Chapter 86: Finding a Way to Lure the King into the Trap

Qi Yanzhou knew that the Emperor had two private vaults.

One was the official one.

The contents inside were valuable, but not rare treasures; they were mainly used for rewards.

The other was secret.

The things inside were all extraordinary rarities that were difficult to come by, mainly for the royal family’s inheritance.

It was said that the secret vault was as strong as an iron wall, and only the Emperor had access to it.

Qi Yanzhou looked at Shuangxi with suspicion. “Is the news reliable?”

“It’s on its way to His Majesty’s chambers. Prince, once you see it, you’ll know whether it’s true or not.”

With these words, Qi Yanzhou knew that Shuangxi was not lying.

He quickened his pace, soon reaching the royal chambers.

Outside the chambers, not only were there imperial guards, but also a considerable number of Imperial Forest Army members, at least two hundred in number.

Inside the chambers, it was even more exaggerated. Imperial guards were packed together, and even the Dragon Guards had appeared.

Qi Yanzhou understood that the Emperor was afraid the “ghost thief” might steal his life as well!

Shuangxi stood at the entrance of the palace, shouting loudly, “Prince Chen is here to pay respects!”

A muffled voice came from within the chambers.

“Announce him!”

Qi Yanzhou entered the chambers and found only the Emperor and De Gonggong inside.

The contrast between the strict defenses outside and the more relaxed atmosphere inside was striking.

Qi Yanzhou understood that this wasn’t a case of “tight outside, loose inside.”

The royal shadow guards were surely hiding in the dark, ensuring the Emperor’s safety was impenetrable.

The Emperor was lying on the dragon couch, looking very pale.

Upon seeing Qi Yanzhou approach, he grabbed a jade pillow and hurled it at him.

“Fool!”

Qi Yanzhou didn’t just take the blow, nor did he dodge it. Instead, he caught the jade pillow.

“Your Majesty, please calm your anger. This jade pillow was left behind by the late Emperor and cannot be thrown.”

After speaking, he handed the jade pillow to De Gonggong.

The Emperor was already angry, and seeing Qi Yanzhou defy him only made his face turn darker.

“You’ve been investigating the ‘ghost thief’ for so many days, and there’s no clue? Not even a trace?”

Qi Yanzhou knelt on one knee.

“I am incompetent. Please, Your Majesty, replace me with someone more capable.”

The Emperor knew very well that no matter who was sent, they wouldn’t find more than Qi Yanzhou had.

“De Gonggong, take Prince Chen to my underground private vault and take a look.”

“Certainly, Your Majesty.”

As De Gonggong led Qi Yanzhou to the vault, he shared the consequences of the Emperor discovering that his secret vault had been robbed.

Not long ago, the Emperor had called the ministers to discuss disaster relief in Jiangnan.

The food was easy to handle, as it could be dispensed from the granaries.

The disaster relief silver was a large sum, and Ye Jingchuan suggested that the Emperor should cover this expense.

This was partly because the imperial treasury was nearly empty, and partly to gain the hearts of the people.

The Emperor thought that 200,000 taels of silver wasn’t too much, so he agreed.

Although his private vault contained many valuable items, there were only a little more than 200,000 taels of silver.

If 200,000 taels were taken out, there wouldn’t be much left for rewards in the future.

So, the Emperor took some jewelry from his private vault and gave it to Ye Jingchuan, telling him to pawn it for silver.

After Ye Jingchuan left, the Emperor went to check the underground vault.

He found that what should have been a vault full of priceless treasures had been completely ransacked.

The only thing left was a message from the “ghost thief” — a mocking face and the words “Ghost thief was here!”

After hearing this, Ye Jingchuan asked De Gonggong.

“Is this the same as before? No clues, and yet things have vanished without a trace?”

“This time is different. After Prince Chen sees it, he’ll understand.”

As they spoke, the two had already entered the side hall.

The side hall was heavily guarded, with at least a hundred people standing watch.

De Gonggong led Qi Yanzhou to the entrance of the underground vault.

The entrance was obvious — a heavy iron door.

De Gonggong explained, “This door can only be opened with a special code and a key. One is kept in the Emperor’s mind, and the other is stored on his person.”

After the underground vault was robbed, the Emperor had given the code and key to De Gonggong.

Three codes, three keys, unlocked the mechanism on the iron door.

With the sound of chains being pulled, the iron door opened.

The tunnel below was lit with torches, as bright as day.

De Gonggong reminded, “Prince Chen, follow my lead.”

In other words, there were traps along the stairs.

They quickly reached the underground vault.

It was empty.

About two steps from the staircase, a thick iron plate had been cut open in a round shape.

Inside the cut, iron pieces were arranged to form a smiling face.

On the wall, with a strong red dye, the words “Ghost thief was here!” were written.

Qi Yanzhou said, “The ‘ghost thief’ is provoking the Emperor.”

De Gonggong nodded, “That’s why the Emperor is worried the ‘ghost thief’ might harm him, so he’s arranged enough guards inside and outside the royal chambers, ensuring protection around the clock.”

He then fixed his gaze on Qi Yanzhou.

“Prince Chen, you’ve seen many things. Do you have any insight into the ‘ghost thief’s’ intentions?”

He still believed there was some connection between Qi Yanzhou and the “ghost thief”!

Perhaps, the “ghost thief” was someone Qi Yanzhou had brought in!

Qi Yanzhou calmly met De Gonggong’s gaze. “No.”

Even if Qi Yanzhou had noticed the “ghost thief” was targeting the Emperor, he wouldn’t say it out loud.

“I don’t mind telling you one more thing, Prince Chen. On the night that Zhang Tianshi had his incident, the ‘ghost thief’ also stole the imperial jade seal.”

“Didn’t the Emperor issue two imperial edicts? How could the jade seal have been stolen?”

Qi Yanzhou hadn’t paid attention to the imperial edicts at the city gates, so he didn’t know that the seal was a replica.

The common people had never seen the carving on the underside of the seal, so they couldn’t distinguish between the real and the fake.

“It was a fake. The Emperor had the craftsmen make a replica.”

At a glance, the seal looked identical, but upon closer inspection, it was clear it couldn’t be the real one.

Qi Yanzhou furrowed his brows slightly. “Why would the ‘ghost thief’ steal the jade seal?”

De Gonggong chuckled. “That’s for you to investigate, Prince Chen. I don’t know.”

“Also, the Emperor said that since no clues can be found about the ‘ghost thief,’ it’s time to stop wasting time. He wants you to find a way to lure the thief into a trap!”

“The ‘ghost thief’ likes money, right? Then let’s use wealth as bait!”

Qi Yanzhou immediately understood that De Gonggong was doubting him.

No, rather, the Emperor was doubting him!

“I will do my best to relieve the Emperor’s worries.”

De Gonggong nodded with satisfaction. “Take your time, Prince. I need to return to attend to the Emperor.”

After De Gonggong left, Qi Yanzhou stared at the smiley face on the ground. He felt that the mocking wasn’t the only message being sent.

Why cut such a thick iron plate to make that shape? Was there a deeper meaning hidden under the smiley face?