The reed lake was named because it grew reeds on the bank and was located a few miles south of the county. The river flowing into the South Sea, the water area is large, and the deepest part of the lake is about fifteen feet. There are many fishing families living along the lake. When the reward notice from the county office came out last month, stating that whoever could retrieve a palm-sized black wooden box would be rewarded, everyone was eager to try. After knowing the approximate location, countless people began to search nearby. Casting nets, diving, and trying various methods, they retrieved some stolen items, but the box was still missing. Even the best watermen didn't return, and their families are still crying and searching at the lake, hoping for a miracle. Everyone gradually gave up hope. So, this day, when people nearby saw a large official boat taking someone to the center of the lake to dive for the box, and the responder turned out to be a young woman, it caused a stir. As the news spread, many people followed the boat and stopped at a distance to watch.
When the boat reached the center of the lake, the wind started to pick up and the boat swayed slightly. Wenlan stood at the bow holding a harpoon, facing the wind, listening to the county office servant pointing out the general area where the box fell into the water.
In ancient times, people who went into the sea had water floats made of sharkskin and other materials, similar to modern-day diving suits, which provided protection and warmth. But obviously, these were not available now. Therefore, before leaving in the morning, aside from bringing a pair of diving goggles, she also borrowed clothes from Mrs. Fan to wear underneath. When she came out of the cabin just now, she was ready and presentable. She had her long hair braided on top of her head, an upper garment tied at the waist, and a pair of knee-length shorts, barefoot—aside from the slightly shorter pants, it was not much different from the attire of the fishing women here when they worked on the lake. Everyone knew she was going into the water, so her outfit had to be light and practical, so the short pants did not cause much of a stir, but the men on the boat couldn't help but glance at her bare legs.
While Wenlan was talking to the servant at the bow, Fangzhen was accompanying Wei on the nearby deck. Seeing Wei's gaze fixed on the woman's back, Fangzhen was sure that he was interested in her. Otherwise, it was hard to explain why someone like him would suddenly change his plans and show interest in retrieving the official seal, even boarding the boat to supervise. After thinking for a moment, he shouted to Wenlan, "Hey, do you want a rope on your waist in case of any change, you can tug the rope and the people at the top can pull you up."
Wenlan turned and said, "The rope is not necessary. If you have a sharp blade, give it to me."
Before boarding the boat, Wenlan had inquired about the condition of the lake from the nearby fishing families who followed her. She knew that the deepest part of the lake was about fifteen feet, or about ten meters, and there were no undercurrents at the bottom. The water quality was also good, and the underwater visibility was good, but the water grass and silt were thick.
For someone with good water skills, being able to dive underwater for a minute and a half was already considered skilled, depending on the depth of the water. With every ten meters of depth, the pressure increased. At a depth of 10 meters, the diver would experience two absolute atmospheres of pressure, with the most direct reaction being ear pain. For an ordinary person, without external help, diving to a depth of ten meters would be very difficult. If someone could dive for two minutes in water over ten meters deep, they would be considered a world-class expert. Because of the considerable depth and the task of finding the box, the challenge to the diver's technique and breath-holding was significant, and that was why no one had been able to claim the reward so far. This depth did not pose a significant problem for Wenlan, who had received special training, and it was summer, so the water temperature was not a major issue, as she had checked it with her hand earlier. Even at a depth of ten meters, with the temperature dropping, it should not be a major problem without a diving suit, but tying a rope would be inconvenient. Bringing a harpoon was only for conveniently turning over the stones on the lakebed. Considering the water grass or other circumstances, bringing a cutting tool was necessary.
After hearing her request, Fangzhen turned back, about to ask one of the attendants. However, Wei had already bent over and pulled a foot-long dagger from the inside of his boot, saying, "Give her this. It's not as malleable as mud, but it's a good blade."
Fangzhen hurriedly took it and handed it to Wenlan. She took it, pulled out a section, saw the blade shimmering in the sunlight, and thought it must be a good knife. She looked at Wei and thanked him before she tucked the dagger into her back waistband. Then she put on her goggles, took a deep breath, and readying herself, she jumped into the lake under the gaze of everyone.
Once in the water, Wenlan waited for the force of the initial downward momentum to decrease before opening her eyes.
The underwater visibility was good. In the refraction of the midday sun, she could even clearly see the sparkling scales on the backs of a group of silver fish that had been frightened by her sudden dive and quickly fled.
She held her breath, extended her hands to search through the water grass and mud, and after getting used to the temperature and buoyancy of the water at this depth of four to five meters, she continued to dive deeper. When she reached a depth of four to five meters, having already become accustomed to the water temperature and buoyancy, she dived even deeper and quickly neared the lakebed.
Despite being about fifteen meters deep, due to the clear water, the scenery within a four to five meter radius of the lakebed was visible. It was as described by others earlier, rich with water grass in clusters everywhere. In places where there was less water grass, fresh marks of upturned mud and stones could be seen, apparently from previously laid fishing nets and visitors. The schools of fish that usually swam nearby were scared off by her sudden appearance, leaving behind only the aquatic plants gently swaying with the faint waves at the bottom of the lake.
Wenlan tried to plunge her harpoon into the silt layer at the bottom of the lake and found that only half of the prong could easily sink in before she needed to exert more force to continue. After testing this in a few areas, it was confirmed. According to the county servant's description, the official seal was about the size of a child's fist, and the box was not large or heavy. When it sank into the lake, considering the water resistance during the descent, it was unlikely to be deeply embedded. Judging from the water hardness she had just tested, even if it did sink, it wouldn't be very deep due to the short time. Finding it this way would be much easier.
Wenlan focused her attention, holding the harpoon, and searched through the nearby lakebed, but she couldn't find any trace of the box.
A moment ago, the steward swore that the place where the box fell into the water was within this small area. He even mentioned that they had previously salvaged other stolen items from this location. If he was accurate, and there were no obvious underwater currents, then even if the box had been carried away by the water, it wouldn't be too far apart.
Wen Lan patiently searched again, especially in the dark areas where the water grass and rocks were unreachable by the fishing nets. Still, she found nothing.
When she began to feel the signal that her body's oxygen was running out, she suddenly noticed a depression about ten meters behind her left hand. There, in the dense water grass about the height of a person, there was a pile of rocks, with a strange black shadow floating in the middle. Upon closer inspection, her heart skipped a beat, and she felt a sudden sense of urgency.
Wen Lan knew she had to surface to catch her breath. Without further inspection, she swiftly swam upwards.
~~
The people on the lake had never before seen someone stay underwater for so long without surfacing, except for the water creatures rumored to be the son-in-law of the lake dragon king. After a moment, seeing only ripples on the lake surface caused by the wind, the atmosphere grew more tense. Although no one spoke, everyone couldn't help but feel that the woman who dived into the water for silver might have met the same fate as the water creature before her.
Fang Zhen saw Wei Xing standing at the side of the boat, and although he couldn't discern anything unusual in his expression, his gaze was fixed on the water's surface, clearly showing signs of tension. He regretted not tying a rope to the woman when he had the chance. If she were to end up drowning and cause displeasure, it would be a disaster.
As Fang Zhen was lost in thought, he suddenly heard a splash, and looking up, he saw a head emerging from the water about thirty meters away. It was the woman who had previously dived into the water. Just as he sighed with relief, she submerged again, leaving only ripples on the lake surface. It then struck him that she was surfacing to catch her breath.
With this scene, the onlookers felt a sense of relief and began to talk in small groups, marveling at the woman's skill in the water and discussing the strange glasses she wore when she dived.
Wei Xing quietly breathed a sigh of relief and slowly returned to his seat, watching as Wen Lan emerged from the lake, lost in thought.
~~
After replenishing her oxygen, Wen Lan dived back into the water. This time, she swam directly towards the patch of water grass where she had noticed something unusual. As she approached, she used a harpoon to push aside the water grass that obstructed her view. Despite being mentally prepared, she was still taken aback.
In the middle of the water grass were several overlapping large rocks, covered in green algae from being submerged for a long time. A body entangled with water grass, crawling with snails and swollen to the point of being unrecognizable, was floating there. One of his arms was wedged in a crevice between rocks. It was the same floating black shadow she had seen earlier.
After the initial shock, Wen Lan immediately understood. This unfortunate person who had drowned here due to being trapped and unable to escape was probably the water creature mentioned by the people on the shore.
Wen Lan drew the dagger from her waist and carefully cut away the entangled water grass, startling numerous small fish and shrimp hidden there. After clearing the water grass, she circled the stack of stones several times, and she vaguely guessed why the water creature had died here.
A black box happened to be lodged in the narrow crevice between the giant stones, stuck in the middle. This was also the reason the fishing net had been unable to reach it. The water creature must have had exceptional swimming skills to have found the box here. It seemed that he estimated he could reach into the crevice and grab the box, but in his excitement, he might have inserted the corners of the box into the rock crevice. Perhaps he was running out of breath and was in a rush to retrieve the box, not wanting to dive again, so he pulled hard to remove it. The underwater rocks, exposed to water erosion all year round, were loose in texture, and his sudden force caused a partial displacement, trapping his arm. He was probably very flustered at the time, and the last thing one should be in underwater is agitated. The more panicked, the faster the oxygen is consumed. So he couldn't resurface.
Although this was just Wen Lan's speculation based on the scene, it was most likely accurate.
Wen Lan didn't have time to sympathize with the unfortunate drowning victim. After positioning herself, she clenched the harpoon in her hand and pressed it against the large rock that held down the water creature's arm, attempting to push it forward. The stone was heavy, but with a slight movement, it returned to its original position.
If she didn't move the stone, not only would she not be able to retrieve the box from the crevice, but the water creature's body wouldn't be able to surface unless she used the dagger to cut off his arm. She didn't want to do that.
Wen Lan tried again. After several attempts, she finally managed to push the stone away, assisted by buoyancy, causing it to sink at the lake bottom, stirring up a large cloud of mud. The body, suspended underwater for many days, immediately surfaced like an inflated raft, slowly rising up.
Wen Lan watched as the water creature's body resurfaced, waiting for the lake bottom mud to settle, and once the water was clear again, she swam to the top of the stone pile, reached into the crevice, grabbed the box, and carefully took it out. Opening the box, she saw a round bronze seal, which was the item she had been looking for.
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