Mingfei's words immediately aroused Li Zhu's protective instincts. He hugged Mingfei tightly in his arms. After the tender moment, Li Zhu looked at the iron chain bridge in front of him!
This suspension bridge looks old and dilapidated; it's hard to say whether it can withstand the weight of two people...
This suspension bridge spans at least fifty meters in width; such a distance allows far too many accidents to happen…
"Don't be afraid, I'm here. Anyone who wants to hurt you will have to step over my dead body first..."
Li Zhu said very seriously that although he was a jerk, he had to be devoted to his women; that was his bottom line…
It's absolutely not because he wanted to be a 'wise ruler,' absolutely not...
"Yes, I believe you..."
Hearing Li Zhu's words, Mingfei smiled slightly. This was the first time in her life that she felt like a woman, a real woman who was loved and cared for by a man. At this moment, she felt extremely content. Even if she died now, she would feel it was all worthwhile...
"Your Highness, thank you..."
"You're my woman, why are you being so polite?"
Li Zhu's words were domineering, but they sounded so pleasant to Consort Ming's ears...
"Consort Ming, do you believe me?"
I believe…
Consort Ming answered without the slightest hesitation; even if Li Zhu were to order her to die now, she would feel it was the right thing to do…
"Follow Bamboo Leaf Green back to the area below my palace. Bamboo Leaf Green will protect you, so don't be afraid. I'll explore this underground palace to see what's inside. If we can get out, I'll bring you back up from the palace. If we can't, I'll go back to find you and take you up with me. Whatever the outcome, I'll face it with you..."
Upon hearing Li Zhu's words, Mingfei's hand tightened slightly—a normal reaction for a woman, after all, being with a group of snakes was bound to frighten her. However, she quickly released her grip and obediently said...
"Your Highness, I know my presence will distract you. Go ahead, I'll wait for you outside your bedchamber..."
Li Zhu stroked Mingfei's face. He could feel her fear, but her obedient nature also pained him. He had never felt this way before. After all, he had been a lowly commoner for so many years and had never experienced a woman's tenderness. This was the first time he had ever longed for the throne, because only by standing in that position could he let Mingfei stand in the sunlight. Otherwise, the criticisms from the Confucian scholars would drown them...
He always felt that those idle intellectuals were comparable to the online trolls from before he time-traveled…
"Don't worry, I'll be fine..."
Mingfei obediently followed the bamboo viper back, because further ahead there was a smell that the snakes disliked…
Li Zhu could already smell it; it was the scent of sulfur, one of the smells snakes disliked. He didn't understand why there was so much sulfur here, but he could take it back to make gunpowder…
He reached out and shook the iron lock, immediately producing a 'creaking' sound from the friction between metal...
Li Zhu seriously doubted whether this suspension bridge was even still usable...
After hesitating for a moment, Li Zhu still mustered up his courage and stepped forward. The iron lock snapped taut instantly, making his heart almost skip a beat...
call…
Li Zhu took a deep breath, avoiding looking down at the bottomless chasm, calming his nerves before continuing on his way...
Every step felt like walking a tightrope, dancing on the edge of death!
After cultivating internal strength, one's control over balance improves significantly. However, the thought of falling and turning into a pile of minced meat still causes unease, affecting one's emotions and the weight of each step. On such a long suspension bridge, even the slightest movement can cause significant swaying, making it impossible to maintain balance easily…
Therefore, Li Zhu walked very carefully, maintaining stability with each step to minimize the swaying of the suspension bridge…
It took him a full half hour to walk across the short, fifty- or sixty-meter-long suspension bridge. It was definitely a test of his fear. Even after he stepped onto the ground again, his body was still swaying slightly.
He took another deep breath before beginning to take in his surroundings…
On this side of the suspension bridge was a man-made platform covered with sulfur. The pungent smell was very unpleasant, so Li Zhu could only use his internal energy to slow down his breathing to avoid inhaling too much of the gas…
Li Zhu walked a few steps further along the platform, and a huge stone door appeared before him. This left Li Zhu somewhat helpless; if there was a door here, then a key was needed to open it. It seemed he couldn't get out of here...
With a helpless sigh, Li Zhu decided to return the way he came, and after the people in the palace left, he would go back through the passage below…
He was very curious about what lay behind the stone door. If it was a huge treasure, he would be rich, but seeing it but not being able to get it was also a kind of torment…
The thought of this possibility made Li Zhu scratch his head in frustration. However, the underground palace was a fixed place, and he couldn't escape it anyway. There would always be a chance to find the key and go in!
He carefully examined the area around the stone gate again and again, trying to find clues about the key. At the very least, he needed to know what the key looked like so that he could search for it purposefully once he got out!
As Li Zhu searched again and again, he suddenly noticed that the carvings on the stone gate were somewhat strange…
He took a few steps back before realizing the problem. There were no carvings on the door at all; they were all numbers. However, Li Zhu's knowledge of traditional Chinese characters was limited, and he didn't realize it at first. Once he did, he recognized that they were all numbers!
The left side of the stone gate was blank, but it was covered with small square stone troughs of varying depths, indicating that something was to be placed inside. On the other side were the numbers Li Zhu was looking at, but strangely, many of these numbers were repeated, and they were only the numbers one through six…
This made Li Zhu fall into deep thought, wondering what it meant. Did the stone door have no key, and could it be opened by deciphering the secret of these numbers?
This put him in a difficult position, but given the mathematical abilities of people in ancient times, Li Zhu felt he should be able to unravel the mystery of the stone gate…
Li Zhu counted and found that the number of empty stone troughs on the left and the number on the right were the same. Did this mean that if he moved the numbers from the right to the left, he could open the stone door?
To verify his conjecture, Li Zhu reached out and touched one of the numbers, and found that he could indeed take it down, and that it was the same size as the stone trough on the left!
"Is it really that fantastical?"
Li Zhu couldn't help but mutter to himself!
Now that we've guessed correctly, opening this door shouldn't be a problem...
However, he felt that things weren't that simple, but time was of the essence, and Li Zhu didn't have time to think too much, so he casually put it into a stone trough...
A chill instantly rose in Li Zhu's heart...
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