Gathering a Crowd

The empty Mausoleum of Emperor Luo Li was the first to be bulldozed, stemming from the thorough investigation of the missing persons case and Zhang Xuezhou's plan to excavate Dongshan.

The time frame was short; the entire imperial mausoleum area was leveled in less than a month.

But the pace of construction and renovation was indeed very fast.

Even though the Zuo Household, who were in charge of building the Luo Li Emperor's Mausoleum, had run into problems, the construction did not slow down at all.

With funding secured, all construction proceeded according to the blueprints and design standards.

When Zhang Xuezhou arrived at the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum carrying a large briefcase, he saw that the Luo Li Imperial Mausoleum area was brightly lit, and the main structure of the museum of the last monarch, covering an area of tens of thousands of square meters, was basically completed.

This was the first area to be leveled, and it served as a model for the construction of other imperial mausoleum areas. Construction teams were also involved in the collaborative work.

"This is the overall structure of the building. We plan to invite the committee members to inspect it after completion to see if it meets the specifications, so that other museums in the area can benefit from this!"

Zhang Xuezhou's journey to the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum by aircraft was not exactly secretive.

Feng Ziqiang, who had been helping out at the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum free of charge, rushed over as soon as he heard the news.

Compared to his high spirits nearly a month ago, Feng Ziqiang has lost a lot of weight, and his forehead is covered with wrinkles.

On one hand, there is the tourism development that can only be promoted with national peace and prosperity; on the other hand, there is the thorough investigation and crackdown on the heavy military presence in Luo'an Province.

Putting aside the development of tourism at the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum, and knowing the strength mobilized by the Alliance States Council during the suppression, Feng Ziqiang felt that the old guard and their descendants were a joke.

If the committee doesn't need to worry about the impact of a forceful crackdown, everything will be no different from the current crackdown in Luo'an Province.

With a vast province under orderly control, it's not a big deal that the old guard and their descendants would linger and cause trouble.

Jin Shixue's departure was a heavy blow to him. He felt empty and lost. It was only after his father, Feng Xiangyu, expressed his opinion that Feng Ziqiang began to see himself as an ordinary person and stop wearing the label of being a member of the old regime.

Feng Ziqiang is currently an investor in the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum Scenic Area and is doing his best to advance the project and generate revenue as soon as possible.

He rushed out from the crowd, past several patrolmen who were helping to maintain order, and then explained the situation to Zhang Xuezhou.

"Well arranged," Zhang Xuezhou nodded, then added, "Don't stop your bonfire ritual, keep dancing!"

"Bonfire ritual?"

Feng Ziqiang hesitated for a moment, but he relayed the information very quickly.

"Quickly, everyone, get to the main entrance of the museum and begin the sacrificial ceremony to Heaven!"

Although the open plaza in front of Emperor Luo Li's tomb is gone, the main building of the Museum of the Last Monarch is spacious enough to easily host a sacrificial ceremony.

The crowd erupted in a cacophony of noise; some construction work ceased, while the clamor of gongs and drums intensified.

"Where are Luo Zhong's remains?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"We did not tamper with the imperial coffin as required by the supervisory and control regulations, and it is currently still on display in the center of the circular area for sacrificial rites in the museum!"

Feng Ziqiang responded, and Zhang Xuezhou immediately took a step and headed straight for the Imperial Coffin area.

This caused Feng Ziqiang's expression to change.

He had previously dared to accompany the emperor to the mausoleum, but since three heads were found inside the imperial coffin, and Min Ziyan went mad for a night after entering the mausoleum, along with the change in attitude of Jin Shixue and others, Feng Ziqiang became somewhat apprehensive.

Feng Ziqiang dared to go and view the imperial coffin from afar during the day, but he was actually a little afraid to go at night, especially when he was accompanied by Zhang Xuezhou.

He watched Zhang Xuezhou go, followed by several others who arrived in flying vehicles, but he simply didn't have the courage to follow.

"I told you I'd brought you guys to see the bonfire party, didn't I?!"

When the loud, boisterous voice rang out, Feng Ziqiang looked up sharply and saw a woman dressed in a very aloof manner leading several people.

The other person's appearance and voice presented a contradictory sense of incongruity, yet Feng Ziqiang felt a vague familiarity with them.

These were clearly strangers in the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum, but no one went forward to stop them, not even Feng Ziqiang had received any news.

Who are you?

Seeing that the other party was approaching and even about to enter the museum building which was still fenced off, Feng Ziqiang had no choice but to bite the bullet and step forward.

As they approached each other, Feng Ziqiang felt a sense of rejection, as if he were a stranger.

He glanced around and saw a foreign man with a small mustache nodding at him. Feng Ziqiang felt a tremor in his heart, and his legs almost went weak.

"Arthur, this guy's in charge of the bonfire party. Tone down your cocky attitude, or he'll be scared!"

The woman's usually carefree voice now carried a hint of coldness, and Feng Ziqiang felt a jolt of realization, finally remembering her identity.

The other party had made a brief appearance when Zhang Xuezhou took office, and had also represented the Zhou Household of Western Capital City in making investments.

"Committee Member Zhou...?"

Feng Ziqiang asked in a low voice, and the woman nodded.

Where is Director Zhang?

"Director Zhang has gone to the museum center!"

Zhou Yueyan asked a question, and Feng Ziqiang answered very honestly, which made her satisfied.

"What, Director Zhang? Aren't we here to watch the bonfire party?" Montes Arthur asked suspiciously.

"Director Zhang is the person in charge here. We should let him know before we come to visit," Zhou Yueyan said.

"The person in charge of the bonfire party? The overall person in charge? The situation here is a bit complicated. What are they building here? Why are there so many construction teams?"

Montes Arthur wanted to ask more questions, but Zhou Yueyan was too lazy to answer. She simply took out a screw about the thickness of a finger from her pocket and turned it.

"It's utterly shameful to take apart an Airbus's screws!"

Montes Arthur grumbled in the Scarlet Alliance State, then had no choice but to follow Zhou Yueyan's footsteps.

Knowing that Zhou Yueyan had ulterior motives, Montes Arthur and the others had no choice but to follow her.

The current situation is barely acceptable; at least Zhou Yueyan really did bring them to the bonfire party. There are quite a few people dressed in ancient costumes moving around and placing items, and there are so many people in this kind of place that it seems unlikely that any problems will arise.

Montes Arthur winked at Shelton, who shrugged, and Montes Arthur immediately understood that Shelton's judgment was no different from his own.

"That Bakhtom guy is really unreliable; his attitude is too much in favor of the Scarlet Alliance State!"

Perhaps because the Scarlet Alliance State played a decisive role in quelling the chaos in the Tuer region, the new Speaker of the Thousand Islands Alliance, Bakhtom, was extremely fond of Zhou Yueyan.

Montes Arthur could only mutter to himself that he hadn't considered the other person when asking for their opinion.

Shelton of the British Alliance State followed with a bored expression, as did Montes Arthur.

"Batia, watch your step!"

Montes Arthur was still uneasy and couldn't help but give a word of advice, which made a tall and strong man following him nod, and then a large shield, about half a person's height, was slung over his right arm.

Walking along the still unfinished museum path, after only fifty or sixty meters, the group saw the center of the museum.

It was a 20-meter-high mound of loess, which basically maintained the shape of the area in front of the museum building.

On the loess mound, an ornately carved imperial coffin lay horizontally, with several people holding lanterns standing on top of it.

Montes Arthur felt a chill run down his spine. Just as he was about to stop, he heard a sound coming from the mound of earth.

"My friend Batia, is that Lord Arthur?"

"Why!"

"Lord Arthur, this is the imperial coffin of Emperor Luo Li of the Luofu Dynasty. He was the founder of the spiritual realm of our Scarlet Alliance State. Would you be interested in coming up and taking a look?"

Just as Batia, holding the large shield, responded with a startled sound, a voice from the yellow earth mound extended an invitation to Montes Arthur.

This caused Montes Arthur's foot, which he was about to retract, to move forward again.

"Is this Director Zhang? I'm personally very interested in this!"

Montes Arthur responded loudly.

He had no interest in bonfire parties or anything like that, but as a master of mental combat, Montes Arthur undoubtedly paid close attention to every outstanding individual in this field.

Luo Zhong was indeed on Montes Arthur's radar, even though the latter had died decades ago.

But Montes Arthur was also a little curious about who the Director Zhang who had invited him was.

He glanced at the wooden frame built beside the loess mound to prevent collapse, and the power of his genes emerged. Using the frame as a springboard, he leaped upwards repeatedly, and with the help of the searchlight, Montes Arthur finally saw a face he didn't particularly like to see.