From Evil Sect Leader to Doctor-Chapter 316 - 291: Bait for the Willing

His words were intended to test the waters; he wanted to see how much Bai Mushan desired this dragon bone. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Bai Mushan said, "Xiaoxu, that price is impossible. If you truly want to sell, the most I can offer is two hundred thousand."

Xu Chunliang said, "Then forget it."

Liang Baxian chimed in, "According to the current market trends, a regular oracle bone script at most goes for ten thousand."

Xu Chunliang said, "I’m not an expert, but I’ve heard, in July 2014, Hu Hai Garden Restaurant auctioned off twenty oracle bone scripts, eventually fetching a price of 52.8 million. Judging by that, asking two million for mine isn’t too much."

Bai Mushan said, "That’s true, indeed it happened, but the auctioned scripts then came from Yinxu, were in excellent condition, unearthed in 1899, all were ox scapulae, classified as first-grade cultural relics." Emphasizing they were first-grade cultural relics was to let Xu Chunliang know that his oracle bone script couldn’t compare.

Liang Baxian said, "Yinxu and civilian dragon bones are as different as imperial kilns and civilian kilns; the two can’t be equated, and the value of the inscriptions also varies greatly."

Xu Chunliang said, "Among these eight characters, there are three that even Professor Bai doesn’t recognize, which in itself proves the value of my dragon bone. I’ve changed my mind, I won’t sell it for less than five million."

Bai Mushan laughed, "It seems this dragon bone holds great value in Xiaoxu’s eyes. All I can say is, a gentleman does not take what others cherish."

Having eaten and drunk his fill, Xu Chunliang stood up to take his leave; Bai Mushan personally escorted him outside.

The wind was stronger than when he arrived, although the snow had not yet fallen. Bai Mushan asked Xue Anliang to drive Xu Chunliang back.

Xu Chunliang didn’t stand on ceremony, and just before getting into the car, he intentionally said, "Professor Bai, in your opinion, what makes those dragon bones so valuable? Why would thieves target them? Besides you, there are actually others interested in dragon bones."

Bai Mushan detected the underlying message, and calmly said, "I wouldn’t know that. It’s best to leave such matters to the police to investigate."

Xu Chunliang nodded, saying, "I believe the truth will eventually come to light."

Bai Mushan watched Xu Chunliang get into the car and leave, then turned and went back inside.

Liang Baxian was pacing anxiously in the room. Seeing Bai Mushan return, he nervously asked, "What did he say?"

Bai Mushan furrowed his brows, "What do you mean, what did he say?"

Liang Baxian said, "He must be suspicious of us..."

Bai Mushan’s sharp gaze stopped Liang Baxian from continuing.

Liang Baxian sighed, "Who on earth did this? Why did they sneak into Huichun Hall to steal the dragon bone?" Because of this incident, an old case file that had been shelved for years was back in the police’s attention, and Liang Baxian was clearly flustered.

Bai Mushan gently patted Liang Baxian on the shoulder to help him calm down.

Suddenly, Liang Baxian felt a sharp pain in his shoulder; Bai Mushan’s hand turned into a steel claw with such force that he could even hear his bones grinding under the pressure. He cried out in pain, "It hurts... it hurts..."

Bai Mushan said coldly, "What exactly do you remember?"

Liang Baxian begged in agony, "I don’t remember... I don’t remember anything... let go... it’s going to break..."

Only then did Bai Mushan relax his grip, speaking softly, "He came prepared; that piece of dragon bone is a bait."

Liang Baxian, while rubbing his shoulder, said, "Fake?"

Bai Mushan shook his head, "Real!"

Xue Anliang’s car was a second-hand Fit. On the way to Nanjiang Party School, he proactively said, "Sorry about just now, Professor Bai is the person I respect the most."

Xu Chunliang smiled, "It’s only natural for a student to stand up for their teacher."

Xue Anliang said, "I heard a bit about what happened back then; Professor Bai often says it was the greatest regret of his life."

Xu Chunliang scoffed, wondering what Bai Mushan had to regret. The real regret should be on his grandfather’s side for entrusting the wrong person,

Xue Anliang said, "Did Huichun Hall really lose a dragon bone this time?"

Xu Chunliang said, "It’s been reported. If you don’t believe it, you can ask the Dongzhou police."

"Actually, not every dragon bone is valuable."

"And not everyone is interested in dragon bones."

"Are you suspecting that the burning of the dragon bones back then wasn’t accidental?" Xue Anliang asked casually, but he was keenly observing Xu Chunliang’s every move.

Xu Chunliang glanced at Xue Anliang; he was clearly trying to get him to talk. Just now at the table, this kid acted somewhat impulsively, not in line with his usual calmness and composure. Could it be that today he was just putting on an act? Xu Chunliang nodded.

Xue Anliang said, "But that case was resolved long ago."

Xu Chunliang said, "I had other experts look at the writing on the dragon bone. Although the dragon bone I have is incomplete, it’s already possible to conclude that it recorded..."

Xue Anliang focused intently, clearly awaiting Xu Chunliang’s next words.

Xu Chunliang suddenly stopped talking, yawned, and closed his eyes.

Xue Anliang finally couldn’t help but ask, "Mr. Xu, what is recorded on those dragon bones?"

Xu Chunliang said, "It should be a medical manuscript. I deduce it might be a secret manuscript left by our Xu Family ancestors using oracle bone script. What a pity!"

Xue Anliang said, "Even if it is a medical manuscript, it probably doesn’t have much practical value nowadays, right?"

"Who told you modern medicine is necessarily better than ancient times?"

Xue Anliang was speechless.

Xu Chunliang continued, "Were you present when Professor Bai had surgery?"

Xue Anliang shook his head.

Xu Chunliang said, "He recovered really quickly."

Xue Anliang said, "Western countries are more advanced in surgery."

Xu Chunliang said meaningfully, "I see no difference in his complexion compared to last time. If I hadn’t heard he had surgery, I would’ve thought his condition remained the same."

Xue Anliang frowned, "You don’t think the professor didn’t have surgery, do you? Why would he lie? I accompanied the professor throughout his examination at the Provincial People’s Hospital. The liver cancer diagnosis was unquestionable. No one would be so bored as to fake an illness, right?"

Xu Chunliang said, "Sometimes, even what you see with your own eyes isn’t real."

Xu Chunliang returned to the Party School, and the forecasted snow still hadn’t fallen.

He took out two photos Bai Mushan gave him. The text on them was indeed part of "Tianyang." Xu Chunliang was certain Bai Mushan had hidden something. Even if the fire at the Dongzhou Museum destroyed the dragon bones, Bai Mushan must have backups like photos, and he likely discovered the secrets of these dragon bones.

Tonight, Xu Chunliang had offered the most enticing bait. With Bai Mushan’s knowledge, he would surely deduce that the dragon bones Xu Chunliang had were part of the same set as the ones donated back then.

Tonight, Xu Chunliang deliberately mentioned two million, and he anticipated Bai Mushan wouldn’t agree immediately. If Bai Mushan agreed without hesitation, it would prove his eagerness for this piece of dragon bone.

Bai Mushan, this hypocritical intellectual, was good at having it both ways. His guard was high, so he initially acted indifferent towards the dragon bones, and now he must regret it immensely.

Xu Chunliang took out the dragon bone and casually placed it inside a book on the table.

"Jiang Taigong fishing, those willing take the bait."

At two in the morning, the snow finally began to fall sparsely. The inky black night sky was like a miser with immense wealth but unwilling to spend a dime.

A tall, black figure appeared below the dormitory of the Nanjiang Party School. The figure was slightly hunched, climbing up along the drainpipe under the cover of night. As agile as a raccoon, it flipped onto a balcony in one of the rooms, took out a straw-like object from a backpack, inserted it along the bottom of the door, connected it to a sprayer, and compressed the sprayer, releasing the solution inside through the duct into the room.

The colorless liquid vaporized instantly upon entering the room, filling it with a faint sweet scent.

After about three minutes, the black-clad figure retracted the sprayer. He was wrapped very tightly, wearing a black N95 mask and protective goggles. He took out a master key and smoothly unlocked the small balcony door.

This colorless gas was enough to anesthetize the people inside the room.

The black-clad intruder approached the bedside, looking at the deeply sleeping Xu Chunliang, then began searching the room. He quickly found the dragon bone inside a book on the table, his eyes gleaming.

He put away the dragon bone and took photos of everything he thought valuable before quietly retracing his steps and leaving.

After the black-clad figure left, Xu Chunliang on the bed opened his eyes. He held his breath, got up, and opened the doors and windows to let the air circulate quickly, removing the anesthetic gas inside.

Opening the book and seeing the dragon bone bookmark stolen, Xu Chunliang’s lips revealed a faint, inscrutable smile.

The next afternoon, Xu Chunliang received a call from Shu Yuanhang. He was in Nanjiang and wanted to meet Xu Chunliang.

Xu Chunliang told him to come to the Party School.

Shu Yuanhang had been in Nanjiang for two days but hadn’t visited his father yet. Under his wife’s treatment, his father’s condition had improved. Shu Yuanhang had no friends in the country. After thinking it over, only Xu Chunliang could be a conversation partner.

Having not seen each other for some time, Shu Yuanhang had tanned and lost weight, likely due to the sun in Southeast Asia being harsher than at home.

Xu Chunliang invited him to try the Party School’s welfare coffee.

Shu Yuanhang admired his study environment, saying that such a special cadre training institution was unique to China and not seen abroad.

Shu Yuanhang first expressed gratitude to Xu Chunliang for his continuous help. Based on their joint search for his father on Shiliang Mountain, an unconscious rapport had developed between them.

Xu Chunliang first asked about Tong Guangsheng’s condition, to which Shu Yuanhang briefly explained.

Xu Chunliang said, "I’ve encountered some things recently and haven’t had the chance to visit Uncle Tong."

Shu Yuanhang said, "I haven’t seen him either."

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