You, a tyrannical ruler, roam the heavens; you cannot understand my joy.

As a confidant of Chen Shubao, Li Chengan had a specially granted official residence in the palace.

But for some reason, this old eunuch has never allowed anyone else to approach his residence for many years.

Even if there's something to report, one can only stand outside the door and ring the bell at the entrance.

"Chen Baxian!"

"You killed my entire family back then, today I'll make sure you have no descendants!"

"Seventy years! A full seventy years!"

"I've waited all these years, not to prove how great I am!"

"It's not that I want to tell everyone, but that I will definitely avenge the blood debt owed to the Li family!"

No one knew that back in Jiangling, although the divine physician Shen Bingxin suddenly launched an attack, she did not kill Chen Shubao.

The real killer was Chen Shubao's confidant!

"Hmph, Shi Wenqing, oh Shi Wenqing."

Li Chengan sneered: "You really think I'd put you on the throne?"

"Daydreaming!"

"Once you're no longer of any use, we'll kill you first, and then... completely overthrow the Chen Kingdom!"

"Slaughter the Chen family's descendants, leave no one alive!"

"Of course...that includes that brat!"

Li Cheng'an never considered letting Lu Zuo live, because once he completely controlled the Southern Chen court, Lu Zuo would lose his usefulness.

That will be the day he dies!

Jingle Bell……

Suddenly, the crisp sound of copper bells came from afar.

Li Chengan composed himself, straightened his expression, and strode out of the bedroom.

……

A moment later, at the door.

Upon hearing that Lu Zuo had slept with Shen Wuhua the previous night, Li Chengan felt a strange sense of satisfaction.

The emperor, a man of great stature, was cuckolded, which gave him a sense of vengeful pleasure.

At the same time, he also relaxed his vigilance towards Lu Zuo.

"Hmph, he's already indulging in women as soon as he returned to the capital; this lad is utterly useless!"

"However, that's exactly what I want—his incompetence."

"The more useless and absurd the better!"

"That way, it won't escape my control..."

He pondered for a moment and said, "If His Majesty wants to leave the palace, let him go, but you must stay close to him."

"Everything, big or small, must be recorded: who you've met, what you've said, what you've encountered, and you must report back to me."

"Yes, Ancestor."

The young eunuch Zhao An responded, bowed respectfully, and turned to leave.

……

Outside the city, at Qixia Mountain.

The mountains here are majestic and beautiful, shrouded in mist, with dense forests and countless maple trees growing vigorously.

A winding stone staircase extends downwards from the mountaintop, with moss-covered stones on both sides.

Lu Zuo, dressed as a wealthy young master, led a young eunuch named Zhao An and a dozen or so guards disguised as servants and housekeepers, up the stone steps.

He was just wandering around casually, wondering if he could trigger his second talent after leaving the capital.

"I wonder if this second talent, which can only be activated outside the capital, refers to outside the city, or outside the capital's jurisdiction?"

"If only it were just outside the city..."

As he walked, he pondered to himself, taking in the city's surroundings.

Zhao An followed closely behind, also pondering to himself: "Since His Majesty returned to the capital, his attitude towards the Ancestor has changed drastically."

"This morning, when I was reporting to His Majesty as instructed by our ancestor, I was nearly scared to death!"

"This is blatant insubordination!"

"But His Majesty didn't get angry?"

"I really had to ask the old ancestor for permission before I could leave the palace..."

"There might be some unforeseen circumstances here that I'm unaware of!"

Regardless of what changes may occur, judging from the current situation, we should follow the instructions of our ancestors from now on.

As for His Majesty's orders...

They even have to be ranked after our ancestors!

"Um?"

suddenly!

Lu Zuo felt something strange under his feet. He quickly moved his boots and looked down. He saw a palm-sized human-shaped jade figure in front of him.

A row of gold lettering floats above it.

[The second talent has been triggered, and the Jade Doll from the world of "Changfeng Escort Agency" has been obtained.]

This is great stuff!

Lu Zuo remembered that there were thirteen of these objects in total, with the first twelve engraved with exquisite martial arts techniques.

Examples include: "Nine Yang Returning to Origin Great Method", "Turtle Breathing Nirvana Sutra", "Soaring Through the Void Steps", "Phantom Tracking Method", etc.

In addition, there are medical classics covering medical principles, pharmacology, toxicology, and so on.

The thirteenth doll is an iron egg forged from Xuan Tie Jingang (a type of magical iron).

To cultivate the formless qi on the jade doll, one must hold the iron egg in one's hand to guard one's mind and achieve a state of mind where "ten thousand weapons cannot break an inch of dust," thus avoiding going astray in cultivation.

Although the Jade Doll martial art belongs to the low to mid-level martial arts world, for Lu Zuo, any martial art is extremely important.

Even if it's just an ordinary fist technique or knife technique, it will be his capital to change his fate and turn the tide in the future!

the most important is……

You don't need to go too far; as long as you leave the city, you'll have a chance to trigger your second talent!

This is what made Lu Zuo ecstatic!

"I wonder who left it there?"

He chuckled, bent down to pick it up, stuffed it into his pocket, and continued walking towards the mountain.

Finding a jade sculpture on the road naturally didn't attract Zhao An's attention; he didn't even bother to record it.

Afterwards, the group strolled around Qixia Temple on the mountain and then followed Lu Zuo to other places.

……

As evening approached, the setting sun began to slant westward.

The bluestone streets in the city shimmered with a light, as if scattered with gold dust.

After a day of bustling activity, the crowds gradually thinned out. Peddlers and laborers, carrying their wares on their shoulders and in their hands, hurried along, their faces showing signs of weariness, their shadows stretching long at the alley entrance.

"I wandered around outside the city for a whole afternoon, but my second talent didn't react at all."

"Can it only be triggered once a day?"

Just as he was pondering this, he suddenly heard Zhao An's surprised voice: "Lord Kong's carriage?"

Lu Zuo looked up and saw a four-horse carriage with vermilion lacquer and gold trim slowly approaching and stopping not far in front of them.

Immediately, the carriage curtain was lifted, and a man of about forty years old, dressed in a dark purple brocade robe, slowly stepped out of the carriage.

He had a lean face, with three long, meticulously trimmed beards hanging down to his chest, and an air of refined elegance about him.

"Hahahaha..."

"I went to invite Young Master Chen to my home today, but he is not here."

"I never expected to run into you here?"

Kong Fan was ordered to recommend Zhang Lihua to the emperor for entry into the palace, but when he went to the palace to request an audience in the morning, his trusted confidant told him that His Majesty had already gone out in disguise early that morning.

He searched the city for a whole day and finally found Lu Zuo.

Kong Fan?

On the way back to the capital, Li Chengan drew portraits of civil and military officials for him, explained their information, and recounted some past events involving Chen Shubao and them.

In the entire court, there was only one official named Kong, Kong Fan, who was only good at flattery and sycophancy.

And he…

He had always been at odds with Shi Wenqing, a secretary in the Imperial Secretariat, and the two constantly attacked each other in the court, making them political enemies!