Uncle Bennett's scalp tingled: "Enough, I barely managed to keep my life, and now I have to listen to you all argue? I'd rather be dead."

Everyone lowered their heads and ate.

Speaking of that Battle of Shanhai, Andrew Bennett had some impression of it.

The world was vast and boundless, and the Great Feng Dynasty dominated the Central Plains, claiming the mandate of heaven.

Great Feng was founded on martial strength and governed by Confucianism. At its peak, nations from all over came to pay tribute. To this day, the dynasty has lasted for six hundred years.

Twenty years ago, Great Feng joined forces with the Western Regions to fight a decisive battle at Shanhai Pass against the northern grassland barbarians and the southwestern southern barbarians.

Each side committed troops, totaling over a million.

From the start to the end of the war, it lasted only half a year, and in that time, a million lives were lost.

It was one of the most brutal wars in history, known as: the Battle of Shanhai.

Andrew Bennett's father died in that war.

".....With my keyboard-warrior knowledge and the patterns I've summarized from street literature, no dynasty can escape the three-hundred-year rule."

The so-called three-hundred-year rule was named by Andrew Bennett himself.

As a pseudo-history enthusiast, he had summarized a set of patterns from the history of the previous years. Setting aside the feudal lords ruling independently and the primitive, backward Zhou dynasty, no dynasty's fortune lasted more than three hundred years.

The two Songs and two Hans were also dynasties reconstituted after reorganization.

Thinking it over, the fact that the Great Feng Dynasty has lasted for six hundred years must be related to the power system of this world.

The little bean was brought back by Green E, and, hungry, she stopped crying. She was so small she couldn't reach the table, so she sat between Green E's legs and was fed by her.

"Mommy, why do we have to live in the black house? We never have enough to eat." The little bean remembered her experiences from a few days ago.

She called the prison the black house.

No one at the table spoke, and aunt's face showed pity.

Uncle Bennett sighed: "It's because daddy did something wrong."

The little bean said "oh," then added, "Yesterday I woke up hungry and caught a bug. It had this on its head." She held up two short fingers on her head.

That was a cockroach, known along with rats as the two overlords of the prison.

Everyone at the table changed expression, feeling both ashamed and sorry. Letting a child suffer like this was their failure.

"You, you ate...." Sarah Carter's lips trembled, her eyes reddened. She had given birth to this little girl in her thirties; though a bit slow, she loved her dearly.

The little bean Lillian Bennett said crisply, "Then I heard mommy's tummy go 'grumble grumble.'"

The atmosphere fell silent, and everyone's hearts sank.

Aunt's pretty face turned pale, her voice trembling: "And then?"

"Then I stuffed it in mommy's mouth. She ate it really fast." The little bean looked proud of her achievement.

Aunt's body swayed.

William Bennett slowly put down his bowl and chopsticks: "I'm full."

Lucy Bennett: "Me too."

Andrew Bennett: "Full, full, ku ku ku...."

Uncle Bennett: "...."

Aunt was stunned for a few seconds, then dove under the table: "Ugh...."

"Waah waah waah...." Not long after, the child's pig-like wails echoed through the night.

Chapter 10: The County Office Murder Case

The night sky was clear, dotted with stars.

The tallest building in the capital of Great Feng, the Star Observation Tower, was the office of the Directorate of Celestials.

A young girl in a yellow dress climbed lightly upward. As she passed the seventh floor, she heard a noisy commotion coming from the alchemy room.

A group of alchemists in white were arguing heatedly.

"Why did it fail again? The steps are so simple."

"I told you, it must be the wrong amount of salt."

"No, I think it's the water."

"It's the fire, right? I just saw Senior Wan boil the salt."

"It's too hard. The alchemy to turn salt into silver is just too hard. I can't do it."

The yellow-dressed girl named Emily twitched her lips and muttered, "These people are still trying to make fake silver."

Two days ago, she brought the story of turning salt into silver back to the Directorate of Celestials, and the senior brothers didn't believe it at first.

Salt can turn into silver?

Even a three-year-old wouldn't believe it.

But soon, the tax silver case was solved, and His Majesty thought the fake silver was extremely powerful and quite miraculous, so he ordered the Directorate of Celestials to produce fake silver.

Thus, the alchemists of the Directorate began their grueling work, throwing themselves day and night into the blessings of 996.

From two days ago until now, they've been working nonstop, failing again and again, but never giving up.

"Emily, it's Junior Sister Emily!" someone shouted excitedly.

In an instant, a group of haggard faces turned, and pairs of eyes lit up.

"Junior Sister Emily, how exactly did you make this fake silver?"

"Junior Sister Emily, come help me check—did I mess up a step? You're the only one who's successfully made fake silver."

They surrounded the girl in the yellow dress.

Emily Cooper had no choice but to enter the alchemy room and watch her senior brothers' process of making fake silver.

"Failed again!" a white-robed alchemist at the scene lamented.

"Junior Sister Emily, where did we go wrong?" The white-robed crowd all looked humbly for guidance.

There's nothing wrong, I did it just like this back then.... Emily Cooper pondered, "This is an ancient alchemy technique, profound and obscure. It's not something you can learn just by trying. You need step-by-step instruction to truly master it. I'll teach you all a mnemonic—remember it well."