Chapter 383: A Flaw

Translator: 549690339 |

Yang Wang nodded, then continued to ask, “You are the village chief, have you ever heard of this secret tunnel?”

“In response to your Highness, I have not heard of it. Over the years, I’ve also never heard any movements,” Tong Tiehu replied.

Yang Wang turned to look at Qiao Xiaomai. Gazing at her tender, charming face, his furrowed brow relaxed, and his tone became softer. “Miss Qiao, your house is right above this basement. Over the years, have you heard any noises?”

Qiao Xiaomai shook her head. “In response to your Highness, I have not heard of it.”

Upon hearing this, Qiao Changshun, somewhat nervous, rubbed his large hands together and took the initiative to speak. “Your Highness, I, I also haven’t heard anything. Last year when my family was building a house, digging the foundation, we didn’t discover anything.”

At his words, Yang Wang looked at him, creasing his eyebrows again.

Cen Hong looked at all the villagers present and asked, “The construction of this secret tunnel couldn’t have been accomplished in a day. How is it possible that none of you in the entire village knew anything about such a huge undertaking?”

“In response to the general, we did not know,” Tong Tiehu respectfully replied.

“Tong Sanlang, what about you? You know martial arts; you didn’t hear this colossal commotion?” Cen Hong turned to Tong Sanlang, his eyes steeped with gloom.

Tong Sanlang had struck him and disrupted his plan, forcing him to take action personally. This was a deeply ingrained grudge indeed.

“In response to the general, I’m only 17 years old. When this tunnel was being built, I wasn’t even born,” Tong Sanlang replied emotionlessly, matching Cen Hong’s gaze.

Cen Hong snorted, “What about the noise of them transporting things?”

“I often go hunting in the mountains, I have never heard any sounds,” replied Tong Sanlang.

Upon hearing this, Cen Hong fell silent, his gaze flashing like a venomous snake, cold and ferocious.

Tong Sanlang showed no sign of fear, standing tall with a straight back.

Cen Hong gritted his teeth, shifted his gaze, and began to question other village elders.

These elders naturally knew nothing. After a full round of questioning, no conclusion was reached.

“Alright, since there is nothing to find out, let them all go,” Yang Ye, who had been sitting quietly most of the time, finally spoke.

His expression wasn’t pleasant. He was already annoyed from questioning these people without breakfast.

Yang Wang waved his hand. “Everyone can leave.”

His expression didn’t look good either.

Initially, he only wanted to nab Qiao Xiaomai, but unexpectedly, he stumbled upon this secret tunnel.

Treasure from the previous dynasty!

With this cache of treasure, what significant was Qiao Xiaomai!

But the problem was that the treasure had vanished. It was gone!

It had vanished once while at the Qingyi Manor, and now it’s occurred again!

How did things get so complicated once that woman got involved!

Soon, Qiao Xiaomai and the others descended the mountain, including Yang Ye, who also departed.

Yang Wang and Cen Hong stood at the entrance of the secret tunnel, their expressions both somber and dark as water.

“General Cen, what do you think?” Yang Wang asked.

“I have not discovered any flaws,” replied Cen Hong.

“However, the traces of dust on the floor of the basement suggest that the treasure must have been moved recently,” Yang Wang added.

When the secret tunnel was discovered, he, Yang Ye, Ma Dongshu, and others entered and found the long passage full of dust. Their faces were grimy and disheveled by the time they reached the basement.

However, strangely, there was only floating dust in the air within the basement, while the floor was incredibly clean.

Apart from the dust brought in by their shoes, the brick ground was as clean as if it was new.

This was indeed strange.

Even stranger, the surrounding areas of the basement near the walls, about a finger’s width, were covered in dust just like in the tunnel. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

It was as if a room that hadn’t seen daylight for many years had an item moved from it. Both the room and the item were covered in dust. When this item was suddenly moved away, the ground beneath it was spotless.

Therefore, it seemed like the treasure in the basement had been moved entirely.

And it had occurred within the past few days.