The First National Preceptor of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 416

Xu Tian cursed inwardly, his face remaining expressionless.

Seeing this, Qin Xian behind him became a little anxious and rushed to the Minister of Works in a few steps, pointing his finger at the other party and cursing.

"You must have done this. Not only did you slander our lord last night, but you also sent people to sabotage our construction site overnight. Your Excellency, you really played your cards well!"

"How dare you!" shouted the man next to the Minister of Works, his face grim. "Who do you think you are, pointing your finger at the Minister and cursing him? Who gave you the audacity?"

"Qin Xian," Xu Tian called out, signaling him not to clash with the other party, then smiled and said, "You're too kind, Minister. We all know each other's character. Let's not make things worse."

"Hehe." The Minister of Works chuckled and raised an eyebrow: "Lord Xu Tian, ​​what are you saying?"

"This matter has nothing to do with me. If you have nothing else to do, I won't see you off. Goodbye."

The Minister of Works showed no respect to Xu Tian and expelled him directly.

Knowing he was in the wrong, Xu Tian stopped arguing and turned to leave. He had just noticed that the white smoke from the woodshed was plentiful and thick, but the wood piled up next to it had not decreased at all. Clearly, the firewood the other party was using was the batch stolen from the construction site.

Without evidence, he couldn't rashly let someone take the other party away.

Suddenly, an idea flashed through Xu Tian's mind. He whispered a few words to Qin Xian, who left with a smile. Xu Tian then went back into the courtyard and found the Minister of Works.

"I was being presumptuous just now. Your Excellency is an upright man and would never do such a thing." Xu Tian's humble attitude pleased the Minister of Works.

"It's alright, it's alright, it'll be fine once it's clarified." The Minister of Works waved his hand dismissively, seemingly not taking it to heart.

"Yes." Xu Tian nodded, then explained his thoughts, "The timber was stolen and I need to buy a new batch. As you know, I'm just a fool who can only draw and doesn't know anything about timber. You are an expert in this field, so I would like to ask you to help me purchase the timber."

The Minister of Works was quite pleased with the flattery and said, "Alright, I don't know much about timber, but it's enough to purchase this room."

Seeing that the other party was willing to accompany him, Xu Tian smiled, a smile he hadn't shown in a long time. It was good that they agreed.

To avoid being suspected again, the Minister of Works questioned Xu Tian about the stolen timber and the evidence he possessed.

He accompanied the other person to choose something partly to see them make a fool of themselves, and partly to see how they would react.

"The stolen timber wasn't much; I can pay for the replacement myself. But if the project slows down, I'm worried about what will happen if the higher-ups blame us," Xu Tian sighed, seemingly genuinely troubled by the matter.

The Minister of Works felt a surge of joy in his heart, but he feigned sadness and comforted the other party: "Yes, these thieves are really annoying. They actually stole other people's timber. If I were you, I would never let them get away with it."

Xu Tian remained silent. He had already seen through the other party's purpose. His words just now were merely to comfort the other party, which made him even more convinced that the person behind the scenes was the Minister of Works.

However, this is also good, as it allows his and Qin Xian's plan to proceed smoothly.

With the introduction of the Minister of Works, Xu Tian quickly purchased a large amount of timber and even offered to have the Minister send someone to guard it for him.

"This matter..." The Minister of Works hesitated, thinking that Xu Tian still suspected him.

To his surprise, the other person's next words completely dispelled his concerns.