Chapter 16 Chapter Sixteen

The small island with a treasure of hundreds of millions of dollars is there, at least that's the number that Antifel had estimated in his mind.No!At least 75 centimes will not be resold, even if the brother is willing to buy it "as is" in legal terms! From the outside, it was just a bunch of bare, arid hills, not a little green, let alone vegetation, a band of rocks, sitting on an island with a radius of about 2 nautical miles.Its four sides are jagged and criss-crossed, some places are pointed, and some are sunken.Still, enough for the brig to moor in any west-facing hollow for shelter.The sea water there is as clear as a mirror, and you can see the sandy bottom covered with seabed plants at a depth of more than 20 feet.When breaking down, the "Ber Bella" swayed slightly with the surf.

However, this slight movement caused the notary to stay on board for an extra minute.He slowly moved to the escalator at the elevator port, climbed onto the deck, and boarded the disembarkation ladder, ready to jump onto the land. At this moment, Maester Antiphere grabbed him by the shoulder, stopped him, and shouted: "Stop, Mr. Bo Olmar! . . . Let me go down first! . . . " Whether the notary is willing or not, he has to let the domineering Saint-Malo people occupy his island. Omar catches up with Antifeel.Feeling the firmness of the ground, the St. Malo man breathed a long sigh of satisfaction.Tregoman, Jewell, and Savuk soon came to his side.

At this moment, Selick's eyes searched the island.He really wants to know what these foreigners are doing here...why are they willing to travel long distances and work tirelessly?Is it just to determine the orientation of these reefs? . . . this is the nonsense of a madman.However, Jewel and the captain of the barge are very sensible!Oddly enough, both of them still devoted themselves to this expedition! ... What's more, two Egyptians were also involved in this matter ... Selick has every reason to doubt the actions of these foreigners. He is going to disembark and set foot on the island with them... Pierre Servan Marlowe made a gesture, and Jewele immediately understood it, and said to Selick:

"You don't need to accompany us, we don't need an interpreter here...Omar speaks French more authentically than people born and bred in France..." "Okay!" Selick had no choice but to answer. The police were very annoyed and didn't want to pester them too much.He was hired by others, so he had to obey his master's orders.He waited patiently to see what these men brought aboard after their inspection; then it would not be too late for them to intervene. It's 3:30 at night, so there's plenty of time.If the three wooden barrels can be successfully found at the designated location, the people of St. Malo are full of confidence in this.

It was agreed that the "Ber Bella" would remain in the shallow water between the rocks.However, the owner of the ship informed Juel through an interpreter that the berthing time should not exceed 6 hours.Food is too tight, so we should take advantage of the auspicious east wind and sail to the coast of Sohar, and we will arrive at dawn tomorrow.Maester Antiphere made no objection.He thought, a few hours, more time than he needed, and he would be done. So, how to act?Naturally, there is no need to run all over the island, and there is no need to search section by section.According to the exact location pointed out in the letter, find the underside of a raised rock at the southern end, and find the double K mark engraved with consecutive words, and you can quickly dig out the three wooden barrels with a pickaxe. Roll them on board with no effort.He even wanted to do it alone, without the presence of others.Except, of course, for Omar and his trainees who must be present. The sailors of the "Ber Bella" would not worry about it, except when returning to Muscat with the caravan, there might be trouble.Let's talk about this later.

The troops divided into two groups, Maester Antifel, Gilda, Tregman, and Jewell on the one side, and Bob Omar and Najem on the other, and began to climb the slope of the island.The average elevation of the island is only 150 feet.Seeing them approaching, several flocks of wild ducks were startled and cried out in protest at the intruders.Likely, since Governor Camilco visited, no one had visited the isle.The St. Malo man carried the pickaxe on his shoulder—he didn't let anyone take it.The captain of the barge was holding a pickaxe, and Jewel was leading the way with a compass. The notary walked with difficulty, for fear that Savuk would be ahead of him.Although he was no longer stepping on a deck, his legs were still weak.Now, however, he regained his senses, became wise, and forgot the hardships of the journey, and he did not think of the torments he would endure when he returned.There is something on the island that looks like a huge crystal stone, it must be, but be careful.Had Savuk possessed that treasure, he would not have refused to share it with him.

The ground is full of rocks, and walking is really difficult.The sharp boulders are difficult to cross, and you have to make a detour to reach the center of the island.The team finally reached the commanding heights, and the national flag on the brig could be seen fluttering in the wind. From here, looking across the island, there are many sharp rocks, and the rock that buried millions of treasures is one of them.Yes, the sharp rock to which the will refers is at the southern end. With the help of a compass, Jewele quickly recognized it. It was a dry tongue-shaped island, bare and speckled with foam from the crashing waves.

Once again the sad thought flashed through the young captain's mind: the treasure buried under the rock would be a barrier between him and his fiancée!Can never beat that old stubborn!Desire, a mad desire, possessed him and led him astray... As for the captain of the barge, he was very conflicted: he feared that a pair of young men would never be married, and that his friend would not get the governor's inheritance and would go insane.Therefore, he was also very annoyed, and struck hard with his pickaxe, and the rock fragments flew around him. "Hey... there, Captain Barge, what are you doing?" cried Maester Antifel.

"Nothing! Nothing." Tregoman replied. "Please save your strength and knock on that sacred place!" "I'm holding on, my friend." The group of people walked towards the sharp rock at the southern end, 600 paces away from them. Maester Antifel, Bo Omar, and Suwook quickened their pace and walked ahead, as if attracted by a supremely powerful magnet.Everyone was panting, smelling the treasure from a long distance, inhaling deeply, inhaling, a wave of gas worth millions dissipated, and they all seemed to suffocate and fell to the ground! It took about 10 minutes to reach the sharp rock. Its one end is slender and stretches out to the ocean. Governor Kamilk probably engraved double K on the bottom of this rock.

Coming here, due to over-excitement, Master Antiphere could hardly hold on.If Gilda hadn't hugged him, he would have collapsed to the ground.However, his whole body convulsed, indicating that he was still alive. "Uncle, Uncle!" cried Jewel. "My friend!" cried the captain of the barge. Savuk's facial expression at that moment could have fooled no one, as if to say, "He's finished, dog Christian, and I'll be the sole heir!" Bob Omar's expression was just the opposite: "However, he is the only one who knows the exact location of the treasure. Once he dies, my reward will be forfeited!"

Thanks to the captain of the barge who gave him a vigorous massage, Maester Antiphere regained consciousness.He picked up the small pickaxe that had been lost; then, the comprehensive inspection of the sharp stone began. Under the sharp rock, there is a high ridge of soil, which cannot be flooded by sea water or blown by the west wind.You couldn't find a better place to store your millions in treasure.Recognizing the place blasted them piece by piece, even if it took weeks and months, he was willing to do so.He won't leave the island until he gets the treasure, never!He is the rightful heir to the treasure! Savuk thinks the same way, and on this point, their thoughts coincide with each other! Now, everyone is immersed in their work, searching, searching, under the unkempt kelp, the crevices of the rocks covered by impact objects... all scoured like a castor.Maester Antifel tapped the weathered stones with his pickaxe; the captain of the barge shoveled fiercely; Omar lay on the ground like a crab crawling among the pebbles.Jewell, Savuk and others were very busy.Everyone was busy working, and there was no sound, more solemn than at a funeral. Isn't this isolated island just a cemetery?Isn't it just the tomb where these grave robbers want to unearth millions of wealth? Half an hour passed, and the people found nothing, but they were not discouraged.However, they worked tirelessly, like a group of ants digging holes, all of them were full of energy... Even the captain of the barge was greedy like a demon.As for Jewell, he showed disdain and disgust from time to time. Suddenly, there was a joyful cry—like a roar of a lion and a roar of a tiger. This is the cry from Antiphere.He stood there, bald, with a hand outstretched, pointing to the rock that stood like a tombstone. "There, there!" he repeated. He walked up to the stele, bowed down and worshiped, just like standing before the altar of the Virgin.Among the companions, no one was surprised by this move, and they were willing to worship with him... Jewell, the captain of the barge, Suwook, and Bo Omar approached Maester Antifel, who had just knelt down, and knelt down too. What the hell is on this rock? What you can see with your eyes and touch with your hands... that is Kamilk's famous lettering, although the upper part has been eroded, but it is still faintly legible - water. "There, there..." repeated Maester Antiphere. He pointed to the place where the bottom of the rock needed to be broken, to the stone safe where the treasure had been sleeping for 32 years. The small pick immediately began to attack the rock, and pieces of debris flew down.Gilda shoveled away the broken stones with a small hoe.The hole got bigger and deeper.People are panting, their hearts are pounding, waiting for the last pick to dig out the five internal organs of the earth, and millions of treasures are sprayed out like spring water... Everyone kept digging, but there was no barrel.Probably Kamilk was buried too deep, and it was right to do so!Besides, what was the time and effort spent on digging out the barrel? Suddenly, a metallic sound came out.There was no doubt that the pick had struck something that made a sound. ... Antiphere bent over, his head had disappeared into the hole, his hands were greedily searching—— He straightened up, his eyes were bloodshot... What he held in his hand was a metal box about 0.5 cubic meters. Everyone looked at him, unable to hide their disappointment.Undoubtedly, Gilda spoke the common thought, and he exclaimed: "If hundreds of millions of dollars of treasure are buried inside, I'd rather be called the devil..." "Shut up!" roared Maester Antiphere. He searched the cave again, took out the last few fragments, and tried to find the barrel... It was still in vain... There was nothing but an iron box with the vermilion double K engraved on the wall! Antiphere and his partners have gone through untold hardships, is it all in vain? ...were they traveling long distances to be tricked by an impostor? If it weren't for his uncle's crazy eyes, the horrible twitching of the corners of his mouth, and the hissing sound from his throat, if it weren't for his fear, Jewell would have laughed happily. Afterwards, Gilda Tregoman recalled that at that time he really thought that Antifil would die. Maestro Antiphere suddenly stood up, grabbed the sharp pick, held it up high, struck it like a madman, and smashed open the small box... A piece of paper fell out from it. The paper was yellowed, but several lines of writing in French were still legible. Antiphere picked up the paper and began to read the first few lines in a trembling voice, forgetting that other people were present and that he might reveal to them a secret that should be kept.The contents of these lines are as follows: "This article provides the longitude of the second island. I hope that Thomas Antifel or his direct heir after his death will inform the banker Zambugo of the longitude. The address is..." Maester Antiquite stopped, shook his fist, and immediately shut his mouth, feeling that he had revealed too much. Savuk was composed, and although he was disappointed, he did not show it.Read a few more words, and he would know the longitude of the second small island and where the banker Zambugo who occupied that longitude and latitude lived. Disappointed, the notary stood there with his mouth open and tongue out, watching like a hungry dog ​​as the licking plate was removed. When the sentence was interrupted with a wave of the Saint-Malo man's fist, Omar straightened up and said: "Hello... where does the banker, Zambogo, live?" "At his house." Antiphere replied. He rolled up the paper and stuffed it into his pocket.Bo Omar stretched out his hands in despair, looking up at the sky. Apparently, the treasure is not on Oman's isle!The end of the voyage was simply to invite Maester Antifelter to deal with a banker named Zambugo.Why did this new figure become the second legal heir? Will he share that treasure with the people of Saint-Malo? ...it seems possible.Then there is bound to be such a consequence: only half of the inheritance of hundreds of millions of yuan belongs to Master Antipher. Joule thought that half was 50 million francs, which was quite a considerable amount, enough to change their views on marriage.He was disappointed. As for Gilda Tregman, his smile seemed to indicate that even 50 million francs was a considerable fortune. In fact, Jewell has already guessed the thoughts passing through Antiphere's mind, and once he makes up his mind, it will always reveal: "Don't worry, even if Anocarte can't marry the prince in the end, he can marry the prince." A duke, and Joelle can only have a duke's daughter, not a princess!"