The doctor lowered his head to look at this longevity lock that had accompanied him for twenty-four years, his mind completely blank.

That white jade longevity lock had shattered neatly into two halves on the bluestone path. The crack ran horizontally across it, breaking right through the four characters “Long Life and Hundred Years.”

This longevity lock was his mother’s relic. When he was very young, he had been sternly told that this longevity lock must never be removed, so he had never taken it off even when bathing, sleeping, or later when entering operating rooms. He had once thought about replacing the red cord that held the longevity lock, but throughout these twenty-four years, although the red cord showed signs of wear, it remained firmly tied, so he had dismissed that thought.

Who would have thought it would break without warning today?

The doctor stared blankly at the longevity lock broken in half on the ground. Although he viewed material possessions very lightly, seeing the beautiful jade that had accompanied him for twenty-four years shatter before his eyes made his heart skip a beat. After being stunned and heartbroken for a moment, he came to his senses and bent down to pick it up.

But a slender, pale hand moved faster than his, and in the blink of an eye, the broken longevity lock lay quietly in the Boss’s palm. Seeing that he had no intention of returning it, the doctor looked at him questioningly.

“Do you… feel anything?” The Boss carefully examined the doctor’s complexion and asked in a low voice.

“Feel?” The doctor was baffled. “What kind of feeling?”

This question seemed to stump the Boss instead. The Boss looked at the perfectly unharmed doctor with apparent disbelief, then silently grabbed him and headed toward the main road.

“What’s wrong? Did something happen?” The doctor felt that the Boss was very unusual. Those thin lips that usually curved in an unfathomable arc were now pressed tightly into a straight line, and even his rarely furrowed long eyebrows were knitted together.

“Looking for someone to repair your longevity lock.” The Boss stood by the roadside, waved his hand, and hailed a taxi.

Hearing this, the doctor obediently followed the Boss into the car. He had extraordinary feelings for this longevity lock. Although it was already broken, having just successfully escaped from the supernatural incident with the white snake umbrella, he was very curious about what other miracles the Boss could produce.

Hearing the destination the Boss told the driver, the doctor knew they were going somewhere very far. He sighed, took out his phone to call Chun Ge, and apologetically said his birthday party would have to be postponed. From the other end of the phone came Chun Ge’s ambiguous laughter, teasing that the doctor must be going on a candlelit dinner date with someone.

A candlelit dinner indeed! He had nearly been eaten as dinner by a snake spirit!

Unable to explain, the doctor could only smile bitterly and put down his phone. He stole a glance at the Boss sitting rigidly beside him, thinking that this birthday was truly thrilling.

Although the longevity lock he had worn for twenty-four years had broken without warning, dampening the doctor’s mood, once his tense nerves relaxed, he quickly became tired and drowsy. The doctor simply closed his eyes to rest, and in a daze, not knowing how much time had passed, he felt the car stop. He was passively pulled out of the car by the Boss and was startled to find they were standing in front of an incredibly luxurious villa.

Just looking at the grandeur of this villa, the doctor immediately perked up, his eyes lighting up.

This villa, built in imitation of ancient Chinese architecture, actually looked more like an ancient palace. Yet it wasn’t completely antique – many details incorporated modern streamlined design, and the fusion didn’t feel discordant at all. It was extremely pleasing to the eye, like an exquisite work of art that made people gasp in admiration. This villa was somewhat famous, often featured in architectural magazines, so the doctor was quite familiar with it. But this was limited to its exterior – reportedly, the villa’s interior refused interviews, so the internal decoration had never been made public.

The Boss pressed the intercom on the iron gate, and the doctor was startled, not expecting that the person he was looking for lived in this villa.

The massive iron gate opened inward after a moment, revealing a path paved with cobblestones. The garden in front of the villa wasn’t large, but in this city where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold, it was already breathtaking. The doctor looked around as he followed the Boss forward. Ancient-style wind chimes hung under the villa’s eaves, and occasionally when the wind blew, the bronze wind chimes would produce a series of crisp sounds, creating a unique scene in the evening sunset. The doctor couldn’t help but slow his pace, wanting to look more, but the Boss was very anxious and strode quickly into the villa. The doctor had no choice but to follow.

Upon entering the villa, they found themselves in a magnificent corridor with many carefully arranged antiques on both sides. Although the doctor didn’t have time to examine them closely, he knew these antiques were definitely invaluable. Beyond the corridor was an extremely spacious living room with floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides that directly overlooked the lake outside. The setting sun reflected on the lake surface, creating rippling waves that bathed the entire living room in dazzling golden light. At first glance, the whole house looked as if it were made of gold.

The doctor blinked several times before noticing someone sitting on the sofa in the living room. This man had ordinary features and average build, appearing to be in his forties or fifties, but his eyes were like a child’s – bright and extremely clear. His head was completely bald, reflecting the sunset’s glow like an oversized light bulb. The doctor knew this must be the villa’s owner, and before he could figure out how to address him, the man hospitably smiled at the Boss and pointed to the nearby sofa, saying, “What a rare guest! Sit! Sit!”

The Boss didn’t move, but the doctor reflexively sat down. The sofa was so soft that he seemed to sink into a beautiful dream, lacking even the strength to stand up, as if he might never wake up again.

The doctor was still somewhat dazed when the Boss handed over the longevity lock he had been clutching and said flatly, “Master, I came to ask if you can repair this longevity lock.”

Hearing the Boss’s form of address for this person, the doctor suddenly remembered that when the museum held exhibitions, they had invited this person to give lectures. This middle-aged man called Master was a renowned master in the collecting world, with several generations of unique skills passed down – the art of restoring antiques.

He hadn’t expected the villa’s owner to be him.

Although the Boss had handed over the longevity lock, the Master didn’t take it. Instead, he touched his bald head and smiled bashfully, saying, “Boss, you know my rules. I charge money for repairing other people’s antiques. But the antiques you bring are never ordinary items – each repair costs me a hair. It’s not that I don’t want to repair it, but… look, all my hair has already fallen out!”

Hearing this, the doctor’s mouth twitched. He knew that people in the collecting world were all somewhat abnormal, but he hadn’t expected such a strange quirk of losing hair.

The Boss’s expression remained unchanged as he continued flatly, “Just take a look first. Looking shouldn’t cause any problems, right?”

“Haha, right, just look! Let me look first!” The Master rubbed his hands together, took out a handkerchief from his pocket, and used it to wrap and receive the broken longevity lock.

The doctor had been watching the Master’s expression from the moment he took the longevity lock. He saw the Master’s whole body tremble as he sat up straight and shakily picked up a remote control from the coffee table, pressing it several times.

The living room curtains automatically closed, blocking out the glaring sunlight outside, and the indoor lights came on, soft yet bright as daylight. The doctor watched as the Master pulled out a set of various magnifying glasses from the coffee table and began carefully observing the broken longevity lock.

The doctor had been waiting for the Master’s conclusion, but after more than ten minutes passed and the Master was still turning it over and examining it, he began to feel bored. The Boss still stood straight, his eyes never relaxing their vigilant watch over the Master, as if afraid he might switch the longevity lock in the blink of an eye.

After another ten minutes, the Master finally slumped back dejectedly, sinking into the soft sofa and muttering to himself, “Sinful… sinful!” He repeated these three words over and over, his voice ranging from barely audible to furiously indignant. Finally, he became so angry that his face turned red as he waved at the air, shouting, “Who! Who broke this longevity lock!”

The doctor was speechless. Before he could think of how to answer, the Master had already turned to him and roared with extreme grief and indignation, “It must have been you, boy! The Boss would never be so reckless. I’d trade this entire villa for this longevity lock! How could you be so careless as to break it! Sinful!”

The doctor was stunned by the Master’s reaction. From the Boss’s attitude, he had already guessed that this longevity lock was no ordinary item, but he hadn’t expected it to be precious to this degree! This villa was already the most luxurious in the city, and being designed by a famous designer, it had almost become a landmark building of the city. And this small longevity lock could actually be worth an entire villa?

Thinking that he had been wearing a villa around his neck all these years, the doctor felt his neck ache terribly.

But the Boss snorted coldly at this moment, saying, “Only worth one villa? You’re really underestimating this longevity lock.”

The Master began shouting as if he’d been provoked, “Do you know how much I paid for this villa? This is the most golden location in the city – every inch of land is worth many times more than its weight in gold! You can’t buy it even with money! And I also used a Song dynasty porcelain piece to get that designer to design it for me. The materials used are all the most advanced and finest – it’s not an exaggeration to call it a work of art! Even if this longevity lock was carved by Lu Zigan, it would be worth about the same as this villa!”

“Carved by Lu Zigan? Who is this Lu Zigan?” Afraid they might start arguing, the doctor quickly changed the subject. “Master, how can you tell who carved this longevity lock? I remember there’s no signature on it!”

“You boy, you don’t even know Lu Zigan! Lu Zigan was the most famous jade carving master of the late Ming Dynasty. His techniques like raised relief carving, openwork carving, and incised line carving were all at the pinnacle of perfection, especially his ability to create shallow relief effects. Moreover, his works all had carved signatures, but the placement was very particular – usually in inconspicuous places like the bottom or inside of lids. Legend has it that Emperor Wanli once ordered him to carve a jade pot and strictly forbade him from signing it. Lu Zigan then used his internal carving technique that relied purely on touch to cleverly place his name inside the spout of the jade pot.” The Master had been lonely all day and finally had someone to listen to his lecture. He immediately began speaking eloquently. “Although there’s no signature on this longevity lock, look at the back – in the patterns of the lotus flower, there are two characters. They are exactly the two characters ‘Zi Gan.'”

The doctor took the half of the longevity lock the Master handed him and examined it carefully with the magnifying glass. Sure enough, he found two graceful seal script characters that perfectly connected with the patterns on the lotus petals – truly miraculous craftsmanship. The doctor found it very mysterious. This longevity lock had been worn on his body for twenty-four years without ever leaving him. He remembered every minute detail, yet he had never discovered that there were actually two characters hidden in the lotus patterns.

“That boy Lu Zigan was told not to leave any signature on this longevity lock, and he was indeed so stubborn about it. No wonder he was eventually killed by that emperor.” The Boss sighed from the side, but his tone was completely different from the Master’s narrative – as if he had actually known Lu Zigan.

“Ah? He died?” As soon as the doctor spoke, he realized what he said was wrong. Someone from the late Ming Dynasty – how could he still be alive? So he awkwardly added, “He was killed?”

“Yes, legend has it that Lu Zigan once carved his name into the dragon head patterns after making a jade carving for the emperor, thus angering the emperor and unfortunately being killed. Lu Zigan died young without descendants, and his skills were lost with him. That’s why authentic Zigan jade pieces handed down are extremely rare. Although there are countless forgeries from later generations, jade pieces confirmed through appraisal to be genuinely from his hand are either displayed in museums or hidden in private collections – only a few dozen pieces in total.” The Master sighed regretfully and took back the piece of longevity lock from the doctor, stroking it with pity.

The doctor was still confused, feeling like he was listening to a story that had no connection to the longevity lock he had worn every day.

The Master suddenly exclaimed, “Wait, this jade has a bright, lustrous patina, incredibly moist and warm, full of spiritual energy. It should be much older… but there’s not a trace of earthiness…” The Master examined it repeatedly under the light, becoming more and more excited. “This jade has been handled for at least two to three hundred years. Sinful! Sinful! Boy, where exactly did you get this jade!”

The last sentence was directed fiercely at the doctor, who answered blankly, “It’s my mother’s relic… though it can’t really be called my mother’s relic. My grandfather said that when I was born prematurely, a gentleman gave me this longevity lock and told me to wear it close to my body and never take it off. I’ve worn it like this for twenty-four years. Today the red cord suddenly broke, and the longevity lock shattered…”

The Master’s face became more distorted as he listened. Looking at this young man, he could tell he was an amateur. This jade couldn’t be worn close to the body, much less come into contact with soap and other chemical substances. If it had never left his body for twenty-four years, meaning he wore it while bathing and sleeping, yet the jade could still be nourished to such lustrous smoothness, that meant the jade material had been handled for hundreds or even thousands of years before being carved.

Handling jade refers to the process of gradual transformation through long-term handling and wearing, like a butterfly struggling through its chrysalis – the jade gradually sheds its rough, earthy shell. Even if ancient jade possesses the most beautiful color infiltration, without proper handling, it will remain hidden and unremarkable. The jade’s natural colors become difficult to see, and its jade nature doesn’t return to its original state, making it no different from an ordinary stone. Therefore, ancient people greatly valued and emphasized the methods of jade handling. “Ancient Jade Identification” divides jade handling into three types: literary handling, martial handling, and spiritual handling. Literary handling involves wearing it constantly and caring for it meticulously over many years, sometimes even decades. Martial handling uses a white cloth to rub the jade, using the high temperature generated by friction to bring out the jade’s qualities. Although this is much faster than literary handling, a slight mistake can destroy the beautiful jade. Spiritual handling is even more ethereal – having a virtuous person hold it in their palm in a place where spiritual energy gathers, using mental intention to communicate with the jade. Only those with extremely high spiritual cultivation can accomplish this. The Master had initially focused only on the craftsmanship of this broken longevity lock, but when he noticed the jade material itself, he almost jumped up.

Only such jade material would be worthy of Lu Zigan’s chisel, and only Lu Zigan’s jade carving techniques could match this jade material.

The Master stared blankly for a long while before finally sighing deeply, “If this longevity lock were intact, never mind one villa – I’d trade two villas for it.”

The doctor had become numb to hearing this. Since the longevity lock was already broken, it didn’t matter how much praise it received.

But the Boss said flatly from the side, “Even adding all the collections in your villa wouldn’t be worth this longevity lock.”

The Master’s expression changed, but he didn’t lose his temper. Although his villa was valuable, the collections in this villa were even more precious – many were rare treasures passed down through generations from his ancestors. Being told this by the Boss, the Master almost wanted to jump up and argue with him. However, his family and the Boss were old friends – the Boss and his grandfather had been close friends – and he knew the Boss never made random statements about antiques.

The Master held the longevity lock and began deep contemplation, trying to recall which piece of jade in his memory could be so precious. After thinking for a long while, he chuckled and said, “Boss, don’t tell me this longevity lock is Jia Baoyu’s magical jade – the characters on that one don’t match either!” Apart from that piece of jade, the Master really couldn’t think of any other.

“The magical jade was no ordinary item and wouldn’t break easily. Moreover, it would always find its destined person.” The Boss curled his lips slightly. “The jade material in your hand comes from the same source as the He Shi Bi – it’s the leftover corner material from carving the He Shi Bi.”

“He Shi Bi?” The Master was shocked. If what the Boss said was true, then this longevity lock was indeed priceless. Jade material passed down from the Warring States period, thousands of years of inheritance, plus Lu Zigan’s carving – it was simply a priceless treasure! But such a priceless treasure that had remained intact through long years had broken so easily today! The Master’s eyes became almost bloodshot as he glared at the doctor nearby.

The doctor shrank further into the sofa, feeling that the air conditioning in this living room was set far too low.

“The He Shi Bi was discovered by the jade craftsman Bian He in Mount Jing during the Spring and Autumn period. Initially unrecognized, it was later appreciated by King Wen of Chu, who had it polished and carved, naming it He Shi Bi, making it a treasured heirloom. During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, it changed hands several times before finally belonging to Qin, and was made into a jade seal by Emperor Qin Shihuang. When the imperial jade seal was made from He Shi Bi, two pieces of corner material remained – one large and one small. The large piece was palm-sized, white jade like mutton fat; the small piece was finger-sized, pale blue like water. Having no idea how to carve them, Emperor Qin Shihuang gave these two pieces of jade to his sons. The large piece went to his eldest son Fu Su, and the small piece to his youngest son Hu Hai.” The Boss spoke slowly, his slightly hoarse voice echoing in the spacious living room, carrying what seemed like vicissitudes of memory.

The Master’s eyes shifted, his focus clearly different: “After Qin’s fall, the imperial jade seal went to Liu Bang of Han. Whoever possessed the imperial jade seal possessed the world. This He Shi Bi continued to pass between emperors until it reached the Tang Dynasty. During the Five Dynasties period, when the world was in chaos, the whereabouts of the imperial seal became unknown…” He looked at the Boss. Although he knew nothing about the Boss’s background and origins, through decades of interaction, he knew that many legendary treasures lost in the river of history were hidden in the Mute House. Of course, he had no designs on possessing them, but just seeing such legendary treasures once would make this lifetime worthwhile.

But the Boss didn’t understand his meaning, still immersed in long memories. Before his eyes appeared the figure of Emperor Qin Shihuang holding the jade seal and looking down upon the world, but in the next moment it changed to the scene of Ziying kneeling before Liu Bang with the He Shi Bi in surrender…

The Boss suddenly began coughing violently, and the doctor quickly poured a glass of water and handed it over, but was shocked to see blood seeping through the Boss’s fingers covering his mouth.

Against those pale fingers like white paper, the blood was abnormally vivid. The doctor’s professional instincts kicked in, and he quickly calmed down, planning to have the Boss sit down for a simple examination. But the Boss waved away his hand, took out a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe clean the blood from his lips and palms, and as if nothing had happened, asked the stunned Master flatly, “I don’t have much time left, so I won’t say much more. Can you repair this longevity lock or not?”

The Master scratched his bald head and said with difficulty, “If it were ordinary jade, I might try gluing it together, but when jade breaks, it means it has blocked a disaster for its owner. You absolutely cannot wear it again – you must wrap it in red cloth and store it properly. Moreover, with such precious jade, if something goes wrong, it could cause big trouble. Jade has spiritual nature, but also evil properties. Broken jade easily attracts unwelcome things…” As the Master spoke, he felt bad about it and stood up to solemnly return the broken longevity lock to the Boss.

How could the Boss not know about these things the Master mentioned? It’s just that seeing the jade he had protected for thousands of years suddenly break, his mind was in chaos for a moment, unable to accept it.

All these years, he had watched so many ancient objects break and be destroyed before him, thinking he had long become indifferent. It seemed that wasn’t the case – it was only because what was broken wasn’t something he cherished.

The Boss took the still half-warm longevity lock from the Master and looked at the doctor beside him, who appeared to be in good spirits but wore a worried expression for him. He repeatedly pondered the phrase “when jade breaks, it blocks a disaster for its owner.”

Could it be that he had misunderstood all along? Was the breaking of this longevity lock actually a good thing?

The Boss steadied himself, took a deep breath, and bowed to the Master, saying, “Sorry for the disturbance. I’ll leave first.”

But the Master, seeing his action, caught sight of the torn opening in his zhongshan suit and his face changed dramatically: “You… how did your clothes tear?”

The Boss laughed carelessly, “Clothes are naturally just clothes. If jade can break, how could clothes not tear?”

The doctor pushed up his glasses and noticed these two had very different attitudes – as if the Master were the owner of those clothes while the Boss was completely unconcerned. Could these clothes also be antiques? The doctor stared at the red dragon on the zhongshan suit, not believing the scenes he had witnessed earlier were illusions – he had truly seen that dragon move.

The Master’s face turned cold as ice. He grabbed the Boss’s arm and led him toward a room to the side, saying harshly, “Come with me.”

“Didn’t you say all your hair had fallen out and you couldn’t help me repair things anymore?” The Boss raised an eyebrow and said teasingly.

“Just trying. I’m not confident – after all, my skills are inferior to my grandfather’s. I might not be able to mend such a lifelike red dragon.” The Master’s voice sounded somewhat melancholy.

The doctor watched the two disappear into the inner room and sensibly didn’t follow, but that didn’t prevent him from hearing those two sentences. That moving dragon also had this Master’s grandfather’s contribution? A man embroidering? If there were a mirror in front of him, the doctor knew he would see how distorted his expression was.

With those two gone, the doctor became bored, but since he couldn’t leave without saying goodbye, he had no choice but to sit back down in the living room. Fortunately, there was a bookshelf in the living room with many books and magazines. The doctor casually browsed through them while drinking tea, finding his own entertainment. However, these magazines about the collecting world were too boring, and the sofa was too soft and comfortable. By the end, he simply lay down on the sofa and fell completely asleep.

He didn’t wake up until the Boss roused him, and the doctor discovered it was already past eleven at night. The Master personally drove them back. The doctor stole glances at the Boss and noticed that the torn place on his clothes was only roughly sewn up with thread – the stitching was terrible, not even as good as his own suturing technique.

Such simple needlework, and it took several hours?

The doctor expressed his disdain through internal complaints but wisely didn’t show it on his face.

The Master drove them to the Mute House entrance and then left. The doctor had originally wanted to yawn and stretch, but being blown by the cold wind after getting out of the car, he immediately perked up.

“Are you going back first? Or coming in to sit for a while?” Seeing that the doctor showed no intention of leaving, the Boss politely asked.

“Let me come in and sit for a while. I still have some questions I want to ask you.” The doctor looked at the Boss with sparkling eyes, urgently needing answers to the questions in his heart.

The Boss neither agreed nor disagreed, lowered his head and pushed open the carved door of the Mute House, fumbled for matches in the cabinet by the door, and lit the Changxin Palace Lamp at the entrance.

The dim lamplight flickered in the quiet night. At this moment, the Western clock from the Republic era on the hundred treasure cabinet suddenly began chiming – it was exactly midnight.

The Boss breathed a long sigh of relief, thinking that the doctor’s birthday had finally passed. Just as he was calculating that the doctor had successfully made it through his twenty-fourth year and escaped disaster, he suddenly felt a great force from behind. Completely unprepared, he stumbled forward and barely managed to steady himself by grasping the counter.

Turning around in panic, the Boss was horrified to discover that the doctor, with his eyes tightly closed, was leaning against his back, already unconscious.

He felt as if he were walking through heavy fog.

This fog was very thick – he couldn’t see the surrounding situation at all. Even when he stretched out his hand, he could only vaguely see some shadows, completely losing his direction. Looking down, he couldn’t see his own feet either. Not knowing what lay ahead, the doctor didn’t dare move carelessly.

What was happening? His last memory was walking into the Mute House – how did he end up here in the blink of an eye?

The doctor stood in bewilderment for a moment, then suddenly heard faint voices in the distance. Standing here foolishly certainly wasn’t a solution. Deciding he must be in a dream, the doctor felt there wouldn’t be anything threatening his safety, so he followed the sound of voices.

The fog gradually thinned, and the doctor saw that beneath his feet were blue bricks. These blue bricks were different from those he had seen in the secret room of the Mute House – the blue bricks under his feet had perfect carved patterns inlaid with gold foil and various jade stones, so magnificent they were jaw-dropping.

By now the fog around him had slowly dispersed, and the doctor found himself in an extremely magnificent palace, surrounded by many people dressed in elaborate ancient costumes. At first, the doctor was startled by these sights, but when he discovered these people couldn’t see him at all, he relaxed.

Indeed, he was dreaming. The doctor looked around the palace with interest. What attracted his attention most was a magnificently dressed man standing at the front. This man was tall and imposing, standing straight as an upright pine tree, with outstanding bearing. He appeared to be only in his twenties, but possessed a natural aura of ruling the world.

The doctor couldn’t help but look at him a few more times, only then noticing he was holding a swaddling cloth in his arms with a sleeping baby inside.

“The mountains have Fu Su, the marshes have lotus flowers. This king’s eldest son shall be called Fu Su!” The tall man holding the baby laughed heartily as he spoke. The group of officials below began offering congratulations in chorus. The successive sounds of congratulations woke the previously sleeping baby, who began crying loudly. The observing doctor was already stunned.

Fu Su? How many people in this world could have this name? In history, there was only one Prince Fu Su.

Could this tall, imposing man be Emperor Qin Shihuang?