Dr. Ren, for example, will be promoted to a researcher at Kyoto University immediately after the completion of this archaeological work, and will become the deputy director of the Kyoto University Archaeological Institute to oversee daily operations after Professor Meng retires.
Others also have various benefits, so compared to these benefits, being restricted in their personal freedom for a few years doesn't seem so important. After all, it's just being mute for a few years and not being able to travel abroad for a few years. Besides, these staff members don't have many opportunities to go abroad anyway.
As for Zhuang Rui, there are also many benefits. For example, his Dingguang Museum can further exchange with national-level museums, share resources, and receive some policy support, which will greatly promote the development of the Dingguang Museum.
"Now Huangfu Yun should be satisfied..."
Zhuang Rui was quite satisfied with these compensations that were not written down. He knew that although the Dingguang Museum had many treasures, its foundation was too shallow and it did not yet meet the conditions to become a large international museum.
However, with these policies in place, it will be possible to openly borrow national treasures from national museums for the construction of the Dingguang Museum, significantly narrowing the gap between the Dingguang Museum and major museums worldwide. ...
For the next week, the archaeological team's excavation work came to a standstill, but more people entered the tomb from the bottom of the lake every day, and sealed boxes were carried out from the bottom of the lake, their whereabouts unknown to anyone.
The troop movements on the border have heightened tensions in the surrounding international situation. Military experts from various countries have expressed concern about the military exercises taking place in Inner Mongolia, and numerous military spy satellites have been pointed at this vast grassland.
Meanwhile, the foreign media and the scientific experts who came to China lured by the news of the discovery of the Mongolian royal tombs sensed something unusual. They believed that this so-called military exercise must be related to the discovery of the royal tombs.
As a result, diplomatic notes from various countries requesting participation in this archaeological excavation were sent to relevant domestic departments as easily as scraps of paper, leaving those usually idle officials in a state of utter chaos.
More than a week passed before the archaeological work could resume, but several unfamiliar names appeared on the command's roster.
The troops that had finished participating in the military exercise remained in the area under martial law. After all, no one could say for sure what treasures might appear later, and troop movements couldn't be treated like children playing house.
"Damn it, these workers are either urban management officers or demolition workers. This place is cleaner than if locusts had eaten it!"
More than a week later, when Zhuang Rui entered the Golden House again, he was dumbfounded.
Chapter 1184 The Golden Coffin
"Damn, even a demolition crew couldn't have demolished it this cleanly, could they? This job is done..."
Upon arriving at the former golden tomb, Zhuang Rui was stunned by the sight before him. It took him a long time to come to his senses; the contrast was just too much.
The once glittering and magnificent palace has long since vanished, replaced by dark mud walls and floors. Forget about the gold bricks that once covered the walls and floors; now you probably won't even find a single gold toothpick.
While it's not quite a complete excavation, the walls were definitely scraped with more than three layers of plaster. Zhuang Rui can only pray that the relevant departments won't decide to melt down and refine the gold, because these things, if collected as works of art, would certainly be worth far more than the gold itself.
A middle-aged man in his forties in the tomb smiled slightly upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words and said, "Commander Zhuang, rest assured, the organization has adopted your and Professor Meng's suggestions. The items in this room will be properly stored, and may even be opened to the public at an appropriate time..."
"Ahem, Director Yun, that's good, that's good..."
Zhuang Rui felt a little embarrassed upon hearing this. This Director Yun was sent by the relevant department to assist in this excavation. Normally, such an archaeological team would not have security personnel involved, but the discovery of gold has made the country pay unprecedented attention to it.
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, there has only been one archaeological excavation that has alarmed national leaders and required the deployment of security departments.
That excavation took place in the mid-1950s, when Guo Moruo and Wu Han proposed an archaeological plan to excavate the Thirteen Tombs, but ultimately only the underground palace of one tomb was successfully opened.
This mausoleum is the first and, to date, the only imperial mausoleum in China to be opened by archaeologists (excluding those that have been looted)... Dingling.
The excavation of Dingling was carried out with the approval of Chairman Mao Zedong, the number one figure at the time, and the final decision made by Premier Zhou Enlai, the number two figure. It can be said to be a state undertaking.
However, the excavation was a failure overall. Due to the backwardness of archaeological technology at the time and the lack of experience and ability in emergency repair of cultural relics, a large number of priceless treasures could not be preserved and important cultural relics were damaged.
At that time, naturally no one dared to raise objections. However, in the modern archaeological community, there is a consensus that the excavation was "an irreparable mistake." This archaeological expedition in Inner Mongolia has once again alarmed the national leadership, and the level of attention is even higher than before. Not only have many security officials been dispatched to supervise the project, but the military has also been mobilized to protect it, demonstrating the importance the country attaches to this archaeological work.
Standing next to Zhuang Rui was none other than Director Guo from the National Cultural Heritage Administration. Seeing Zhuang Rui's embarrassed expression, he couldn't help but tease him, "Little Zhuang, are you reluctant to part with that Yuan blue-and-white porcelain piece? Don't worry about it. Go to the Palace Museum's storeroom and pick out a few items. I'll arrange to rent them to you..."
"Director Guo, how can you be so sure this tomb isn't Genghis Khan's? If we lose, please don't try to renege on your promise..."
Zhuang Rui glared at Director Guo with annoyance. If it weren't for his special status, Zhuang Rui really wouldn't have wanted to let the old man come down. He kept reminding him, whether there was a reason or not, that his Yuan blue and white porcelain was about to belong to the country.
However, the tomb we are going to open today is a little different from the previous tombs. The tombs in the previous tombs did not have a passageway, but this tomb, which is connected to the gold tomb, has a passageway that is about six meters long and one and a half meters wide.
After three days of debate and discussion, the experts unanimously concluded that this burial chamber should be the main burial chamber where the owner was buried. Therefore, there were several more people going down into the burial chamber today than usual.
According to relevant documents, leaders from relevant national departments must be present when the main burial chamber is opened.
Although Ouyang Zhenwu was a legitimate vertical leader, due to the special geographical location of the mausoleum, Minister Ouyang's body could not withstand the underwater tunnel and the underground river passage that stretched for several miles.
After discussion, it was decided that the "relatively" young Director Guo would be chosen as the official representative for this government oversight and would go down into the underground tomb.
The other person who wasn't part of the archaeological team was naturally Director Yun from the national security department. Although this guy didn't talk much, Zhuang Rui felt extremely uncomfortable having him around.
"How could I lose, Xiao Zhuang? There couldn't have been that much gold in Genghis Khan's time. It would be more like it was Ögedei Khan who conquered Western Xia. Don't get cocky, we'll see today..."
Director Guo scoffed at Zhuang Rui's words. Now, almost no one in the archaeological team believed in Zhuang Rui's judgment. Even Professor Meng was inclined to believe that the tomb belonged to Ögedei or Kublai Khan. Only Zhuang Rui refused to admit defeat and kept arguing with Director Guo.
"Director Guo, it's not up to you to say whether it's true or not. Find the evidence first..."
Zhuang Rui pursed his lips, his expression turning serious. He turned to the group and said, "Everyone, check your supplies. Now, start breathing with oxygen. Set your headsets to channel 3. Let's execute!"
Although there were two high-ranking government officials present, the excavation of the main tomb chamber was still carried out by Zhuang Rui. Under Zhuang Rui's orders, the group got busy.
The team carried a relatively large amount of supplies this time, because the main burial chamber would definitely contain the coffin and remains of the burial owner. So, at Zhuang Rui's insistence, the accompanying team even brought a cart loaded with more than 100 kilograms of high-strength preservative formalin.
The opening of the tomb door was still carried out by Zhuang Rui alone. Apart from his current photographer, reporter Wang, everyone else was waiting in the previous tomb chamber. Perhaps due to confidence in the tomb's secrecy, all the tomb doors in this magnificent underground structure used the ball bearing method. That is, there is a channel under the tomb door with round stone balls in the channel. As long as the tomb door is pushed, it can be opened easily.
Apart from those stone doors that may have been slightly deformed due to changes in the landscape over thousands of years, the rest were easy to open. Of course, the golden door was an exception; pushing that door was definitely a physical task.
As Zhuang Rui exerted force with the two crowbars in his hands, the tomb door, which held many people, slowly receded inward.
"My God...my God, another...another golden house?"
When the camera beam shone into the tomb, the intense golden reflection left reporter Wang speechless once again. Could it be that Mongolian gold was as worthless as cabbage?
I wonder if reporter Wang should feel fortunate. He has seen a room filled with gold twice, a sight that others might only see once in their lifetime. But what is most tragic is that not even a tiny piece of gold, no bigger than a fingernail, belongs to him.
"Another one?"
A voice came through the headset. Zhuang Rui turned around and saw that Director Yun had been standing behind him at some point. Although he couldn't see the expression on his face, he could tell that he was also shocked by the scene.
It is estimated that, apart from the staff guarding the national treasury, the more than one billion people in the country would be absolutely stunned by the arrival of such a scene, which is something you can't even see on TV or in movies.
"Director Yun, please return to your position. You don't think I can move all this gold away, do you?"
Zhuang Rui was furious at Director Yun's disobedience. The tomb was already gloomy, and one could imagine what it would feel like if someone suddenly appeared behind them.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Zhuang, it was my fault..."
Director Yun wasn't angry. After apologizing to Zhuang Rui, he turned and walked out. However, once he reached the outer tomb chamber, he immediately took out a walkie-talkie and set up surveillance on the other tomb chambers.
"Damn, I guess even the golden coffin is in danger this time..."
Zhuang Rui shook his head helplessly, feeling somewhat regretful about excavating the tomb. In his mind, the Golden House, including everything inside, should have been restored to its original state so that people could understand the historical truth through these items.
"Zhuang Rui, why is the camera tilted? Point it at the center of the tomb chamber!"
Suddenly, Ouyang Zhenwu's voice came through the earpiece. As the nominal commander-in-chief of this archaeological expedition, although he could not go underground in person, he still had to be in charge of the command center. However, what frustrated Minister Ouyang was that all he could see in the image transmitted from the camera was a golden light.
"Yes, quickly adjust it and see if there's a coffin inside?"
Professor Meng's voice followed closely behind, his voice urgent. This was the first time in the old man's decades-long archaeological career that he was unable to enter the site for investigation.
Professor Meng's biggest concern now is whether there is a coffin and any written records in this tomb. For archaeologists, these two items are far more valuable than the burial goods.
Before Zhuang Rui could speak, reporter Wang immediately pointed his camera at the tomb chamber, and the image of the huge golden coffin placed in the center of the tomb chamber appeared on the screen of the ground command center.
"A coffin made of gold...this is an emperor's coffin!" "No, if I can't personally participate in opening the golden coffin, the old man won't be able to close his eyes in peace even in death..."
"That's right, I have to go down, I must go down..."
The appearance of the golden coffin threw the ground command center into chaos. Even Professor Meng couldn't sit still, his eyes filled with the fanatical fervor of a young man.
For these veteran experts who have dedicated their lives to archaeological research, personally opening the coffin of an emperor is an unparalleled honor and an affirmation of their life's achievements.
Chapter 1185 Relief Image
"Teacher Meng, this...this isn't appropriate, is it?"
Seeing the crowd in the command post in a state of high spirits, a group of old men in their sixties and seventies shouting and yelling, even Ouyang Zhenwu was dumbfounded. If they were all young people, he could reprimand them, but many of them were older than him, and Ouyang Zhenwu was at a loss for what to do.
The order prohibiting experts over fifty from entering the tomb was issued by Ouyang Zhenwu, and at this moment, he could only grit his teeth and speak.
You must understand, these old men are all leading figures in the field of archaeology. If they were to fall ill like the previous old expert, even if Minister Ouyang could bear the responsibility, his conscience would not allow it.
“There’s nothing wrong with it. If the young people can step down, so can we old men. Minister Ouyang, this time we can’t reach a consensus…”
As the saying goes, merchants pursue profit and scholars pursue fame. Even these elderly people who are over sixty and have long seen through the ways of the world cannot resist the temptation to open the golden coffin with their own hands.
Of course, there are also those like Professor Meng, who, perhaps simply because of their tireless pursuit of archaeology, refuse to give up on the most important excavation of their lives.
"No, absolutely not! The situation underground is too complicated, and the air quality is bad. You can't go down..."
Without a second thought, Ouyang Zhenwu refused Professor Meng's request. After a pause, he softened his tone and continued, "Gentlemen, you are all pillars of the archaeological community. Any loss would be unbearable for the country. We should trust the younger generation and let Comrade Zhuang Rui lead the archaeological team to successfully complete this mission..."
To be honest, Ouyang Zhenwu was a little uncomfortable calling his nephew, who wasn't in the system, "comrade." However, he could only bring up Zhuang Rui at this moment, since Zhuang Rui's professional level was no less than that of the experts present.
After Ouyang Zhenwu said this, the command post fell silent. If they continued to scramble to go down, it would be easy for word to get out that they were trying to take credit and didn't trust the younger generation, which would not sound good.
"You all stay here, I'll go down myself. I can write a guarantee that even if this old body of mine is buried down there, it has nothing to do with the organization..."
However, Ouyang Zhenwu's words could only intimidate those with good reputations; they were not so effective on Professor Meng, an elderly man who was simply driven by immense respect for archaeology.
Discovering history and witnessing history is the most basic task for every archaeologist, and it is also the greatest affirmation and recognition of their work. Professor Meng did not want to miss the opportunity to personally excavate the most mysterious Mongolian royal tombs in his later years.
As the saying goes, "Earthenware pots are bound to break at the well, and generals are bound to die on the battlefield." The archaeological site is Professor Meng's battlefield, and he is willing to die for it.
However, Professor Meng's words aroused public outrage. An elderly man with white hair and beard, who looked several years older than Professor Meng, stood up shakily from his chair and said, "Old Meng, why should we all stay while you get out? If you can get out, this old man can get out too..."
“Yes, Teacher Meng, I’m a few years younger than you, so I should go down…”
"Old Song, you're sixty-eight too, and I'm only sixty-five. I'm going down..."
"Teachers, please stop arguing. I'm fifty-five. Let the students go down instead..."
The situation that Ouyang Zhenwu had just managed to ease was disrupted again by a group of old men. At this moment, all the experts were vying for the lead. If the younger generation in the archaeological community saw this, they would not believe their eyes. These usually respected old experts actually had such a passionate side.
Looking at the old expert who had to walk with a cane, Ouyang Zhenwu was both amused and exasperated. Let alone diving more than ten meters, the murky air underground would probably make him faint.
"Teacher Meng, Minister Ouyang, we are about to begin cleaning the main burial chamber. Do the leaders need any further instructions?"
Just as the argument was raging in the command center, Zhuang Rui's voice came through the microphone.
Today, due to Ouyang Zhenwu's arrival, everything needs to be done in a more formal manner. We can only begin after receiving instructions. However, Zhuang Rui has been waiting in front of the tomb for almost five minutes, but no one from the command center has spoken. He can't help but feel a little puzzled.
"No, you're not allowed in..."
Several voices rang out in Zhuang Rui's earpiece at the same time, making Zhuang Rui almost curse. Why can't they just say things properly?
"Ahem, Zhuang Rui, Professor Meng and several experts all want to personally participate in opening the coffin. What do you think?"