“Everyone, look,” Wang Guan reminded them at the same time. “In its mouth… no, perhaps better said, it seems to be holding something in its mouth.”

“Hmm?”

In an instant, everyone’s attention snapped to the Bixi’s mouth. At first glance, they immediately spotted a clue: it wasn’t tightly sealed shut; instead, there was a slight gap. Within that gap, a trace of red was visible, like silk or fine cloth.

“The mouth seems movable… Ah!”

Just then, Yu Feibai nudged the Bixi’s jaw and found it was slightly loose. After feeling around for a moment, the Bixi naturally opened, and a lump of something fell out. Fortunately, his reflexes were quick; with a snatch and a scoop, he caught the item securely before it could hit the ground.

“Losing three years of life!”

At this point, Yu Feibai couldn’t help but pat his chest, letting out a long breath, tinged with a touch of self-satisfaction. “Good thing I’ve trained, or I really wouldn’t have held on…”

“Alright, stop boasting,” Elder Zhou interjected, extremely curious. “Hurry and show us what it is.”

“Exactly, exactly.”

The crowd nodded in unison, their gazes alight with excitement. None of them were fools; they naturally understood the preciousness of the Golden Bixi. But for something else to be hidden inside the Bixi suggested that this item must be even more valuable.

“No rush, no rush…”

Though Yu Feibai said there was no rush, his hands were quick. He immediately held the item up for inspection. It was square-shaped, wrapped in red silk, and felt somewhat hard, suggesting it was a box.

Weighing it lightly, Yu Feibai quickly stripped away the red silk in just a few swift movements. To his surprise, however, what the silk had been covering wasn't a box, but an Imperial Seal—a seal carved from jade, exquisitely clear, with a warm, gentle luster.

“It’s a Jade Seal!”

At first glance, Yu Feibai was naturally both pleased and slightly disappointed. He was pleased because an imperial seal was valuable, and acquiring one was certainly a cause for happiness. But conversely, due to the refined tastes of ancient emperors, carved jade seals were somewhat common, meaning this wasn't exactly a peerless treasure, which caused a sliver of disappointment.

“Wait a moment…”

Just then, one of the experts’ eyes sharpened. After clearly seeing the jade seal held in Yu Feibai’s hands, he suddenly seemed to recall something, his expression involuntarily shifting between shock and delight. His reaction was complex and swift; he urgently signaled, “Look at the inscription quickly!”

“The inscription?”

Yu Feibai blinked, instinctively flipping his palm to examine the base of the seal. The seal face was inscribed with ancient, elegant characters, written in bird-and-insect seal script—a style not commonly seen. Roughly counting, there were eight characters on the seal face. However, because the bird-and-insect script was hard to decipher, and the characters were carved in reverse, he couldn't make out the message.

Initially, Yu Feibai didn’t think much of it; it hardly seemed cause for a great fuss. But upon closer inspection, an unexpected chord was suddenly struck deep within him, sending a shiver through his entire body, making him tremble.

“The Imperial Seal of the Realm…”

In that instant, Yu Feibai’s body shook, and his voice quavered, “The Imperial Seal of the Realm?”

Perhaps due to sheer excitement, Yu Feibai trembled all over, yet the hand holding the jade seal was unnervingly steady, so stable that veins seemed to bulge on the back of his hand.

“Don’t strain it,” the expert rushed to say. “Put it down, gently put it down…”

It was no wonder the expert was so tense. Throughout China’s thousands of years of history, the most legendary artifact was the Imperial Seal of the Realm, carved from the Heshibi Stone by Qin Shi Huang, bearing the inscription Shòu Mìng Yú Tiān, Jì Shòu Yǒng Chāng (Receiving Mandate from Heaven, Eternal Life and Prosperity). Since its appearance, this seal had witnessed the tide of history, appearing and vanishing countless times, its authenticity constantly debated, making its true lineage utterly opaque.

At some point, the Imperial Seal of the Realm became the ultimate symbol of legitimacy for feudal rulers. It was widely believed that without this seal, an emperor’s throne was unstable—a concept known as obtaining the mandate unjustly. For this reason, the seal was inevitably elevated to a sacred status.

However, it was common knowledge that due to constant warfare and dynastic changes across the ages, the true identity of the Imperial Seal of the Realm became hopelessly convoluted. Especially by the time of the Yuan Dynasty, when the Mongol court abandoned the Central Plains and retreated to the northern steppes, continuing their conquests across the vast northern frontiers, the whereabouts of the seal became a complete mystery.

For it to suddenly reappear now, right under their noses, it was understandable why the expert was so excited and barely able to control himself. The only testament to his strong composure was that he hadn't fainted from sheer joy right there.

Of course, amidst the excitement, they still faced the biggest question: was this Imperial Seal of the Realm…

“Is it real?”

At the same time, Yu Feibai managed to calm himself slightly, but his voice still trembled.

“Fake!”

In an instant, Elder Qian, Elder Zhou, and Wang Guan all spoke the denial in unison.

“What?”

Yu Feibai and the others were stunned. Wang Guan was also a little perplexed; possessing an innate ability, he could discern the seal's authenticity, but how could Elder Qian and Elder Zhou, without having examined it closely, be so sure it was a forgery?

“Why do you say it’s fake?”

Yu Feibai frowned, carefully setting the seal onto the table, looking at it from all angles. “But it looks exactly like the genuine Imperial Seal of the Realm to me.”

“That’s correct,”

Another expert agreed nearby. “Its dimensions are four inches square, three point six inches high, the handle carved into five entwined chi dragons, and the front inscribed with the eight seal characters written by Li Si: Shòu Mìng Yú Tiān, Jì Shòu Yǒng Chāng, symbolizing divine imperial authority and legitimate succession.”

As he spoke, the expert pointed to a corner of the seal, exclaiming with admiration, “Most importantly, one corner of the seal is inlaid with gold. This dates back to the late Western Han Dynasty when Wang Mang attempted his usurpation and demanded the Imperial Seal from the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager, enraged, hurled the seal to the ground, shattering a corner. Wang Mang then had it repaired, resulting in the ‘Gold-Inlaid Jade Seal.’”

Perhaps the prosperity of the ancient Chinese art of gold-inlaid jade derived from this very incident. If even the Imperial Seal was gilded, the entire nation must have followed suit, leading to its widespread popularity.

“And there are other inscriptions,”

The expert then gently pushed Yu Feibai aside and began examining the seal closely with a magnifying glass. He instantly discovered more details, growing even more elated. “We know that in the first year of Emperor Xian of Han’s Yan Kang era, when he was forced to abdicate and Cao Pi established Wei, changing the reign title to Huangchu, he immediately ordered the inscription of the clerical script characters Dà Wèi Shòu Hàn Chuán Guó Xī (Great Wei Receives Han Imperial Seal) on the seal’s shoulder to prove he was not a usurper of the Han!”

“Later, during the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Shi Le of Later Zhao destroyed Former Zhao and acquired the seal, uniquely adding the four characters Tiān Mìng Shí Shì (Mandate of Heaven, Shi Clan) on the right side.”

The expert spoke eloquently, overjoyed. “These inscriptions are perfectly clear and match the historical records in all corresponding places…”

“The problem is,” Elder Zhou shook his head, “these details are clearly recorded in historical literature. Not only do we know them, but the ancients knew them perfectly well too.”

“Furthermore, haven’t you noticed that the color of this seal is unusual?”

“The color?”

Yu Feibai and the others immediately took a closer look. The seal’s color was warm and lustrous, yet it possessed a distinct blue tint.

“Green like blue, warm and lustrous—this is characteristic of Lantian Jade,” Elder Zhou reminded them. “While Lantian is geographically close to Xianyang, making it plausible that Qin Shi Huang used Lantian Jade for the seal, everyone must remember: the Imperial Seal of the Realm was converted from the Heshibi Stone, and Heshibi was the so-called ‘Uncut Jade of Mount Jing.’ Whatever the source of the Jade of Mount Jing, it must differ from Lantian Jade.”

“Moreover, the seal disappeared when Emperor Shun of Yuan fled north to the steppes. After the Ming Dynasty was established, Zhu Yuanzhang dispatched Xu Da to lead troops deep into the northern deserts to aggressively pursue the remnants of the Yuan forces. One of the main objectives was to retrieve the Imperial Seal, yet they returned empty-handed. Later, Emperor Chengzu, Zhu Di, repeatedly campaigned into the desert and ultimately died during one such expedition. This was likely not just due to his martial ambition, but probably also included the factor of recovering the Imperial Seal to legitimize his own reign.”

As he spoke, Elder Zhou sighed lightly. “However, there is absolutely no record in the History of Ming that Zhu Di ever recovered the Imperial Seal. Given his personality, if he had, he would have surely made it known to the entire world; he wouldn’t have kept it a secret.”

The meaning behind Elder Zhou’s words was mostly understood by everyone. Given that the Golden Bixi statue they were looking at was, in all likelihood, Zhu Di’s creation, this seal could also be his handiwork.

Everyone knew that Zhu Di had seized the throne from his nephew, the Jianwen Emperor. Even though his reign was stable, the taint of usurping the throne likely left a persistent worry regarding legitimacy and legality. It wasn’t entirely improbable that after failing to retrieve the seal from the desert campaigns, he conceived the idea of forging one.

Furthermore, forgery of the Imperial Seal was not uncommon in ancient times, especially during the period of the Northern and Southern Dynasties when multiple competing regimes existed—nearly every emperor possessed one.

Yet, for some unknown reason, Zhu Di never presented the forged seal after creating it. Perhaps he was dissuaded by trusted ministers, or perhaps his own pride prevented him from resorting to fakery. Consequently, this seal was secretly hidden within the Bixi’s mouth, only now seeing the light of day.

Of course, all of this was speculation. Elder Zhou was certain the item was a fake, but others weren't ready to concede, still clinging to a sliver of hope. The importance of the Imperial Seal was self-evident; merely discovering the genuine article, even without tangible benefits, would bring immense honor, so they wouldn't give up easily.

Seeing this, Elder Qian also spoke up, smiling faintly. “Actually, this seal has one more very obvious flaw, which you have all overlooked.”

“What flaw?” Yu Feibai and the others naturally paid close attention.

“You still haven’t noticed?” Elder Qian chuckled lightly. “Indeed, you only focus on Shòu Mìng Yú Tiān, Jì Shòu Yǒng Chāng. Don’t you find the inscription itself strange?”

“What’s strange about it?” Yu Feibai was bewildered. “Is the bird-and-insect script carved incorrectly?”

“Wrong.”

Wang Guan couldn't stand it anymore and blurted out a reminder: “Don’t you find the seal face too clean?”

“Ah!”

In that instant, Yu Feibai finally understood. The seal face was spotlessly clean, showing no residue of vermilion paste whatsoever—it looked exactly as if it had been carved yesterday...