Chapter 1304 - 1306: Deal with Those Few_1
"Officer, what is this about?"
"Search the place!" Ye Yi, leading his men, didn’t even glance at her before charging in.
"Hey, what are you doing? This is illegal, you are trespassing into private property," the madam panicked as she saw Ye Yi and his men rushing straight in.
Seeing her attempting to block them, Ye Liu flashed a search warrant in front of her, "Do you see this? We’re here to apprehend a criminal. We saw the criminal enter your Fancy Red Pavilion with our own eyes. It’s in your best interest to hand them over. Otherwise," Ye Liu kicked at the madam’s leg and snorted, "Otherwise, I’ll burn your Fancy Red Pavilion down to the ground."
Ye Zi’an gave the madam a look and headed straight into the building. He, like Yang Chuxia, had always wanted to take the opportunity to inspect this place. Today’s search came at the perfect time.
Meanwhile, Yang Chuxia and Ye Er had already taken advantage of the chaos to make their rounds through various rooms, even finding their way into the madam’s chamber.
"Ye Er, check if there are any secret passages or hidden chambers."
"Hmm."
A quarter of an hour later, the two regrouped in the madam’s room, "Any luck?"
Ye Er shook his head.
"Search the harem once more."
The second search was more meticulous, not overlooking a single spot, from the woodshed to the flower beds.
However, the poisoned masked man stepped out of the madam’s secret room after Yang Chuxia and Ye Er had left.
"Sir, shall we leave now? It could get troublesome if we’re found."
"Hmm, head to Linshan Temple. We’ll return to the capital first." He then heard the masked man say, "Deal with those few, burn everything cleanly."
The two men then passed through the madam’s room into another, lifting a plank and descending through a tunnel.
It was at this moment that Yang Chuxia pushed the door to this room open again.
There was a faint, familiar scent in the air.
Her face changed abruptly, and she began frantically searching the madam’s room. Unable to find the mechanism she was looking for, she discovered some booklets in a hidden cabinet, noting transactions of girls purchased from slave traders. While it seemed legitimate at a glance, the key issue was that these slave traders, commonly known as abductors, deserved death.
Yang Chuxia pocketed the items, but suddenly noticed an anomaly at the corner of the hidden cabinet. She touched it inadvertently and heard a loud rumbling sound.
Looking up, she saw the wall that usually held a painting slide open to one side.
Yang Chuxia quickly closed the concealed compartment and entered the newly revealed space. The scent was stronger here than in the room.
Her heart sank. The person she had been pursuing had indeed been hiding here, all their conjectures and investigations were true.
After failing to find any other secret rooms or passages, she returned to the main hall where Ye Zi’an was still seated inside. Approaching him, she whispered a few words in his ear. Ye Zi’an’s expression darkened immediately, and he pointed at the madam, commanding, "Arrest her and take her back to the government office. She dared to harbor a criminal! Seal up the Fancy Red Pavilion, and take everyone back for interrogation."
Just then, the sound of a signal flare echoed through the sky.
Upon seeing it, Ye Yi recognized it as their own signal and hurried to report it.
The group split into three teams; one led by Ye Yi took the madam and her people back to the government office, another led by Ye Zi’an headed toward the location of the signal flare, and the last team stayed to guard the Fancy Red Pavilion.
The person who sent the signal flare was Ye Er.
As soon as Ye Zi’an and the others arrived, he reported, "Master, I have searched this place before. The secret passage in the Fancy Red Pavilion’s woodshed leads here."
"Look, there are several girls here."