“The two sides have the shape of mushroom heads. It has something that looks like lips and it has a large hole that goes through to the other side,” was the description of the object made by Chinese reporter Ye Yunfeng from the journalism program Xi’an Up Close. The Chinese town of Liucunbu attracted the attention of local news when they unearthed what they thought was an exotic mushroom of the type the historic Emperor Qin Shi Huang searched for to enhance long life.

Villagers were digging a water well and about 80 meters deep made this exciting discovery. They attributed never having seen one before to the scientific fact that these rare gems mostly grow deep underground so are rarely found.

In response to the mockery, Xi’an Up Close said in an online statement, “As our reporter was still very young and unwise to the ways of the world, this report has brought great inconvenience to everyone.”