Duke Wen of Jin admired Kong Ping's words. Putting aside his talent, Kong Ping's ambition was very much in line with his wishes. He immediately agreed to Kong Ping's request and allowed Kong Ping to enter the learning palace of Jin Country.
In this era, every powerful vassal state had their own academy. Only the rich and noble could enter, because in this era, learning was a luxury.
After his travels, Duke Wen of Jin returned to the court. He dismissed his subordinates and entered a secret chamber deep in the palace alone.
Standing in front of the stone deer, Duke Wen of Jin lit the candles around him.
It had been nearly ten years since he fished out the Stone Deer. Duke Wen of Jin would enter the secret chamber to observe the Stone Deer whenever he had time.
"As expected, your petrification doesn't mean death. Compared to when I picked you up, your body is really slowly changing."
Duke Wen of Jin raised his hand and stroked the stone sculpture.
Although the change was very slow, he was sure that the size of the stone deer had increased a little. Moreover, the stone texture that had originally felt rough now felt a little smooth.
When the light from the candle shone on it, one could vaguely see a little reflection.
The stone deer that had been completely petrified seemed to be transforming into jade.
What a magical scene.
Duke Wen of Jin touched the head of the stone deer with his palm. He could feel two small bumps behind the antlers. These were definitely not there when Duke Wen of Jin fished them up.
Duke Wen of Jin was sure that Ling Ye was not dead, but in a state similar to a silkworm moth.
This Spirit Xuan matter made Duke Wen of Jin sigh at Ling Ye's miraculous abilities, but at the same time, he could not help but sigh at his own insignificance. Even though he was now the Duke of a country, above tens of thousands of people, and the overlord of the entire Central Plains, with a high status and power, even the Emperor of Great Zhou had to respect him, in the end, he was just an ordinary human, a mortal.
" Sometimes, I really don't know if the decision to bring you back to the State of Jin was right or wrong," Duke Wen of Jin sighed.
Besides Duke Wen of Jin and his trusted aides, only his favorite son, who was going to take over his position, knew about Ling Ye's existence.
Duke Wen of Jin was not worried about his next generation, but the next generation, the next generation, and even the Duke of Jin who was even further away.
Humans were greedy.
Duke Wen of Jin was not sure that his descendants would always be wise and keep their hearts. If a fatuous and selfish Duke appeared in Jin, then Ling Ye's existence would definitely be a disaster for Jin.
"Forget it. Children and grandchildren have their own fate of fortune and misfortune. Fortune and misfortune are fate."
Duke Wen of Jin sighed and turned to leave.
In the next two years, Duke Wen of Jin's health went from bad to worse. He had been working hard on state affairs for many years, making it impossible for him to concentrate too much. In the third year, Duke Wen of Jin passed away, and Gong Zihuan ascended the throne as Duke Xiang of Jin.
Duke Xiang of Jin was a generous and virtuous man. He did not change much about his father's position as an important minister and his opinions. As a result, after the fifteenth non-war alliance, Jin's national strength remained the same and it maintained its position as the overlord.
In the following hundred years, although the Duke of Jin was not outstanding in every generation, there was no particularly fatuous Duke. Even if Jin fell from the position of overlord, it still maintained its power among the vassals.
In addition, with the wars that had happened in the past hundred years, the Jin Kingdom had annexed many weak vassal states. Basically, all the small neighboring states around the Jin Kingdom had been annexed, causing the land area of the Jin Kingdom to grow rapidly.
In terms of land area, the State of Jin was definitely ranked second, followed by the State of Chu in the south. However, in terms of national strength, the State of Chu might not be higher than the State of Jin.
However, although Jin was strong, there was no eternal peak in the world.
More than a hundred years later, a certain Duke of Jin loved extravagance. At the same time, he was interested in the biggest secret of Jin, the legendary stone deer statue.
Before Duke Wen of Jin died, he had left behind an instruction for the next Duke to protect the stone deer and not to be greedy.
"The ancestor Wen Gong from a hundred years ago was really too stubborn. After obtaining the legendary stone sculpture of the Immortal Deer in the Clouds, he insisted on setting up some kind of legacy that said that one should not be greedy. My father was also troublesome. He insisted that I make some kind of oath to protect the stone deer. He was really too stupid."
In a secret chamber in the State of Jin, the current Duke of Jin, Duke Ding of Jin, stood in front of a jade statue with his two subordinates, a eunuch and a personal guard.
How was this a stone deer? It should be a jade deer.
Its lifelike appearance, snow-white jade-like body and blood-red antlers made it look like a priceless treasure, not to mention the legend of the Immortal Deer in the Clouds. Duke Ding of Jin's eyes were burning with excitement.
The eunuch at the side revealed a flattering smile and said,""Lord Ding is right. It is said that the strong will always be strong. Our Jin Country has this treasure. If we can crack the secret inside, it might increase our national strength by a level."
The eunuch did not dare to directly state that Duke Wen of Jin's will was wrong, but only agreed with Duke Ding of Jin's statement.
After all, people liked to listen to their own words. It was only natural for them to flatter their masters.
Duke Ding of Jin laughed and said," You're right. Our ancestors are too cautious and stingy. Secrets are meant to be broken. It's said that the Immortal Deer in the Clouds has incredible power. Since I'm the current Duke of Jin, I must get this power. Carry the Stone Deer, no, the Jade Deer out for me. I want to break this jade shell and see what's inside."
In fact, in the past hundred years, there had been several generations of Duke of Jin who had tried to break the stone deer out of curiosity, but they all failed.
However, humans had the thought that even if others couldn't do it, they might not be able to do it themselves. Duke Ding of Jin was undoubtedly one of them.
Duke Ding of Jin found the craftsmen in the palace and tried all kinds of weapons and methods, but they could not even make a mark.
"Trash, you bunch of trash. There are so many people and so many tools, but you can't even handle a jade deer!"
Duke Ding of Jin, who had been sitting at the side, waiting for the Jade Deer to break open and fantasizing about catching Ling Ye inside, who could use the legendary White Deer's blood to prolong his life, was instantly angered when he saw this scene. After cursing angrily, he dragged all the people who attacked him away and executed them.
Duke Ding of Jin was not stupid. He knew that the legendary statue of the Immortal Deer in the Clouds should not be exposed.
However, he didn't notice that the other eunuch's gaze towards Yu Lu had changed.
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