Pei Yue returned to the Duke's mansion, pretending to be nonchalant. As the wife of the heir apparent, she could easily come into contact with the pair of celadon vases.

While the Duke and his son were at court, they quickly stole the celadon vase with the head maid.

Mo Yan wore a straw hat and drove a carriage that was the most common sight on the street. The carriage was full of people, and the two of them kept watching from outside the Duke's mansion.

Pawning imperial gifts is a serious crime, and Pei Yue dared not entrust it to anyone else; she would handle it personally. The young lady said they must keep a close eye on the wife of the Duke of Xun's heir.

Pei Yue's personal maid, Ruixue, left the mansion first and secretly went to find Pei Yue's cousin, Liu Jie. The two talked about something, but Mo Yan, who had no martial arts skills, couldn't hear it. However, this did not hinder their pursuit.

After a brief meeting with Liu Jie, Ruixue returned to the Duke's Mansion to report to Pei Yue, while Liu Jie went to Sun's Pawnshop.

Less than half a day later, Ruixue went out of the mansion to meet Liu Jie again. The two whispered to each other, very wary.

After being stuck in traffic for more than a day, Pei Yue finally left the mansion and entered a secluded teahouse with Liu Jie.

Mo Yan immediately followed, while Manman went to the teahouse owner, gave him five taels of silver, and asked him to act as a witness.

"Shopkeeper, the couple in room number three, the woman has a pair of vases in her bundle, she will hand them to the man herself... just tell him the truth then."

The teahouse owner didn't want to cause trouble, refused payment, and wouldn't testify: "I'm just a teahouse owner; I don't care about right or wrong."

Manman said, "What if someone is plotting to harm someone? This woman is using a gift from the emperor to frame the second young master of the Duke's mansion. If he finds out you refuse to testify, you can forget about opening your teahouse in the future."

Upon hearing the name Yin Er, the shopkeeper immediately felt a headache coming on. Getting involved with that scoundrel meant not only the teahouse would be unable to operate, but his family would also be in for a rough time.

The shopkeeper said helplessly, "Let me make this clear: I can testify, but I will only tell the truth. Lying is not allowed, and you must be present at the time."

She assured him, "Don't worry, it won't affect your teahouse. I'm the head maid of Madam Gu."

When the shopkeeper saw the Qingpuyuan waist token she took out, he realized that she was indeed the head maid of Madam Gu!

How did the matter of Second Master Yin involve the Grand Secretary's wife?

But it can help the matriarch of the Grand Secretariat, make a good connection, and you can get money for free without taking any responsibility. It's just telling the truth. Why not do it?

To be able to open such a large teahouse in the capital, he must not be an ordinary person; he has connections.

Liu Jie took the celadon vase and sneaked off to Sun's pawnshop, with Mo Yan pretending to be a customer and following him in.

Liu Jie was discussing business with Chao Feng, and he was listening from the side.

Pei Yue probably thought she would redeem the celadon vase soon, so she didn't pawn it for more than two hundred taels of silver.

Mo Yan listened as Liu Jie repeatedly told Sun Ji Chaofeng, "Although they are just a pair of ordinary bottles, my master Yin Er wants to redeem them in ten days, so don't break them."

Sun Ji's clerk smiled broadly and said, "Tell Master Yin to rest assured, I will definitely keep it safe for ten days."

No sooner had Liu Jie left than Mo Yan said to Sun Ji's clerk, "Could you sell me those two vases from earlier?"

In order to solidify Yin Jin'an's charges of being a "spendthrift" and "pawning imperial gifts," Pei Yue and Liu Jie said they would stay for ten days, but they actually pawned the items for life.

Only if Yin Er dies and is seen by the Duke of Xun and his clan will they be completely disheartened and drive him out.

The reason they dared to make such a desperate pact and demanded that Sun Ji keep it for ten days was because they benefited from Master Yin's influence.

"Master Yin pawned the vase," and Sun Ji was required to keep it for ten days. How could Sun Ji dare to sell it ahead of time!

Unless the pawnshop decides to close down or the people at Sun's pawnshop decide to quit, they'll be forced to quit.

The clerk had only agreed to keep it for ten days a quarter of an hour ago, so naturally he wouldn't break the rules.

He sternly refused the inkstone, saying, "I promise to keep this item for ten days; I dare not sell it casually."

Mo Yan ordered him to summon the shopkeeper and threatened, "Shopkeeper, you dare to accept imperial artifacts just because you know Master Yin's name. If your pawnshop is lost, you might lose your heads too!"

The shopkeeper hurriedly went to check the pair of vases, and to his dismay, the vases indeed bore the late emperor's mark.

The clerk's face turned ashen with fright: "I was careless! I didn't expect... We, we'll return it to him immediately!"

"Too late!" Mo Yan smiled faintly. "If he was willing to take this position, he must have already thought of a plan to deal with the truth being discovered by you."

With bloodshot eyes, Chao Feng roared, "Why did Yin Er try to harm us?"

Mo Yan just looked at him and smiled, as if he were a complete fool. No, this man was indeed a complete fool.

The shopkeeper was so angry he wanted to eat the apprentice alive.

No matter who brings it in, you must check it carefully; that's the rule.

The clerk's incompetence and poor taste in flattery backfired; he accepted the item without careful inspection, which was Sun's fault. However, the person who cheated was truly despicable. Knowing it was a royal gift, he must have had a plan in mind to swindle people.

Who knows, someone might come to Sun's pawnshop to cause trouble soon, or who knows, the whole staff might be arrested by the Duke. In any case, Sun's pawnshop is in big trouble.

The shopkeeper immediately bowed deeply to Mo Yan: "Please give me some pointers and save Sun Ji."

"Simple, just give me the bottle and say you've never received it!"

"Will this work? Are you just going to stubbornly refuse?"

"Yes! You'll insist that the pawn ticket you just saw was a forgery, and no matter who asks, you'll say you've never seen a pair of such vases."

"What if Yin Er comes looking for trouble?"

"Shopkeeper, haven't you figured it out yet? This person isn't one of Master Yin's men at all. Pawning a royal gift is a crime punishable by the extermination of an entire clan. Would Master Yin really do something like that? He's a scoundrel, not a fool!"

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