His life was saved by chance, he said that from the moment he fell down, he didn't know anything. The rapid water flow pulled him to the depths, and it's a miracle that he survived. We lived in Shanghai for a month, and the old man who returned with us was also interested in the hairpin on Pongzi's hand. That old man sent a telegram back to America, saying that there was a major discovery in China, and the controversy between the Northern and Southern Song dynasties could be said to be the most brilliant part of ancient Chinese history. The high development of the economy during the Song Dynasty did not match its declining national power, but what excited the old man even more was that he confirmed that the hairpin on Pongzi's hand was not a product from the Central Plains, but rather from the Western Regions, specifically from the Kingdom of Khotan!

  Kucha Kingdom, perhaps not unfamiliar to those who like history, about a thousand years ago, in today's Xinjiang, it was all its territory. The Flaming Mountain mentioned in "Journey to the West" refers to the story of Master Xuanzang passing through Kucha Kingdom. What makes this hairpin even more peculiar is that it has a string of sixteen characters, these characters are made using micro-engraving method, and can only be seen with a magnifying glass.

  The hairpin itself is a phoenix shape, which also belongs to the typical protagonist of the Central Plains mythological story, but the inscribed text is indeed in the long-lost Uighur script, which was only used by the ancient country of Kucha in history and is not related to other ethnic groups. This is also what Old Gu is most interested in.

  Soon, a fax came from the US side, coinciding with the honeymoon period of Sino-US relations during the global Cold War. Nixon's visit to China turned two former enemies into friends overnight. A top private museum in the United States, affiliated with Stanford University, claimed it wanted to conduct academic research, but at that time, just because a photo of the "Fat Man" brooch was sent back, the other side offered $1 million to collect it.

  It was beyond our expectation to be hit by such a big golden egg, especially the fat man. Although his head was wrapped in gauze, he couldn't help but laugh with his mouth wide open. A hairpin, which we thought was just a trivial thing, turned out to be so valuable. However, trouble soon found its way to our doorstep. Just as we were preparing to return to Hong Village, an unexpected guest arrived at the Yuan Family Mansion.

  Who is it? The one leading seems to know Cha Wenbin...

  "Dragon Lord..." Our little half-immortal Cha Wenbin also lowered his head when he saw him, with a very respectful attitude. I know that there are not many people in this world who can enter his "dharma eye". And from the attitude of Yuan Xiaobai's father towards that Dragon Lord, it seems that person really has weight, because Chinese people are most particular about status. This is the Yuan family mansion, and yet Uncle Yuan only stood at the back of the visitor's row!

  "Should I call you 1982 or Zha Wenbin?" he said with a smile, "I think you should be qualified to let me call your name, it's an honor for you."

  What? A person's name is given by their parents, and this guy dares to talk like that!

  What made me even more shocked was that Cha Wenbin responded with a respectful tone: "Thank you, Lord Long."

  That person seemed to have a clear purpose from the start and didn't beat around the bush. He stretched out his hand directly and said, "The thing, bring it here."

  "What?" "That telegram!" He waved a photograph in his hand, I truly admire the information security of our country, this is the telegram that Old Gu sent to the United States.

  "It's not mine."

  Long Lao stood up and looked around in a circle, sizing me and Pangzi up and down before saying: "These few are your friends, right?"

  "Yes." "Well, then, you and your friend are different, aren't you?" When I heard him say this, I really felt that he was a naked rascal, especially with that gaze, greedy and ferocious.

  He walked up to Mr. Yuan with a cup of tea and said, "Mr. Yuan is quite familiar with these few kids?"

  "She is friends with Little Girl." "That's great!"

  "Don't bother them, I can give you the thing." As he spoke, Zha Wenbin stretched out his hand to Pangzi.

  "What's the big idea?" Before Fatty could open his mouth, Old Gu stood up and questioned Long Ye: "You broke into a civilian's home first, and threatened people's safety afterwards. I'm going to call the police, I'm going to file a complaint with the embassy!"

  "Ah, Professor Guo, I presume? As an American, you may not be familiar with our country's laws. Let me enlighten you: all artifacts unearthed from the ground belong to the state. If anyone insists on claiming this hairpin as their own or attempts to buy and sell it, they can be sentenced to prison according to our laws. Trafficking cultural relics is a serious offense in our country."

  "You..." Old Gu was so angry that he couldn't speak, turned around and went to pick up the phone: "I'm going to call the embassy, my personal safety is under threat, I want to complain about you!"

  Long Ye took a step forward, pressing down on Old Gu's hand and said: "I advise Professor Gu not to affect the relationship between the two countries. This is no ordinary object, you and I both know its value is immeasurable. You think you can just take it away for a mere $10 million? Are you kidding me?"

  Dragon's words shocked us, in that era, we were still carrying large denominations of 10 yuan RMB in our pockets, and the monthly salary of an ordinary worker was only around 100-200 yuan. If a village had produced a millionaire, it would have been big news worthy of reporting in the newspaper. But this hairpin in Dragon's mouth became a mere $1 million US dollars, what concept is that? And the expression on Old Gu's face, red one moment and green the next, further confirmed Dragon's words, it seems that this hairpin was indeed not ordinary to have attracted so many people.

  "Give it to him!" Zhang Wenbin said this sentence with a somewhat unquestionable tone, and although the fat man had a hundred unwillingness, he was not stupid either. This momentum, if he didn't hand it over today, he might not even have the chance to walk out of this door. He took it out from his close-fitting clothes and handed it over to Zhang Wenbin's hands.

  Cha Wenbin took a step back with the hairpin and said, "I have a few requests."

  Long Ya: "Speak."

  "First: The owner of this thing is my friend who exchanged it with his life, not yours, so you can borrow it, but cannot take it! Second: Is the mine in Zhuangyuan Village one of yours? Where is that one-eyed dragon? There are several lives on his hands. Just now, Dragon said that we are a country ruled by law, so isn't it reasonable to kill someone and pay with one's life?"

  "Let's not talk about how ridiculous your conditions are," said Long Ye with a smile. "What if I don't agree?"

  Saying that, Cha Wenbin made a gesture with both hands as if he was going to break the hairpin and said: "Then I'll destroy it!"

  "Alright, I'll answer your second question first. Yes, a country has its laws and a family has its rules. The emperor who breaks the law is punished just like a commoner. Do you have evidence that he did it? Even if you do, what does it matter? I forgot to tell you, we are beyond the law because anyone who enters this mountain stronghold is a dead man, including you."

  "What does it mean?"

  "Our household registration and files have all been destroyed, which means that even if you go to the public security bureau now, there will be no record of your existence. Your records are already deceased! The law won't pursue a dead person's responsibility, so I can respond to your first condition: since we're not bound by the law, I can acknowledge this hairpin as yours; but if it belongs to any of them, I guarantee their safety."

  "You still won't say?"

  "Similarly, if someone asks me who the owner of this hairpin is, I won't say either. Three days later, it will be returned to its rightful owner, and how you deal with it then is your business. However, I advise you to keep it on yourself, as putting it in someone else's hands might make it a bomb."

  Zha Wenbin didn't say anything else and handed over the hairpin, but unexpectedly Long Ye didn't take it and instead said: "I said, it's best to leave things with you."

  "Aren't you going for three days?"

  "Counting you, there are three people in total." After saying that, Dragon Lord glanced around the room and said: "Within these three days, everyone should try not to leave Shanghai. Otherwise, this Cha Wenbin may not be able to find his way back home, and I will still send him back to this mansion."

  Three days, not long or short, Wen Bin just left like that, just like when he left back then. We stayed in the Yuan family's mansion for three whole days. It's not that people don't face reality, but whether you will compromise with reality. In the face of absolute power, waiting is the only choice...

  Yuan Xiaobai's father just said one sentence to us: "Don't mess with them." These three simple words, I somehow sensed what kind of people they were. This man, who is over fifty years old and has experienced countless storms in Shanghai, chose to remain silent; what else could we do?

  Three days later, he returned, and as Long Ye said, the hairpin was also returned...

  About what he did, whether something happened to him, Cha Wenbin remained tight-lipped, just like his disappearance a few years ago. However, he brought back an even worse message: "The three of us may be cursed..."