Great! I'm surrounded by villains!-Chapter 373 - 292: The Disappearing Painting

The head of security had been of great assistance to Duan Mingyuan.

Thanks to his interest in mysteries, he always documented the strange occurrences on the ship.

More than twenty years ago, the removal of the portraits by Saintfield VI took place before the head of security was assigned to this ship.

Logically, a person without Shan Clan blood should not have held such an important job, yet it had all happened nonetheless.

Saintfield VI not only removed the paintings from the studio but also implemented a series of significant changes.

He nearly fired everyone aboard the Saintfield, and most importantly, he executed his own great-grandson.

"He executed his own great-grandson?"

Duan Mingyuan grasped the significance.

"It was said to be a rebellion, with people feeling he had been in his position too long and they couldn’t wait any longer," freewebnσvel.cøm

The head of security became sneaky in his demeanor.

Over the years, he had kept these mysteries to himself, well aware that these were taboo subjects. The intention of Saintfield VI in firing everyone on the ship seemed to be solely to eliminate anyone who might know anything.

"I ’unintentionally’ found out some rumors. Most of the dismissed crew members have died. They had been dispatched across the universe to places very difficult to communicate with each other, yet one after another, they encountered accidents."

Today, after meeting Mingyuan, the head of security decided to reveal everything.

Since Saintfield VI had already died, and with the new Family Head about to succeed, these old crew members would probably be transferred off their positions for various reasons. As for whether they would meet accidents like the previous batch of crew members, that was uncertain.

Before leaving, he hoped to unravel these doubts that had troubled him for many years.

Duan Mingyuan, pondering, summarized, "So you’re saying that twenty years ago, Saintfield VI’s great-grandson planned a rebellion in an attempt to murder him?"

"A perfect murder—they had already seized control of the entire Saintfield, and even the captain was bribed. But in the end, it failed for strange reasons."

When he spoke those words, the head of security felt a profound relief.

If Saintfield VI had not died, he wouldn’t have dared to revisit these old matters, not for all the courage in the world.

If no accidents had occurred, no one would know how many more years this old man could have persisted.

When Saintfield VI was 120 years old, people in the family thought his time was short and prepared to take over at any moment. Yet, when Saintfield VI celebrated his 170th birthday, those who were "always ready" had all ended up in coffins.

For this reason, the head of security used to think he might die before Saintfield VI.

"It all stumbled at the last step of staging a coup. The Saintfield family always followed tradition; an heir not acknowledged by the previous Family Head lacked legitimacy, and even if they seized the position, they would soon be ousted. Therefore, a will left by Saintfield VI was necessary."

The head of security spoke ceaselessly about the incident, as if he had been there himself, witnessing the rebellion unfold.

"They were well-prepared—hypnotism, Heart-Capturing Drug, witchcraft, anything scientific or mystical known in the universe, they had it all at their disposal."

At this point, the head of security furrowed his brow.

To this day, he couldn’t explain why someone who had the upper hand, firmly in control of the situation, would suddenly fail.

"Ultimately, after the rebellion failed, the fate of that great-grandson was extremely tragic—he had his tongue cut out, eyes gouged, and was bound to a cross to be shown to the public. He only expired a week later, and his wife went mad at the sight, dying from illness shortly after."

"A crucial step was skipped in the process,"

Duan Mingyuan said.

"I can only say that maybe the Sixth of Saintfield truly was the Son of Destiny, for he couldn’t even die,"

the security chief shrugged his shoulders.

He had relayed the subsequent events to Mingyuan, my brother. He understood the reason for changing the crewmen, as each one could have potentially participated in the rebellion. However, he couldn’t comprehend why the Sixth of Saintfield removed his own portrait from the studio.

Each Family Head was displayed there; it was a symbol of honor, to be eternally remembered by the Shan Clan People.

Now, the Sixth of Saintfield was dead, and there was no portrait to commemorate him here anymore.

Perhaps the next Family Head, after taking over, might just put his portrait back up for show.

"Frankly speaking, the success of that rebellion is filled with mysteries. As far as I know, the Sixth of Saintfield didn’t trust anyone. He saw everyone who might touch the position of Family Head as a rival, guarding against them at all turns, even his own children were no exception. Saintfield was his ship, and everyone on board was handpicked by him personally. I find it hard to imagine how an outsider could have taken control of this ship."

Suddenly, the security chief halted, standing in front of an abrupt section of the wall, "This is where the portrait of the Sixth of Saintfield originally hung."

After the portrait was removed, no other paintings were displayed here. Since that rebellion, the Sixth of Saintfield had never set foot in the studio again.

He developed a distaste for the studio, even a fear of it.

These were all abnormalities he had observed as the head of security.

It was as if something terrifying was hidden within this studio, something the Sixth of Saintfield wanted to lock away forever."

"Sadly, I couldn’t find out anything,"

the security chief looked at the bare wall.

He had turned the studio inside out on the orders of the Family Head but had not found any clues that could solve his doubts.

But then again, even if there were any clues initially, they were probably destroyed long ago."

"What about the painting? Was it destroyed as well?"

"To my knowledge, the Family Head likely hid the painting. It is not auspicious for Shan Clan People to burn their own portraits. He cherished his life too much to do such a thing,"

"So, the removed portrait might still be on this ship."

Both men confirmed each other’s thoughts through their expressions; this was their only clue.

Perhaps all the secrets of that rebellion were hidden in that portrait.

"But you must be prepared,"

said the security chief, yet he smiled, "If the Family Head intended to hide the portrait, it must be in a highly secretive place."

"I am fully prepared,"

Duan Mingyuan looked at Jiuyue.

The little fox was sitting on a chair, back turned to them, busily nibbling at a chicken leg.

"Jiuyue, it’s your turn to take the stage,"

"Take the stage?"

Jiuyue showed a puzzled expression, as if he hadn’t heard their previous conversation, "Take the stage for what?"

"To find the painting, the portrait of the Sixth of Saintfield."

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