"I'll show you the night view! What's with all the shouting?" I couldn't see anyone; all I could hear was Chen Jiansheng's grumbling voice.

In my panic, I fumbled for my flashlight, almost letting slip a curse—look at your damn night view.

Before I could even turn on the flashlight, the next second, what unfolded before my eyes left me utterly speechless.

A spark of stars, with the potential to set the fields ablaze.

What I saw was no ordinary fire. Nor was it fireflies.

It was a cluster of vegetation glowing with a soft golden light.

As far as the eye could see, countless flowers, grasses, and trees emitted specks of yellow light, a sea of stars...

The impression was indelibly etched in my memory.

This scene, I would never forget for as long as I lived.

The whole event lasted less than three minutes.

As the darkness dissipated, we could see each other again.

Both Red Sister and I were stunned by the brief spectacle, while Chen Jiansheng was ecstatic: "How about that? Didn't I tell you? Such a rare sight is hard to find in this world."

Some friends might wonder how trees and flowers could emit a yellow glow, and some might say I'm talking nonsense.

But A Mole gave me the answer.

After recovering from her shock, she got up and walked forward on her own. She picked a small flower, furrowing her brows as she stared at it.

Then, she handed the flower to me to see.

On the edges of this red flower lay a thin layer of moss, so fine that it would have been impossible to notice without a closer look. She scraped a bit of the moss with her fingernail and then wrapped it securely in her clothing.

After examining it, Red Sister said with astonishment, "It emits a faint yellow light. If I'm not mistaken, this could be Creeping Gold Moss."

What is Creeping Gold Moss?

Most ordinary people have never heard of it, but I imagine that some deeply passionate horticulture enthusiasts might have heard a thing or two.

During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period in the Jin dynasty, someone presented a type of moss to the imperial court. It was a pale green that shone like yellow stars at night, and when cast upon the water, it shimmered with a dazzling golden light. This account is recorded in the "Miscellaneous Records of Youyang."

Furthermore, the ancient scholar Wang Jia mentioned in his "Collection of Lost Works": "The Liang State presented Creeping Gold Moss, golden in color, spreading over the waves, its light outshining the sun. Those in the palace fortunate enough to receive it were rewarded with two coins. Placed upon a lacquered tray, the light filled the room. Such strange and wondrous plants could be called Night Luminous Moss."

There are many such accounts of this moss in ancient texts. Those who have never seen it might dismiss these as ancient exaggerations, but I have seen it... Red Sister has seen it, and so has Chen Jiansheng.

"How about that? Isn't it a rare sight? You've never seen anything like it before, have you?" Chen Jiansheng boasted with pride.

Wiping her hands, Red Sister looked around and said, "I never imagined such legendary treasures passed down through generations truly existed... It's as if our eyes have been opened."

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"Heh, need you even ask? Not just you guys, I myself was quite startled when I first saw it."

"Let's go, I'll take you to see another treasure," Chen Jiansheng said, dusting the dirt off his clothes, and continued to lead the way.

Along the way, Red Sister's brows were furrowed, evidently weighed down with heavy thoughts. I asked her what was wrong.

She turned her head to look at me, whispering softly, "Cloud Peak, it's possible that what Yao Yumen and the leader said is true—we've come to a place we shouldn't have..."

"Ah, forget it. What's done is done. Let's just play it by ear."

........

An hour later, Chen Jiansheng brought us to a place that was a small hillock, no more than a meter high, somewhat resembling the small mounds found on Chaotic Burial Mound.

"Wait here, I'll dig it up for you to see," he said, and then he went forward to dig with his bare hands.

"Eh? Where did it go?"

"I clearly hid it here last time. Where could it have gone?" He frantically dug around in all directions.

"Chen the Earthworker, what are you doing? What have you hidden here?"

He dug fiercely, glancing back at me, "It's a jade-made Qing Halberd I stumbled upon. It's even inlaid with gold and silver, with a small map engraved on it that I can't decipher. Damn it, where could it have gone? It can't just grow legs and walk away."

The "Yue Axe" was a ceremonial object popular in the late Shang Dynasty and early Western Zhou period, typically made of bronze, with very few crafted from jade. Its status was akin to the Tiger Tally, a token of military authority, marking it as an artifact of extremely high rank.

The Nine Tripods of the Son of Heaven, the Four Horses, and a Yue Axe represented a system that ordinary Princely Kings dared not overstep, especially during the early Western Zhou, a time of strong national power.

If what Chen Jiansheng said was true, and he had discovered a Yue Axe, it would indicate one thing.

The Tomb Owner feared not the Zhou Emperor.

If the Tomb Owner was that Mustard Marquis, in short, it meant a blatant disregard for the Zhou Emperor, a desire to surpass one's station, to possess the Nine Tripods and Four Horses and a Yue Axe.

But there was one thing I couldn't figure out. How could such an important artifact be casually found by Chen Jiansheng? He also mentioned that there was a map engraved on the Yue Axe. What kind of map was it? Could it be a map leading out of here?

All of this was conjecture until we could see the actual object in question—perhaps he was lying; that was also a possibility.

"Damn it, where the hell did it go? I even marked the spot, how could it just vanish!" Chen Jiansheng furiously upturned the small mound of earth, yet failed to find the item he had mentioned.

I voiced my doubt: "Chen the Earthworker, is it possible that you remembered incorrectly? Maybe you mistook something else for the Yue Axe. If it's not from the Zhou Emperor's tomb, it couldn't possibly be that."

"Damn," he glared at me: "I've been in this business for over a decade. How could I mistake that kind of thing?"

Red Sister nodded in agreement, "Empty claims prove nothing."

Seeing that neither of us would be swayed, he grew angry.

"Forget it, believe it or not, I refuse to believe it can't be found!" He prepared to dig and overturn the soil once more.

I shook my head and turned to survey our surroundings.

The light was poor, everything around us was dim and obscure.

I couldn't see clearly, but in the haziness, about a hundred meters ahead under a large tree, I thought I saw a short shadow with a hat, stealthily watching us.

"Who's there!"

"Who's that!" I called out in panic, switching on my flashlight.

"What's wrong, Cloud Peak? What did you see?" Red Sister was startled by my sudden outburst.

Looking again, there was nothing under the tree now.

"Red Sister, I saw a shadow with a hat, quite short, not even one and a half meters," I said anxiously.

"A shadow with a hat? A short stature? Cloud Peak, are you sure you're not just tired and seeing things?" Red Sister glanced at the base of the tree, shaking her head, clearly skeptical.

I knew my own condition best and insisted that I hadn't been mistaken; I hadn't had a hallucination. There really was a Dwarf with a Hat peeking at us.

Eventually, I convinced Red Sister, and we decided to investigate the area around the large tree.

Once we arrived, aside from the flora, there was nothing to be seen, certainly no Dwarf with a Hat.

"Kid, I think you're just seeing things. What dwarf? Maybe Snow White is around too?" Chen Jiansheng teased me.

I was about to retort, fuming with irritation.

"Wait," Red Sister interrupted me.

"You... you all see that? What is that? Footprints?"

Following where Red Sister pointed, we saw on the soft, loose soil, a pair of very small footprints, smaller than those of Three-inch Golden Lotus, resembling those of a five or six-year-old child.

The footprints were bare, without shoes.

There were only four toes, the big toe was missing. (To be continued)

*******

I have also posted the following more chapters [All free]: https://www.readgates.com/article/7b136c