Chapter Fifty-Five: Treasure Hunt

“Since you have a way, we'll only know if it works by trying,” Qi Jun said, certain that after years under Old Fox Feng, Sun Jiu had picked up some tricks.

“Sir, please leave for now. I want a private word with this bandit woman.”

Qi Jun didn’t know what Sun Jiu intended to do with the bandit woman, but he trusted Sun Jiu had his reasons. He nodded, stepped outside, and closed the door behind him.

Left in the small courtyard, Qi Jun paced back and forth in boredom, his gaze wandering often to the little house. He suspected Sun Jiu might employ some cruel interrogation methods he’d never witnessed, methods so harsh that the woman’s anguished cries would surely ring out. Yet, after waiting for some time, not a sound issued from the house.

“What on earth is Sun Jiu doing in there?” Qi Jun glanced at the sun sinking in the west, growing more anxious.

Just then, a sudden, heart-wrenching wail erupted from inside. Qi Jun involuntarily shivered, his mind conjuring dreadful images of what might have transpired within.

Gradually, the crying subsided, and when calm returned, Sun Jiu emerged, pushing open the door. “Well, she finally confessed,” he announced.

Qi Jun stared in surprise, then quickly stepped into the room, curiosity and worry mingled in his heart, fearing Sun Jiu might have gone too far.

But to his astonishment, the bandit woman was still securely tied to the chair, unharmed except for the tear stains on her face—there were no signs of torture at all.

“She talked? What did you do?” Qi Jun asked, utterly bewildered.

“I’ll tell you later. For now, let’s see if she told the truth.” Sun Jiu grinned mischievously, shooting the bandit woman a warning look before turning to leave.

Suppressing his questions, Qi Jun followed Sun Jiu outside. They entered the room where the Red-Eyed Hawk once lived. Sun Jiu began carefully probing the floor tiles along the wall, step by step.

Qi Jun watched, unsure what he was looking for. When Sun Jiu had circled the room, he stopped at a corner, crouched, and knocked forcefully on the tile beneath him.

“This is it!” Sun Jiu’s face lit up with joy. He pried at the tile, which indeed seemed loose.

“Come, give me a hand,” Sun Jiu called to the stupefied Qi Jun, who hurried over to help him lift the heavy tile.

With their combined effort, they gradually pried up a corner, revealing a pitch-black tunnel entrance beneath. A chilly draft drifted up, making both men shiver.

“Judging by this wind, the space below must be quite big,” Qi Jun said, thrilled. They removed the tile entirely, exposing the tunnel’s mouth.

The opening was narrow, only wide enough for one person at a time. Qi Jun and Sun Jiu lit a torch and, hearts pounding with anticipation, descended.

Though the entrance was cramped, after a brief descent down the steps, the space opened up dramatically. Once their eyes adjusted to the darkness, the torchlight revealed the underground chamber in full.

Both men froze in shock. The chamber was over fifty square meters, with rows of large chests lining the far wall. In the center, piled high, was a mountain of coins as tall as a man.

“There’s a whole mountain of money down here!” Sun Jiu was utterly dumbfounded—he’d never seen so much wealth in his life. “There must be at least a hundred thousand strings of cash, if not more…”

He walked over slowly, plunging the torch into the pile and scooping up a double handful of coins, tossing them into the air. As the money rained down, he reveled in the shower, lost in the euphoria of riches.

Qi Jun shook his head at Sun Jiu’s greed. Ancient coins held little appeal for him; his only impression of them came from trinkets sold by street vendors. What truly interested him were the rows of large chests. He knew that truly valuable items would never be left in an open pile.

“All this money is yours. I only want those chests,” Qi Jun said, stepping closer and brushing the dust off one of the chests.

“What did you say?” Sun Jiu was stunned.

“I said, the money’s yours, the chests are mine. How about it?” Qi Jun worried Sun Jiu might object and wondered how best to persuade him.

“Sir, what kind of person do you take me for?” Sun Jiu snapped, his expression turning angry as he realized what Qi Jun was implying.

Embarrassed, Qi Jun smiled awkwardly, thinking that although Sun Jiu came from a poor background, he was no fool.

“I don’t care about those old chests. But this pile of cash must be split fifty-fifty!” Sun Jiu declared passionately. “I know exactly how Panlong Ridge was taken. With my meager abilities, I could never have done it alone. Frankly, if you wanted to take all the money, I wouldn’t argue. But I have wounded and disabled brothers under my command who deserve an explanation from me.”

Qi Jun was taken aback, realizing he had misjudged Sun Jiu. Of course, he wasn’t a fool—who could truly be indifferent to such a fortune?

Sun Jiu’s words filled Qi Jun with shame. He had assumed Sun Jiu was ambitious and cunning, yet only now did he see the sincerity of his heart. Unlike the scheming relationships of later generations, people of the past were often genuine. Even faced with overwhelming temptation, Sun Jiu remained true to his principles.

Qi Jun nodded solemnly at Sun Jiu. From that moment on, he resolved to make Sun Jiu a trusted, long-term partner.

“Very well, we’ll do as you say.” Qi Jun agreed, then turned to open one of the chests.

He reached in and felt the layered softness of what seemed to be furs or fine cloth, but in the dim light, couldn’t quite make out the contents. Bringing the torch closer, he saw that the chest contained a high-quality white tiger pelt and a stack of silk embroidered with exquisite floral patterns.

“How could bandits possess such things?” Qi Jun wondered, astonished by the Red-Eyed Hawk’s collection.

“Sun Jiu, aren’t you interested in these silks and fabrics?” Qi Jun asked, noticing Sun Jiu was still engrossed in dividing the money.

“What would I, a grown bachelor, do with such things?” Sun Jiu replied without looking up. Suddenly, he looked up with a teasing glint in his eye. “Sir, I’ve noticed those girls are quite taken with you. Why not give them these silks, win their hearts…”

“Get lost! The more you talk, the more ridiculous you sound.” Qi Jun almost wanted to swing the torch at Sun Jiu. Though reliable in action, his mouth was always irreverent.

In truth, there was nothing amiss with what Sun Jiu said. In the Great Liang, men and women could marry at fifteen, and it was perfectly normal for a household to have a wife and several concubines. But Qi Jun, shaped by the values of a later era, saw those girls who had knelt to thank him today as little more than junior high students by modern standards.

His feelings for Yun Fei were different, because she was literate, shared his interests, and at nineteen was close to his own age in his previous life.

But when Qi Jun opened the second chest and saw its contents, a profound shock seized him, shaking his faith in the very era he now inhabited.