After opening the stone door, the room was filled with exquisite Song Dynasty ceramics, which amazed everyone but also left them with lingering fear. If an explosion had actually been carried out, the stone door would probably have been shattered, and few of the precious ceramics in the room would have survived intact.
As the saying goes, there is no order of learning, and those who reach the highest level are teachers. In places where top figures in the scientific research field gather in China, the academic atmosphere is relatively pure. Zhuang Rui's persistence enabled the archaeological team to avoid a major accident, which is a real achievement.
So after this incident, the senior experts treated Zhuang Rui differently, and when they held work meetings, they treated Zhuang Rui as an equal.
Some staff members in the archaeological team who were older and more experienced than Zhuang Rui, and who had made achievements in relevant archaeological departments in various places, also put aside their seniority and sincerely acknowledged Zhuang Rui's position as deputy commander-in-chief.
Therefore, although everyone in the tent was waiting for Zhuang Rui, no one criticized him for being late. If it were another young man, he would probably have been scolded mercilessly by these old men.
Professor Wu, who was giving a speech, nodded to Zhuang Rui, who had come later, and continued, "Underneath this grassland lies the Xilin Gol Complex, a large-scale, highly deformed metamorphic geological body in the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. The sedimentary formation age of this rock is later than the Late Ordovician, making crustal movement extremely unlikely. Therefore, this area is suitable for building a complex connecting the surface and underground, similar to the underground palaces of the Ming Tombs in Beijing..."
Zhuang Rui didn't understand most of what Professor Wu was saying, but he understood the last few sentences. Apparently, they were discussing the tourism plan for the Genghis Khan Mausoleum.
Zhuang Rui couldn't help but curl his lip. These people present hadn't even figured out the identity of the tomb's owner, yet they were already thinking about the future tourism prospects. Typical bureaucracy.
"Professor Wu, the terrain here is quite complex, with not only layers of rock but also underground rivers running through it. Wouldn't it be too difficult to tunnel directly through from above?"
A leader from the tourism department suggested that a 100-meter-long tunnel be built on the ground, which would be a huge project.
The money was, of course, paid by the relevant departments. This leader was afraid that he might not even be able to recoup his investment. Of course, he wouldn't say that directly, since, from the current perspective, the political significance of this archaeological excavation far outweighs the excavation itself.
“These aren’t problems. Building such a passage is much easier than opening the Qinghai-Tibet Railway. It just takes longer, and we also need to develop a plan based on the identity of the tomb’s occupant…”
Professor Wu is a very pragmatic person, and his words hit the nail on the head. If this tomb belongs to Genghis Khan or Kublai Khan, then it should naturally be extensively repaired and renovated. At the very least, an architectural complex that is no less impressive than the one underground should be built on the surface.
However, if the tomb is just one of the imperial mausoleums from the late Yuan Dynasty and the unearthed artifacts are quite ordinary, then it doesn't need to be given too much attention, or it might be possible to reseal it.
The leader agreed with Professor Wu's words and turned to Professor Meng, asking, "Professor Wu is right. May I ask, Professor Meng, has the identity of the person who occupants of this tomb been ascertained?"
"Xiao Zhuang, why don't you tell us..."
Professor Meng did not answer the leader's question directly, but looked at Zhuang Rui. Professor Meng will resign from his teaching position at Peking University next year, which means he will retire completely. Therefore, any opportunities for advancement now are handled by Zhuang Rui.
Zhuang Rui understood his teacher's good intentions and didn't refuse. He coughed to clear his throat and said, "It will probably take some time before we can ascertain the identity of the tomb's occupant. However, judging from the burial objects that have been unearthed so far, the occupant of this tomb is very likely the Great Khan of the Mongol Khanate, or one of the first three emperors of the Yuan Dynasty..."
The artifacts unearthed from the ceramic tomb were almost entirely official kiln porcelain from the Song Dynasty. There were no pieces of so-called Yuan blue and white porcelain or ceramics in the Yuan style, which indicates that the tomb was built in the early Yuan Dynasty or even earlier.
Chapter 1179 Zhuang Rui's Thoughts
"The Great Khan of the Mongol Khanate? Isn't that a bit too narrow? Because besides Genghis Khan, there's only Ögedei and Möngke? No one else has firmly secured the position of Great Khan..."
"Yes, that's a bit of an overstatement. Actually, it wasn't until the Yuan Dynasty that the Song Dynasty was truly destroyed, and only then could they bring many Song Dynasty porcelains into their possession..."
"That's right, the tombs of the founding emperors aren't necessarily extravagant; perhaps they belong to later emperors..."
"If it were a Yuan Dynasty emperor, it's impossible that there wouldn't be a single burial item with Yuan Dynasty style in the ceramics tomb, right? I support Xiao Zhuang's opinion..."
As soon as Zhuang Rui finished speaking, various discussions arose in the meeting room. The opinions of these veteran experts were divided into two categories. One group believed that this was an imperial tomb from the mid-Yuan Dynasty. They argued that only at that time could the Yuan Dynasty have mobilized the entire nation to build a tomb of this scale.
Zhuang Rui's other opinion also has a lot of supporters. For example, Professor Meng and others tend to believe that it is an early Mongolian burial site. Of course, before concrete evidence comes out, neither side can convince the other.
Zhuang Rui found this argument quite pointless. He already knew the identity of the tomb's occupant, but he simply couldn't bring himself to reveal it. As the experts began analyzing their judgments again, Zhuang Rui looked at the tourism bureau leaders and said, "Director Liu, you really don't need to do this..."
"Oh? What do you mean by that, Mr. Zhuang?"
Director Liu works in Beijing and had dealt with Zhuang Rui several times before because of the Dingguang Museum. He knew Zhuang Rui's background very well. Although the Ouyang family was low-key, their strength was not to be underestimated. Therefore, Director Liu dared not show any contempt for Zhuang Rui just because he was young.
Zhuang Rui smiled and said, "Director Liu, let's not talk about the identity of the tomb's owner for now. Let me ask you this: besides this one, are there any other large tombs in the world that are hundreds of meters underground?"
"No, apart from Han tombs built into mountainsides, even those tens of meters high are extremely rare..."
Director Liu shook his head. The Han tombs in Guishan, Xuzhou, and Mancheng, which were built against the mountain and excavated in the early years, have now become famous tourist attractions. As a leader of the National Tourism Administration, Director Liu was no stranger to them.
Zhuang Rui clapped his hands and said with a smile, "That settles it then. Such a magnificent underground structure, comparable to the Egyptian pyramids, is worthy of being called the ninth wonder of the world. What else is Director Liu considering?"
Zhuang Rui's words surprised the two leaders from the tourism bureau. Yes, Zhuang Rui was right. The reason why Egyptian pharaohs are known to the world is not because the pharaohs themselves are famous, but because of the mysterious pyramids.
This also applies to the Mongolian tomb in the present day. Even if the tomb owner is not famous, the tomb alone can attract the world's attention. How could the tomb owner's life story not be unearthed?
“President Zhuang is right. We’ve gotten ourselves into a rut. Here’s what we’ll do: you continue the excavation work, and I’ll report to the higher-ups immediately to try and get both sides moving. Let’s start by building a Yuan Dynasty-style above-ground structure…”
Director Liu is a responsible person. After thinking it through, he immediately made a statement. Just as Zhuang Rui said, the mere gimmick of the ninth wonder of the world is enough to make this investment profitable.
Moreover, on China's border lies Mongolia, which has always considered itself a direct descendant of Genghis Khan. They have repeatedly claimed to have discovered Genghis Khan's mausoleum within Mongolian territory. Furthermore, under the instigation of some foreign forces, this country, which has been part of China's territory since the Ming and Qing dynasties, now seems to be showing signs of disobedience.
Therefore, the discovery of Mongolian imperial tombs within China is a powerful rebuttal to the fact that certain countries attempted to divide China in the 1950s, and its political significance is even greater than that of the tombs themselves.
Seeing Director Liu's resolute and responsible expression, Zhuang Rui couldn't help but smile and say, "Director Liu, you won't lose out. In my judgment, this tomb is very likely to be the tomb of Genghis Khan. If that's the case, you'll make a fortune..."
If it weren't for the fact that this is a tomb with such significant influence, and the state doesn't allow private investment in building tourist attractions, Zhuang Rui would have even considered buying the entire place. This place would definitely be a golden goose in the future.
No sooner had Zhuang Rui finished speaking than a man who looked to be in his fifties and appeared to be a leader, sitting next to Director Liu, also spoke up with a smile: "Young Zhuang, you're exaggerating. If it weren't for the Genghis Khan Mausoleum, aren't you afraid that Director Liu would cause you trouble?"
The speaker was Director Guo from the State Administration of Cultural Heritage. Although this excavation was very important, it was usually overseen by a deputy according to convention. However, Minister Ouyang's presence on the first day meant that the head of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage was also present.
Director Guo was aware of the uncle-nephew relationship between Zhuang Rui and Ouyang Zhenwu, and had been deliberately trying to befriend Zhuang Rui. Now, he even made a joke about Zhuang Rui.
Seeing Director Guo interrupt, Zhuang Rui's eyes darted around, and he said, "Director Guo, if I can find you a Genghis Khan Mausoleum, how will you reward me?"
Since the discovery of this tomb, Zhuang Rui has never made any requests and has been working diligently ever since.
However, as the discoverer of the tomb and a well-known young expert in antiques, jade, and archaeology in China, Zhuang Rui's suggestion made Director Guo hesitate to answer and ponder.
"Genghis Khan's tomb is unlikely. According to 'The Secret History of the Mongols,' Genghis Khan died from injuries sustained during his campaign against the Western Xia. Judging from the geographical location and the time of his death, it doesn't quite match this tomb..."
Before Director Guo could figure out how to answer Zhuang Rui, an expert next to him raised an objection, saying that while most people could barely accept the claim that it was the tomb of the first three emperors of the Mongol or Yuan dynasties, even Professor Meng would probably disagree with the assertion that it was the tomb of Genghis Khan.
Director Guo, who heads the country's cultural relics department and is himself a highly renowned expert in archaeology and antiques, was not optimistic about Zhuang Rui's claim. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I don't think it looks like Genghis Khan's tomb. Zhuang, tell me your opinion..."
"Heh, the greatest tomb in human history should naturally be the burial place of the greatest emperor..."
Zhuang Rui didn't have any opinions at all; he made his judgment entirely based on the three words "Temujin" on the golden token. He immediately changed the subject and said, "Director Guo, how about... we make a bet?"
"A bet? What are you betting with this old man on?"
Director Guo paused for a moment upon hearing this, then smiled and said, "Xiao Zhuang, I know you have a museum, and I also manage quite a few good things, but... those things aren't mine. Lending them to you for exhibition would be a mistake..."
In the past, Zhuang Rui's dealings with Director Guo were nothing more than wanting to borrow some influential antiques from the Palace Museum to make up for the lack of cultural heritage in the Dingguang Museum. Director Guo immediately thought of these things.
Of course, now that the market is open, private museums may still have the opportunity to borrow national treasures. However, Director Guo is afraid that Zhuang Rui will make unreasonable demands that he cannot fulfill.
"Hehe, Director Guo, I don't want any of your things. I bet this tomb is Genghis Khan's mausoleum. If I'm right, Director Guo, you can decide for me to select three burial objects from the tomb for exhibition at the Dingguang Museum for three months. How about that?"
Zhuang Rui came up with this idea on the spur of the moment, because if he waited until the burial objects in the tomb had been unearthed before making demands to the relevant departments, it would be almost impossible. That's why Zhuang Rui made such a seemingly shameless bet with Director Guo.
"Xiao Zhuang, you've got a good plan. What if you lose?"
When Director Guo heard that Zhuang Rui only wanted three burial items, he felt much more at ease. The priceless Song Dynasty ceramics unearthed from this tomb so far number over 11,000 pieces.
Moreover, although most of the cultural relics inside the tomb will be returned after the tomb is opened to the public, they need to be properly and uniformly preserved during the excavation and sorting phase.
Given that Zhuang Rui discovered the tomb himself, and considering Zhuang Rui's background, Director Guo felt that lending Zhuang Rui three cultural relics for a few months was not a big deal, and he was willing to do him a favor.
However, he wasn't so easily fooled. Since it was a bet, there were winners and losers. Director Guo would only agree after seeing Zhuang Rui's terms, so as not to give anyone grounds for criticism.
Zhuang Rui thought for a moment and said, "How about this, Director Guo, if I lose, I will donate the Yuan blue-and-white porcelain jar from the Dingguang Museum to the country free of charge, and also invest 20 million yuan to carry out a complete maintenance and repair of the Palace Museum's cultural relics... Um, even if I win this last part, as long as Director Guo keeps his promise, I will also fund the maintenance of the Palace Museum's cultural relics. What do you think?"
Since we're going to fish, we need bait. Zhuang Rui's bait is incredibly generous. Leaving aside the 20 million, the value of the Yuan blue and white porcelain alone is immeasurable.
After Zhuang Rui acquired the Yuan blue-and-white porcelain depicting Guiguzi descending the mountain from a British antique dealer, the price of Yuan blue-and-white porcelain skyrocketed internationally. More importantly, this piece was priceless and unavailable; to this day, the Palace Museum, a national-level cultural relic institution, has not been able to acquire a single piece.
This led to a joint exhibition last year between the Palace Museum and the Dingguang Museum, which focused on Yuan Dynasty blue and white porcelain. At that time, more than ten pieces from the Palace Museum's collection were exchanged for these porcelain pieces.
Zhuang Rui knew that Director Guo had long coveted that blue and white porcelain jar, so he wasn't afraid that Director Guo wouldn't take the bait he had thrown out.
Chapter 1180: No Loss
"A Yuan Dynasty blue-and-white porcelain jar? Is it the one from when Guiguzi descended the mountain?"
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Director Guo's eyes widened instantly behind his glasses. Zhuang Rui's words were so impactful that Director Guo lost all interest in negotiating for a moment.
It's worth noting that the Palace Museum, which boasts the largest collection of national artifacts and the most complete set of first-class cultural relics from various dynasties, is surprisingly lacking in Yuan Dynasty blue and white porcelain.
Especially in the last two years, with Yuan blue and white porcelain shining brightly, the Palace Museum, which does not have Yuan blue and white porcelain, seems to have lost some of its confidence. After all, Zhuang Rui's private museum has several pieces of Yuan blue and white porcelain. How can the Palace Museum, which has always prided itself on being the leader of museums in China, bear this?
However, they couldn't afford to purchase them from abroad, so they ended up borrowing Yuan blue and white porcelain from Zhuang Rui's private museum. For the leaders of the museum and the cultural relics bureau, this was a humiliating situation.
"That's right, it's that Yuan blue and white porcelain piece..."
Zhuang Rui was startled to see the usually gentle and refined Director Guo suddenly reveal a wolf-like expression. He quickly said, "Director Guo, did you hear me clearly? I said if you beat me, I will donate the porcelain to the country..."
Zhuang Rui was afraid that the old man would renege on the deal and, regardless of winning or losing, use a few items from the Dingguang Museum to extort his own Guiguzi Descending the Mountain porcelain jar. That would be a huge loss for Zhuang Rui, since the Imperial Seal of the State was not his after all.
"Listen carefully, listen carefully, you're so young, why are you so long-winded..."
Compared to Director Liu sitting to the side, Director Guo looked more like a businessman than a bureaucrat at this moment. His smiling appearance was nothing like that of a vice-ministerial level official. He looked like a cunning old fox who had taken advantage of the situation.
"Hey, hey, I'm telling you all, did you all hear that? You can all be my witnesses. If Xiao Zhuang wins, I'll let him choose three artifacts from the tomb and display them in his museum for three months."
However, if Xiao Zhuang loses, he will have to donate his Yuan Dynasty blue and white porcelain jar depicting Guiguzi descending the mountain to the country, and also donate 20 million RMB to the Palace Museum free of charge for the repair and maintenance of cultural relics.
By the way, regardless of winning or losing, Xiao Zhuang will donate this 20 million...
Director Guo was a shrewd old man who wasn't willing to suffer any loss, and he added a final remark.
Seemingly afraid that Zhuang Rui would change his mind, Director Guo immediately started shouting loudly after the two finalized the relevant matters, causing the experts who were originally discussing the burial situation in hushed tones to turn their heads and look over.
Before taking office, Director Guo was the vice dean of archaeology at Peking University and was very familiar with Professor Meng. After hearing Director Guo's words, Professor Meng said with a wry smile, "Old Guo, you're almost sixty years old, how dare you take advantage of a junior?"
According to Professor Meng's analysis, the tomb's owner is more likely to be Ögedei Khan or Kublai Khan, because their reigns coincided with the peak of Mongol power, making the timing for constructing such a large-scale mausoleum more opportune.
Moreover, based on the clues found in various historical materials, it is more likely that Genghis Khan's mausoleum is located in Outer Mongolia. Although this has not been definitively determined, it is a consensus among Mongolian history research experts in China.
The experts in the tent, even those who agree that the tomb dates back to the early Yuan Dynasty, mostly share Professor Meng's view. No one believes it is Genghis Khan's mausoleum, which is why Professor Meng said that Director Guo took advantage of Zhuang Rui.
Director Guo was more than ten years younger than Professor Meng and respected him greatly. He smiled and said, "Professor Meng, I have no choice. The country is poor. A single piece of Yuan blue and white porcelain costs hundreds of millions. We can't afford that, so we can only rob the rich..."
Regardless of winning or losing this bet with Zhuang Rui, Director Guo will not suffer a loss. If he wins, it goes without saying that he can help the National Museum fill the gap in its collection of Yuan blue and white porcelain artifacts.
Even if they lost, it wouldn't matter. It would just be a temporary loan of three cultural relics. Besides, Zhuang Rui still had to pay the 20 million. Therefore, Director Guo didn't need to consult with the leaders of the Ministry of Culture and made the decision himself.
Seeing Director Guo's smug expression, Zhuang Rui couldn't help but laugh and say, "Director Guo, it's still too early to say who will win or lose. Just don't go back on your word later..."
The reason Zhuang Rui added the clause for a donation of 20 million at the end was mainly because he didn't want to take advantage of the country. Moreover, the more powerful the background, the more careful one should be. If one takes advantage now, it will be troublesome if the country comes to settle accounts with you later.
The 20 million yuan spent can be considered as the cost of renting the Imperial Seal of the State. Although it may not be possible to earn back the 20 million yuan in three months, the sensational effect of the Imperial Seal of the State appearing in the Dingguang Museum is something that 20 million yuan cannot buy.
"No regrets, definitely no regrets..."
Director Guo and Zhuang Rui were each pondering their own plans, both wearing smiles. However, it was estimated that it wouldn't be long before Director Guo's bright smile turned into a bitter one.