mtlumby2d Chapter 1944: A 1:1 Replica of the Mu Family Members
Chapter 1944: A 1:1 Replica of the Mu Family Members
On the white cloth is a painted clay sculpture of a girl.
She was about seventeen or eighteen years old, with her hair in two braids, wearing a moon-white top and a dark blue skirt, a typical female student outfit.
Perhaps due to its age, the paint on this clay sculpture has peeled off somewhat, but it is still quite well preserved.
The girl tilted her head slightly, gazing into the distance, a faint yet resolute smile playing on her lips.
Those eyebrows, the bridge of the nose, the contours of the face... especially the charm in those eyes!
Even the clay sculptures and paintings seem to radiate a clear light!
This is far more than just a 50-60% resemblance!
Li Xiangnan stared intently at the clay figure's face, as if trying to see through the cold earth and witness decades of time!
The blurry images in the photo now seem clear and concrete!
The face of this clay figure is strikingly similar to the one in my memory of my grandmother's photos!
The unique beauty, liveliness, and stunning charm of the young girl Mu Huanying, as well as the subtle stubbornness she exudes, are all vividly and incisively depicted by this unknown craftsman!
Saying it's seven or eight parts similar is an understatement!
He reached out, his fingertips trembling slightly, and gently touched the clay figure's cool, smooth cheek.
It feels realistic to the touch, with a delicate clay texture beneath the painted pigments.
On the back of the clay figure, near the base, there seem to be a few small characters carved with an extremely fine carving knife, but they are covered by paint and cannot be seen clearly!
hiss!
A chill, mixed with immense shock and disbelief, instantly gripped Li Xiangnan's heart!
Like, it’s so similar!
It's Grandma!
Li Xiangnan was certain almost immediately that this was a clay figurine of his grandmother, Mu Huanying!
Let alone him being certain, even if Grandpa Li Dequan came here in person, he could recognize it at a glance!
This clay figure is absolutely, without a doubt, my grandmother, Mu Huanying!
but!
Here's the problem!
Who made the clay statue of Grandma?
And why did they go to such lengths to hide her under the Buddha statue at Pudu Temple?
too weird!
"This box..." Li Xiangnan could feel his throat getting dry as he spoke, "How exactly was it discovered?"
"Old Wei, quickly tell Consultant Li!" Noticing Li Xiangnan's unusual behavior, Guo Qian quickly waved his hand.
Wei Jingfei quickly reported: "Advisor Li, while we were cleaning up the fire scene, we found that this Buddha statue had been knocked down and broken by a falling beam! While cleaning up the old scraps of paper, I noticed that the brick under the base of the Buddha statue was a bit loose, unlike the others. When we pried it open, we found a shallow pit underneath, and inside the pit, a wooden box wrapped in tarpaulin was buried, carefully covered with a thin layer of soil for camouflage! It was buried very well and very carefully. If the Buddha statue hadn't arrived, we wouldn't have moved this brick at all, and naturally we wouldn't have discovered the clay statue inside the box!"
It seems they deliberately hid it!
And it was a carefully chosen hiding place!
Who would notice what's under the base of a Buddha statue?
They were determined not to let this thing see the light of day again!
Guo Qian nudged Li Xiangnan's arm and reminded him, "Advisor Li, there's more than just this one clay figure in this box. Look, there are some others!"
Li Xiangnan glanced to the side and found that there were indeed many clay statues in the box.
The clay figures were all about the same size, roughly the size of a palm, and varied in shape, depicting men, women, young and old, dressed in all sorts of old-fashioned clothes. The colors of the paintings had faded and peeled due to their age, but the exquisite craftsmanship of the makers was still evident!
The characters' expressions are lifelike, whether they are angry or happy, deep in thought or gazing into the distance. Details such as the folds of their clothes, strands of hair, and eyebrows are depicted with extreme delicacy and vividness.
This is clearly not an ordinary child's toy or a crude folk craft; it is a painted sculpture with certain artistic value.
hiss!
It seems my grandmother isn't the only one!
Fortunately!
It seems that it wasn't directed at his grandmother, as he had thought, or that he had a crush on her alone.
There are so many people here...
Li Xiangnan's heart suddenly skipped a beat.
There are dozens of clay figures here, could it be that...?
Are they all from the Mu family?
The missing core members of the Mu family? Is this a 1:1 replica of the members from back then?
But what's the point of sculpting them?
Li Xiangnan really couldn't understand it.
"I've been looking at this for a while, I don't understand it, but I feel that this female student looks the most unique," Guo Qian shook his head: "Xiang Nan, are you sure? Is this your grandmother? Doesn't she look about five or six points similar?"
Li Xiangnan nodded heavily, his gaze still unable to leave the clay figure.
“It looks very similar. You’ve seen photos of my grandmother. This should have been made around the same age as when the photo was taken!” He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down and analyze the situation: “Captain Guo, this discovery is too strange! The clay figure itself, the location where it was buried, and the fire are all problematic!”
His gaze swept over the ruins where documents and materials had been burned, then returned to the clay figure in his hand. He thought of the secret passage in the temple and the suspicious Yuan Da and Yuan Neng, and a clear chain of events seemed to gradually form in his mind.
“I suspect that one of the purposes of this fire was to destroy these documents and prevent us from investigating further!” Li Xiangnan’s voice lowered slightly. “They wanted to cut off our investigative leads! As for the collapse of the Buddha statue, there are two possibilities. First, it was an accident. The person who buried it probably didn’t expect us to investigate so thoroughly because of the fire, not even letting go of the area under the Buddha statue!”
Guo Qian's brow twitched: "And what about second place?"
Li Xiangnan grabbed the clay figure and looked around.
Guo Qian followed his gaze and found that his eyes were fixed on Abbot Yuantong, Yuan Hui, Yuan Da, and others.
"Secondly, it's possible that someone discovered the fire in advance and then used it as a pretext to deliberately knock down the Buddha statue, break the floor tiles, and intentionally lead us to the box underneath, where we found these clay statues!"
"hiss!"
This reasoning surprised Guo Qian.
Wang Defa silently wiped his face, looked around, and exclaimed in surprise, "Damn, this temple is truly a hidden world! The intrigue and power struggles here are even more intense than some organizations outside!"
Guo Qian wholeheartedly agreed, his eyes sharpening: "Advisor Li, I understand what you mean! Our investigation into this temple is on the right track. We've now confirmed that not only is someone causing trouble, but they have indeed had unusual connections with the Mu family or your grandmother in the past! This clay figure is proof of that!"
"That's right!"
Li Xiangnan carefully wrapped the clay figure in a white cloth, his sharp eyes scanning the ancient temple bathed in the afternoon sun. "Pudu Temple... is not just a place where a secret passage was discovered! There are deeper secrets hidden here, secrets that may be related to the great fire at the Mu family decades ago!"
The temple, which was usually filled with the smoke of incense and the melodious sound of bells, was now shrouded in a thick and dangerous fog in his eyes.
Every monk's cell, every Buddha statue, and every monk walking around seems to conceal an unknown past and sinister intentions.
“Captain Guo,” Li Xiangnan said decisively, “this box of clay figurines, especially this one, must be preserved and studied with utmost importance! I propose that the bureau immediately invite experts to authenticate the age, techniques, and pigment composition of the figurines! At the same time, conduct thorough background investigations and inquiries into the monks who have been in the temple for a long time! I have a strong feeling that this clay figurine may be the key to unlocking the secrets of the entire Pudu Temple, and even touching on the identity of the Little Buddha!”
Guo Qian nodded hurriedly and said, "Advisor Li, you're right, I'll arrange it immediately!"
At this moment, Li Xiangnan turned his gaze to Yuan Tong and the others who were sitting to the side panting. Seeing that they were soaking wet, he narrowed his eyes and asked, "Captain Guo, who was the first person to discover the fire here?"
Guo Qian beckoned over, took Wei Jingfei's interrogation record, and replied, "It's Abbot Yuantong!"
"Yuan Tong?"
Upon hearing this, Li Xiangnan was taken aback.
He looked at the clay sculpture of his grandmother in his hand, then at Yuantong's age, and his heart suddenly skipped a beat...