Chapter 28: Failing to Steal the Chicken, Losing the Rice Instead

"Silver!" In an instant, Chen Ying thought of the nearly one thousand taels he possessed. With no new source of income in sight, if they lost that money, he and his companions would truly be left with nothing but the northwest wind to fill their bellies.

Xu Jingzong had sold the residence, and though he hadn’t removed the furniture, not a single valuable item remained. Most infuriating of all, he hadn’t even left Chen Ying any food for the following night.

Chen Ying hurried back to his room, found the key, grabbed a lantern, and made his way to the storeroom. This storeroom was, in fact, the mansion’s former treasury. Its walls were of blue brick, sealed with a mixture of glutinous rice paste and slaked lime, and the space held five large, separate rooms, covering more than three hundred square meters, with no windows at all.

Arriving at the door, Chen Ying found the lock already undone. His heart jumped; he rushed inside. Lantern in hand, he made straight for the silver chest. The lock seemed untouched, but Chen Ying, still uneasy, meticulously counted the silver bars. Not a single piece was missing.

"How odd!" Chen Ying muttered. "The silver is all here!"

"Perhaps it was just a false alarm," You Ziying guessed. "Maybe the thief saw we were alert and didn’t have time to act…"

At that moment, Chen Ying’s gaze landed on the dark tabletop. It was an accounting desk, and he remembered clearly that when the silver and bolts of cloth were brought in, Lan’er had wiped the desk spotless. Yet now, a patch of dust the size of a palm lay on the surface.

In such a short day, it was impossible for dust to gather there—and certainly not in such a distinct patch.

You Ziying suddenly looked up at the beam above the desk.

Chen Ying brought the lantern closer and saw something new on the beam—a black bundle. The beam itself was a hefty piece of timber, more than a foot thick, but the bundle was so large that part of it still protruded.

"I’ll fetch a ladder," You Ziying said.

But Chen Ying, lantern in hand, had barely stepped outside when he spotted a trail of torches in the distant street—a fiery dragon winding its way toward them.

"Catch the thief! Catch the thief!" came faint, scattered shouts.

"This is bad—someone’s framing us!" Chen Ying exclaimed. "You hold them off at the front, I’ll hide this bundle!"

He didn’t bother with a ladder. He snatched the shield from You Ziying, swung it up at the beam. Dust rained down as the shield struck.

Without a glance, You Ziying retrieved the shield and hurled it spinning at the beam.

With a muffled thud, the black bundle fell to the floor.

Chen Ying hurried forward and opened it. Inside was a suit of bright golden armor, shining under the lantern light—a ceremonial cuirass, a short battle skirt embroidered with gold and cloud designs, sleeves and pauldrons trimmed with beast hide, and a tiger-shaped helmet with a copper neck guard.

"A fine piece!" You Ziying exclaimed. "This is the regalia of a grand general!"

"And that’s precisely why it’s so dangerous," Chen Ying replied grimly. Without another word, he scooped up the bundle and dashed toward the bedroom.

Xu Jingzong, when selling the mansion, hadn’t told Chen Ying about the secret chamber in the master bedroom. It was Lan’er, cleaning one day, who had stumbled upon it. Chen Ying suspected even Xu Jingzong might not have known of its existence.

Back in the bedroom, Chen Ying found Lan’er staring at him wide-eyed. He ignored her, went straight to the wardrobe, and gripped the central bronze incense burner. With a series of faint clicks, the wardrobe slid aside, revealing a small door, six feet high and about three feet wide.

This hidden chamber had been discovered by Xu Shanxin by chance, but never used. Chen Ying, clutching the armor, stepped into the musty space and sealed the entrance behind him.

Suddenly, he lunged at Lan’er, pulled her onto the bed, and covered them both with a quilt.

An elaborate frame-up like this could never be stopped by You Ziying and Zhang Huaiwei, who were neither yet official officers. In Chang’an, it was said that one would never know how lowly one’s rank was until arriving—aside from the sixteen great generals and thirty-two deputy generals in the capital, even the likes of Chen Ying, a fifth-rank general, had over a hundred peers.

Sure enough, as Chen Ying expected, moments later a group of constables with torches stormed up to the bedroom, shouting orders.

"Come out! Out!"

Lan’er trembled with fear. Chen Ying gently patted her shoulder. "Don’t worry. You know nothing."

"I know nothing," she repeated, voice quivering.

Chen Ying stepped outside to find Gao Wanqing glaring at him with ill intent.

"Well, well! You actually dared to steal the hereditary armor of the Marquis of Guangping? You’ve got guts," Gao Wanqing sneered.

"Catch a thief, find the loot," Chen Ying replied calmly. "Don’t make baseless accusations, County Captain Gao."

Gao Wanqing called, "Lu Anxi!"

"Here, sir!"

"Tell him what you saw."

"I saw someone carrying a big black bundle into the Chen residence!"

Chen Ying laughed coldly. "Do you know who I am?"

"Everyone knows who you are!" Gao Wanqing jeered. "Aren’t you that catamite?"

The constables broke into raucous laughter.

Gao Wanqing’s face hardened. "Search the place!"

They wasted no time in the bedroom, heading straight for the storeroom.

Chen Ying didn’t need to think—he knew with certainty that this was Gao Wanqing’s doing, and behind him stood Su Hu.

"You go too far!" Chen Ying said darkly. "Don’t take advantage of a young man’s poverty!"

"So what if I do? What can you do about it?" Gao Wanqing cackled.

Just then, a sergeant slipped to Gao Wanqing’s side and whispered something in his ear.

Gao Wanqing’s smile froze.

"What—nothing?" His face twisted in rage. "Search! If you have to dig three feet down, find that armor!"

He shoved open the bedroom door and knocked over a tall vase.

With a crash, the vase shattered.

"You!" Lan’er’s face flushed with anger.

"It’s fine, Captain Gao, smash away," Chen Ying said indifferently. "Just keep a record of what you break. After all, the monk may escape but the temple remains—someone will pay for it all."

Hearing this, Gao Wanqing hesitated, his hand stilled.

He and his men ransacked the residence for over an hour, until dawn broke, but found no sign of the armor.

"Take Chen Ying into custody!" Gao Wanqing barked. "I refuse to believe it—a beating with the rod, and we’ll see if this catamite talks!"

"Oh?" Chen Ying replied coolly. "In half an hour, I’m due at the Princess Pingyang’s residence. I’d like to see if you dare ignore the Princess herself."

With that, Chen Ying knew Gao Wanqing intended to use torture to force a confession. Once in prison, Gao Wanqing had a hundred ways to make him talk. Then, no one in heaven or earth could save him.

Only now did Chen Ying truly understand: in this era, one must strive to rise, or be trampled underfoot and destroyed.

Fearlessly, Chen Ying extended his hands. "Go on, put your shackles and chains on me!"

Now Gao Wanqing was caught in a bind.

To offend Princess Pingyang was something a lowly county captain dared not do. Yet if he returned empty-handed, he’d have no way to answer to Su Hu.

Seeing Gao Wanqing’s indecision, Chen Ying turned to Lan’er, asking lightly, "Lan’er, have they damaged anything?"

She caught his meaning and, clearing her throat, replied, "One small sandalwood chess table, valued at two hundred strings; one six-foot, four-flower vase, one hundred strings; all tables, desks, cabinets, lacquer boxes, and jade pieces together, perhaps four hundred and sixty strings."

"You must have miscalculated," Chen Ying said. "That ‘Three Friends of Winter’ brush pot was a gift from Princess Pingyang, said to be an imperial bestowal from His Majesty himself. To destroy it is a grave offense, punishable by extermination of one’s entire clan."

At this, Gao Wanqing’s face turned ashen.

Four or five hundred strings meant little to him, but a royal gift—now that could cost him his life.

This time, trying to steal the chicken, he’d lost the rice instead.

"Let’s go!" Gao Wanqing could only grit his teeth and swallow his defeat.

"Wait!" Chen Ying called after him. "County Captain Gao, within three days, compensate for all the damages to the Chen residence—or be prepared for the consequences!"

With a thud, Gao Wanqing collapsed in a dead faint at the threat.