Chapter 146: The Final Struggle
Marquis Cheng'en suddenly woke up, hurriedly put on his clothes, and walked out of the study quickly.
"My Lord, why would someone trespass into the cemetery when all is well?" the confidant said anxiously, "Now that the city gates are closed, I'm afraid you can't go to Chaoyun Mountain."
Marquis Cheng'en was anxious, but he had no choice but to wait until the city gate opened at 5:15 am before he could go to Chaoyun Mountain.
"What exactly is going on?" His eyes were filled with sinister intent. "Did the people who broke into the mountains get close to my mentor's tomb?"
The confidant replied, "The people guarding the cemetery noticed someone entering the mountain. Before they could investigate, they sent someone to rush back to the capital to inform you before the city gates were closed."
"A bunch of rubbish!" Marquis Cheng'en roared in anger. "We ordered them to defend the cemetery and not allow anyone to enter, yet they still let anyone in!"
He felt a panic about the unknown situation.
After all, it concerns his life and property.
It is still three quarters past midnight.
We still have to wait for several hours.
Marquis Cheng'en had a gloomy expression on his face. He paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, thinking about how he could reverse his situation now that the secret of the cemetery had been discovered.
Then I thought of something in my hand, which might save my life at a critical moment.
He didn't want to use it unless it was absolutely necessary.
He was undecided whether such a thing could be a life-saving talisman.
If used improperly, it is very likely to become a death warrant.
Marquis Cheng'en stayed up all night. When the morning bell rang and the ban on travel was lifted, he immediately took a carriage out of the city, changed to a fast horse and rushed to Chaoyun Mountain.
When he arrived at Chaoyun Mountain, he went up the mountain without stopping.
Hu Changdong, who was guarding the grave mountain, also stayed up all night without sleep. His eyes were red and he dozed off at the entrance of the mountain path.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps. Looking up, he saw Marquis Cheng'en rushing towards him, exhausted.
He quickly came forward and said, "My Lord, I have checked and found that your mentor's tomb is being targeted by gravediggers."
As Hu Changdong spoke, he quickly walked to the front of the tomb and pointed at a hole that had been dug.
"I live off the land and have seen these kinds of holes before. Whenever a grave is robbed, it means everything is completely looted by gravediggers."
Hu Changdong picked up an iron awl and handed it to Cheng Enhou: "Here, this is the tool gravediggers use to dig holes."
Marquis Cheng'en glanced at the iron spike in Hu Changdong's hand, and then looked carefully at the hole in the tomb where the robbers had made it.
The hole was not deep, only as big as a copper basin.
Hu Changdong's words could not dispel his suspicions.
He asked in a deep voice, "Are you sure this is a hole left by gravediggers?"
"My Lord, gravediggers would go up the mountain in broad daylight to catch rabbits and scout the area before robbing the tomb. I wouldn't be so sure based on this hole alone, but when searching the mountain, I found newly dug noose traps, which are specifically designed to catch prey."
Hu Changdong speculated, "Your mentor's status was not ordinary. He left his tomb here alone, and he even had someone specially assigned to guard it. The gravediggers must have thought there were rich burial objects, so they dared to take the risk and rob the tomb."
"After all, people die for money, and birds die for food." Hu Changdong patted his chest and promised, "Apart from gravediggers, no one else will disturb the tomb. If they had other motives, they would never dig a hole in this location. It's not like we have a deep hatred that requires us to dig up your mentor's grave."
Marquis Cheng'en thought about it and realized that this was indeed the truth, but he still felt uneasy.
He lowered his eyes and looked at where his feet were, his eyes moving slightly.
Whether he is just being suspicious or not, we will know after just one try.
Gravedigger, preferably.
If you come here for evidence, you will suffer the consequences.
Marquis Cheng'en dug out all the things and put a fake one in before taking his men back to the capital.
——
In Lanxue Garden, Shen Qingtan and Zhao Yi were sitting in the master's room.
"Second Master, Second Madam, I have found the original owner of the land, paid him for the blueprints, and found a wild path up the mountain. I disguised myself as a gravedigger and dug a hole in the tomb."
Jiang Mu reported in a low voice, "After I escaped down the mountain, I headed for the capital. I hid on the road leading from the capital to Chaoyun Mountain and saw Marquis Cheng'en go to Chaoyun Mountain."
Shen Qingtan looked at Jiang Mu with some surprise, as if he didn't expect him to come up with such an idea.
Jiang Mu scratched the back of his head and said, "I have disturbed Mr. Li's resting place. I will burn some paper money for him to comfort his soul."
Shen Qingtan nodded slightly.
Jiang Musong breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that Mr. Li must have done something bad in his previous life, which was why he gave birth to an unfilial son and adopted a student who lacked moral integrity.
Shen Qingtan looked at Zhao Yi: "It seems our guess is correct."
Zhao Yi knew that Shen Qingtan had the right idea, so he asked, "What are your plans?"
"As long as it's confirmed, there's no need to obtain evidence." Shen Qingtan said slowly, "Marquis Cheng'en is very suspicious, especially since such an important thing is buried in the tomb. The slightest sign of trouble can make him become a frightened bird."
Zhao Yi nodded slightly, it was indeed so.
"Given his cautious nature, he would definitely move the items. Since the incident happened suddenly, he didn't have a suitable place to hide the items, and he would suspect someone was watching him, so he would take them back to the Marquis' Mansion first. He would then move them again when he found a suitable place."
Shen Qingtan laid out his plan: "My goal is to escape from the Cheng'en Marquis's Mansion. If the Cheng'en Marquis finds out first that I already know the Qingzhou officials lied about the disaster, and if he suspects me of it, he will definitely kill me to silence me."
Zhao Yi gestured for her to continue.
"Arranging for people to go to Chaoyun Mountain is the first step, paving the way for what's to come." Shen Qingtan continued, "Prince Yu is closely linked to the Qingzhou incident. He's a sinister man. If he knew I was investigating the disaster in Qingzhou, he would definitely not let me go."
Zhao Yi frowned: "Are you going to take the risk?"
"We've made every possible preparation, so nothing will happen." Shen Qingtan explained, "If Prince Yu wants to kill me to silence me, and Marquis Cheng'en learns the news, he'll likely associate it with the tampering of the tomb at Chaoyun Mountain and suspect me, guessing Prince Yu wants to kill me because of the disaster in Qingzhou."
"He's afraid of Prince Yu's wrath, so he'll definitely try to kick me out and ruin my reputation, thus proving his loyalty to Prince Yu. You're my husband, and if I have a bad reputation, you'll be in a difficult position. With Prince Yu's bad taste, isn't this much more entertaining than just killing me?"
Prince Yu likes to cut flesh with a blunt knife, watching people in pain and despair, making their final dying struggle, and then stabbing them hard when they see a glimmer of hope.
Only when he felt happy would he show mercy and stop taking his anger out on Marquis Cheng'en.
Shen Qingtan could tell from Prince Yu's attitude towards the red fox how he liked to torture people.
However, the premise of all this is that she has not yet learned the specific situation of the disaster in Qingzhou, so Prince Yu would be in the mood to watch her make her final dying struggle.
"It's too risky." Zhao Yi shook his head and said disapprovingly, "People make mistakes, and horses stumble. No matter how well prepared we are, there will inevitably be omissions."
Shen Qingtan knew that Zhao Yi would not let her take any risks, but if this happened, everything would be eradicated.
Her great vengeance will be avenged.
What’s more important is that Concubine Ling and Prince Yu are a hidden danger after all.
If they knew that Zhong Yuan had been found and could cure Zhao Yi's illness, would they still tolerate him?
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