Chapter 264 Shen Chu's chosen angle was too tricky.

The Crown Prince lost his composure and suddenly jumped up, glaring angrily at Marquis Changning.

"How dare you! What nonsense are you spouting? What underground treasure? I have never seen it."

Marquis Changning shrank his neck, looking timid and submissive.

"Whatever Your Highness says goes. If you say you've never seen it, then let's pretend we've never seen it."

The prince's punch felt like hitting cotton, and he turned ashen with rage.

What do you mean he said he'd never seen it? He simply hasn't.

Wouldn't this make the Emperor suspect him even more?

Sure enough, as soon as Marquis Changning finished speaking, Emperor Longqing's calm voice was heard.

"What exactly is going on with the underground treasure of the Marquis of Ning'an's mansion? Marquis of Changning, tell me in detail. If you conceal even the slightest detail, I will cut off your head."

"Your Highness, you are not allowed to interrupt. I want to hear what Marquis Changning has to say."

The Crown Prince was a little nervous and subconsciously looked at Chief Minister Feng.

Damn it.

They thought that by cutting off their own arm and pushing Li Ming out, they could save themselves.

Who knew that the Marquis of Changning would suddenly appear?

Chief Minister Feng's back was also covered in cold sweat. He shook his head slightly at the Crown Prince, signaling him to calm down.

Especially at times like these, we must remain calm and composed.

Marquis Changning's face was pale, with two thick bruises under his eyes, and he seemed to be lost in memories.

"Here's what happened: Ten years ago, Feng Guojiu suddenly approached me and said he greatly admired Shen Zhixing's talent."

Feng Guojiu asked me to help find some letters from Shen Zhixing's family, or calligraphy practice books for his children to use for calligraphy practice.

Logically speaking, if someone wants to request calligraphy copybooks, they can simply go to the requester's place directly; there's no need for me to act as a middleman.

I had some doubts and was initially reluctant, but then the Imperial Uncle Feng gave me a sum of money, and I became tempted.

Your Majesty also knows that I am close to the Ning'an Marquis's residence and often visit the residence, so it was easy for me to obtain Shen Zhixing's family letters.

Originally, I had no doubts about this matter, but who knew that less than two months later, the incident of Shen Zhixing colluding with the enemy and betraying the country occurred, and the entire Ning'an Marquis's family was executed.

I recall the incident of stealing Shen Zhixing's family letter and giving it to Feng Guojiu. The more I think about it, the more frightened I become. So I plan to secretly go and question Feng Guojiu.

Unexpectedly, they encountered Li Ming returning from Liangzhou City, having been granted the title of general, and the Feng family was celebrating General Li's victory.

I secretly sneaked in and overheard Chief Minister Feng instructing General Li to destroy all the evidence of the stolen defense map.

"I am as timid as a mouse. I overheard such a tremendous secret, but I fear the retaliation from the Feng family, so I have dared not tell anyone about it."

As Marquis Changning spoke, he seemed to remember something, and his face turned even paler, his beard trembling.

"Just a few days ago, Shen Zhixing's ghost suddenly came to visit me every night."

His Majesty didn't know that he was just holding a bloody head, crying incessantly beside me.

He sometimes said he died unjustly, that a resentful minister had harmed him.

A while later, he mentioned that even after the head is separated from the body, there is still pain.

Last night, he kept grabbing my neck and interrogating me, saying that I was greedy for the treasure hidden in the underground of the Ning'an Marquis's mansion.

He said that after his death, his vengeful spirit lingered, and he even saw in the underworld that there were countless treasures hidden beneath the Ning'an Marquis's mansion, all of which Li Ming had transported out through secret passages.

The more Marquis Changning spoke, the more violently he trembled. In the end, he simply lay on the ground, weeping bitterly, looking like a madman.

“Brother Zhixing, I shouldn’t have stolen your letter. I was wrong, but I really didn’t take a single penny of the treasure.”

"Your Majesty, believe me, I really haven't seen any treasure."

"Waaah, please stop bothering me. Go find the person who really hurt you and settle the score."

Don't look for me anymore. I really only stole a few letters from you.

The hall was silent except for the terrified murmurs of the Marquis of Changning.

Although Chief Minister Feng had been trying to remain calm as he listened to the Marquis of Changning's tearful account, he now felt inexplicably panicked.

Only he and Li Ming knew about the underground treasure of the Ning'an Marquis's mansion; even the Crown Prince only learned about it in recent years.

How could the Marquis of Changning know?

Could it really be Shen Zhixing's ghost appearing in my dream?

He suppressed his doubts and bowed, saying:

"Your Majesty, Marquis Changning is delirious and talking nonsense. His words should not be believed."

Neither I nor the entire Feng family are loyal to Your Majesty and have never instructed Li Ming to steal any defense maps.

Even if it really was Li Ming who stole it, it must have been Li Ming's own doing, driven by his own ambition.

My family has never heard of, nor seen, the treasure of the Marquis of Ning'an's mansion. I beg Your Majesty to discern the truth and not be deceived by the Marquis of Changning.

The Longqing Emperor remained silent, his expressionless gaze sweeping over Chief Minister Feng.

"Oh? So, Chief Minister Feng believes that the story of the Ning'an Marquis's treasure is not unfounded?"

Prime Minister Feng felt a sudden unease.

Shen Chu, who had remained silent all along, couldn't help but sneer inwardly.

When she guessed that Chief Minister Feng intended to pin everything on Li Ming, she thought of using Marquis Changning.

Before dawn, she had Sun Yan arrange for the Flying Eagle Guards to launch a fierce attack on Marquis Changning, a "fierce ghost embracing and weeping".

They also took the opportunity to let the "ghost" reveal that there was a treasure hidden underground in the Ning'an Marquis's mansion.

Marquis Changning had been frightened for half a month, and was so frightened that he was completely disoriented and talking nonsense.

Then, at daybreak, he had two Flying Eagle Guards pretend to chat in front of Marquis Changning.

One person said that Li Ming had been killed and that His Majesty was preparing to investigate the case of the Marquis of Ning'an's residence.

Another person feigned emotion, saying, "If the Marquis of Ning'an's family was truly innocent, I wonder if those who were wrongfully killed will seek revenge on the culprit."

If I were them, I would have confessed to His Majesty sooner rather than later; perhaps I could have negotiated a lighter sentence.

Upon hearing this, the panicked Marquis of Changning would surely rush to the palace to seek relief.

As His Majesty has grown older in recent years, he has become increasingly reverent towards ghosts and spirits.

If Marquis Changning were to appear in court and testify against the Feng family with such certainty, His Majesty would likely suspect that Marquis Changning was acting under someone else's orders.

However, the Marquis of Changning's rambling and constant talk of vengeful spirits and underground treasures made Emperor Longqing uneasy, but also made him more convinced that the treasure truly existed.

That's a treasure trove! I bet His Majesty isn't tempted.

Shen Chu knelt down and said loudly, "Your Majesty, although it is said that Confucius did not speak of strange phenomena, physical prowess, disorder, or spirits, one should not completely believe in the stories of ghosts and spirits, nor should one completely disregard them."

Your subject believes that the Marquis of Changning would not fabricate such a colossal lie. This matter concerns the treasures of the previous dynasty. Although the exact amount of the treasures is unknown, regardless of the amount, your subject believes that all of them should be confiscated and turned over to the national treasury.

Your Majesty requests that Your Majesty send people to thoroughly investigate the matter of the underground treasure in the Ning'an Marquis's mansion.

Furthermore, according to the Marquis of Changning's confession, it was he who stole Prefect Shen's letter.

Jiang Hongzhi previously confessed that he imitated Prefect Shen's notes to forge the correspondence with the Northern Rong.

Furthermore, there is the deceased Li Ming, who is said to have stolen the defense map. These three points are enough to show that the Ning'an Marquis's Mansion was wronged. Someone obtained the treasure map and coveted the underground treasure of the Ning'an Marquis's Mansion, so they framed Prefect Shen.

Your subject requests that the case of Shen Zhixing's treason and collusion with the enemy, which occurred ten years ago, be investigated together with the case of the underground treasure.

Shen Chu's words were reasonable and well-founded, which made both Chief Minister Feng and the Crown Prince somewhat flustered.

If Shen Chu insists on investigating the case of the Marquis of Ning'an's residence, they are still confident they can persuade His Majesty.

But Shen Chu's choice of angle was too tricky; she actually asked to investigate the underground treasure first.

How could His Majesty refuse?

Who wouldn't want to possess such a treasure? Even the emperor was no exception.

Chief Minister Feng clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, saying, "Your Majesty, I consider myself utterly loyal, yet I have been subjected to accusations of ghostly apparitions and a fabricated treasure."

I have no words to defend myself; only death can prove my innocence.

Having said that, he stood up and, with lightning speed, slammed into a pillar in the hall.