“Nine cauldrons?” Zu An was stunned. “You mean when Yu the Great divided the world into nine states, and then each of those nine states offered up bronze to create nine cauldrons as a symbol for the nine states? You mean the cauldrons that have the entire country’s famous mountains, great rivers, and exotic goods engraved on their surfaces?”

“Correct.” Mi Li appeared in her red dress. She stared at the green furnace in his hands with a complicated expression.

Zu An thought to himself, No wonder she insisted on me buying her a few more dresses. She does look pretty in them. Huh? If she can wear these dresses, then doesn’t that mean that she’s a tangible being to a certain degree? Then I wonder if she can feel anything…

But in the end, he still got rid of that death-courting thought and returned to the main topic at hand. “This little thing is one of the nine cauldrons that symbolized imperial power? You’re joking, right?”

The nine cauldrons possessed legendary significance in Chinese history as the publicly acknowledged treasures of the state. They were a symbol acknowledged by everyone. How could one of them be such a small green furnace?

Mi Li raised her head, looking into the sky with her beautiful eyes. She seemed to be reminiscing about the past. “When Yu the Great forged the nine cauldrons in the past, Shang Tang took down the Xia Kingdom and placed the nine cauldrons in the capital city. When Western Zhou destroyed the Shang Dynasty, it was rumored that the nine cauldrons were lost in Sishui. Ying Zheng searched around Sishui in the past and even sent people into the waters to look for them, but they didn’t find anything. Who would’ve thought that one of them would appear here?”

Zu An was confused. “Aren’t there nine of these cauldrons? Also, every single one of them is extremely heavy. Back then, the king of Qin longed for King Zhou’s cauldron, but he ended up being crushed to death by it. How can it be this small?”

Mi Li shook her head. “I don’t know why it’s like this either. The reason I felt that it has a connection with the nine cauldrons is because in the past, I visited the secret storeroom where the nine cauldrons were kept in the palace. Even though the nine cauldrons had already disappeared, the cauldrons’ aura remained. That feeling was extremely unique, and I sensed a similar aura from this small furnace.” She reached out her hands and gently caressed the small furnace with a look of confusion.

“Then how do I use this thing? Not even that researcher Shen Xuzi could figure out anything.” Zu An frowned. What he lacked right now was a pill furnace. If he had known that it was going to be like this, then he would have chosen another furnace.

Mi Li harrumphed. “So short-sighted! The nine cauldrons are the imperial treasures of my world! It’s completely natural for that Shen Xuzi to not have figured anything out. However, you’re different. You share fate with this cauldron, so I believe you shouldn’t have any issues in comprehending it.”

“I hope so,” Zu An said with a bitter smile. He didn’t have any confidence.

Mi Li seemed about to say something, but then suddenly frowned. She said in surprise, “That Qi Yaoguang’s divination wasn’t wrong after all. It really is full of peach blossoms.” She turned into a wisp of smoke afterward, returning into the Tai’e Sword.

Zu An was stunned and subconsciously raised his head to look around. He saw a beautiful figure standing under the peach blossom trees. Her long dress fluttered around, the ribbon tied around her waist making her figure look even more glamorous. Under the contrast of the peach blossoms, her charming face looked tender and beautiful. Who else could it be but the crown princess Bi Linglong?

Zu An was quite surprised. He walked over and asked, “Why is the crown princess here?”

Bi Linglong turned around. A perfect expression of surprise appeared on her face as she asked, “Hm? What a coincidence. What are you doing here?”

Zu An was also happy to see someone he knew, and furthermore a cute girl like her. He replied, “I was going to pay the libationer a visit, but I wasn’t able to meet with him. Why is the crown princess here?”

“I came to meet an old acquaintance. Then, when I saw how pretty these peach blossoms were, I couldn't help but admire them. I didn’t expect to meet you here.” Bi Linglong spoke calmly, as if she really didn’t know what Zu An was doing here.

“Then that really is a coincidence.” Zu An suddenly became curious. Qi Yaoguang had read his fate and saw peach blossoms everywhere. Was it just this scene that she had seen?

“Are you going back now? Why don’t we go back together?” Bi Linglong asked in a natural tone.

“Sure,” Zu An said. Not too long before, Zu An had been feeling lonely now that Chu Chuyan and the others had left. He was more than happy to be accompanied by a friend.

Bi Linglong smiled, but she quickly hid her expression and didn’t say anything else. She continued to walk forward.

Zu An had to admit that this woman always seemed to carry a bit of pride, as well as a sort of innately high-class feeling. It really gave her a distinctive sort of charm.

The two of them walked between the peach blossoms side by side. As a breeze blew about, endless peach blossoms fell from above, scattering down on their bodies. Even though these flower petals were so light they seemed to weigh nothing, they seemed to form ripples in Bi Linglong’s heart.

Women would always be romantic creatures. The scene mysteriously touched her. However, she quickly calmed her heart and asked in a nonchalant manner, “I seem to have heard quite a disturbance in the rear mountains earlier. I heard that there was a sir who managed to win over every one of the libationer’s disciples. I wonder, do you know who that was?”

Zu An was a bit embarrassed. “It wasn’t anything like that. I just had a talk with them, and then I happened to know some things about their fields of expertise, so that was why I was able to get close to them. I don’t dare to be called a sir.”

Bi Linglong seemed surprised. Her red lips parted slightly as she exclaimed, “So that mysterious person was you!”

“It was just a coincidence, a coincidence.” Zu An enjoyed her look of shock and admiration greatly. He had to admit that being admired by a woman was the best motivation for any man.

Bi Linglong smiled. “I didn’t expect you to have these skills either. Looks like keeping you in the eastern palace was a waste of talent. I’ll definitely do my best to lift you higher on the stage in the future.”

“Thank you, crown princess. I’ll definitely strive my utmost for the crown princess’ sake.” Zu An tactfully expressed his loyalty when he saw that she was roping him in.

Bi Linglong’s face turned red. Why did it sound as if he were taking advantage of her? If it were before, she would definitely have become furious. However, she didn’t feel half a trace of anger now, and instead felt her heart thump.

When he saw Bi Linglong’s shy side profile, Zu An had to admit that her face was stunning.

Mi Li’s voice said in Zu An’s ear, “What a vixen.”

Zu An had a strange expression as he asked, “Don’t tell me you’re jealous?”

“Pah! Why would I be jealous of a little brat like her?” Mi Li became upset.

You have successfully trolled Mi Li for +250 +250 +250…

Only after a while did she continue, “I was just giving you a well-intentioned reminder, so you don’t end up losing your head to this little brat. This woman clearly already knew about what you were doing in the academy, yet she’s still pretending she just happened to bump into you here and had no idea at all.”

“Hmph, what kind of seductress haven’t I met before in the palace? This little brat’s acting isn’t bad, but she’s still far too lacking compared to those girls,” Zu An replied.

“Of course!” Mi Li said unhappily as he voiced his suspicion. She continued, “I sensed her aura before outside the libationer’s house. That means she was always watching everything that happened. Why is she doing all of this?”

But who could have thought that Zu An would laugh? “But why do I feel as if things are even more interesting now? Men like these kinds of cute girls who are playful like this, you know?”

Mi Li was stunned. She exclaimed, “You can just die in hell!”

You have successfully trolled Mi Li for +666 +666 +666…

Then, she disappeared into a wisp of smoke. She didn’t reply to anything Zu An said anymore.