The box was presented to the emperor, who fiddled with it from side to side, unable to tell the top from the bottom or find the opening mechanism. "Frog Hero," he said, "open it and let me see."
No one mentioned Murong Qingyun and Nanfang Nan again.
Even if the frog had the key, she couldn't take it out now, because she would be suspected of stealing. So she could only come up with a bad idea, "Your Majesty, I really don't have the key! If I had the key, how could I put it up for auction? I would have opened it and enjoyed it myself. Not to mention, I could do whatever I wanted in the martial arts world and think that no one would dare to mess with me. Wouldn't that be great! Why don't we try cutting it open with a knife?"
His Majesty considered it and agreed. Everyone craned their necks, eagerly awaiting the answer. They knew how many lives had been lost for this treasure box; it had vanished from the martial world, leaving no trace.
Despite repeated violent smashing, the wooden box remained unmoved. Liu Xun guessed, "It must have been made using Lu Ban's magic; violent dismantling is absolutely out of the question. Rumor has it that it requires three pieces of jade."
Upon hearing this, the Emperor turned to Murong Xingchen and asked, "Does your family possess any fine jade?"
Murong Xingchen broke out in a cold sweat at the question. Fortunately, he had already cleaned it up the day before. He pretended to be puzzled and asked, "I have the jade, but I don't have the key to this treasure chest. It would be useless to me. How about I use a knife to carve it piece by piece?"
"That's one way!" The Emperor approved Murong Xingchen's idea.
An hour later, the treasure box turned into pieces of wood shavings, which, when they were as thin as cicada wings, were split in two. Liu Xun hurriedly picked up the Three Character Classic inside and presented it to the emperor with both hands.
"The Three Character Classic!" The Emperor frowned and read aloud from the cover.
He turned to the first page and read, “At birth, people are inherently good; their natures are similar, but their habits differ. If they are not taught, their natures will change. The way to teach is to focus on one thing at a time.” Upon reading this, the Emperor paused and commented, “There is some truth to that!”
He continued reading, “Once, Mencius’ mother chose a good neighborhood. When her son did not study, she cut the threads of her loom.” Upon reaching this point, the Emperor put down the book and said, “It seems this is a book for imparting knowledge and resolving doubts, not some martial arts manual. The rumors in the martial arts world are wrong! They have caused everyone to fight and scramble for it! Today, I will publish this Three Character Classic to the world word for word. From now on, the heroes of the martial arts world will no longer fight and kill each other.”
Everyone strained their ears, unable to believe that the highly esteemed secret manual in the martial arts world was actually a book of teachings and explanations. For a moment, everyone deflated like a punctured balloon, feeling like fools!
The Emperor lost interest and said, "Liu Xun, make a copy of this Three Character Classic word for word and proclaim it to the world. I feel a little tired, so I'll leave the rest to you."
The crowd saw the Emperor off.
Lan Yamei didn't dare to say anything more at this moment. It would be good enough if she could just get away with this. She couldn't do anything to Hua Manlou, so she could only wait and see.
Unexpectedly, just as the Emperor was about to lower the sedan curtain, he used his fan to lift it again and slowly said, "The Flower Pavilion has already been sealed off and should belong to the national treasury. Today, the Frog has rendered a service! If the Frog is willing to show its true face to me, the Flower Pavilion will be awarded to it!"
After saying this, the sedan curtain was lowered, and the emperor deliberately paused for a few minutes to consider it.
Qiu Zeyu broke out in a cold sweat. If the true colors were to be revealed, he would have to pretend to know.
Everyone heard it clearly. Lan Ya Mei, hiding inside the frog skin, was calculating rapidly! Even if she revealed the frog skin in public, it wouldn't matter! In the martial world, those who had crossed her were all dead. Even if she had offended someone at the auction, it would be their fault. Now that the treasure chest was open, she could clear herself of all suspicion. Why not accept this great gift openly and honestly? One million taels of silver! It was simply too tempting!
Just as the emperor was about to leave in his sedan chair, the frog shouted, "The frog thanks Your Majesty for your great favor!" and slowly removed its hood.
When the beautiful Lan Ya Mei stood before everyone, everyone's eyes widened! No one had expected that she was an unknown girl.
The Emperor glanced at him, then smiled and said, "I have seen you! I keep my word, and I entrust Hua Man Lou to your management! I hope you will live up to this important task and create a unique Hua Man Lou to benefit the people."
As soon as the Emperor's sedan chair left, Murong Xingchen rushed into the house. His uncle's body, bleeding from his mouth and nose, was already cold. Two lines of tears fell from his eyes as he murmured, "Uncle shouldn't have been so greedy! Now the family can no longer gain the Emperor's trust, and the Murong family may not even be able to protect itself!"
Wiping away her tears, Murong Xingchen placed her uncle's body on the car. At this moment, Murong Feng also rushed to the scene. Seeing his elder brother dead, he shed two silent tears and accompanied his son to the Emperor's Palace in Lin'an, seeking only atonement.
Surprisingly, the heroes of the martial arts world showed them respect, none of them causing trouble for Lan Ya Mei. They all clasped their hands in greeting and dispersed in twos and threes. After this incident, who knows what new thoughts might arise in their minds, or what new life goals they might find. Once everyone had left, Lan Ya Mei returned to the hall. Qiu Zeyu, carrying Nan Fang Nan's body, prepared to leave. In front of the female waitresses, Lan Ya Mei could only say, "You all pack up first. Qiu Da Xia and I have some things to do. We'll be back tomorrow."
The waitresses all nodded silently. In any case, although they had been frightened, they had also seen the world. Survival was their top priority.
The two men lifted Nanfang Nan's body onto the carriage. Lan Yamei quickly stuffed an antidote into his mouth, then removed the arrowhead and sprinkled medicine on the wound. Qiu Zeyu, puzzled, asked, "What are you doing?"
Before Lan Yamei could explain, a moment later, Nanfang Nan spat out a mouthful of thick, black blood, slowly opened his eyes, and weakly said to Lan Yamei, "Thank you!"
The carriage sped quickly out of the city.
Lan Yamei gestured for Nanfang Nan to speak less and conserve her energy, while explaining to Qiu Zeyu.
It turned out that Nanfang Nan had found Lan Yamei last night, revealing her true identity and expressing her desire to no longer be a puppet in the struggle against the Emperor. She wished only to quietly withdraw from the entanglements of the martial world and live a peaceful life. Lan Yamei decided to help her this time, because Nanfang Nan had voluntarily revealed her true identity as a woman.
It turns out that Nanfang Nan was the child born by chance to the late emperor and Lady Bai.
How could the royal bloodline be impure? The late emperor passed away before he could deal with this matter, and even fewer people knew the inside story. Not long after the emperor ascended the throne, rumors began to circulate in the court and among the people that there was another heir in the royal family who was living in exile. By the time the emperor understood the situation, the rumors had changed to that the exiled heir wanted to reclaim the throne that was rightfully his.
The Emperor, merciful, only ordered the child to be secretly killed. Surrounded by the guards, Madam Bai made a hasty mistake, declaring in front of everyone that she had given birth to a royal heir! She challenged anyone who dared to harm her! This statement brought about the annihilation of the entire Bai family! From then on, the Bai family vanished from Xuzhou. Only a mysterious figure rescued the child from the chaos!
The mysterious person was none other than Murong Qingyun. Murong Qingyun did not kill the child, but took him away and secretly raised him, renaming him Nanfang Nan. He claimed to the outside world that the child was of royal blood and would one day reclaim the throne, thus creating confusion and achieving his own ulterior motives.
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