bit stealing game

Chapter 48 Mysterious Compass

Lord Black handed us the pocket watch that he had been rubbing in his hands with great care.

I took it.

The pocket watch has been opened by Lord Black. Various moon phases are carved with diamonds around the dial, clustering around the hands in the middle. The mechanical gears are tightly interlocked, and the wonderful thing is that there is a compass embedded in the middle of the dial.

The pointer was trembling slightly and looked a little different from an ordinary compass.

I held the handkerchief and handed the pocket watch to Li Yuan. He leaned towards me and also frowned.

I looked at Lord Black questioningly.

"Last time I gave the map to Mr. Meng. This time I will give you the last thing Bruce left for me. This is the bargaining chip I bet. When you bring Bruce back, you will have to return this to me.

.”

The map that Mustafa took away from his son later came into the hands of Sir Black, and was given to Meng Weiqing when we were here last time.

I've seen that map. There's nothing in the desert to the west, only the military camp of Thutmose III is vaguely marked. That military camp does not exist in current official records.

If anyone had really been there sixty years ago and twelve years ago, then that military camp was hidden by someone.

Sir Black looked at the pocket watch in my hand and said: "This is a compass that can lead you to the treasures of ancient Egypt. But what you will find there depends on your luck."

According to Mustafa, you can find the Temple of Set by following the map and the guidance of the full moon. If you go further.

I looked at the "Guide to Treasures of Ancient Egypt" again.

The pointer next to the gear on the dial is indeed rotating slightly as if it is looking for something. But the strange thing is that there are no north and south magnetic poles at both ends of the pointer, and it does not point to the south.

What caught my attention was an old photo placed inside the cover of this pocket watch.

The photo looked very old. It looked like it had been stared at countless times but never willing to touch.

The face of the person in the photo cannot be clearly seen, and one can only roughly distinguish a young man and a child. The man holds the child in his right arm, and is teasing the child with a bunch of grapes in his left hand. The man on his chest

A chain emerged from the pocket.

This photo makes me feel familiar.

The posture composition of the man and the little boy is like an ancient Greek sculpture. The sun god Apollo is leaning on the grape vine, holding wine grapes to tease the child-shaped Dionysus in his arms.

Sun God and Bacchus - Sun-baked grapes turn into wine.

No. It's more than that.

When I was struggling, Li Yuan reminded me softly: "Look at the oil painting to the east."

I looked over and suddenly realized.

There is a painting on the wall near the inner room. In the painting, a tall young man is painting sideways on the canvas. The painting is the photo in the "Compass". The man tilts his head to the right as if he is thinking about how to continue writing.

, what is exposed from his left breast pocket is this 'compass' chain.

Li Yuan turned over this ‘multifunctional pocket watch’. On the back was engraved [B.A. Black].

Sir Black clapped his hands and smiled.

"You two kids know a lot. Bruce is a fan of ancient Greece, and I have also listened to a lot of mythological stories. When I was a kid, I thought he was like the sun god, so he followed my wishes and changed his middle name.

He became 'Apollo'. For this he was scolded by my grandfather and ridiculed by his friends."

Li Yuan and I both laughed when we heard this.

This Bruce is really a wanton person, and he is willing to change his middle name with family origin just because of his nephew's words. No wonder Sir Black is obsessed and refuses to give up looking for him.

"Now that I have given you the compass, you must bring back my Apollo."

Although I am grateful for Sir Black's trust and moved by his affection for his uncle, this task is indeed a bit more challenging.

Old Black probably died sixty years ago, and we could see his bones this time. But I couldn't bear to break the old man's mind.

"I know he's still alive."

Sir Black seemed to know what I was thinking and said with confidence.

"Bruce has always loved puzzles and adventures. He just got lost. Please take him home."

Sir Black smiled unconsciously and his tone was full of nostalgia. It was no longer like a younger generation worshiping their elders, but more like an old man doting on his children.

"Since you said that there is also a bloodline of 'people from afar' that is also effective, what about your uncle?" Although it was a shame, I couldn't help but ask. "Does your uncle have any signs of bloodline? Or does your family have it?

"

Lord Black smiled and shook his head.

"I didn't get involved in this game because Bruce was curious. He's always like this. If something is interesting, he jumps right in."

I said to myself: He is indeed interesting. You two have spent most of your lives in it.

But I don't have Lord Black's power, and I don't want to rush into that desert without knowing anything.

"Do you know the origins of these people who are now in Egypt?"

"The only ones who have come to see me are you and those Americans." Lord Black knew everything. "And I'm afraid there aren't too many people who have the ability to intervene now."

"What about Karl?" What I wanted to ask him the most was actually him. This guy acted out of control and didn't know what he was doing. I really couldn't let go until he found out.

Seeing Sir Black's blank expression, I added: "You were still chatting with them at yesterday's dinner. Is that the one dressed as a reporter?"

Sir Black thought for a while and then recalled who I was talking about. I saw that he didn't look like he was just pretending. It seemed that he really didn't care much about Carl.

But among the people who wanted to get close to him at that time, except for Rhea, he only had a slightly better attitude towards Carl and Bruce. Even Arno didn't get much attention.

If it's not Carl, is it Bruce? Because he has the same name as his uncle?

"You observe carefully," Lord Black said.

Only then did I realize that I had accidentally said Bruce's name, and I twitched my lips in embarrassment.

Sir Black smiled: "You don't have to worry about it. I just think of my old friend. When you get to my age, you will unconsciously fall into memories, and sometimes you can't distinguish between reality and the past." His eyes swept across.

I stopped at Li Yuan's place again, as if I had recalled something. "My obsession is too deep, and I have missed a lot. When I was young, I always felt that I had to keep doing it once I was determined. In fact, there is another way."

Lord Black's words were obviously not meant for me.

I took a sneak peek at Li Yuan, but he seemed unmoved as if he hadn't heard.

Lord Black said no more.

"It's just that now, it's too late for me to look back. I have no heirs and nothing to care about. I have been here my whole life, so I am bound to win this game."

When someone has an idea, there will naturally be people who work hard to achieve their goals. Most people can't do this, but the people I met on this trip are all people with great energy.

For example, the old man in front of me.

Only now do I really make the connection between Sir Black and the person in A Tian's information.

The old man in front of him has been walking in this puzzle for sixty years, unswervingly carrying out his obsession. Such a life's happiness depends on one person, no matter how powerful he is, he can't really live. He just lets himself be

This place that has been forgotten by life is like a prison.

"I can only tell you that that ore is the foundation of Egyptian order," Lord Black said.

We are accustomed to the air of this world, to the sun rising as usual, to all conveniences and comforts, to self-reliance, to hard work and complaints. But in ancient legends, some worlds do not have the sun;

There are nine suns.

These differences and irregularities are unfamiliar to us and may have never occurred to us.

The borrowed moon shines on a world without rules.

Ancient Egypt valued order. If the sun stopped rising, the Nile stopped flooding, and the gods stopped protecting this land, then everything that had been established would be destroyed.

Humanity's fear of the night makes us eagerly look forward to dawn. Yesterday's restoration of the temple in the Valley of the Kings can be understood as the message sent to us by the pharaoh thousands of years ago, with the purpose of restoring the order maintained by the gods.

The stones in the desert to the west are the foundation of order.

"Then do you know who Dr. White might be?" I asked again.

Sir Black said: "It was not necessarily Dr. White who asked Hassan to look for the gold seal in the first place. After all, there was more than one person who was eyeing their family."

Lord Black himself manipulates Mustafa, and he also has many plans for us.

"If that Karl is not from you or the Americans, the forces behind him may be related to Dr. White." He added.

When I thought about it, it was indeed the case. There was little room for maneuver at 279. There was Arno in Morgan's team, and the variables were too great. If Dr. White wanted to insert someone, Carl and his group of mercenaries would be a good choice.

.

Lord Black looked at the pocket watch in my hand again and closed his eyes speechlessly.

This is an eviction order.

We said goodbye knowingly and left.

There was the sound of the window closing behind me, and now there was no trace of light in the room. As soon as we left, Sir Black couldn't wait to shut himself into the darkness.

Last time I met 279 in the study, the sunshine and grandeur that filled the room were probably just for the sake of face in front of others.

Just like a person who knows whether drinking water is warm or cold, we are just passers-by in the entanglement of these decades.

On the way out, we passed by the room with the swan painted on it. There was light flowing out from the crack in the door, so I guess there must be sunlight filling the room behind the door.

Apollo, the god of light and prophecy. There are always some people who piously keep their place for the gods who have left long ago.

"Don't you think the world is so small?"

Li Yuan smiled and sighed. "That's not true."

It was Hassan's grandfather Mustafa who took Old Black into the desert sixty years ago. The people who went to the desert with Sir Black twelve years ago were probably Alex's missing parents.

Including Li Yuan and I. We have not seen each other again in our hometown for many years, and now we meet in Egypt for different reasons.

I handed the pocket watch that Lord Black gave us to Li Yuan.

Sir Black once thought that this compass could take him to his uncle, but it didn't. Maybe he got infinitely close twelve years ago, but it was all in vain. I don't know why he didn't insist on going with us this time.

Judging from his obsession with old Lord Black, logically speaking, a broken leg wouldn't stop him.

On the back of that pocket watch is written "To my dear little Artie"

While waiting for the bus, I asked Li Yuan: "Is Mr. Luan really friends with Mr. Black?"

Li Yuan smiled and said how could it be possible, it was just a one-time encounter at that time.

Sir Black was still young at that time, so naturally he didn't know about Old Black's interpersonal relationships. In addition, Mr. Luan was hiding in the city, and many things in the past could not be found out. So he just deceived him.

"Then who is in the photo you gave Lord Black?" I couldn't help but ask.

The corners of Li Yuan's mouth turned up.

The Asian man in the photo that co-author Rhea brought was not Mr. Luan at all, he was still young at that time. In addition, the resolution of the photo is very low, and if you are not familiar with it, you can't tell who is who. Sir Black is here to patronize

He was looking at his uncle, and he couldn't care less about others. So he was fooled by Li Yuan into so many things.

This family is really bad.

But then I thought, in fact, Lord Black might not know that Li Yuan was deceiving him with his fake old friend. It’s just that he also happened to need a reason to tell about his old friend.

Suddenly the wind picked up.

The sand that has not dispersed for many years rushes towards my face.

The abrupt old house behind him is like an exquisite coffin. Layers upon layers, solemn and inexplicable, the people who come here are curled up in this desolate burial place. As soon as Sir Black stepped in, he was stunned.

Already on the verge of death.

Even sixty years ago, when Lord Black pestered his uncle to come to Egypt with him, the vast yellow sand had already buried him.

Now, he is far from the only one trapped in the situation.

Poor Lord Black, although he is not of ancient blood, his family is no less involved in this matter.

(End of chapter)