Volume 4: Gathering of Sages Chapter 523: Suspicion of Fire
"Is this... all burned?"
Zhang Wu took a long time to finally say something. But Zhang Lu suddenly shouted: "How did that thief know that the colored cotton seeds were hidden here, and just happened to come here and steal them? Could it be that there is a traitor in Haidian Qinyuan?"
When Zhang Wu came to his senses and wanted to stop the thieves, Zhang Lu seemed to have realized his mistake and hurriedly explained to Zhang Chen: "Brother Chen, that's not what I meant. I just didn't expect the thieves to move so quickly and accurately... Although Haidian is not like the capital, each family only has a branch courtyard here and not many people are left here, so the defense is inevitably lax, but it's not that bad..."
"Stop talking !" Zhang Chen said three words with a gloomy face, and then he said word by word, "If you feel that you have suffered losses, I will compensate you for any amount of money you want! I can't afford 100,000 or 80,000 yuan, but my father can! This matter is not over yet. You dare to provoke my Qin Guogong Mansion. You are really bold!"
Zhang Wu quickly advised, "Brother Chen, Ah Lu definitely didn't mean that. Now that things have come to this, it is crucial to track down who did it. The streets of Beijing have been filled with colorful cotton auspicious signs these days. In my opinion, they might have deliberately created momentum and then waited for the opportunity to carry out this plan to wipe out the whole family! Rather than saying that the colored cotton and seeds stored here were burned..."
Before Zhang Wu could finish his words, Zhang Chen interrupted him and asked, "Who said they were all burned?"
"Who said... it wasn't you, Brother Chen..." Zhang Lu suddenly stopped talking here, and then asked in amazement, "Could it be that you, Brother Chen, deliberately set the fire to confuse the enemy..."
"Let you go!" Zhang Chen was furious. He cursed twice and then said angrily, "I said that not all the things were burned. I didn't say that the fire was fake! You trusted me to leave the things with me, so of course I have to be safe and keep them on both sides. But, who knows, the things in this warehouse were burned, not stolen?"
At this point, Zhang Chen, who was always irritable, kicked a small stone hard. Seeing the stone soaring into the sky and then falling somewhere unknown, he suppressed his anger and said, "What a pity, what's in my house is colored cotton, and what's placed here are seeds. I thought my home is a big target, and this place is always remote, maybe no one will pay attention to it... Damn it!"
Zhang Chen cursed again, and then he turned around like a trapped animal, cursing again and again. Faced with his obviously out-of-control reaction, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu looked at each other, and Zhang Wu chose to go up and whisper comfort, while Zhang Lu followed behind, occasionally echoing with a "hmm" or "ahh", but was obviously absent-minded.
After walking around the huge Qin Garden, the three of them saw that although there was a mess left by the fire last night, and even many flowers and plants were trampled, most of the buildings were intact, which means that only the warehouse was burned. As Zhang Wu walked, he finally couldn't help asking, "Brother Chen, what else is in that warehouse?"
"This is Qin Garden, not the Duke of Qin's Mansion. Apart from the stored food, there are only some local specialties and local products. There is nothing else stored there. That's why I think no one would think of leaving it here. Who would risk sneaking into Qin Garden to steal food?"
The more Zhang Chen talked, the more he felt chest tightness. In the end, he even pressed his chest, as if he was really angry. Zhang Wu was shocked to see this scene, and hurriedly went up to support the man's arm, saying repeatedly: "Brother Chen, calm down! Money is external to the body, and A Lu and I don't care that much. Besides, this brown cotton is not the most beautiful color..."
Zhang Lu, who was watching coldly, saw Zhang Wu trying to persuade Zhang Chen, and suddenly felt a little tight in his chest. It was Zhang Chen who had caused such a big mess, but why did he seem to have become a victim and asked them to comfort him?
However, just as he was feeling indignant, he suddenly heard a commotion outside. When he turned around, he saw Zhu Ying, dressed in a fiery red riding suit, striding towards him.
As soon as the young lady arrived in front of them, she angrily asked, "What's going on? I heard in the palace that there was a fire in the Qin Garden in Haidian, and that all the colored cotton seeds were burned? There was also a thief who came in?"
Facing the furious Zhu Ying, Zhang Chen's anger suddenly disappeared, replaced by embarrassment and guilt. He wiped his forehead nervously, but in front of Zhu Ying's fierce eyes, he was frightened before, and now he was even more frightened, so he could only whisper and roughly explain what he knew.
It was nothing more than a thief sneaking into Qin Garden in the middle of the night, and because the defense was weak, he easily found the warehouse, found nothing there, and set it on fire...
Then, everyone in Qin Garden, where the fire had broken out, mobilized to put it out, while other families from the surrounding area who came to help spread the news that the steward had originally intended to secretly inform Zhang Chen to the capital, causing an uproar in the city.
Zhu Ying was so angry that her eyebrows were raised. "So, the only thing Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu brought back was cotton, and the seeds were burned? And those pirates that Big Brother killed and captured on the canal were all for nothing?"
Zhang Chen smiled bitterly and said, "Mr. Zhu's contribution will certainly not be erased. Didn't the Ministry of War also recognize that those were the remnants of the rebels in the Linhai Camp? But I guess the auspicious signs that the outsiders talked about are completely gone. You know, without the seeds, others can insist that the colored cotton was dyed... Anyway, this time, all the mistakes are my fault."
He, who was always proud, bowed his head deeply: "I thought that Qin Garden's quietness would keep away others from coveting it. I will bear this responsibility..."
"Can you carry it?"
Zhu Ying glared at Zhang Chen angrily, and then said angrily, "A Shou is still in Jiuzhang Hall, and probably doesn't know the news yet. I came here directly from the palace! Things have happened, and we need to solve them. I didn't hold you responsible! Besides, it's a good thing that this matter hasn't been officially reported to the emperor, otherwise Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu would have been screwed by you!"
Zhang Chen's face became more gloomy after hearing what Zhu Ying said. He suddenly bowed to Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu and said, "Ah Wu, Ah Lu, I am sorry for you this time. I know that your wedding date is coming soon and you will separate and live alone in the future. So, I will come back to compensate each of you..."
Before Zhang Chen could finish his words, Zhang Wu stepped forward, helped Zhang Chen up, and then said sincerely: "Brother Chen, you helped us so much in the past. If it weren't for you, Xiao Lu and I would have a harder time. Before in Xingtai, it was you who acted out of the blue and deceived so many people, which saved us from danger. This time it's not your fault, how can I ask you to pay?"
Zhang Lu seemed to have just come to his senses, and hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Yes, yes, if Brother Chen still treats us as brothers, then don't say anything about compensation..."
The two brothers argued back and forth, both of them firmly refused to accept compensation from Zhang Chen, but Zhang Chen insisted on paying. Finally, Zhu Ying could not bear it any longer and stood up to stop their arguing. The four of them discussed for a while, and when they saw Qin Yuan's manager poking his head out of the courtyard gate, they all felt that they were in no mood to stay here any longer, so they decided to leave and return to Beijing to find an expert to investigate the matter.
As for who to find, it would naturally be Uncle Hua, recommended by Zhu Ying, who is both reliable and capable.
However, as soon as the four of them left the gate of Qin Garden, they ran into Hua Qi, who had jumped off his horse. Zhu Ying, surprised and delighted, hurried forward to meet him. Before he could say anything, Hua Qi spat out a piece of grass root in his mouth and greeted him with a smile, "Miss, you are really in a hurry. I almost killed my horse on the way but couldn't catch up with you."
Zhu Ying knew that if Hua Qi continued to tease her like this, there would be no end to it, so she stepped forward without saying a word and grabbed the man's sleeve and walked inside. Zhang Chen knew how powerful this trusted general of the Duke of Zhao was, so he turned around and chased after him. Zhang Wu instinctively chased after him for a few steps, and suddenly realized something. He turned his head and saw Zhang Lu standing there in a daze, so he hurried back.
"Why are you still standing there? You should know how powerful Master Hua Qi is. Maybe you can find out something?"
Zhang Lu gave a very reluctant smile, nodded and followed Zhang Wu. When they got to the charred warehouse again, he saw Hua Qi turn around and then easily jump onto the roof next to him. He looked around and couldn't help but whispered, "After a night of firefighting, there shouldn't be any traces left. Even if someone came from a high place, they wouldn't be able to see much."
As soon as he finished speaking, he was rolled his eyes by Zhu Ying's boss: "Why are you boosting others' ambitions and destroying your own prestige! Uncle Hua has a sharp eye. He was invited to see the Qin Garden in the Duke Qin's Mansion before. He must be able to see something!"
While they were talking, Hua Qi had already jumped from the big tree next to the yard to the roof, and then disappeared. Facing this scene, the four people who stayed there could only look at each other in bewilderment. No matter how anxious they were, they could only wait patiently. After a long time, they heard a "Hey", and when they turned around, they saw that it was Hua Qi who had returned from the opposite direction of his disappearance like a wisp of light smoke.
When the man jumped from the roof and landed lightly on the ground, Zhang Chen immediately stepped forward and asked, "Master Hua Qi, do you have any clues? Is there a secret passage in our Qin Garden... Ouch!"
Hua Qi casually gave Zhang Chen a slap on the face and laughed dryly, "Ahem, I'm used to beating the Second Young Master, and my hand slipped... How could there be so many secret passages? Zhao Garden had been neglected for a long time, but after something like that happened, all the gardens in Haidian were checked inside and out. Duke Qin asked me to check Qin Garden, and there's no such thing."
Seeing Zhang Chen's embarrassment, he said calmly, "But the thief did not take a detour and went straight to this warehouse. It is impossible to say that he did not get accurate information in advance. You know, the thief took the shortest straight line all the way in, as if he knew the terrain of Qin Garden well."
"Of course, the person who came was not particularly powerful. Although he climbed over the backyard wall and used a few trees as cover to reach the warehouse without alerting anyone, he stepped on three tiles on the roofs along the way. Of course, this is because your Qin Garden has a new roof, otherwise it would not be visible."
Zhang Chen's face suddenly turned the color of liver, and he cursed: "If I find out who is the traitor, I will skin him alive!"
After cursing, he asked impatiently, "Did Mr. Hua Qi find any other clues?"
"There was only a small piece of nightgown hanging on a branch, but it was made of ordinary cloth. People usually buy cloth and make such taboo items themselves. They definitely wouldn't ask a tailor or a clothing store for it, so it's not really a clue. As for the little bit of dried blood on the branch, there's no way to find out."
"There are tens of millions of people who get their skin broken and bleed every day. Even if there is only a deep cut, by the time the government officials find the family like searching for a needle in a haystack and come to the door, the wound may have already healed. So..."
Hua Qi spread his hands and said simply, "So, I only know that the fire destroyed the body and all traces very thoroughly. I can't even be sure whether the seeds were burned completely or taken away by someone."
Zhu Ying had just boasted that Hua Qi would be able to find out a lot of clues, but now Hua Qi gave her such an answer, she was immediately very angry. But before she could lose her temper, Hua Qi smiled nonchalantly.
"When you encountered bandits on the canal, you should have known that you were being targeted. You should have presented your goods to the emperor when you entered the capital. If there were any problems in the palace, it would have nothing to do with you. At least you haven't formally mentioned this matter in a letter. Although it's a little embarrassing, it's not a big deal... Well, Miss, you came out in such a hurry, it's time to go back, right?"
At this point, Hua Qi smiled and made a gesture of invitation to Zhu Ying. Seeing that the eldest lady was still standing there in anger, he could only emphasize his tone and said, "For such a big matter, don't you think that it is more appropriate for you to go and tell Mr. Shou instead of asking others to do so? If you are willing to go and tell them, the three Mr. Zhangs will definitely thank you."
Zhu Ying immediately turned to look at Zhang Chen, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu. Seeing that the three of them nodded almost at the same time, she said dejectedly, "Okay, I'll go tell Ah Shou... But Zhang Chen, you have to investigate Qin Yuan carefully!"
Zhang Chen responded without hesitation: "Of course, I will check it carefully from top to bottom!"
Seeing Zhu Ying followed Hua Qi away, Zhang Chen wiped his forehead again, and suddenly stepped forward to hold Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu's shoulders, coughed and said: "Well, this troublesome young lady has finally left. She will go to talk to the young master, so we are not in a hurry to go back. I have something to tell you."
As he spoke, he forcefully held the two of them and walked out. After leaving the yard, they turned west along the corridor and soon arrived at a pavilion on the water. However, unlike other places where there were mostly lotus ponds and fish, here there was only a pool of clear water with a few koi swimming leisurely in it, and the water was so clear that you could see the bottom. People sitting in the pavilion had a panoramic view of the surroundings.
Until then, Zhang Chen smiled and said, "I was about to let someone spread the news, and this is not the place to talk, so I didn't tell you. The young master told me a few days ago that if the colored cotton seeds were planted, it might not be a good result. So, if someone really stole it this time, hehe, the thief might lose more than he gained."
