Chapter 108: I Told You You Can

Xiao Yuanhang followed the direction she pointed and couldn't help but laugh, "Tuan Tuan, that's just a rusted iron spear; they say this place was once a battlefield, probably left from then."

"No! Daddy!" Tuan Tuan pouted, tugged at her father's collar and pulled him toward the spear, "Come on, come on."

Xiao Jieyun heard the commotion and watched Tuan Tuan pull Xiao Yuanhang over there.

"Prince Ning and the Princess (Commandery), where are they going?" he asked Eunuch Cheng beside him.

Eunuch Cheng replied, "Old servant doesn't know either; it seems Little Princess saw something and pulled Prince over to look."

Xiao Jieyun smiled, "Is that so? Come, let's go see as well."

When the Emperor moved, the officials behind him all followed.

Tuan Tuan dragged her father to the spear and said, "Daddy! Look! It's shining gold!"

Xiao Yuanhang looked puzzled, "Where is the golden light?" He was about to ask.

A hoarse voice came from behind, "Princess, even childish words must have limits! Otherwise it's a crime of deceiving the ruler!"

Xiao Yuanhang's face darkened, and he turned to see Marquis Jinghai Zhou Jinhua standing beside His Majesty.

Xiao Jieyun waved at Tuan Tuan, and Tuan Tuan ran over.

"Tuan Tuan, tell Imperial Uncle what's wrong with this iron spear?"

Tuan Tuan shook her head, "Nothing! It's a wonderful treasure! Imperial Uncle!"

"Oh?" Xiao Jieyun examined the shabby spear and saw nothing "wonderful."

Zhou Jinghua's son Zhou Jing'an hummed, "This broken spear has been here for who knows how many years; if not for this year's hunting ground expansion, it would still be embedded in stone and no one would see this junk!"

Tuan Tuan looked toward the voice, wondering about the wind‑chasing villain? How did he also come?

Xiao Jieyun glanced at Tuan Tuan and said, "This child always sees what others cannot: 'Men! Pull that spear out for me!'"

"Yes!"

Several strong Guards stepped forward, tried together repeatedly, but could not pull it out.

They then began prying with knives and hammering, yet the seemingly decayed long spear was as if linked to the whole mountain, not moving a hair.

More and more people heard the commotion, gathered around, and whispered.

"His Majesty wants this spear?"

"Little Princess says it's a treasure, that's why His Majesty wants to see a clue."

"Can a child's words be taken seriously?"

Tuan Tuan walked to the spear, extended her small hand to touch it, as if touching a friend.

She tilted her little head and softly said, "Hey! You've been here so long, all alone, aren't you lonely?"

"Buzz—!"

As if responding, the spear's body suddenly trembled, emitting a low but clear hum, like a sigh, clearly reaching every ear.

Everyone's complexion changed instantly.

"What sound?"

"Is it coming from the spear?"

"How could that be?!"

But as the hum grew louder and continuous, "Clang—!"

"Clang clang clang—!"

First, the side knives of the nearest imperial guards' waists unsheathed half an inch on their own, producing a crisp ringing!

Immediately, everyone's swords and knives in their scabbards vibrated wildly!

"My sword!"

"My knife!"

"What's happening?!"

Shouts rose all around.

"Whoosh!" A flash of silver cut the air! An unknown sword burst from its scabbard, becoming a streak of light, dashing straight toward the rusted spear.

It landed on the empty ground before the spear, blade slightly tilted toward it, hilt bobbing lightly, like a minister bowing to the ruler!

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

In the hunting ground sky, countless streams of metallic light rose from all directions!

Inside the hunting ground, all soldiers' and guards' knives, swords, spears, halberds… broke free, forming a torrent that converged around the rusted spear, embedding themselves around it!

The spear's hum gradually weakened and vanished.

The crowd looked at the myriad weapons beside them, all with shocked, astonished faces, wide‑eyed.

"Ten thousand swords converging?!" an old court scholar with beard and hair all white exclaimed first.

He fell to his knees with a thud, pointed at the spear, and hoarsely shouted, "Heaven‑fallen iron, ten thousand blades submit! It's it!"

"It must be the Dragon‑song Spear recorded in the classics, missing for years!"

Xiao Jieyun's expression changed, "Dragon‑song Spear?" Looking again at the spear, his eyes now held a hint of reverence.

Even Xiao Yuanhang muttered, "Could there really be a Dragon‑song Spear in this world?"

Zhou Jinhua gave his son a glance; Zhou Jing'an understood, stepped forward, "His Majesty! This spear is indeed extraordinary! It is a gift from Heaven!"

"I am willing to try, for my emperor, to extract it and present it to His Majesty!"

Zhou Jinhua nodded slightly, praising his son, "Well done."

Who discovered it matters not; what matters is who can present it to His Majesty!

Tuan Tuan shook her little head, "You can't pull it out!"

Zhou Jing'an's face flushed bright red, "How do you know I can't? His Majesty! Please allow me to try!"

Xiao Jieyun asked, "They all tried together and couldn't pull the spear; what good plan do you have?"

Zhou Jing'an said: "Reporting to His Majesty, those men are strong, but unfortunately they only know brute force; when they were pulling just now, I already noticed a clue."

"Oh?" Xiao Jieyun, now interested, said, "Tell me."

"His Majesty, please look, this iron spear has been driven deep into the rock for years; it cannot be pulled out by sheer force, but if we rotate it, a gap will slowly open around the shaft, and then with force we can definitely pull it out!"

The people around, upon hearing, couldn't help but nod silently: "Well said!"

"The Marquis of Jinghai raises his son well!"

Zhou Jing'an, secretly pleased, raised his voice: "Heaven bestowed this divine artifact upon our court; I am willing to exert my humble strength! Please grant your approval, His Majesty!"

Xiao Jieyun nodded: "Very well, I permit you to try!"

Zhou Jing'an walked to the iron spear, extended both hands, and touched the shaft.

"Ah!" In the next instant, he let out a howl, released his grip, stepped back several paces, and when he spread his hands, his palms were scorching red.

Tuan Tuan pursed her little mouth and said, "See, it doesn't like you squeezing it!"

"Huh, those Guards just now touched it without any problem, why does Young Master Zhou have trouble?"

"Hehe, you sounded pretty good just now; the bragging was premature, wasn't it?"

"The old minister is here!" Zhou Jinhua, feeling his reputation at stake, stepped forward personally.

Tuan Tuan helplessly gave him a look: "You can't pull it out either! Don't try!"

Zhou Jinhua snorted, ordered men to fetch the army's armor‑removal tools and heat‑insulating items; after a series of preparations, he cautiously reached for the shaft, intending to use the method his son just mentioned to pull it out.

"Bang!"

An invisible force suddenly rebounded, sending Zhou Jinhua flying like a kite with its line cut; he was hurled hard, landing heavily on the grass about a zhang away, his official hat askew and in a sorry state.

Tuan Tuan, startled by the huge thud, covered her ears: "I told you you couldn't do it!"