"Alright." Master Sanqing took out a piece of paper directly from his storage talisman.

"Well, I just drew a route because I was afraid I'd forget where I was."

Shen Junshan took the burial route map handed to him by the Taoist priest Sanqing and stared blankly at it.

"Master, how do you interpret this picture?"

The Three Pure Ones Taoist priest said in a clear voice.

"Good question."

I knew you wouldn't understand. Come here, let me explain it to you properly.

Master Sanqing took the painting and looked at Shen Junshan.

"Look, this is the back gate of the Sanqing Taoist Temple."

Go out the back door and walk fifteen steps to a big tree, and under the big tree is a big rock.

Walk fifty paces to the right of the big rock, then turn west... After walking a short distance, you'll see three big trees; your father is under those three trees.

Shen Junshan: "…………"

After the Taoist priest explained it carefully, he seemed to understand, yet also seemed not to understand.

Well, if we have the chance to go back, we should try to bring Ningbao with us; he thinks that's more reliable.

After leaving Master Sanqing's place, Shen Junshan took the red-tasseled spear and returned directly to the Shen family.

He sat in the courtyard, holding his red-tasseled spear, lost in thought.

After relieving himself in the outhouse, Chen Sijian, who was about to return to his room to review his lessons, saw the red-tasseled spear in his father's hand and curiously ran over to it.

"Father, where did this red-tasseled spear come from? Can I try it out?"

Shen Junshan gently stroked the red-tasseled spear in his hand.

"This belongs to your grandfather. By some twist of fate, Master Sanqing found it. You can use it if you want, but please keep it safe. This is the only personal item your grandfather left behind..."

As soon as Shen Junshan finished speaking, he saw the Three Pure Ones Daoist walking over carrying a large bundle.

“Junshan, these are your father’s personal belongings. When we buried him, I thought this armor was quite nice, and I felt it would be a pity to bury such a good thing in the ground.”

"I might as well keep him here; I forgot to give it to you earlier."

Shen Junshan accepted the bundle and thanked the master repeatedly. After seeing the Taoist priest Sanqing off, Shen Junshan went to the stone table in the courtyard, opened the bundle, and looked at the familiar armor inside. Tears streamed down his face.

Jian paused for a moment, staring at the armor in thought.

"Dad, was my grandfather a general?"

Shen Junshan looked at Shen Sijian, who was thirteen years old and about the same height as him, and nodded.

"Sijian, sit down. Let me tell you about your grandfather."

Your grandfather was originally the Great General Protector of our Longyuan Kingdom, whose status among military generals was comparable to that of the Prince of Zhenbei.

Your grandfather's Shen family army, like the others, guarded the border. The Zhenbei King's Zhenbei Army was always in the Northeast, while our Shen family army guarded the Northwest.

In our Shen family, boys usually join the army at the age of 13. I was in the army the year the incident happened. Your grandfather led a group to chase after a foreign spy. They finally caught the spy, but he escaped again in the time it takes to eat a meal.

When your grandfather found out, he immediately rode off on horseback, grabbed a red-tasseled spear, and led a group of men to chase after them.

But he never came back after that trip…

No sooner had your grandfather's accident happened than I received a letter from the government office in the capital, saying that your grandmother was seriously ill and that I should return to the capital immediately.

I didn't want to delay, so I immediately rode back to Beijing, but after I got back, your grandmother said she hadn't written me a letter.

By the time we realized we'd been tricked, the imperial edict ordering the confiscation of our property and the extermination of our clan had already arrived at the gates of the mansion.

Your grandmother wanted to send your aunt and me out, but the officials were checking too strictly and we couldn't get out at all.

Later, the family's loyal servant swapped me and your aunt for the corpse of his own child...

Shen Sijian fell silent after hearing his father's words. He had always thought his family was just an ordinary farming family, never expecting that they were actually descendants of the Xue family, the protector of the country.

After a moment's thought, Jian looked firmly at his father.

"Father, I want to join the army."