Hearing Yu Feibai's speculation at that moment, Wang Guan felt a stirring of interest and couldn't help but look up and examine the ceiling.

As everyone knows, in ancient times without reinforced concrete, buildings were generally constructed from brickwork and wood, which is where the term "earthen and wooden engineering" comes from. This ancestral hall was no exception; although the walls were constructed of blue bricks, the roof was supported by wooden beams holding up the tiles.

The fact that the entire roof relied on these beams was enough to illustrate their importance. Phrases like the "pillar of the state" or the "main beam of the family" sufficiently demonstrated the status of timber in the minds of the populace.

Furthermore, because the beams were at the very top, far removed from the ground, they were typically beyond the reach of ordinary people. Thus, hiding things on the rafters was considered a relatively safe measure, at least in the minds of people from antiquity.

"These are solid logs..."

After surveying the area for a moment, Wang Guan hesitated. "It doesn't seem like anything could be hidden here."

"It certainly looks empty, but who knows if the middle has been hollowed out." Yu Feibai was extremely cautious; he would not easily give up unless he could personally verify the situation clearly.

"Is there a ladder?"

However, the rafters were quite high, just out of Yu Feibai's reach, so he started looking around for tools. Even without a ladder, a few stools would suffice. Unfortunately, the result was destined to disappoint Yu Feibai. In this mountain village, let alone a ladder or stool, there wasn't even an extra broom, which made him curse under his breath: "Stingy, utterly stingy."

"Stop your yelling," Wang Guan chuckled. "If we can't find anything else, let's just move some bricks."

"Fine."

Yu Feibai, feeling somewhat helpless, had no choice but to diligently move stones to build a tiered platform near the corner of the wall. After much effort, standing atop the platform, he could finally reach the beams.

"Are you really going to climb up there?"

Seeing Yu Feibai dangling from the beam, Wang Guan couldn't help but worry. "Be careful, don't fall."

"Don't jinx me."

Yu Feibai flipped his body and managed to perch precariously on the beam, causing it to sway slightly. Despite this, he was quite pleased, enthusiastically feeling around on the beam and inching forward little by little.

From this, one could also gauge the excellent quality of ancient construction. The beams had weathered countless years of wind and rain, yet they now supported an adult man without breaking—truly a miracle of architectural history.

"Crack!"

Just as Wang Guan finished his thought, he heard the sound of wood splitting. Yu Feibai's face instantly paled, and sweat immediately beaded on his forehead. "It can't be this unlucky, can it?"

"Don't move, absolutely do not move carelessly!"

Wang Guan rushed to the spot underneath, spreading his hands, looking anxious. "Retreat, hurry and retreat. If you fall, I might not be able to catch you..."

"Don't panic, it hasn't completely split yet." Pang Yue also helped from the side, observing the situation while signaling, "Move back slowly; it should be fine..."

Under these circumstances, Yu Feibai dared not show off and retreated inch by painful inch. Fortunately, the beam was somewhat cooperative; by the time he safely returned to the platform of bricks, it still hadn't snapped.

"Hoo."

With his feet firmly on solid ground, relief washed over Yu Feibai, and he let out a long breath. He couldn't help but complain, "I thought ancient things were reliable; I didn't expect this to be shoddy construction too."

"That's good enough; at least it didn't drop you dead on the spot," Wang Guan waved his hand, looked up at the state of the beam, and simply suggested, "Since it's already cracked, why don't you just break it off?"

"...Then I'll give it a try."

Yu Feibai considered it, immediately reached out to loop his arms around the beam, and began pulling down with increasing force. After a period of struggle, the beam finally broke with a thud, crashing down and kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Finally done," Yu Feibai wiped his sweat and, ignoring the swirling dust, leaped down to carefully inspect the two broken pieces of wood, muttering under his breath, "Please don't be porcelain, please don't be anything fragile..."

At this point, Pang Yue, standing nearby, really wanted to remark, Are you so sure there's anything inside the beam?

"Found it."

Suddenly, Yu Feibai cheered exuberantly. Inside one section of the broken beam, he had indeed discovered a cleverly concealed secret compartment, from which he retrieved a package.

Seeing this, Pang Yue was naturally astonished and extremely curious, unable to stop himself from approaching and asking, "What's inside the package?"

His silence would have been fine, but the moment he spoke, it put Yu Feibai on guard. His action of untying the package immediately stopped. He clutched the package to his chest and called out, "Wang Guan, we've got it. Let's go back..." Wang Guan smiled, naturally not objecting. Pang Yue offered a wry smile too and sensibly stopped prying.

"Let's go, let's go."

Yu Feibai took the lead, walked out, locked the package securely in the storage compartment of his motorcycle, and drove off, beaming with satisfaction.

As for Wang Guan, he took out a length of rope, tying one end to the rear of his own vehicle and the other to the front of Pang Yue's car. He then followed Yu Feibai leisurely, eventually arriving safely back in the county town.

Upon reaching the outskirts of the county seat, there were many shops that repaired vehicles. Pang Yue could no longer ask Wang Guan to tow him. After showering him with profuse thanks, he intended to foster a friendship, but both parties were preoccupied, and he could only watch them drive away.

Not long after, the two returned to the inn. As soon as they stepped into the room, Yu Feibai impatiently ripped open the package to examine the contents with a broad smile. The first thing that met his eyes was a yellowed booklet. He glanced at it, and his expression immediately soured. "The Liu Family Genealogy? What use do I have for this junk?"

As he spoke, Yu Feibai tossed the genealogy aside and continued his inspection.

"Gold, silver? Not even a single copper coin? Are they messing with me?"

In an instant, Yu Feibai inverted the package and shook it hard. A scattering of loose gold and silver coins clattered out, naturally infuriating him. After all, he had recently unearthed Wang Zhi's treasure; compared to that, this meager amount of bullion meant nothing. Moreover, the package contained only scattered gold and silver, without a single copper coin, which made him even more disgruntled.

One must remember that in modern society, the price of a rare copper coin is definitely worth more than gold.

However, the ancients certainly lacked this concept; relatively speaking, they must have considered gold and silver more valuable, generally adhering to the habit of hoarding gold and silver. As for copper coins, they were surely intended for spending, allowing them to circulate in the market. Then, they would be periodically reclaimed by the government for recasting, forming a cycle.

Of course, it is precisely because of this cycle that the price of ancient copper coins has continued to soar.

Getting off track, since the package contained only this small amount, Yu Feibai was naturally dissatisfied, even somewhat exasperated. "This is a rip-off! For this little bit of loose gold and silver, was it necessary to hide it so securely? They are utterly wicked!"

"They probably weren't trying to hide the gold and silver, but the genealogy itself."

Wang Guan chuckled, remaining rather calm. After all, judging by the size of the package, he had already deduced that the Chi Xiao Sword couldn't possibly be inside. Furthermore, thinking it over, it was understandable—it was an ancestral hall; what else would they hide besides the genealogy?

"Just a genealogy book, what's so special about hiding it?" Yu Feibai scoffed. "Are they afraid someone will steal it?"

"Stealing might not be the main concern; it's probably about concealing some secret..."

At this point, Wang Guan opened the genealogy and started reading from the first page. A smile immediately spread across his face. "And you were right about one thing: the 'Liu' in the Liu Ancestral Hall is indeed the 'Liu' of the Han Dynasty."

"Evidence?" Yu Feibai quickly leaned in to look. There, on the very first page of the genealogy, the founding emperor of the Han Dynasty, Liu Bang, was listed as the first ancestor.

"It really is recorded," Yu Feibai exclaimed, quickly gesturing, "Keep turning! I want to see the origin of this village."

"Mm."

Wang Guan nodded and slowly flipped through the pages. Finally, near the middle, he found a record pertaining to the Liu Family Ancestral Hall in Celing Village. It stated that due to Dong Zhuo's usurpation of power in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, among the imperial clan, only Liu Yu, Liu Biao, and Liu Yan held any significant power; the rest were displaced, fleeing Chang'an to settle near Hanzhong.

"After that, during the Northern and Southern Dynasties period, it stops..." Wang Guan turned to the last page and indicated, "No more records. Even if there were, it's likely recorded in another genealogy book."

"Oh."

Yu Feibai rubbed his chin, looking thoughtful. "You might have guessed correctly. It's already the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and they still dare not publicly reveal their identity, instead hiding the genealogy. There must be something fishy going on."

"Perhaps during the court turmoil, someone secretly moved the Chi Xiao Sword out and buried it elsewhere. It’s like the Imperial Seal; if Sun Jian hadn't accidentally discovered it, it might have sunk to the bottom of a well forever. And that statue in the dilapidated temple certainly isn't some general; it must be Liu Bang," Yu Feibai speculated, his reasoning holding some weight.

"Who it was no longer matters," Wang Guan shook his head and sighed softly. "What matters is that if the Chi Xiao Sword really was in that ruined temple, the archaeology team might have already dug it up."

"That's very possible..." Yu Feibai frowned upon hearing this. "Does that mean all our effort was for nothing?"

"Perhaps," Wang Guan mused. "How about we ask Elder Hou about it?"

"...Wait, let's not rush this."

Surprisingly, Yu Feibai expressed opposition. "Think clearly. If the archaeology team didn't find the Chi Xiao Sword, and you call Elder Hou to ask him, he will inevitably inform the local cultural relics bureau. Once that happens, the situation will be completely out of our control."

"Mm, that's exactly what I'm worried about, which is why I didn't dare tell Elder Hou our true objective from the start," Wang Guan said, nodding in agreement, yet looking somewhat troubled. "But what if the archaeology team really got the Chi Xiao Sword? Then we've just been wasting time searching."

"That is indeed a problem."

Now it was Yu Feibai's turn to scratch his head... "This is difficult."

Wang Guan fell into contemplation, and Yu Feibai tried to help brainstorm solutions, but after thinking for a long while, he grew impatient and simply waved his hand. "I'm done thinking. I'm hungry. Let's go eat first."

Food is paramount to the people. After wandering around outside for most of the day, surviving on mineral water and dry rations at noon, Wang Guan immediately agreed when he heard the suggestion. The two headed to a nearby restaurant.

But just as they reached the entrance, they spotted a familiar figure...