Siheyuan: I am a big capitalist after the founding of the People's Republic of China

Li Zihang ran to the exit of the underground palace as if to vent his anger, but found that the exit was closed. There was no switch next to it. Dumbfounded, he hurried back.

This underground palace is more than ten meters deep and has a spiral staircase. Going back and forth is no less than climbing ten floors.

Panting, Li Zihang walked up to the old man and complained, "Grandpa, why didn't you tell me how to open the exit? I had to go through so much trouble."

The old man stood up and sat on a wooden box beside him, looking at his sweaty grandson: "Come on, young master, you are blaming me now. Did you give me a chance to speak?"

Li Zihang listened to the old man's teasing and said unhappily, "Grandpa, you are still making fun of me. How can you treat your grandfather like this?"

The old man looked at him and spoke more fluently. His legs were no longer weak and he said, "Now you have come to your senses. You are not stuttering anymore. That's good. It's not in vain to climb these stairs."

"Okay! I'll register some more treasures, and you can take a look at them when you have nothing to do. You won't feel anything after seeing them too much, and you won't be confused anymore."

Seeing that the old man ignored him, Li Zihang continued to open the box to see what treasures were inside.

After an unknown amount of time, Li Zihang opened another box and saw a quilt covering it. Curious, he carefully lifted the quilt. What came into view was a bright red umbrella-shaped coral tree.

The coral branches that extend outwards are like stag antlers, one after another. Under the light, they shine like rubies. It is really breathtakingly beautiful.

Li Zihang opened the quilt and looked at the coral tree in front of him. It was 45 centimeters long and about 50 centimeters wide at its widest point. There was also a piece of Taishan stone next to it.

Taishan stone is irregular in shape, just like a small rockery, with buildings, pavilions, palaces, figures, flowers and birds carved on it. The figures, flowers, birds and pavilions are all lifelike.

This piece of Taishan stone should be the base of the coral tree.

Li Zihang carefully moved the Taishan stone base out. He found it was quite heavy. At least 20 kilograms. If he hadn't exercised every day, a nearly 8-year-old child would not have been able to move it.

Li Zihang didn't dare to move the coral tree easily, fearing that it would break, so he shouted loudly: "Grandpa, come and help me."

The old man heard his grandson's call and put down his work. He walked up to him and looked at the coral tree in the box. His eyes widened and he kept shouting "Good boy".

Li Zihang looked at his grandfather and asked curiously, "Grandpa, this thing has been here for such a long time, haven't you seen it?"

The old man lowered his head, squatted on the ground, leaned on the box, and looked at the coral tree in front of him. He didn't speak for a long time.

After a while, he spoke up: "These things all belong to the previous owner. I'm not like you, eating ginseng fruit like Zhu Bajie. I only open the boxes after registering them one by one. That way I can enjoy the fun of opening a treasure chest."

At this moment, the old man saw the Taishan stone base on the ground next to him and said tentatively: "You moved this stone out."

Li Zihang listened to the old man's nervous and tentative tone, and answered in a low voice: "Yes. I just want to take out the coral tree and stick it on the base. See what a complete tree looks like."

The old man slapped his forehead and said, "My grandson, next time you want to take something from the underground palace, tell me, especially if it's a large item. Everything in here is a rare treasure. If it's destroyed, it's gone. Maybe there's only one like it in the world. This Taishan stone base is so heavy. What if you slip and smash the coral tree? That would be a waste of things."

Li Zihang also lowered his head and admitted his mistake: "I know, Grandpa. I just wanted to take a look. I didn't think too much about it."

The old man was also worried about his grandson, and seeing his condition, he consoled him and said, "I'll get the coral tree out right away."

Then the old man bent down and carefully took out the coral tree. Li Zihang also helped. After finally inserting the tree into the Taishan stone base, the grandfather and grandson squatted aside to admire it.

The old man was admiring and praising it.

After admiring it for a while, Li Zihang opened the treasure chest. After the old man registered the coral tree, he went back and started registering again.

He opened another treasure chest and found that it was covered tightly with a layer of straw. Li Zihang knew that it was another big treasure. After carefully taking out the straw that fixed the treasure, he found a layer of cotton filling underneath.

Just like that, little by little, the cotton was taken out, and five whole ivory ornaments were placed side by side on the base. Li Zihang learned his lesson this time and knew to call him grandpa.

Li Zihang: "Grandpa, come and help."

The old man looked up at his grandson, then walked over helplessly. When he came to his grandson, he looked down at the ivory ornaments and asked, "What are you doing this time? It's just a few pieces of ivory. Why are you so excited?"

The old man had seen many ivory tusks before, but he didn't feel anything. But Li Zihang had never seen one before, so of course he was excited.

Li Zihang: "Grandpa, take out the tusk on the edge. Let me take a look."

The old man didn't waste any time. He bent down and took out the ivory together with the base.

Li Zihang looked at the carving on the ivory which looked like a scene of an ancient war, and curiously asked his grandfather what characters and story background the carving was about.

After taking a few glances, the old man said, "The background of the story is the Guangdiao of the Thirteen Hongs in Guangdong during the Qing Dynasty, and Zhao Zilong went in and out of Changbanpo seven times to save his master."

"Don't call me anymore. I'll register more treasures while I have time today."

Li Zihang then lay down beside the box and looked at the other four ivory carvings. After looking at them for a while, he could really tell the background stories of the carvings. The first one was about Zheng He's voyages to the West, the second one was about the dowry delivered in a red dress, the third one was about the Dragon Boat Race on the Dragon Boat Festival, and the fourth one was about the Peacock Flying Southeast.

Several ivory carvings are lifelike, in the round, in relief, and in hollow, with amazing craftsmanship.

Li Zihang put the cotton and straw back to their original places, leaving only the ivory outside. He had already decided that he must take the red coral tree and the ivory carving out and put them in his own room.

Even the placement was decided: the ivory tree was placed on the desk, and the red coral tree was placed in the bedroom.

After opening another treasure chest, he found a number of brocade boxes of varying lengths and widths neatly packed inside. Li Zihang took one out and opened it, revealing an agate jade ring.

He opened another one, and inside was a bloodstone seal. He then opened a few more, all of which were seals, jade carvings, bracelets, and small items like tags. He put them back one by one. He felt that it must have been a long time since he entered the underground palace. He asked the old man what time it was now: "Grandpa, what time is it? I feel like a long time has passed. If we don't go out, grandma and the others can't find us if something happens. Will they worry?"

The old man reached into his pocket and took out his pocket watch, checked the time and said, "It's 11:05. It's almost time for lunch, let's go out first. Come back in the afternoon."

Li Zihang: "Grandpa, help me move this ivory out. Also take the red coral tree out this afternoon."

The old man only agreed to take the ivory out, and did not agree to put the red coral in his room. So after a while, he finally agreed to move it in the afternoon.

The old man held the ivory and Li Zihang carried the base. The two walked carefully on the stairs. They walked for a while and rested for a while. Finally, they reached the exit. The old man asked Li Zihang to step down the highest step and go to the corner of the ninth step from the bottom. The mechanism above his head slowly opened the exit.

The grandfather and grandson came out and sat on the Luohan bed. After resting for a while, they brewed a pot of tea and started to drink it. …