In Luocheng, it is not uncommon for large tombs from the Shang and Zhou dynasties to be accidentally dug up in farmland. The most famous one was the theft of the Jincun tomb in Luocheng a hundred years ago. It was an immeasurable loss to the Chinese archaeological community. The loss was greater than the theft of Mogao Grottoes.
The bronze stick in Li Mo's hand looks a bit like the trunk of an oil lamp. The specific parts of the bronze vessel need further identification and confirmation.
"Uncle, you said this stick was dug out in the farmland. Are there any others?"
"There are indeed some other fragments. I originally called the Cultural Protection Bureau to report this matter, but the person who answered the phone said that all the staff had been transferred to inventory some cultural relics, so I came to the Antique City to find someone to take a look first. Look."
The Cultural Protection Bureau must be very busy these days.
"Professor Li, you are an expert in this field. Do you have any opinions on this stick?"
"Uncle, this matter is of great importance. I will talk to you alone later. Boss Hu, please take this uncle to a meeting. I will finish my work here."
"OK."
Li Mo's next appraisal speed was much faster. Among the antiques brought over, there were some genuine and some fake. Naturally, he was very happy that it was genuine. As for those unpleasant conclusions, Li Mo only stopped there.
At noon, Boss Hu sent away the last wave of customers in a friendly manner, and then closed the store and suspended business.
"Professor Li, today is an eye-opener."
"The more you see, the more you understand."
The farmer uncle waited for a long time. When he saw that he had finally finished the appraisal, he hurriedly came over and asked, "Professor Li, does the stick I brought have some origins?"
"At present, my preliminary judgment is that it is part of the bronze ware from the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. I guess there may be a large tomb from the Eastern Zhou Dynasty under the farmland."
"Oh, I was worried about this, so I hurriedly reported it. In the Jin Village near us, a large group of tombs from the Eastern Zhou Dynasty were excavated a hundred years ago. It is a pity that in that chaotic era, the officials have not yet reacted. Those The large tombs were completely stolen. I heard that the stolen cultural relics are now displayed in foreign museums, which is really sad."
The old farmer looked anxious.
"Uncle, don't worry. We will go back with you after dinner. I know many archaeological experts. They are currently exploring some stolen ancient tombs near Luo City. If we really make new discoveries, Experts from all walks of life can be mobilized at any time.”
"That's good, Professor Li, I believe you."
"Professor Li, I will go with you after dinner. Is it inconvenient for you?"
When Boss Hu heard that there were many archaeological experts working near Luo City, he couldn't miss such a good opportunity to get to know them.
"Boss Hu, if you have time, come with us. Maybe you will make some big discoveries."
"Okay, I've already made a reservation for lunch. Let's eat first."
The old farmer's surname was Liang and he lived in a village called Liangshe. After lunch, five luxury cars left Los Angeles and drove toward the countryside.
"Uncle Liang, are there many young people in the village now?"
"There are only about thirty households in our village. Most of the people still living in the village are old people and some children. The young and middle-aged people have gone out to work." Uncle Liang sighed, "I remember when I was young, in the village People in China all live on one-third of an acre of land at home. Life is a bit hard, but they are happy every day. Unlike now, when young and middle-aged people have gone out to work, they may not have time to return to their hometowns throughout the year. Although they have a little money, , but I always feel like something is missing in my life.”
"How many people are there in Uncle Liang's family?"
"Two sons and one daughter. After my son got married, he gave birth to three granddaughters and two grandsons. The eldest granddaughter is already fifteen years old and lives in school and is in the third grade of junior high school."
"My daughter's life was not good. A few years ago, my son-in-law got seriously ill. The family was completely depleted and no one could be saved. Her father-in-law and mother-in-law thought she was a bad guy and didn't want to see her, so my daughter took her granddaughter back to her parents' home. Live with us.”
"Both sons have been working outside these years. Fortunately, we have my daughter with us. We are much happier than other elderly people. I just feel sorry for my daughter. I am always worried that she will be alone all her life."
Uncle Liang was in a bad mood.
"Uncle, life will get better and better."
"We, the old couple, now have enough food and clothing, and our house has been renovated, so we hope that our children will be happy."
Li Mo felt a little uncomfortable, but the current social situation was like this. Young adults went to the city to work, while the elderly and children lived in their hometowns. It's good to go home once or twice a year, but some people don't go home for several years.
Five luxury cars were speeding down the county-level highway, and other cars along the way were trying to avoid them. Li Mo looked outside through the car window. The economic development here was far inferior to that of coastal cities.
At around two o'clock in the afternoon, the car parked on the side of the cement road. Not far away was a row of old houses that had been sent to the countryside, some of which had been recently renovated.
This was probably the first time I saw so many luxury cars. The elderly and children at home ran out to look at them out of curiosity.
Li Mo got out of the car and looked around. There were patches of farmland nearby, and mountains and hills in the distance.
"Professor Li, our place is full of mountains, hills, and lakes."
"This place is surrounded by mountains and rivers and has outstanding people and places, so it is also a treasured place for Feng Shui. Our ancestors built Xia here, and during the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, there was a reason why the emperor of the Zhou Dynasty had his capital here."
Uncle Liang laughed, pointed to the hilly terrain not far away and said, "I haven't heard anything about the bronzes yet, so I will take you over now to have a look."
"Okay, if there is any discovery, I can mobilize manpower in time."
There were only eighteen people who followed Li Mo to Luo City. If a large tomb from the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period was found here, or even a group of large tombs, then this manpower would definitely not be enough.
The archaeological community has always believed that the large tombs of Jincun in Luocheng that were stolen a hundred years ago belong to the Emperor's Tombs belonging to the Zhou royal family. However, the tomb robbers acted quickly at that time and almost robbed the tombs. Some of the remaining clues cannot be carried out at all for systematic archaeological research. .
Regardless of whether the Jincun tombs are the tombs of the Zhou royal family and emperors, it at least shows that there are too many tombs from the Shang and Zhou dynasties hidden in Luocheng.
"Boss Hu, are you familiar with the Jincun Tombs?"
"The theft of the Jincun Tombs is a major loss to our country's archaeological community and a permanent pain to the Chinese nation. About a hundred years have passed, and the Jincun Tombs will eventually become history. Who among today's young people will care about this."
Boss Hu sighed slightly.
Li Mo followed Uncle Liang towards the nearby farmland.
"The terrain here is hilly, and the main crops grown are fruits that are relatively easy to take care of. The place where I found the bronzes was next to my fruit field. I wanted to dig a water storage canal myself, but I accidentally dug it. A few bronze fragments were found.”
Uncle Liang led the way and asked: "Professor Li, if there are really ancient tombs under my fruit field, can my fruit field be saved? Will the government provide sufficient compensation when requisitioning that land?"
"Uncle Liang, don't worry, I'm here, right?"
Li Mo comforted him with a few words. If a large tomb from the Shang and Zhou dynasties was discovered, there would be bonuses and fruit field compensation, and it would be more than he imagined.
"I definitely believe Professor Li."
