The Deepest Affection in Qin's Time

If he hadn't been completely unable to find another way to realize his ambition, suppress Lü Buwei, and become the King of Qin, he wouldn't have set his sights on the elusive secret of the Azure Dragon.

"Young man, do you know the consequences of deceiving the enemy?"

“I can open it.”

Cao Yuan spoke with certainty and full of confidence.

Jing Ni and Li Wu looked at Cao Yuan with a strange light in their two beautiful eyes.

This is a bronze treasure box containing the secrets of the Azure Dragon. How did you find a way to break it so quickly?

"Alright, I'll wait here for you to open it."

He sat down with an air of authority, his eyes closed.

Cao Yuan, after pretending to fumble around in the treasure box for a while, used the power of the "golden key" to open it.

"Click, click, tap-tap-tap..."

The sound of the mechanism turning was very rhythmic.

Yan Ri suddenly opened his eyes, shocked, and his body almost uncontrollably rushed towards the treasure box.

Jingni and Liwu stared in shock at the composed Cao Yuan.

The bronze box, which holds the secrets of the Azure Dragon and has been passed down for thousands of years, and which countless masters of mechanisms could not conquer, has been opened.

Good heavens, what kind of weirdos did they find?

"what!"

Suddenly, Yan Ri roared and angrily tore the silk scroll in his hand to shreds.

"It's fake! It's fake!"

Cao Yuan vaguely saw the four characters "Jiang Clan Genealogy" on the torn silk cloth on the ground, and he understood something.

No wonder the Yan family had a bronze treasure box; it turns out the Yan family was a descendant of the Jiang royal family before the Tian family took over the Qi dynasty.

Overjoyed and enraged, Yan Ri stared at Cao Yuan with extremely violent eyes.

"Did you do it?!"

The master-level aura made Cao Yuan almost unable to breathe.

It's so difficult to cultivate without strength!

But Cao Yuan remained unfazed.

He knew it was time for him to show off his real skills.

“Chief, I am a locksmith, not a master thief. When I first came into contact with the treasure box, I was puzzled. How could I have found a way to open the legendary bronze treasure box so easily?”

"Alas... what a pity! I couldn't see the real bronze treasure box, nor could I personally unravel the legendary secret of the Azure Dragon. I will die with regrets!"

Cao Yuan sighed deeply, looking fervent.

Yan Ri calmed down and looked at Cao Yuan with a slight flicker in her eyes.

Although he can't unlock it, he still has basic insight.

Even a master mechanic from the Luo Wang (Net of Heaven) might not be able to open that fake treasure box containing the Jiang family genealogy; only a grandmaster of mechanics could.

But this young man opened it in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, so it's hard to say whether he can open the legendary bronze treasure box.

After pondering for a moment, Yan Ri began to issue orders.

"Jingni and Liwu, you two stay here. After finding Wuming and seizing the bronze treasure box, if you have the chance, bring back the Hanguang Sword and kill the remnants of the Jiang clan."

He was 90% certain that it was Wuming who took away the bronze box belonging to the remnants of the Jiang clan.

Jingni asked, "Where is Wuming?"

Yan Ri inexplicably thought of Lü Buwei, a man of deep cunning who claimed to be a descendant of Jiang Ziya, and began to recount a secret story in a low voice.

"King Xiang of Qi had once been kind to Wuming, who promised to protect the Qi royal family in the palace. Later, King Xiang of Qi favored Hou Sheng and distanced himself from Wuming, making him move out of the palace and live in the royal mansion."

"Go and ask Hou Sheng. Also, give him a good talking-to and tell him not to be too greedy."

"Remember, everything else in this mission can fail, but you must get your hands on the bronze treasure box!"

After saying that, Yan Ri left.

He never looked at Cao Yuan directly, nor did he take him away.

He was very wary of Lü Buwei and naturally didn't want Lü Buwei to know what he was doing.

With the alliance of states about to break out, Lü Buwei had no time to attend to other matters.

The timing couldn't be better to leave Jingni and Liwu behind to plot the seizure of the bronze box.

Of course, he didn't want Lü Buwei to know that he had found a top-notch locksmith comparable to a master of mechanical arts, so he kept him around and wasn't worried that the boy could open the treasure box ahead of time.

The legendary bronze box, even if obtained, would require a very long time to open, even for a master of mechanical devices.

It turns out the traitor was Qi Xiang Hou Sheng, the uncle of King Jian of Qi… Cao Yuan thought to himself.

But that was none of his business; all he knew was that his crisis was temporarily over.

"Ladies, we have accommodation available at our inn."

Cao Yuan took the initiative to invite Jing Ni and Li Wu to stay at his place.

It's always easier to control risks when people are in the open than when they're in the shadows.

Li Wu's alluring eyes swept over Cao Yuan, her tone carrying a hint of seduction.

"Young master, your intentions are not pure. Have you taken a fancy to me, or to Lady Jingni?"

This is a death trap, but actually I'm more afraid that you two will both fall for me at the same time. A love triangle is terrifying... Cao Yuan said righteously, "Miss, I, Cao Aman, am definitely not that kind of person! It's just for our convenience in planning, so that we can get the bronze treasure box as soon as possible and see its true face!"

"It's Cao Cao..."

Li Wu's voice was sweet and charming, her beautiful eyes lingering on Cao Yuan's face, a half-smile playing on her lips.

"Yes, my nickname is Aman."

……

Chapter 4 is a pity.

On a summer night in July, the Milky Way shines brightly and the moon hangs high in the sky.

The backyard of the "Golden Key" locksmith shop.

Cao Yuan placed seasonal fruits, vegetables, and snacks on the stone table and sat opposite Jing Ni and Li Wu.

"Yes, I know that kid. He often comes here to listen to me tell a story from 'Lunyu'. We have a pretty good relationship."

Cao Yuan remained calm and composed.

When he saw Yan Lu's portrait in Jing Ni's hand, he already had a plan.

"You can recite the Analects? Are you even a disciple of Confucianism?"

Li Wu looked meaningfully at the sunny and cheerful young man in front of her.

"It's 'Lunyu'..." Cao Yuan said without changing his expression, "Of course not, but I have a good relationship with Confucianism and have a basic understanding of some classics, so it shouldn't be a problem to give a child an introduction."

Jingni picked up the Jingni Sword from the stone table, stood up, and looked at Li Wu.

"I'm going to the Prime Minister's residence."

Her meaning was clear: she wanted Li Wu to look at Cao Yuan.

"Don't worry, Lady Jingni. With me here, how could the young master bear to run away?"

Li Wu stroked her beautiful mustache and gave Cao Yuan a charming smile.

"Isn't that right, young man?"

"Ah, right, right, absolutely right..." Cao Yuan thought to himself before channeling his engineering spirit, his eyes burning with enthusiasm, and he began to show his true colors.

"Of course, I'd love to see what this legendary bronze box, which supposedly holds the secrets of the Azure Dragon, is all about, and whether my lock-picking skills are enough to open it!"

Jingni gave Cao Yuan a deep look.

To be fair, in terms of lock-picking ability alone, Cao Yuan was indeed the strongest she had ever seen, even surpassing the mechanical masters of the Luo Wang, and was comparable to a master of mechanical arts.

Jing Ni left, and Li Wu's smile gradually faded. She asked seriously, "Are you really confident you can open it?"

Cao Yuan was slightly surprised. He didn't expect that Li Wu, who had never cared much about this and often teased him, would suddenly become so concerned about it.

"Well... I'm fairly confident."

Although he was very confident in his "golden key" cheat code, he certainly couldn't be too sure of himself.

Li Wu pondered for a moment, a hint of worry flashing in her gentle eyes.

"You'd better open it. It will benefit you, Lord Jingni, and me, otherwise..."

Cao Yuan asked curiously, "Otherwise what?"

“Otherwise you will die…” Li Wu concealed the worry in her eyes, and with her watery, foxy eyes, she teased, “You can only blame yourself for knowing too much, hehe.”

The bronze box containing the secrets of the Azure Dragon has been attempted to be opened by countless masters of mechanisms and skilled craftsmen over the past thousand years, all of whom have failed.

She knew in her heart that the probability of Cao Yuan being able to open the bronze treasure box was almost zero, and it was practically impossible to expect Cao Yuan to open the treasure box and gain great merit to help her be transferred away from the Eight Linglong.

Cao Yuan said dismissively, "Even your leader doesn't seem to be so bold as to easily kill someone as capable as me, does he?"

Li Wu said in a low voice, "You're right, but you don't know how fierce the infighting is within the Luo Wang. Let alone an ordinary person like you who can't even kill a chicken, even I, or even Lord Jing Ni, would have a hard time protecting myself."

Cao Yuan stared blankly at Li Wu.

He was somewhat surprised.

It wasn't the unexpected cruelty within the Luowang organization, but rather Li Wu's sudden and heartfelt words to him.

Li Wu suddenly smiled and said, "Alright, alright~ Let's not talk about this anymore~ Life is short, we should enjoy it while we can."

Cao Yuan nodded and replied, "Drink today, for tomorrow we may die."

Seemingly moved by Cao Yuan, Li Wu began to drink alone.

With nothing else to do, Cao Yuan drank a few cups with Li Wu.