Chapter 340 A Twist of Fate

Lin Shiyuan held her in his arms: "Neither of you owes the other anything."

He paused, then added, "Anything can happen at a time like this. Even Sheng Dahe's early return was part of a scheme. You and he were already on the chessboard."

Yao Qingling's throat tightened, and she clutched at his clothes.

At that moment, she felt as if she were sitting on a boat, sailing in the wind and waves, rising and falling, not knowing when it would capsize.

But there was someone with her, and if she fell into the sea, he would definitely pull her out.

She gradually calmed down.

Where did you go just now?

Lin Shiyuan frowned slightly and recounted how he had chased after the man in black.

Qingling: "Did you catch up?"

Lin Shiyuan said, "We fought, but he was carrying poison. Before I could get any information out of him, he bit through the poison sac and died."

Qing Ling's face darkened: "They must be someone from Prince Xin's faction."

That venomous snake had already set its sights on her and Lin Shiyuan.

"Whether he's one of his men or not is no longer important. The most important thing right now is to capsize his ship before he can stir up trouble."

...

Two days later, Yao Qingling went to find Boss Sheng.

These past few days, Boss Sheng has been going to the warehouse all the time, and every time he sees it, he feels heartbroken.

Whenever he was so angry that he was about to draw his sword and do something, Xia Chan would appear in front of him.

Boss Sheng was so annoyed that the first thing he said to Yao Qingling was to tell her to take back the cicada.

"...There are only men here, and it's so inconvenient for me to be the only woman here."

Qingling glanced at him: "Judging from your appearance, your temper has subsided quite a bit."

Sheng Dahe rolled his eyes at her and walked quickly, leaving Yao Qingling far behind.

He's so annoyed, he's figuring out what to do next.

I want to kill someone, but I don't know who to kill.

He paused, turning to see Yao Qingling catching up behind him.

"You said you were investigating the arsonist, have you found anything yet?"

Qingling said, "The young master of the Duke of Xincheng's mansion has taken over this case, and he will not show favoritism."

Sheng Dahe snorted.

If he finds out which bastard did it, he'll definitely slit that person's throat.

Qingling glanced at him and said, "Come with me."

She looked around and then led Sheng Dahe into the pile of ruins.

It was a cloudy day, and the light was even dimmer inside the ruins.

Qingling took out a tinderbox.

Sheng Dahe grabbed her wrist: "Still setting fires? Isn't this place already burning enough?"

Qingling slapped his hand away: "I'm just pointing things out so you can see some things more clearly."

She pointed to the nearest pillar.

"Didn't you notice that these pillars are still there, supporting this dilapidated warehouse?"

Sheng Dahe was stunned for a moment.

Putting everything else aside, if these pillars weren't so thick, the entire warehouse would probably have collapsed long ago.

Qingling said, "You forgot, I had someone design this warehouse."

She raised her hand, parted a section of the surface, and vigorously wiped it with a handkerchief, revealing a metallic sheen inside.

Qingling said, "The inside is a copper pillar, covered with a layer of wood. After being painted, it looks like it's made of wood."

Sheng Dahe was stunned. No wonder he thought the cost was so high and suspected that Yao Qingling had embezzled his money.

But I have no evidence, I can't argue with her, and I'm afraid she'll turn on me.

"You're building a warehouse with bronze pillars? Do you think my money grows on trees?"

Sheng Dahe complained.

Qing Ling chuckled and glanced at him: "Have you forgotten what this warehouse looked like when it was bought from Boss Shi?"

From that moment on, she became more careful and was willing to spend more money to make the warehouse more sturdy.

"However, the inside of this bronze pillar is filled with mud. The outer layer is just a copper sheet."

When they were digging the first underground level, they dug out a lot of mud, which they then used to fill the copper pillar.

Qingling's initial intention was to prevent a fire, but she didn't expect that this fire would burn for three days and three nights, far more intense than the fire that Boss Shi had encountered. No matter how she tried to put it out, the fire was just as fierce.

If it weren't for the continuous rain, the fire would have continued.

This further confirms that it was man-made.

Qingling took a tinderbox, lifted a stone door, and went down the stone slab to the basement.

Once down there, it was chilly and cold.

However, the stone trough, which should have been filled with ice, was instead filled with melted water.

This ice should have been sold this summer.

In other words, her way of making money by selling ice in the summer is gone.

Qingling said, "When spring comes, the ground begins to warm up. The stone door was supposed to prevent the warmth from above from reaching below. But a fire broke out, and the stone slabs could no longer block the heat from above, making this place scorching hot."

Sheng Dahe waved his hand, "Don't tell me that, it's not like I can't see it."

He looked at the warehouse on the other side, which was piled high with goods.

Silk from the south, medicinal herbs and furs from the north, pearls from the South China Sea, spices from the Western Regions...

There are many good things hidden here!

Sheng Dahe's eyes lit up. He grabbed a handful of pearls in one hand and a handful of lingzhi mushrooms in the other: "This, this... it's not burned?"

He looked at Yao Qingling.

Qingling said, "Our warehouse is being used as it's being built. You forgot, this underground warehouse was built first. When the cargo arrived, the upper level wasn't fully completed yet, so half the cargo was stored here."

"After that, my shop was shut down. I couldn't sell the goods and had nowhere to store them, so they were just sitting here. The goods on the ground are seasonal items."

Qingling's fingers slowly traced the boxes: "Those placed here have escaped this ordeal."

She looked up at the stone slab between the two layers, her eyes turning cold: "That stone slab covered it, so they didn't discover this place, and therefore it wasn't set on fire."

Even when Magistrate Gao came to inspect the damage, Qingling did not mention the underground warehouse.

She looked at Boss Sheng: "With these things, and the cargo on your ship, we can weather this storm. Now, can you be a little calmer?"

Sheng Dahe's smile vanished instantly.

The burned ground floor still contained so many things—his blood and flesh!

But that's how people are. When they think they have nothing left, they naturally feel utterly hopeless. But if they see even a sliver of hope left, it feels like the noose that was holding them by the neck has loosened, giving them a chance to breathe.

Qingling advised him again, "Boss Sheng, listen to me, don't be reckless. You don't know who your opponent is, you'll just lead your brothers to their deaths."

"Never go down the old path unless absolutely necessary."

Sheng Dahe's jaw was clenched tight, and he finally nodded forcefully.

"Yao Qingling, I'll trust you one last time. But if you..."

What else?

Should I lie to him?

Yao Qingling did not lie to him; she had been keeping her promise and leading everyone to a better life.

He kicked the box speechlessly, then, as if struck by a thought, turned to Yao Qingling and asked, "You just mentioned the fire at Boss Shi's place. Are you saying it might have been done by the same person?"

The heir of the Duke of Xincheng has been investigating the case for several days and has made some progress.

Qingling sat down on the box and told Sheng Dahe everything she could.

Simply put, the former boss who sold the warehouse to Boss Shi was a cunning and scheming businessman.

He sold the warehouse to Boss Shi at a high price, but a fire turned the warehouse into ruins. Boss Shi had no choice but to sell the warehouse at a low price and return to his hometown. At this point, the warehouse should have been bought back cheaply by the previous owner, but Sheng Dahe stepped in and bought the warehouse.

"You mean, they burned down my warehouse and then wanted to buy it cheaply?"