The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 114 - 113

Chapter 113

Shin Wang Palace

After the Emperor granted the officials permission to investigate the rumors, Shin Wang Palace, being one of the two entities under scrutiny, became unusually quiet. The eunuchs and servants kept to themselves to avoid the brewing storm within the palace.

Inside the study, two figures sat discussing the unfolding events with solemn expressions. Shin Wang was meticulously flipping through an account book, verifying its accuracy while listening to the plan from his trusted strategist.

"Your Highness, this fake ledger has been prepared long ago. It was recorded alongside the real ledger for emergencies like this. I am certain that no one will be able to tell that this is a fake,"

Hu Tian confidently explained. Years ago, when he first became Shin Wang’s close strategist, he proposed the idea of maintaining a fake ledger to handle unforeseen circumstances.

The financial routes of Shin Wang were diverse, and with a formidable enemy like the Emperor, they had to be cautious. All financial transactions, both income and expenses, needed to be meticulously concealed to avoid raising suspicion from their enemies.

Finally, the time had come for the fake ledger to prove its worth.

"Very good...with this, we won’t have to worry about the investigation anymore."

Shin Wang closed the book after examining the last page. His furrowed brows relaxed, along with the tension in his heart.

"However, I believe we should not be complacent, Your Highness. Initially, this seemed like a mere fabricated rumor to defame you and the Mu family, nothing too serious. But looking at it now...the situation has escalated significantly."

Hu Tian lowered his eyes as he pondered the developments. In his heart, he had an uneasy premonition about the matter.

Shin Wang raised his eyebrows. "What do you mean by that?"

"I believe the mastermind behind this should not be underestimated, Your Highness. The ability to turn a baseless rumor into a significant issue suggests that this enemy could be just as dangerous as the Emperor."

"Why do you think that? The Emperor is the ruler of the land, with the power to command everything. Even the Empress Dowager and I cannot act openly. Who else could be more dangerous than the Emperor?" Shin Wang asked in curiosity.

To him, the most formidable and challenging enemy to deal with, one who made him vigilant with every step, was the Emperor!

Both sides had been testing each other for a long time, neither making the first move due to mutual distrust in the other’s power. Shin Wang was well aware of this reality. So, he couldn’t help but be surprised when his trusted strategist suggested that the hidden enemy was as dangerous as his number one adversary.

"Your Highness, consider this: from baseless rumors, this enemy managed to garner the attention of the court. That’s not all. Ultimately, they even pressured the Emperor to allow an investigation, using the rumors and the virtuous officials as leverage."

"Initially, the rumors seemed to target you and the Mu family, but they were actually meant to draw the attention of the virtuous officials. Once these officials were interested, they used them to pressure the Emperor into permitting the investigation. Ultimately, the aim to attack you and the Mu family was achieved, just as this person intended."

"This hidden enemy made only a few moves, but they have controlled the situation from the start. Even the Emperor was unwittingly used as a pawn in their game..."

Hu Tian analyzed the events in detail. Realizing the subtlety of this plan and the cunning of the enemy, Hu Tian felt a deep sense of unease. This hidden adversary was quite dangerous, not someone to be underestimated.

In their current disadvantaged position, with the enemy hidden and themselves exposed, it felt as though the danger was closing in from all sides. Hu Tian had no way of knowing if the enemy had other traps waiting for them to fall into!

"......"

Shin Wang, who originally had not thought of much, felt his heart tremble after hearing his strategist’s analysis. He carefully reconsidered the events, recognizing a looming threat he had not previously perceived.

Before this, the Emperor was the most dangerous enemy of Shin Wang. But upon reflection, he couldn’t deny that this hidden enemy was even more perilous than the Emperor...

Although the Emperor wielded immense power and commanded many, his position as the ruler of the land bound him to act openly. Every action required concrete evidence before proceeding according to the laws of the land.

In contrast, this newly emerged hidden enemy could act freely: manipulated people’s thoughts, controlled officials’ minds, and even pressured the Emperor into following their plan. This adversary could achieve all this without revealing their identity, without waiting for evidence, striking swiftly and fiercely, leaving little time for those targeted to react.

This...was too dangerous!

"No matter who they are, I will drag them out!" Shin Wang gritted his teeth, his face tense.

Previously, he had sent people to investigate the remnants of the Su family, but to this day, no news had come back. He didn’t know if his men had found no leads or if something had happened to them.

Hu Tian glanced at his master once, saying nothing more. However, in his heart, he held a different thought from his master. He didn’t think that an enemy this dangerous would be easily found.

He feared that unless the enemy decided to reveal themselves, they would never be discovered...

Late the same night, under the cover of darkness, soldiers patrolled the perimeter of Shin Wang Palace every half-hour. Torchlight illuminated their path amidst the darkness throughout the inspection.

Amidst the shadows, over a dozen men in black hid around the dark corners outside the palace, waiting for the right moment to act. The leader of the men in black scanned the group of soldiers that just walked out of their sight, then signaled for his men to surround the palace according to their plan.

Upon separating, each man took out a bamboo tube as small as a brush handle, placed it to their lips, and blew. Powdered medicine inside the tube soon dispersed into the air.

The guards, unaware, inhaled the powder, causing them to stop doing things and freeze in place, their eyes vacant and unseeing.

Once the drug took effect, the ten men in black infiltrated the palace. Using the same method, they dispersed the powdered medicine, causing everyone inside to fall into a trance, becoming senseless.

The leader of the men in black in this mission personally dealt with the shadow guards inside the palace, using powdered medicine to render them unconscious. He then approached Shin Wang’s bedroom, drilled a small hole in the window, and quickly blew the remaining powder inside.

After some time, he entered the room to check if it worked. Seeing Shin Wang asleep and the shadow guard in the corner standing dazed, he knew the first phase of the plan had succeeded.

With time being critical, the leader began searching for the secret ledger in the bedroom. After a long search of fifteen minutes, he couldn’t find it, so he moved to Shin Wang’s study.

When he arrived, he found his nine men already there, searching every nook and cranny for the secret ledger, but still without success.

The head of the men in black scanned the room thoroughly, contemplating the possibilities. The secret ledger was an important item containing many secrets, so Shin Wang would surely choose the most concealed place to hide it.

But where could that hiding place be?

He slowly observed the details and positions of the items in the study, meticulously scanning from one corner of the room to the other, examining every object—tables, vases, porcelain—until his gaze reached the opposite corner.

It was highly likely that the hiding place was a secret compartment!

"Look for any symbols or objects that seem out of place; there might be a mechanism to open a secret compartment hiding the ledger,"

He ordered the remaining nine men. They switched from searching through the furniture to using their eyes to scrutinize the surroundings.

Meanwhile, one of the men in black, who was running his hand along the wooden planks under Shin Wang’s desk, felt a difference between two adjacent areas. The left side felt like normal thick wood, but when he moved his hand to the right, he felt a hollow area beneath, different from before.

He pressed on the area for a while until he triggered a mechanism. The seamless wooden plank split open, revealing a hidden compartment containing three books.

"I’ve found it..."

At his words, the others immediately rushed over to see that he was holding the secret ledgers they had been searching for.

"Good job. Quickly take them to our people to make copies for the young miss," the leader nodded and then instructed the others,

"The drug is wearing off soon. Ensure everything is back in place and then return to base immediately."

Upon hearing this, they all checked the room to make sure everything was as it had been, arranging objects back to their original positions to avoid arousing their enemy’s suspicion that the room had once been secretly entered by a stranger. Once they finished checking, they used their lightness skills to leave Shin Wang Palace undetected.

After an hour had passed, the drug’s effects wore off, and everyone in the palace regained consciousness, completely unaware of what had transpired...

Investigation Bureau

The next morning, the Investigation Bureau was filled with a tense atmosphere. They had been tasked by His Majesty to investigate the rumors directly. Master Zhao was in charge of overseeing this operation.

Initially, the bureau had dispatched inspecting officials to investigate the rumors and interview part of the witnesses. Another team had been sent to collect the ledgers from Shin Wang and the Mu family for examination. Both parties had cooperated fully, ensuring there were no issues during the process.

Even though everything seemed to be going smoothly, beneath the surface, there were turbulent waves. The people of Shin Wang had secretly bribed and recruited some of the inspectors to be on their side, particularly those assigned to audit the ledgers of Shin Wang Palace.

Mu Cui Ming, on his part, had also secretly contacted the inspecting officials, using both his position and his son’s status to persuade them to be on his side, hoping to ensure the investigation proceeded without issues.

Some of the inspecting officials, confident in their integrity and honesty, refused to meet and continued their work diligently. However, those who were greedy and could not resist the temptations and enticements accepted the bribes and fully cooperated.

This gave both Mu Cui Ming and Shin Wang a certain level of assurance regarding the investigation, believing they would not be implicated. However, they were unaware that their actions were being watched by someone all along.

After the morning inspection of the ledgers proceeded as usual, all evidence was securely stored in the evidence room of the Investigation Bureau at night, with guards patrolling the area constantly to prevent any external tampering.

While the guards were on their patrol, their bodies suddenly stiffened, and their eyes glazed over as if they were in a trance. Soon, a shadowy figure swiftly passed in front of them, heading straight to the evidence room.

The man in black used the cover of darkness to skillfully infiltrate the Investigation Bureau without being noticed. He went directly to the pile of documents on the left side of the room, which contained the audit reports of Shin Wang’s financial ledgers.

He took the real ledger he had brought from Shin Wang Palace the previous night from his robe and swapped it with the fake ledger in front of him. After rearranging the documents to their original positions to avoid suspicion, he disappeared without a trace as if he had never been there.

When morning came, the people at the Investigation Bureau returned to their work in the room. The inspection of Shin Wang’s ledger had been completed the previous day, and the inspector in charge of it had received a bribe from Shin Wang, making him confident that there would be no errors in the inspection.

He waited until Master Zhao returned to the Investigation Bureau from his official duties, then immediately presented Shin Wang’s ledger and his detailed report from the previous day. He had no idea that the ledger had been swapped for the real one the previous night!

When the inspector presented the documents and the ledger to Master Zhao in the office and reported his findings, he was dismissed. Zhao Chundi intended to review the documents again before reporting to the Emperor.

Confident that his work was flawless, the inspector left. Zhao Chundi began to read the summary report at a leisurely pace. When he found no suspicious points in the inspection, he couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows in surprise.

Based on prior information, he was quite sure that the rumors could not be baseless. Zhao Chundi was well aware of the internal factions within the royal court, especially the previous attempts to win over the Mu family, making him see the possibility of bribery by Shin Wang and the Mu family.

However, he did not expect that the inspection would yield no evidence.

Could it be that he was overthinking?...

Zhao Chundi pondered for a long time but could not shake off his suspicions. He reached for Shin Wang’s ledger and began to examine it. At first, he found nothing unusual, but after flipping through just five pages, he noticed significant discrepancies between the ledger and the summary report!

He quickly placed the report and the ledger side by side and meticulously compared the information. His eyebrows furrowed tightly into a knot, and his eyes revealed an intense seriousness he had never shown before.

What was going on here?

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