Seeing that Heng had finally come out, Si did not waste any time. He tossed the Xi blade he had shaved into a stick at Heng.
The Xi blade was still quite heavy. Although it had been shaved, it was still heavy for a regular person. However, as a blacksmith, Heng's arm strength was incomparable to a regular person's. After catching the Xi blade firmly, he did not even look at Si as he studied it carefully.
The other Gongjia family members did not care anymore. They all gathered around to study the Xi blade's fracture.
The people who were still in the hall were all people of some status in the family. They were Heng's trusted aides so Si was not afraid of them spreading rumors. He allowed them to study it.
"This fracture …" Heng rubbed his finger back and forth, carefully feeling the surface of the fracture. His eyes did not miss a single detail.
To be able to create such a fracture, the other party's weapon must be very sharp and hard. The force of the blow must have been very strong too. Most importantly, he did not know what material it was made of. From the fracture, Heng could tell that the weapon used to break the handle was not a material he was familiar with! This piqued Heng's curiosity. He asked Si, "Tell me about what happened."
Si refused to recall what happened. He would not describe how Shao Xuan had shaved him to the Gongjia family. He could not wait to hide this embarrassing incident, how could he tell anyone?
"It's fine if you don't want to talk. Tell me what the weapon looks like." Heng thought back to all the weapons he had encountered. None of them could create a fracture like this. The marks on it were very unfamiliar.
"You don't know?" Si glanced at Heng and the other blacksmiths with a strange expression. He really could not describe what Shao Xuan's blade looked like. "It's a blade. I didn't notice it at the time but I know it has the Gongjia family's cloud pattern on it. There's no mistaking it. Among the Gongjia family members who left, who went to Yanjiao? "
"Yanjiao?! The one who broke the Xi blade was Shao Xuan from Yanjiao? "asked Heng.
"Yes, you know Shao Xuan? Right, I heard that Shao Xuan from Yanjiao once came to Royal City and asked you to make him a sword. Did you make that kid's sword too?! "Si raised his voice, glaring at Heng as if he wanted to eat him alive.
Gongjia Heng did not mind Si's fierce glare. He frowned and shook his head. "No, although I've given Yanjiao some swords and axes, only the sword I gave to Shao Xuan is the best. The rest can't even cut through the hilt of your Xi sword. Those swords and axes aside, even the sword I gave to Shao Xuan might not be able to make such a cut."
"Then who in the Gongjia family made Yanjiao's sword?!" Si was in a bad mood.
"Could it be …" An older man next to him hesitated. "Gongjia Ren …" When Ji Fang took the throne, a portion of the Gongjia family members left, including Gongjia Ren. Others did not know where Gongjia Ren went but Heng's trusted aides knew. Gongjia Ren and a few others were sent to Yanjiao for protection.
Heng naturally thought of that too but thought it was impossible. How long had it been since Gongjia Ren left? Plus, Gongjia Ren had never been to Xia Valley to receive his ancestor's inheritance. Even if Gongjia Ren was talented, there were many talented people in the Gongjia family. So how did Gongjia Ren make these weapons?
Just as the Gongjia family members were guessing who made Shao Xuan's sword, Yanjiao's team arrived at the palace. Of course, not everyone entered the palace. Shao Xuan led two hundred people into the palace while the rest stayed outside. Ji Fang had already arranged a place for everyone to stay.
The last time Shao Xuan saw Ji Fang, he was still the second son of the king and kept a low profile. Now that they met again, Ji Fang exuded a noble aura.
Although Ji Fang did not go to the city gates to welcome them, he sent his younger brother and himself to the palace gates to welcome them as a sign of respect.
"Long time no see." Ji Fang had a smile on his face. His clothes were luxurious with exquisite embroidery and he exuded an indescribable aura of nobility. His every move exuded the authority of a superior.
Shao Xuan's aura was clearly different from Ji Fang's. Although he did not exude a noble aura like Ji Fang's, he had a Yanjiao aura.
Those who could follow Shao Xuan into the palace were the leaders and elites of the Flaming River tribes. No matter what they thought or how nervous they were, they could not appear weak in front of these noble slave masters.
Ji Fang had already ordered his men to prepare a feast but it was still early at night. Ji Fang did not give Shao Xuan time to ask about Si. He immediately ordered his men to bring all the 'missing people' from the Flaming River Valley here.
Ji Fang was not lying. No matter how they were tortured, they were treated well in the Royal City. At least they were brought to Shao Xuan and the rest in high spirits.
Ji Fang was about to tell them about the special treatment the slaves received in the Royal City when his gaze swept past them. He paused, forgetting what he was about to say. He saw a person, and that person should not have appeared among those who were captured. He had never seen this person before.
Ji Fang's expression darkened. Although he wanted to grab the guards in charge of the captured tribesmen, it was bad enough that Robber Seven was here but now there was a tribesman among them and no one knew! But now was not a good time to be lecturing. Ji Fang could only suppress his anger and his expression was ugly.
The guard wanted to explain but when he met Ji Fang's gaze, he could only lower his head.
Guigou ordered Qu Li and the rest to bring the captured tribesmen back to their teams to check if there were any missing people. When he saw Gan Qie walk out with the captured people, he was stunned. When he saw that Shao Xuan did not look surprised, he knew that Shao Xuan must have asked Gan Qie to check on the captured people.
After checking on the captured people, there were no missing people and no life-threatening injuries. Qu Li and the rest relaxed. He could go back and report to his tribesmen. This risky trip was not in vain.
"Let's talk about the contract. How do we sign it?" asked Shao Xuan.
Ji Fang did not expect Shao Xuan to not mention Si. When he heard the haggard Si's words, he deduced that Shao Xuan must have known that he was working with Si. He thought that Shao Xuan would question him after bringing his men over, or even use this as an opportunity to ask for more conditions. Who would have thought that Shao Xuan would skip over Si and ask about the contract?
Since Shao Xuan did not mention it, Ji Fang would not bring it up either.
"There are many ways to sign a contract but we usually choose two. One is a spiritual contract and the other is a written contract. Both are based on the fire seed." Ji Fang explained the difference between the two contracts to Shao Xuan.
A written contract was to record the contents of the contract in words and then use the power of the fire seed to draw a totem mark to prove the signer's identity.
However, a written contract was not that strong. Some people would disregard their reputation and go back on their word. There was nothing you could do about it. No matter how much you scolded them, they would not lose anything. However, a spiritual contract was different.
"A spiritual contract requires a mark on the Heaven and Earth Contract Book." Ji Fang looked at the center of the palace. It was not a place anyone could enter.
"Heaven and Earth Contract Book?"
"That's right. The Heaven and Earth Contract Book is connected to the fire seed. It cannot be changed easily, even if you are the king." The smile on Ji Fang's face was replaced by a solemn expression. When the Heaven and Earth Contract Book was mentioned, everyone would be in awe, including himself.
"If you choose the Heaven and Earth Contract Book, I will bring you there. If you choose the written contract, we can start discussing the contents now," said Ji Fang.
"Heaven and Earth Contract Book." Shao Xuan looked at the center of the palace. "I choose the Heaven and Earth Contract Book."
Guigou and the rest had no objections to Shao Xuan's choice. They could tell that the only person Ji Fang valued was Shao Xuan. Coincidentally, they followed Shao Xuan's decision.
News of Yanjiao choosing the Heaven and Earth Contract Book soon spread outside the palace.
"What?! Those tribesmen chose the Heaven and Earth Contract Book?! "
"Heaven and Earth Contract Book? Did I hear wrong? Really? "
"Definitely, it came from the nobles!"
The Royal City's spectators exploded.
Yanjiao's tribesmen had chosen the Heaven and Earth Contract Book method!
Most of them had never seen what a Heaven and Earth Contract Book looked like. Other than the nobles in the Royal City, only the leaders of large caravans and tribes had seen it. Although the passersby had not seen it with their own eyes, they had heard of it.
"Place your bets! Place your bets! " The gambling house was the first to react. They started shouting and putting up a large sign. Someone beat a drum to attract attention.
"Everyone, guess how big of a mark Yanjiao will leave on the Heaven and Earth Contract Book?"
"Why don't you come in and place your bets?"
Whoosh —
The Royal City's spectators, who were curious and eager to watch the show, were now itching for a bet.
The older people knew how the Heaven and Earth Contract Book was bet, but the younger people did not know why and fought to ask.
The gambling house's people looked pleased. They enjoyed the feeling of being surrounded by people, and also enjoyed the requests of the ignorant people. Moreover, the more people there were, the more they earned.
The person beating the drum stopped and cleared his throat. He was about to explain in detail to these ignorant juniors. Unexpectedly, just as he was about to open his mouth, someone suddenly jumped out and slammed something on the table in front of him. "Bet a crystal!"
The gambling house's people's eyes flashed coldly. They looked across the table at the person who interrupted them. However, before they could take a closer look, their eyes were attracted by the thing on the table.
A crystal as thick as an arm was slammed on the table, pressing down on the spot where the words "Yanjiao" were written in red.
The crowd instantly fell silent. Then, they all looked at the person who pressed down on the big crystal, as if they were looking at an idiot.
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