Heavenly Pearl

  "Bet! Why not bet, Ah-Dai? Let's bet on this year's 'County Exam'. Hehe! If Ah-Dai passes, I and Xiang Man will each give you 200 taels. But if Ah-Dai doesn't pass, haha... you only need to give us one person 100 taels, that's enough. Think about it, we can win 400 taels with just 200 taels, we're not cheating you, own brothers..." Xiang Tie said slyly, winking his eyes to entice him.

  It seems like he suffered quite a bit!

  "Ah! 200 taels, it seems... my father's annual salary is only 50 taels." Xiang Qiushui secretly smiled to himself, "You little rascals! I'll make you two lose even the buttons on your shorts and have to sell them off!"

  At that time, the county magistrate of The Hague (sixth grade) had an annual salary of only 100 taels. These 200 taels are equivalent to about 400,000 yuan now.

  The "Sun Dynasty" one stone = 120 catties of rice = one or two silver coins. These 200 taels of silver bought rice, can be piled into a "rice mountain". For the not particularly wealthy Xiang family, it is also a considerable sum of money.

  This Manchu and Tie item is really daring to say, heart enough ruthless, they win, so there is no burden in their hearts, only left with joy.

  Zhang's face immediately fell and he firmly refused: "No way! My Ah-Dai won't gamble with you guys."

  "Haha! Haha! Haha!"

  Xiang Tie and Xiang Man laughed, leaning forward and backward, sneering: "Auntie, this time it's not the young nephew who suggested 'gambling', haha! Haha! The fool said it himself. Foolish, good-for-nothing thing, dare to suggest but not dare to respond. Hmph..."

  And this word "zhǒng" is drawn out particularly long, the nasal sound is also particularly heavy, with a profound meaning! Everyone can hear it.

  "You! Who... who hasn't... gambled. If you want to gamble, then gamble... 500 taels, 200 is too... too little." Xiang Qiushui's heart was delighted, the big pastry hung high, the fishing hook stretched long, pretending to be flustered and out of breath, his face red and neck thick as he shouted, "Mother! Just... let Ah-Dai... gamble... once, okay? If not... Ah-Dai will have no... dignity... Waaah... Ah-Dai has... dignity..."

  Hey! Hey! Hey!

  Xiang Qiushui improvised, and he managed to squeeze out a few drops of 'cat urine' (tears) while secretly enjoying himself. "Heh heh! My brilliant performance today is almost on par with the great actor Chow Yun-fat! Bringing tears to people's eyes!"

  Thinking complacently.

  Zhang Shi Ruyue thought for a moment, gritted her teeth, and with tears in her eyes, actually agreed to this undoubtedly doomed and absurd bet. Because the word "seed" was said too venomously, Ah Dai may be stupid, but he couldn't lose his "seed", that would be a matter of cutting off one's descendants.

  "'Knowing it can't be done but doing it anyway.' That's motherly love!" Xiang Qiushui sighed inwardly, "Mom! You'll just have to wait for Le Hehe to bring back the silver!"

  This wonderful thing that fell from the sky almost knocked Xiang Man and Xiang Tie brothers unconscious. Fourth Uncle and Fifth Uncle were of course overjoyed, who wouldn't be happy to receive silver money with white flowers? Even a fool wouldn't refuse it.

  However!

  The two of them, in order to show that they wouldn't bully their own family members, hypocritically tried to persuade Ah-Dai and his wife Zhang Shi to give up the bet, while scolding their own son with a straight face...

  Finally!

  Xiang Man and Xiang Tie, under their father's hint, fearing that Ah Duan and Zhang Shi would regret it, went to the appointed place, lest they have nowhere to cry if they were deceived.

  Therefore, we specially invite the elders of the family, including the great uncles, second uncles, third uncles and uncle-grandfathers, to witness this event. They will sign their names and affix their seals on the spot, with each party holding one copy, which has legal effect.

  Finally, Ah Diao was really lucky and caught the 'Golden Turtle'.

  All five uncles let out a sigh of relief, they were all very scared in their hearts.

  Fourth Uncle and Fifth Uncle, Xiang Man and Xiang Tie couldn't stop laughing in their hearts, Ah Diao had caught the 'Golden Turtle', this 'bet' was now in effect.

  "Wait for the silver to be collected!" Item Huai Feng and his three friends were all thinking this way, looking forward to the arrival of the "County Test". However! Ah-Dai Xiang Qiushui was also secretly delighted.

  "Alas! It's time to tighten our belts and cut down on food. Let's first ask Xing'er to get the silver ready!" Zhang Yueying sighed inwardly.

  Qinnan Province's capital 'Fuzhou', a lush mountain with ancient trees reaching the sky, and rare flowers covering the ground. Artificial hills, flowing streams, goldfish, beautiful bamboo... In the center of the emerald green lawn, stands a massive, typical classical Suzhou-style garden architecture complex.

  The old glazed tiles were covered with moss, the milky white inferior jade and the ancient green bricks were staggered and stacked into a building complex that looked particularly elegant and mysterious. A dark purple wooden plaque hung high above the hall door, inscribed with the words "Mu Rong Mountain Villa", surrounded by an aura of mystery...

  In the center of an old, spacious hall. There are two elderly people, one middle-aged person and one young person. The old man sitting in a wheelchair has a kind face, big ears, a full forehead, and a string of dark green wooden Buddhist beads hanging from his neck.

  It's a pity he has lost some weight, his belly is too small, otherwise he really looks like the Laughing Buddha.

  The old man spoke to a middle-aged person with a serious tone: "Qingyun! You're also approaching forty, as the head of the family and a super strong practitioner who has reached the 'Pre-Heavenly Peak' and is about to advance to the 'Great Ancestor' level. You should learn to forget the 'past', the entire Murong family of over 100,000 people are looking up to you!

  In those years, the 'Fuzhou' had the beautiful name of 'Moon Shadow Fairy' Zhang's family 'Zhang Yueying', was married by Xiang Huaiyi, you once sulked for three days without eating, young and vigorous!

  It's been years since Xiang Huaiyi mysteriously disappeared, but I think we both know what really happened, so let's just drop it!

  "Nowadays, Zhang Yueying is also a widow, 33 years old, and no longer has the 'beauty' of her youth. Why bother with that foolish son? You should look further ahead, the main goal at present is..."

  "Ancestors, if we don't destroy the Xiang clan, I, Murong Qingyun, will not be at peace!" The handsome and refined scholar-like Murong Qingyun argued discontentedly.

  "Foolish! You still haven't figured out the underlying meaning, and you've really ruined things for the Xiang family. Won't the Zhang family have any suspicions at all? At present, Zhang Xinling has already been promoted to 'Quanzhou' prefect, a high-ranking official of the fourth grade. His uncle, Zhang Zhihao, is even more powerful as the Minister of War, and was personally enfeoffed by the Emperor as a first-grade viscount. The Zhang family's power cannot be underestimated... If we pull one thread and the whole thing unravels, it will ruin the great 'Yangzun' affair... 'Yangzun' has already issued an imperial decree, and currently the most important thing is to find the 'Qianqiu Ding'. Where is the path of the 'Tianti'? Do you have any leads?"

  The benevolent old man's dignified appearance suddenly emerged, scolding with his mouth, at this moment the sharp light in his eyes burst out, where was there still a bit of benevolent and kind appearance.

  "Yes! Qingyun understands, everything is centered around 'Qianqiu Ding'." Murong Qingyun replied respectfully and turned to a young man standing beside him: "Zijie! Go, just disable him, don't cause more trouble."

  "Yes. Zi Jie immediately called 'Pi Chang' to handle it. Father, who is 'Yang Zun'?" Murong Purple asked curiously.

  "Hmph! Don't ask what you shouldn't." Murong Qingyun rebuked in a stern tone.

  "Ancestor, Father, I heard that the mysterious 'Piaoyue Manor' which hasn't been seen for decades has sent someone down. It seems like they're looking for something. They also mentioned something about a 'Nangong'."

  Murong Zijie said in a low voice.

  The old man in the wheelchair, upon hearing "Piaoyu Mountain Villa", had a flash of cold light in his eyes and muttered suspiciously as he gave orders: "Qingyun, this matter is not small, you immediately dispatch someone to keep an eye on the people at 'Piaoyu Mountain Villa'. It's likely that the eighth floor is for the sake of the 'Tian Ti' Thousand Autumn Tripod. Don't be careless, absolutely don't let them ruin the 'Yang Zun' great affair. As for this 'Nan Gong', could it be referring to 'Nan Gong Island'? Also send someone to investigate."

  "Ancestors, the people of 'Piaoyu Mountain Villa' are not simple, hundreds of years ago they produced a leader of the martial arts world, the 'Martial Saint' Huangfu Haoran. What's strange is that this person has been extinct for hundreds of years, and some people say he has already broken through to the 'Sword Immortal' realm, achieving immortality. We should not easily provoke the people of 'Piaoyu Mountain Villa', secretly keeping an eye on them, fearing being discovered and causing misunderstandings."

  Murong Qingyun said with a hint of worry.

  "Haha! Haha! Haha!"

  The old man in the wheelchair suddenly burst out laughing, shaking the porcelain cups on the tea table to make a 'crackling' sound. "Don't worry, Huangfu Haoran is probably already ancient history. Is it that easy to become a 'Sword Immortal'?"

  Throughout the Xuan Huang Continent for thousands of years, when has one ever seen a 'Sword Immortal', this matter is not worth worrying about.

  But be careful, if you can't keep up then give up!

  Nangong Island is also a major hidden danger, and it's said that someone has already broken through to the 'Martial Saint' Supreme level. The 'Blood Devouring Old Ancestor' of Wanxie Valley is also making moves towards Dongtian, and it's said that over a decade ago he was already charging towards the 'Martial Saint' Supreme realm, but it's unknown whether he succeeded in breaking through or not.

  "'Wanjia Valley' is the archenemy of our Murong family. I heard that 'Longling Grass' has recently appeared, and Dong Tian may also participate in the competition. It's estimated that this grass can help him break through..."

  Alas! This 'Thousand Autumns' is not so easy to get, the nearby 'Snake Ken', 'Xidang', 'Kemu', 'Mogu', which one is good to be with.

  It's estimated that the 'Martial Saint' is not as powerful as the 'Martial Emperor', and there are only a few of them. Even some small countries are making moves, alas! The 'Sun Dynasty' appears to be prosperous on the surface, but in reality, it's full of crises and surrounded by wolves. The number of top-notch masters who have reached the 'Pre-Heavenly' level is extremely rare...

  At the same time.

  The capital of 'Sun Dynasty' is 'Yanjing'.

  A majestic six-sided eave stone pagoda stands upright in the lush and dense forest behind the imperial palace where dragon energy is rising.

  This stone pagoda is built on the top of the peak, with a six-sided body, 30 meters high and a diameter of up to 80 meters.

  Built with huge, hard and very good 'Bifeng stone', the waist is 1 meter thick, even the floor slab is made of large stone strips, with carved dragon and phoenix stone pillars in the middle, a bit like the all-stone houses that people from Fujian Minnan Stone Lion area like to build.

  At the top, a golden majestic aura bursts into the sky, 'Jade Emperor's Crown', above which is a golden 'Sun', with its rays shining in all directions, enveloping the sacred land of the dynasty.

  The tower is divided into 8 layers, each with a protruding corridor, waist eaves, flat seat, railing, and flying eaves, which are lively, majestic, and solemn.

  Each floor has four carved niches, with several Buddha, Bodhisattva and disciple statues inside the niches. Except for the attendants, they are all placed on top of the platform. There are six huge stones around the stone pagoda, one in the northwest is 20 meters high and 8 meters long, with the words "Taiyang Pagoda" carved on one side.

  Inside the tower, there are six underground floors. On the cold stone walls hang a series of chilling torture instruments such as "fire whip", "tongs", "brain clamp" and "court stick".

  Above the main gate hangs a blue jade carved plaque with a very intimidating name - 'Brocade Guard General Commander's Office', abbreviated as 'Brocade Guard'.

  At this moment!

  In the grand hall of the sixth floor, on a luxurious, majestic and solemn tiger skin chair, sat an elderly man with a straight nose, dignified and elegant, with deep and profound eyes, dressed in a literary attire.

  Concentrating his attention on a middle-aged man with a gloomy face who was reporting from one of the chairs beside him.

  "Your Majesty, according to our investigation, countries like 'Shenken' and 'Kemuoye' have all increased their personnel. The martial artists of our dynasty, such as the disciples of 'Muyang Mountain Villa', 'Nan Gong Island', 'Blood Wolf Society', and 'Wanjia Valley', are all wandering around, engaging in activities, and spying on the secrets of our 'Sun King Dynasty's' 'Tianti'. Even the 'Piaomiao Mountain Villa', which has not appeared for decades, is said to have sent out disciples this time..."

  A middle-aged man with a round face, wide mouth, curved eyebrows and big eyes, wearing a tight-fitting martial arts short shirt, immediately stood up and continued the conversation with a slightly worried tone:

  "Your Majesty, although our dynasty is vast and populous, the number of strong individuals above the 'Pre-Heavenly' level has slightly decreased in recent years. The officially registered members of the Brocade Guard are only 60 people. The others are just miscellaneous personnel who can't be used for important tasks. Among these 60 people, nearly 20 are guarding the Emperor and the Forbidden Palace, and 10 high-ranking officials are stationed in countries like 'Snake Ken' and 'Ke Moon'. In fact, there are less than 30 people left to handle actual affairs. One person has to manage three or four provinces, it's impossible to keep up even with eight legs! I suggest we recruit more personnel."

  "How easy it is to talk!"

  "Summon! Where to summon? The top masters of the 'Pre-Heavenly' level and above are not ordinary people, they can grab a handful with just one hand. They are all top-notch strongmen from the door-to-door families, and there are only a few of them. Most of them do not want to enter the imperial court as officials, and their door-to-door families also do not want to let people go. Forcing them will result in even greater resistance, fearing that it will cause a stir in the martial arts world and have the opposite effect."

  "The Brocade Guard's strength has reached that of a 'Great Master', one of the Four Great Captains, personally appointed by the Emperor as a First-Rank, Third-Grade, Sword-Carrying Imperial Guard. Recently, the four masters - 'Copper Hand', 'Cat Life', 'Blood Drinker' and 'Flower of Love' - have been so busy they're almost vomiting blood. The complaints are endless, no wonder."

  An old man sitting next to Wang Ye shook his head and sighed.

  "Yes! Deputy Envoy. Last time, I was ordered to go to 'Lizhou' to eradicate the 'Black Kill' organization that killed people like hemp. I asked a local family with the surname Qu to send a 'Pre-Heaven' expert to assist. Who knew that the Qu family regarded the 'Tiangong Copper Order' of the Brocade Guard as nothing, pushing and pulling left and right, not even bothering with me. Later, after investigation, it was discovered that the Qu family was actually the relatives of a certain general in the imperial court. Deputy Envoy, what can I do?"

  A young man on the left stood up and said with a huff.

  The "Sun King" brocade guard token, ranked from high to low, is divided into four major "Sun Tokens": gold, silver, copper, and iron. Each one was personally conferred by the Emperor Heliande. Even the lowest refined iron cast "Sun Token" was owned by a fourth-class sword-bearing guard of the fifth rank.

  Seeing a high-ranking official of the third grade can require assistance from a second-grade governor to handle affairs. Mobilizing thousands of soldiers, etc. The power is not small.

  Today, a special 4,000-word chapter is uploaded. Please collect and vote for recommendation tickets to support Xia Zi's new book.