"Ha, young man, you're so young; what could be troubling you so deeply?"

I wiped away my tears and turned around, only to be stunned. Wasn't this the same old man who had given me directions yesterday at Panjiayuan?

It was this very man who had informed me that setting up a stall at Baoguo Temple wouldn't cost a dime.

"Kid, I've had my eye on you since you started selling stuff at Panjiayuan yesterday. If I'm not mistaken, did someone steal your money?"

The old man was dressed in casual clothes, with a hint of white at his temples, yet he looked spirited.

Without giving it much thought, I nodded with tear-stained eyes and admitted that the money I had made from selling goods was stolen, and I didn't want to live anymore.

He chuckled and shook his head, "How much did you lose, young man?"

I told him it was over four thousand yuan.

"Heh," he laughed, gesturing with a single finger.

"Four thousand yuan and you call that money? Work with me, and by this time, I could make you twenty thousand."

Staring blankly at his finger, I asked, "How long? A year?"

He shook his head.

"A month??"

Again, he shook his head.

"A week???"

"Ha-ha, I won't tease you anymore. One minute! If you're quick to learn, making a few thousand yuan is a matter of minutes!"

It seemed unbelievable to me, and for a moment, I thought he was a human trafficker trying to sell my organs.

I wouldn't stand for selling my organs. I'd rather be dead. Living without an organ, I've heard, means you can never have children, and your wife might as well be unfaithful.

He left me with those words and turned to walk away.

"Young man, if you want to make a name for yourself and drive a luxury car home in style, then follow me. If you still want to die over such a trifling amount of money, then don't bother. It would prove I misjudged you."

Yes, four thousand yuan was a fortune for my impoverished family, but to him, it was mere chicken feed.

This man became my mentor in the trade.

The lucrative path he pursued was tomb raiding.

Dragon Seeking, always observe Coiled Mountain, each twist signifies a barrier, and behind a door with a Thousand Layer Lock, royalty surely resided.

From the moment I followed him beneath the overpass, I was in the trade.

Not long after joining him, I understood that he was right—thousands of yuan were indeed chicken feed, and such sums could be earned in mere minutes.

Have you often heard of the four great schools of tomb raiding?

Tomb Raider Officer, Mountain-moving Taoist, Mountain Unloading Strongman, General Faqiu.

In reality, it's not like that at all. These schools have long vanished into the annals of history. Nowadays, the tomb raiding scene, metaphorically known as Upside Down Bucket, is broadly divided into two factions.

Namely, the Northern Sect and the Southern Sect.

Some jokingly refer to them as the bold and the cautious.

The Northern Sect is daring and wild, ready to dig with a Luoyang Spade, but they have one shortcoming—they're not adept at exploring Water Caves, especially in southern areas like Hunan, Guizhou, and Zhejiang. With caves that are dry for a thousand years, wet for ten thousand, or damp for just half a year, the difficulty is immense. One needs the aquatic skills of a Water Monkey, and for the particularly deep Water Caves, professional scuba diving equipment is a necessity.

Without any undue bias, the Northern School is essentially a bunch of land ducks; impressive on terra firma, but truly out of their element underwater.

The Southern Sect often operates as family units, with fathers guiding their sons, and grandfathers their grandsons, seldom mixing with unfamiliar outsiders. Thus, they're mockingly dubbed the 'Timid Faction.' Such exclusivity, of course, is a measure to prevent infighting.

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This line of work is a mixed bag, attracting all sorts, from the truly formidable, who are adept at the recitation of tomb scriptures, able to pinpoint burial sites with a mere glance—an assertion that is no exaggeration—to the pretenders, those who, with shovel in hand, brazenly venture to disturb graves, often meeting their end swiftly, frequently caught more than any other.

Those from the Regular Army Path, however, are seldom apprehended.

Let me give you a brief overview.

In a six-person tomb raiding crew, the one who gets paid the most is the Eye Leader. The Eye Leader is responsible for locating and identifying tombs, a task requiring great skill. A capable Eye Leader is highly sought after wherever they go.

Then there's the 'Rice Seller,' a code name in the trade; 'rice' refers to money. In some regions, they're also known as the 'Goods Seller.' This person's job is to liquidate the unearthed artifacts, demanding a vast network of connections. It's crucial that items sold cannot be traced back.

Following them are the diggers, whose value lies in their experience. With a Luoyang spade, they probe the earth, determining the age of a burial site based on the soil layers extracted.

Beneath the diggers, there's the Lookout Person. As the name suggests, they keep watch, requiring keen eyesight and sharp hearing. Their role is not to be underestimated; the success of a significant operation often hinges on their vigilance. Some Lookouts may even integrate into the local community a year in advance, establishing trust under the guise of running a supermarket.

Another role is that of the Logistics Department, typically a one-person job. They don't enter the pit but are responsible for the procurement and exchange of equipment.

The Mouse Suit, Vajra Spade, Mini Tornado, gas masks, Luoyang Spades, Fire Starters, waterproof flashlights, walkie-talkies, tents, bedding, pots, pans, toothbrushes, and toothpaste—all must be sourced by one individual, reducing exposure and the risk of revealing identities.

Lastly, there's the role of dispersing the earth.

That was my first job when I entered the trade.

Those who scatter the earth earn the least, but even the smallest share surpasses the income from regular labor.

The best person for this job is as ordinary as they come, which is why my common face landed me the position.

After all, who would bother to scrutinize a teenager? It would be a complete waste of time.

Conversely, if you're too handsome or too unsightly, you're not fit for the job; you might be spotted before you've even had the chance to scatter the soil from your pockets.

Carry a little at a time, pretend to be walking the dog, and let the grave dirt slip through your trouser legs until it's all gone, leaving no trace.

Afterward, we'd quietly divide the money, and no one would be the wiser.

The old man who brought me into the business is called Mr. Wang, known among our circles as the King Leader. It's said that he's handled over a thousand large tombs in his lifetime, ranging from the pre-Qin, Han, and Song dynasties—he's had his hands on nearly all of them.

Among those who deal in the trade of antiquities, there are two types of tombs held in highest esteem: the Han dynasty tombs and those of the Western Zhou era.

The reason is quite straightforward: bronze ware and ancient jade fetch a handsome price. It's often said that nine out of ten Han tombs are found empty, and there's no exaggeration in that statement.

The great tombs of the Western Zhou are even more formidable.

In an era when beacon fires played with princes, vassal lords roamed the lands, and the trend of luxurious burials was in vogue, if fortune favored you and you stumbled upon a princely king's deep pit filled with bronze ware from the Western Zhou, congratulations would be in order – your next three generations could live without the need to work.

Similarly, the great tombs of the Western Zhou are the deepest of all tombs from the dynasties of old. It was only after Emperor Qin Shi Huang unified the six states and constructed his mausoleum that the practice of soil-sealing mounds became popular.

The landscapes and rivers have shifted with time.

Every great tomb of the Western Zhou is typically situated more than fifteen meters underground and lacks a soil-sealing mound, making them hard to locate and even harder to excavate.

Officially, the sale of bronze ware is prohibited by the authorities, but it's an open secret. Those bronze wares that appear on TV station treasure appraisal shows – where do they come from?

The bronze ware handed down through generations constitutes less than one percent of the total amount. Could the rest have simply sprung out of the ground?

Their origins are the same; they all trickle out from our line of work.

When King Leader took me away from Beijing and instructed me not to contact the outside world for a while, my first job was in Shunde.

This job was to excavate a Western Zhou tomb. Due to a severe shortage of manpower, I was chosen by King Leader to engage in the task of soil removal, being the youngest member of the gang at that time.

Upon arrival in Shunde, King Leader handed me a thousand yuan, explaining that it was customary – a red envelope for entering the trade. He told me to spend it as I wished, even suggesting I could spend it on female companionship.

But back then, I was too naive to seek out such company; there was only so much one could spend on food and drink.

I indulged in Shunde's delicacies: water snake soup, four-cup chicken, pan-fried fish cakes, Jun'an steamed pork, and more – all delectably satisfying.

After spending two days in Shunde, King Leader called me over and said, "Cloud Peak, the time has come for us to get to work tonight. Are you ready? Have you memorized everything I taught you?"

I nodded and replied, "I've remembered it all: don't disperse soil at dawn, in the presence of vehicles, near parks, or where crowds gather."

King Leader nodded, pleased, and then asked me, "So tell me, where do you plan to disperse?"

After some thought, I responded, "The back alley, near construction sites, around demolished houses, within the woods, amidst the gardens."

"Ha! Not bad at all. I haven't even taught you those yet. Good, good, you've got the spirit."

"Stay sharp, and work well with us. I'll make you the richest man in your village within two years, you hear?"

A smile spread across my face, and I eagerly nodded in agreement. (To be continued)

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