Chapter Fifty-Six: The Secret of the Black Box

“Not only was your father exceptionally gifted in commerce, but he also possessed keen military insight. He proposed a reform of the army to the Emperor of the Chen Kingdom, a policy that caused the nation’s power to surge. In just five years, Chen seized vast territories from the Ming. It could be said that during that period, your father’s strength was at its zenith. With the Emperor’s unwavering support, he quickly became the richest man in all of Chen.

At this point,” your mother’s eyes brimmed with tears as she sighed, “as the saying goes, a tall tree catches the wind. Your father stood at the very pinnacle of power, and both his wealth and influence made many envious. In this way, he offended the Prime Minister of Chen, for your father was the only one who could truly threaten his position. Though talented, your father was utterly ignorant of the ways of officialdom. He would not flatter or curry favor, nor did he go out of his way to build relationships. To those he deemed worthy, he opened his heart; to those he did not, he showed only disdain. One after another, the court officials began to impeach your father. So many memorials to the throne were submitted that they piled up on the Emperor’s desk.

Sensing calamity was near, your father secretly transferred and concealed the family’s assets—wealth so great it rivaled the nation’s treasury. But walls have ears. None could have foreseen that your father’s own younger brother would betray him. He informed the Prime Minister, who at last had something to use against your father. The matter was brought before the Emperor. With all those impeachment memorials, the Emperor’s heart could not help but turn suspicious. Learning your father had hidden such vast wealth, he feared your father might someday rebel, so he had him arrested. Before your father was taken, he left me this red box, and a casket, entrusting me to a close friend I had never met. That person spirited me away to Ming under the cover of night. Thanks to his arrangements, the two of us fled in secret to this remote village of Tumen, far from the capital. It was here that I gave birth to you.”

Hearing this, Yun Niang could not restrain her tears. She could barely imagine the hardships her mother had endured fleeing from Chen. “Later, after much inquiry, I learned that after I left, the Emperor ordered our family seized. The Yun clan was destroyed overnight and many lost their lives. Only thanks to your father’s foresight did you and I survive by a hair’s breadth. It is said that, to force your father to reveal the treasure’s whereabouts, he was tortured until he was neither truly human nor ghost. Yet, some righteous friends your father had made, though they could not save him, gave their lives to bring him peace so that he would no longer suffer humiliation. I never saw that loyal man who brought us here again; he said, for our safety, we must never meet. I never even knew his name. Since then, I have had no news from Chen.”

At this, your mother slowly took out a piece of jade. “This jade was your father’s dowry for you. Fearing to attract attention, he chose one neither too rare nor too precious, so as not to arouse suspicion. But your name is carved upon it, and that is what makes it truly valuable. Now that I accept your bond with Gou Ye, I give you this jade. Keep it well; it is the hope your father and I have for you.”

Overcome with emotion, your mother was seized by a fit of coughing. Yun Niang urged her to rest before continuing, but she refused. After sipping some water, she resumed, “This letter was left to you by your father. Whenever I miss him, I open it and read it again. Here—take it, and let it comfort you in the days ahead.” Yun Niang took the letter and broke down in tears, while Gou Ye gently stroked her back to comfort her.

Then, your mother produced a small, delicate hairpin. Her expression grew somber as she sighed, “This hairpin is actually a key—the key to the casket. Your father warned me again and again to keep it safe, and insisted that you must open the casket in my presence, with your own hands. Not daring to defy his wishes, I buried it on a hillock not far from the village. But three months ago, when I went to check, it was gone.”

At this, Gou Ye’s eyes brightened as he suddenly recalled the black casket. Yun Niang too had seen it before, and both of them had puzzled over it in vain.

Gou Ye asked, “Mother, is this casket entirely black, giving off a strong fragrance?”

Your mother immediately nodded. “Yes, yes! Gou Ye, how do you know?”

“Please wait a moment.” Gou Ye hurried back to his room, lifted a floor tile, and retrieved the black casket and a letter left for him by Wanxiang. He had designed this secret compartment himself, and not even Yun Niang knew of it.

Returning to the room, Gou Ye took out the black casket. At the sight, your mother became agitated and tried to sit up, but was overtaken by a coughing fit, her trembling hand pointing toward Gou Ye. “Yes, that’s it! That’s it!”

Now everything became clear to Gou Ye. The reason the black casket had ended up in Fatty’s lair was because your mother had buried it in the hillock, where Fatty, with his keen sense of smell, had dug it up and brought it home. By a twist of fate, it had come into Gou Ye’s hands. Gou Ye explained this to your mother, who, holding the casket, could only laugh and weep at the strange turns of fate that had brought it back to her.

As Gou Ye was about to step away, your mother stopped him. “Gou Ye, there’s no need for you to leave. You are my son now, and will soon be Yun Niang’s husband. You have every right to know the truth. For the black casket to come into your hands, fate must have played its part. Open it together with Yun Niang.”

“But—”

“No buts. Yun Niang, give the casket to Gou Ye.”

Gou Ye and Yun Niang exchanged a look. Yun Niang handed him the casket, then took out the hairpin from the box. The three of them watched intently as Yun Niang slowly inserted the hairpin into the casket’s lock. Inside, a mechanism clicked and whirred, and the lid gradually slid open.

Inside, they found a rolled sheepskin scroll. Unfolded, it revealed a map.

Your mother gasped, “A treasure map! This is the treasure map your father left behind. The Yun family’s wealth must be hidden within this very map!” She examined it again and again, excitement shining in her eyes as she searched for clues. Suddenly, her expression grew puzzled. “But this… this is only half a map?”