006Imperial seal，verbal artistry

Shen Tang steadied her mind and calmly met the young man's gaze. She asked him, "Sir, do you have a grudge against the Gong family?" To her surprise, the young man's response was unexpected. With his hands tucked into his sleeves, leaning against the tree trunk, he softly replied, "No grudge."

Shen Tang thought to herself, "If you have no grudge, why are you getting involved?" Encountering a male heir of the Gong family and still contemplating murder? Perhaps Shen Tang's expression was too complex, as it seemed to displease the young man. "What kind of look is that?" she thought sarcastically, "Like you're reading a psychiatric patient's medical records!" Despite her inner thoughts, she said aloud, "Since there is no grudge, why do you harbor such hostility, sir?"

The young man chuckled, "As a descendant of the Gong family, how could you not know?" Shen Tang fell silent.

She took a deep breath, exhaling the tension from her chest, and conjured a "gracious and amiable" smile. "Sir, I'm deeply grateful for your life-saving kindness. However, there are a few things I hope you'll understand," she said.

"Go ahead," he replied.

"Firstly, I am not a descendant of the Gong family," Shen Tang stated, noticing a flicker of surprise in the young man's eyes. Regardless of whether he believed her or not, she continued, "Secondly, I truly don't understand your hostility. And thirdly, I am definitely not any kind of male heir of the Gong family..." She was unmistakably a genuine female. Though still young, her body hadn't begun to develop, lacking any obvious secondary sexual characteristics, but just by looking at her face, one wouldn't mistake her gender!

The young man scrutinized Shen Tang's face, studying her eyes, seemingly deliberating the truthfulness of her words. After a long moment, he nodded, saying, "I believe you, young sir." Shen Tang remained silent.

You've got to be kidding! (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻ Didn't I just say I'm not a guy? Why is he so dense! Does he need me to take off my pants and show him something before he'll believe me? 

The young man jestingly remarked, "Although your skills are passable, your reckless behavior and indiscriminate fighting don't exactly suggest a formal education." No proper scholar would engage in physical confrontation with a martial artist. 

Considering that not all exiles were descendants of the Gong family, he speculated that this young sir might be one of the outsiders, perhaps posing as a female due to feminine features, thus sparing himself from annulment by the Dan clan. 

Shen Tang was at a loss for words. There was so much to criticize, but she managed to focus on one point. "You said... formal education? Do I look like someone educated in the literary arts?" A body housing literary talent? Ready to roll up my sleeves!

She finally experienced a bit of the treatment one would expect as a time-traveler. 

"You really don't know?" Seeing her genuine expression, now it was the young man's turn to be surprised. Shen Tang shook her head earnestly. She had been in this world for less than twenty-four hours. Not only did she lack the memories of the original host, but she had also been robbed of her belongings. How was she supposed to know these things?

The young man pressed on, "If you don't know about your literary talent, then what about the verbal finesse you displayed just now?" 

"Verbal finesse... what's that?" 

"It's the passage, 'A mother's hands hold a sword, a traveler's body is split open.' That's your verbal finesse." As the young man spoke, he furrowed his brows, his expression quite peculiar. A mother splitting her child with a sword didn't sound like proper verbal finesse at all, but in this vast world, there was nothing that didn't exist. Perhaps he simply hadn't seen enough.

Shen Tang truthfully admitted, "I was thinking of a way to save my life, and it suddenly appeared in my mind." The young man's reaction was incredulous. 

Shen Tang steered the conversation back, "Sir, you haven't explained why you dislike the Gong family so much." Unresolved issues were like unfinished snacks; the lingering taste was unbearable. 

The young man glanced at Shen Tang, expressionless. "Although I bear no personal grudge, I harbor resentment for the downfall of my country." Upon hearing this, Shen Tang's curiosity about the situation faded. This was no joke; inadvertently provoking someone like him could lead to a deadly confrontation. However, in a world where nations rose and fell regularly, wars and the founding of new nations were common occurrences. People often held multiple nationalities in their lifetime. The young man had feelings for his homeland, but not to such an extreme extent. 

"Well, what about the verbal finesse?"

Shen Tang didn't hesitate to treat the young man as a free "explanatory NPC." Why bother running around asking when answers could be obtained from him? It was like getting something for nothing, who wouldn't enjoy that?

The young man, after confirming several times that Shen Tang truly knew nothing and her questions were quite basic, didn't mind answering them. However, the simplicity of her questions made him wonder if she had emerged from some remote corner of the wilderness. Reluctantly, he began to explain from the beginning.

His narrative was far more detailed than the vague memories that floated in Shen Tang's mind. Years ago, when the stolen star fell and shattered into fragments scattered across the land, people were too occupied with cultivating themselves through literature, martial arts, and absorbing the essence of heaven and earth. Apart from the merchants hoping to profit from rare finds, nobody paid attention to it.

Until a craftsman carved one of the star fragments into a seal and presented it to the ruler of the country. As soon as the ruler laid hands on the seal, it emitted a purple light, and countless strange characters floated out from it, merging with the officials of the Dan clan. It was then discovered that certain combinations of characters within the seal, along with specific literary and martial abilities, could unleash incredible power.

These characters are known as "verbal finesse." For example, the sentence the young man previously said, "牙坚而先失,舌柔而后存,柔能克刚而弱胜强" ("Strong teeth fall out first, soft tongue lasts, softness can overcome hardness and weakness can overcome strength"), is a blessing or restoration for one side in a confrontation. The same verbal finesse has different effects in the hands of different people. 

Since then, the fragments of the stolen star have become standard components of the national seals of various countries. The verbal finesse contained within the national seal directly influences the strength of the country. If the ruler activates the national seal, it can even transform into a powerful tool of the nation, guarding the country's borders and destiny. 

At this point, the young man paused, casting a subtle glance at Shen Tang's expression, before softly continuing, "The capital city of Chongtai was breached, and the national seal was lost. There are rumors circulating that the Gong family concealed and appropriated it. However, even after the Gong family was raided, the whereabouts of the national seal have yet to be discovered..."

Shen Tang didn't pay attention to the national seal, but rather to something else. "Chongtai?" Her words caused the young man's expression to become quite vivid and complex.

"...It's the former Xinguo. There are rumors circulating that it's going to be changed to 'Chongtai'." He thought Shen Tang was asking because the information was scarce on the exile route, unaware that Chongtai was formerly Xinguo. However, she was simply intrigued by the name's peculiarity.

"To change the name after destroying a country..." What kind of operation was that? The young man explained, "To humiliate. 'Chongtai' is a term used to refer to those who serve maids. For the survivors of Xinguo, it's naturally a great humiliation."

"What is the meaning of '凡婢役於婢者'?In common terms, it refers to the servant of a servant, the lowest of the low."

"Could the Gong family, as one of the sinners of the fallen nation, not incur hatred? As long as that national seal does not appear, this turmoil will not cease. These matters are merely of passing interest, unrelated to Shen Tang; she is more concerned about the nature of her own literary talent." 

"The young man suggested, 'Perhaps you should test it.' There are nine grades of literary talent, and only by knowing the specific grade of one's literary talent can one find suitable verbal finesse."

Shen Tang inquired, "How does one conduct such a test?"