Qinger crawled out of the dog hole and dusted herself angrily. Seeing how Yuan Qian and Xiao Xiaoshen couldn't hold their laughs, she rolled her eyes at them,

"This is your good idea? Teaching me how to crawl out of a dog hole?"

Xiao Xiaoshen crossed his arms and held his chest. He looked down at Qinger who was much shorter than him. He smiled and asked,

"Who taught you Kungfu? You can't even climb over a wall? How can you protect Yunxi?"

Qinger was not convinced. She smiled coldly and countered him with what he said to her in the post house,

"Lady is with the Master. Does she need our protection? What are you thinking?"

"Huh? I..."

"Are you two finished? We have a business to do!"

Yuan Qian was impatient. He interrupted their quarrel, turned back, and glanced at the end of the alley vigilantly.

Qinger arched her back and asked quietly, "The tenth captain, are we really not going to the Prefect's Mansion to find the Master?"

Yuan Qian unfolded a black cloth and covered the bottom half of his face. He said decidedly,

"We can't! There are tails at the post house. The Prefect's Mansion won't be any better! This is an action without permission. If we go to find the Master, we would probably get scolded. Let's pry the Feng's Mansion first!"

Qinger was confused after hearing it,

"We just got here. Who knows where is the Feng's Mansion?"

Xiao Xiaoshen relaxed his eyebrows. He looked like he knew exactly what to do, judging by his relaxed expression,

"The beggar in the post house is a secret guard of the Eastern Depot. He has gone to the Feng's Mansion ahead of us and left some marks along the way. We just need to follow the marks and we will find it."

He took out a handkerchief from his black clothes and handed it to Qinger.

"Take it. Cover your face so no one can recognize you."

Qinger took over the handkerchief with both hands. She was usually quick of wit and eloquent, but she suddenly didn't know what to say. She looked down quietly. Holding it in her palm, she focused on the handkerchief that was well folded. It was as if time had stopped moving. She was dazed.

The handkerchief still had his body warmth. It had the fragrance of soap that suffused the space in front of her.

Qinger watched it and felt it. She was blushing subconsciously.

"Are you done?"

Xiao Xiaoshen waited for a while. Seeing Qinger lowering her eyes and dazing, he pushed her impatiently and started hurrying her,

"Are you waiting for me to help you? Cover your face!"

Qinger was startled by his shout and woke up. She smiled coyly and covered her face obediently.

Then three shadows were like shooting arrows. They disappeared instantly at the end of the alley that was behind the Donglai post house.

Along the way, in some inconspicuous corners of houses, yard fences, or short walls, they could find shield-shaped marks within a few steps. Those were the marks left by the secret guard of the Eastern Depot.

Under the guidance, they quickly passed through a couple of streets under the dark night. Then in the distance, a magnificent mansion came into their sights.

Qiling was not big. A mansion this flamboyant and eye-catching was not common. They got close, walked along the high wall, and sneaked up to the front door corner.

Yuan Qian was swift. Wearing nocturnal clothing, he wasn't easy to get noticed. He found the right angel and hid in the dark. Yuan Qian observed and saw the golden plaque that hung above the red door wrote "Feng's Mansion".

He was slightly relieved. They found the right place.

Yet Yuan Qian suddenly noticed something was unusual about this mansion.

It was not early. A magnificent and wealthy mansion like this should have lanterns hanging outside the door to light up. Why was it still dark outside?

Yuan Qian curled up. He hid under a secure shadow underneath the high wall and put his back against the wall, holding his breath. He observed for a while and then put one ear on the wall to listen carefully.

It was not the time for sleep. Yet there was not a single sound in this giant mansion. It was extremely absurd!

Thinking that Xiao Xiaoshen and Qinger were still waiting, Yuan Qian didn't dare to spend too much time here. He waited for a while and sneaked back.

"What's the situation?"

Seeing Yuan Qian dashing back, before he could catch a breath, Xiao Xiaoshen asked in a low voice.

Yuan Qian pulled down the black cloth that covered his face. He frowned and said with hesitation,

"It's so strange. I watched for a while there, but there's no sound in the Feng's Mansion! Doesn't he hire any servants or maids after building this luxurious mansion?"

"We need to go inside if we want to figure it out."

Xiao Xiaoshen waved his hand and straightened his back. He stood up in the dark and subconsciously touched the broadsword hanging on his waist. He said decisively,

"Let's go! Let's go inside the mansion."

They sneaked to the east side corner of the Feng's Mansion. Qinger looked up at the high wall. She frowned and had a difficult look.

Seeing that, Xiao Xiaoshen teased her,

"So what? Need any help?"

Qinger gave him a propitiatory smile. He couldn't see much of her smile because half of her face was covered. He could only see her curled eyes shining and bright.

Xiao Xiaoshen extended his arms. He carried Qinger sidewards in his arms, jumped off the ground, and then dashed onto the wall.

Yuan Qian followed him. They both landed softly. Their feet stepped on the black tiles on the wall.

They all looked at the yard. At that moment, all of them were shocked and confused.

The yard was full of peach trees. It was February. There was still quite some time before the flower season, but the peach trees here were blooming wildly. The tiny pink flowers were clear as crystal, blooming on the branches. The yard was full of its fragrance.

A wind blew. The flower fell like rain. Countless white and pink petals floated in the wind. They then landed softly on the ground. Because no one was cleaning, the petals covered a large area. It was so beautiful, almost like a dream.

Qinger lay in Xiao Xiaoshen's arm. She was blown away by this beautiful scene. Even though the Master's Mansion had flowers all year round, but it wasn't like this. This white and pink scene was bright and enchanting.

Yuan Qian's pupils shrank. Looking at this gorgeous scene, he couldn't help but murmur to himself,

"How's this possible..."

Xiao Xiaoshen looked serious. He frowned, and cold light shone in his black eyes.

The peach blossoms were lustrous. The white ones were like snow, and the pink ones were like the dawn. They contrasted with the deep dark blue sky. The scenery was magnificent yet weird. Under the quiet dark night, it had an ineffable disharmony.

They leaned forward and smelt. In the wind, the air was full of the flower's fragrance and the moist smell of the soil. Yet hidden behind it, there seemed to be a rotting smell.

Xiao Xiaoshen's expression was solemn and serious. His clutched fists slightly shook. He said with a deep voice,

"Let's go down and see. I think we'll definitely find something big!"

...

Prefect's Mansion.

Gu Yunxi saw the guard off the kitchen. Her scornful cold smile disappeared. She started looking for the source of that unusual sound.

What a pity that the sound disappeared. She couldn't hear anything.

Gu Yunxi was unsatisfied. She mimicked the sound and knocked on one side of the stove repeatedly, but she didn't hear any response.

She straightened her back and exhaled heavily.

She wondered whether she was too sensitive. Maybe it was a mouth cracking a hole.

Thinking that the Master was still hungry, she didn't have time to think about other things and refocused on cooking.

The steam in the steamer jumped high. Gu Yunxi poked at the wood to weaken the fire. She then carried down the steamer from the stove, carefully opened the lid, and took out the Sanbai Cake. She put it on the chopping board and cut it into pieces.

When she was putting them into the plate, a piece fell on the ground. The soft cake bounced and landed by the corner of the cupboard.

Gu Yunxi bent down to pick it up. She accidentally found that one brick on this wall was very strange.

It was not only separated from the cement but also bulged out of the wall for one-fifth of its length. It was very conspicuous and special when looking at it.

Out of nowhere, Gu Yunxi reached out her hand and pushed the brick inward with strength.

A creaking sound rang.

With a long and sharp scream, the dust blew on Gu Yunxi's face. She felt like the ground underneath her shook violently. Though she crouched, her body shook with the ground.

When the dust settled in the room, she looked at the front. The wall that was next to the cupboard opened up. It rotated half a circle. A secret space showed up behind the wall.

Gu Yunxi pressed on the ground with her fingers. She was dazed, staring at this unknown space in front of her.

A secret room?!

Gu Yunxi was shocked. She finally realized that the strange brick was the mechanism to open the secret room.

Everyone in Jiangan knew that Qiling County's prefect, Feng Yunheng, was corrupted. He must have built this secret room to hide the treasure and gold that he had taken.

That was why when she said she wanted to use the kitchen, the guard in front of the door tried to stop her and asked someone to keep an eye on her. They were afraid that she might find it!

Gu Yunxi was intrigued. She stood up and quickly walked to the rotating wall, but suddenly stopped there.

She reached out her head and looked behind the wall, but what she saw was another wall half a meter behind it.

Gu Yunxi felt strange.

This kind of design was usually used to keep warm. But designing double walls in a kitchen would be a complete waste!

At this moment, half of her face that was close to the rotating wall sensed some winds blowing from one end of the wall gap.

Gu Yunxi took out a lighter and lit it up. She then held it with one hand and reached into the space to see.

With the shimmering light, she saw a rectangular entrance on the right wall. She could vaguely see some staircases. From where Gu Yunxi was standing, she couldn't see anything else in this secret room' depth.

The entrance was not too narrow. It could allow one person to enter or exit.

"Should I go down?"

Gu Yunxi squeezed the lighter. She was torn.

In this deadly quiet space, she could only hear her heartbeat, one beat after another and one heavier than another.

Gu Yunxi knew she was terrified and nervous. This had shown how timid and overcautious she was.

She just guessed that the secret room would be full of gold and silver. But she hadn't explored it and witnessed what was inside.

This secret room was a significant help as if God was helping the Eastern Depot. But if they wanted to figure everything out, someone must enter the secret room.

When she was hesitating, Gu Yunxi thought of the Master. She suddenly remembered the moment he smiled and she couldn't move her eyes away. Suddenly, her violently beating heart was back to calm and steady.

Gu Yunxi felt like she was full of courage at this moment. It was like she was filled with energy and strength by God.

She strode and agilely moved passed the rotating wall. She held the lighter high and walked down the stairs of the secret room.