Chapter 2055: Chapter 1958: There Really Is Something
Zhou Shitao turned back to look at Huo Sining, who nodded, stepped forward, scratched the soil layer with her hand, sniffed the scent of the earth, and then confidently nodded, saying to Zhou Shitao:
"It’s right here, no doubt! Dig down, no more than a meter, there are burial items inside."
Zhou Shitao made a decisive decision and signaled the workers, "Continue digging."
Everyone present had heard of Huo Sining’s Dragon Vein Seeking method, but seeing her pinpoint something just by scratching the soil casually, this skill is truly astonishing!
Except for Shi Qingyun and Zhuang Xiangyang, others from the Cultural Relics Bureau felt skeptical about Huo Sining’s rash conclusion. However, since Huo Sining was Zhou Shitao’s disciple, no one dared to voice any objections.
Zhou Shitao completely trusted Huo Sining, and she didn’t let him down. After the workers dug into the hillside soil layer half a meter, less than a meter deep, quickly, their tools struck something hard.
The worker paused, almost immediately realized they’d hit something, eyes lit up, and hurriedly pulled back their digging tools.
"Professor Zhou, there’s really something down here!"
The worker shouted excitedly at Zhou Shitao.
"Where?" Standing beside them, Shi Qingyun and Zhuang Xiangyang were even more anxious than Zhou Shitao. Hearing the worker’s shout, they immediately rushed over but saw only a yellowish soil pit, with nothing visible inside.
"It’s down there. What I just dug hit something; I dared not use force, so I pulled back. We need different tools."
The worker chuckled, ready to switch out for smaller digging tools.
However, Zhou Shitao reacted faster than the worker. Almost at the moment the soil worker turned around, he immediately rushed over, "I’ll do it!"
Huo Sining stood nearby, completely unaware of when her master had taken out that Luoyang Shovel.
Ji Kun glanced over at the opened luggage bag on the ground beside him, now understanding why his master insisted he carry this bag of equipment when they came to Fucheng; it turned out it was meant to be used at this time.
The two disciples stood by, watching their elderly master, past his seventies, laboriously dig with a Luoyang Shovel, looking confused.
But Zhou Shitao didn’t seem to notice anything, nor did he feel any embarrassment about doing the work himself. He was quick on his feet, handling the Luoyang Shovel skillfully and with great caution.
The soil in the burial pit was actually quite loose; although it had endured a thousand years, when Zhou Shitao used the Luoyang Shovel, the soil layers quickly peeled away, and soon a round object emerged from within.
Even though only a side was exposed, this discovery excited everyone present.
Now, everyone knew that Huo Sining wasn’t just bluffing earlier.
To actually find burial items within less than a meter depth was indeed a precise assertion. Now, those from the Cultural Relics Bureau were thoroughly convinced by Huo Sining, with no one daring to question her judgment further.
After Zhou Shitao excavated the first ancient pottery jar, he stopped, and someone immediately took over, continuing to peel away the soil around the half-exposed jar. Soon, one pottery jar after another broke through the ground.
Seeing this, even outsiders realized this must be the main tomb’s burial pit.
However, Zhou Shitao also understood the scale of the Han Tomb; this was the back alley of Anmin Alley, quite a distance from the front Sanfang Street, and since this burial pit held only pottery jars, it indicated this: the Han Tomb’s burial pits likely wasn’t just one.
Zhou Shitao’s expression turned solemn as he looked back at Huo Sining:
"Huo girl, we’ve confirmed the burial pit’s location; you also know where the Main Tomb Chamber Gathering Yin Array’s position is. Using these two clues, can you map out the entire tomb’s structure?"
Back in Yunling, Huo Sining determined the entire tomb’s scale based on the passageway and main tomb chamber’s location and drew the Thousand-Year Ancient Tomb on paper, with accurate proportions.
Although Zhou Shitao wasn’t present at the time, he had heard about Huo Sining’s deeds.
Thus, he once again focused his gaze on his disciple.
Huo Sining frowned, "Master, you should know, the situation here is different from Yunling. Yunling’s soil layer was exposed, the entire ancient tomb buried within the mountain, with plant soil easily surveyed using instruments, but here in Anmin Alley, it’s all residential buildings and cement, making the soil invisible."
Zhou Shitao nodded, "I know, that’s why Master brought you here to solve the problem."
Huo Sining sighed helplessly, "Alright, I’ll try my best."
Zhou Shitao knew Huo Sining’s temperament; if she truly couldn’t do it, she wouldn’t take up the task, even refusing outright. But now, after a slight hesitation, she accepted, giving him assurance.
It seemed his young disciple was still hiding her true skills.
Zhou Shitao strongly despised Huo Sining’s deliberate secrecy but needed her help and wouldn’t expose her lie openly, yet for some reason, he suddenly felt her abilities seemed unfathomable.
As this thought arose, Zhou Shitao paused.
He couldn’t help but show a bitter smile, wondering if it was possible?
At over seventy years old, he’s an acknowledged authority in the field, his expertise among the best.
Why now, facing his young disciple, he feels unable to comprehend or gauge her depth?
The problem is, his disciple isn’t very old; she’s just turned twenty!
Thinking back to what he was doing at twenty, oh right, at twenty, he was working as a laborer at an antique shop, not even considered an apprentice.
What they call Yangtze River’s successor overcoming its precursor, leaving the precursor washed ashore; Zhou Shitao suddenly felt the inevitability of aging. Maybe, once the Han Tomb’s work proceeds smoothly, it might be time to let go and hand this stage to the young ones.
