I became the tyrant's only belief.

Chapter 317 A Huge Scam

[Wow, quite a few pseudonyms! Today it's Wang, tomorrow Li, and the day after Zhou. What, trying to use every surname in the Hundred Family Surnames?]

Chu Liuzheng fiddled with the system.

[When they're in a good mood, they sell the Heavenly Lotus Fruit to the Duke of England's mansion; when they need it, they steal it back from the Duke of England's mansion. Is this treating the Duke of England's mansion as a free and safe warehouse?]

[The money is earned, but the goods remain theirs. Tsk tsk, in terms of shamelessness, even the Duke of England would have to admit defeat.]

Xiao Jingfan's brow twitched twice upon hearing this; the Heavenly Lotus Fruit had actually been stolen by that scholar.

What exactly was the scholar's identity?
The Duke of England was unaware that Chu Liuzheng had already used the system to identify the thief who stole the Heavenly Lotus Fruit, and he tried to dispel the emperor's suspicions:
"After the theft of the Heavenly Lotus Fruit, I not only ordered a thorough investigation within my residence, but also reported it to the Shuntian Prefecture. Although it was not explicitly stated that the stolen medicinal herb was the Heavenly Lotus Fruit, the theft should be recorded in the Shuntian Prefecture. If Your Majesty does not believe me, you may summon Lord Dong to the palace for questioning."

Xiao Jingfan already knew that the Heavenly Lotus Fruit had indeed been stolen, so his efforts hadn't been in vain. He waved for him to get up and reply.

To others, this move was seen as the Emperor trusting the Duke of England.

Consort Shu's anxious heart eased slightly.

The Duke of England had been kneeling for so long that his legs had gone numb.

Zhou Yuande stepped forward and helped the person up.

The Duke of England felt as if he were walking on cotton; his legs were numb and painful, and he unconsciously put most of his weight on them.

Fortunately, Grandpa Zhou was strong and held up the person.

Seeing this, Xiao Jingfan still offered him a seat.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." The Duke of England sat down in the chair. The numbness in his legs eased slightly, but the itching was intense and uncomfortable.

Consort Shu looked at him worriedly, while the Duke of Ying shook his head slightly to indicate that he was alright.

When he bought the Heavenly Lotus Fruit last year, he did consider presenting it to the emperor to bring some benefits to the Duke's mansion.

But good things should be used wisely.

The political situation is constantly changing, and no one can guarantee smooth sailing all the time; setbacks and ups are inevitable. A valuable resource like the Heavenly Lotus Fruit should naturally be saved for when it's truly needed.

It's a pity that people are not as good as God.

The emperor not only learned from others that the Duke of England's mansion possessed the Heavenly Lotus Fruit, but the Heavenly Lotus Fruit also happened to be stolen, leaving him no chance to make amends.

Although he managed to concoct a plausible explanation, he knew the emperor wouldn't believe it. If the emperor disliked the Duke of Ying's mansion because of this, only Consort Shu could offer some recourse.

Therefore, he absolutely could not allow Consort Shu to be implicated as well.

Xiao Jingfan looked at the Duke of Ying and asked, "The Duke's mansion is heavily guarded. How did the thieves manage to steal the Heavenly Lotus Fruit?"

"I do not know," the Duke of Ying sighed and said truthfully, "I stored the Heavenly Lotus Fruit in a cold jade box in a secret room. The stone platform was sealed with a glass cover, and the only opening was locked with a mechanism that could only be opened with the key that I carried with me."

“At the beginning of last month, I went into the secret room to check. The mechanism lock and the glass cover were not damaged, and the cold jade box was sealed. Only the Heavenly Lotus Fruit inside had disappeared.”

Xiao Jingfan asked, "Where's the key?"

The British official stated, "I have always kept the key with me and have never lost it."

[Tsk, a mere lock and mechanism is no match for the Thousand-Handed Scholar; he opened it in less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.]

Xiao Jingfan: !

Scholar with Thousand Hands? !
Does this woman mean that the person selling Heavenly Lotus Fruit is the Thousand-Handed Scholar?

[Tsk tsk, the Thousand-Handed Scholar is such a swindler! First, he sold Xiao Fuzi the Cold Marrow Powder, along with an antidote that couldn't cure the poison; then he sold the British Duke's Mansion the Heavenly Lotus Fruit, along with a smuggling service. Anyone who does business with him is doomed! No wonder he can only do business on the black market; if he showed his face, he'd definitely get chased and beaten up.]

Chu Liuzheng flipped through the pages and suddenly spotted a piece of gossip. [Funny! The painting Wei Mingliang gave to the tyrant wasn't painted by the Thousand-Handed Scholar at all!]

Xiao Jingfan: ?!
[Hahaha! This guy just bought a painting from a street art stall, stamped it with his own seal, made up some story, and fooled Wei Mingliang.]

Chu Liuzheng wanted to burst into laughter whenever he thought about how Wei Mingliang had treasured a painting he bought for two qian of silver for two years.

As she was laughing, she suddenly realized something was wrong.

[Wait! It's understandable that Wei Mingliang wouldn't recognize the paintings of the Thousand-Handed Scholar, since he's not a fan. But doesn't the Tyrant like the paintings of the Thousand-Handed Scholar? How come he didn't recognize them either?]

Xiao Jingfan didn't understand. Aren't fans food? What does that have to do with Wei Mingliang and the Thousand-Handed Scholar?
[Oh my god, is the tyrant a fake fan?]

Chu Liuzheng pondered this in secret.

[Wait a minute, a tyrant is an emperor, with so many famous paintings waiting for his appreciation. There's no need for him to be a fake fan of a scholar, is there?]

Hmm... I have a feeling something's up here.

Chu Liuzheng started fiddling with the system again, guessing as he went.

The tyrant has been sending people to search for the Thousand-Handed Scholar. Could these two have a hidden past?

Xiao Jingfan: "..."

This woman really dares to think outside the box.

[Tsk, I haven't seen the Tyrant and the Thousand-Handed Scholar interact at all. It's always been the Tyrant unilaterally looking for people. Could it be that the Thousand-Handed Scholar has some other identity that I haven't uncovered yet?]

Chu Liuzheng continued searching through the system with great interest.

Although he was engrossed in the gossip, Xiao Jingfan remembered that he hadn't finished his business. He asked the Duke of Yingguo, "I heard that the person who sold you the Heavenly Lotus Fruit was a scholar. What do you know about that scholar?"

"Your Majesty, the one who sold me the lotus fruit was a merchant from Southeast Asia, not a scholar." The Duke of England looked puzzled. "Where did Your Majesty hear this from?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Jingfan looked at Feng Jing.

Feng Jing hurriedly said, "It was that scholar who told me that he was the one who sold the Heavenly Lotus Fruit, and there was no Southeast Asian merchant involved."

"Nonsense!" The Duke of England frowned at him. "I personally purchased the Heavenly Lotus Fruit from that merchant. How could I not know who he is?"

After all, the price of Heavenly Lotus Fruit is not cheap, and he is not a fool who would be taken advantage of. He would naturally investigate before buying it and would only make a purchase if there were no problems.

Feng Jing felt that the scholar was not lying to him, and said, "Perhaps that Southeast Asian merchant bought it from the scholar first and then resold it to the Duke's mansion."

Everyone who heard this thought it was indeed possible.

Xiao Jingfan asked, "Where are those Southeast Asian merchants now?"

The British official said, "I only know that he comes to the capital once every three years, but I do not know where he is now."

[That's fake. That Southeast Asian merchant was killed by men sent by the British governor and buried at the foot of Xiaoshaoshan Hill on the outskirts of the city. The grass on his grave is already three meters high.]

Chu Liuzheng flipped through the gossip in front of him.

[Tsk tsk, who can blame them when the dead have the tightest lips and are best at keeping secrets?]

This merchant was truly unlucky. He thought he had snagged a great deal from the Thousand-Handed Scholar, but little did he know that everything was part of the Thousand-Handed Scholar's plan. Even the Duke of England, a generous buyer, was chosen with the Thousand-Handed Scholar's help.

[Sigh! A world where only unlucky merchants get hurt... Hmm? Wait!]

She clicked on the gossip article next to her and quickly scanned it.

[Funny! The Thousand-Handed Scholar Scams This Merchant, All in the Name of Justice!]