"Elder Ming, tell the officials about what you experienced last night. If any of my ministers have questions, they may raise them at any time," said Emperor Xue Ye.
"By Your Majesty's command." Elder Ming turned to face the ministers and said, "I am the person in charge of the Empire's treasure vault. I bear an inescapable responsibility for this theft from the vault. By rights, I should have accepted punishment directly and have no standing to be in this hall. However, I am also the sole witness involved, so His Majesty permitted me to take part in discussing this matter. I will now explain what happened last night.
Last night, as usual, I inspected every item in the treasure vault. But just as I was about to finish my first round of inspection, I sensed that someone seemed to have entered the vault. It was already late at night, and in the twenty years I had guarded the vault, no one had ever come at such an hour. My first thought was that a thief had arrived, so I went over.
However, when I saw that person, I became doubtful. He was calm and composed, and the clothes he wore were even unsuitable for movement. When I asked his identity, he said he had been sent by His Highness the Crown Prince and produced the Crown Prince's gold token."
As soon as those words were spoken, everyone in the hall turned their eyes toward Mo Lin (Xue Qinghe). Mo Lin also revealed an "unbelievable" expression, but Elder Ming did not stop his account. Maintaining his "noble etiquette," Mo Lin did not interrupt and continued listening.
"Afterward, he explained why he had come. The Crown Prince had once come to the treasure hall half a year ago and taken a