Volume One: The Youngest Among Three Hundred Chapter 147: The Secret of the Footprintless Snow

Inside the inner chambers of Princess Changning's estate, Chen Chang'an finished reading the black material regarding the misconduct of various officials recorded in the scroll, which gave him a completely new understanding of these so-called pillars of the nation. On the surface, every single one of them appeared glamorous and respectable, but in reality, their actions were nothing short of sickening—there was only more disgusting, never the most disgusting.

Even Changning was greatly shocked. "For all these years, I never thought to look at what was actually recorded in this scroll. I didn't expect that..."

"It's fine, it's fine!"

Chen Chang'an tucked the scroll into his robe and chuckled. "People are all like this, aren't they? Who hasn't done a few unpresentable things? For all I know, even I might have, only Her Royal Highness is unaware of it."

"Is that so?" Changning gave him a piercing, scrutinizing look.

"Ah, well... I..." Chen Chang'an turned his face away, tilted his head back, and let out a soft, whistling sound.

"Your Royal Highness!"

At that moment, the voice of a maid came from outside. Changning asked, "What is the matter?"

Reporting through the door, the maid said, "Your Royal Highness, someone from the Black-Clad Guard is outside asking for an audience, saying they are here for Chen Chang'an."

"Looking for me?" The man furrowed his brows slightly.

Not long after, at the gates of the princess's estate, Chen Chang'an met Tan Shutong, a Black-Clad Guard of the Xuan rank. Instantly, he had a bad premonition. He rushed over and inquired cautiously, "Senior Officer Tan, why did you have to run over here in person? You must be here to invite me for a drink, right? Don't you dare talk about official business—Her Imperial Majesty the Empress issued a decree giving me half a month off, and only two days have passed!"

"Ha!"

Tan Shutong slung an arm around his neck and said, "As it turns out, there really is business to handle. Her Imperial Majesty says your vacation is cut short, so get into the palace immediately."

Chen Chang'an: "..."

"Officer Tan, has something happened?" Changning had already adjusted her emotions and state of mind. Gone was her previous depression and sadness; she bounced and skipped back into her lively, cheerful self as she walked out from the estate to ask.

Tan Shutong clasped his fists, bowed, and replied, "Reporting to Your Royal Highness, it is like this. This morning, after Her Majesty the Empress finished writing the imperial edicts in the Diligent Governance Hall to confer titles on the sect leaders during the Grand Fengchan Ceremony, she discovered upon stamping them that the Imperial Jade Seal had been stolen!"

"What?"

"Holy shit!"

Chen Chang'an and Changning cried out in unison, their eyes widening in shock. Both thought to themselves that the thief must have immense courage indeed, to actually steal from deep within the imperial palace and openly challenge the majesty of the royal family. Truly a badass.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Chen Chang'an immediately bade farewell to Changning and hurried toward the palace in the company of Tan Shutong.

Along the way, Tan Shutong complained that he had first gone to the Su residence to look for him only to find the place empty, and only after making inquiries did he learn that Chen Chang'an had been invited to the princess's estate. "Why didn't you say so earlier? You made me run around in circles for nothing."

Chen Chang'an retorted and grumbled, "Logically speaking, I should still be on vacation right now."

Tan Shutong rolled his eyes. "Hah! You think they'd let you take a vacation? Deputy Commanders Cao and Cheng have already brought new recruits like Ye Lin and Ruan Jingchu into the palace to investigate. We only came to find you because we had no other choice. Who told you your reputation for being skilled at solving cases is so widely known? A capable person must shoulder heavy responsibilities!"

Hearing this, Chen Chang'an hissed through his teeth. "What do you mean, 'a capable person must shoulder heavy responsibilities'? This is clearly encroaching upon my vacation time! Besides, didn't Ye Lin go as well? He boasts the title of the Luozhou Detective God—did he not find any clues at all? What an unearned reputation!"

Tan Shutong explained, "That's not the case. The reputation of the Luozhou Detective God is genuine. When things reached a dead end, Ye Lin actually did find some traces, but they were too meager to lead to any substantial progress."

As they conversed, the two arrived at the imperial palace and rendezvoused with Cao Wu and the others, who were already there. At that moment, Bai Wan was resting in a nearby pavilion, with Zhang Youzhi on her left and A Bao on her right, enjoying the company of handsome men while quietly awaiting the investigation results.

*Such true bliss. She's going to suck them both dry,* Chen Chang'an muttered under his breath.

Cao Wu walked over and said, "Tan Shutong should have explained everything quite clearly on the way here, so I won't repeat it. The Fengchan Ceremony at Mount Tiantai is imminent, and the Jade Seal is required for it. Moreover, it symbolizes the majesty of the imperial authority and must never fall into the hands of those with ulterior motives. Find it back within the shortest possible time."

Seeing that Cao Wu had covered everything that needed to be said and left nothing for him to add, Cheng Longwu winked and encouraged Chen Chang'an, "Give it your all! I believe in you!"

Chen Chang'an: "..."

Left speechless, he acknowledged the encouragement with a hand gesture and walked toward the crime scene, the Diligent Governance Hall. At the entrance, he met Ruan Jingchu, Ye Lin, and the others. It was evident that most of the personnel deployed for this operation were new recruits, with very few old faces remaining; Cao Wu and Cheng Longwu clearly intended to cultivate fresh blood.

Chen Chang'an looked at Ye Lin and cut straight to the point, "I heard you found some traces. What kind of traces are they?"

Smug, Ye Lin dragged him outside the main hall of the Diligent Governance Hall and shouted in a ringing voice, "Bring water, pour it!"

Immediately, a young eunuch carrying a bucket of clean water stepped forward and splashed it against the red-lacquered, carved wooden door panels. The cascading water crashed against the wood and splashed back onto the ground. Chen Chang'an rolled his eyes. "What is the meaning of this?"

Ye Lin chuckled, shifted his position to move out of the way, and let the sunlight illuminate the wet surface. "Observe closely. Floating on the surface of the water are tiny grease particles. The Diligent Governance Hall is where Her Majesty works. Any meat provisions delivered here are always cooked food; there is never any residual grease."

"Because the grease from cooked food dries and hardens on the surface of objects over time, cold water cannot wash it away. Only grease from raw meat can."

"However..." Ye Lin raised his voice dramatically as he reached the crucial part.

Before he could finish, Chen Chang'an cut him off. "However, how could anyone in the palace have raw grease on their hands, especially when entering and exiting the Diligent Governance Hall where Her Imperial Majesty works? Strict hygiene and cleanliness must be maintained at all times. Therefore, without a doubt, this raw grease was undoubtedly left behind by the thief who stole the Jade Seal last night."

"Not bad, Chen Chang'an!" Far from feeling displeased by the interruption, Ye Lin was thoroughly delighted.

It was the joy of a high mountain and flowing water meeting a kindred spirit.

Chen Chang'an continued his analysis. "Yet, based solely on this point, we can only deduce that the thief is likely a butcher or meat vendor who handles raw meat on a regular basis. As for how specifically to investigate further, we still have no clue, right?"

"Mhm!"

Ye Lin lightly pinched his chin, striking a serious, Sherlock Holmes-esque contemplative pose. "The surroundings of the Diligent Governance Hall are unlike other palaces; it is a vast expanse of lawn. At present, the green grass is lush and tall. According to reason, if a thief wanted to approach and enter, they would inevitably have left footprints. But the bizarre thing is, we searched the entire surroundings and found nothing."

Chen Chang'an speculated, "The world is full of wonders, not to mention the various complex arts practiced by various sects. Could they have used some kind of spellcraft to instantly teleport into the Diligent Governance Hall?"

Ruan Jingchu offered a rebuttal. "If spellcraft had been used, there would definitely be residual spiritual aura at the scene. The National Teacher Dong Zhongxuan's Directorate of Heavenly Mandate has specialized methods for searching and probing. They just inspected the area and confirmed there was none!"

Upon hearing this, even Chen Chang'an fell into deep thought. The lawn surrounding the Diligent Governance Hall was several thousand meters wide. If someone were to rely purely on physical strength without employing secret techniques, even practitioners at the late Eighth-Rank Profound Realm like Cao Wu and Cheng Longwu would need to push off intermediate footing halfway across; it was impossible to cross it in a single breath.

So, why was that?

The lawn was soft and yielding; even the slightest step would cause it to depress and fold. How on earth could someone traverse it without leaving a trace?

Fully concentrated, Chen Chang'an racked his brains for an answer. When none came, he stood up from his squatting position, clasped his hands behind his back, and meticulously inspected the scene, his gaze sharp and piercing, missing no dead corners or minute details.

After making a full circle around the outer veranda surrounding the four sides of the Diligent Governance Hall, just as he was about to switch angles to seek a breakthrough, he inadvertently noticed a hole the size of a pulse bottle's mouth on one of the painted rafters beneath the eaves. It looked as though it had been drilled very recently, and the wood shavings remaining on the outside still appeared fresh.

"Hmm, there's something wrong here!"

Realizing something fishy was afoot, Chen Chang'an channeled the vital energy of his Third-Rank Enlightenment Realm, leaped upward, and observed closely. Suddenly, the prospect brightened, and his thoughts cleared completely. Following the position of the newly drilled hole on the painted rafter and looking across the distance, he saw the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

From the architectural layout of the entire Grand Yang Palace, the Diligent Governance Hall and the Hall of Supreme Harmony stood opposite each other, forming a straight line.

"If that's the case, directly above or below this hole, there should be another newly drilled hole."

Guided by this hypothesis, Chen Chang'an leaped up and down, shifting positions to search, and sure enough, just as he expected, he found another hole located directly below the previous eave corner.

Chen Chang'an immediately shouted downward to the imperial guards whom Bai Wan had specifically dispatched to assist with the search: "Hey, brothers, trouble you to go over to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, lock your eyes on my position, and see if there are any newly drilled holes made with a sharp tool in the corresponding woodwork of the building facade."

"Hey, Chen Chang'an, what are you up to?" Ye Lin asked curiously, lifting his head.

Chen Chang'an replied, "It's just a guess for now. I'll tell you once it's verified."

As guards with formal official ranks within the palace, naturally they felt rather displeased at being bossed around by a rookie from the Black-Clad Guard. Furthermore, the Hall of Supreme Harmony was three thousand meters away from this spot; what did it have to do with tracking down the Jade Seal? They couldn't figure it out and felt they were being toyed with, showing a greater or lesser degree of resistance.

However, recalling the instructions given by Empress Bai Wan, they had no choice but to comply, thinking to themselves that they would follow his instructions first and settle accounts later if nothing came of it by the end.

Half a quarter of an hour later, the guards returned under the blazing sun, their lazy tones conveying the result of their inspection: "On the wooden rafters of the Hall of Supreme Harmony opposite us, there are indeed two holes at different heights, drilled with goodness knows what kind of tool."

"As expected!"

Hearing this, the corners of Chen Chang'an's mouth curled upward. He leaped down from the eave corner, brushed the dust off his garments, and said, "I know how the thief managed to enter the Diligent Governance Hall to steal the Jade Seal without leaving a single footprint on the surrounding lawn!"

"What?"

"Quick, tell us!"

Ye Lin and Ruan Jingchu simultaneously turned their gazes toward him with eager eyes. The other members of the Black-Clad Guard—both veterans and rookies—as well as the guards, all stretched their necks in anticipation while wearing puzzled frowns.

Chen Chang'an squatted down and used the scabbard of his nameless blade to draw lines back and forth on the ground. "What he used was actually a very simple trick. The distance between the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Diligent Governance Hall is about three thousand meters. Pay attention: as long as a steel cable is tensioned using the tall buildings on both sides as anchors, a person can grab onto it and shuttle back and forth through the high air, completing the transit from the Hall of Supreme Harmony to the Diligent Governance Hall without leaving footprints on the ground."

"So the two pairs of holes facing each other at a distance on the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Diligent Governance Hall were left by sharp tools used to drill into the wooden rafters to secure the steel cable—one pair used for coming, and one pair used for going." Ye Lin caught on, enlightenment dawning upon him.

"Exactly!" Chen Chang'an nodded.

He could have explained it even more directly: the thief had built a simple ropeway between the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Diligent Governance Hall. Lacking pulleys and a driving motor, it relied purely on free fall from a higher elevation to a lower one, which was why the drilling heights for securing the steel cable differed between the two ends.

However, lacking the various concepts of later generations, would they even understand what a ropeway was?

With this explanation, the doubts in the minds of Ye Lin and Ruan Jingchu were resolved. The other members inwardly praised Chen Chang'an's brilliance, while the guards felt a pang of shame for their earlier lack of cooperation, looking at him with profound reverence as if gazing up at a deity.

"Even so... this only explains why there were no footprints on the ground. We still don't have a direction for our investigation!" Ruan Jingchu spoke up at this moment.

Chen Chang'an's gaze returned once more to the drilled hole on the eave corner of the Diligent Governance Hall, and he proclaimed, "No, we do have a direction. But we need to go find someone first."