Prologue

  "I've heard that you possess the imperial jade seal, a treasure of the ancient world and a precious artifact of China. I am drawn to it with an unshakeable longing. Tomorrow at midnight, I will come to take it. You are a refined and understanding person, so I'm sure you won't let me make a futile trip. This short note, only a few dozen words, is now spread out on the dark red sandalwood desk, illuminated by the bright light that makes the pale blue paper appear in a strange shade of pale purple, also making the elegant handwriting seem more free and easygoing. The letter was unsigned, but it carried the fragrance of jasmine, and although there was no signature, the hand holding the letter trembled slightly."

  The recipient of this note was Euge`ne de Rothschild, head of the Rothschild family.

  He sat at the table, his well-groomed face contorted in a mixture of incredulity and deep-seated fear as he stared at the short note.

  In the exquisite hall, there were only three people. They looked similar and were a family of three generations: old, middle-aged and young.

  Young John D. Rockefeller growled and roared: "Who in the hell has been revealing family secrets?"

  The Rothschild family was once a family that would make the world tremble with fear when mentioned.

  Nowadays, it may be unfamiliar to the vast majority of ordinary people, because in the era of mass media, people's attention will only focus on names like "Kennedy Family", "Rockefeller Family" or "Morgan Family". In pre-World War II America, there was a classic phrase that described the situation at the time: "The Democratic Party belongs to the Morgan family, and the Republican Party belongs to the Rockefeller family..." Actually, after this sentence should be followed by another sentence: "And both Rockefeller and Morgan were once belonged to Rothschild!"

  Tight family control, completely opaque black box operations, clockwork-like coordination, always ahead of the market in terms of information acquisition, thorough and ruthless rationality, endless desire for wealth and power, and a profound understanding and genius-level foresight of money and wealth based on all this, enabled the Rothschild family to sweep across the world's financial, political, and war-torn landscape for over two hundred years, establishing the largest financial empire in human history.

  In the 19th century, there were six great powers in Europe! They are the British Empire, Prussia (later Germany), the Austro-Hungarian Empire, France, Russia... and... the Rothschild family! The Rothschild family also has a prominent nickname, "The Sixth Empire".

  The Sixth Empire has a secret known only to its leader.

  Heirloom Seal of the Realm!

  China's priceless treasure - the Heirloom Seal of the Realm.

  "The Heirloom Seal of the Realm" means imperial power in China, and means leadership in the Rothschild family.

  In that year, the first generation of Rothschild family leader Mayer Rothschild, after inadvertently obtaining the "Heirloom Seal", from then on his business was smooth sailing, becoming the financial agent of Prince William, laying the foundation for the family's wealth.

  Thereafter, the "Heirloom Seal of the Realm" became a symbol of the authority of the Rothschild family and was renamed the "Sceptre of Wealth".

  Due to World War II, the Rothschild Jewish family suffered a devastating blow, and its status was greatly reduced. However, the "Heirloom Seal" has always been a symbol of the Rothschild family, but people have regarded it as the "Sceptre of Wealth", and few know that it is actually China's lost "Heirloom Seal" for thousands of years.

  But at this moment, a short letter revealed this fact.

  At the top of John's head was a middle-aged man with a prominent temple, eagle-like eyes, and a fierce and powerful presence. He was called Verl Roschild, the next heir to the Rothschild family, known for his intelligence and ruthlessness. His face was also very heavy, and his sharp eyes kept scanning the 3D display screen on the wall opposite him.

  On a wall as large as a basketball court, nearly 100 squares are projected, and the image of the entire Rothschild family can be displayed on this screen.

  From the screen, the entire Rothschild family is called three steps one post, five steps one whistle, not a bit exaggerated.

  The guards going back and forth, each holding an assault rifle, with hand grenades hanging from their waists, almost every guard having the physique of Arnold Schwarzenegger, a thousand people guarding all the passages of the Rothschild family.

  These men were all seasoned veterans of a hundred battles, each and every one of them was an elite among elites, these thousand people would have an absolute advantage over the US Marine Corps.

  Even with such a guardian, Igai, Viril and Johan's descendants couldn't remain calm, simply because their opponent was too strong, too bizarre.

  Chu Liu Xiang is a thief!

  This name is a legendary figure in the Chinese martial arts world: he is a wandering knight-errant, a romantic noble cavalier. He comes and goes like the wind, leaving behind only a faint scent of jasmine in the air. He acts according to his own principles, even when stealing, doing it with openness and integrity, as if to say that thievery also has its own code of honor.

  But this legendary figure, a mythical character, appeared in the world.

  Like Chu Liuxiang, he comes and goes like the wind, no one knows what he looks like, no one knows how old he is, all that is known is that there is nothing he can't get.

  Taking without asking is stealing; taking after asking is borrowing.

  Five years ago, he suddenly appeared in the world, not taking gold and silver, only taking national treasures, only taking lost Chinese antiques from a chaotic world. After taking them, he sold them to the Palace Museum for the price of one RMB, returning the items to their rightful owner.

  For five years he traveled the world and no Chinese antiquity that had been dispersed throughout the world could escape his grasp.

  Even the treasuries of families like Morgan and Rockefeller had been entered and exited by him seven times, as if no one was there.

  Before making a move, he would elegantly present a short note like Chu Liuxiang, informing the time and place as well as the object to be stolen. No matter how the owner prepared to defend against it, the result was always the same.

  The most tragic thing is that so far no one has seen his shadow, and even doesn't know whether he is a man or a woman.

  In his presence, all high-tech is like trash.

  "Dong...... dong...... dong......"

  The old bell suddenly remembered, thinking of the arrival of a new day.

  "It's time!"

  Igai, Viru and Johan all let out a low shout at this moment.

  Weir and John looked at Iggy.

  It is said that he never misses a shot and keeps his promises, saying when he will get it, he will get it at that time, and has never missed. Some people even don't know when the treasure was lost.

  At this critical moment, their only thought was to determine whether the "Heirloom Seal of the Realm" was still there.

  Yi Gai wiped away the sweat that had been squeezed out of his forehead due to tension, and slightly tremblingly took out an ancient wooden box from his bosom, opening it.

  A square with a side length of four inches, the top knot intersecting five dragons, the "Heirloom Jade Seal" appeared in front of the three people.

  The weight that had been hanging in the air finally fell, and he let out a sigh of relief, opening his mouth to say: "It...". He meant to say "it's here", meaning it was still there.

  As soon as Ke Yigai opened his mouth and said an "it", a strange thing happened.

  "The Heirloom Jade Seal" suddenly disappeared, and a piece of blue paper appeared in the wooden box. The same pale blue paper emitted a similarly ethereal and romantic fragrance, with elegant handwriting that read:

  Rich merchant Igai Duoxi

  The bandit chief treads on the moon and leaves fragrance.