97: Chapter 97 Searching for Treasure

The next clue pointed to the location of the final treasure. An Xiaoxi couldn't wait to match the treasure's location based on the positioning information.

"Zhang Wei, we've actually been to the place where the treasure is buried," An Xiaoxi said with some surprise.

"Can you believe it? It's actually the small plaza in front of the Shenghai Museum."

Zhang Wei was dumbfounded. Wasn't that the very place where Interview Brother became famous after the 'cannon' battle? He didn't expect they would have such a fated connection with this place.

The Shenghai Museum is located next to People's Square in the City Name center, right in the heart of the busiest district. Parking was a major issue. Zhang Wei didn't stand on ceremony and drove directly into the Museum's staff-only parking lot. Last time, after separating the Picasso oil painting, Zhang Wei had invited the entire Museum staff out for a meal, and the security uncle at this entrance had also attended. Seeing Zhang Wei, he immediately broke into a smile and waved him into the garage.

Zhang Wei smiled smugly, "This is what you call having status. Not only do we get free parking, but after we find the treasure, we're going to crash Uncle Yu's cafeteria for a meal."

An Xiaoxi nodded, indicating that this was a good plan.

After parking, the two arrived at the small plaza in front of the Museum. It was quite open, with nothing but a modern statue in the center and a ring of greenery surrounding it.

Zhang Wei and An Xiaoxi turned the place upside down, inside and out, but found nothing.

"Could someone have beaten us to it?" However, checking the app, players who complete a treasure hunt task would confirm it once they found the item. Currently, the task was not marked as completed.

Zhang Wei lowered his head in thought, while An Xiaoxi, refusing to give up, began rummaging through the greenery again.

Just then, Yu Hongtao came rushing out of the Museum with two security guards.

Just moments ago, the security guard in the monitoring room had suddenly spotted two familiar figures engaging in confusing behavior on the front plaza.

One of them let out a sound of surprise, "Aren't those two of the people who almost bombarded our Museum last time? What are they doing?"

Because they had to stay at their posts, these two security guards didn't actually know Zhang Wei personally.

The other one muttered, "You think, since they failed the bombardment last time, could they be burying a bomb in the greenery this time?"

The two were silent for two seconds before jumping up from their seats, "Hurry, notify the Director!"

And so, this scene unfolded. Yu Hongtao knew Zhang Wei wouldn't engage in terrorist activities; he was simply curious.

"You two, why are you rummaging through the greenery for no reason? Why don't you help me clean up the trash inside while you're at it?"

Zhang Wei rolled his eyes at him. Thinking of the treasure hunt name 'Pharaoh Travels Through Time,' he joked, "Uncle Yu, you don't understand. We're looking for a precise coordinate. An ancient Pharaoh is about to travel through time and arrive here in a moment."

Yu Hongtao was speechless. "How old are you guys? Isn't this a bit childish? Why didn't you come to see the Ancient Egyptian Artifacts Exhibition the Museum held before? Those were the real treasures from the Pharaoh's era."

When the conflict broke out back then, Yu Hongtao had used Shenghai's status as an international metropolis as leverage and personally traveled to Egypt five times for negotiations. The other party was moved by Shenghai's sincerity. Ultimately, they reached an agreement for the Pharaoh-era artifact exhibition. Forty to fifty of their country's important artifacts were flown in. Many were national treasures, and it was the first time they had been exhibited abroad.

Hearing this, Zhang Wei's heart stirred. He thought of a possibility and hurriedly asked, "Uncle Yu, back then, were there any exhibits related to the Egyptian Pharaohs set up on the small plaza?"

Yu Hongtao thought for a moment. "The artifacts are all very precious, so it's impossible to put them outside the Museum. However, there was a plaster statue of a Pharaoh placed on the plaza for promotional purposes."

"Then where is that Pharaoh statue now?"

Yu Hongtao pondered for a moment. "After the exhibition ended, it should have been placed in the Museum's warehouse."

"Then what are we waiting for? Uncle Yu, take us there quickly!" An Xiaoxi had originally lost hope for the final treasure, but she didn't expect such a turn of events. She grabbed Yu Hongtao and spoke urgently.

"Alright, alright. My old arms and legs are about to break from your pulling." Yu Hongtao could still trade barbs with Zhang Wei, but he had no way to deal with this young girl.

The group arrived at the Museum's storage room, which was filled with various items, mostly promotional materials. There was even a small-scale replica of the Eiffel Tower.

Walking to a corner, Yu Hongtao lifted a tarpaulin. "This is the statue."

A two-meter-tall Pharaoh statue appeared before everyone's eyes. Although it was a replica made of plaster, anything produced by the Museum was of high quality. The overall craftsmanship was so exquisite that a layman like Zhang Wei couldn't tell it from the real thing.

He walked around the Pharaoh statue. The overall structure was simple and didn't look like a place where things could be hidden. Zhang Wei looked up and noticed that the only place that could hide something was the scepter the Pharaoh was holding.

"An Xiaoxi, I'll give you a shoulder ride so you can take a look up there." Zhang Wei crouched down, signaling for An Xiaoxi to sit on his neck. Then, he slowly stood up.

An Xiaoxi turned on her phone's flashlight. The scepter held by the Pharaoh was shaped like a rod, narrow at the bottom and wide at the top, forming a bell-shaped opening at the tip. An Xiaoxi shone her phone light into the opening.

"There really is something!" she shouted excitedly, reaching her arm in and pulling out a small box.

Yu Hongtao also leaned in curiously, though he didn't think it would be an antique. After all, the entire statue had been made right under his nose. It was definitely no more than six months old.

Zhang Wei took the box. It was about the length of a finger and felt very light.

Opening it, a laminated color stamp lay inside.

It depicted an ancient Egyptian architectural complex, with labels in English and Arabic at the top. The overall artwork carried an exotic flair and a strong artistic sense. Even in the laminated environment, the white border of the stamp had turned slightly yellow.

Yu Hongtao frowned as he looked at it. This seemed like an old item?

Zhang Wei rolled his eyes at him, "If you don't understand it, don't just stand here wondering by yourself. Let's go find Dr. Zhao quickly."

"If you don't know how to speak properly, then shut up!" Yu Hongtao scolded with a laugh. Although he didn't know how to appraise antiques, did Zhang Wei think this administrative job was easy? Couldn't he see he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown?

The group arrived at the office just as Dr. Zhao was preparing to go to lunch. Zhang Wei hurriedly stopped him, "Uncle Zhao, no rush for lunch. I have a stamp here for you to look at. Once you're done, we'll go to the cafeteria with Uncle Yu."

Yu Hongtao rolled his eyes. This kid showing up out of the blue today definitely meant no good.

As soon as Dr. Zhao heard there was something good, his eyes lit up, and he completely forgot about his stomach. He walked to his desk, put on gloves, and examined it carefully.

After a short while, Dr. Zhao put down the magnifying glass and smiled, "Not bad. This is an old Egyptian stamp from around 1980. The lack of a postmark indicates that its first buyer was likely a philatelist, not someone who bought it for use."

"The stamp depicts the Sinai Region of Egypt. It was likely shortly after the end of the Middle East war. The Sinai Region had finally returned to Egypt's embrace after many years, making this a stamp with significant historical value."

As he spoke, Dr. Zhao spread his hands, "However, the value of a stamp depends on its rarity and subject matter. Egyptian stamps are a niche within a niche in China. Its value is at most ten thousand yuan or so." Previously, Zhang Wei had constantly brought in national treasure-level items, so Dr. Zhao found it hard to get excited about low-value antiques now.

An Xiaoxi, however, smiled happily, "It's already very good. Uncle Zhao, we didn't spend a single cent. We found it through our own skills."

"Oh, An Xiaoxi, you really are amazing. You're the smartest little girl I've ever met." Dr. Zhao showed a kind smile upon seeing An Xiaoxi.

This girl was just too likable.