."

His voice was very soft and feminine, and he even made a delicate gesture with his fingers while speaking, which undoubtedly confirmed that he was a eunuch.

I have seen ghosts, but before this, the oldest ghost seems to be Tong Jiawen.

To actually see a ghost from hundreds of years ago, and a eunuch at that, is an extremely strange feeling.

I stepped forward to pick up the glow stick, and saw the ghost eunuch with his hands behind his back. He cautiously took two steps back, and as he thought to himself, he asked:
"May I ask your honorable name, sir?"

"I dare not accept such praise. In the palace, those of lower rank than me call me Eunuch Sun; those of higher rank call me Little Li."

I'm a little confused. It's both Grandpa Sun and Little Li. What's this guy's surname anyway?
The ghost eunuch seemed to sense my confusion, covered his mouth and chuckled, "You must have misheard. Our family name is Sun, and our given name is 'Li'."

I suddenly realized what was going on and tried asking, "Eunuch Sun, why are you here?"

Eunuch Sun sighed, "Since you've made it this far, you must know what this place is. We were originally servants of Consort Li. When she died, all of us servants and maids were buried with her."

He suddenly knelt down and kowtowed, pleading, "I beg you three heroes to save my worthless life!"

I sensed something amiss in his words and exchanged a glance with Liu Hong.

Liu Hong looked puzzled.

I realized that when Eunuch Sun said this, his head was on the ground, so Liu Hong didn't see his lip movements and naturally didn't know what he said.

Looking at Blind Liu again, and seeing him nod slightly, I became even more certain—this Eunuch Sun seemed to think he was still alive.

This seems a bit unreasonable. It's been hundreds of years. Doesn't he ever think about how he could have 'lived' for so long?
Blind Liu asked, "If it was a ritual of burial, why did everyone else die but you didn't?"

Eunuch Sun said, "One of my uncles is in charge of the Imperial Pharmacy. As soon as Consort Li died, he thought of our fate, so he gave us a fake poison pill in advance. Before the ship sank, the guards ordered us to take the medicine, but I switched the pills."

I asked, "Since you're not dead, why didn't you escape?"

Eunuch Sun said, "If we could get out, why wouldn't we escape? I've tried several times, but I can't get up there at all. It must be that a sorcerer has cast a spell on this tomb to bewitch people."

I think there's a big flaw in what he said, because there weren't any obstacles along the way down to this point.

However, since it's a ghost, it's possible that it's trapped by some kind of talisman or spell, making it difficult to escape.

I stepped forward and helped Eunuch Sun up, saying:
“We can take you away, but you have to tell us where Consort Li’s coffin is.”

Eunuch Sun hurriedly said, "As long as we can live, I'll do anything for you! Come, follow me!"

So far, apart from the palace maids on the ship that are hard to tell if they are real or fake, there is nothing else strange about this ship tomb.

However, it remains to be seen whether there are any hidden mechanisms in the burial chamber where the coffin was placed.

We are determined to obtain the imperial remains. Eunuch Sun has been here for hundreds of years. With him leading the way, we should be able to avoid a great deal of additional risks.

Following Eunuch Sun down to the lower level, this level was no longer empty, but resembled a bedroom.

Once you get here, the space is not large, but the furnishings are very luxurious.

Blind Liu gripped the armrest of a chair and whispered, "This is genuine sandalwood, from the Ming Dynasty. It could be exchanged for a three-bedroom apartment outside."

"Don't be greedy for money at this time."

I looked around and didn't find any more stairs leading down, so it seems I've reached the bottom floor.

But where is Consort Li's coffin?

Eunuch Sun truly wanted to escape from here. He went straight to the classically luxurious canopy bed, pointed at the bed surface, and said:
"The coffin is right below! We're all too weak to even kill a chicken, so come quickly and help us lift the bed board."

I hurried over and found that one of the bed boards was not nailed in place.

I took out the only utility knife I had and pried up the bed board. After lifting it up, I found there was a staircase underneath!
I secretly rejoiced that there was such a ghostly eunuch; otherwise, even if we had used up all the remaining glow sticks, we might not have been able to find this secret passage.

The blind man threw the glow stick down the stairs, and by the light, he saw a dark coffin below!
Liu Hong cautiously asked Eunuch Sun, "Eunuch Sun, are there any traps or mechanisms down here?"

Eunuch Sun seemed to be startled, jumping two meters away and looking at us in terror: "Who are you? Why are you here?"

His expression was definitely not feigned; he genuinely looked like he had just noticed someone was there!

I kind of understand why he thought he was still alive.

This guy seems to have amnesia; every now and then, he can't remember what he said or did before!

I didn't want to waste any more time, so I gave Liu Hong a look, signaling him to deal with Eunuch Sun.

I was the first to go down the stairs, and I didn't step on any traps or mechanisms.

Liu the Blind followed me down, and the two of us arrived in front of the coffin. Suddenly, the multi-tool knife in my hand slipped out of my grasp and stuck to the coffin!
Blind Liu exclaimed in surprise, "This coffin is made of magnetite!"

Hearing him say that, my heart sank.

This coffin was twice the size of a regular coffin. Without tools, it would be difficult for me, the blind man, Liu Hong, and I to open it. If we added the magnetic attraction, opening it would be virtually impossible.

I took out my glow stick, lit it up, and shone it on the coffin. I then discovered a line of words on it.

Upon closer inspection, I was stunned: "I love so-and-so?!"

This so-and-so seems to be a very popular young male celebrity right now.

How come his name is on this Ming Dynasty coffin?

"Pfft pfft!"

Liu the Blind pointed at the glow stick in my hand.

I turned around and saw something, and I was immediately at a loss for words, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

These words are actually printed on the glow sticks!

"Come and take a look over here!"

Liu the Blind waved to me.

I quickly went over and saw that at one end of the coffin, there was a roughly semi-circular groove on the coffin lid.

The grooves also have textured patterns, some concave and some convex.

As the blind man moved his finger, I saw the same semi-circular shape on the coffin.

I touched the white fish-shaped jade pendant around my neck: "It's Tai Chi."

Blind Liu nodded: "This coffin is made of magnets. If you use brute force, even a crane might not be able to open the coffin lid, which is held in place. If you ask me, this groove is probably the mechanism to open the coffin. As long as we can find the 'key,' we can easily open the coffin lid!"

(End of this chapter)