In the village in early autumn, the weeds on both sides of the dirt path have almost turned yellow, only the still green foxtail grass sways in the breeze.

On the edge of the field, several peasant women were carrying bamboo baskets, bending over to pick wild vegetables, and occasionally there were some laughter and chatter.

In the distance, wisps of smoke rose from the chimneys of several farmhouses, and the fireworks seemed to have covered the ordinary village with a misty fairy robe.

The luxurious carriage suddenly appeared in the village, immediately attracting many children to watch. They ran after it, chattering and pouring out exclamations of admiration.

The carriage moved along the village path and soon arrived in front of a small courtyard with green tiles.

"Ah..." Xiao Hong stopped the carriage and said respectfully, "Master, Madam, we're here."

After saying that, Xiaohong jumped off the carriage and watched Xiao Yunyu leading Li Nian down.

Arriving at the gate of the courtyard, Xiaohong knocked lightly on the door.

"Who is it?" a middle-aged man's voice came.

"My master had previously made an appointment with Mr. Shen to come visit today." Xiaohong said.

The courtyard door opened from the inside, and a man in a green robe looked them over. Finally, his clear gaze fell on Xiao Yunyu and asked, "Excuse me, who are you?"

Xiao Yunyu bowed and said, "Excuse me for disturbing you. We are here to ask for your advice regarding the jade pendant."

The middle-aged man seemed to have just remembered and his attitude suddenly became respectful: "So it's you? Please come in."

Li Nian followed Xiao Yunyu, observing the environment in the room curiously.

The furnishings in the house are simple, but the craftsman's ingenuity can be seen everywhere.

The wooden shelves were filled with various wood carvings, including birds and animals, figures and flowers. Although not luxurious, they were lifelike. A few carving knives were scattered on the wooden table by the window, and an unfinished wood carving was still on the desk.

The middle-aged man motioned for them to sit down and said, "Please wait a moment. I'll go call my father."

Xiao Yunyu nodded slightly, sat down with his long legs stretched out, and waited quietly.

Soon, an old man with gray hair and a slightly frail figure walked in. He was holding a cane and looked to be in poor health.

After a few pleasantries, the old man sat down tremblingly.

He said, "I have seen the jade pendant that the prince brought. It is almost identical. It is difficult to tell the real one from the fake one."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yunyu hurriedly asked, "Back then, this prince only asked you to make a jade pendant."

"Don't worry, my lord. Please listen to my explanation." The old man said slowly, "Eight years ago, you came to order this jade pendant. I only made this one back then, and I haven't touched jade carving since."

Xiao Yunyu frowned: "Are you sure you didn't make a second one?"

The old man said with certainty, "I'm sure I remember it correctly. After I finished making this jade pendant, my eyesight became worse. My vision is always blurry, and I can only do crude wood carvings."

The old man's son brought tea and added, "Father has rarely touched a carving knife in recent years, let alone jade."

The old man continued, "But I also have a junior fellow apprentice. We used to be equally skilled, but although he's very talented, he's also very casual. In his spare time, he liked to imitate my techniques. Perhaps someone else asked him to carve this second jade pendant, who knows."

Li Nian said thoughtfully, "Then could you ask him to identify it?"

The old man nodded and said, "If there really is an identical jade pendant in the world, it might have been made by him, but he himself cannot be invited. Yesterday, I arranged for someone to deliver the two jade pendants."

"Where is your junior brother now?" Xiao Yunyu asked.

The old man sighed, his tone tinged with envy. "He's a restless man, constantly traveling. Last month he wrote that he was in northern Jiangsu, and before that, he was in the northwestern border area... I'm not sure of his exact whereabouts."

Perhaps knowing the importance of the jade pendant, the old man immediately added, "But don't worry, my lord. As soon as he has any news, I will send someone to inform you."

Li Nian looked at Xiao Yunyu.

The latter stood up and saluted: "Thank you very much, old sir, for bothering me today."

"I dare not. It is an honor for me that the prince has come to my humble home in person. As for the jade pendant, I am really ashamed." The master sculptor's reputation is not only due to his good craftsmanship, but also because his character and reputation are well-known in the capital, which is why he has won such a good reputation in the capital.

The old man's son saw the guest off respectfully.

The carriage came and went in a hurry.

On the way back, Li Nian lifted the curtain of the carriage and looked at the children laughing and playing in the fields in the distance, enjoying a carefree and simple happiness.

When the carriage drove away from the village, Li Nian suddenly saw a group of men and women gathered together, including an official in official uniform.

"Ayu, look over there, something seems to have happened?"

Xiao Yunyu looked in the direction of her finger.

There was a faint sound of noisy voices in the distance, as if someone was shouting something.

Xiao Yunyu listened intently, only vaguely catching a few scattered words, and several people kept repeating: "Phoenix facing the sun, dragon entering the earth..."

Li Nian knew that he had good hearing, so she asked in confusion, "What are they talking about?"

"The phoenix rises to the sun, the dragon retreats to the earth." Xiao Yunyu frowned. "If such outrageous words were to reach the ears of the emperor..."

Li Nian suddenly felt that this situation was somewhat familiar. As for the purpose...

She grabbed Xiao Yunyu's hand and asked, "Could it be... someone deliberately set up a trap to arouse the emperor's suspicion of the princess?"

When she returned to Beijing, she heard words praising the princess, some of which were even boasting and rumors. She felt something was wrong at the time.

However, considering that the princess, a child of the royal family, had accomplished such great things in northern Jiangsu, it was only natural that she should be praised. Besides, the rumors spread by those people in the capital were always exaggerated.

Then I felt that I was too conspiratorial.

Now, when I combine what these people said, I feel that something is even more wrong.

"Xiaohong, drive the carriage over."

Xiaohong responded: "Yes, ma'am!"

Li Nian had to pay attention to the movements over there. Hearing all the conversations, he had a bad feeling in his heart.

In the crowd, several villagers looked confused: "Why would something like this appear out of nowhere?"

"I've been farming this land for several years and have turned it over countless times, but I've never seen such a large rock before. Could it be that it grew out of the ground?"

"Are you sure you haven't done this before?" the official said in a serious voice.

The villager hurriedly said, "Surely not. If I had it, I would have thrown it away long ago. I can't read. If my youngest son hadn't gone to school for a few years, I wouldn't have known the words on it were so remarkable!"

A nearby villager defended him, saying, "I can testify that Lao Wu has cultivated this land for generations. How could they possibly leave such a large, obstructing rock standing there?"

The villager nodded hurriedly: "Yes, yes, yes!"

"Let's go back first." Xiao Yunyu held Li Nian's hand and whispered, "We'll investigate this later."

The two walked back along the way they came, and the village behind them gradually disappeared in the early autumn scenery.

The strange sentence "The phoenix faces the sun, the dragon faces the sea" kept echoing in Li Nian's mind, making her feel uneasy.