Chapter 304: We Found It

Lu Qi said in a low voice: "The granary appears to have no guards, so I paid attention and checked its drainage ditch."

He paused: "The drainage ditch is at the southeast corner; inside there are dark blue traces."

Xiao Ningxun nodded, head lowered in thought.

When they reached a fork in the road, he stopped, looking at Zhou Ping and Zhou An: "Don't go back to the inn."

The two brothers stared.

"Watch the granary at night." Xiao Ningxun's voice calm: "Remember, stay far away, don't get close, observe their movements and that drainage ditch."

Zhou Ping's eyes lit up, another task: "Third Young Master, rest assured, we can handle this!"

Zhou An whispered: "We will certainly examine it carefully."

The two brothers turned and headed toward the granary.

Returning to the inn, Xiao Er accompanied Tuan Tuan to the backyard stable.

The stable boy, a young man in his early twenties, seeing them bring back an old horse, hurried forward to greet them.

"Sir, what horse is this?"

"Please take good care of it." Xiao Er produced a piece of silver and handed it over: "Feed it fine fodder, provide plenty of fresh water, brush its coat, and clean it up."

The boy took the silver, beaming: "Sir, you can rest assured!"

He walked to the old horse, skillfully patting its neck and checking its teeth: "Oh, this horse isn't young; its teeth are worn down quite a bit. Looks like it's been worked hard regularly, right?"

While speaking, he grabbed a handful of fodder from the trough and brought it to the horse's mouth.

The old horse lowered its head and chewed slowly, extremely gentle.

"Just feed it well, nothing serious." The boy patted the horse's back: "It's just old, needs proper care."

Xiao Er looked at the old horse: "Today when pulling the cart, it staggered after a few steps and couldn't move; likely due to old age."

Hearing that, the boy examined the horse's legs and spine, shaking his head: "Sir, although the horse is old, its frame is sound; pulling an ordinary cart would not be impossible."

He paused: "Unless the cart itself is extremely heavy, weighing it down so it can't step."

Tuan Tuan lifted her small face, feeling sorry: "It pulled a huge load of grain!"

The boy smiled, adding water to the trough while chatting casually: "Miss, that's certainly a lot of grain. Normally grain carts have a set limit; overloading would burst the bags and spill the grain."

Xiao Er heard this, stood still, his brows gradually furrowing.

If the horse isn't sick, why did the steward claim it was ill and rush to dispose of it?

Is that grain cart really that heavy?

Or perhaps those sacks don't contain grain at all?

So the cart is heavy enough that this old horse can't pull it?

Xiao Er's thoughts raced, but his expression gave nothing away.

Tuan Tuan stroked the horse's nose, watching it drink its fill, and told Xiao Er: "Please treat it well! It's so pitiful."

The boy nodded repeatedly: "Don't worry, Miss."

Tuan Tuan took Xiao Er's hand: "Let's go back."

After a few steps, she turned back to look at the horse: "Be good, horse; I'll come see you again tomorrow!"

The old horse let out a soft snort, as if responding.

Back in the room, Xiao Er repeated what the stable boy had said and his own doubts.

Xiao Ran set down her tea cup: "The cart too heavy? How heavy could a grain cart get?"

Xiao Ningxun's eyes flashed: "The grain cart……might not be carrying grain at all."

Xiao Er energized: "What do you mean, Third Young Master?"

Xiao Ningxun continued: "Transporting grain from the granary is only natural."

"But if using grain transport as a cover, they're actually moving something else? For example……prepared medicinal ointment?"

Xiao Er suddenly understood: "So the cart would be unusually heavy, hence they fear investigation and rush to dispose of the horse to avoid attention."

Lu Qi interjected: "If that's true, then the anomaly in the drainage ditch makes sense."

Xiao Ningxun nodded: "When Zhou Ping and Zhou An return, we'll know."

Next morning, bright and early, Zhou Ping and Zhou An returned.

Both had dark circles under their eyes, faces full of fatigue, yet their eyes shone remarkably.

"Third Young Master!" Zhou Ping lowered his voice upon entering: "The granary really has an issue! At night the smell was indeed extremely strong, pungent, making us dizzy even hiding far away."

Zhou An interjected: "Exactly! All night until just before dawn did the odor gradually fade."

"The drainage ditch had water flowing out continuously, dark blue with a layer of oily film. We watched all night; the flow never stopped."

Zhou Ping added: "After dawn we asked nearby people; they said they sometimes smelled it during the day before, but never as strong as these past few nights—this started only two days ago."

Xiao Ningxun looked at the two brothers: "You've worked hard; go rest now."

The brothers were indeed tired, didn't decline, turned and went back to their rooms to sleep.

Xiao Ran asked: "They've made poison, using the grain cart as cover to transport it. But where are they taking it? You can't just search the whole street."

Lu Qi pondered: "River Prefecture's waterways crisscross; if they go by water……"

Xiao Ningxun shook his head: "Without a direction, it's like looking for a needle in the sea."

Tuan Tuan blinked her big eyes, tilting her head: "Third Brother, Uncle Xie's horse knows the way home, can run back by itself to find Grandfather, right?"

Xiao Ningxun startled.

"Is the horse I bought yesterday capable?"

The room fell suddenly silent.

Xiao Ran jumped up from her chair: "Exactly! The old horse knows the way!"

Lu Qi kept nodding: "It pulls the cart back and forth every day, so it must remember the road!"

Xiao Er looked at Tuan Tuan, smiled and said, "Miss, you are truly clever."

Xiao Ningxun's lips curled up, she reached out and rubbed the top of Tuan Tuan's hair: "Our Tuan Tuan is really amazing; the horse she rescued so casually can be such a great help."

They decided on the spot: "This matter shouldn't involve many people; wait until nightfall, Xiao Er, you take Tuan Tuan, lead that old horse, and see where it goes."

"Yes!"

Tuan Tuan swayed her small body proudly, her dimples deepening with a smile.

Night fell, Jiangzhou City gradually grew quiet, and the streets had few pedestrians.

Xiao Er led the old horse out.

The horse had rested for a day and a night, ate refined feed, clearly improved a lot, its large eyes looking gentle and spirited.

Xiao Er lifted Tuan Tuan and gently placed her on the horse's back.

The old horse stood steadily, unmoving.

Tuan Tuan extended her small hand, patted its neck, leaned close to its ear, and said softly:

"Horse, horse, the heavy carriage you pull, where are you going?"

She extended her small hand, gently stroked its mane: "Take me to see, okay?"

The old horse flicked its head, exhaled a puff of white breath, and set off.

Xiao Er held the reins and walked ahead.

The old horse moved slowly, but its steps were steady and its direction clear.

It passed through two silent alleys, skirted a tea house that had already closed, stepped onto a stone‑paved road along the river, then continued along the riverbank, growing increasingly secluded.

Finally, it stopped.

Xiao Er's pupils narrowed slightly: "Miss, we have found it."