The three men stared in thought at the thick, black, long rod.
Fang Er's mind worked frantically. These patterns were so much like the circuits on an electronic mainboard, the only difference being the absence of obvious solder points and various chips.
The two quasi-immortals before the Dao had also referred to it as a Qi Gathering formation.
Circuits, formations—these two unrelated concepts appearing on the same object.
It was practically a hybrid of fantasy and technology!
So, who had thrown this thing down from the sky?
To understand this, one might have to go to the heavens for answers.
After much research, Sun Simiao and Yuan Tiangang found nothing else beyond the conclusion that it was a Qi Gathering formation.
Even with Fang Er's permission, they had attempted to damage the sphere in various ways.
Chopping, chiseling, burning, soaking, and so on.
A series of methods, yet not a single trace could be left on the sphere.
If they couldn't figure it out, they would leave it and ponder it later. The three men left the storeroom and headed towards the front hall.
That night, there was another banquet.
After it concluded, Yuan Tiangang, gazing at the starry sky, was suddenly inspired to observe the celestial phenomena in the courtyard.
As he watched, he abruptly grabbed Fang Er.
"Young friend, lend this old Daoist your farthest-reaching telescope."
After a telescope was brought for Yuan Tiangang, he looked at it for a while and then said, shaking his head, "No, I can't see clearly. Have your soldier take me up into the sky in a helicopter."
"What has True Man Yuan discovered?" Li Shimin asked, bewildered.
"Replying to Your Majesty, this humble one cannot yet be certain. Let's wait until we ascend to have a look."
Yuan Tiangang's expression was full of mystery.
It was unrealistic to take off and land a helicopter in the middle of the night; darkness would easily lead to an accident.
They had Zhang Tian bring over a hot air balloon, and he would personally accompany Yuan Tiangang on the ascent.
"Higher!"
"Higher!"
"Not high enough! Higher!"
Yuan Tiangang, standing in the hot air balloon's basket, kept looking up at the sky, urging Zhang Tian to fly the balloon even higher.
Below the basket, all two hundred meters of rope were taut, yet Yuan Tiangang was still not satisfied.
Zhang Tian, helpless, had to use the intercom to request instructions from Fang Er.
So, another rope of the same length was added below.
With a full four hundred meters of rope let out, Yuan Tiangang finally saw what he wanted to see.
When the hot air balloon landed steadily, Yuan Tiangang bowed respectfully to Li Shimin.
"Your Majesty, this humble one was observing the celestial phenomena and discovered that the rogue star representing Hou Junji in the sky has disappeared."
"You mean that traitor Hou Junji is dead?" Li Shimin's eyes widened.
"It's been a year. After dispatching the Hundred Guard Division and the Extermination Army, they still couldn't catch that scoundrel Hou Junji."
And now, to suddenly hear that Hou Junji was gone?
"Are you sure Hou Junji is dead?" Chai Shao asked for confirmation.
"This humble one is at least ninety percent certain!"
Yuan Tiangang smiled, confident that his celestial observations were accurate.
It was precisely because he had noticed the star's disappearance that he had requested to verify it from the sky again, but even flying four hundred meters high, he still couldn't see the star.
In the cloudless night sky, nothing could possibly block that star, so he was very sure of his judgment.
"Good riddance! It's just a pity that I couldn't personally slay that traitor!" Li Shimin said, fiercely flicking his sleeve. He then turned to Fang Er and asked, "Where do I live?"
Fang Er: ...
"Your topic change is so abrupt!"
"Weren't we talking about Hou Junji? Why are you suddenly asking where you're staying?"
Logically speaking, if His Majesty were to stay overnight, the host would definitely offer his own room.
But the problem now was that Fang Er himself didn't dare to enter his own room, let alone let Li Shimin stay there.
Therefore, he had to arrange for Li Shimin to stay in the side courtyard, which was the courtyard where Sun Simiao had previously resided.
The next morning, the matter of Hou Junji seemed to have been forgotten by everyone, and no one mentioned it again.
Li Shimin, along with Cheng Yaojin and four others, went out for a stroll again. Before leaving, he even asked Fang Er for a few bicycles.
He said he had seen others riding them in Shenyang City yesterday and wanted to experience what it was like.
Such a small matter was easily accommodated, as they had nearly two thousand bicycles stored in the mansion.
The workshops had not stopped producing bicycles, but due to production capacity, they hadn't released them for sale. With so many stored now, it was time to let them out.
Looking at the bicycles before him, Fang Er suddenly felt that he had too many things to worry about.
At least for sales, he could find someone to manage it for him.
He used the intercom to summon Lai Yifa and asked him if he had any sharp-minded individuals under him who were good at doing business.
Lai Yifa thought for a moment and suddenly slapped his head. "My Lord, there really is such a person!"
"His name is Ma Wen, and his family is from Taiyuan. He used to do quite a bit of business, but his misfortune was that his business became too prosperous, attracting the attention of the Wang family, who seized his assets. Not only did they seize his assets, but the Wang family also intended to silence him."
Someone tipped off Ma Wen, and he fled here with his entire family.
"Have him come see me!"
Fang Er's heart rejoiced.
For a commoner to conduct business to the point where noble families grew envious and acted against him demonstrated exceptional business acumen.
Lai Yifa gave instructions to his accompanying subordinates, and shortly after, a man was brought in.
"Eastern Depot Ensign Ma Wen greets my Lord!"
After Ma Wen bowed respectfully, he stepped aside and remained silent.
Fang Er carefully observed the man.
He had a broad forehead, a short, slightly wide face, and was quite thin.
His mouth was a little flat, his eyes were double-lidded, and his hair was not very thick.
He wasn't very tall, even perhaps considered short, but the man exuded a spirit of stubbornness.