Chapter 523: The Lock on the Door, Leave It to Me

Chapter 523: The Lock on the Door, Leave It to Me

The two of them made their way near the national treasury.

Since the couple emptied the treasury, even with Emperor Shunwu's immense capabilities, it was impossible to gather so much wealth to store inside within just a year.

It could be said that the current national treasury is practically empty.

Especially since the Empress has recently taken power, she would definitely be eyeing the wealth inside the treasury, so it's likely that there's nothing valuable left inside.

Perhaps because of this, the security around the treasury has become much weaker than before.

When they emptied the treasury, they left without hiding the secret passage.

When Emperor Shunwu discovered the treasury was robbed and that the thieves entered through the secret passage, he would surely send people to block it.

But with the palace now under such tight security, they could only come here to try their luck, hoping for a slim chance.

The area around the treasury is guarded, but it's only patrolled by two teams in shifts.

After observing for a while, Mo Jiuya noticed that there was a brief moment when the entrance of the treasury was out of sight.

However, this time is very short; according to the clock in his wife's space, it's only about a minute.

This means that if they want to enter the treasury unnoticed, they must open the lock and enter within a minute.

He Zhiran also noticed this.

"Husband, leave the lock on the door to me."

He Zhiran is somewhat familiar with lock picking, having learned some basics from comrades in the army during her previous life.

Ancient locks are no match for modern high-tech products, and their mechanisms are also very simple, so she is confident that she can open the lock smoothly.

Even if she fails, it doesn't matter; she can just take Mo Jiuya into the space when the guards appear.

In short, as long as the couple is safe, it's fine to try a few more times.

Mo Jiuya, knowing his wife's capabilities, nodded without any doubt.

"Alright, let's use this gap to try; if it doesn't work, we'll hide in the space immediately."

As soon as he finished speaking, it was the moment when the guards' attention was off the main gate. Mo Jiuya quickly led He Zhiran to the door.

He Zhiran had already retrieved a thin iron wire from the space.

She inserted the iron wire into the keyhole, and after a few casual twists, the lock was opened.

They dared not make a sound; Mo Jiuya opened the treasury door just enough for the two of them to pass through, and after entering, he gently closed the door.

It was still night, and the guards wouldn't notice the lock on the door was gone, as long as the door was properly closed; everything was fine.

As expected, the items stored inside were pitifully few, and at a glance, there was nothing of value.

Even so, He Zhiran didn't intend to leave anything behind.

Although these items belong to the national treasury, Emperor Shunwu has never used this wealth to benefit the people, so He Zhiran felt no guilt in looting it.

Once again emptying the already sparse treasury, He Zhiran could do it just by passing through.

Since they had taken so many luminous pearls last time, now, only a few dim oil lamps light the treasury, but it didn’t hinder their sight.

Mo Jiuya led He Zhiran back to the entrance of the hidden passage they had used last time, only to find it had been sealed off.

He Zhiran glanced at the former entrance and asked, "Honey, the passage is sealed. What now?"

Mo Jiuya was not discouraged by the sealing of the hidden passage entrance.

"Actually, that hidden passage entrance was specifically designed by the royal family as an escape tunnel."

To He Zhiran, this wasn’t surprising at all, because in the history she knew, many emperors, fearing unexpected situations, would find ways to create an escape route for themselves.

In other words, the route Mo Jiuya took her into the treasury was an escape tunnel dug by an emperor from the Great Shun Dynasty.

"If it's an escape tunnel, only the royal family should know about it. How did you come across it?"

This was also the question Mo Jiuya was about to explain to her.

"Back when I was a kid, I was sent to the palace to be Nan Qi’s study buddy. Since we weren’t familiar with each other at first, and Nan Qi had an arrogant demeanor, after being bullied by him, I wandered off alone and stumbled upon this place.

That’s when I accidentally found the entrance to the secret chamber."

He Zhiran had once wondered how Mo Jiuya knew about this hidden passage, and it turned out he had discovered it as a child.

Given Mo Jiuya’s loyalty back then, he naturally kept such a big secret to himself.

When he took her to loot the treasury, it was likely out of sheer anger, as Emperor Shunwu’s actions had pushed him past his breaking point.

While explaining this, Mo Jiuya was not idle.

Neither he nor He Zhiran believed Emperor Shunwu would dare destroy the royal family’s escape passage.

At most, he had only altered the entrance and exit.

Mo Jiuya knew the layout of that hidden passage like the back of his hand, especially the location of the entrance within the palace, which was undoubtedly within the treasury’s confines.

They walked slowly through the treasury, carefully feeling for anything unusual underfoot.

After walking for a while, He Zhiran pulled Mo Jiuya.

"Honey, I think the brick under my foot is loose."

Hearing this, Mo Jiuya crouched down to inspect.

There were slight gaps around the stone brick beneath He Zhiran’s foot.

To test her suspicion, she deliberately stomped on it.

Sure enough, the stone brick wobbled slightly.

He Zhiran quickly moved aside, and Mo Jiuya took out a sharp dagger, pointing the tip at a gap. With a slight force, the stone brick lifted up.

A black hole appeared before their eyes.

Mo Jiuya sneered in his heart. Emperor Shunwu was really being clever, thinking that changing the entrance would make the hidden passage disappear?

Of course, he wouldn’t let his guard down just because he found the hidden passage so quickly.

After all, the treasury had already been looted once, and if no countermeasures were thought of, this hidden passage would truly have no value.

He Zhiran had the same thought. Although they had found the entrance to the secret passage, neither of them dared to venture down recklessly.

With a quick thought, she pulled a cotton quilt from her spatial storage and tossed it down.

As soon as the quilt was tossed in, the two heard a series of swishing sounds from below, suggesting that Emperor Shunwu had already had many hidden arrows installed there.

Gradually, the sounds faded away. Still wary, He Zhiran hurled another quilt in a different direction.

After repeating this process four times and hearing no further sounds of hidden arrows, Mo Jiuya finally stepped forward to lead the way down cautiously.