Did Elder Dong not only offer to apologize to Professor Li, but also admit in the newspaper that his academic level was inferior to Professor Li's?
This was truly a gamble with everything on the line!
It was imaginable that once such a thing happened, Elder Dong's reputation would immediately plummet!
His status would fall to the ground in an instant!
And Professor Li, stepping on Elder Dong's head, would soar to the heavens, taking over the banner that Elder Dong had painstakingly erected over the years, and become the new leading figure in the archaeological circle!
"Elder Dong..." someone nearby tugged at Elder Dong, trying to dissuade him.
Elder Dong's decision was too risky; if he lost, he would have nothing!
And when that time came, it wouldn't just be Elder Dong who would be implicated, but also the many disciples and grandchildren who lived under Elder Dong's roof!
However, to everyone's surprise, Elder Dong was unusually firm, showing no signs of wavering.
Professor Li, seeing Elder Dong so confident, said coldly, "Then you're doomed to lose!"
With that, he ignored Elder Dong and turned to focus on opening the tomb door.
At this moment, Elder Dong, who had been tense moments before, suddenly relaxed.
He didn't even bother to watch the tomb door being opened and returned to his car.
"Elder Dong, you... are you really not going to reconsider?" someone still worried and tried to persuade him again.
Elder Dong scoffed at him and replied, "Reconsider what? Reconsider how to find the legendary You Xi Divine Sword, which is clearly recorded in historical texts as having disappeared?"
"What?" The persuader was shocked.
So, Elder Dong had known all along that the You Xi Divine Sword had disappeared!
So, Elder Dong had known all along that none of the three bronze swords he had unearthed years ago were the real You Xi Divine Sword!
But Elder Dong had ultimately forced one of the swords to be named the You Xi Divine Sword!
Thus, he gained great fame and countless accolades.
"Do you think I would propose such a bet if I didn't know that no one, no matter who it was, could possibly find the You Xi Divine Sword? Even if this tomb is the real tomb of Bai Qi, the You Xi Divine Sword would never be buried with him!"
"This has been clearly recorded in secret histories from the Qin Dynasty! The You Xi Divine Sword went missing during the burial! Countless people searched in vain, and in the end, they had to close the mausoleum with regret."
"And very few people in China know about this secret history, and the relevant information has long been destroyed by me. Li Junru is finished this time!"
Elder Dong's lips curved into a proud smile.
The persuader, upon hearing this, was secretly shocked.
It turned out that these scholars, who seemed pure and kind in their ivory towers, were actually far more ruthless than those in the business or political circles!
The persuader couldn't help but turn to look at Professor Li, who was busy working, and sighed deeply in his heart.
Professor Li probably didn't know that he was actually wasting his effort, did he?
From the moment he agreed to Elder Dong's bet, his fate was sealed!
"It's open! It's open!"
"Judging by the style of the tomb passage, it's definitely Qin style!"
"Look at these murals in the tomb passage, they depict the life of Lord Wu'an! This is definitely Lord Wu'an's true tomb!"
"Look what I found! A set of bronze weapons!"
"My goodness, look over there! It's a bronze chariot! And there seems to be a coffin on it!"
...
Exclamations erupted one after another from the excavation site.
Everyone was shocked by the artifacts unearthed one after another.
From murals to bronze weapons, from bronze weapons to chariots, and from chariots to coffins.
Undoubtedly, this was the true tomb of Lord Wu'an, Bai Qi!
The number of artifacts unearthed from this tomb was dozens of times richer than the tomb Elder Dong discovered decades ago!
This was what the tomb of a historical figure with outstanding military achievements should look like!
Compared to this, the one Elder Dong excavated back then was practically a brick kiln!
"Teacher, hurry up and open the coffin! Let that surnamed Dong admit defeat with all his heart!" Liang Yu urged excitedly from the side.
"Yes, yes, hurry up and open the coffin! There must be Bai Qi's personal sword, the You Xi Divine Sword, inside!" The influential figure who supported Professor Li couldn't help but say.
His anxious heart finally relaxed.
His future was saved!
His status was saved!
He would soon become a hero of Weihe City!
And appear on the front pages of major news media across the country alongside Professor Li!
A flicker of excitement crossed the influential figure's face, his eyes full of impatience.
Professor Li took a deep breath and waved forcefully, "Open the coffin!"
Creak!
The coffin slowly slid open with a piercing sound.
What greeted their eyes was a skeleton dressed in military attire.
And a black banner spread beneath the skeleton.
The Qin Dynasty favored black. From top to bottom, whether it was the emperor's attire or the army's banners, black was used.
Therefore, the appearance of a black flag in Bai Qi's coffin was entirely reasonable.
This also served as proof that the coffin dated back to the Qin Dynasty!
In addition, there were numerous scattered jewels and jade objects inside the coffin.
Among them, a jade document located next to the skeleton's head clearly bore the three small seal script characters: "Wu'an Jun"!
"It's Bai Qi! It's really Bai Qi!"
The onlookers were all excited and cheered.
"Quickly look for the You Xi Divine Sword! Once I find it, I'll personally take the sword and slap that villain Dong in the face!" Liang Yu said.
Everyone also remembered Elder Dong and Professor Li's bet, which was judged by the You Xi Divine Sword.
If the You Xi Divine Sword couldn't be found, Elder Dong could claim that the clothing and documents were forged.
So, everyone's gaze was focused on the coffin, searching for the You Xi Divine Sword among the scattered jewels and jade objects.
However...
After looking through it once, it wasn't there;
After looking through it a second time, it was still not there;
After looking through it a third time, it was still not there!
Let alone the You Xi Divine Sword, not even a common bronze sword was seen!
"What's going on?"
Everyone was stunned.
Liang Yu, who had been clamoring to slap Elder Dong's face, was also stunned.
The influential figure, who had been fantasizing about becoming a hero of Weihe City and achieving political achievements, was even more stunned.
"There... there's no... You Xi Divine Sword!"
After a long while, someone muttered.
The originally joyful atmosphere instantly dropped to freezing point.
People looked at Professor Li with pity and shook their heads in unison.
In fact, everyone knew that this was indeed Bai Qi's true tomb!
But without the You Xi Divine Sword, it couldn't be 100% proven!
There would be a one percent doubt!
And Elder Dong could use this one percent doubt to mobilize his connections and influence to smear Professor Li relentlessly!
Until black was called white, and right was called wrong!
"Teacher..." Liang Yu stepped forward and supported Professor Li's arm, worried that Professor Li might collapse from not being able to accept this fact.
"Professor Li, you've done very well. It can only be said that fate is not as one wishes..." The influential figure had clearly accepted his fate and was comforting Professor Li.
At this moment, Elder Dong, who had been resting in the car, made his timely appearance, standing on the edge of the pit and sneering from above, "Li Junru, do you admit defeat now, or will you struggle a bit before admitting defeat?"
"I advise you to admit defeat now. After all, it's getting late, and I'm old. I don't have hours to waste just to witness the wail of a defeated dog."