PDLP Chapter 317 Mistakes and Omissions
Chapter 317 Mistakes and Omissions
Liu Yunhe still remembered what Lin Lezhi had said on the island, and he believed it without a doubt: "But didn't you say on the island that the tunnel was a secret escape route left by the tomb builders?"
"I was lying to Hong Mingxu and just wanted to test his reaction. I just made it up."
"what?"
Liu Yunhe widened his eyes, his eyes full of disbelief.
Lin Lezhi smiled and said in a relaxed and joking tone, "It was because I lied to him that he became so angry and wanted to kill me to vent his anger."
Although Lin Lezhi said it lightly, it was not funny to everyone else. The atmosphere was a little stagnant, especially for Liu Yunhe, whose eyes were filled with guilt and self-blame again.
Lin Lezhi's eyes softened immediately, and he stopped joking and explained carefully, "Given the circumstances at the time, making up a story was the best option. Qi Xi's claim that the treasure was found in the cave was a desperate ploy to avoid revealing another hidden treasure location. And from Hong Mingxu's words, one can tell that he has some knowledge of feng shui. If Hong Mingxu were to think about it more deeply, he would definitely discover some mistakes in Qi Xi's words and would probably kill everyone first to force Qi Xi to reveal the treasure's location."
"What's wrong?"
"The entrance to the tomb reveals a spacious and open cave, definitely not one used for robbery. Judging by the quality of the soil and the degree of weathering, it must be very old, possibly having existed when the tomb was built. The tomb was built on a lake island, where moisture abounds, the soil is moist, and there's even a rushing underground river. But the box is made of wood. If there really was treasure buried behind the wall, the damp soil would have eroded the box long ago over the centuries, even millennia. While the treasure inside might have survived, the box certainly wouldn't have remained intact."
After listening to Lin Lezhi's explanation, Liu Yunhe immediately understood and nodded with understanding in his eyes.
Lin Lezhi paused and continued, "I'll change the subject. I'll pretend I know nothing about feng shui and bring it back to the Huaifeng Village case. The perpetrator will surely feel guilty and fear that his actions will be exposed, which will also greatly reduce his vigilance against me. After you leave the island, I'll take the initiative and reveal that I know the location of the treasure, pretending to be deceiving everyone and considering him for my own benefit. Since he doesn't know the way to the mountains, I'll be able to trick him a little. After all, to him, whether he finds the treasure or not, everyone on the island is already dead."
Lin Lezhi's tone sounded changed by the passage of time, but at that time, he was risking everything and trying to win. It was not as light as he said now.
Liu Yunhe's eyes darkened. His grip on the rice paper tightened slightly, picking at the wrinkles on the thin paper. He said, "No wonder Qi Xi wanted to leave with General Cheng. He was worried someone would notice something was amiss and ask him to reveal the other treasure location. If that happened, more people would suffer. Leaving is the best option."
Hearing this, a hint of relief flashed across Lin Lezhi's eyes, and his expression became much more relaxed.
"But is there really a road leading to the mountains behind?"
Looking at the two maps overlapping and the routes revealed, Liu Yunhe spoke with uncertainty in his tone.
"If it were any other day, it would definitely be impossible, but the fog gathering between the mountains is just enough to help us get in. It needs to be neither too thick nor too thin, just the right amount of fog."
Lin Lezhi's words made Liu Yunhe even more confused.
Not only Liu Yunhe, but everyone else was also confused about the relationship between the two. Qingchuan asked, "Can this fog really help us enter the mountains?"
"Yes."
Lin Lezhi's tone was full of affirmation. After a brief pause, he explained to everyone in a clear and logical manner: "Huaifeng Village is located on an island. Although the lake is surrounded by water and has abundant moisture, it doesn't often have thick fog."
"Dongfeng?"
Qingchuan said.
"Yes, it's the east wind." Lin Lezhi confirmed Qingchuan's statement and continued, "Not only the east wind, but the four seasons are also crucial. The fog is thickest in autumn. When combined with the heat brought by the east wind, thick fog accumulates at night. In addition, the islands are densely populated, the terrain is low, and the three mountains on the island make the condensed fog even more difficult to dissipate."
"But what does this have to do with the Road to the Mountains?"
Guan Ziheng asked in confusion. What Lin Lezhi said were just the conditions for the formation of fog.
"Of course it's related." Lin Lezhi looked at Guan Ziheng and asked, "Have you ever wondered why no one has discovered a road leading to the mountains in all these years?"
Guan Ziheng thought about it carefully and said, "Because the location marked on the treasure map is wrong."
"It's just one of those things."
"What else?"
Before Lin Lezhi was about to speak, Xiao Yihuo suddenly spoke up and pointed out, "It's hidden enough."
"That's right!" Lin Lezhi's eyes lit up, and a smile appeared on his lips. He said, "It's hidden enough. If the passage wasn't so hidden, even without a treasure map, someone would definitely be able to find the way to the mountains. Before the white flower snake appeared, that forest was not a forbidden area. Anyone could enter at will."
Guan Ziheng was confused and quickly stopped him, saying, "Wait, Lezhi, you've got me confused. I still don't understand what this road leading to the mountains has to do with the fog."
"Originally, it had nothing to do with the fog, but if we outsiders want to enter the mountains, we can only do so with the help of the fog."
"How to get in?"
“As long as there is a path between the mountains, there must be a gap. Only when there is a gap can the fog pass through the gap and drift outside.”
The words fell.
Everyone showed a look of sudden enlightenment.
Lin Lezhi continued, "So, neither too thick nor too light fog is good. If the fog is too thick, people will ignore the fog coming out of the gaps and cracks, and only feel that the fog is everywhere. If the fog is too light or there is no fog at all, it will be impossible to detect it."
"I see."
Qingchuan said suddenly with a thoughtful look in his eyes.
"To enter the mountains, both the treasure map and the route into the mountains are indispensable. If it weren't for the east wind that brought thick fog to the mountains, which condensed between the mountains to form a river fog, showing the terrain more clearly, and if I hadn't memorized some of the inscriptions on the wall in advance, it would have been difficult to find."
Xiao Yihuo's eyes darkened, and he said solemnly, "But the markings on the wall have been destroyed. Where did this route into the mountain come from?"
"In that fleeting moment in the basement, and the darkness inside, I couldn't see everything clearly. I only remembered the first few inscriptions. Afraid of forgetting, I drew down the remaining parts from memory as soon as I got back to the inn. After the Lantern Festival, I secretly went to Wu Sanshan's house. The night you followed me, I wanted to go back to the basement to confirm the second half of the inscriptions, but unfortunately, it was destroyed."
As if he had been prepared for Xiao Yihuo's misfortune, Lin Lezhi took out the medicine wrapping paper with the marks on it from his arms, unfolded it, and spread it flat on the table.
"Three days ago, when we came back from the forest, Ziheng saw me scribbling on the medicine packet again. He was disgusted with me for scribbling on it and even trying to hide it." Lin Lezhi's eyes darkened slightly. "But when I was writing down the marks on the wall, I wrote them directly on the medicine packet for convenience and didn't turn the paper over."
After Lin Lezhi gave a brief explanation, everyone realized the problem and their eyes immediately became serious.
Lin Lezhi looked at the complete circuit on the paper with a serious expression. He said affirmatively, "So, the circuit at the back was added later."
Lin Lezhi paused, then continued, "Those medicines were bought for me by Yun He. Later, Qi Xi, disguised as Zi Heng, brought me to the island. I've been carrying them with me ever since, until that night when we went out flower hunting. Those medicine packets were completely out of sight for Zi Heng and me, but the ink marks were dried. This means that the person left the ink marks on this paper before, not on the night we went flower hunting."
As he spoke, Lin Lezhi's eyes darkened slightly, and he spoke frankly, "Besides me, the only other person who knew I scribbled on the medicine bag was Qi Xi, who was pretending to be Guan Ziheng. He asked me why I drew those marks on the medicine bag."
Qingchuan pondered for a moment, his eyes tightening slightly as he asked, "Lezhi, are you saying that the person who left behind this second half of the route was Qixi?"
Lin Lezhi's calm gaze was tinged with gloom. He nodded and said, "Based on the current clues, this is the most reasonable conclusion."
Liu Yunhe was puzzled and said, "I'm really getting more and more confused about Qi Xi. The reason he destroyed the carvings on the wall was because he and Cheng Su didn't want others to discover the other treasure hiding place and cause further suffering to the people. Covering it up was the best outcome. But... why did he secretly leave the other half of the route? Doesn't this contradict his idea? He doesn't know that we are looking for flowers to cure diseases."
As he spoke, worry and fear filled Liu Yunhe's eyes. He looked at everyone with uneasiness and asked, "Could it be that the route he left behind is fake? He knows we are trying to find a way into the mountains, and wants us to be buried with the treasure among them?"