Chapter 17: The Gluttonous Dragon-Patterned Cauldron!
[Host has successfully identified the Nine-Twisted Dragon Flame Everlasting Lamp and earned a lottery chance worth five million!]
The system’s prompt echoed in Zhang Xuan’s mind.
The familiar treasure chest appeared before his eyes.
Zhang Xuan rubbed his hands together and confirmed the draw.
A golden light shimmered forth.
The system’s voice rang out again.
[Congratulations, host! You have won a five-million cash red envelope!]
Zhang Xuan’s eyes widened in shock.
“Five million cash red envelope?”
He hurriedly picked up his phone and saw a notification about a bank account balance change.
“Your bank card ending in 7068 has received a transfer. Your current balance is 5,045,620.1 yuan.”
“No way!”
A surge of overwhelming joy flooded his heart.
Sure enough, five million had been credited!
Zhang Xuan suddenly felt the old saying was incredibly true: What is the happiest thing in life? It’s to be alive with endless money to spend!
Five million!
Simply impossible to finish spending!
In his past life, Zhang Xuan had seen money before and had handled goods worth eight figures.
But earning that money had never been this effortless!
Just as he was about to plan how to spend it, his attention was drawn to a massive, blackened bronze tripod adorned with beast patterns appearing in the camera.
What surprised him most was the dense array of inscriptions covering the bronze vessel!
Though he only glanced at the front, the number of characters seemed to exceed three hundred.
If there were inscriptions on the back and sides as well, the total might reach into the thousands!
This was an astonishing discovery!
“Third Uncle, what are you doing?”
Zhou Cheng’s voice sounded.
The man Zhou Cheng called Third Uncle replied, “Oh, I’m making a rubbing.”
“These inscriptions should record the tomb owner’s information. If we can decipher the ancient script in the future, we’ll be able to translate the content!”
Zhou Cheng hesitated, “Aren’t you planning to take this tripod out?”
Terry laughed from the side, “Kid, this tripod weighs over a thousand jin. Do you think your Third Uncle is a tyrant who can just lift it with bare hands?”
Zhou Zeyi added, “This tripod is a national treasure. Even if we took it out, it would be damaged. Even thieves have their principles—we can’t destroy the ancestors’ treasure!”
Zhou Cheng scratched his head.
Terry blinked and then, as if remembering something, looked at Zhou Cheng with slight puzzlement.
“Hey, nephew, I saw you wandering behind the pillar just now.”
“Did you light the lamp up there?”
Zhou Zeyi and the tall, thin man also glanced at Zhou Cheng in surprise.
Zhou Cheng nodded. “Oh, you mean the Nine-Twisted Dragon Flame Everlasting Lamp.”
“I thought the tomb was too dark, so I lit it up a bit to give you all some light.”
Terry was speechless.
Zhou Zeyi frowned as he glanced at the lamp on the stone pillar: “Nine-Twisted Dragon Flame Everlasting Lamp.”
“What a professional name.”
The tall, thin man nodded, “It does sound quite professional.”
“Going to university really makes a difference. He knows more than us country bumpkins!”
Zhou Zeyi shook his head, “I didn’t even know the name of this lamp.”
“I’ve watched this kid grow up. How much knowledge he has in his belly, I as his Third Uncle know well,” Terry said with surprise.
“What do you mean?”
Zhou Zeyi looked at Zhou Cheng. “Zhou Cheng!”
“Don’t blame me for being blunt, but what we’re doing today could cost us our heads!”
“We absolutely mustn’t let anyone else find out!”
The tall, thin man gasped and looked at Zhou Cheng in astonishment. “No way?”
Zhou Zeyi snorted, “Be honest. Where did you find out about this from?”
But Zhou Cheng remained calm and pointed to the four everlasting lamps. “Shh!”
“Do you hear that?”
Everyone frowned and indeed heard a sizzling sound coming intermittently from the chandelier on the dome.
Zhou Cheng said, “Doesn’t that sound like a dragon’s roar?”
Zhou Zeyi stared at him with a strange expression.
Terry laughed out loud, “Dragon roar my foot!”
Zhou Cheng straightened up. “It’s recorded in the Warring States texts!”
“The ancient king’s tomb used mermaid oil as fuel. Copper was cast into nine dragon heads gathered into a platform. The flame emerging sounds like a dragon’s roar. This exquisite device is called the Nine-Twisted Dragon Flame Everlasting Lamp!”
Then he looked at Zhou Zeyi. “Third Uncle, I didn’t make up the name.”
“The ancients named it long ago!”
The tall, thin man’s expression relaxed. “Third Master, your nephew sure is well-educated.”
“Don’t be jealous.”
“I actually thought we were dealing with something unclean just now!”
Terry gave a thumbs-up. “Nephew, you’re really impressive!”
Then he beckoned Zhou Cheng over. “Nephew, come take a look at what kind of creature is depicted here, and what these characters are!”
Zhou Cheng stepped forward, glanced briefly, then said in surprise, “So many inscriptions?”
“The beast patterns look familiar too.”
Hearing this, Zhou Zeyi’s tense brow suddenly eased, and his eyes brightened slightly. “You recognize it?”
Zhou Cheng took a deep breath, hands on hips, and said indifferently, “More KPIs won’t hurt!”
Zhou Zeyi blinked. “What?”
Zhou Cheng grinned, “Give me a moment to think…”
The live stream chat exploded with activity!
“This guy really learned and applied on the spot?”
“Amazing, really boosting the streamer’s KPIs!”
“LOL, he’s pretending but it’s convincing!”
“Honestly, anyone who doesn’t know could be fooled by this kid!”
“Xuan, this is a hint to check out that tripod!”
Zhang Xuan smiled mysteriously and whispered, “A little trick.”
Zhou Cheng replied, “Hmm…”
Comments flooded in: “Taking advantage of the situation, well done!”
“Knew you’d do that, shameless!”
“Why bother being a streamer, just be a bandit!”
“Come on, hurry up! It won’t be fun if you get caught!”
Zhang Xuan cleared his throat twice and his gaze sharpened suddenly. “Brother, get your Third Uncle ready mentally!”
Zhou Cheng said, “Third Uncle, listen carefully!”
Zhou Zeyi’s eyes sparkled. “You really recognized it?”
Zhang Xuan said, “This is called a Taotie Dragon-Patterned Tripod!”
“It’s from the Shang and Zhou dynasties!”
Zhou Cheng inhaled deeply, staring at Zhou Zeyi with a hint of awe.
Terry was anxious. “Why did the kid stop talking?”
“What’s wrong?”
Zhou Cheng took another deep breath. “Third Uncle… we hit the jackpot!”
“This is a Taotie Dragon-Patterned Tripod!”
“From the Shang and Zhou dynasties!”
Zhou Zeyi’s pupils dilated as he stared at Zhou Cheng in disbelief. “How could this be…”
Terry and the tall, thin man paid little attention but excitedly grabbed Zhou Cheng’s arms. “Nephew, Terry didn’t catch that…”
“What pattern? Which era?”
“Say it again so Terry can get excited one more time!”
Zhou Cheng felt his heart racing uncontrollably. Though he didn’t know the price, the name alone screamed priceless treasure!
“Taotie… Dragon-Patterned Tripod!”
“Shang and Zhou dynasties!”
Terry clenched his teeth and fists. “Damn!”
“This is a phenomenal score!”
Zhou Zeyi pulled out a cigarette.
Terry quickly grabbed one and handed cigarettes to Zhou Cheng and the tall man.
They all smoked silently.
Zhou Zeyi’s eyes flickered as he stared at the Taotie Dragon-Patterned Tripod. “How could it be from the Shang and Zhou dynasties…”
“Could it be that King Mu of Zhou really existed?”