“The *mōjīn fú*? What’s a *mōjīn fú*?” I turned back to ask Jiang Yongguang.

Jiang Yongguang told me that the *mōjīn fú* (tomb-raiding talisman) was like a pass used by official grave robbers in ancient times to excavate tombs, a symbol of their identity, similar to a work permit today.

During the late Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Cao established the *Mōjīn Xiàowèi* (Tomb-Raiding Captains). These captains would recruit a group of tomb raiders, and each of them would be issued a *mōjīn fú*, one per person, to prove their identity and prevent anyone from infiltrating the ranks of the official tomb raiders and embezzling treasures.

Later, in times of peace, the imperial court no longer appointed *Mōjīn Xiàowèi*. Some private tomb raiders would wear the *mōjīn fú* to seek the protection of their founding master. Over time, rumors spread that carrying a *mōjīn fú* could bring good luck and ward off evil, and the more the story was spread, the more believable it became. The *mōjīn fú* became a treasure in the eyes of tomb raiders.

Now, the *mōjīn fú* has spawned many kinds of related merchandise. It’s no longer just the “work permit” issued by the *Mōjīn Xiàowèi*. Some are made of animal teeth, some of pangolin claws, and others of various materials like jade and gold. You name it, they have it.

I said, “Can we assume that anyone with a *mōjīn fú* hanging in their house is a tomb raider?”

Jiang Yongguang nodded and said, “Pretty much.”

Back in 2005, tomb-raiding novels weren't popular yet, and there were basically no tomb-raiding enthusiasts among the common people. If you could find a *mōjīn fú* in someone's home, they were probably really in the business.

Unlike a few years later, when tomb-raiding novels became wildly popular and were even adapted into many TV series and movies, tomb-raiding enthusiasts became ubiquitous. Whether they were real tomb raiders or not, they all had one or two *mōjīn fú* hanging in their homes.

Jiang Yongguang pointed to the *mōjīn fú* I found on the desk and said, “Look, this isn't some fake made by civilian tomb raiders later on. This is the real deal, possibly passed down from the Wei-Jin period!”

I was startled when I heard this and asked, "Really?"

"Yes."

Jiang Yongguang nodded, fiddled with the metal material of the *mōjīn fú*, and then asked us, "Do you guys collect coins?"

"Coins? How do you collect coins?" I was puzzled, thinking, how do you collect coins? Flip them to see heads or tails?

Jiang Yongguang smiled and said, "I can tell you don't. Coins are ancient coins, like the Daqi coins, Yuan Datou coins, etc. If you were into that, you’d know at a glance that the workmanship, shape, and rust on this *mōjīn fú* all indicate that it’s an old object.”

I only understood half of what he said. I could tell that Xiao Liang and Uncle Mei didn’t know either.

Jiang Yongguang asked again, “Have you heard of *wǔzhū qián* (five-grain coins)?”

Uncle Mei and I shook our heads, but Xiao Liang nodded and said, “I’ve heard of them. *Wǔzhū qián* were the currency of the Han Dynasty, first issued during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, and continued until the Wei-Jin period. They were the longest-used currency in Chinese history.”

Jiang Yongguang gave Xiao Liang a thumbs up and said, "That's right. *Wǔzhū qián* can be said to be one of the most famous coins in history, with a very long time span. But precisely because this kind of coin has such a long time span, it has many different types, including Western Han *wǔzhū*, Eastern Han *wǔzhū*, and the different *wǔzhū qián* from the Wei, Shu, and Wu periods of the Three Kingdoms…”

My head was spinning. I never thought there could be so much to know about a coin.

At this time, Jiang Yongguang fiddled with the *mōjīn fú* in his hand and pointed to the two small characters in ancient seal script on it – “*Mōjīn*” – and said, “The shape and font of this *mōjīn fú* look very similar to the *wǔzhū qián* from the Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period. Liu Bei of the Shu Kingdom minted a batch of coins called *zhíbǎi wǔzhū* (straight hundred *wǔzhū*), which are very similar to this *mōjīn fú*. I happen to have one, I can show you if you don't believe me."

As he said this, Jiang Yongguang took out his wallet. Hanging from a red string on his wallet was an ancient coin with the four characters “*zhíbǎi wǔzhū*” written in seal script on the top, bottom, left, and right. Looking closely, the font and shape were indeed very similar to the *mōjīn fú* on the desk!

“See, I didn’t lie to you, right?” Jiang Yongguang said triumphantly.

Xiao Liang looked at it carefully for a moment, and then asked, "So, is it possible that this *mōjīn fú* from the Ge family is a genuine article passed down from the late Eastern Han Dynasty?"

"Yes," Jiang Yongguang nodded, "Maybe the Ge family's ancestors were descendants of the *Mōjīn Xiàowèi*, genuine official tomb raiders."

"No wonder Ge Xueying was so accurate when digging the *dào dòng* (thief's tunnel), directly hitting the main burial chamber with a *shénxiān dòng* (immortal's tunnel)!" I said with a sudden realization.

Xiao Liang also guessed, "In that case, the Ge family's wealth probably has something to do with this profession, right? Could it be that their family has been in the tomb-raiding business for generations, which is why they’re so rich?"

"That's possible," Jiang Yongguang nodded, "In short, tomb-raiding is a family craft for the Ge family, which is why Ge Xueying knows so much about the ancient Shu tombs and can dig the *dào dòng* so accurately."

"Then did they leave behind any treasure maps or anything like that?" Xiao Liang immediately said, "Ge Xueying was able to find the ancient Shu tomb, probably because she relied on some ancestral treasure map, right?"

Xiao Liang's guess was not without reason. The descendants of tomb-raiding families often have some first-hand resources.

The ancestors may have completed the *xún lóng diǎn xué* (seeking the dragon and pointing the acupoint) for their descendants hundreds of years ago, finding the major treasure sites in China and recording them on a treasure map to be passed down from generation to generation.

When descendants of any generation are short of food and money, they can pick up a hoe and shovel to dig up graves and steal treasures, which is simply wonderful.

So we searched the basement, looking for the "treasure map" that Xiao Liang mentioned.

Everyone worked together and practically turned the basement upside down. In the end, we didn't find the treasure map, but we discovered a hidden compartment in the floor directly under the desk.

Xiao Liang discovered this hidden compartment. She went over and knocked on the floor tiles and found that they were hollow inside. She boldly pressed one, and the tile popped open.

Then, Xiao Liang pried out a few of the surrounding floor tiles, revealing a safe underneath. This safe was also an old model. Jiang Yongguang glanced at it and said that this style of safe was produced in the eighties and was quite popular at the time. Old Wei had the same model at home.

I asked him if the safe was secure and if he could crack it on the spot.

Jiang Yongguang said with a wry smile, “If it wasn’t secure, would it still be called a safe? This thing is very secure. You can't open it without the password, but you can force it open, but you need tools, which can’t be done here."

Uncle Mei waved his hand and said, "Then take this safe away for investigation. We can't go back empty-handed after coming all this way."

We all thought so too. Although such behavior was not in compliance with the rules and not very ethical, we had to do it in order to rescue Sister Xiao Mei as soon as possible and avenge Aunt Mei.