Tang Dynasty Hidden Guards

Yuan Min went back to her room to get the key, and together with Xue Wei, they went to the underground storeroom. As soon as they opened the storeroom, a dry, pungent scent of cloves wafted out.

"This is a leak from our spice collection."

Yuan Min lit the six oil lamps on the wall and gestured for Xue Wei to close the door.

The underground storage room is very large, and it doesn't have the cold and damp feeling that you'd expect from a typical underground room. Instead, it's very dry and well-ventilated.

The basement was filled with large boxes, and I wondered which box Dingxiang was in.

Yuan Min saw that there were numbers in the boxes, so she found a small blank box, opened it, and took out a thick catalog booklet.

She looked at it and said, "The calligraphy and paintings are in box number twenty. It doesn't say it explicitly, it just says there are seven pieces of calligraphy and paintings. There are no calligraphy and paintings in the other boxes."

Xue Wei quickly found box number 20, and he noticed several other long boxes next to it.

"What are these long, narrow boxes, numbers thirty-one to thirty-five?"

Yuan Min looked at the folding box and said, "It's a five-panel white jade screen, and boxes number thirty-six and thirty-seven are the bases."

"A screen taking up seven slots, it must be a good thing."

"It's a nice thing, a wedding gift from your mother that you've never used."

"Let's move it upstairs too! If it's good, we'll use it."

Xue Wei's attitude towards his mother, Princess Taiping, gradually changed. He developed a slight fondness for her and even a little bit of motherly affection for her.

Princess Taiping also began to care about her son's feelings and no longer indulged herself as before. With her reputation established, she became much more restrained.

Yuan Min smiled and nodded. She tried the box, but it didn't budge. She could only exclaim, "Uncle Xue, it's up to you now."

Xue Wei shook his head. "An army is raised for a thousand days, but used for only one." "Where are your four female warriors?"

"Oh dear, I forgot about them! They're still at the Dugu residence!"

…………

Panting, Xiao Song brought the four female warriors back and carried their belongings up to the fourth floor. It was already dusk.

Yuan Min stuck out her tongue. "Sorry about today."

"I don't care, you should tell them."

"Honey, let's eat first!"

The word "husband" had a magical power, instantly soothing Xue Wei's dissatisfaction.

"Eat! Eat! After you eat, go to bed and get to work."

Yuan Min has gradually gotten used to this guy's sudden lewd remarks, and sometimes she will tease him a bit, enjoying it.

.........

Only the two of them remained in the study. They spread out the table, and Xue Wei carefully took out the original work by Wang Xizhi. This piece of calligraphy had been mounted, with a white sandalwood scroll and a purple silk cover.

But when he unfolded it, there was a slip of paper inside. The words on it made Xue Wei's heart sink. It was an authentication card that read, "A forgery by the Sui Dynasty, an inferior imitation of Yu Shiji's seal."

The two looked at each other in bewilderment. Wu Zetian had taken the calligraphy, identified it as a fake, and returned it.

Yuan Min's eyes reddened. "Impossible! This was my father's wedding gift to me. He only gave me this one gift. How could it be fake?"

"What if someone replaced me?"

Yuan Min shook her head, pointing to a very inconspicuous small chip on the white sandalwood scroll. "I accidentally dropped it and broke it here. It wasn't replaced, but my father clearly told me that this painting was extremely valuable. How could it be a fake?"

"Is this all your father gave you as a dowry?"

Yuan Min nodded. "That's all."

Xue Wei was a little puzzled. Yuan Min's father was a wealthy man who owned more than 200 shops. How could he only give her one piece of calligraphy? Even if it was an authentic work by Wang Xizhi, it couldn't guarantee his daughter's status and life in her husband's family.

Moreover, the final authentication revealed it to be fake, and it seemed quite obviously fake: "Inferior counterfeit Yu Shiji seal".

Xue Wei looked at the appraisal seal. Yu Shiji's seal was indeed crooked and casually stamped. This was an authentic work by Wang Xizhi, yet it was stamped so casually. Even he, who knew nothing about calligraphy and painting, felt that it was a bit fake.

"Actually, I've had a feeling it was fake for a long time."

Yuan Min suddenly whispered, "My uncle borrowed this calligraphy to look at, but returned it to me the next morning. If it were real, he wouldn't have returned it to me. If he had switched it, there wouldn't have been enough time. I suspected it was fake at the time, but it was given to me by my father, and I didn't want to admit it."

"Since everyone can tell it's fake, and your father must have had it authenticated, why would he still give it to you, especially as your only wedding gift?"

Yuan Min lowered her head. "I don't know, and I don't dare to think about it too much."

Xue Wei pondered for a moment and then said, "I have a question I'd like to ask. It's not directed at anyone in particular, so please don't be offended."

"Go ahead and say it, I'm not angry."

"I find it a bit strange. Your father is so rich, and you are his only child. He would have given you at least a dozen shops as a dowry. How can a father only give you a piece of calligraphy as a dowry? He is not a calligrapher, he is a big businessman."

"It is a bit strange, but this is my father's intention, and I dare not think too much about it, for fear of hurting my father's feelings."

"This isn't about being sad. I think that since this calligraphy looks fake at first glance, it might have a deeper meaning that you just haven't realized."

"What deeper meaning could it hold?"

"I don't know. Think about it, what else did your father say to you about this calligraphy?"

Yuan Min recalled carefully, and suddenly her eyes lit up. "I remember now. When my father was on his deathbed, he held my hand and told me to appreciate this calligraphy. Because the calligraphy had already been confiscated by the government, I didn't dare to ask any questions."

Xue Wei thought for a moment and then asked, "Was anyone around when he told you to 'appreciate this calligraphy'?"

"Yes! There were quite a few people there: doctors, maids, my mother, and my grandfather."

Xue Wei continued, "Then your father proposed leaving the entire shop to you. Did your grandfather and several uncles disagree?"

"Yes, several uncles were not present at the time, and they only expressed their opposition later. Although my grandfather agreed, he also made it clear to my father that it was unlikely that I would get these shops. Although he was the head of the family, if other clansmen asked to vote on this matter in the ancestral hall, he would only have one vote."

Xue Wei nodded. "Now I'm sure of it. Your father knew you wouldn't get his shop; it would be taken by the family. So he made preparations long ago and left you something else, which is hidden in this calligraphy. Because there were outsiders present, he couldn't say it openly. He could only tell you to take a good look at this calligraphy."

"Ah! Where could it be hidden?"

Xue Wei examined the calligraphy carefully and suspected it was a painting within a painting, with another painting hidden underneath. He held up a lamp to examine it, but found no other writing underneath.

Xue Wei's gaze fell on the scroll, which was covered by purple silk. To see the scroll, the mounting had to be removed, something most people wouldn't dare to do. But since the calligraphy was fake, it didn't matter.

Xue Wei drew his dagger and said to Yuan Min, "I suspect it's hidden inside the scroll. May I remove it?"

Yuan Min nodded, her heart also filled with curiosity.

Xue Wei used his sharp dagger to carefully cut open the purple silk and removed it. There was nothing unusual about the silk. His gaze fell on the shaft. After looking at it for a moment, he suddenly noticed a very subtle crack. He used his dagger to gently pry along the crack, and a small wooden cover was pried open.

Yuan Min's spirits lifted; sure enough, something was going on!

Xue Wei looked at it and saw a small hole with a roll of fine silk inside. He couldn't pour it out. He wished he had a pair of tweezers.

Xue Wei glanced at Yuan Min's long, thin fingernails.

"Honey, it's up to you now. Pick it out with your fingernails."

Yuan Min rolled her eyes at him, opened the sewing box, pierced the silk roll with a very thin crochet hook, and slowly pulled it out.