Su Yao stood to the side.
"Then I'll write to Jiangnan first, but it will take at least ten days for the letter to arrive."
"Ten days," Gu Moran repeated softly, tapping the table with his fingertips.
At that very moment.
The system panel lit up without warning, and a golden light exploded in front of him, making him squint.
[Key milestone detected: Yun Shuyue's emotional state has undergone a qualitative change.]
[Original tag: assassin/death sentence → Current tag: admiration.]
[Congratulations, host.]
[Seven beauties have won your heart, triggering a hidden reward pack.]
[Gift Pack Contents: "The First Scroll of Heavenly Craftsmanship: Blast Furnace Co-Fusion Steelmaking Method " and " The Subduing Fire Thunder Formula and Thunder" (including precise proportions and temperature control).]
Gu Moran's fingers froze in mid-air.
Su Yao was waiting for his reply when she saw him suddenly pause, and raised an eyebrow. "Your Highness?"
"Fine."
Gu Moran out of her reverie, her voice trembling slightly, without her even realizing it, "I was thinking about something."
Before the surprise could subside, overwhelming joy surged within me.
Yun Shuyue, that girl.
He always treated her as a reliable and loyal brother, protecting her wherever he went, writing poems for her, and giving her shares in his company.
How come you've managed to warm people up so much in just a few days?
You, Yun Shuyue, I treated you like a brother, and you've already set your sights on me?
He couldn't help but want to laugh, but quickly composed himself, afraid that the three pairs of eyes in the room would see through his act.
Gu Moran composed himself.
Subduing Fire Thunder.
Precise proportions.
What he had been pondering over and over was now clearly displayed on the system panel.
The proportions are accurate to the tael (a unit of weight), and even the temperature and fuse length are clearly marked.
Gu Moran suddenly sat up straight.
Shen Ling'er was startled by his action. "Husband?"
I'm all better.
Gu Moran felt it was absurd even as he said it, yet his voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement, "This illness, suddenly, is cured."
Su Yao slammed the account book shut, her eyes full of suspicion. "Your Highness's illness came on quickly and went away just as fast."
Believe it or not.
Gu Moran had already rolled out of bed; the hem of her undergarment brushed against the corner of the table, causing the map to sway slightly.
" Ling'er, go to the storeroom and take stock of all the saltpeter and sulfur. Keep as much as you can, and prepare it in advance."
Shen Ling'er stood frozen, holding the bowl of medicine. "Your Highness, what's wrong?"
"Just say I need to refine pills, Lin Qingdai." Gu Moran interrupted her before she could finish.
He looked straight at the figure at the door.
"Go and call Xue Huan Blacksmith Mu here. Tell them to put down their tools for now; we'll discuss this tonight."
Lin Qingdai placed her hand on the sword sheath, her eyes sweeping over his face, but she couldn't detect any trace of him faking illness.
He frowned, didn't ask any more questions, and turned to leave.
Su Yao stood there, watching Gu Moran pace back and forth in the room, his eyes shining, a stark contrast to the person who had been coughing so hard he couldn't straighten up just moments before.
What exactly has Your Highness decided to do?
She finally couldn't resist.
Gu Moran stopped and looked at her, a smile creeping onto his lips.
" Su Yao, do you believe it or not, I can carve a path through that rocky area of Severed Dragon Ridge in less than seven days."
Su Yao stared at him, her suspicion deepening.
But she couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong, so she hugged the ledger tighter.
"Husband, have you thought that through? Splitting rocks? That's not just wishful thinking, is it?"
"My beloved concubine, trust me."
Gu Moran interrupted her, his voice lowered, carrying a seriousness he himself was unaware of.
"This time it might actually work."
Xue Huan and Mu Lu were pulled out of bed.
When the two arrived at the study, Gu Moran had already put away the map on the table and replaced it with a blank sheet of paper.
"Your Highness, what happened so late?"
Xue Huan clasped his hands in a fist salute, his eyes still a little dazed from sleep, yet he forced himself to stay awake.
"Sit." Gu Moran pointed to the chair beside the desk, and finally put down his pen, writing three words.
Saltpeter, sulfur, charcoal.
The blacksmith, Mu Lu, leaned closer to look, his face blank. "Your Highness, are you really going to refine pills?"
"Yes, that's what we say to the outside world."
Gu Moran didn't look up, her pen continuing to trace lines on the paper, "However, if someone eats the stuff that's refined, it'll cause problems."
Shen Ling'er came in carrying a tray with several ceramic jars on it, the mouths of which were plugged with cloth.
She placed the tray on the table, her voice still tinged with uncertainty. "The saltpeter and sulfur Your Highness requested are all available in the storeroom, though not in large quantities, just enough."
Gu Moran opened the jar, rubbed a little saltpeter between his fingertips, and then brought it close to his nose to smell it.
The recipe is clearly displayed on the system panel, and the error cannot exceed half a percent.
He silently recited the numbers once, memorizing them, before looking up at the crowd.
Everyone around me is someone I can trust.
"This thing is called Subduing Fire Thunder."
"It's all set up; it can collapse mountains."
The room fell silent instantly.
Xue Huan was the first to react, abruptly standing up, the chair legs scraping against the floor with a screeching sound.
"Your Highness is joking. These items are readily available in ordinary pharmacies and Daoist temples. If they could truly collapse mountains, news of their power would have spread throughout the land long ago."
"It can't spread because nobody knows the recipe."
Gu Moran recited the proportions of the three ingredients, her voice low but each word clear.
"A ratio of seven parts saltpeter to one part sulfur and half charcoal; too much and it won't explode properly; too little and it won't burn through."
Mu Lu frowned, reached out and rubbed the powders together for a while, still looking unconvinced.
"Your Highness, forgive my boldness, but these words sound like child's play."
Gu Moran wasn't angry; instead, she smiled.
He knew this sounded absurd, and anyone would react the same way the first time they heard it.
"Whether you believe it or not is not important." He carefully poured the prepared powder into a small earthenware jar, his movements slow but deliberate.
"Tomorrow, find a quiet, empty spot, and try a small jar. You can see for yourselves."
Shen Ling'er stood to the side, her eyes darting over the pottery jars a few times, before suddenly speaking.
"Your Highness, if this thing really makes a loud bang, could it hurt someone?"