Chapter 410
Guardians of the Giant's Crown
Chapter 410 Guardians of the Giant's Crown (Last day of the monthly vote for gold event)
"Duke Black Cat?"
No matter what this "uncle" said, Han Su remained unmoved.
But it was this title, this cat, that made him suddenly sit up straight.
Since Ms. Shen resolved that crisis, Han Su has remained calm, and outsiders cannot see what he is thinking. However, in reality, the conversation between Ms. Shen and the eccentric doctor has been swirling in his mind.
He thought about Ms. Shen's resentment and anger, and about what she had said: that she had done some things behind the back of the eccentric doctor, including his initial escape from the castle.
The Black Cat Duke was also mentioned.
It's as if her influence was the reason I was able to escape from the castle, and the conveniences I had in the castle later were also due to her arrangements. But strangely, there was nothing related to her in the crystal skull she left behind.
Furthermore, because everything she did was extremely secretive, even if I wanted to investigate, I had no way of doing so.
Until this uncle appeared.
His gaze was fixed on the photo, trying not to look at Ms. Shen, but rather at the cat, its eyebrows and lazy appearance, confirming that it was the same cat that had once led him on a stroll through the castle.
Han Su finally spoke slowly: "Where?"
"A small city next to Yecheng."
The middle-aged man, or rather, Ms. Shen's brother, Shen Zhuohan, spoke in a low voice: "Lakeside City!"
"Your mother lived here before she betrayed the family, and there was a small laboratory here."
"I think that period must have been the most carefree and happiest time of her life."
"..."
"Lakeside Town?"
Upon hearing the name, Han Su hesitated slightly, then it was as if something had struck his mind.
Isn't that one of the hiding places for the remaining two mechanical fragments?
One piece is in Zhen Dan City, and the other is in Lakeside City. Miss Ai has been asked to closely monitor both locations. Lu Neng, who is currently searching for the next mechanical fragment, also set off two days ago, with his destination being the second-tier city, Lakeside City.
He had a vague feeling that many things were aligning, and without showing any emotion, he immediately asked, "Are you willing to take me there?"
"That's why I came here."
Once Shen Zhuohan was certain that Han Su was interested in this, he looked up at him seriously and said in a low voice, "Of course, since I'm here, some things should be said in a more pleasant way."
“I’ll take you to this lab, but you’ll need to give another reason: for example, that you agreed to come back to Yecheng with me after I advised you to try and make contact with the family…”
He paused for a moment, then tried to explain, "I won't lie to you, I have a pretty good relationship with your mother, but in families like ours, there's really no real affection between fathers and daughters or brothers."
"I can keep your mother's secret and help her in crucial moments, that's already the limit."
“Now that she is dead, and this is the first time I’ve ever met you, I’m willing to come and see you and tell you about that letter and the laboratory she left behind. That’s already the greatest favor I can do for you.”
"Correspondingly, I also need to consider some benefits."
"..."
As he said these words, his face was surprisingly calm: "On the surface, persuading you to go back will be a credit to me, making it easier for me to accept the title of earl. Consider it my reward for coming all this way..."
Upon hearing this, Han Su frowned slightly, re-examined the man, and smiled, "How do I know you're not just trying to coax me into going?"
"Perhaps this is just bait to lure me back to my family?"
"..."
"Of course you can think that way."
Shen Zhuohan slowly sat up straight and said softly, "You can even think of it as more serious."
"Even now, I can be frank with you that if it truly comes down to a choice between you and my family, I have no reason not to choose you over my family..."
"...Don't believe anyone in the family. I reserve the right to betray you at any time."
"..."
These words made Han Su start to seriously examine his uncle. After a pause, he smiled and said, "Then I choose to believe you."
"I must admit, you are the most comfortable nobleman I have ever met to talk to."
"..."
"There's no need to be so polite."
Shen Zhuohan smiled and said, "When there is no conflict of interest, every gentleman is very eloquent and charming."
After the agreement was reached, Shen Zhuohan took his leave and went outside to wait. He left the photo with Han Su, who picked it up and looked at it carefully.
The tall and slender Ms. Shen stood beside the chair, on which she was holding the black cat Duke, and she was smiling very happily...
...But what's ridiculous is that because my memories of the period before I was ten years old are incomplete, I don't even know when this was taken.
In his fragmented memories, Ms. Shen often hit him and then hugged him and cried. He seemed to be living cautiously, in fear and tension.
He couldn't even remember the last time he had shown such a happy expression...
But he was also certain that the photo was not fake.
Because his superhuman intuition told him that the photo was real, and because although he had no memory of it before, he immediately felt a strong sense of familiarity after seeing the photo, confirming that he had experienced such a moment in his life.
He sighed softly, put the photos away, and then called Lü Xiaoba: "Let's not blow them up for now. I have to go out for a bit."
"What the hell?"
On the other end of the phone, Lü Xiaoba was immediately filled with dissatisfaction: "Do you know how hard it was for me to gather so much explosives? Do you know that I even maxed out my credit card to buy these things?"
"Now that all the goods have been delivered, you're saying we shouldn't have it? My mom's birthday is these two days, and I canceled all my plans just to see this fireworks display. I should have gone back to Qinggang to see the real fireworks."
"I'll pay your credit card bill for you, okay?"
Han Su sighed and said, "Anyway, let's put it off for now. It's not like we're not going to bomb it, it's just a two-day delay."
"Fine!"
Upon hearing that Han Su would help pay off the credit card, Lü Xiaoba was surprisingly agreeable and said, "Then I'll put it under the bed first."
"This thing can be stored under the bed?"
Han Su also found it a bit strange, but considering Lü Xiaoba's style of doing things, he didn't presume to give him any advice. Instead, he greeted Miss Ai and made preparations for the trip.
For Miss Ai, it was just a matter of agreeing, but for this uncle from the Shen family, it seemed to be a big deal.
He waited outside the temple early on. When Han Su walked out of the temple carrying his black briefcase, his subordinates immediately reported that the private plane was ready.
The fact that the Shen family can take off at any time demonstrates their sincerity.
This can be interpreted as a display of the Shen family's strength, or it can be interpreted as him not wanting to waste Han Su's time.
The driver and secretary who were with Shen Zhuohan, as well as Shen Qinghui who was also helped onto the private jet after changing clothes, all showed a subtle scrutinizing attitude towards Han Su.
The driver and secretary were polite but somewhat distant, while Shen Qinghui was quite excited to hear that Han Su was willing to return to Yecheng with his father.
She believed this showed that Han Su was willing to return to the family. It wasn't unprecedented for someone like him, a member of an outside family, to return to the family; in fact, there were many such cases.
These ancient rules were observed in all ethnic groups and aristocratic families:
If a daughter marries into another family, her children will be considered outsiders. They can be relatives, but they can never be integrated into their own family.
However, if a daughter marries an ordinary person outside the family, she may be recognized by the family and become a member of the family.
That eccentric doctor was certainly very capable, but he didn't belong to any of the twelve races, so in the eyes of the nobles, he was just an ordinary person.
These rules may sound childish at first glance, but all the major families follow them very seriously and regard them as ironclad rules.
"So, what's the deal with the giant's crown?"
After the private jet took off, Shen Qinghui was helped into the lounge, where his bodyguards and secretary took care of him. In the cabin lounge, Han Su sat opposite Shen Zhuohan, watching the dark clouds rushing past outside the cabin, and slowly began to speak.
He could tell that his uncle was a very tactful person, someone who knew how to behave appropriately towards others and also cared whether others understood his tact. So, before boarding the private jet, he didn't ask for any further information.
Even if you know the answer in your heart, this person will not tell you, no matter how much you ask.
Now that he has boarded the plane and heading to Yecheng is inevitable, it is only reasonable to ask for more information.
As expected, Shen Zhuohan readily agreed, stating directly, "It is a sacred relic of our Giant Whale Clan."
"It is said to be a trophy that our ancestor, the Giant Whale Knight, seized from the Giant Royal Court. It contains the authority of the Pale Sequence and the will of our knight ancestor. How to wield this sacred relic is the biggest problem for our Shen family."
"..."
Han Su pondered slowly: "So, it's the same as the golden spear of the Golden Clan?"
"yes……"
Shen Zhuohan sighed deeply and said, "I don't need to say much about what happened in Linyuan City. You experienced it firsthand, so you know more about it than I do."
"I'm just saying that from the perspective of other ethnic groups, the old Marquis of Lin Yuan City was essentially wiped out. His entire bloodline died out in a single day. It looks tragic, but other ethnic groups, including my family, might actually envy them."
"At least, the Golden Clan has successfully elected a Grand Duke, which means the internal strife is over and their family affairs have entered a new phase..."
"We were not so lucky. The Grand Duke's choice was uncertain and without any clear plan."
"..."
Han Su frowned, thinking of some unpleasant things.
Choosing a Grand Duke is a major event for every race, but it is also accompanied by many dirty tricks. For example, the Golden Race used every means to create a freak named Xu Qiao, who was put in charge of the Holy Relics.
The Shen family had also engaged in similar schemes, even targeting Ms. Shen herself, but she was brave enough to escape that fate.
As if sensing the fleeting disgust in Han Su's eyes, Shen Zhuohan subtly changed the subject, saying softly, "But while I envy the Xu family, I have to admit that our Shen family is quite lucky."
"Firstly, the Pale Factory has always been in our hands, which gives us a weapon to deter the world, and no one has ever dared to provoke us."
"This is thanks to your father; one of his suggestions back then saved us a lot of trouble."
"And another point is your mother..."
"..."
He sighed softly and said, "She is also a very intelligent person, or rather, a very amazing person."
"From a very young age, she showed an obsession with the Pale Sequence and the favor of the knight ancestors!"
"..."
Han Su didn't understand this point and was slightly taken aback: "Favor?"
"Yes."
Shen Zhuohan nodded and said in a low voice, "The difference between the Giant Whale Shen family and other families is that other families cannot use sacred relics under normal circumstances. Only after selecting a Grand Duke or gathering enough family bloodlines can they activate them temporarily in the form of a secret incantation."
"But in our Shen family, there has always been a duke who can draw upon the power of sacred relics."
Han Su couldn't hold back any longer: "That cat?"
"Yes!"
Shen Zhuohan said softly, "We are all used to calling him Duke. Although he is not human and cannot speak, his status in the Shen family can be said to be unique."
"It has lived for many years, always in the Shen family's old mansion, always guarding the secret chamber where the giant's crown, a sacred relic, is kept."
"Moreover, no matter what kind of seal or door is placed in that room, it can always easily get to the giant's crown and wander out to eat when it's hungry..."
Remembering that the Black Cat Duke had behaved similarly in the castle, Han Su was already quite concerned.
"What exactly is its origin? Can't the Shen family figure it out?"
"..."
"We can't figure it out, not even the old marquis can understand it, and more importantly, we dare not study it."
Shen Zhuohan gave a wry smile and said, "It has lived for too long, so long that even the old Marquis said that this cat was already there when he was a child. Moreover, it is of a very high generation, and the entire Shen family dares not study it, dare not offend it, and dare not imprison it."
"Not to mention, it did indeed draw upon the power of the Giant Crown when something bad happened to the Shen family, saving the entire clan."
"There are actually many legends surrounding the Shen family..."
At this point, he sighed and said, "Some say that only those it approves of can become the Grand Duke of the Whale Clan."
"Some say it comes from before the reconstruction of civilization, and was a companion of the ancestral knights."
"Of course, we've gone off-topic. What I wanted to say was that your mother was considered to be favored back then because of this. When she was little, we went to the ancestral home together, and this old cat ignored everyone else but was close to her."
"Back then, the old marquis foresaw this and wondered if it meant the new Grand Duke would be related to your mother. That's why he considered having her participate in the plan to give birth to the Grand Duke..."
"But this is just speculation. We need to admit that, in retrospect, he was relatively lenient towards your mother; at least after her betrayal, he didn't try to kill her..."
"..."
Listening to everything about the cat, Han Su also remembered the person he had met in the abyss, the person he knew very well. When he was talking to him, there was a cat lying on his shoulder, or rather, the Black Cat Duke.
Its mystery far exceeds my imagination.
He thought to himself, then quickly asked, "So, what happened next?"
"Later, it disappeared."
"disappear?"
Shen Zhuohan shook his head with a wry smile and said, "I know this is absurd. The reappearance of this ancestor who lost his ancestor is perfectly normal in the Shen family. Because you dare not imprison it, nor can you keep observing it."
“It used to disappear for a month or two, and then one day it would lazily lie on the eaves of the ancestral home. Of course, that time it was missing for too long, so the whole Shen family suddenly became nervous and searched for it everywhere.”
"But there's nothing we can do, we simply can't find out where it went..."
"..."
He said this before looking up at Han Su: "Until your mother sent me that photo."
"That's when I realized it went to find you!"
(End of this chapter)