211: The dilapidated temple in Xishan clears out the remaining party members, and the treasure hunt at Yuquan leads to a farcical situation with a secret letter hiding a thread that sets off a new course of events.

Just as dawn broke, the Zhuang family courtyard was already buzzing with activity. Shuanger squatted before the stove, packing the last steamer of Sesame Cakes into a food box. Beside her, a bamboo basket was filled with trauma medicine, wet cloths, and detoxification powder, each with a small label attached. "Brother Hui, there might be traps over at West Mountain. I've packed tools to disable trapdoors; Miss Fang Yi knows how to use them," she said, wiping her hands before handing over a water flask. "This is boiled water mixed with heatstroke-prevention herbs. Drink it if you get thirsty on the way."

Xie Hui had just taken the flask when Songgotu’s loud voice drifted in from outside the courtyard gate. Before the man even arrived, his voice burst in: "Little Brother Xie! Lord Wei! Is the treasure-digging team ready? this official has brought the best excavators and even packed a small scale to ensure not a single speck is missed when we divide the gold!"

Everyone turned to look. Songgotu was wearing a new official robe, a bulging pouch hanging from his waist, and a small copper scale in his hand. Following behind him were a dozen men carrying shovels, looking as if they were headed to a major market fair. Wei Xiaobao, holding a cloth bundle filled with crossbow bolts, greeted him with a smile: "Lord Suo, is that scale for weighing yourself? You said yesterday you'd be the earliest, but here I am, having finished my crossbow practice, and you've only just arrived!"

Songgotu quickly hid the scale behind his back and patted his pouch: "Who says this official is late? I’ve been up for ages! Didn't I bring breakfast for everyone?" Saying this, he fished a few cold buns out of his pouch. "Took these from the palace yesterday, they're still warm..." Before he could finish, a bun dropped to the ground and was nuzzled by the puppet in Jianning's arms. Jianning laughed and said, "Lord Suo, your buns are cold. Sister Shuanger's Sesame Cakes are the tasty ones. I'll get you one!"

Songgotu's eyes lit up, and he immediately forgot about the buns, running toward the stove after Jianning. "Princess Jianning is the most thoughtful! Are there gold pieces wrapped inside the Sesame Cakes? I dreamed last night of digging up a huge gold ingot, bigger than a head!"

Xie Hui had no time for their antics and addressed the group: "We move in two teams! I'll take Long'er, Fang Yi, and Mu Jianping to the West Mountain Ruined Temple to wipe out the Divine Dragon Cult remnants. Wei Xiaobao, you go with Big Brother Mao and Lord Suo to Yuquan Mountain to dig for the Treasure Trove. Take plenty of modified gunpowder; if you hit a trap, just blow it up. Shuanger, stay and guard the Zhuang residence. If any brothers are injured, call me on the walkie-talkie. Remember to keep the trauma medicine ready in the inner universe."

Everyone responded in unison. Songgotu, still munching on a Sesame Cake, shouted indistinctly, "Don't worry, Little Brother Xie! Leave the treasure digging to this official. I guarantee we'll dig up more than the Qing Army has in grain!"

The two teams set off separately. Xie Hui led his group toward West Mountain, arriving near the Ruined Temple shortly after. From a distance, they saw pale green poison smoke drifting at the temple entrance. Several Divine Dragon Cultists stood guard, holding poison smoke canisters. "Careful," Xie Hui lowered his voice. "Fang Yi, go check for traps. Long'er, follow me and scale the back wall. Jianping, stay outside and prepare the medicine. Don't let their poison smoke drift over here."

Fang Yi squatted down, her fingertips tracing the patterns on the road. She suddenly stopped. "There's a trapdoor! Right under the stone steps at the entrance. It's filled with poison needles; I need to find the master switch." She pulled out a small copper key she carried, inserted it into a crack beside the steps, and turned. With a 'click,' the trapdoor was locked firmly in place.

Long'er seized the opportunity to use her Lightness Skill, her toes tapping the ground as she dashed toward the back wall. With a swing of her black iron sword, she sent two cultists guarding the wall flying. Xie Hui rushed in with Mu Jianping. In the main hall, the remnants of the Divine Dragon Cult were gathered around a black-robed man, holding parts of a poison smoke cannon as if assembling a cannon. "Xie Hui! You actually found this place!" The black-robed man turned; it was the Divine Dragon Cult's Purple Altar Master, who had escaped from the headquarters last time.

"Enough talk!" Xie Hui unsheathed his black iron sword and charged at the Purple Altar Master. "Hand over all your strongholds, or I'll throw you all to the wolves!" The Purple Altar Master raised a poison smoke canister to spray Xie Hui's face. Xie Hui was prepared; he pulled out a wet cloth to cover his face, dodged to the side, and kicked the man away in one smooth motion.

Fang Yi and Long'er also charged in. Fang Yi threw anesthetic powder at the cultists while Long'er used her sword to knock the poison smoke canisters from their hands. In moments, most of the cultists were dealt with. Mu Jianping wasn't idle either; she took trauma medicine from her medical box to bandage brothers choked by the smoke, not forgetting to shout: "Don't breathe the poison smoke! Cover your nose and mouth with wet cloths! I have detoxification powder here!"

Seeing the tide turn against him, the Purple Altar Master tried to flee through the back door but was bound by Xie Hui with a rope. "Speak! How many remnants are left? Where are they hiding?" Xie Hui pressed the black iron sword against his neck. The Purple Altar Master's face turned white with fear: "I'll talk! I'll talk! There are fifty brothers hiding at Black Wind Fortress outside the capital. They've also hidden five poison smoke cannons, planning to ambush you while you dig for treasure!"

Xie Hui felt a chill in his heart. It was a good thing he got the information, or the brothers digging for treasure would have surely suffered. He had the Purple Altar Master taken away and shouted into the walkie-talkie: "Wei Xiaobao! Be careful. There are fifty remnants at Black Wind Fortress with poison smoke cannons. Don't get ambushed!"

Wei Xiaobao's loud voice soon came through the walkie-talkie, mixed with Songgotu's shouting: "Don't worry, Brother Hui! Lord Suo is currently fighting the excavators for a shovel, saying he wants to dig up the big gold ingots himself. We definitely won't lose out!"

Xie Hui smiled helplessly and led the group toward Yuquan Mountain to regroup with Wei Xiaobao. On the other side, the treasure excavation site at Yuquan Mountain was already lively. Songgotu had snatched the largest shovel and was digging hard at the edge of a pit, muttering: "Come out, big gold ingot! this official brought you a Sesame Cake. If you come out, I'll share half with you!"

Mao the Eighteenth stood by the pit, broadsword in hand, watching the surroundings warily: "Lord Suo, don't just focus on digging. Watch out for traps! An excavator just stepped on a small trap and almost fell in!"

Songgotu didn't even look up: "What's there to fear? this official wears an official robe bestowed by the Emperor; traps wouldn't dare touch me!" Just as he finished speaking, his foot slipped, and with a 'thud,' he fell into the pit. Fortunately, the pit wasn't deep, though he ended up covered in mud. Jianning leaned over the pit, laughing and clapping her hands: "Lord Suo, you've turned into a mud man! Do you want to kiss the gold ingots?"

Songgotu scrambled up and patted the mud off his body, only to feel something hard—it was a gold ingot! His eyes lit up, and he quickly hid the ingot in his robes, shouting to everyone: "Look! There are gold ingots at the bottom of this pit! Dig, dig fast!"

Wei Xiaobao ran over and grabbed his hand: "Lord Suo, you want to pocket it? This gold is military funding for the anti-Qing cause. If you dare hide it, this official will tell the Emperor!"

Songgotu's face turned red, and he quickly pulled the gold ingot out, feigning a cough: "Who said this official was pocketing it? I was helping everyone check if the gold is pure! Look at this quality; it's at least a catty. It's enough for us to recruit ten soldiers!"

As they spoke, the sound of hoofbeats came from the distance. It was Xie Hui arriving with his team. "Brother Hui! You've finally arrived!" Wei Xiaobao rushed to meet them. "We've already dug up over fifty gold ingots and quite a few silver bars. Lord Suo was just trying to hide some, but this official caught him red-handed!"

Songgotu waved his hands frantically: "Don't talk nonsense! this official was helping with the bookkeeping! Look, the ledger is all written down: one gold ingot, two silver bars..." He fished a crumpled ledger from his robes, covered in crooked circles, clearly drawn at random.

Xie Hui ignored him and looked into the pit: "Good digging. Put the treasure into the inner universe so it doesn't get lost. By the way, the Purple Altar Master said there are fifty remnants at Black Wind Fortress with poison smoke cannons. We need to go wipe them out immediately so they don't ambush the Zhuang residence."

Hearing there were remnants, Songgotu immediately hid by the edge of the pit: "Little Brother Xie, how about... how about you guys go first? this official will stay here to guard the treasure and prevent anyone from stealing the silver! These gold ingots are precious; losing one means one less soldier!"

Mu Jianping said with a smile: "Lord Suo, there might be private stashes at Black Wind Fortress, maybe even more than these gold ingots. How will you get a share if you don't go?"

Songgotu's eyes lit up, and he immediately crawled out from the pit, dusting off the mud: "Who said this official was guarding the treasure? I was checking if the excavators were slacking off! Let's go! To wipe out the remnants! this official can help with the bookkeeping and ensure all their silver is recorded!"

Everyone rode swift horses toward Black Wind Fortress. Songgotu's horse was a bit slow, so he yelled: "Wait for this official! I'm heavy, and the horse is tired! You go ahead, I'll be right behind you. Remember to save some credit for capturing remnants for me!"

They reached Black Wind Fortress in no time. The fortress was eerily quiet; clearly, the remnants had received word and were preparing an ambush. Xie Hui had everyone hide in the woods and said to Long'er: "Take five of the old subordinates and scale the back wall to cut the fuses of the poison smoke cannons. Fang Yi, follow me and charge through the main gate. Big Brother Mao, take the brothers and guard the outside so none of them escape. Lord Suo, you and Jianning wait in the woods. Don't come out and cause trouble!"

Songgotu was about to argue when Jianning pulled him into the trees: "Lord Suo, we'll watch the battle from here. It's safer than going in, and we can help count the silver!"

Long'er quickly scaled the back wall and cut the fuses of the poison smoke cannons, giving Xie Hui a signal. Xie Hui led the charge. The remnants were about to push the cannons forward, but seeing them rush in, they drew their blades to meet them. With a swing of his black iron sword, Xie Hui broke the blades of two remnants. Fang Yi threw anesthetic powder at them, and in a short while, all the remnants were dealt with.

Seeing the battle end, Songgotu rushed out of the woods and started searching the remnants: "Is there silver? Any gold? this official will 'keep it safe' for you!" After searching for a long time, he only found a few copper coins. He curled his lip in disappointment: "These remnants are too poor! Not even worth the scraps from the Treasure Trove!"

Everyone was amused. Xie Hui had the remnants taken away and began taking inventory of the fortress supplies. Fang Yi found a secret box in the cellar. Opening it, she found a Secret Letter from Wu Sangui to Tsarist Russia, stating a plan to join forces with Russia to attack the capital in three months. "Brother Hui! Look at this! Wu Sangui actually wants to join Russia to rebel against the Qing. We must tell the Emperor immediately!"

Xie Hui took the Secret Letter and put it in his inner universe, his heart tightening. This was a vital clue; if they didn't prepare in advance, the capital would surely suffer. He said to the group: "Let's return to the Zhuang residence first, put the treasure and supplies into the inner universe, then go to the palace to report to Kangxi so he can prepare against Russia!"

Songgotu was still wondering if the Secret Letter mentioned silver and leaned in: "Little Brother Xie, is Russia very rich? Do they have a lot of silver? If we join them, can we get some benefits?"

Wei Xiaobao laughed and gave him a kick: "Lord Suo, always thinking about silver! Let's solve the Russia matter first; there will be plenty of silver for you later!"

The group rode their horses back toward the Zhuang residence, the setting sun stretching their shadows long. Songgotu, still on his horse, was still rambling about digging for treasure: "Little Brother Xie, remember to call this official next time you dig for treasure. I can help weigh the gold and ensure not a single speck is missed!"

Xie Hui looked back at him, then at the others around him, his heart filled with a sense of stability. They had wiped out the Divine Dragon Cult remnants, found the treasure, and discovered the Secret Letter about Wu Sangui's alliance with Russia. The preparations for the anti-Qing cause were becoming more and more substantial. Although Songgotu was greedy and comical, with him around, the journey was never boring.

By the time they returned to the Zhuang residence, Shuanger had prepared dinner. The table was set with braised pork belly, steamed fish, and freshly stewed chicken soup. Everyone sat around the table. Songgotu was still haggling with Wei Xiaobao, wanting a small piece of gold from the treasure, only to be rebuffed. Xie Hui looked at the scene before him, knowing that while challenges lay ahead, with these people by his side, he had the confidence to handle Russia or overthrow the Qing Dynasty.

He felt the Secret Letter and the eight volumes of the forty-two chapter sutra in his inner universe. His fingertips brushed the yellowed paper as he thought silently: Tsarist Russia, Wu Sangui, come if you dare. The Foundation of our New Dynasty is already firm. Next will be the final battle to overthrow the Qing and establish the New Dynasty!