Chapter 266: Iron Chains and Sunken Chests

That was the Crown Princess Consort. How could her dowry chests be anything less than exquisite? And yet, they had even used two different colors.

But those chests weren’t part of the dowry.

Then what were they?

What did those people take out of them?

“Sanbao, hurry up! Check if anyone’s around. If not, get in the water. We need to get out of here fast. Whatever’s going on, it’s none of our business. We didn’t see anything, don’t know anything, and we’re not curious,” Yan Lao’er urged anxiously.

It was obvious—whatever those people were doing, it couldn’t be anything good.

The farther they stayed away, the better.

Yan Yu: …

That actually made a lot of sense.

Even if the Crown Princess Consort really lost something, look at her husband’s family. Prince Ying ruled over Guanzhou. You think he couldn’t catch a few petty thieves?

And besides, this was clearly an inside job.

If this wasn’t someone from the inside stirring up trouble, she’d eat a watermelon upside down on the spot.

With a splash, Sanbao jumped into the river.

Yan Yu was speechless. “Dad, you forgot to tie a rope to Sanbao.”

“Huh?” Yan Lao’er blinked in confusion. “I… oh, heavens, I really did forget! What do we do now? Sanbao, can you come back up?”

“No! Don’t move, Sanbao! Whatever you do, don’t jump!” Yan Yu was nearly breaking into a sweat, her words coming so fast even she could barely keep up. “Please, Dad, I’m begging you. Don’t let Sanbao come back up!”

Yan Lao’er finally realized the danger.

He pictured Sanbao leaping gracefully across rugged mountains and steep cliffs…

“Sanbao, be good and stay in the water. Don’t jump. Whatever you do, don’t jump,” he said quickly.

If Sanbao jumped back onto the raft, they’d probably all end up plunging into the river.

Sanbao surfaced, then dove back under.

Soon, they felt a familiar tug on the rope.

Sanbao had grabbed the rope underwater.

Yan Lao’er’s eyes were full of question marks. “How’d he do that? He knows how to tie the rope himself now?”

Well, that sure made things easier.

Yan Yu leaned over the edge of the raft, calling out, “Sanbao, come up a little. Let me see you…”

Sanbao obediently floated up, his large bovine head breaking the surface. The rope was clamped firmly in his mouth.

“Dad, let’s head to shore. Don’t go any farther,” Yan Yu said suddenly.

“Why? No one’s chasing us, and the boat ahead is still far off. If we take it slow, we won’t run into them,” Yan Lao’er replied.

“I’ve got a bad feeling. Sometimes it’s better to stay still than to move. Let’s wait and see.” She glanced at the river again. “Sanbao shouldn’t have gone into the water either. If someone from earlier spots him… There aren’t many rafts on this river to begin with, and ours has been modified. Add a cow on top, and it’s a dead giveaway. If the cow suddenly disappears, how are we supposed to explain that?”

Yan Lao’er started to feel a little regretful. He had been too hasty.

He shouldn’t have let Sanbao jump in.

Following Yan Yu’s suggestion, they steered the raft toward the riverbank.

Once ashore, they tied the rope securely.

Just then, the boat that had been ahead of them suddenly appeared around a bend in the river, heading upstream.

Yan Lao’er and Yan Yu exchanged a glance.

Thank goodness they hadn’t crossed paths with that boat.

The river made a sharp curve here, and their current position was perfectly concealed. The thick tree canopy and dense greenery hid them and Sanbao completely. Through a gap in the bushes, they could clearly see the boat, but the people on board would have a hard time spotting them.

“The chests are gone,” Yan Yu said. She clearly remembered where they had been placed, and now that spot was empty.

“Maybe they moved them into the cabin? That’s why we can’t see them?” Yan Lao’er guessed.

Yan Yu shook her head, eyes fixed on the people aboard.

“Dad, look closely. We can’t see their faces, but their movements are clear. Aren’t the ones on deck shaking water off themselves?”

Yan Lao’er took a look. Their shivering, dripping forms said it all.

“They threw the chests into the river,” Yan Yu said with certainty.

Father and daughter both turned to look at Sanbao, who was lying obediently on the ground.

Sensing their gaze, Sanbao lifted his head and looked back with calm, gentle eyes. His tail swished lazily behind him…

…

A cool breeze rustled the treetops, leaves whispering in the wind.

The river flowed steadily, carrying the moonlight reflected on its surface.

The night on the water was anything but peaceful.

Wind, water, insects—all their sounds filled the air.

The trees swayed, the water rippled, shadows danced. And their hearts stirred with unease.

The raft floated steadily in the middle of the river.

“Girl, are we really going to fish it out?” Yan Lao’er hesitated now that the moment had come.

“Dad, we were seen here today by a lot of people. If something happens, they’ll come looking for us first. We can’t afford to be clueless. Since we’ve got the chance, we need to get to the bottom of this,” Yan Yu said seriously.

If someone went to the trouble of sinking chests, there had to be a clear marker nearby to find them again.

She quickly spotted two old willow trees on either side of the riverbank.

Both were ancient and full of drooping branches that touched the water.

The trees weren’t perfectly aligned, but the slight offset wouldn’t matter to someone diving from the middle of the river.

From what they’d seen earlier, there were quite a few chests. If they were all sunk in the same spot, they’d be easy to find.

They had already confirmed the location with Sanbao—it was right here.

Yan Lao’er gritted his teeth. “Alright, let’s do it! Sanbao, see if you can pull one of those chests up.”

“Just one is enough,” he added.

Yan Yu thought the same. Even one would be enough to take a look.

Father and daughter waited quietly on the raft.

Every ripple in the water sent a ripple through their hearts.

Splash!

Sanbao surfaced.

This time, he wasn’t holding their rope in his mouth, but a thick iron chain.

Yan Yu saw it clearly. “They chained the chests together.”

“Probably so they wouldn’t get lost or swept away by the current,” Yan Lao’er said.

Still, the fact that they’d prepared this thoroughly meant whatever was inside those chests was extremely important.

His heart began to pound.

Yan Yu, on the other hand, was completely focused.

Since they were going to check, there was no point in dragging it out.

“Sanbao, remember this spot. Haul all the crates to shore,” she said, giving a strong push with the wooden pole. The raft and Sanbao reached the bank almost at the same time.

It took some effort to loosen the iron chains wrapped around the crates.

If they had left it to Yan Lao’er alone, he wouldn’t have gotten it undone even by sunrise.

Thankfully, he had a strong daughter. The two of them worked together and quickly freed one of the crates.

Yan Yu rubbed her hands together.

No hidden meaning—she just wanted to warm them up and get them moving.

Time to open the box!

Yan Lao’er was practically breathing fire with excitement.

Yan Yu, in contrast, sucked in a deep breath and held it for so long she nearly forgot to exhale.

“Good heavens, it’s all silver!” Yan Lao’er gasped.

Yan Yu steadied herself and picked up a silver ingot, turning it over to inspect the bottom.

Her heart sank slightly.

It was official silver.

The silver varied in size and age, some new, some old, but no matter the differences, they were all real, solid silver.

She moved on to check the other crates.

Besides the official silver ingots, there were silver trinkets—silver peanuts, silver beads, silver hairpins, silver bracelets… and occasionally, even some gold.

Gold leaves, gold ingots, gold lock pendants…

Thinking back to what they’d seen earlier—those people moving things back and forth between the crates—it all made sense now.

The chaos had a reason.

They’d taken a little from each crate, mixed and matched, and that’s how things ended up like this.

(End of Chapter)