The King of Kings: Three Days Emperor

Chapter 03: The Battle of Chrysanthemums

Early in the morning Lao Huo woke to the sound of the rooster's cries. He found his inn still intact and was tremendously happy. That was just the outside, there was still the inside to check. And it did not matter who was in which room, who was sleeping or doing what, he barged right in.

Wei Han, Bai Li, and Xiao Tian had been running around searching all morning for Wu Lei. They too were hypnotized by the duelists, but they fell into a deep sleep. They passed by Lao Huo, but Lao Huo brushed passed them before they could ask about the where-about of their Young Master. They watched and followed him as he made his rounds of checkups.

When they came upon the ninth floor the doors flung opened on one room when Lao Huo saw scratches on the balustrade. Wu Lei was seen resting on the daybed off to the side; a puddle of blood and the table split in halves in the middle of the room.

"YOUNG MASTER!" Wei Han, Bai Li, and Xiao Tian stormed in.

"Hey hey hey!" Lao Huo called for them to get out, but they refused.

Wu Lei opened his eyes and yawned. The young man on the bed roused up by the noise. He yawned, got up and massaged his shoulders, twirled his head and stretched his arms while letting out a faint moan. He was completely unaware of the situation where people are watching in amusement.

"What happened to my most prized Battle of Chrysanthemums table? Do anyone of you know how expensive this table is? This was made by using the Wangen wood, carved by the famous Mu Rong Mu! On it is a landscape depicting the Battle of Chrysanthemums from centuries ago!"

The young man stared at the split table for a brief moment before getting off the bed to examine it. He examined the table then shook his head with his arms crossed. "Lao Huo, Lao Huo, did you just wake up?" He asked. "Somebody exchanged your precious table."

"Nonsense! I've been with this table for ten years! How could I not tell? I was the one to put it in this room!"

The young man re-examined the table then nodded, "Hm..." He rubbed his chin and concluded, "This indeed, is a fake!"

"You rascal, have you seen a Mu Rong Mu's carving before?"

"Of course I have! My family has lots of them!" He blurted out but regretted it a moment after. What has been said could not be retracted so the young man layered the hole with another half lie, "My family is known for seeking out and trading pieces from Mu Rong Mu. This here has a carving from Mu Rong Mu, but this here is not a piece from Mu Rong Mu."

"If it's carved by Mu Rong Mu, then why is it not a piece from him?" Lao Huo questioned.

"How am I suppose to know how a Mu Rong Mu's carving is on this? But I know for sure Mu Rong Mu don't use Wangen for any of his pieces. Furthermore, Mu Rong Mu does not leave a seal on his pieces!" The young man collected his thoughts, "Come to think of it...I've seen a lot of similar pieces like this around Jin. Your country got scammed!" He exclaimed.

"Your country?" said all five at once. The young man pursed his lips and tapped it for blabbering too much. At this time of the year, many people from other country would make their way to Jin, but they mostly wear their ethnic's clothings. This young man had made a dire mistake, breaking one of the laws of Jin.

"If you're not a Jin, then why are you dressed as one? Do you know that it is against the law in our country to dress as our people?" Lao Huo reminded him, "At least if you're gonna dress as one, then you ought to not use the terms, 'your country, mine'."

The young man kept his mouth closed and nodded obediently at the sound advice. Wu Lei got up from the daybed and whispered to Xiao Tian. Xiao Tian went over to Lao Huo and handed him a jade medallion. Lao Huo took one look at it then glanced over at them in amazement. The medallion signify their status as government's officials of a high rank. The young man shifted his eyes over to try and have a peek at the medalion.