Chapter 276 The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

Pei Yuan asked in surprise, "Gao Jie? What are you doing here?"

The person who rushed out was Gao Jie, the commander of the Imperial Guards.

Gao Jie is in his early thirties, a former soldier, and exudes a strong aura of ruthlessness.

He expressionlessly pulled out a token. "Our Imperial Guards received a secret report that the Sixth Prince will be transferring the treasures of the previous dynasty here today."

By order of His Majesty, I am here once again to await the arrival of the Sixth Prince.

"Sixth Prince, please come with me back to see His Majesty."

Pei Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly. "Me? Transferring the treasures of the previous dynasty?"

Gao Jie nodded, "That's right. I have already led men to search this estate and found a treasure map and a large amount of gold and silver jewelry in the estate's cellar."

"Sixth Prince, please keep your words to His Majesty when you return."

Pei Yuan turned his head and glanced across the courtyard. A group of imperial guards were carrying boxes out, forming a long line.

At this point, he naturally realized that he had fallen into someone else's trap.

His concern was for Shen Chu.

Didn't they say that Shen Chu came here with Luo Heng? Where did she go?

At that moment, Shen Chu helped Luo Heng up from the edge of the field.

Luo Heng looked apologetic. "I must have eaten something wrong last night. I hope you'll forgive me, Ah Chu."

Shen Chu smiled and said, "It's good that Brother Luo is alright. Let's go."

Aunt Qiao's estate wasn't large, just a small estate of forty or fifty acres.

When Shen Chu entered, he saw that the manor next door was surrounded by imperial guards.

She frowned. "What happened at the neighboring village?"

Luo Heng's eyes flickered slightly. "It must be the Imperial Guards handling a case. They might have caught some wanted criminal."

Shen Chu had a bad feeling.

"The Imperial Guards are only responsible for protecting His Majesty and safeguarding the palace; they are not in charge of arresting wanted criminals."

Luo Heng nodded, "What you said makes sense. How about this, you go into the manor first and see if the locust infestation is severe, and I'll go over and find out."

"Okay, I'll wait for news from my elder brother."

Luo Heng watched Shen Chu go inside, then slowly walked towards the large tree beside him.

He stood behind the tree for a while and saw the gate of the neighboring village open.

The Imperial Guards carried out in single file, followed by Pei Yuan and the commander of the Imperial Guards.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, noticing that Pei Yuan no longer had his sword, and even his usual jade fan was gone.

Looks like I'm going to be taken back for questioning.

Luo Heng's lips curled into a cold smile.

Pei Yuan, once the charges of secretly hiding and transferring the treasures of the previous dynasty are proven, let's see what kind of prestige you'll have left.

After watching Pei Yuan and the Imperial Guards leave, Luo Heng turned and entered the manor.

Shen Chu had just returned from the fields.

"Brother Luo, have you found out? What's going on at the neighboring village?"

Luo Heng shook his head. "No, I was chased away by the Imperial Guards before I even got close. They said they were on His Majesty's orders and were not allowed to ask questions."

"By order of His Majesty?"

Then it's really not advisable to inquire any further.

Luo Heng smiled and said, "Let's not talk about that anymore. Let's talk about locusts. I'll teach you a method to control them..."

-------

The Feng family.

Feng Wenhan rushed into the study, his face a mixture of bewilderment and excitement.

"Father, it's done, it's done!"

Prime Minister Feng jumped to his feet, his beard twitching with excitement.

"Great, that's wonderful! The treasure map and the treasure were discovered at Shen Chu's mother's estate, and Shen Chu was caught on the spot."

Now, even if Shen Chu had a thousand mouths, he wouldn't be able to explain himself clearly.

He stroked his beard and smiled as he instructed Feng Wenhan.

“I know His Majesty’s character. Compared to the innocence of the Marquis of Ning’an’s family, His Majesty is more interested in obtaining the treasures of the previous dynasty.”

Now that Shen Chu has been caught red-handed by the Imperial Guards while transferring the treasure, do you think His Majesty will still believe all her accusations against the Feng family?

He is usually closest to the Sixth Prince. If we handle things properly, His Majesty will suspect that he and the Sixth Prince are secretly framing the Crown Prince and our Feng family.

As long as His Majesty suspects that Shen Chu framed us, we will naturally have a chance to escape.

Then we can seize the opportunity to turn the tables on Shen Chu and expose his impersonation in the imperial examinations. Shen Chu will be doomed then.

After saying that, he watched as Feng Wenhan's expression grew increasingly strange.

“Father, I just found out that the treasure map and the treasure were not found on Shen Chu’s mother’s estate.”

It was found in the village next to his house, and Shen Chu was not at the scene when the Imperial Guards went to arrest him.

The person present was the Sixth Prince.

"What?" Chief Minister Feng was so shocked that he stepped on his right foot with his left and almost fell headfirst onto the table.

Feng Wenhan was startled and quickly helped him up.

"Father, are you alright?"

Ignoring the pain in his back from the impact, Prime Minister Feng grabbed his son, his face filled with disbelief.

"What exactly is going on? Didn't I instruct you to have someone place the treasure map and the treasure at the Qiao family's estate, and then have someone lure Shen Chu and the Imperial Guards there together?"

Feng Wenhan was also completely bewildered.

“That’s exactly what my son told me. Our men came back and reported that they saw the treasure being placed in the cellar of the Qiao family estate.”

I don't know why the treasure ended up in the neighboring manor, and I understand even less why Shen Chu didn't go while the Sixth Prince did.

Premier Feng released Feng Wenhan's shoulder, gradually calmed down, and suddenly chuckled.

"It seems like the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind."

Feng Wenhan looked bewildered. "What do you mean, Father? Are you saying someone knows about our plan? And even used it? Who could it be?"

Prime Minister Feng paced slowly around the room with his hands behind his back.

"Who he is is not important; one thing is certain: he is not our enemy."

Feng Wenhan was puzzled. "Why is Father so certain? If this person really exists, it must be the one who secretly moved the treasure."

He's clearly helping Chen Chu, so how come he's not our enemy?

Chief Minister Feng said, "He wanted to help Shen Chu, but he also led the Sixth Prince to the scene."

We originally intended to use Shen Chu to attack the Sixth Prince, but now it's all good, we don't have to go through the trouble of attacking him.

The Sixth Prince himself took the bait. It seems even Heaven is on our side! Heaven hasn't forsaken the Feng family! Hahahaha!

Feng Wenhan couldn't help but beam with joy.

What about Chen Chu?

Chief Minister Feng sneered, "With the Sixth Prince firmly in control, Shen Chu won't be able to cause trouble for long. Let's wait for news from the palace; your aunt will probably have news coming out soon."

"Have someone keep a close eye on Shen Chu as well. If he makes any move, we'll strike immediately."

As soon as Shen Chu entered the city gate, he encountered Jin Bao, who was in a hurry.

"Young Master Shen, you're finally back! Something has happened to our Highness."

Shen Chu's expression changed slightly. "What happened?"

Jinbao stomped his foot. "The Imperial Guards took His Highness away, saying that His Highness was hiding a treasure at the manor in Wulihe."

Didn't Lord Shen also go to Wulihe? His Highness was looking for you; didn't you two run into each other?

Shen Chu suddenly remembered the heavily guarded imperial guards at the neighboring manor.

So the person they arrested was Pei Yuan.

He suddenly turned around and walked out.

Luo Heng grabbed him, "A-Chu, what are you going to do?"

“I will send a letter to the palace. His Highness would never hide treasure. There must be a misunderstanding.”

Luo Heng frowned, "You haven't even understood the whole story, how can you be so sure it's a misunderstanding?"

Do you know the Sixth Prince very well?