There is a god in the sky

Chapter 363 Joint Trial by the Three Judicial Offices 4

The Tong family was in complete chaos.

Shen Lan and Sui Ying went inside and saw many servants committing crimes along the way.

She had entered Tong Xiuqing's study before, but was forced to retreat by the hidden arrows in the secret room.

Tonight we can thoroughly explore that secret room. If it contains the wealth accumulated by the Tong family, then this case will soon be closed.

Following her, Suiying discovered that Shen Lan was very familiar with the Tong family's route, as if it were her first time there.

When Shen Lan killed Tong Juntao, only two people truly knew she was the murderer: Lin Miaoniang and Xiao Ji.

The two entered the main courtyard silently, and Suiying whispered, "There are people around here."

"I can tell. It seems the Tong family does have some loyal servants."

Shen Lan tossed a small pebble into the yard, and two figures appeared in the shadows. They looked around in that direction but didn't see anyone, only a small bird that had temporarily landed there.

"I'll go lure them away." Before Shen Lan could refuse, Sui Ying jumped out from the shadows.

He ran straight toward the door, and as soon as he reached the center of the courtyard, more than a dozen men in black appeared all around him.

It seems that Xiao Ji and his group were able to come and go freely during the day because these people made way for them.

While fighting, Suiying led the people outside the courtyard. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Shen Lan ran to the back of the study, pried open the window, and jumped in.

She knew the location of the mechanism.

The mechanism was tampered with last time, leaving traces. I wonder if Tong Xiuqing replaced the original mechanism.

As Shen Lan reached out and turned the switch, the door to the secret room opened, and a barrage of arrows shot out simultaneously.

Shen Lan was prepared. She nimbly jumped onto the roof beam, and when the arrows stopped, she lit a tinderbox and threw it into the secret chamber.

There was another series of "thump-thump-thump" sounds, indicating that there was more than one layer of mechanisms.

The fact that Tong Xiuqing set up such a meticulously designed mechanism in the secret room of her study suggests that something extraordinary is hidden inside.

Shen Lan jumped down and tiptoed towards the secret chamber. The tinderbox was still burning, illuminating part of the area.

There was no strange smell in the sealed room, and there was even a slight breeze, so it seemed there was an exit.

She lit another tinderbox and carefully went inside.

She had only taken three steps when the door to the secret room behind her suddenly closed.

Shen Lan searched the surrounding walls but couldn't find the switch.

If she imagined herself as Tong Xiuqing, where would she put the switch after entering the secret room and leaving?

Since she was already there, she decided to make the best of it and continued walking forward, only to discover that this was not a secret room, but a secret passage.

Why would Tong Xiuqing set up a secret passage in his study? It couldn't have been for secretly meeting with a beautiful woman.

Suiying barely escaped from a group of men in black, sustaining several injuries.

He was worried about Shen Lan, so after escaping from the Tong residence, he didn't dare to go back. He hid for a while and then sneaked back.

But this time, he was discovered before he could even sneak into the main courtyard, and another escape attempt ensued.

After finally escaping back to the Xiao family, Sui Ying was grabbed by Xiao Ji, who was waiting at the door, and asked, "Where is Shen Lan?"

"Miss Shen has entered the secret chamber, and I was unable to go to her aid because I was being chased," Sui Ying replied with a dejected expression.

Xiao Ji panicked and paced back and forth, unable to help but say, "I should have gone instead."

Suiying asked, puzzled, "What can an adult do there?"

Xiao Ji rolled his eyes at him, "I could stop Shen Lan from entering the secret room! Since you knew there was an ambush in the courtyard, why didn't you stop her?"

Suiying was stumped by the question.

They are subordinates and will only try their best to complete the task, even if it is dangerous. Why would they back down at the last minute?

However, Shen Lan was different; she should have entered the secret room herself.

He said firmly, "Rest assured, sir, I will stand with Miss Shen next time!"

Sui Feng ran out and covered Sui Ying's mouth, grinning at Xiao Ji, "My lord, he's such a blockhead, he won't get it. I understand what you mean, I'll arrange for someone to meet Miss Shen outside the Tong residence right away!"

The wind pulled the shadow away.

After running for a while, he asked, puzzled, "Did I say something wrong?"

Sui Feng scolded him with exasperation, "You've been following your master for so many years, how come you still can't see through his intentions?"

What are you thinking about?

"Of course, it's his feelings for Miss Shen."

The images seemed to make things clearer, but there were still some things I didn't understand.

"My master has always been a calm and clear-headed person. How could he allow himself to fall in love with someone he shouldn't?"

"So you're really dense, how can you even choose who you like?"

"Of course you can choose. I think it would be better for Miss Shen to marry me than to marry your master."

"Shut up and hurry back to bandage your wound. I'll take Master to meet you."

Shen Lan felt like she had been walking for a long time.

She kept track of the time in her mind. It had been about thirty minutes since she started walking. Assuming she hadn't taken any detours, she was no longer in the east of the city.

Could it be that the Tong family dug a secret passage out of the city?

Surely we can't go straight to Jiufeng Mountain?

Shen Lan felt she was overthinking it. How many years would it take to dig a secret passage like this?

She had looked around carefully; some parts were relatively new, while others looked quite old.

It's likely that the Tong family converted it into their own home after they learned about the underground passage.

After walking for a while, Shen Lan encountered the first fork in the road.

There seems to be a room on the right, and the left side is pitch black. The path in the middle should be the original secret passage, and the connection is very smooth.

Shen Lan walked to the right and saw a stone door. She pushed it open forcefully, and a musty smell hit her.

She went inside and walked around before realizing it was a warehouse, with piles of moldy grain on the left.

She cut open a bag of grain, took out a handful of beans, and could see many wormholes.

What a waste! Half a warehouse of grain is just sitting there getting moldy.

She remembered that Bianjing City had suffered a snow disaster two years ago, and thousands of refugees outside the city froze to death.

This grain looks like it's been stored for more than two years.

On the right were boxes of weapons. When Shen Lan saw the boxes of gunpowder, she was so frightened that she raised her tinderbox high.

"Who would pile up these things here? This doesn't seem like something an official would hoard."

Unable to figure it out, Shen Lan left the warehouse.

She walked to the left for a while, but the secret passage became narrower and narrower, making her increasingly uneasy. Shen Lan had no choice but to turn back.

In the end, she took the middle path. There was light ahead, and the wind was getting stronger. It seemed she was close to the exit.

She stopped and checked her equipment to make sure she could act quickly in case of danger.

It's still night, so this light must be from an oil lamp; the presence of a lamp means there are people there.

She held her breath and walked step by step toward the exit. She first heard voices before she saw someone guarding the exit.

"There's not a soul in this secret passage, what's the point of us guarding it every day?"

"You get paid to do this job, and it's not tiring at all. Didn't you always rush to do it before?"

"Compared to the life-or-death struggles every day, this place is definitely more comfortable, but I never see the sun, and I feel like I'm getting moldy."

“Let’s take turns going out to bask in the sun when it gets light. The old man hasn’t come for several days, but he should be free of anything lately.”