Chapter 493: Mass Grave
"Manager Lu, I went to great lengths to persuade him to tell me where the porcelain basin came from, and it turns out it's right near this village! I would greatly appreciate it if you could come over here, Manager Lu."
Master Yuan flattered and urged on the phone.
"Okay."
After hanging up the phone, Lu Fei took the white porcelain basin and had Huzi drive over.
Master Yuan and Dazhu were waiting at the village entrance.
Master Yuan's head was wrapped in bandages, with broken hands and feet, looking utterly miserable.
Dazhu was also bruised and battered, looking utterly down on his luck.
After selling the porcelain basin to Master Yuan, not only did he fail to save his father, but he also nearly got himself killed in a fall.
During his father's funeral, everything went wrong. With the help of his fellow villagers, he finally managed to bury his father. Somehow, he slipped and fell down the mountain.
Fortunately, he landed in a puddle and barely escaped with his life.
"It's really you! You are the experts that Jiejie Hua mentioned!"
Seeing Lu Fei, Dazhu was both surprised and delighted.
Knowing that the porcelain basin was not a good thing, he regretted it so much that his intestines turned green. He prepared some apples and sought help from Jiejie Hua.
Jiejie Hua told him to wait at home. If someone came asking about the porcelain basin after a few days, he would be saved.
"Great expert, please save me!"
He almost knelt down before Lu Fei.
If that porcelain basin is not removed, his bad luck will continue, especially after seeing the miserable state of Master Yuan, he became even more frightened.
"What high person, I'm just a pawnshop owner who likes to collect odd and strange items. You can call me Manager Lu." Lu Fei waved his hand, "Where did you actually get this porcelain basin from?"
"It's…." A hint of shame appeared on Dazhu's face as he lowered his head and said in a low voice, "I found it somewhere else…. I saw that no one wanted it, and I got greedy for a moment…."
"Where did you find it?"
"Not far from here, there's a road near Porcelain Village where many households produce porcelain. I really thought someone didn't want it…."
Porcelain Village? It seems there's hope of finding a kiln!
"Solving the problem is the priority. Take us there first."
Lu Fei didn't say much and motioned for the two to get in the car.
Huzi drove the car quickly to another village in the direction Dazhu pointed out.
After parking, everyone headed towards the road Dazhu mentioned.
"I found it right here."
Dazhu pointed at a pile of broken porcelain fragments by the roadside.
"The porcelain basin was in this pile of fragments. I thought someone had thrown it away, and since the basin looked good, I thought if it was worth something, I could use it to help with my father's medical expenses."
Dazhu hung his head, filled with regret.
"You shouldn't take ill-gotten gains. It's all because of my greed…"
"It's not entirely your fault. Anyone would think it was thrown away if it was left in a place like this." Lu Fei crouched down and examined the porcelain fragments.
They were fragments of cups, bowls, plates, and vases.
They had been discarded here for quite some time, with a thick layer of dust and weeds growing through them.
Lu Fei took out the white porcelain basin and compared it with these fragments.
The texture was exactly the same.
However, the white porcelain basin was as warm and smooth as jade, becoming more translucent and beautiful with each passing day, while the fragments had completely lost their luster, turning into a heap of unremarkable garbage.
"It's all bone china! It seems these pieces are from the same batch, but only this basin has been preserved."
Lu Fei raised his head and looked around.
"This is exactly at the crossroads; could someone have deliberately left the porcelain here?"
There is a folklore that if you discard old clothes or inauspicious objects at a crossroads, and someone picks them up, they will also take away the bad luck, and the person who discarded the items will no longer have bad fortune.
"Dazhu, you and Master Yuan go and find out which family threw away these ceramics. This is not far from the village, so it should be someone from a nearby village."
Lu Fei waved at the two of them.
"Okay."
In order to stay alive, the two hurried off to the village.
Lu Fei and Huzi went around the vicinity to see if there were any kilns for making ceramics in the area.
The two of them walked around and indeed found two abandoned kilns.
The style was very old, and it was unknown if they had a history of over a hundred years.
"Once they find out the information and figure out which kiln was used, this porcelain basin will be easy to deal with," Lu Fei said, patting the dust off his hands.
"Boss, is it necessary to be so complicated! Can't we just try both kilns?" Hu Zhi asked, puzzled.
Lu Fei glared at him: "If it were that simple, would I need you to remind me? There's only one chance; if we get it wrong, we'll have to forcefully nullify the cursed object."
The result of forcefully nullifying it would be that the porcelain basin would lose its ability to gather yin, turning into a completely useless object.
What use would there be in acquiring it then?
About two hours later.
Da Zhu and Master Yuan returned.
Both of their expressions were grim.
Dazhu couldn't speak, and the villagers didn't pay much attention to him. Fortunately, Master Yuan used his expertise, and after some smooth talk, he managed to trick out a clue.
"The villagers said that the family who lost the porcelain no longer lives in the village; they moved to the city long ago."
"This village has been making porcelain for generations. That family was originally the one with the worst craftsmanship, but one day, they somehow produced the best bone china and made a fortune from it."
"However, despite their wealth, many people in their family died one after another, leaving them with very few descendants."
"The villagers said that they used the bones from a mass grave, and thus, they were reaping the consequences."
"By the current generation, they threw away all the remaining porcelain and moved to the city, cutting off all ties with the village. No one knows where they live now."
"A mass grave? How did it come about?" Lu Fei asked.
"There was a plague here before, and many people died. All those bodies were burned in a pit," Master Yuan replied.
No wonder the porcelain contained so many people's ashes.
Moreover, those who died from the plague had a great deal of resentment. Using such ashes to make porcelain, it's no wonder something went wrong.
Lu Fei nodded.
"The villagers know that the porcelain is not clean, no one dares to pick it up," Master Yuan continued.
"Manager Lu, are these useful? Nowadays, there are not many people in the village who can make porcelain, and we haven't found out which kiln that family used to fire the bone china."
"Haven't found out? That's a bit troublesome!" Lu Fei frowned, looking at the two abandoned kilns, "If we make a mistake, you two will be beyond saving."
Everything in the world is interdependent and counteracts each other.
As long as we use the kiln that was originally used to fire the white porcelain basin, and then burn it once, we can destroy the grudge.
But there's only one chance. If we fail to succeed at once, it might instead provoke its ferocity, leaving us with no choice but to fight to the death.
"Then what should we do?"
Master Yuan and Dazhu immediately panicked.
Lu Fei thought for a moment and asked, "Where is the mass grave?"
"I heard it's on that mountain over there." Dazhu pointed to a large mountain to the north of the village.
"Let's go and have a look."
The group went up the mountain, but due to the changed terrain and lush vegetation, they could no longer see any sign of the mass grave.
Just when everyone was at a loss, Lu Fei took out a porcelain basin.
This porcelain basin could absorb yin energy, so the place with the most concentrated yin energy would be where the mass grave was.