“Sister Hong…” Ning Qingyan hugged her.
"My dreams are hard to share, and the passing years bring our own sorrows. Qingyan, I'm sorry." Li Hong held her hand tightly.
"As a descendant of the founder of Zhongmen, I hereby declare that the descendants of Li Jinyuan, the Divine Traveler, will no longer guard Tianshou Temple for generations. His descendants are withdrawing from Zhongmen, reclaiming the hereditary title of Divine Traveler, and the disciples under his tutelage shall be dismissed on their own."
Ning Qingyan held her hand: "Sister Hong, from now on, the people of the Li family are free. They no longer have to bear that oath."
"Thank you. Be careful, Third Young Master Na. His goal is the Jade Slip Heavenly Book." Li Hong managed to utter her last words with all her might, then her head lolled to the side and she collapsed into Ning Qingyan's arms.
"Sister Hong." Ning Qingyan's tears welled up as she slowly picked up Li Hong and said, "I'll take you home."
"Li Hong is dead?" Na San Shao was shocked when he received the news. He murmured, "The plan was so meticulous, and they even hired mercenary assassins at great expense. How could she have been captured?"
“Third Young Master, the reason we failed this time was entirely because of Ye Xingchen. That kid is stronger than we imagined.” Zhang Qiang, one of Third Young Master Na’s trusted subordinates, said in a low voice, “I think we need to use your assassins when necessary.”
Na Sanshao's eyes gleamed: "No matter what, we must obtain the Jade Slip Heavenly Book before the Japanese arrive, at any cost."
"Does that jade slip really contain the secret to immortality? If so, why didn't Ning Qingyan's great-grandfather, Yu Xueyi, get his hands on it?" Zhang Qiang asked.
“The situation back then was too complicated, with internal and external troubles, and Yu Xueyi was the kind of person who thought he was concerned about the country and its people.” Na San Shao sneered, “My great-grandfather once came into contact with the Jade Slip Heavenly Book. He was certain that it contained the secret of immortality, so we must get our hands on the Jade Slip no matter what.”
"Yes." Zhang Qiang nodded.
“The Shadow Guards haven’t killed anyone in a long time.” Na Sanshao’s face revealed a cold expression: “It’s time to find a whetstone and sharpen our knives.”
Three days later, the Zhongmen rebellion was resolved by headquarters. Due to Ning Qingyan's insistence, the Li Hong clan and its lineage of Divine Travelers were all dismissed and not pursued.
In Ning Qingyan's villa, she took out a package wrapped in yellow silk from the safe. She solemnly took the contents out of the silk and placed them on the table.
A jade scroll was laid out in a row, with hundreds of small characters written on it in seal script.
"A Heavenly Book Jade Slip?" Ye Xingchen was slightly surprised.
"Yes, this is the Heavenly Book Jade Slip that the Japanese have coveted for nearly a century. Its origins can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty. It is engraved with a 'Heavenly Dao Scripture,' which is said to contain secrets that concern the fate of the Chinese nation. Therefore, I risked my life to protect this book for my grandfather and made my descendants guarantee with their lives that it must never fall into the hands of outsiders."
"Does this concern the fate of the Chinese nation?" Ye Xingchen frowned, picked up the book, and scanned it with his mental power.
However, the moment his mental energy touched the jade slip, he felt as if he had been struck by a heavy blow. He groaned and took two steps back, feeling a surge of blood and qi within his body.
"Are you alright?" Ning Qingyan asked in surprise.
"It's alright. There are restrictions set up by a master on this jade slip. I tried to probe it with my mental power just now, but I was hit by a backlash." Ye Xingchen shook his head: "There must be a huge secret hidden in this. No wonder the Japanese and Na Sanshao both want to get this scripture."
“Yes, but people believe that the Heavenly Book Jade Slip contains countless treasures, and that obtaining this book can reveal the secret to immortality. This is why people have coveted this jade slip for so many years.” Ning Qingyan sighed softly.
"It must be very difficult to guard this thing, right?" Ye Xingchen couldn't help but ask.
“Yes, my grandfather died because of this. Before my mother passed away, she instructed that even if she died, this book must not fall into the hands of outsiders, otherwise the consequences would be unimaginable.” Ning Qingyan sighed.
Ye Xingchen rolled up the jade slip and put it back into the yellow silk. He said seriously, "From now on, I will guard the Heavenly Book Jade Slip with you. If you want to take the jade slip, you will have to step over my dead body."
"Are you really willing to share this with me? You need to know that this responsibility is very heavy, and it could even cost us our lives." Ning Qingyan looked up at Ye Xingchen.
"You're my woman, if I don't share the burden with you, who will?" Ye Xingchen smiled slightly.
Ning Qingyan's eyes reddened slightly: "My mother said that if I meet a man who is willing to share this responsibility with me, then he is someone I can entrust my life to."
"You can entrust yourself to me with peace of mind. I will protect you and guard the secrets in the Jade Slip Heavenly Book with you," Ye Xingchen said earnestly.
Ning Qingyan nodded, hugging Ye Xingchen tightly, feeling an immense warmth in her heart.
Xingchen Pharmaceuticals, Vice President's Office.
The first batch of regular Soul-Locking Pills has been put into the market, and the market response has been excellent. Although the high-end version of Soul-Locking Pills cannot be mass-produced without Five Dragon Saliva, the regular version can still enhance one's physique. After taking it, minor ailments such as insomnia and back pain can disappear, and orders have been filled up instantly.
In Yun Ruoyan's office, Meng Feng sat calmly smoking, while Yun Ruoyan was looking at a document.
“Your Chinese medicine is expensive, and we have conducted market research. The quality does not meet our company’s standards for purchasing medicines. Moreover, the price is 30% higher than that of regular Chinese patent medicines. So I’m sorry, we will not purchase your company’s medicines.” Yun Ruoyan finished reading the information in her hand, closed the document, and pushed it in front of Meng Feng.
"President Yun, although your company is newly established, your Soul-Locking Pills are selling extremely well. You must be overwhelmed with orders, right? Changfeng Pharmaceutical has been making traditional Chinese medicine for decades, so the quality is guaranteed, and we have ample supply." Meng Feng said with a smile, "So why don't you consider it?"
“I’m sorry, we have our own suppliers, so your company is not considering this for the time being,” Yun Ruoyan said. “If there’s nothing else, Mr. Meng, you can head back now.”
"Hehe, your company is newly established, so I don't blame you for not knowing the rules." Meng Feng laughed, "I'm not here to do business today, but to inform you that our company will supply more than 60% of your company's raw materials for traditional Chinese medicine. In other words, 60% of your raw materials must be ordered from our company."
“I don’t know what your rules are, but I know that what you’re doing is a form of forced buying and selling.” Yun Ruoyan frowned slightly. “If you don’t leave, I’ll have to have security escort you out.”
"I can ask you to leave, but you need to know who I am." Meng Feng said with a smile, "My uncle is the director of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Review Department of the State Drug Administration. His name is Gao Xiangyang. All of you in the traditional Chinese medicine industry can't get around him."
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