Du Yan returned with a small wooden box on his back, which looked like a lunchbox and seemed to be from an earlier era.

  The old man was very serious, so serious that Zhao Xi became a little curious.

  "Your Honor, may I suggest that His Highness take his meal first? This jest is taking up a lot of time."

  "What you said is absolutely right."

  Zhao Zhen was at a loss, seeing Du Yan being so cautious that he even had the idea of giving up on this matter.

  Who is Du Yan? He is a descendant of the famous Tang Dynasty prime minister Du Ruhui. Although the Zhao and Song dynasties had no noble families, if we go back to the previous dynasty, how many families that have been engaged in reading and farming for generations have hidden geniuses like this?

  Xier's self-created play temporarily won over her husbands, allowing Zhao Zhen to experience an unprecedented sense of ease, as if...

  Zhao Zhen looked at his son... It was rare, even if the other masters had a hint of inquiry, but Xier remained as calm as Mount Tai. In this situation, he should have been greatly shocked.

  Whether watching or participating, when there's something on one's mind, food naturally becomes less important.

  The curtains were drawn, and the crowd moved from the side hall to gather again in the Yanfu Palace.

  Only to see Du Yan constantly searching around the wooden box that resembles a lunchbox, occasionally with pinching actions, and every time he pinches, there will be a faint 'click' sound.

  "This object was left by our ancestor Cheng Gong and is used for testing young children within the clan. Even though Shi Chang's family has fallen on hard times, he still dares not to sell or abandon it."

  "All the children of the Du family under the age of twenty can try every year. Although it has been going on for years, there has never been a genius who shocks the world. Today I saw King E playing and took it, and also borrowed this to announce it widely."

  The old man was a bit desolate. It's unclear whether it was the reluctance to spread the family's unspoken secrets outside, or the pain of having no remarkable talent in his own family for many years.

  "Brother Shichang is magnanimous!"

  Although the Song Dynasty selects officials without regard to their birth, scholars have always had a tendency to curry favor.

  Everyone knows that Du Yan's ancestors were prominent in the early Tang Dynasty, and his great ancestor Du Ruhui was a famous prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, known as "Du's wise counsel".

  This thing should be extraordinary.

  "Ruban's Lock......!?"

  "Nine Linked Rings......?!"

  When Du Yan took out the things in the box, several gentlemen all made voices of surprise.

  Zhao Xi saw these two things... I'm saying, everyone, is it necessary? It's just a 15-piece wooden toy, and you're making it out to be an eternal puzzle, aren't you being a bit too proud to lose?

  Fan Zhongyan also stared at Du Yan, Fu Bi's mouth twitched, Han Qi was also a playful face, even Ouyang Xiu opened his mouth.

  "Governor... is it certain this thing can be used on a three-year-old child?"

  "What is wealth and nobility?"

  "It was never seen before, but it is recorded in books. King Zhao of Qin once sent an envoy to give a jade linked ring to the King and Queen, saying: 'Qin has many wise men, can they solve this ring?' The King and Queen showed it to their ministers, but none of them knew how to solve it. The Queen took a hammer and broke it, then thanked the Qin envoy, saying: 'I have solved it!'"

  They are all elites who have studied extensively, and "The Art of War" is naturally well-read. Among them, the Nine Linked Rings are also mentioned briefly. However, after a thousand years of changes and dynasties rising and falling, many techniques were lost.

  "According to the ancestors, the younger the child, the more it can reflect its accuracy. As one grows older, even if they are knowledgeable and have a broad vision, it cannot be considered as being clever."

  It really is true, Zhao Xi didn't see it when he was a kid, but later on, he did fiddle with these things.

  "Your Highness, you can try, no need to force it."

  Du Yan is uncertain about the authenticity of the genealogy records. At least, until now, no one in the family has ever opened the nine linked rings, not even at a young age.

  To be honest, he himself had never solved the Nine Linked Rings.

  "Du Xiang, has anyone ever untied you?"

  Zhao Zhen felt it was necessary to ask clearly, having a goal makes for comparison, and also gives Xi'er a bottom line.

  "Never had! Even officials, even old ministers, have never been able to solve it."

  Zhao Zhen seemed relieved, while the various gentlemen looked thoughtful.

  These two things, how to say. Luban lock for Zhao Xi is not difficult, the difficulty lies in the nine linked rings, he has also opened it before, but that was by looking at the password, now he only remembers the outline.

  "Xī ér..."

  "Dad, I want to give it a try."

  Zhao Xi has been through the officialdom, knows how to hide his clumsiness. Even though he is now a noble prince, since crossing over, he has always been cautious in his actions, afraid that if he comes to disaster.

  Today is like this, the queen's lead-out is one aspect, and the key point is that Zhao Xi did not think that hiding could avoid disaster, which is determined by identity rather than temperament.

  Besides, he really didn't want to spend every day playing with Xiao Yu'er anymore. He needed to quickly understand and integrate into this era.

  He felt that the groundwork was not perfect yet, but fortunately, he had done some groundwork before. So, being straightforward is also a good choice, and there's no need to be overly cautious due to his special identity. On the contrary, being stunning is actually the safest way to protect himself.

  "Your Excellency, don't worry. This old minister is also delighted to see something extraordinary today, and has not inquired into the prince's intentions."

  Nonsense! Zhao Xi didn't believe they had no ulterior motives. However, this abacus was miscalculated, and it wouldn't surprise you that I would be unfaithful to the wisdom of a thousand years.

  Zhao Xi still bowed slightly and then walked closer.

  Liu Zhu Ruban Lock is really not difficult, even at first, Zhao Xi didn't spend much time on it, and that was a twelve-column one.

  This is really for young children.

  Zhao Xi flipped through Luban Lock a few times, then gently knocked one of them... He tried to pull it with his hand, but didn't have the strength.

  With a "clatter", the six small wooden bars were scattered apart.

  "Your Highness..."

  Du Yan was really stunned this time. He himself had solved it at the age of nine, and at that time he had pondered for more than two hours, but King E...this was just a matter of a cup of tea.

  "Governor Du......?"

  "Gentlemen, I must confess that I took these two objects to spread the news far and wide, but I never thought that Your Excellency could solve them."

  "I myself took one hour to solve it when I was nine years old, while my two sons at home, one twelve and the other fourteen, both took almost two hours!"

  The crowd gasped in shock. Zhao Zhen suddenly became spirited, his face blooming like a flower, and the triumphant expression in his eyes was unmistakable.

  That's enough, Xi'er, even if she can't solve the nine linked rings, it's enough.

  Zhao Xi didn't stop, still pretending to look at the six small wooden sticks... If you want to show astonishment, then do it thoroughly!

  Zhao Xī's small hands quickly manipulated the six small wooden sticks... Fortunately, this didn't require much effort, and her skills hadn't gotten rusty either.

  "This..."

  Du Yan sighed again. It seemed that no words could express his emotions at this moment. There was only one explanation... The King of E was too demonic.

  "Unlocking Rubik's Cube may involve chance, or it can be said that the mechanism is revealed from the seams and completing the installation means fully grasping its underlying principles."

  "I'm not afraid of you guys laughing at me, when I first opened it up, I was following the diagram, and I didn't even try to complete the installation myself."

  As he spoke, Du Yan took out a stack of sheepskin-like diagrams from the small wooden box again.

  Looking at the picture, I'm afraid it's necessary to carefully consider... but King E is so casual and can be reinstalled.

  At this time, Zhao Xi very respectfully handed over Lu Ban's locked hands again in front of the various gentlemen.

  It seems he really wants to solve that nine linked rings.