Charles Bennett suddenly woke up—not only was he awake, but even his drunkenness was gone. His face twitched, thinking, What a calamity, what a calamity, how did I end up with such an unfilial son.

Charles Bennett had a very special way of greeting his son. He straightforwardly pulled out the ruler from his waist and, without hesitation, struck Quentin Bennett once, then cursed loudly, “You unfilial son, unfilial son!”

Quentin Bennett covered his head and scurried away, bursting out the door. After quite a while, he poked his head back in, peeking around. Seeing that Charles Bennett had calmed down, he cautiously entered and said, “Father…”

“Come in,” Charles Bennett said, his anger gone.

Charles Bennett also noticed James Carter, who was gloating on the side. His brows furrowed again as he asked, “Who is he?”

Quentin Bennett replied, “His name is James Carter, he’s my… sworn brother.” Then he lowered his voice and added, “Actually, he’s just a handyman.”

James Carter, with tears streaming down his face, hurriedly saluted Charles Bennett and said, “Greetings, Uncle Bennett.”

“Mm… mm…” Charles Bennett was a very snobbish person, but since he couldn’t figure out James Carter’s background and Quentin Bennett’s words weren’t reliable, he put on a very amiable expression and said, “No need for formalities, no need, don’t be so polite.”

James Carter got excited—one thing subdues another! That little rascal Bennett always had the upper hand over him, but now Bennett’s father could keep the rascal in check. He thought he’d better cozy up to him; who knows, it might come in handy.

Just as he was about to curry favor, Quentin Bennett pursed his lips at him and said, “Brother Carter, go outside for a bit. Tonight, help us watch the house and guard the courtyard. Your Big Brother Bennett is too upright, so he’s offended a lot of bad people. I’m worried someone might try to assassinate him at night. You’re not allowed to slack off—keep a close watch.”

James Carter cursed inwardly: Master Carter, a third-class enforcer under Eunuch King, is reduced to guarding your house? Do you even have the value to be assassinated? His face twitched, but in the end, he decided to swallow his pride. The enforcers in King’s household were not only skilled in martial arts, but also quite adept at reading the situation.

Once James Carter left, Charles Bennett asked worriedly, “You met with Eunuch King, so how did you come back unscathed? And that one surnamed 邓 doesn’t look like a good person—what’s his background? Didn’t I tell you before? Don’t bring all sorts of dubious people home. Make bad friends, and you’ll be unlucky for life.”

Actually, James Carter hadn’t gone far, and Uncle Bennett’s evaluation of him faintly reached his ears. He felt cold all over, his eyes blurred with tears. He lifted his head at a forty-five-degree angle, gazing at the starry sky. A teardrop as big as a bean slid down his cheek, soaking his collar. Then he took a deep breath and muttered to himself, “As expected, there’s not a single good one among the 徐 family.”

Chapter Six: Swindling and Deception Are the True Paths to Wealth

Before Charles Bennett could ask, Quentin Bennett recounted his ordeal. Charles Bennett’s expression grew grave, his eyes half-closed as he slowly digested the story.

When Quentin Bennett finished, he let out a long sigh and said, “Who would have thought misfortune could turn into a blessing? That’s your luck. You said that Eunuch King asked you to investigate that calligraphy? Do you have any leads?”

Quentin Bennett said, “What leads could I have? This isn’t my area of expertise, so I came back especially to consult you, old man.”

Charles Bennett was pleased, his face lighting up as he said, “Not to brag, but when it comes to tracking down clues, your father, at least, comes from a government background—this is my specialty. You’re lucky to have a father like me, otherwise how would you explain yourself to Eunuch King?”

Quentin Bennett thought to himself, If my father’s surname were Zhu, would I even need to answer to a dead eunuch? But he didn’t dare show it. He grinned and said, “Yes, yes, Father is right. Without you, there’d be no me, isn’t that so? Never forget the well-digger when drinking water, always remember where the water comes from, gratitude for raising me—I keep it all in mind. Alright, enough with the small talk, do you have any ideas now?”

Charles Bennett’s self-esteem was greatly satisfied, but he also felt something was off. So all that talk about gratitude was just small talk? He glared at Quentin Bennett in annoyance and said, “This matter isn’t hard to investigate. First, narrow down the scope, then check each suspect one by one. Once you’ve locked onto a few suspects, interrogate them harshly, and the truth will come out.”

Quentin Bennett was inspired and extrapolated, “I get it—start by narrowing down the suspects. But where do we start? Right, to swap the painting, you’d first need the freedom to come and go in the main hall, and the switch would take some time. So this person must have some status in Eunuch King’s household.”

Charles Bennett nodded approvingly, as if Quentin Bennett had read his mind, and added, “That fake painting must have been mounted in advance before being brought into Eunuch King’s residence. Ordinary servants can’t come and go freely. Since the person who swapped it was colluding with outsiders, they must have the right to go out often. Only by going out frequently could they keep in touch with their accomplices outside.”

Quentin Bennett agreed wholeheartedly and couldn’t help but say, “So, at most, there are only a few suspects.”

Charles Bennett gave a wry smile. “The hardest part now is figuring out how to identify the culprit among them.”

That was the crux of the problem—the suspects were all people from Eunuch King’s household. Could they just arrest all the suspects and torture them for a confession? Before confirming the culprit, they couldn’t use force. Both Charles Bennett and his son understood this—otherwise, if the tables were turned, even a dog in a eunuch’s household was not to be trifled with.