"Yes," Zhang Shixun said, "I was standing there, looking at the manor. I looked for a long time but couldn't see any signs of life. The walls and roof of the manor were covered with vines. It seemed that it had been abandoned long ago."
"That makes sense." Zhao Ji was relieved and asked, "You definitely want to go in and take a look, right?"
"Your Excellency is wise! Now that I'm there, I must go in and take a look."
Zhao Ji asked anxiously, "How can we get into the pond when there are so many earth dragons?"
"If I hadn't gone in, there would be no need to talk nonsense here, right?" Zhang Shixun said with a smile.
"Yeah, I'm sorry for asking that, haha!"
"I wanted to go around the pond, but the pond was surrounded by swamps. I tried to step in, but the mud was up to my knees and I couldn't get in at all."
"What should we do?" Zhao Ji asked.
"After wandering around for a while, I suddenly found a few large rocks in the swamp. The rocks were several feet apart, which gave me an idea."
"Have you figured out a solution?"
"Your Majesty is right, haha! Of course I thought of that." Zhang Shixun turned to Chu Hong who was standing beside him and said, "Please, Master Chu, bring me my walking stick."
When I entered the room just now, the wooden stick was taken away by the guards.
Wang Fu interrupted again: "You are not allowed to take that thing in front of the emperor."
Zhao Ji shook his head and said, "It's okay!"
Zhang Shixun smiled at Wang Fu, but cursed in his heart: You old bastard!
Chu Hong brought the stick.
Zhang Shixun took the stick, stood up, held one end with both hands, and used the other end to support himself and jumped up. His body flew into the air and he jumped to the door in one go.
Li Bangyan clapped his hands and laughed, "Shixun is very calculating. This is indeed a brilliant idea."
Zhang Shixun limped back, leaning on a wooden stick, and handed the stick to Chu Hong again.
Chu Hong was very unhappy because he had become his servant today.
After Zhang Shixun sat down, he said to Zhao Ji, "Your Majesty, I was very curious at that time. I really wanted to know what was hidden in this manor."
"I want to know now too, haha!" Zhao Ji was an artist and he liked new things.
Zhang Shixun laughed and said, "I told you a story the last time I saw you. I didn't expect that I would have to tell you a story this time, haha!"
"This is an anomaly." Zhao Ji nodded, "Go on."
"I went back to the boat and got a long oar. I told the boatman not to leave if I didn't return soon, but to wait. With that, I returned to the swamp with the oar. Following my plan, I first used the oar to jump onto a large rock, then from that rock to the next, slowly approaching the manor. When I reached the last large rock, I realized there were no more rocks ahead, and I was still more than ten feet away from the manor."
"What should we do?"
"While I was standing on the stone, feeling anxious, I didn't realize that danger was slowly approaching..."
"What danger?" Zhao Ji asked nervously.
"I don't know when it started, but the earth dragons in the pond quietly gathered around me. By the time I noticed, the area around the stone was already dark."
"Ah!" Zhao Ji screamed in shock, his palms full of sweat.
Zhang Shixun felt that he had great potential as a novelist. He could make up stories without thinking, and his stories were very coherent.
"...Seeing these hideous, terrifying earth dragons, I felt despair for the first time in my life. Unable to advance, unable to retreat, I secretly sighed, 'My life is over!' The hand holding the oar began to tremble unconsciously."
"At that moment, a gigantic earth dragon climbed onto the rock, stepping on the back of another earth dragon. I raised the oar and hit its head, but unexpectedly, its head was surprisingly hard. The oar hit it like a tickle, and it continued to pounce on me with its bloody mouth wide open. I didn't have time to think about it, so I stabbed the oar directly into its mouth. Unexpectedly, it bit the oar and broke it with a snap..."
"Ah!" This time, everyone in the room exclaimed together.
Zhang Shixun's expression was calm, as if he were telling someone else's story. "At that moment, I was completely hopeless. I just waited for the earth dragon to tear me into pieces and swallow me. But at that moment, the image of the earth dragon climbing up the stone by stepping on the backs of its own kind suddenly appeared in my mind. I was instantly shocked, and a strong desire to survive rose in my heart."
"At this moment, the earth dragon had already pounced in front of me. I could clearly see its sharp teeth, even the food residue between its teeth. I used all my strength to shove the remaining half of the boat pole into its throat, and then, with a leap, jumped off the rock..."
"Ouch!" Zhao Ji and others screamed again.
"I aimed at the back of a dirt dragon and jumped down. The dragon was caught off guard and hesitated for a moment, and I had already stepped on its back. When it turned its head to bite me, I had already jumped onto the back of the next crocodile..."
"Brilliant!" Zhao Ji applauded and laughed, "That's what we call thinking out of a crisis."
"It's really wonderful! But it also requires a lot of courage. If it were someone timid, I'm afraid their legs and feet would be weak." Cai Jing responded.
"Yes, even a desperate dog will jump over the wall, let alone a human being." Wang Fu said in a gloomy tone.
"Old bastard!" Zhang Shixun cursed inwardly, but ignored him and decided to settle the score later.
"I jumped all the way to the manor wall, stepping on the backs of earth dragons. I ran along the wall towards the manor gate, followed by a long line of earth dragons. When I reached the manor gate, I saw that it was tightly closed. I tried to push it, but it didn't budge. In desperation, I kicked the door with a flying kick. With a 'click', the bolt broke and the door opened. I stepped in, quickly closed the door, picked up the broken bolt on the ground, and pushed it hard against the door..."
"Where are those earth dragons?" Zhao Ji asked.
"The earth dragons made a lot of noise at the door for a while, then slowly crawled back into the pond."
"Hurry up and tell me what you saw in there." Li Bangyan could no longer be patient and urged him to continue.
"I peered through the crack in the door again and again. After confirming that the earth dragons had left, I breathed a sigh of relief and turned around to look inside the village. The scene inside the village shocked me."
"What's the matter?" Zhao Ji asked.
"Compared to the outside of the manor, the manor is like another world. It's no exaggeration to call it a paradise. Flowers are in full bloom everywhere, birds are singing, and the flowers are fragrant. A winding stone road stretches through the flowers. On both sides of the path, there are more than a dozen thatched cottages arranged in an orderly manner, creating a pastoral scenery."
"It's unbelievable that there is such a manor on a small island. Didn't you say that there is no way in from the gate? Do the people inside never go out?" Zhao Ji pulled his short beard, very puzzled.
"Yes, that was what puzzled me the most at the time."
"Why don't you go in and take a look and find out?" Liang Shicheng said impatiently.
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