Chapter 135: Corpse Retrieving and Stone Washing for Wealth

Chapter 135: Fishing for Corpses, Panning for Stones, Praying for Fortune

Watching several people pop up from the hole right beneath his feet, Qin Jiao was seriously creeped out. "There are people inside this hole?"

The attendant beside him eagerly chimed in, "Yes, honored guest, they're all 'stone divers.'"

Seeing Qin Jiao was still spooked, the attendant thoughtfully added, "No need to fear, honored guest. We're three stories above the deep hole below. It's just that the Mingliu Stone works like a lens, so it looks way closer than it really is."

"I see."

That put Qin Jiao at ease, and he looked down at the "stone divers" below. He watched them climb out of the deep hole, untying thick arm-sized ropes from their waists. They were all caked in mud, each hauling a big waterproof sack on their back.

Qin Jiao followed their direction and noticed a small path beside the deep hole that led straight to the ground floor of Fengwu Tower. A bunch of people carrying waterproof sacks were gathered there. Some had their sacks open, and even from a distance, Qin Jiao could see they were stuffed with Linggu Stones of all sizes.

He Zhao said, "In a bit, the Linggu Stones those divers dug up will be brought out for guests to pick from. Small ones go for a few taels of silver, but big ones can fetch a thousand in gold."

"A thousand in gold?" Luo Yue clicked his tongue in awe. "Then wouldn't every stone diver be rolling in wealth?"

He Zhao shook his head at that notion. "Nothing in this world comes that easy. These Linggu Stones had been completely gone for years. It was only half a year ago, when a sudden earthquake hit Lingbei and shook open this deep hole, that the locals rediscovered them."

"How many Linggu Stones can one deep hole hold? They've been digging for half a year and still haven't emptied it?"

Qin Jiao leaned over the edge of the pavilion out of curiosity, and was stunned to see the once empty, pitch-black deep hole slowly filling with water. The water gradually rose over the rim, slowly seeping out like black ink.

And in that short time, over a dozen stone divers popped up out of the water, all hauling big sacks and swimming fast.

"Is the groundwater rising?"

Qin Jiao had never seen anything like this. It was fascinating, but also kind of creepy.

"No, it's the Fengwu River water rushing in," He Zhao explained. "This deep hole isn't open all the time. Only during the hour of Shen each day, after the river pulls back, can the divers go down. And honestly, this hole is just a regular sinkhole. The Linggu Stones just get washed in here by the river current."

"That's wild," Luo Yue said. Like Qin Jiao, he'd grown up in the capital, so this was his first time seeing such an interesting landscape.

Qin Jiao was intrigued but also puzzled. "The Fengwu River only recedes for such a short time. What if some divers can't make it back up in time?" Even as they were talking, the little path the divers had walked on was already underwater—that's how fast the water came rushing in.

He Zhao leaned back in his chair and pointed at a dozen small bamboo rafts floating nearby.

The rafts were scattered across the river, each one with a big red rooster tied to it. "See those rafts waiting over there? The locals call them 'corpse rafts.' If a stone diver can't make it back to shore on his own, those are the guys who fish him out."

"This..." Qin Jiao's voice trailed off.

"Lingbei is a water city, and 'corpse retrieving' has always been a trade here. Nothing special," He Zhao said, totally unfazed.

"Though in the past half year, the price for hauling up corpses has gone up several times over—from a few taels of silver at first to thirty taels now." He Zhao had been in Lingbei for three months, so he'd watched the "rising tide" of retrieval prices firsthand.

"Is it because too many people are digging for Linggu Stones?" Qin Jiao guessed.

He Zhao sighed, a bit helplessly. "Exactly. The Linggu Stones fetch high prices, and everyone wants a piece of the pie. But there's only that one hour each day to go down. The ones who find something are like kids at a show—over the moon. The ones who don't are risking their necks, gambling with their lives..."

Luo Yue frowned. "In the end, people die for money."

"That's the truth of it."

He Zhao didn't argue with that. He pointed at the water level rising higher and higher beneath their feet. "This pavilion's got a unique spot. In a little while, the deep hole below will be completely flooded. Through the lens, it'll look like we're standing right in the middle of the tide. And when the water pulls back tomorrow at the hour of Shen, you can watch the divers go down again. Pretty cool, right?"

"But I've got goosebumps..." Qin Jiao gave He Zhao an awkward smile. "How about we check out somewhere else?"

The scene was definitely interesting, but the water just kept rising, and it gave Qin Jiao a creeping sense of dread.

"Alright, let's head downstairs and take a look."

He Zhao had originally brought Qin Jiao out to see some excitement and cheer him up. Since he didn't like the pavilion, they could just go somewhere else.

The three of them headed downstairs. As soon as they hit the first floor, they saw a crowd gathered around, all exclaiming:

"Wow, Lu Ming really is something—he dug up such a huge Linggu Stone!"

"That must be worth at least five hundred taels of gold!"

"Gotta say, Lu Ming's got some luck. Who wouldn't be jealous seeing that..."

"The Fortune Hole truly lives up to its name!"

The buzz of chatter drew a big crowd. He Zhao loved a good show, so he immediately dragged Qin Jiao toward the crowd. "What's going on? Let me see..."

He Zhao shoved forward like a pangolin, desperately trying to squeeze through the crowd, but there were just too many people. Just as he was thinking he might have to use his lightness skill to fly in, the sharp attendant who'd led them to the pavilion came running over.

That attendant was used to hard labor, with strong hands and a quick, nimble body. In no time, he managed to carve a path for He Zhao and Qin Jiao. "Alright, everyone, make way! Don't crowd the honored guests! Move aside, move aside, let the guests see first!"

"Not bad, kid!" He Zhao praised the attendant, who immediately replied humbly that it was his honor to help.

He Zhao led Qin Jiao to the front. "Whoa! This Linggu Stone is a beast."

The Linggu Stone in front of them was about the size of a lady's round fan, gleaming with a dazzling rainbow-colored light in the sun. The stone had a natural hibiscus flower pattern, and with a little simple carving, it'd make a great centerpiece for a home.

"It's pretty big," Qin Jiao agreed, nodding.

"Want it? I'll buy it for you."

Unlike another of Qin Jiao's friends, the one surnamed Jiang, and with no intention of comparing the two, this friend surnamed He was indeed way too generous—casually offering to buy something worth five hundred taels of gold.

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