Chapter 260: The Gossip Arrives 3

"My older sister and my second brother are both strong-willed, so it’s inevitable... I really think my sister’s prison break was wrong. She says she’s innocent, so she should have stayed in prison, right? Escaping only brought more trouble upon herself... So when my sister asked me for help, I told my second brother. But what happened at noon was too much of a coincidence!"

At this point, Miss Shu Xi’s tone became somewhat agitated.

"How can something happen right after we just brought my sister back? But, Father, think about it. If we follow this line of thought, isn’t it too much of a coincidence? Anyone would think that Second Brother was wronged. So who is the most likely person to have framed him? It must be my sister! After all, my second brother listened to me and went to bring her back... I reckon that once my second brother realizes what’s going on, he’ll say that my sister and I deliberately teamed up against him. However, if that’s the case, then it’s a bit too superficial. Yes, I did tell him where my sister was, but... I also secretly felt that my sister’s escape was wrong, after all, what she did... But Father, imagine that if these things happened to my sister and me, who would benefit? It would definitely be my second brother! I told him where my sister was, and she was brought back. Then his brother... that eliminated three of us at once, and now no one can threaten his position..."

After speaking for such a long time, Miss Shu Xi stopped and did not continue. The more you talked, the more likely you were to make a mistake. It was better to stop short of saying more. She believed her father would make his own judgment.

Shu Ming had remained silent from the moment Miss Shu Xi began speaking, growing more and more silent as he listened. He could not deny that she had made a good point. Although he favored Shu Bei, strength came first. He could not simply hand the position to whoever he favored. The rest was up to the two of them to fight for. He would not bother with scheming among his own children, but he would not tolerate it when it came to scheming against him. He would go out and hear what Shu Bei had to say later.

"All right, I understand. You can go now."

"Yes, Father."

Miss Shu Xi obediently followed Shu Ming back to the clan hall.

As soon as Shu Ming sat down, Shu Bei immediately took two steps forward. "Father! It was Shu Nan! It must have been her! She conspired with Shu Xi and the others to frame me!"

Miss Shu Xi quickly glanced at Shu Ming and said, "Father, you see, I knew Shu Bei would react this way!"

Shu Ming remained silent, signaling him to continue. Shu Bei, however, thought his father believed him and raised his voice even higher. "Shu Nan has always been cunning! I suspect she deliberately released the bloodied prisoner from the dungeon..."

Before he could finish speaking, a fierce gaze locked onto him. He looked up and saw that it was his father. He was so frightened that he trembled and quickly swallowed his words.

"A prisoner covered in blood..."

Once Shu Ming’s gaze shifted away, he dared to continue rambling. "Not only that, I suspect that she hired someone that night to deliberately burn down the ancestral hall, behind the elves’ backs, to frame them and then take those people away in the chaos! Then she would find another opportunity to bring them back and say that she had captured them herself! But she didn’t expect to make so many mistakes and be exposed! She escaped from prison yesterday with the help of Crocodile Lan of the Crocodile Clan! It’s hard to say that Crocodile Lan wasn’t involved too! More importantly, she was out all day yesterday. Who knows whether she came back to the giant rat tribe, or what she said to these people, and whether they conspired to frame me!"

After he finished speaking, the atmosphere in the ancestral hall was very quiet, and no one dared to speak first.

Shu Dong looked at Shu Bei, then at Shu Ming, and could not help saying, "Are you crazy? Big Sister hates playing with me the most. Why would she want to play with me? Besides, I was with Father all day yesterday. How could he not know whether she had looked for me or not?"

Shu Dong curled his lip. Shu Bei, that bastard, all he knew was how to shift the blame. The evidence was right in front of him, yet he was still arguing. Although Shu Dong had concealed some things and tricked him too, so what? Who had told Shu Bei to threaten him before? So what if he had tricked him?

"All right. Take Shu Bei away. Shu Dong and Shu Xi, you two go back and reflect on your mistakes. Neither of you is allowed to leave!"

With a gloomy expression, Shu Ming made his decision. He felt something was amiss. What Shu Xi had said made sense, but the coincidences surrounding Shu Bei and Shu Nan were too many. He had a feeling that someone was plotting against him from behind.

"Father! I’ve been wronged! How could you lock me up in jail!"

Shu Bei looked at Shu Ming in disbelief, never expecting that he would actually throw him into jail!

At that moment, Shu Dong suddenly said, "Hey? Father, I suddenly remembered something. It’s about those people who were rescued from the dungeon that day. I seem to remember a few people telling me that Big Sister wasn’t in the giant rat tribe’s territory that night. She went to Fairy Tale Town. So Big Sister was framed, right?"

Shu Dong scratched his head. Although his older sister did not like him, she was actually quite nice to him because of his fondness for Nanfeng.

Upon hearing this, Shu Ming’s eyes darkened further. Could it be that all of this was Shu Bei’s scheme? That really was...

Shu Bei was taken aback at first, but then he realized what was happening. Were they trying to pin all those messy things that had happened to Shu Nan on him?!

"No! It wasn’t me! I didn’t do it!"

Shu Ming gave a wink to the man guarding Shu Bei, and the man immediately understood. He pulled a piece of cloth from his pocket and stuffed it into Shu Bei’s mouth. Then they dragged him out and took him to the prison.

"All right, everyone go down, except for Shu Xi and Shu Dong, who will stay for a bit."

Everyone else left.

Zhao Yinyin, who had sprayed on the giant rat tribe’s racial perfume, sighed regretfully. She really wanted to continue watching the drama unfold, but she had to leave with the main group, otherwise she would be doomed if she were exposed. Zhao Yinyin left reluctantly, glancing back every few steps.

A giant rat nearby, noticing her expression, nudged her with an elbow. "What’s wrong? Haven’t you had enough?"

The other’s eyes also gleamed with gossip. Zhao Yinyin, as if she had found a kindred spirit, retorted, "Aren’t you the same?"

The two exchanged a glance and both sighed heavily, feeling that there was more to this story, but unfortunately they would not get to hear it.

"What a pity. The chief can’t share this melon with us."

"Wait... how about we go to the dungeon? Miss Shu Nan and Young Master Shu Bei are both there!" Zhao Yinyin suddenly remembered, thinking that the two of them would definitely start arguing in the dungeon.

The giant rat, who was also watching the drama, suddenly had a bright idea. "That makes sense! One of my buddies just said he has to go out today, so let’s cover for him!"