Chapter 422

"This version of the story seems a bit off. Speaking of which, what made you suddenly change your mind?" I asked curiously.

Chen Zheng smiled and said: "Actually, I owe it all to A Chang; it was his one sentence that reminded me."

"Brother Wuchang, what, what did he say?"

Chen Zheng said: "Wuchang told me, 'If I love someone, I will never push them toward another. If I can't give them happiness myself, how can you be sure someone else can?'"

Chen Zheng said, it was precisely this sentence that made him, who had always felt inferior, change his mind, like a sudden enlightenment, blessing the heart. He suddenly awakened, and on the day of Dong Yumin's wedding, he brought a large group of people and snatched the bride away.

Although Chen Zheng recounted his love story in a plain and unadorned tone, yet within that simplicity lay an abundance of happiness. He patted my shoulder, and with the tone of someone who's been there, he advised me saying:

"Remember, as a man, don't always start from your own perspective. You think you're dirt poor, have nothing, and believe you're not worthy of her, so you chose to leave. You immerse yourself in heartache, considering yourself great. But I tell you, this is not great; it's cowardice, escapism, and selfishness. You act according to your will and thoughts, yet never consider her feelings,. You keep saying you love her, yet you hurt her heart with your own hands, abandoning the affection that should belong to you. If you love someone, you should give them happiness yourself."

"I'm so grateful, grateful I didn't let go back then! Grateful, I managed to wake up in time and hold her hand!" Chen Zheng laughed, laughing happily, his pure smile like that of a naive child next door.

"Right, this is for you……" Suddenly, Chen Zheng tossed me a small box.

I opened it and saw only a small silver key inside the box. I was about to ask him what this was, but he told me: "This is the key to my bank safe deposit box; inside the box is what the black-robed stranger wants."

I was shocked at once—even someone of the black-robed person's status wants this thing, this…

I asked Chen Zheng, what exactly is the thing the black-robed person wants, and what agreement did they reach?

In this cramped infirmary, Chen Zheng gradually told me the whole story.

Chen Zheng said, the black-robed person appeared before him three years ago. At that time, Dong Yumin had suffered severe injuries and was losing vitality. It was the black-robed person who taught Chen Zheng to use a life-prolonging technique to save Dong Yumin. However, this was merely treating the symptoms, not the root cause. If they wanted to restore Dong Yumin's vitality, they would have to adopt other methods.

The sole condition for saving Dong Yumin was precisely this treasure in Chen Zheng's hand. This treasure of Chen Zheng's was accidentally obtained by his ancestors; it is said that the treasure hides an astonishing hoard, enough to ensure that a family's descendants would never worry for a hundred generations.

But what is this treasure? I guessed it might be a treasure map, recording the wealth of some ancient tycoon or noble.

Under my eager gaze, Chen Zheng slowly uttered four words: "Wu Mu's Testament."

Chen Zheng's words left me dumbstruck, unable to recover for a long time. How could it be Wu Mu's Testament again? Isn't that something fabricated by Jin Yong? Moreover, Wu Mu's Testament isn't a military strategy book, is it? How did it suddenly become related to treasure? Could it be, as said in Legend of the Condor Heroes, that whoever obtains Wu Mu's Testament gains the world…?

Thinking of this, my complexion turned somewhat strange.

"Regarding this matter, I don't know the details very well," Chen Zheng shook his head slowly and said firmly: "But I can be certain that Wu Mu's Testament is absolutely not a military strategy book; it is a gold plate, and what my ancestors obtained was only a corner of Wu Mu's Testament."

I hadn't yet recovered when Chen Zheng continued: "It is said that Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin, together with the Later Zhou Chai clan, followed Guo Wei in conquering the world. After pacifying the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, Guo Wei ascended the throne, receiving the posthumous title of Later Zhou. After Guo Wei's death, his adopted son Zhou Taizong succeeded him. After Zhou Taizong passed away, dissatisfied that the merely seven-year-old Zhou Xunzong had ascended the throne, they launched the Chen Bridge Mutiny, yellow robes were bestowed, and the Song dynasty was established."

Speaking of this, Song Taizu had once sworn to treat the Later Zhou clan well, but the Later Zhou clan was powerful and extensive. To eradicate the Later Zhou clan, clinging to the last shred of hope for the Later Zhou, and also to consolidate his own realm, Song Taizu had secretly swept away the Chai family's wealth long ago.

Do not underestimate this small Chai family. After the Tang dynasty declined, the Southern Han, Wu Yue, Former Shu, and so on— the Ten Kingdoms—rose, with each Ten Kingdoms lord occupying a region. Later Zhou Taizu Guo Wei subdued the Ten Kingdoms one by one, and their wealth was divided among the Chai, Guo, and Zhao families, three households splitting it. The wealth of the Ten Kingdoms lords, even a tiny portion, would be enough for an ordinary person to live carefree for three generations, let alone the fact that in chaotic times there were as many as ten kingdoms' worth of lords.

After seizing the Chai family's wealth, Song Taizu did not deposit all of it into the national treasury; he left a portion and buried it in an unknown location.

Song Taizu was a far-sighted person; he knew the principle that prosperity leads to decline, and he absorbed the experience of rise and fall across dynasties, deeply understanding that conquering the realm is hard, but guarding it is harder.

Therefore, Song Taizu infused the secret of this treasure into twelve gold plates, so that even if, one day, the Zhao family's realm were to change surnames, later descendants could rely on this abundant treasure to make a comeback.

The gold plates total twelve, secretly passed down through successive emperors. Moreover, fearing that the treasure's secret might be obtained, the prudent Song Taizu instructed later descendants to transfer the treasure every three generations. Each time the treasure was transferred, it had to be done by the reigning emperor's trusted chief general. And immediately after the treasure was buried, the general had to order the death of the accompanying soldiers.

It is said that the last transfer of this treasure occurred during the reign of Song Weizong, and the general responsible for transferring this batch of treasure was the greatest general of the Great Song… Yue Fei, Prince Yue.

After Yue Fei's death, the treasure's whereabouts became unknown, and the twelve gold plates gradually dispersed among the populace. After the Mongol troops entered the pass, having discerned the secret of the gold plates, they sent out many agents to search among the people. And Song Weizong, who had lost track of the gold plates, was naturally anxious as well, but he feared that the world would covet this treasure and dared not reveal the secret.

Thus, they forged a Wu Mu's Testament, claiming the treasure was a record of Prince Yue's painstaking efforts, and that whoever obtained it could command troops like a god and gain the world.

However, neither the Mongol troops nor the Southern Song managed to gather all twelve gold plates. With the passing of Prince Yue, the gold plates seemed to become an eternal secret that could never be unveiled.

Of course, this story seems to have many loopholes! First, Yue Fei's death is a mystery; by common sense, Song Weizong would not be so foolish as to kill Yue Fei without first obtaining the gold plates.

Unless there were some unknown circumstances. However, if I were to believe that Prince Yue was a greedy, profit-seeking villain, that would be absolutely impossible. Prince Yue is the nation's proud backbone, the spine of the Great Song; if I were to believe he would seize the treasure for himself, I would rather believe that the twelve gold plates are mere figments of imagination.

This riddle, this vortex, seems to grow deeper and bottomless.

Chen Zheng slowly shook his head and said to me: "Perhaps only when the twelve gold plates are gathered will the truth be revealed. But those, to me, are no longer important; this gold plate… I'll give it to you! As a keepsake."

At this moment, Chen Zheng, mentally unable to hide his fatigue, his sighs filled with disgust and hatred for power struggles.

After Chen Zheng had spoken for a long time, I still stood there, dazed.

Who could have imagined that a turn in mortal affairs could be so unexpected? Just a moment ago I was a penniless loser, and this instant I unexpectedly became rich overnight, a tycoon—although it's only one twelfth, and still a mystery. But to me, it truly is a tremendous temptation.

After struggling for a long time, I ultimately returned the key to Chen Zheng. I admit, wealth moves the heart, especially when knowing I might have a one-twelfth chance to possess a dynasty's riches; my heart pounded nonstop.

But later I thought it through clearly. I'm a lazy person; I love the carefree, penniless drifter life, and power struggles aren't for me. Compared to sitting in a Western restaurant eating steak, I'd rather sit at a street stall, shouting freely while eating barbecue and drinking beer.

But what I never expected was that after I pushed out the key, Chen Zheng shoved it back into my hand.

"In your hands, at least it's better than falling into the hands of those unscrupulous people! If you don't want it, then keep this secret forever; even if someone with ill intentions desires it, they will never obtain this gold medal."

Chen Zheng smiled faintly, but in an instant his face changed dramatically; looking at the small TV on the table, he stared dumbfounded.

On the small TV screen, Dong Yumin, lying on the hospital bed, suddenly vomited several mouthfuls of fresh blood, her body began to tremble uncontrollably, and her eyes turned into ant-like pupils once again.

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