Chapter Twenty-Seven: Great Prosperity and a Flourishing Nation

An ancient saying goes: When auspicious omens descend from heaven, it is a sign of great fortune.

In the Luo River, the waters meander and the waves surge, revealing the bronze square ding vessel. The ding is square in shape, with a high ring foot and four legs standing upright. The shoulders of the square vessel are decorated with relief carvings resembling dragon patterns, connecting to the ram's head at the top. Adjacent to the two rams at the top, each has a pair of horned dragons emerging, their winding tails echoing the relief carvings on the ding, creating a seamless whole.

Those with exceptional eyesight peered into the distance and exclaimed in surprise, "There are characters! There are characters on the tripod..."

Mu Lian stared intently. On the side of the bronze cauldron facing Luoyang, golden characters read, "Great prosperity, flourishing nation." Though the river rippled, the characters remained clearly visible.

“Great prosperity, a flourishing nation. This is an auspicious omen!” The Vice Minister of Rites, who arrived late with the Vice Minister of Works, was overjoyed and hurriedly ordered his subordinates to record the details in order to present them to the Empress.

Ye Yiqing was also extremely excited. This bronze cauldron weighed over a thousand catties, yet it was able to appear in the Luo River, entirely thanks to the force of the earthquake earlier. And this earthquake was neither too big nor too small, just enough to make the bronze cauldron appear, but not enough to cause the riverbank to collapse. It truly had the advantage of both timing and location. How wonderful, how wonderful!

Mu Lian gazed at the bronze cauldron in the river, a deeper thought creeping into her mind. Looking up at the direction of the warm sun, Mu Lian narrowed her bright eyes, carefully discerning the light. Finally, in a fleeting moment of light and shadow refraction, she identified several strands of transparent, resilient silk, one end wrapped around the bronze cauldron, the other firmly tied to a thick tree trunk on the riverbank. Even more intriguing was that the portion of the silk on the riverbank appeared to be buried in the earth, unnoticed by the people passing by.

What a meticulous mind!

Mu Lian pondered. There were certainly people in the court with such strategies and methods. The resilient silk used to move the bronze cauldron weighing over a thousand pounds was likely difficult to obtain; if Mu Lian's guess was correct, it was a type of resilient silk called "Ice Cicada Silk," said to be found only in Japan. Furthermore, the characters on the cauldron didn't wash off when wet, suggesting they were written with gold lacquer, which was also unusual. Considering all this, considerable manpower and financial resources would be required.

After reviewing the names of all the court officials, Mu Lian recalled the name "Prince Ruyang." However, this bronze square cauldron symbolized auspiciousness and was a highly auspicious omen; the Empress would surely be delighted to hear of it, and Prince Ruyang seemed to lack such motive. Everyone in the court knew that Prince Ruyang's ambitions were as clear as day, practically bordering on outright rebellion.

Who could have done this? Such a design is truly ingenious.

Before Mu Lian, the military governor Liu Zhang also wore a cryptic expression. After his initial shock at seeing the bronze cauldron, he had finally regained his composure. It was known that Liu Zhang had long heard of the bronze cauldron hidden in the Luo River, and had sent men to secretly infiltrate the riverbed to search for it, but to no avail. Later, he reasoned that the cauldron weighed over a thousand pounds and could not be brought to light without human intervention, so rather than wasting effort destroying it, it would be easier to prevent its appearance. Therefore, he ordered men to throw huge stones into the Luo River to weigh down the cauldron.

But fate had other plans. The giant stones Liu Zhang had thrown into the river not only failed to fall into the bronze cauldron, but instead all sank to the bottom, becoming stepping stones for the cauldron. Therefore, this slight tremor revealed the bronze cauldron. Liu Zhang, having outsmarted himself, was naturally furious.

With a sudden thought, Liu Zhang addressed Ye Yiqing loudly, "Lord Ye, now that the bronze cauldron has appeared in the world, shouldn't we send someone to retrieve it and present it to His Majesty?" The officials from Luoyang nearby nodded in agreement. "Excellent, excellent indeed!"

Ye Yiqing's expression shifted slightly. She looked intently at Liu Zhang, a smile playing on her lips: "Lord Liu's sincerity is truly commendable. How about we entrust this salvage operation to you? I am new to your territory and unfamiliar with the Luo River's waterways, so I fear there may be oversights."

Who is Ye Tanhua? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he has a brilliant mind. Liu Zhang, that old rascal, tried to set a trap, but Ye Tanhua wasn't about to fall for it. Hearing Ye Yuqing's polite refusal, Mu Lian secretly praised her.

"Hehe, Lord Ye is too modest..." Liu Zhang's expression remained unchanged, but his gaze toward Ye Yuqing became even more sharp: "Lord Ye bears the responsibility of the Director of the Cauldrons, so it would be more appropriate for Lord Ye to personally preside over this matter."

"Not at all..." Ye Yuqing continued to refuse with a smile, "Lord Liu is the military governor of Luocheng, in charge of the city and its surroundings, as well as the Luo River. It would be more sincere for Lord Liu to take the lead. Does Lord Liu not wish to pay his respects to His Majesty?" When it comes to verbal sparring, Ye Yuqing is not afraid at all. Looking throughout Daxing, if Ye Yuqing claims to be second, then no one dares to claim to be first.

This back-and-forth exchange left everyone on edge, unsure of whose side to follow. Just then, someone suddenly cried out, "Oh no! The bronze cauldron has sunk..."

Everyone was shocked and turned to look. They saw the bronze square cauldron bobbing in the Luo River, tossing and turning with the waves, as if greeting them. Then it slowly sank into the eddies in the river, sinking deeper and deeper until it disappeared from sight. The waves in the river also seemed to subside as the bronze cauldron sank along with it.

Finally, the waves subsided, the river surface became calm, and only a slight ripple appeared in the center of the river.

Looking up, the sky was azure, the autumn sun was warm, and a cool breeze was blowing, as if nothing had ever happened.

After their initial shock, everyone immediately knelt down. The wonders of nature are truly awe-inspiring.

Mu Lian withdrew the dagger she had been holding behind Liu Zhang's back and quietly left. Liu Zhang only felt a blur before his eyes, and then the person vanished without a trace.

"The Court of Judicial Review, hah, what a fine Court of Judicial Review!" Liu Zhang thought to himself with resentment. Although he hadn't been physically harmed by the coercion, being coerced right under the noses of his trusted guards was a humiliating disgrace. However, a month later, when Liu Zhang actually entered the Court of Judicial Review, he truly appreciated its "goodness." Of course, that's a story for later.

While everyone else knelt and prayed on the riverbank, Mu Lian also knelt down beside them. She stealthily probed the angle between the riverbank and the roadside with her dagger, and sure enough, there seemed to be something hard there. It should be noted that Mu Lian's dagger was no ordinary dagger; it was made of black iron, which wouldn't be hindered even by sand and stones. Now that she encountered an obstacle, it was likely that the object was also made of black iron.

After quietly marking the reconnaissance area, Mu Lian sheathed her dagger and rose with the others. This entire sequence of actions was carried out without anyone noticing.

With the Luo River incident resolved, Ye Yuqing returned with the others. At the city gate, some civilians who had not yet been evacuated were still slowly making their way. Ye Yuqing pondered the connection between the earthquake and the bronze cauldron, and her pace slowed.

Under the autumn sun, Ye Tanhua stood tall and elegant in his official robes, exuding a dignified and imposing air, attracting considerable attention.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh..." Suddenly, three sharp arrows came from the shadows, heading straight for Ye Tanhua. Meng Yuan and Ye Xun fought hard to protect each other, each wielding their swords to block one arrow, but they could only watch helplessly as the last arrow, carrying the force of wind and thunder, headed straight for Ye Yuqing's face.

Oh no, Ye Tanhua is in danger.