In Sumeru, pretend to be a scholar

“Then…” Wang Yan hesitated.

"Enough with this and that. If there is a secret passage, then the way to open it probably lies in these carved flowers."

Eros reached out and pointed at Wang Yan.

"Now it's up to you."

As soon as he finished speaking, Elhesen and Kavi both looked at Wang Yan and nodded.

Suddenly, the pressure fell on Wang Yan.

Chapter 95 Million Mora Profit Sharing (20/20, Seeking First Subscription)

Although it was said that the task was handed over to Wang Yan, the three of them, including Falushan, did not stop doing nothing; they were still helping Wang Yan with the deduction.

"If a relief sequence carries a narrative, then it should have a beginning and an end, and may imply hints of time or process."

“Wang Yan, I remember there was a record in the book about the order or positional significance of flower combinations.”

El-Hysen spoke first.

He had read the book "Albiruni: A Preliminary Study of Flora's Symbolism" and had an excellent memory, so he could naturally make connections to many other things.

Wang Yan immediately nodded: "Yes, Albiluni recorded the symbolic meanings of several common combinations. For example, the 'lily of the valley-rose' sequence often appears in tombs or memorial buildings, representing 'the living's remembrance of the deceased and their wish for their return'."

"However, the book does not explain in detail how they are distributed or interpreted in specific buildings."

After a moment of contemplation, Erosham turned to Kavi: "You are sensitive to structure. Could you try to find the starting point and possible ending point of these sequences within the temple? By combining this with the symbolic interpretation of the King's words, we might be able to reconstruct the 'story' that this temple is trying to tell."

As a senior, she was the only one here who was qualified to give orders.

Kavi did not refuse and nodded solemnly: "Leave it to me. I need some time to survey the layout of the reliefs in the entire main hall and mark all the recurring floral combinations and their positions."

Elhesen didn't need Elushan to speak; he said directly, "I will assist in recording and classifying, help Wang Yan continue to compare documents, confirm the symbolic meaning of other appearing flowers, and add annotations to Kavi's layout diagram."

Wang Yan finally felt like he was being led by a master in an experiment, and nodded vigorously: "Okay! I have started building the index and will soon be able to organize the meanings of the flower patterns that have been identified."

"Then let's get to work!"

The four scholars got busy.

Wang Yan sat cross-legged in the center of the hall, with the thick book "Albiruni: A Preliminary Exploration of the Symbolism System of Flora" spread out on his lap. He held a pen in his hand and quickly compared the book's descriptions of various flower symbols with the patterns he had marked in the hall.

Kavi produced from somewhere a roll of finely drawn grid paper and a set of exquisite drawing tools, and slowly walked through the main hall, his eyes measuring every inch of space with a keen eye.

"My eyes are my ruler"—this statement was no joke for such an outstanding scholar of the school of witty reasoning.

Sometimes he would press close to the wall, his fingertips lightly brushing across the uneven surface of the relief, feeling the deep, winding lines of the carving; other times he would step back a few steps, squint his eyes, and take in the different combinations of flowers from different directions into the same field of vision, pondering the spatial relationships between them.

The drawing pencil scratched across the paper, and auxiliary lines and symbols quickly built a three-dimensional sketch of the main temple. He carefully marked the location of each specific flower with a symbol of a different color.

Elhesen then left the main hall and went to the front hall to begin examining all the reliefs in the temple from the beginning.

Time slipped away quietly in the silent yet efficient collaboration, and before we knew it, the sun outside the ruins had risen high overhead.

“Several academics, research is very important, but they also need to eat.”

Dixia came in from outside carrying a food box and called out to the group.

The sound disrupted the atmosphere of the research.

Wang Yan's thoughts gradually returned from the book, and when she looked at her notebook again, she saw three more successful comparison marks.

"Alright, let's eat first," Erosanne's voice rang out.

Wang Yan got up from the ground. His legs were a little numb from sitting, so he rested for a moment before walking towards Dixia: "What do you want to eat for lunch?"

"The caravan brought some refrigerated green vegetables, and the logistics staff bought quite a lot. We'll have fresh vegetables for lunch." Dixia smiled, opened the food box, took out several dishes, and then gave each of the four scholars a bowl and chopsticks.

"You guys eat, I'll clean up when you're done."

"Oh, right, Wang Yan, Kavi, Dolly is outside. She seems to need to talk to you."

"And so Dixia said."

Wang Yan was eating rice when he heard this. He chewed a few mouthfuls and swallowed the food: "Dolly? What do you want with us?"

Kavi chimed in, "It must be about the toothpaste factory. After you left, Zakaria and I handed the factory over to her. It's been over a month now, and it's time for dividends. You're the major shareholder, so we definitely need your approval."

“I won’t go. I have some ideas, so I don’t want them to get lost. You can decide,” Kavi said.

"Oh, another dividend?" Wang Yan was taken aback.

To be honest, during the past month or so, he had been learning from Eros and had almost forgotten that he had such an income.

This should be a large sum of money, but Wang Yan found that she didn't seem very happy.

The pleasure that money brings him has fallen far behind the satisfaction that knowledge brings him.

"Then let's go out together after we finish eating."

Although he didn't care much about the money, Wang Yan didn't mean to say he didn't want it.

Scholars may not care about money, but they cannot care about their research topics.

After quickly ending the battle, Wang Yan helped Dixia clean up the mess, and then the two of them left the ruins together.

As Wang Yan emerged from the shady ruins, the blazing sun overhead struck him like a blow; it was unbearably hot.

Wang Yan quickly pulled out his sun hat and put it on. He and Dixia handed the food box to the aunt in Aru Village, and then walked towards the airship a few hundred meters away from the camp.

The walk from the camp to the airship was uncomfortable; the high temperature and sand were truly torturous.

However, after boarding the spaceship, a cool breeze swept over us.

This spaceship actually has air conditioning.

"Oh my, this must be Scholar Wang Yan! I've heard so much about you!"

A small figure ran over quickly, grabbed Wang Yan's hand, and shook it vigorously.

Dolly's face was full of flattering smiles, very genuine.

She is always very polite to people who can help her make money.

"Ahem, Dolly, let's get down to business." Wang Yan withdrew his hand and took a step back.

He dared not underestimate the guy in front of him.

Dolly didn't mind and smiled as she asked, "Would Scholar Wang Yan like to see the ledgers regarding the toothpaste factory?"

As she spoke, she waved, and a person came up from behind, holding a thick ledger in his hands.

Wang Yan glanced at the ledger, then shook his head: "I won't look at the ledger. I still trust Lord Sangge Mahabay. Please just tell me my dividend for December."

If Dolly really resorts to underhanded tactics, Wang Yan doesn't think he can find any problems in the accounts she's prepared.

So whether you look at the ledger or not is really not important.

Ultimately, it all comes down to money. As long as the dividends are satisfactory, Wang Yan doesn't care what Dolly does.

He didn't treat this project as a real career; it was essentially a way to raise academic funds.

After all, he is a scholar, not a businessman.

“Then I’ll get to the point.” Dolly smiled even more broadly. “Since I took over your toothpaste project in December, I’ve expanded production and distributed it in multiple locations… The toothpaste has already started to be sold in other countries, but the market hasn’t fully opened up yet… The shipment volume should increase further.”

"Therefore, I plan to set aside a portion of the funds for subsequent expansion and promotion, and finally distribute 3 million Mora as dividends. You will receive 1.5 million, while scholars Kavi and Zakaria will each receive 750,000 Mora."

Wang Yan nodded slightly. The number was satisfactory, considering that development funds had been withheld.

However, Wang Yan still had some doubts: "What about yours?"

The money was all split among the three of them as dividends, so Dolly is working for free? That doesn't seem like a likely solution.

"Hehe, I've already told Kavi and Zakaria that I'll help you with this project without charging any fees, but apart from Sumeru, I'll be the agent for the toothpaste."

Dolly didn't hide anything and told her directly.

Wang Yan immediately understood.

In Sumeru, Wang Yan set the price at twelve to eighteen Mora, but after Dolly obtained the agency rights for other countries, the price naturally changed.

That's what she earns money from.

Wang Yan nodded slightly; this was a win-win cooperation method.

"Then please transfer the money to my Order House account."

"Okay, no problem."

Dolly agreed immediately.

"If there's nothing else, I'll be going now." Wang Yan just wanted to go back and continue conquering the Flower Goddess Ruins.

"Hehe, then take care, take care."

Chapter 96 The Secret Passage Opens

Dolly's share of the profits did not cause much of a stir in the site.

Erossen and Elhesen simply asked about the number and offered their congratulations, then paid no further attention.

In the following days, Xing Shuo Mu focused on the Flower Goddess ruins in front of him.

One afternoon in mid-January.

The research has finally yielded a breakthrough.

Kavi let out a short, excited gasp, attracting the attention of the fishy-looking creature.

He laid the drawing paper flat on a relatively flat surface and used a few small stones to weigh down the four corners.

On the drawing, radiating lines from the center of the main hall clearly indicate the distribution of different floral reliefs.

The fishy art tells the story.

“Look here!” Kavi pointed to a densely marked area on the west side of the drawing. “All the ‘Lily of the Sand’ patterns are concentrated on two axes: one starts from the third pillar in the northwest corner, extends south along the west wall to the southwest corner; the other starts from the middle of the north wall, diagonally across the central area of ​​the palace, and finally connects with a certain place on the south wall.”

"More importantly, near the ends of both 'Lily of the Valley Paths', the same combination appears! Following the lily of the valley are small groups of 'Red Sand Rose' and 'Starry Night Twilight Flower' sculptures. Did Albiruni mention this combination in his book?"

As Kavi spoke, he looked at Wang Yan.

Wang Yan immediately lowered his head to flip through the pages, then looked up, a flash of understanding in his eyes: "Yes! The book records that 'Red Sand Rose' symbolizes 'deeply buried sacrifice and silent waiting,' while 'Starry Night Twilight Flower' represents 'the long night is about to end, and the first light appears.'"

"According to the combination of their flower meanings, these three flowers appear in sequence, forming a fixed image called 'the order of watchfulness,' which is usually used to mark... 'the beginning or end of the path to a hidden place'!"

This imagery almost certainly confirms that there is indeed a secret passage here.

“Starting point or ending point…” Eros walked to the drawing. “One is on the north wall, where the wall meets the ground. It has a solid structure. If there is a secret passage, the entrance design here would require complex support and would not be easy to hide large-scale mechanisms.”

“The other one…” Her gaze shifted to a spot on the south wall, which was slanted towards from the middle of the north wall. “Here, I remember there was a relief on the south wall that was quite badly damaged, but the base was intact.”

The relief is badly damaged, but don't ask why it's damaged. Killing a Sacred Relic Scorpion always comes at a price.

Al-Hysen nodded slightly: "Based on spatial logic and common ritual flow, the starting point is more likely to be set in a more 'formal' or 'prominent' position as the beginning of the sequence."

“The middle section of the north wall, directly opposite the main hall entrance, is slightly west of the central axis, which is in accordance with the etiquette of being the starting point.”

“And the endpoint,” he pointed to the south wall, “is located in a relatively secluded place or requires a detour to reach, which fits the implication of a ‘hidden place.’ I suggest focusing our investigation on the starting point area, the north wall, first.”

Opinions were quickly unified.

The four immediately moved to the middle section of the north wall, where the reliefs were relatively well preserved. The wall was made of huge square stone bricks with tight joints.

Kavi stepped forward and carefully tapped the bricks with his fingers, listening intently to the echo.

The remaining three also carefully observed the details of the relief sculpture near the starting point.

“It’s here!” Kavi suddenly stopped knocking, his voice filled with suppressed excitement. “This area, about four bricks in size, has a slightly unusual sound when I tap it, different from the surrounding area! And look at the gaps between the bricks…”

Wang Yan leaned closer for a closer look and, sure enough, there were several strips of wood where the vines of the 'Red Sand Rose' and 'Starry Night Twilight Flower' intertwined.

He traced the seemingly natural lines with his fingertips; the direction of these patterns was subtly out of sync with the surrounding genuine relief texture.

At first glance, it's not noticeable, but the more you look at it, the more obvious it becomes, like a disguise used to cover up seams.

"It seems this is the location of the trap." Erosan smiled, her eyes filled with encouragement as she looked at Wang Yan. "Think about it, what's the last clue?"

Kavi and Elhesen also stepped back, giving the center position to Wang Yan.

This was Wang Yan's first assessment, and they were willing to give him a good start.

After giving his mentor and two friends a grateful look, Wang Yan became serious and no longer needed to look through the documents. He had already memorized the entire book in the past few days.