“Jiayi!” Zhihao said, dropping a hand on her shoulder. She turned to him, startled. “Didn’t you hear me calling you?” he asked.
“Sorry,” she said. “I…I thought I heard something out that way.” She pointed toward a pile of rocks.
“Probably just a snake or rabbit,” Zhihao said.
“Did you need something?” she asked. “Did you find anything in the cave?”
He held up some arrowheads. “Just these,” he said. “Maybe if you touch them, you’ll learn something that could tell us if we are on the right track.”
“I don’t know,” she said, clasping her hands behind her back. “I think I should conserve my energy. Besides, I don’t think Lady Cai would come into contact with weapons. I think we should wait. If we don’t find anything else, I can try.”
“Fair enough,” he said, putting the arrowheads into his bag.
“You didn’t find anything else in there?” she asked.
He shook his head as he helped Eunuch Lo wind the rope. “Nothing related to the seal. I did find this, though.” He handed her a tin can. She tapped it and then sniffed it, making a face.
“What is it? It smells rancid,” she said, handing it back.
“Can of tinned beef,” he said. He pointed to the bottom of the can. “Crosse and Blackwell. A British company. Marcus has been here. He might not have found the seal, but he’s been here. He’s one step ahead of us at least.” He sighed in frustration and shook his head.
“Oh dear,” Jiayi said. “But you don’t think he found the seal?”
He finished winding up the rope. “I don’t think so. The cave was nothing special. I found a couple of broken spears. Maybe the rebels who attacked the imperial procession used this cave before or after the attack.”
“Then we can still find it first,” she said. “But I think we need a better plan than just going from cave to cave hoping to find something.”
“I wish I had one,” Zhihao said. “But unless you can see something to help us narrow down the search, I don’t have a better idea.”
Jiayi sighed and sat on a rock nearby. She pulled her folio out of her bag and began flipping through the pages.
“Are those she sketches of your visions?” Zhihao asked, walking over. “Can I have a look?”
Jiayi tilted the pages away from him so he couldn’t see and shook her head. “I’d rather you didn’t,” she said. “They aren’t very good. Just let me look for a moment, see if anything stands out to me.”
Zhihao put his hands up in surrender and backed away, though now he wanted to see her sketches more than ever. Was she really that self-conscious? Or was she hiding something? Zhihao tried to distract himself while he waited, looking at the various rocks and dead trees that surrounded him, but his eyes kept going back to Jiayi. Her brow wrinkled as she studied the images, her eyes focused. A few wisps of hair framed her face. He wished he had any artistic skill so he could sketch her in this moment. He would have to see if he could procure a camera so he could take a photograph of her. After all, if they did manage to find the seal, they could become famous. It would only be fair if she were pictured by his side as he made the brilliant discovery…
“Here is something,” she said, looking up. She stood and handed him a drawing of a landscape. It was quite good, in Zhihao’s non-professional opinion, clear and detailed. She could probably be a respected artist if she were given any formal training.
“What are we looking at?” Zhihao asked.
“Here,” she said, pointing. “According to my last vision of Lady Cai, she went to a tent and wrote a letter to her brother.”
“I remember,” Zhihao said. “But you said you didn’t see anything useful.”
“That’s what I thought at the time,” she said. “What stood out to me more than anything was the fact that Lady Cai had her own tent at all. She should have been in a tent with the rest of the Inner Court, the other ladies and their children.”
“That is true,” Zhihao said. “But how does this help us?”
“What if it wasn’t her tent?” Jiayi said. “What if it was actually the emperor’s tent? She could have been staying with him as his Favored Lady.”
“True…” Zhihao said, still not seeing why this was significant.
“Look,” she said, handing him the image. “This is how the tent looked as she approached it. See how one side of the tent is flush against the wall of the mountain pass?”
“Yes,” Zhihao said. “That is somewhat odd, I suppose. Usually, an imperial tent would be open on each side so guards could patrol the whole thing.”
“If we line up the map and this drawing, there should be a cave right on the other side of that rocky wall.”
“You think Lady Cai…dug through the wall and into the cave on the other side to hide the seal?” Zhihao asked, rubbing his chin.
Jiayi sighed and ripped her drawing away. “You’re right,” she said. “That’s stupid.”
“No!” Zhihao said, grabbing her arm. “I’m…heh.” He couldn’t help but laugh a little. “I’m just shocked because it is so brilliant.”
“Really?” Jiayi asked, her eyes brightening.
“Well, I don’t think she dug through the wall, but the emperor could have ordered someone else to. And as you said, it’s a better place to start than just picking random caves. Might as well check that one first.”
“Great!” Jiayi said.
Zhihao couldn’t help but bask in the warmth of her smile. He had been a teacher for many years, but he didn’t enjoy it. He never had any students that stood out to him or surprised him. Jiayi made him feel like a real teacher, a mentor, someone who inspired. In a way, she inspired him. Her zeal for finding the seal and her excitement at every new discovery rekindled a love for archeology he hadn’t felt…well, he hadn’t felt since he returned to China. In a way, she reminded him of Rebecca. Rebecca also inspired him, though in different ways. No, he couldn’t think about her right now. She was long lost to him. He had to let her go.