Font Size:
Sunlight bathed the grand, vermilion gates of the Marquis Bai Zhentian mansion. The gatekeeper, a young man named Xiaosi, stood idly, his eyes occasionally scanning the pedestrians passing by on the street.
Suddenly, a servant in fine attire hurried over, a golden invitation in his hand. “This is an invitation from the Left Prime Minister’s residence. It must be delivered to the Marquis.” The servant’s expression was respectful as he handed the invitation to Xiaosi.
Xiaosi quickly accepted it, replying, “Don’t worry, it will be delivered.”
With the invitation tucked in his sleeve, Xiaosi ran to the Marquis Bai Zhentian’s study room.
He steadied his breath before knocking on the door, “My lord, Xiaosi has something urgent to report.”
“Come in.” Marquis Bai Zhentian’s deep voice echoed from within.
Xiaosi pushed open the door and entered the study, presenting the invitation with both hands, “My lord, the old madam of the Left Prime Minister’s residence is celebrating her birthday tomorrow. They sent an invitation.”
Bai Zhentian lowered the book in his hand, took the invitation, and glanced at it, nodding slightly. “We can’t disregard the Prime Minister’s residence. Steward, go to the treasury and select some suitable gifts. Don’t let our Marquis’ mansion lose face.”
The steward acknowledged the order and rushed to the treasury. But when he opened the treasury doors, he froze in place.
The treasury was completely empty. The once dazzling array of rare treasures, exquisite silks, and precious fabrics had vanished without a trace.
The steward’s eyes widened in disbelief. His legs went weak, and he almost collapsed to the ground.
“This… this is impossible?” The steward muttered to himself, panic rising in his voice. He turned and ran back to the Marquis, his steps hurried.
At that moment, Bai Zhentian was still in his study room. Seeing the steward burst in, flustered and breathless, he knew something was amiss before the man even spoke.
“My lord, it’s not good! The treasury… the treasury has been emptied!” The steward gasped for breath, his voice trembling.
“What did you say?” Marquis Bai Zhentian abruptly rose to his feet, his eyes wide with shock. The shock instantly transformed into burning rage. “Did you see it clearly?”
“My lord, it’s absolutely true!” The steward fell to his knees with a thud, his voice choked with tears, “As soon as I opened the door, it was empty. Everything was gone.”
Marquis Bai Zhentian felt a surge of blood rush to his head. He struggled to catch his breath, his body swaying. The steward, quick as a flash, rushed forward to support him.
“Insolent!” Marquis Bai Zhentian roared with fury, his fists clenched, his knuckles turning white. “They dare to run wild in my Marquis mansion, emptying the treasury. Do they think I, Bai Zhentian, am a pushover?”
He kicked over the chair beside him, With the sound of the chair crashing to the ground, the ornaments in the study trembled as well.
The commotion quickly drew others in. Concubine Li and Bai Xinyao were the first to arrive. Seeing Bai Zhentian’s furious expression, Concubine Li feigned panic, covering her mouth and said “My master, what happened? What’s going on?”
Marquis Bai Zhentian turned toward Concubine Li, his eyes blazing with anger as if he could devour her whole, causing her to step back in fright.
“You’re asking me what happened? The treasury has been emptied! and yet you pretend to know nothing about such a significant event?” Bai Zhentian roared, his voice echoing in the room.
Concubine Li’s face turned pale, and she quickly waved her hands. “My master please don’t wrongfully accuse me! I truly know nothing!”
At that moment, Concubine Zhao, Concubine Wang, and Concubine Liu also hurried over. The three of them stood aside, exchanging worried glances and not daring to make a sound.
“Search for them!” Marquis Bai Zhentian bellowed, “No matter who did it, dig three feet into the ground and find them for me!” His chest heaved violently, veins bulging on his forehead, resembling a lion in a rage.
“And all of you!” Bai Zhentian glared at the three concubines and Concubine Li. “Behave yourselves! If I find any connection to you in this matter, don’t blame me for being ruthless!”
The women were so frightened that they lowered their heads, not daring to meet his gaze.
The young servants and maidservants gathered at the doorway, all silent and afraid of being caught in the crossfire of his wrath.
Marquis Bai Zhentian strode out of the study room toward the treasury, with everyone hastily following behind.
Along the way, Marquis Bai Zhentian muttered curses under his breath, each word dripping with anger.
Upon arriving at the treasury, he surveyed the empty room and kicked the wall in frustration and roared “A bunch of useless fools! How could such a significant event go unnoticed by anyone?”
The steward cautiously suggested, “My lord, should we report this to the authorities and let the officials investigate? Three months ago, I was here to retrieve things, and everything was normal. How could it suddenly be emptied? This is definitely not a small matter.”
Bai Zhentian gritted his teeth. “Report it immediately! I want to see which audacious scoundrel dared to touch my Marquis’ mansion!”
Before long, the head constable arrived with a group of officers.
As soon as Constable Li entered the Marquis’ mansion, he clasped his fists and said, “My lord, I heard that your residence has been robbed. We have come under orders to investigate the case.”
Bai Zhentian’s face darkened as he replied, “Constable Li, you must find the thief for me. The items in my treasury are worth a fortune and have all been taken!”
The constable nodded. “My lord, rest assured, we will do our utmost. Please tell us in detail. You mentioned retrieving things three months ago. Did anyone enter or leave the treasury after that?”
The steward hurried forward and report to the constable. “After I took the items three months ago, The treasury was locked, and I kept the key. It has not been opened since, and I can confirm that no one else has a key.”
The constable asked again, “During these three months, did anyone in the mansion notice anything unusual?” Everyone looked at each other, shaking their heads in denial.
Bai Xinyao said softly, “I’ve been in my courtyard these past three months and haven’t heard anything out of the ordinary.”
The constable frowned. “If that’s the case, then these thieves are very skilled. They managed to empty the treasury in the space of three months without anyone noticing.”
Concubine Li also feigned concern, “This is truly terrifying. The mansion is heavily guarded. How could something like this happen?”
The constable began to examine the treasury carefully, questioning the night watchmen.
One watchman stammered nervously, “I’ve been on night watch these past three months, and I haven’t noticed anything unusual. Every night was the same as usual.”
The constable asked, “Did you patrol at night?”
The watchman quickly nodded. “Yes, we patrolled every hour.”
The constable pondered for a moment. “This is strange. If you patrolled, how could you not have noticed the thieves? Unless…”
“Unless what?” Marquis Bai Zhentian said
The constable said slowly, “Unless these thieves knew the layout of the mansion and the patrol schedule perfectly. They might even…” He glanced around at the people present. “They might be an inside man.”
As soon as these words left his lips, the crowd erupted in an uproar.
Marquis Bai Zhentian’s gaze swept over the concubines and servants once again, his eyes full of suspicion. “If I find out who the inside man is, I will personally tear them limb from limb!”
Concubine Li’s face turned pale with fear, and she hastily said, “My master, please don’t wrongfully accuse me. I would never do such a thing.”
Concubine Zhao followed suit, wailing, “Yes, my lord, we are loyal to you. How could we possibly collude with outsiders to steal from our own home?”
At that moment, Concubine Li’s eyes flickered. She suddenly exclaimed, “My master, could it be the eldest daughter? She’s been missing for so long. Who knows where she went and what sinister skills she learned. Perhaps she came back and emptied the treasury.”
Upon hearing this, Bai Zhentian’s eyes widened in fury. He turned around and slapped Concubine Li across the face with a loud “slap”. Concubine Li stumbled back, nearly falling.
Bai Zhentian roared, “What nonsense are you talking about! You went to burn incense with my daughter, and now you say she’s fallen off a cliff and was murdered. We still haven’t found her body to this day. Now you dare to slander her, saying she emptied the treasury? Did you see it with your own eyes?”
Concubine Li, clutching her burning cheek, sobbed, “My master, I… I was just speculating.”
Bai Zhentian’s anger was still palpable. He continued to berate her, “Speculating? Without any evidence, don’t spread baseless rumors! Linglong, a frail woman, how could she possibly move the contents of the treasury? Moreover, there’s no trace of anything being moved around the treasury. I believe you are the one who should be suspected! Perhaps you stole things one by one and smuggled them out!”
Concubine Li, terrified, fell to her knees with a thud, kowtowing repeatedly, “My master, I’m innocent! I really didn’t do it. Even if you gave me a hundred lives, I wouldn’t dare!”
Bai Zhentian glared at her fiercely, then turned to the constable, “Constable, you must investigate this thoroughly. No matter who it is, once you find them, don’t show any mercy!”