Chapter 365: Exposed
Translator: Pika
Qin Wanru was furious. These two-faced officials really were so shameless that they could twist words in any way to benefit themselves.
His reason for searching their estate had sounded so morally upright, and he was now using a different yet equally lofty reason to justify stopping the search. Utterly disgusting!
Even though she always complained that Chu Zhongtian was too square and lacked the slyness of his more worldly counterparts, she would be the first one to implode if he transformed into one of these wily old foxes himself.
However, given how matters stood right now, she could only endure this current situation. “You have my thanks, Lord Sang,” she said coldly.
Sang Hong was completely unfazed by the sarcasm evident in her voice. Instead, he looked at Zu An and said, “Madam has found a good son-in-law.”
Zu An was stunned. He didn’t know why in the world this man would suddenly praise him, but there was no way his intentions were good. As such, he replied, “Lord Sang has also found a good daughter-in-law.”
Sang Hong was flabbergasted. He felt rage boiling within him. The other party was clearly mocking his son for still wishing to get married despite being at death’s door!
You have successfully trolled Sang Hong for 399 Rage points!
“Youngsters shouldn’t be too arrogant,” Sang Hong shot back. He stormed off in a huff. This kid won’t be able to act smug for much longer anyway. I’ll slowly settle things with him in the future!
Zu An noticed the Rage points coming in. I was congratulating him on finding a good daughter-in-law, and he still got angry with me! What a petty man.
To be honest though, Zheng Dan really is a fine woman. I’ve even given her a try myself. I’m not some blind critic—every aspect of her really is spectacular.
Chu Huanzhao ran over and grabbed Zu An’s arm as Sang Hong and his men took their leave. “You were so cool today, brother-in-law! You even chased away the governor!”
Qin Wanru also sighed in gratitude. It really was nice to have a man around the house. Just as she was about to praise Zu An, she noticed the intimate way in which her second daughter had latched onto him, and her brow furrowed instinctively. However, this fellow had done them a great favor today, so she couldn’t bring herself to scold him. Her only option was to pretend that she hadn’t seen anything.
Of course, others saw this scene quite differently. Cheng Shouping gave Jiao Shanhe and the others a smug look. I told you so!
Jiao Shanhe and the others weren’t too depressed, as they had pretty much resigned themselves to their fate. Instead, they only felt sincere happiness for their young master.
Zu An smiled at this time. “How could someone like me possibly scare off the governor? Surely they only left out of fear of the Chu clan and Madam. I’m just a lowly fox, relying on the power of these tigers behind me to chase him away.”
“Look at how humble you are all of a sudden! I can’t get used to this side of you at all!” Qin Wanru couldn’t help but exclaim.
“When have I ever not been humble? I’m just always misunderstood by everyone else,” Zu An said with a straight face.
“Enough, enough. I already know what kind of person you are,” Qin Wanru said snidely. “By the way, were you implying that I’m a tigress?”
Zu An stared blankly. He really hadn’t intended that at all! However, he didn’t see any Rage points from her, which implied that she wasn’t actually angry. That emboldened him to say, “How can that be? I’ve never seen such a pretty tigress before.”
Qin Wanru’s face went red. She gave him an annoyed look. “Impudent!” With that, she turned around and left.
The guards were all stupefied. Clearly, they had still underestimated the young master! He even dared to tease their Madam!
Even more shocking, Madam—who was usually so fierce and strict—hadn’t gotten mad at him!
It seems like the young master has already fully established himself in the Chu clan.
After the events of the day, the Chu clan quickly returned to a more peaceful state. The estate’s servants went about tidying up all the areas that had been messed up during the search. Soon, night fell.
Qn Wanru convened a meeting with butler Hong Zhong and the other trusted Chu clan aides to deal with all the important matters that had piled up, and also to discuss their plans going forward. She even called Zu An to attend the meeting as well.
After having him around for a while, she discovered that Zu An wasn’t as useless as she had first thought him to be. On the contrary, he was quite the talent.
She decided to use this opportunity to take him under her wing. This way, he could shoulder some of Chuyan’s burdens, and help the Chu clan as well.
Unfortunately, when they launched into a discussion of the Chu clan’s complicated business matters, he began to yawn at once. Soon afterwards, he fell asleep on the table.
Qin Wanru frowned. She was disappointed, but she couldn’t scold him in front of everyone. She had no choice but to let him be.
While they were inside the meeting hall, a man dressed in black sneaked into Qin Wanru and Chu Zhongtian’s room.
He seemed extremely familiar with how the security had been laid out, and navigated through it with ease.
Once he had broken in, he rummaged through all the possible locations where something could be kept.
Sang Hong’s men had already searched most of the estate during the day. The only places he hadn’t been able to search were this room and the rooms of the two daughters.
Everyone knew what kind of personality Chu Huanzhao had. There was no way the account book would be hidden in her room.
The Unvoiced Residence was a possibility, but Chu Chuyan still hadn’t returned. With the residence vacant, the Chu clan probably wouldn’t keep something so important there.
That left the clan master’s residence. This was the most logical deduction!
He had already thought about the possible places within the residence that this account book could be stored. However, his long and arduous search remained unsuccessful.
He began to panic. This account book was too important! Sang Hong’s support hinged on this, and it was also the foundation that would enable him to control the Chu clan in the future. Without this account book, things would become much, much more difficult.
He went through the rooms again, looking through every single nook and cranny. However, he still turned up empty-handed.
Why, why?!
He roared internally. Had he schemed for so many years, just to be defeated like this?
However, he couldn’t change reality no matter how he vented his frustrations.
It was time to leave!
He realized that time was almost up. However, leaving now without finding what he’d come for was just too disappointing!
He turned around and looked at the bed. Suddenly, a thought flashed into his mind. He hopped over to the bed and lay down.
Qin Wanru probably sleeps here just like this.
That Chu Zhongtian sure is a lucky bastard. He gets to sleep with such a ravishing woman every night! If I were him, I wouldn’t even want to get out of bed in the morning!
He sniffed the sheets. Qin Wanru’s unique scent lingered on them. He was completely entranced.
He greedily took in the smell of the bedcovers. It was as if the goddess of his dreams was right on top of him.
He would never again have a chance to smell her scent from so up close. He hugged her pillow to his face as though his life depended on it.
As he sniffed the pillow, something occurred to him. He quickly got up and fumbled about the pillow. Eventually, he found a hidden compartment, and drew out a small booklet. When he saw the words ‘account book’, he flipped through it rapidly and saw the lines of records inside. Wasn’t this precisely what he’d been looking for?!
“Ha ha ha! I’ve finally found it! My time has come at last!” The man laughed crazily. He felt as if even the heavens were on his side.
“Name yourself!” A shout suddenly interrupted him.
His heart gave a sudden start. He raised his head and saw Qin Wanru staring at him from close by.
Damn it! I wasted too much time lying on the bed!
Qin Wanru glimpsed what was in his hand. Her complexion paled. “Thief! How dare you!”
There was no time to say anything else. She rushed towards the man.
The black-clothed man moved as well. He took a frantic leap towards the window.
However, he was just a step too late. He was blocked by Qin Wanru just as he reached the window.
Qin Wanru was still at the sixth rank, after all. With the account book in jeopardy, there was no way she would show the slightest hesitation.
In a flash, the two of them exchanged a dozen blows.
With one hand holding the account book, the black-clothed individual was at a clear disadvantage. Eventually, a blow slipped through his defenses. Qin Wanru tore off his mask.
She was stunned when she saw his face. “You?”