CHAPTER 527: CHAPTER 527: BLUFFING

"Da Niu?" Prince NanAn asked.

"Cousin? Cousin-in-law?" Chu Shun frowned.

"Da Niu’s home is just ahead, come with me," Aunt Chunhua said warmly.

"Da Niu is known for being honest and simple-minded within these ten miles, and his wife is even more virtuous and enthusiastic."

Hmm.

Chu Shun and the others followed Aunt Chunhua to Da Niu’s home.

Before they even got in, Aunt Chunhua shouted, "Da Niu, someone is here to see your cousin and cousin-in-law."

Li Daniu came out, looking at Prince NanAn and the others, who were looking at each other.

Li Daniu’s face turned red.

He was an honest person by nature.

If it weren’t for Su Jin’s instructions, he wouldn’t lie.

"Da Niu, where are your cousin and cousin-in-law?" Aunt Chunhua asked.

Li Daniu stammered.

The woman came out and said, "Aunt Chunhua, you’re confused, what cousin and cousin-in-law do we have?"

Aunt Chunhua was a bit dazed.

The woman pulled her aside, signaling her not to speak carelessly and to be cautious to avoid getting into trouble.

Aunt Chunhua loved matchmaking and was accustomed to seeing all sorts of people.

When she looked at the portrait earlier, she was already a bit puzzled.

The people in the portrait looked exactly like Da Niu’s wife’s cousin and cousin-in-law, but their attire was worlds apart.

Su Chong observed the expressions on Li Daniu and the woman’s faces clearly.

Obviously.

They knew about Su Jin and Xie Jingchen.

Prince NanAn was not a patient person.

After pressing repeatedly, the woman and Li Daniu still wouldn’t say, and Aunt Chunhua, sensing danger, hurriedly left.

When bribing them with silver didn’t work, Prince NanAn couldn’t help but grab Li Daniu by the throat.

"Are you going to tell us or not?" Prince NanAn asked.

Li Daniu couldn’t breathe, his face turned purple.

The woman panicked, "I’ll tell! I’ll tell!"

"Speak quickly!" the Heir of Marquis Beining urged.

The woman hurriedly said, "After they fell off the cliff, Da Niu and I pulled them back, but before we could get a doctor, they were already dead."

"So Da Niu and I buried them."

Buried them?!

Su Chong and the others’ faces changed drastically.

"Where did you bury them?!" Prince NanAn asked.

"Right at the bottom of the cliff."

The woman mentioned a location, and Prince NanAn and the others rushed over.

At the bottom of the cliff, there was indeed a newly made grave, and it didn’t have a tombstone.

Looking at the grave, Prince NanAn and the others had tear-filled eyes.

"I don’t believe Brother Jingchen is really dead like this," Chu Shun said.

"Dig up the grave and take a look," Prince NanAn said.

Su Chong had already started digging.

Without a hoe or a spade, he started digging with his bare hands.

But after digging for a little while, several people came carrying a tombstone.

One of the men shouted, "Who are you?!"

"You’ve got some guts, to dare dig up my father’s grave in broad daylight?!" The man’s face turned ashen, fuming with rage.

Chu Shun, "..."

Prince NanAn, "..."

The Heir of Marquis Beining, "..."

The Eldest Young Master of Duke Dingguo, "..."

Su Chong looked at his mud-covered hands.

"Your father’s grave?" Su Chong’s voice trembled slightly.

The man came over with a stick, his eyes practically wishing to kill Su Chong and the others by staring.

Prince NanAn looked at Su Chong, saying, "Have we been fooled by these honest people?"

They were always the ones to fool others around in circles.

They never expected a day where they’d be tricked into digging up someone’s ancestral grave.

Great.

Very impressive.

Su Chong apologized and acknowledged his mistake, helping to pile back the soil they had dug out.

The man watched them the whole time with a stick.

The five of them carried an extraordinary aura, their attire spoke of wealth or nobility, one could tell they weren’t to be trifled with.

And in addition, their attitude was decent; after each of them lit three sticks of incense, they left without being harassed.

Once they had gone far, someone whispered, "It seems like they dug the wrong grave?"

Su Chong and the others went to settle accounts with Li Daniu.

But Li Daniu’s house was completely empty.

They didn’t have horses, and even if they wanted to chase after them, they didn’t know where to go.

They walked down to the bottom of the cliff, grabbed a rope to scale the cliff, and rode back to the Capital.

Upon entering the Capital, they learned that the Heir of Prince Zhenbei and his wife had saved the Eldest Prince.

Prince NanAn and the others exchanged looks.

Their faces were filled with black lines.

They had worried themselves to death.

Not only were they fine, but they had also rendered great service?

Their bulls were going to be agitated to death by them!

They hurried back to the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion.

And happened to meet Xie Jingchen head-on.

Xie Jingchen had returned to the mansion for half an hour, refreshed and dressed, and came back out again.

Chu Shun dismounted, pulling Xie Jingchen to examine, "You’re not hurt?"

"Just a minor internal injury, it’s nothing," Xie Jingchen answered.

"No big deal..."

"Do you know what we’ve been through these past few days?!" Chu Shun exclaimed.

Xie Jingchen knew they had been searching for him and Su Jin for days.

So anxious they couldn’t eat or sleep.

"Sorry to have worried you," he said.

"Enough with the apologies, the weight we’ve lost over these days, you must treat us to replenish," Prince NanAn said.

Xie Jingchen nodded with a face full of black lines.

Su Chong and the others were all covered in dirt.

Seeing Xie Jingchen in a brocade robe, looking distinguished and extraordinary.

Each of them gave him a hug before going to freshen up.

Xie Jingchen, "..."

He dusted off the dirt from himself as he re-entered the mansion.

However, not long after they went inside, an ox cart stopped in front of the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion.

"We’re here," Li Daniu said.

The woman lifted the curtain, looking at the grand Dongxiang Marquis Mansion, unable to believe, she said, "Is this really the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion?"

Li Daniu asked a passerby and returned, saying, "No mistake, this is indeed the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion."

But why was no one guarding the entrance?

Not daring to go in, they stood at the entrance waiting.

After waiting for half a day, a servant came out and asked, "Who are you looking for?"

"We came from the Li Family Village, a Young Madam named Su Jin asked us to come," the woman called out.

"You know my lady?" The servant was a bit surprised.

"Please wait a moment."

About a quarter of an hour passed before Su Jin and Xie Jingchen came out.

Su Jin, in her grand dress, seemed almost unbelievable to the woman.

Su Jin was a bit surprised as well.

Li Daniu’s family had saved her and Xie Jingchen’s lives.

She intended to bring them to the Capital for a better placement, as the Li Family’s conditions were just too poor.

Whenever guests came, Li Daniu would have to sleep in the cow shed.

Yet Li Daniu would rather sleep in the cow shed than leave Li Family Village.

The Old Madam was even older, reluctant to leave her homeland.

Although Li Family Village was not far from the Capital.

Since they were unwilling, Su Jin didn’t force them.

But they had just returned to the Capital, and then they came looking for them, why not just come to the Capital with them?

"Could something have happened?" Su Jin asked.

The woman explained, "An hour ago, some people came to Li Family Village asking about your whereabouts, and we fooled them."

"Those people were really fierce, we feared they’d retaliate so we came with our family."

If life wasn’t at risk, they really didn’t want to leave Li Family Village.

Hopefully, if those people didn’t find anyone, they’d leave, and they could return.

"Please come in," Su Jin smiled and said.

Li Daniu helped the Old Madam down from the ox cart.

Hmm.

Just as they stepped into the mansion, they ran into Su Chong and the others head-on.

Su Chong, "..."

Li Daniu, "..."