Da Ming: The system granted me immortality; I clock in every day.

Gu Yannian stood in the corner, watching this scene calmly.

He immediately recognized the scarred man with a cane following behind Zhu Gaoxu.

It was the same guard commander whose knee he had crippled with gravel at Bianyifang last year.

The scarred-face man limped along, his cold gaze sweeping across the crowd.

Suddenly, his gaze froze on Gu Yannian.

"Your Highness! It's him!"

Scarface excitedly pointed his cane at Gu Yannian and said to Zhu Gaoxu in a low voice.

"Last winter at Bianyifang, when that hidden weapon injured someone, only this civil official was sitting next to me! Although I didn't see him make the move, that eerie energy definitely came from his direction!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Gaoxu turned his head sharply, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Gu Yannian.

He pushed aside the minor official blocking his way and strode toward Gu Yannian.

As he moved, a powerful aura of military might swept over you.

"Who are you? State your name!"

Zhu Gaoxu looked down at Gu Yannian from his high position, his voice low.

Gu Yannian sneered inwardly.

With his current strength and agility exceeding one thousand points.

With just a little finger, one could smash this arrogant Prince Han, armor and all, out of the armory.

But a genuine look of fear and horror instantly appeared on his handsome face.

"This humble official, Gu Yannian, the Registrar of the Wenhua Hall, greets... greets His Highness the Prince of Han!"

Gu Yannian's legs went weak, and he knelt down on the muddy ground covered with iron filings with a "thump".

He held the account book in both hands, his body trembling like a leaf in the autumn wind, and even his voice changed.

He portrayed a timid, ignorant, and bookish lower-class man with remarkable depth and realism.

Zhu Gaoxu frowned.

Having served in the military for many years and killed countless people, he could tell at a glance whether a person was genuinely afraid or just pretending.

The fear in the eyes of the civil official, from the contraction of his pupils to the trembling of his muscles, was all a genuine physiological reaction.

"Raise your head!" Zhu Gaoxu shouted sternly.

Gu Yannian raised his head tremblingly, his face as pale as paper, and even his forehead was covered in a fine layer of cold sweat.

"Scarface said that last winter at Bianyifang, you used a hidden weapon to cripple his leg?"

Zhu Gaoxu drew his sword from his waist, and the cold blade patted Gu Yannian's cheek.

"Your Highness, spare me! Your Highness, please have mercy!"

Gu Yannian was so frightened that he dropped the account book in his hand to the ground, his voice trembling with tears.

"I have been frail and sickly since childhood, and I wouldn't even dare to kill a chicken, let alone know any hidden weapons! That day, I just went to buy a roast duck, and suddenly that strong man knelt down on his own. I was so scared that I almost wet my pants. How could I dare to hurt him!"

The scarred man, his face flushed with anger, stepped forward, leaning on his cane, and began to curse.

"You're talking nonsense! You're the only person within a three-zhang radius, who else could it be but you! You're definitely pretending to be weak while actually being strong!"

Zhu Gaoxu stared at Gu Yannian for a long time.

He suddenly gripped the hilt of his sword and, without warning, swung it fiercely at Gu Yannian's neck!

This sword strike was powerful and heavy, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound; an ordinary person would have no chance of dodging it.

Zhu Gaoxu was testing him; a person's instincts when facing life and death are impossible to conceal.

If this kid knew martial arts, he would instinctively block or dodge.

The sword came to an abrupt stop less than half an inch from Gu Yannian's neck.

The sword energy even severed a lock of hair near Gu Yannian's ear.

Gu Yannian remained kneeling in place.

He didn't even blink.

It wasn't that he had amazing composure, but rather that in that instant, he completely emptied his eyes and made a perfect "dementia reaction of excessive fear causing his whole body to stiffen."

"Clatter."

A bead of cold sweat slid down Gu Yannian's nose and dripped onto the muddy ground.

He was breathing heavily, as if he had just escaped death.

Zhu Gaoxu looked at Gu Yannian, who was completely unresponsive and nearly delirious with fright, and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahaha! What a fucking piece of trash!"

Zhu Gaoxu sheathed his sword, turned around, and kicked the scarred man to the ground.

"You worthless lackey! Your own skills are so poor that you were crippled by some passing expert, yet you blame it on a terrified, pedantic scholar! Have you no shame before me?!"

Scarface rolled twice on the ground, his face full of grievance, but he dared not say another word.

He also began to doubt whether he had really chosen the wrong person.

This good-for-nothing in front of me doesn't look like a hidden master at all.

"Get out! All of you, get out here and search!"

Zhu Gaoxu roared angrily and led his men away.

Only after everyone from the Prince of Han's residence had left did the clerks from the Ordnance Bureau dare to step forward and help Gu Yannian up.

"Lord Gu, you've been frightened. His Highness the Prince of Han's temper is truly..."

A minor official sighed repeatedly.

Gu Yannian picked up the account book from the ground, brushed off the dust, and the look of fear on his face had completely disappeared.

He straightened his clothes, his tone as calm as ever.

"It's alright. Your Highness is of noble birth, and it's understandable that you might occasionally lose your temper. Let's continue checking these muskets."

He looked in the direction Zhu Gaoxu had left, a faint hint of mockery flashing deep in his eyes.

An immortal being with an infinite lifespan and unparalleled attributes.

He was called a piece of trash by a mortal prince who pointed a sword at his nose.

The contrast and absurdity of this situation truly make for a fascinating drama.

He doesn't mind being a clown.

Because clowns often live until the very last moment of the performance, while those arrogant actors usually die a miserable death.

Autumn of the fourteenth year of the Yongle reign.

The autumn chill always arrives fiercely in Shuntian Prefecture.

After an autumn rain, most of the leaves on the trees in the city turned yellow.

In the courtyard of Xuanwu Lane, the old jujube tree was laden with bright red fruit, bending its branches low.

Shen Wan moved a ladder and propped it against the tree trunk, carefully picking the dates.

She plans to wash and dry these dates, and use them to cook red date and millet porridge to replenish blood after winter.

Gu Yannian sat on a rattan chair under the eaves, holding a copy of "Spring and Autumn Annals" in his hands.

Occasionally glancing up at Shen Wan, who was busy in the tree, I felt that the autumn sunlight was peaceful and serene.

However, a storm was brewing in the court in secret.

Zhu Gaoxu's source of income was cut off by Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi, and he was unable to find the "master of hidden weapons" for a long time.

His personality became increasingly irritable and extreme.

Historically, this King of Han ultimately chose the dead end of rebellion.

Now, forced by extreme financial constraints, he has taken a crazy step ahead of time.

They forged weapons and armor without authorization, plotting something sinister.

The laws of the Ming Dynasty were strict; privately manufacturing weapons and armor was tantamount to treason.

Zhu Gaoxu committed this heinous crime, which could lead to the extermination of nine generations of his family, in secrecy.

He chose the location as the underground of an abandoned imperial estate on the outskirts of Beijing.

All the iron ore and charcoal were smuggled in little by little through complicated channels and under various pretexts.

If nothing unexpected happens, this private army will be largely complete within a year, becoming a sword of Damocles hanging over the Crown Prince's head.

Unfortunately, he met Gu Yannian.