Luo Yunhang's hair stood on end instantly.
The mute man was right; Village Chief Qin was indeed suspicious. There were many artifacts being processed in this basement, along with various materials.
A man is carving something with a carving knife.
Just as Luo Yunhang was about to take a closer look, Village Chief Qin came out: "Comrade Luo, what do you think of this outfit?"
Luo Yunhang was startled.
"It's fine." He tried to remain calm so that Village Chief Qin wouldn't suspect anything.
However, his slightly unnatural expression at that moment still gave Village Chief Qin a bad feeling.
Since entering this line of work, Village Chief Qin has never had a day of peace. He has to carefully consider every expression and word from others, for fear that his secret will be discovered.
For a moment, the two were each preoccupied with their own thoughts.
Soon, Village Chief Qin's wife came out with the two elderly people.
Luo Yunhang quickly stepped forward to help them tidy up, and then started taking photos.
All four of them simultaneously revealed awkward smiles.
"Alright," Luo Yunhang said with a smile.
Village Chief Qin's wife quickly said, "Young comrade, thank you so much!"
"You're welcome, ma'am, I'll be going now." Luo Yunhang packed up his camera and prepared to leave.
"Comrade Luo, you've gone to a lot of trouble to make this trip. Have a drink of water before you go," Village Chief Qin said, trying to persuade him to stay.
Looking at his amiable smile, Luo Yunhang felt a chill run down his spine.
This honest and kind farmer, who usually cares deeply for everyone, secretly committed such a despicable act.
If it weren't for the mute brother, he would never have suspected Village Chief Qin. For the first time, Luo Yunhang learned what it meant to know a person's face but not their heart.
"No, Village Chief Qin, I was delayed a few days ago. I still have a lot of things to do. I'll bring you the photos once they're developed." Unfortunately, he probably won't receive the photos.
"Okay, you go ahead and get busy."
Village Chief Qin saw Luo Yunhang to the door. Just as the two reached the door, they saw Dean Duan leading a group of people rushing over in a menacing manner.
"Hey, Dean Duan, what are you doing so early in the morning?" Village Chief Qin asked with a smile.
"Take him into custody!" After Dean Duan finished speaking, several comrades stepped forward and bound Village Chief Qin's hands.
Village Chief Qin's wife and parents rushed over immediately.
"Dean Duan, what's going on? My husband hasn't done anything wrong. He's always been very dutiful in guarding the cave, getting up earlier than the chickens and going to bed later than the dogs."
"Is there some misunderstanding?"
"I'm sorry, Village Chief Qin, Sister-in-law Qin."
We just learned from the mute man that he followed Village Chief Qin to Cave 158 the night before last. I'd like to ask, what were you doing at Cave 158 that night?
"Cave 158? No! I went to bed early the night before last. Shufen can vouch for me. I didn't do anything wrong." Village Chief Qin's eyes reddened as he put on an honest and hurried appearance.
Qin Village Chief's wife, Shufen, quickly added, "He ate dinner and went to sleep the night before last. He didn't go into the cave! Besides, that cave is full of rocks and sand; what's there to see?"
“Testimony between relatives is not valid. How about this, we’d like to visit your home,” Dean Duan said.
The mute man's testimony was only one side of the story. Although he believed that the mute man was not lying, crucial evidence was still needed to convict Village Chief Qin. He wanted to see if he could find any clues at Village Chief Qin's house.
Every crime leaves a trace.
The forger must be from this area. He must have been inside the cave and seen the artifacts with his own eyes to be able to create such a lifelike work.
To facilitate the transfer of power, he must be living nearby, under the protection of Village Chief Qin.
"Dean Duan, I have lived an innocent life. If you want to search my house, fine, but if you don't find anything, you must clear my name to the villagers." Village Chief Qin looked ashamed and indignant.
Everyone was wondering if there was some misunderstanding, but judging from Village Chief Qin's demeanor, it didn't seem like there was anything wrong.
Only Luo Yunhang knew how good Qin Village Chief's acting skills were. He portrayed the appearance of an honest and simple farmer so vividly that if he hadn't seen everything in the basement with his own eyes, he would have doubted that he had wronged him.
"It's truly a tragedy. Our old Qin family has guarded the grotto for half their lives, working so hard, only to be suspected of doing bad things in the end." Sister-in-law Qin also looked indignant.
The villagers who were watching also began to speak up for him: "Dean Duan, you are the most reasonable people. How could you be confused today? Village Chief Qin is such a good person. Whenever any of our families has a problem, he is always busy taking care of things. How could he be a bad person?"
"That's right, you must have wronged him."
"What bad thing did the mute brother do? Why is he trying to frame Village Chief Qin?"
…
The villagers all spoke up for him, feeling that searching someone's home indiscriminately was too hurtful.
This has put people in a difficult position for a while.
After exchanging a glance, Dean Duan insisted, "Fellow villagers, Sister-in-law Qin, Village Chief Qin, this matter is no small thing. This house must be searched."
I haven't told you yet because I was afraid that people would leak the news and panic.
The cultural relics in Mogao Grottoes have suffered unprecedented losses. Some people have used the method of substitution to replace the real cultural relics in our grottoes with fake items, and the number of fake items is not small.
If we don't figure out the whole story, our cultural relics will continue to be stolen, and the Mogao Grottoes will eventually become a fake.
The person who swapped the artifacts was highly skilled and certainly not an ordinary person. The most suspicious person, besides the cave keeper, is our village chief Qin.
The day before yesterday, we came up with a plan to lure bad people into their trap with fake news, and unexpectedly, we caught the mute guy.
As you all know, the mute man has difficulty even communicating normally with others, let alone completing such a challenging task.
After being interrogated by our comrades, the mute man confessed that he had followed someone to the cave that night, and that person was none other than Village Chief Qin.
Therefore, for the safety of the grotto relics, we had no choice but to take this measure. We apologize to Village Chief Qin and Sister-in-law Qin.
"If it turns out that I've wronged you all, I, Duan Jie, will personally serve you tea and water and apologize. See, everyone, is that acceptable?"
Dean Duan's words sparked a great deal of discussion among the crowd.
"That's really strange. I've lived half my life and seen people steal rice, flour, and even firewood, but I've never seen anyone steal stones. What's so great about that cave that you could steal?"
"That's right, they're all stones, you can't eat them or use them."
"That's not fair. Those are treasures left to us by our ancestors. It's unacceptable for them to be taken away by others."
…
People were talking about it, but no one said the search was wrong anymore.
Village Chief Qin and Sister-in-law Qin had no reason to refuse.
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