Is This Token Made of Mud?

Before Old Madam Zhou could finish speaking, she felt a burning sensation in her palm.

Looking up, he saw that the token in his hand had melted away.

Zhou Wanwan examined it carefully for a while and said, "Old Madam Zhou, are you trying to fool me with a fake token? Is this token made of clay?"

Old Madam Zhou stared blankly at the token and said, "Impossible! This is an imperial gift, how could it be fake?"

Zhou Wanwan said, "Then how did you manage to break this imperial gift?"

Old Madam Zhou looked at her and said, "Did you break it?"

The Old Scholar Tree next to it said:

The energy I absorbed last time was really strange!

It was able to burn many things, and this energy didn't even disappear from my body.

Zhou Wanwan also found it quite strange. She infused some spiritual energy into it and asked, "How do you feel now?"

The Old Scholar Tree sensed it for a moment and said, "It feels like this energy has grown slightly stronger."

A tree nearby said:

"Boss, don't I also have this energy inside my body?"

I used this firewood to cook vegetables a while ago, and the dishes turned out delicious.

"Yes, yes, a brother used this fire to smelt iron, and the iron he produced was different from ordinary iron; it was much harder."

Zhou Wanwan was speechless; it seemed this energy was still somewhat effective.

It's probably fire-elemental energy, which is why it can be used to start a fire and cook.

Old Madam Zhou looked at Zhou Wanwan and said, "Are you deaf? Did you hear what I said? From now on, Yanmen Pass is under my jurisdiction."

Zhou Wanwan sighed and said, "Oh! Okay, I understand."

Old Madam Zhou's eyes lit up and she said:

"Everyone, can you hear that?!"

She promised that since Yanmen Pass would be under my control, all the profits from that Yanmen Pass would belong to me.

Zhou Min leaned closer and said, "Grandma, I can help you too."

Zhou Lan quickly joined in, saying, "Yes, shall we go to Yanmen Pass now?"

Old Madam Zhou looked at Zhou Wanwan and said, "You'll come back to Yanmen Pass with me, then we'll hand over the responsibilities, and things will proceed as planned."

The Old Scholar Tree not far away scoffed, "That old hag has really gone mad, she actually thinks she's the Imperial Advisor! She's living in Qingxi City not far away now!"

Zhou Wanwan muttered softly, "Qingxi City? Where is that?"

"Anyway, it's not far from here, only an hour away. That old geezer bought a house and land over there, and he's living a very comfortable life."

You wouldn't believe it, but Zhou Fu'an, Zhou Fukang, and Zhou Fuyu have all come. I heard that Zhou Fuyu got into trouble in Beijing.

They've run here to avoid the limelight!

Zhou Wanwan asked curiously, "What trouble did Zhou Fuyu get into in Beijing?"

The Old Scholar Tree said:

"I heard it involved giving away..."

She's the daughter of a fourth-rank military officer; she's really in deep trouble now.

The military officer said he wanted to kill Zhou Fuyu, and Zhou had no choice but to come here.

Zhou Wanwan raised an eyebrow and said, "Oh ho! My third uncle really brings honor to the Zhou Family! He actually did something like this."

Old Madam Zhou led Zhou Wanwan to Yanmen Pass.

Old Madam Zhou said, "Let's open the door quickly."

The guards stared coldly at Old Madam Zhou, ignoring her completely.

Old Madam Zhou looked at them and said:

"Hey! Zhou Wanwan said that Yanmen Pass is mine from now on."

"Open the door right now, or you'll be sorry!"

Those people looked at her coldly and said, "Get out."

Old Madam Zhou roared, "You're courting death! Guards, seize them!"

Old Madam Zhou was followed by more than a dozen attendants, who were immediately beaten to the ground by the guards as soon as they stepped out.

The followers, their faces covered in dirt, wailed, "Grand Preceptor, we can't win! We really can't win!"

Old Madam Zhou's face changed drastically. "Aren't you the Brocade Guard? Aren't you supposed to be very powerful? How come you can't even withstand a single move from them?"

Those Brocade Guard had their heads bowed as if they were nothing.

"These people aren't ordinary people at all; they're all trained martial artists. Maybe we should just give up!"

Old Madam Zhou said angrily, "Forget it? You bunch of good-for-nothings! This is Yanmen Pass! Do you know how much money Yanmen Pass makes in a year?"

Zhou Wanwan asked curiously, "How much?"

"It is said that one can earn hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of taels a year."

Zhou Wanwan, don't think I don't know.

Make them move aside immediately.

Zhou Wanwan said, "Since you want Yanmen Pass, you have to make them obey!"

Old Madam Zhou looked at Zhou Wanwan and said, "Did you deliberately make them disobey?"

Zhou Wanwan said helplessly, "I've been right beside you the whole time, I haven't left, how can I pass on a message to them?"

"That's true." Old Madam Zhou then called for dozens more guards.

But they were no match for these guards, and these guards were not merciful; they would kill without hesitation.

Looking at the corpses on the ground, Old Madam Zhou said, "Are you all crazy? How dare you kill people?"

The guards looked at her coldly and said, "Old lady, if you continue to cause trouble here, you will be killed without mercy."

Old Madam Zhou trembled and said, "I just want to go into the city, why won't you let me in?"

"If you want to enter the city, you'll have to pay an entrance fee; it's 10 taels of silver per person."

Old Madam Zhou angrily retorted, "Why don't you just rob me? Other people go in for free, but I have to pay, is that it?"

"Yes, you have to pay to get in. And these people, they also have to pay to get in, 10 taels each."

Shangguan Wan'er and Princess Jianing never expected that they would have to pay money to come to Yanmen Pass.

Shangguan Wan'er said, "Do you know who this is? This is Princess Jianing. Can you afford to offend her?"

The guards snorted coldly:

"You're already on the blacklist of several cities under the jurisdiction of Yanmen Pass, so what's the point of talking about whether we can afford to offend you?"

Anyway, it'll cost you 10 taels of silver to go in, and don't cause any trouble inside, or we'll throw you out."

Old Madam Zhou stomped her feet in anger. "Zhou Wanwan, are you going to do anything about them or not? Why are you charging us 10 taels of silver?"

Zhou Wanwan said calmly, "I can't control them. They won't even let me in."

The guard looked at Zhou Wanwan and said:

"Yes, you are no longer the city lord."

Who told you to hand over the city lordship to someone of unknown origin?

"If you want to enter Yanmen Pass, you'll have to pay 10 taels of silver."

Shangguan Wan'er beside her, burst into laughter:

"Zhou Wanwan, I thought you were in a very secure position as the city lord of Yanmen Pass!"

I didn't expect it to end like this. It seems I won't be able to become the city lord after all!

Zhou Wanwan sighed helplessly and said, "Yes, now that I've lost my position as city lord, are you all satisfied now?"

Old Madam Zhou pointed at Zhou Wanwan's nose and scolded, "Isn't Yanmen Pass yours? Aren't all those properties yours?"

Zhou Wanwan looked at Old Madam Zhou and said:

"What are you saying? How could a six-year-old child like me possibly own such a large business?"

This property belongs to the military. Why don't you go ask their commander if he's willing to hand over Yanmen Pass to you?"

Everyone around burst into laughter. "The city lord only manages the affairs of the city. Do you really think a six-year-old child can have much power?"

"You're quite greedy! You actually want all the properties in Yanmen Pass! How shameless!"

"All the money at Yanmen Pass goes towards supporting the army, why should it be given to you?"

"If you ever come to Yanmen Pass again, I'll beat you up every time I see you."

The crowd started to jeer, and Old Madam Zhou had no choice but to lead her group away in a sorry state.

Zhou Wanwan had just entered the city when she realized how overconfident these people were, wanting everything.

The Old Ancestor smiled and said:

This Old Madam Zhou bought a large house in Qingxi City.

She also bought more than a dozen shops and more than a dozen large estates. It seems she made a lot of money in the capital!

Zhou Wanwan said:

"This is the Imperial Advisor; how could he not have money?"

Moreover, the Empress Dowager and the Emperor both trusted her greatly and must have rewarded her with many fine things.