Movie variety show soul travels between two worlds to become a rich man

Chapter 439 When the Opportunity to Resist Japan Is Presented
After three rounds of wine, five flavors of food.

The room was filled with the flickering candlelight and the fragrant aroma of sandalwood. Gao Dongxu toyed with the celadon wine cup in his hand, his gaze falling on Kido Kana with a half-smile, and said with a faint smile, "I didn't expect that Miss Kido would value archaeology and cultural relic research more than anything else."

Previously, Kido Kana had been speaking gently and humbly about her love for archaeology and cultural relic research, and how much she admired her grandfather Kido Yuzo. However, upon hearing Gao Dongxu's sigh, a trace of melancholy appeared on her face. Her lowered eyelashes cast a shadow in the candlelight, and a bitter smile curved her lips.

"Mr. Gao, perhaps you don't know, but the authenticity of the Mingtang Jade Buddha Head that was brought back to Japan has always been my grandfather's lifelong regret. Before he passed away, his greatest wish was to return the Buddha Head and have the Xu family descendants uncover the truth, so that the Buddha Head and the Buddha Body could be reunited."

However, now, with the collapse of Qishan Conch Peak, the clues have been cut off, and everything has become a mirage.

Gao Dongxu smiled slightly, looking at Kido Kana's pretty face, knowing that the main event was about to begin.

At this moment, Kido Kana also changed her previous shyness, looked at Gao Dongxu with bright eyes, and said softly, "Just when I had given up hope of finding out the truth, I met Gao-san. My intuition tells me that Gao-san may be the key to finding out the truth about the Mingtang Jade Buddha Head."

"Hehe, Miss Kido, you might be disappointed. You know, I've never even seen a Buddha head before, let alone distinguish between real and fake," Gao Dongxu said with a smile, looking at Kido Kana.

Looking at the faint smile on Gao Dongxu's face, Kido Kana felt even more strongly that Gao Dongxu had some intelligence or information.

After leaving the Huang family, she did some analysis and thought, and discovered that Gao Dongxu, who had always been an outsider, was actually the person who knew the truth of that year the most among all the people. He even found three genuine national treasures that Xu Yicheng had protected back then.

In Kido Kana's view, Gao Dongxu must have possessed a great deal of intelligence and clues to find the descendants of the thirty-two forgers invited by Xu Yicheng back then and obtain those three genuine items.

Therefore, it cannot be ruled out that Gao Dongxu knew information and clues about the real Buddha head.

“Taka-san.” Kido Kana suddenly sat up straight, the hem of her kimono drawing a resolute arc on the floor.

"In order to fulfill Grandpa's dying wish and find the real Mingtang Jade Buddha head and body, the Kido family is willing to pay any price!"

In the candlelight, the fragility in Kido Kana's eyes vanished, replaced by a burning obsession.

Looking at Kido Kana, who had changed from being gentle and humble to being fanatical and obsessed, Gao Dongxu was filled with emotion.

From the Japanese envoys to Tang China in Kawachi to Kido Kana today, more than 1,300 years have passed. Their obsession with possessing the Jade Buddha of the Mingtang is truly perverse.

It's hard to imagine, and hard to understand.

While feeling moved, Gao Dongxu looked at Kido Kana in front of him and couldn't help but feel a chill, seeing only a part of the whole picture.

A Japanese family, so obsessed with a jade Buddha statue in the Mingtang, has been driven to madness for a thousand years, with generation after generation sacrificing themselves for it.

What about their covetousness and ambitions towards the Celestial Empire? Their treacherous intentions have probably never changed!
Thinking of this, a cold glint flashed in Gao Dongxu's eyes, and he sneered inwardly. Since he was still up to no good, then don't blame him for being unethical.

"Are you really willing to pay any price for an inanimate object?" Gao Dongxu looked at Kido Kana's pretty face with a smile, seemingly not hiding the heat and aggression in his eyes. He reached out and picked up the sake cup, asking the question while tilting his head back and drinking the sake in one gulp.

Kido Kana's beautiful eyes lit up at first, but then she froze when she met Gao Dongxu's burning gaze. A blush slowly crept up her cheeks, and her heart sank, but she still forced a shy expression: "Perhaps Mr. Gao doesn't understand the significance of this jade Buddha to the family."

She lowered her head to hide the coldness in her eyes. "Besides, I also had my reasons for having to find it."

"please!"

Gao Dongxu watched as Kido Kana, who was kneeling, bowed deeply to him. A cold glint flashed in his eyes again, and he sneered inwardly, but his face remained calm as he narrowed his eyes and spoke in a low voice.

In 688 AD, Wu Zetian decided to become empress and began to create public opinion in preparation for her ascension to the throne.

She publicly declared herself the reincarnation of Maitreya Buddha, descended to earth to save all people, and thus lavishly worshipped Buddhism. She ordered her male favorite, Xue Huaiyi, to build the Mingtang and Tiantang halls on the foundation of the Qianyuan Hall, and to enshrine Buddha statues within them. Among these statues, two were particularly precious. One was a large Maitreya Buddha statue made of lacquered cloth, extremely tall, enshrined in the Tiantang hall, representing Wu Zetian herself.

The other is a Vairocana Buddha, made of the finest jade imported from the Western Regions and carved in the image of Empress Wu Zetian, making it a truly rare treasure.

Empress Wu Zetian was very fond of this jade Buddha and placed it in a hidden niche in the Mingtang Hall.

At that time in Luoyang, there was also a Japanese envoy to Tang China named Kawachi Sakayoshi. Kawachi Sakayoshi was a fervent enthusiast of Tang Dynasty culture, deeply passionate about everything related to it.

Upon hearing this story and the name Kawauchi Sakayoshi, Kido Kana's beautiful eyes widened, her delicate body trembled slightly with excitement, and she looked at Gao Dongxu with burning eyes, her heart churning with emotions.

"He really knows!"

"...When Kawachi Sakayoshi saw the Vairocana jade Buddha, he immediately fell deeply in love with it and could not extricate himself...Unexpectedly, Xue Huaiyi, relying on his favored status, became arrogant and caused trouble while drunk, burning down the Mingtang in 695 AD. Taking advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, the Japanese envoy to Tang China, Kawachi Sakayoshi, stole the jade Buddha. Seeing this, Xuanjie Xiaowei Lian Heng desperately tried to retrieve the Buddha's body, but the Buddha's head was taken back to Japan by Kawachi Sakayoshi, who changed his surname to Kido to cover his tracks."

At this point, Gao Dongxu paused, looking at Kido Kana, whose face was flushed, eyes were burning with excitement, with a half-smile, and said, "Ms. Kana, I wonder if what I said is correct?"

"Hi—Taka-san, you really do know the truth. It seems my intuition was right. What you said is more detailed than the family records." Kido Kana excitedly knelt down and bowed to Taka Dong-xu again.

Upon hearing that there were family records and that he knew the contents of the above, Gao Dongxu realized that he couldn't hold Kido Kana back. If he wanted to control her, he could only say things she didn't know. So, he continued to talk about the grudges and entanglements between the Xu family and the Kido family.

"...Until the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty, a very outstanding member of the Xu family named Xu Xin participated in the Ming Dynasty's aid to Korea against the Japanese pirates. While fighting on the front lines, Xu Xin inadvertently discovered a Japanese pirate leader named Kido Akio who was trying to disguise himself and infiltrate the interior, acting suspiciously."

After several encounters, Xu Xin learned that the surname Kido originated from a branch of the Kawachi family. They had inherited Kawachi Sakayoshi's will and had always coveted the jade Buddha statue left in the Celestial Empire. In the end, the two perished together near Qishan.

"Hey, during our previous expedition to Qishan, I already saw Kido Akio's remains in the ancient tomb at Conch Peak." Kido Kana was even more excited. This matched all the clues she knew about the truth, and she was even more certain that Gao Dongxu had grasped the whole truth.

Seeing the excited and radiant Kido Kana, Gao Dongxu cast out the biggest bait.

"...In March 1928, Kido Yuzo entered China with an expedition to continue searching for the jade Buddha body and the jade Buddha head that Kido Akio had lost. In the same year, Xu Yicheng met Kido Yuzo for the first time..."

As Gao Dongxu's deep voice echoed in the room, Kido Kana unconsciously held her breath. Her fingers gripped the hem of her kimono tightly, her knuckles turning white, as if afraid that the slightest noise would interrupt the revelation of this hidden past. The candlelight flickered on her delicate face, reflecting the almost devout focus in her eyes.

However, just as the truth was about to surface, Gao Dongxu suddenly fell silent. He leisurely picked up his chopsticks, slowly and deliberately picked up a piece of crystal-clear salmon, dipped it lightly in the soy sauce dish, and savored it. His relaxed and contented demeanor contrasted sharply with Kido Kana's tense posture.

“Taka-san—” She finally couldn’t hold back any longer, leaning forward, her kimono collar slightly open, revealing a section of her snow-white neck. She held the sake cup in both hands, respectfully offering it to Gao Dongxu. “And then?”

Gao Dongxu took the wine cup, his gaze lingering brazenly on her neck. He tilted his head back and drained the glass, a playful smile curving his lips: "The rest of the story will require payment."

Kido Kana's pupils contracted slightly, a fleeting hint of embarrassment, anger, and disdain flashing in her eyes, but it vanished in an instant. She quickly replaced it with a sweet smile: "Kana was being presumptuous. How much reward does Taka-san require?"

“I don’t lack money.” Gao Dongxu put down his wine cup, his fingertips brushing against the back of her hand, seemingly unintentionally.

The air in the room seemed to freeze. The flames of the paper lanterns flickered uneasily, casting shifting shadows on the shoji screen. Kido Kana could clearly hear her own heart pounding. She lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes casting shadows on her face, and feigned shyness as she bowed her head, her voice trembling slightly: "Then...what do you want?"

Gao Dongxu's gaze lingered on her like a tangible object, finally settling on her lowered profile: "Can you tell me why you're so determined to find the Jade Buddha?" His voice suddenly sharpened, "Given the Kido family's current status and wealth..."

Before she finished speaking, the implication was clear. Kido Kana felt a chill run down her spine. She looked up and met Gao Dongxu's piercing gaze. In that instant, she suddenly realized that this man was far more dangerous than she had imagined—he not only held the secret of the jade Buddha, but also seemed to see through all her pretenses.

The maple branches in the courtyard rustled, as if witnessing this silent struggle. Kido Kana's fingertips unconsciously traced the family crest embroidered on the cuff of her kimono, a symbol of the Kido family's thousand-year heritage and her inescapable destiny.

(End of this chapter)