She's skilled in medicine, martial arts, and even understands animal language—the abandoned dau

“Uncle Wang, you can’t eat this giant salamander.” Shen Man quickly waved her hand and explained, “It has lived for over a hundred years and is very intelligent. Moreover, it has grown so big that it must have experienced a lot of storms. Maybe it has some magical properties. If we save its life, it might bring us good luck in the future.”

Meng Zhuo scratched his head and laughed, "Man'er is more forward-thinking. Let's do it your way."

So Meng Zhuo gathered a group of brothers from Longhu Village, strung together the frames of five carriages, and rushed to the cave that Shen Man had mentioned that very night.

Shen Man was tired from riding a horse today, so she sat in the carriage with a blanket, leading the way for them while catching up on sleep.

After traveling for more than two hours, the group finally arrived at the stone mountain.

It was already late at night, and the Jie people had long since gone to sleep.

Everyone followed Shen Man into the cave and was quite frightened when they saw the giant salamander.

"Man'er, is this really a fish? Are you sure it's not some kind of monster?"

Meng Zhuo had never seen such a terrifying-looking fish before, and his voice trembled slightly.

“Uncle Wang, it is indeed a fish.” After explaining to Meng Zhuo, Shen Man said to the salamander, “Come on up, I’ll take you away now.”

Upon hearing this, the giant salamander quickly swam to the shore and climbed onto the land.

As Meng Zhuo and the others were thinking about how to carry it out, the giant salamander said to Shen Man, "I know this place well, I can walk!"

"That would be perfect!"

Although the giant salamander walks rather slowly, it's still much easier than having someone carry it.

After exiting the cave, everyone worked together to load it onto the carriage.

The salamander had clearly never ridden in a carriage before, and was extremely nervous.

Shen Man had someone use ropes to secure its body to the carriage frame before slowly driving the carriage back.

Everyone proceeded with great caution, and when they encountered steep mountain paths, they stopped and carried it on a large frame.

The way they were so careful was as if they were serving an extremely noble empress dowager on her travels.

And so, after many hardships, they finally arrived at the valley below Wild Boar Ridge just as dawn was breaking.

The scenery here is picturesque, with clear waters and lush mountains, especially the deep pool in the center of the valley, which looks like a giant mirror embedded in the earth.

The moment the giant salamander was placed in the pond, it immediately began to swim happily, like a graceful ribbon dancing in the water.

As it swam, it would occasionally blow out a few crystal-clear bubbles towards Man'er, Meng Zhuo, and the others standing on the shore. It looked incredibly cute, as if it were expressing its deepest gratitude to them in this unique way.

Then, something unexpected happened again.

Suddenly, the giant salamander turned around, swam back to the shore, and then pulled out an enormous heart-shaped clam shell from a not-so-obvious patch under its round belly.

This clam shell was as big as an adult's head, emitting a faint glow, and it was clear at a glance that it was no ordinary object.

The giant salamander held the clam shell in its hands and presented it to Shen Man, saying, "I told you I wouldn't let you help me for nothing. This is my thank-you gift to you!"

Shen Man took the box and opened it, only to find it filled with various sizes of emerald green beads. The largest one was as big as a baby's fist.

“These all seem to be luminous pearls. I’ve seen them in the Emperor’s study before.”

Meng Zhuo leaned closer to take a look and couldn't help but click his tongue and say, "I heard that this thing is very precious. One the size of a pigeon can buy a city."

"Man'er, with so many luminous pearls, we could probably buy the entire Crimson Flame Kingdom!"

"What? These are actually luminous pearls?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Man frowned and said to the salamander, "This gift is far too valuable. We only did what we could. How can we accept such a generous gift?"

As she spoke, she closed the clam shell again and handed it to the giant salamander.

The giant salamander swished its tail, its small eyes revealing sincerity: "In the hearts of our kind, kindness is as heavy as Mount Tai; this is but a small repayment."

Besides, I picked these beads up in the underground river out of boredom; they're of no use to me, and keeping them here would be a waste.

After saying that, it ignored Shen Man's reaction and swung its tail, diving into the water.

Seeing this, Shen Man had no choice but to accept the bead.

She selected a dozen or so of suitable size and gave them to everyone who participated in the fish rescue operation.

"This is precious. Take it back and keep it safe. Don't show it off in front of others, lest you attract their jealousy," Shen Man instructed them.

"Thank you, Man'er, we've got it."

After a busy night, each of them had obtained a luminous pearl. They felt that the task was well worth it, and they were all overjoyed.

While Shen Man and the others were busy hiding the luminous pearl at home, Ling'an Town was once again subjected to a fierce attack by the Qi Rong people on the border.

This time, the situation is much more critical than last time.

It turned out that the secret passage leading to Ling'an Town had been blocked by Fu Kai's orders, which enraged the Qi Rong people, who then intensified their attack on the city.

Outside the city gate, the Qi Rong army surged in like a tidal wave, their sheer numbers astonishing.

Moreover, in addition to sending a large number of attacking troops, they also brought all kinds of advanced siege equipment.

For example, powerful catapults could launch huge stones from a distance, causing serious damage to the city walls;

There were also towering siege ladders that allowed Qi Rong soldiers to easily climb the city walls.

In an instant, shouts of battle, the sound of stones colliding, and the creaking of ladders climbing echoed throughout the entire Ling'an Town, and the shadow of war loomed over everyone's heart.

At the same time, an urgent military report sent by Fu Kai to the capital, delivered by express mail, also landed in front of Emperor Chu Dongchen.

Chu Dongchen unfolded the military report with a solemn expression, and after reading it carefully, his brows furrowed even more.

He raised his head, his gaze slowly sweeping over the civil and military officials standing below the court, and then said in a deep voice: "My dear ministers, war has broken out again on the border. Our garrison only has more than 30,000 troops, which I am afraid cannot contend with the hundreds of thousands of Qi Rong troops."

"Who among you is willing to lead a large army to the border city to support General Fu Kai?"

"Your Majesty, if I remember correctly, it was Marquis Qingyang who drove the Qi Rong people back to their stronghold last time. I believe that sending Marquis Qingyang this time would increase our chances of victory!"

The Duke of Xingguo, standing at the head of all the officials, stepped forward and spoke first.

As soon as he finished speaking, another minister chimed in, "The Duke of Xingguo is absolutely right, and I wholeheartedly agree!"

Marquis Qingyang is both wise and brave, and his reputation is widespread. With him leading the army, we are sure to achieve a resounding victory and defeat the enemy!