Daming: Internship also counts as work experience

Chapter 139 Understand
Jia Chuan remained calm at this moment. He knew that Gao Yunduo and Dong Yuanyuan would come out soon, and they were all standing here watching... Two bags of instant noodles came out of the nunnery, and by then it would be too late for him to shift his attention.

So Jia Chuan pulled Xu Gong and Qian Guan toward the back wall of the main hall and whispered:
"Big Brother, have them surround the small temple first. Even if they dig, not many people can go down. Right now, we still need to be wary of people outside. I feel like those people are secretly watching nearby. They didn't move last night because they only dug out half a box. They also need to consider whether it's worthwhile, just in case..."

Before Jia Chuan could finish speaking, Xu Gong turned around and glanced at the person behind him, who then went to make arrangements.

Jia Chuan then whispered, "I'm just guessing there should be quite a few boxes inside, but it's hard to say for sure. I think the Emperor is looking forward to it? And he's taking it very seriously?"

Qian Guan's face scrunched up like a bun, and he said aggrievedly, "Which of your words doesn't the Emperor believe? If it weren't for this... I, I..."

Xu Gong comforted him, "Don't rush, we'll only know after we dig, even if it's just two or three boxes..."

"What if... just that half-box?" Jia Chuan asked tentatively.

Xu Gong looked at Jia Chuan seriously and said, "Good luck to you. Don't worry about your past achievements."

Jia Chuan felt relieved immediately. As long as he didn't risk his life, that was fine. If he were asked to live in seclusion in the mountains right now, he would be more than happy to do so.

Seeing Jia Chuan breathe a sigh of relief, Xu Gong frowned and asked, "Do you have a plan in mind, or...?"

Jia Chuan hurriedly said, "What do I know? This case is very bizarre. My mind is a mess. The only consolation right now is that there is half a box of gold in the cellar. But I deduce that this small temple was built to hide this gold and silver. If there was only this one box... there would be no need to go to such lengths to build the temple, and those people would not have needed to risk making this trip."

Xu Gong and Qian Guan both breathed a sigh of relief.

Xu Gong didn't want to wait a moment longer and immediately ordered people to go down and investigate how to dig. Judging from the situation, they were about to start digging.

The men who went down first brought up the half-box of gold. Xu Gong watched his men count and record the gold under the torchlight, then picked up the gold ingot and examined it again and again...

Qian Guan and Jia Chuan had already sat down by the fire. Qian Guan needed to know the ins and outs of the case. After finding out approximately how much gold and silver was buried in the cellar, he would return to report.

The Emperor is truly concerned.

"...Emperor Taizong led several northern expeditions, and the national treasury was already running a deficit. This is not my opinion, but something I heard the emperor say. He said it's just like how ordinary people live. If they have enough money, they can do what they want; if they don't, they can't."

Jia Chuan sighed and said, "His Majesty has it tough! To put it simply, someone from the previous dynasty brought gold and silver to this deserted little mountain, perhaps waiting for the chaos to subside before doing anything. Who knew that the first person to come would not live to see this day, but the temple never stopped having people chanting sutras. Whether they were of the same clan is now unknown, because the last two old monks and the two old Taoist priests who came to ask for lodging have all died."

Jia Chuan explained his deductions about the case, and finally said: "...In other words, someone knew that someone had taken away a lot of gold and silver and hidden it somewhere. Now that it has been found, I dared to order Gao Yuntian to return to the capital immediately. I thought that something that has been coveted for over a hundred years... Regardless of whether it is only gold and silver, the Emperor must be informed of this case immediately."

Qian Guan nodded repeatedly, let out a long breath, and said, "The Emperor said that anything you can say is almost certainly true."

Jia Chuan never expected that he would be seen as such a responsible person by Zhu Zhanji.

"At that time, Commander Liu advised the emperor to act cautiously. He said that the Jinyiwei should leave the city in a hurry on New Year's Day, which might cause panic. The emperor said, 'Since Jia Chuan is in such a hurry, it must be something important that cannot be delayed.' Commander Liu then said nothing more."

Jia Chuan sighed and said:
"Your Majesty understands me best! You have no idea how I survived last night. Gao Yuntian has returned to the capital, and I only have two capable fighters by my side, both women. The four Taoist priests we encountered here yesterday were quite formidable. If Gao Yuntian hadn't been there, you might not have even seen me. I'm also puzzled. Is it because I'm a responsible person who pursues cases to the end that I've attracted so much trouble? Other officials also hold office, so why don't they have such extraordinary encounters?"

Qian Guan snorted and said in a low voice, "Do you think other officials would report this without hesitation if they discovered something like this? You saw gold in the cellar and knew it was a big deal, so you immediately sent someone to the capital. Other officials would probably be thinking about how to cover it up and weigh the pros and cons again and again. Can you compare them?"

Jia Chuan feigned a sigh, but what he really wanted was for Qian Guan to say those words.

At this moment, Xu Gong walked over, sat down, and asked, "Did you keep watch like this all night last night?"

Jia Chuan nodded and said, "There's still half a chest of gold there. If they don't mind taking more, they'll take it no matter what, and that'll just cost them more lives! To be honest, even if they come, there's nothing I can do to help, but I just can't sleep. I figure you won't arrive until tomorrow, so I'll have to stay up all night again..."

"His Majesty was worried that you would risk your life again, which is why he ordered us to travel day and night without delay."

Jia Chuan chuckled awkwardly twice, then suddenly asked nervously, "Is there... anything more?"

Xu Gong said seriously, "There must be some. They are figuring out how to dig them up. However, the box of gold nuggets they brought up must have been melted down and recast. There is no year mark or shape to be found."

"Is it gold?" Jia Chuan asked nervously.

"It's definitely a gold nugget."

"That's fine then, who cares when it was?"

"If you don't know these things, how can you investigate this case?" Qian Guan asked.

Jia Chuan shrugged and said, "I never thought to check if the gold had the year mark or shape you mentioned, but I can deduce what happened. As for whether it's accurate or not... I can't wake up people from a hundred years ago to ask me if my deduction is right or wrong. I think it's pretty close."

Hearing Jia Chuan say that he had never thought about checking the age of the gold nuggets, Xu Gong breathed a sigh of relief. Judging from the relaxed manner in which Jia Chuan said these words, he didn't seem to be lying. He hadn't even checked the age of the gold nuggets, which showed that he really hadn't had any other intentions. Xu Gong couldn't help but sigh in his heart: He's still too young. Such a good opportunity.

Jia Chuan was unaware that his words had led Xu Gong to define him, and that Xu Gong had even conveyed this view to Zhu Zhanji.

Jia Chuan simply repeated what he had just said to Qian Guan. Xu Gong listened carefully and then asked, "Do you think those two Taoist priests aren't with these people?"

Jia Chuan pointed to the nunnery across the way and said, "After the three of them were arrested, I asked them some questions, some trivial ones, you could say I was trying to reason with them. They all kept quiet and didn't answer. At the time, I didn't think much of it and just assumed they were being stubborn. But later I realized what was going on and I knew that they weren't just being stubborn, but that if they spoke, it would reveal that they weren't one of us."

Xu Gong asked, "Do you think the two old Taoist priests were brought in to extract information, but ended up freezing to death?"

"I haven't figured that out yet. Anyway, there's some way to force them to come. Once they're here, they'll chat with the two old monks, and the conversation will veer off course. Instead of helping those people, they'll start discussing how to escape their clutches. The best way is to lure the villagers in, and then the villagers will report it to the authorities. Once the county yamen runners arrive, those people will be helpless..."

Xu Gong raised his hand to interrupt Jia Chuan and asked, "After the county officials come and take the monks and Taoists away, wouldn't it be even more to their liking if the temple were empty?"

“You forgot there was a bundle of silver in there. The Taoist priest stayed overnight on the eve of the Lunar New Year. If they had been allowed to find a way to report it to the authorities, do you think those people would have had a chance to dig? They wanted the opportunity to dig secretly, not to watch others dig. Besides, I don’t know if those people already knew the things were in the cellar. They must have come to this small temple several times under the cover of darkness before. The first time I came, I didn’t see the entrance to the cellar at all…” Xu Gong immediately asked, “How did you know about the cellar?”

"Naturally, it was the villagers who told us. The villagers here are simple and honest. They bring most of the food and drink to the old monks in the temple. In this kind of weather, without the villagers' help to fetch water and chop firewood, the two old men would have died long ago. It has been like this for so many years. They know that there is a cellar in the temple, but they don't know what the cellar is used for."

Xu Gong nodded and asked again, "So, this case should have nothing to do with the villagers."

Jia Chuan could feel his heart racing; his moment of truth had arrived, for his next words would affect the lives of hundreds.

“The villagers were definitely the first to be suspected,” Jia Chuan said seriously. “The people who know the small temple best should have been the most suspicious, but after examining the body, I was certain that it had nothing to do with the villagers.”

"Villagers wouldn't use freezing to death as a method of murder, but people in the north often use this method."

"Huh?" Jia Chuan really didn't expect that.

"They prefer to hang people on poles to endure the cold wind, which is much more effective than whipping them, and countless herders freeze to death every year, so they have experience in this area."

Jia Chuan took a deep breath.

Xu Gong then asked, "Do any villagers know that gold nuggets have been found in the cellar?"

Jia Chuan shook his head and said, "It's not that I don't trust them, it's just... I don't want to cause them any trouble. But because of this, I know that the villagers are unaware of the situation. They were just naughty when they were young and sneaked into the temple. They were the ones who discovered the cellar, and that's all."

Xu Gong was taken aback.

Qian Guan laughed and said, "The Emperor said that you are affectionate everywhere and everyone pities you."

Jia Chuan could only chuckle twice.

Xu Gong frowned and gave Jia Chuan a meaningful look. Just then, his subordinate reported that they were about to start digging.

……

Jia Chuan didn't know how exploration and excavation were carried out in this era without any equipment, nor was he curious to know. He chatted with Qian Guan and then fell asleep leaning against him. When he woke up, Gao Yuntian had already returned.

Upon seeing Gao Yuntian, Jia Chuan immediately sobered up and asked, "Did everyone get back safely?"

Gao Yuntian nodded wearily.

Jia Chuan then realized that Gao Yuntian had worked much harder than him, and quickly pointed to the nunnery behind him, saying, "Go inside and get some sleep."

Gao Yuntian turned his head to look in the direction of the cellar.

"Don't worry, I will explain the reason to Vice Commissioner Xu. You haven't slept for so many days since you came and went."

Gao Yuntian knew about the relationship between Jia Chuan and Xu Gong, so he didn't say anything more and went to sleep in the nunnery. Soon, snoring could be heard behind Jia Chuan, and even the cheers coming from the direction of the cellar failed to wake Gao Yuntian.

……

Poor Qian Guan waited all night before hastily riding back to the capital.

It wasn't that no more chests were found in the cellar, nor that all the gold and silver were dug out; rather, only five chests were unearthed, containing three gold and two silver. No one knew how much more was left, but the courtyard wall had already been demolished.

Qian Guan knew the Emperor was concerned, and he had to go back to report first. He couldn't wait a moment longer for this wonderful news, and left as excitedly as if he had discovered a treasure.

Xu Gong had been working non-stop since leaving Beijing, his bloodshot eyes now gleaming with an eerie light as he stared at the construction site in the cellar, seemingly unwilling to even blink.

Jia Chuan advised him to go to sleep for a while, but Xu Gong said he wasn't sleepy at all.

Jia Chuan recalled that when they were on the verge of solving a case in his previous life, they were also excited and not sleepy. But this was different. Once they found it, it would belong to the country. They were not an archaeological team, and the gold and silver had no research value. So why were they so excited?
Jia Chuan couldn't understand it at first, but it didn't take long for him to figure it out.

……

Xu Gong could only hold on until 9 AM before he could no longer continue. Jia Chuan woke Gao Yuntian and helped Xu Gong inside to rest. After Xu Gong lay down, he took Jia Chuan's hand and whispered, "The Emperor's evaluation of you is not good for your future career."

At this moment, Jia Chuan was moved. He knew that Xu Gong was referring to the comment that "everyone is pitied." He had thought that was the meaning when he heard it, but he didn't care. It wasn't about pity or not, but about different ways of being educated. In his view, apart from the officials who could enter the main hall, everyone else was the same and equal. As for why the people in the main hall were different?
Jia Chuan didn't know either, but he knew that he was nervous when he went to the provincial department to meet the department leaders. He had never met officials above that level, and he thought that meeting them would only make him more nervous. They were not even on the same level, so to say that they were equal was simply not equal.

It's like a child asking an adult for equality; how mature would the adult have to be to talk to a child about equality?
The reason is simple: you don't know anything.

But people who are roughly equal in social standing are not so different, at least that's what Jia Chuan thinks. He looked at the people in this life with the same eyes he had in his previous life, and most of them were under his sight. It was hard for him not to feel pity.

Seeing Xu Gong with red eyes, looking seven years older from exhaustion, yet still concerned about his future career, how could Jia Chuan not be moved?

He called Xu Gong "brother" just to appear affectionate. In the capital, he had already restrained himself by not calling everyone "brother." In his previous life, he had only seen others use this skill; he had never had the chance to use it himself.

But his feigned sincerity won Xu Gong's heart, and Jia Chuan lowered his head in shame.

"Don't worry, now that we have a foundation, we'll help you smooth things over in the future, and it won't be bad."

"Hmm?" Jia Chuan's nose, which had been blocked by the cold, cleared up immediately.

(End of this chapter)