Chapter 899: Chapter 899: It Must Be Them!_1 Chapter 899: Chapter 899: It Must Be Them!_1 Using the method of setting a trap that would normally be used for animals, Fan Linong summoned everyone from the manor.

He also took the head of the granary to inspect the backyard, who confirmed that it was indeed an explosion caused by gunpowder.

Once the granary head had confirmed it, there was no escaping the issue. Fan Linong ordered the guards to surround all four hundred people. Until Yang Wenxiao’s imperial edict arrived, no one was permitted to leave.

The group had arrived by horse-drawn carriages today, which were padded with thick blankets, making spending the night in them not a problem.

However, even with an urgent eight-hundred-li express delivery, it would still take a day for the message to reach Capital City. Not to mention, there was now heavy snowfall making travel difficult, and the message would only be delayed further.

To wait for Yang Wenxiao’s message would take at least three to four days.

Hundreds of people at the front of the manor waiting for three or four days?

Food, drink, and toileting would all become major issues.

Fan Linong had a headache, and so did Qiao Xiaomai and Tong Sanlang.

“At least I can be sure that there is no hidden gunpowder in our house,” Qiao Xiaomai said.

These past days, she had been mostly lying on the kang bed. It would be impossible for even the most skilled person to bury gunpowder into the house while she was present.

“Better safe than sorry,” Tong Sanlang patted her shoulder and patiently persuaded her.

“I don’t understand,” Qiao Xiaomai looked at Tong Sanlang, her small face full of confusion, “Why would the person who stole the gunpowder bury it in our home? What are they trying to do? Do they want to kill the two of us?”

“If they wanted to kill us, they could just directly take action, why go through such a roundabout way? Burying it in such a secluded part of the backyard, for all we know the gunpowder might have gotten moist and not exploded at all.”

Since the gunpowder was discovered in the manor, it was obviously targeted at her and Tong Sanlang.

But if someone had the means to steal gunpowder, they would certainly have the means to directly kill her and Tong Sanlang as well.

So why didn’t they just take action?

“If they directly attacked, I would definitely resist. Killing me wouldn’t be easy. By quietly burying the gunpowder, if we accidentally stepped on it, it would be our own bad luck, unrelated to anyone else,” Tong Sanlang said.

Qiao Xiaomai looked at him and raised an eyebrow, “So, you mean to say, this was Cen Hong and Yang Wang’s doing?”

“Besides them, no one else has such a life-and-death grudge against us.” It was only the other day that they had dug up Qiao Xiaomai’s Hall, and now they came to bury gunpowder, aiming to kill her and Tong Sanlang without raising any alarm; the logic was sound.

Still, despite saying this, he also had doubts, knitting his sword-like eyebrows, “With just Cen Hong and Yang Wang, could they really have stolen the gunpowder?”

Gunpowder, which Tingfeng Pavilion had secretly tried to obtain for many years without a shred of success.

Yet Yang Wang and Cen Hong not only discovered the location of the gunpowder but also managed to steal it and sneak it into his backyard.

It had to be said, those two were rather capable.

Qiao Xiaomai had also thought of this, and recalling the appearance of Yang Wang and Cen Hong, she rolled her eyes and said, “Maybe, it was those five families who previously scorned our belongings?”

Those five families were also considered to have a grudge against her.

“No, those five families aren’t much in Capital City, they simply wouldn’t have the ability to steal gunpowder. Moreover, going after us over such a thing would be making a mountain out of a molehill,” Tong Sanlang shook his head, rejecting this guess.

“Then it must be Yang Wang and Cen Hong,” Qiao Xiaomai ground her teeth with a grating sound.