At the beginning, I was a rich female prisoner

"To be honest, our two families are cousins, and each of us has two unmarried girls. You should have heard about the prefect's son when you came to Qizhou, right? Although we are not rich, we are at least a small merchant family. Now our land has been occupied by the Bai family, and we can only hide here and dare not make a sound, just to protect ourselves! Originally, when Xiao Jin came to tell us that a foreign businessman wanted to buy the house, we were still hesitant. After all, who knows if this is a trap set by the Bai family. But when we heard Xiao Jin say that you are wealthy businessmen from other places, we thought we could come over to discuss it with you." The old man looked at Yu Yunxin, who had a full beard, and said sincerely.

Yu Yunxin frowned, looking puzzled: "I don't quite understand what you mean, what do you want to discuss with me?"

"Yes! You don't know how difficult it is to make money in Qizhou City. If you don't have a good relationship with the prefect, you will have to pay one hundred taels of silver in commercial taxes alone! We plan to go somewhere else to make some money and then start our lives again. I want to marry my two daughters far away, the farther away from this place of trouble, the better." Another person echoed, his eyes full of helplessness and bitterness.

"We can't defeat the Bai family, but we can always hide from them!" he added, with a hint of grief and reluctance in his tone.

Yu Yunxin frowned, with a hint of worry in her eyes. She looked at them and asked softly, "Have you really decided? Leaving here and starting over in a strange place is not an easy thing."

The two looked at each other and smiled bitterly. One of them said, "Miss, there is nothing we can do. We have no way to survive here. We can only take it one step at a time."

The other man also nodded, sighed and said, "We are just ordinary people. We can't afford to offend those powerful people. Instead of staying here and suffering, we might as well go out and try our luck. Maybe we can find better opportunities outside."

Yu Yunxin listened to their words silently, and a wave of sympathy surged in her heart. These ordinary people had to leave their homes and find new ways out in order to survive. Although she was the Princess of Xingguo, wasn't she also a high and unreachable existence to these people at the bottom of society?

She took a deep breath and said slowly: "Since you have made up your mind, then go ahead. I hope you can live a smooth and stable life. If you need any help in the future, you can come to me."

The two looked at Yu Yunxin gratefully and nodded repeatedly to express their gratitude. They knew that Yu Yunxin's words were not perfunctory, but sincere concern and blessings.

"Our two families have discussed it carefully. Tonight, we plan to lead the women in our family to leave Qizhou City and take the water route to Nanling County. I heard that the governor and their officials there are honest and upright and treat the people well. I believe that when we arrive in Nanling County, our Chen family will be able to live a stable life. I just need to trouble you to prepare two carriages and four horses for us. We are willing to deduct part of the money for the house." The old man replied in a firm tone.

Hearing this, Qiu Shuang frowned slightly, and a trace of doubt rose in her heart. She couldn't help but ask: "But, as far as I know, your Qizhou is suffering from a severe drought, how could there be a viable water route?"

Her eyes fell on the old man, trying to find the answer from his expression. The old man looked at Qiu Shuang deeply, as if he saw through her inner doubts, and said softly: "You don't need to worry about this. Where does the drought come from! Our entire Qizhou has always been a good year with good weather and good harvests! This year's spring harvest ushered in a bumper harvest! It's a pity that all these grains are monopolized by the hateful Bai family. It's really a sin! Their Bai family is simply unscrupulous! The people of Qizhou are suffering!" The old man said indignantly, his face full of anger and helplessness.

Hearing this, Yu Yunxin couldn't help but frown, feeling angry at the Bai family's behavior. She turned to look at the man next to her and asked, "How could this happen? Could it be that the Qizhou prefect dared to deceive his subordinates and lie to his superiors?"

The man sighed softly and replied, "It's because the Bai family has a good daughter who married the current prince. Although she is only a concubine, she is very much loved by the second prince. The governor of Qizhou has the support of this prince behind him, so he dares to be so unscrupulous. The eldest son of our family is a carpenter. When the Bai family married their daughter two years ago, he went to the Bai family to prepare some dowry, and then he learned the inside story."

When Yu Yunxin heard this, she immediately understood that this so-called prince was the person that Concubine Bai married - Nangong Rui. She pondered secretly in her heart and became more and more dissatisfied with what the Bai family did.

Qiu Shuang suddenly realized that this was the case! Although Qizhou suffered from drought, the canal leading to the Yangtze River became their road of hope. She nodded to show her understanding and promised to prepare carriages and horses for the Chen family as soon as possible.

However, at this moment, Qiu Shuang suddenly thought of an important question. She hurriedly asked, "So, how do you plan to deal with the safety issues along the way? After all, Qizhou is in chaos now, thieves are rampant, and carrying so much property and family, it is inevitable that you will encounter danger."

The old man was silent for a moment, then slowly said: "We have also considered this issue. But the current situation is turbulent and we cannot guarantee absolute safety. We can only try to be as careful as possible and pray to God to bless us with a safe journey."

Qiu Shuang knew that what the old man said was true, and the current situation was indeed worrying. She comforted him, "Don't worry, I will do my best to protect your safety. If there is any disturbance, I will inform you in time. At the same time, I will arrange some people to escort you out of the city and ensure that you can board the ship smoothly."

The old man was filled with gratitude and thanked him repeatedly: "Thank you for your help, brother. I am very grateful. If there is a chance in the future, I will repay you with gratitude."

Qiu Shuang smiled and waved her hand to say you're welcome. She knew that everyone was in trouble at this moment, and helping each other was the way to survive. So she turned and left, preparing the carriage and horses needed by the Chen family.

"Okay, brother, let's stop here. Look, can we transfer the title deed now?" the old man asked.

"Sure, I'll do the formalities for you right away, but don't forget to give me the commission for the two houses." Xiao Jin, the broker, showed a greedy look and said slowly.

"Okay, I'll pay for it. Let's name a price for these two houses!" Yu Yunxin responded decisively.

"We are also half businessmen. Since you are so generous and are willing to pay our commission, I will be more generous too. How about giving you ten taels of silver? We'll see each other again if we have the chance." The old man showed a shrewd smile on his face, just like a cunning businessman.

"According to our pawnshop's prices, two sets of two-yard houses cost a total of one hundred and thirty taels," added Xiao Jin from the pawnshop.

"Okay, let's take this price. I'll pay half of the deposit first, and then I'll pay the rest after you move out and hand over the house keys. How about that?" Yu Yunxin is not the kind of person who can be easily bullied. It is wise to say it out loud.

The two families readily agreed and nodded. So Yu Yunxin signed the contract, which contained the name on her household registration that was used to hide her identity - Nangong Lin.

"It's Boss Gong. We'll take our leave first." said Mr. Chen.

Yu Yunxin nodded and looked at the two deeds in her hand. The names of the owners were Chen Jiahe and Chen Youfu. She raised her lips slightly, revealing a barely perceptible smile, and then carefully put the deeds into her sleeves.

Then, she took out two taels of silver from her pocket and handed it to Xiao Jin, the clerk of the pawnshop. After Xiao Jin took the silver, he smiled so hard that his mouth almost stretched to his ears, and his eyes narrowed into slits.

Yu Yunxin came to the brokerage again and signed the deeds for the other three houses with the clerk Xiao Jin. After the transaction was completed, Xiao Jin handed the three keys to Yu Yunxin and said with a smile: "Sir, you are so polite that you didn't even bargain for the price!"

Yu Yunxin smiled and responded, "I'm new here and I'm unfamiliar with the place, so I want to make friends with you. Don't forget to keep an eye on the shops for me. If you have a big shop to sell, remember to let me know."

"Thank you, shopkeeper. Boss Gong is also interested in the three shops in the central location of the city. I wonder what price our boss will offer?" Xiao Jin, the pawnbroker, asked curiously.

"Haha, OK, I'll go ask the boss when he comes back. By the way, don't forget to treat me to a meal when you get your wages!" The shopkeeper joked with a smile.

"Don't worry, boss, I will definitely not forget you." Xiao Jin, the dental shop owner, agreed happily, and then began to clean the shop happily, humming a little tune.

After Yu Yunxin settled the house affairs, she rushed to Baiji Rice Shop without stopping. As soon as she entered the shop, she found that the price of rice here was much more expensive than her own Fengyu Rice Shop. The Bai family is really evil. She couldn't help but frowned and thought to herself. Then, she carefully looked at all the furnishings in the shop, trying to find some clues.

At this time, the shopkeeper noticed Yu Yunxin and immediately came up to her with a big smile on his face: "Oh, I see this boss is unfamiliar, he must be from another place, right? Look at this rice, it's all new rice harvested this year, the quality is top-notch, so the price is naturally higher. In the whole Qizhou City, only our Baijia Rice Shop has such good rice."

Yu Yunxin looked down at the rice in her hand, and a trace of doubt appeared in her heart. She raised her head, scanned the surroundings, and then picked up a handful of rice again to examine it carefully. She frowned and said to herself in confusion: "Didn't they say that Qizhou was hit by a severe drought? Why do these rice grains look plump and there is no sign of drought at all?"

When the shopkeeper heard Yu Yunxin's words, he hurriedly explained with a smile: "Sir, you don't know, our Bai family has a lot of fertile land. This rice is grown there, so naturally it is good rice." His face was filled with pride and confidence, and he seemed to be full of pride for the Bai family's fields.

Yu Yunxin nodded slightly to show her understanding, and then curiously asked, "So how was your harvest this year?"

The shopkeeper puffed out his chest and answered proudly, "Our Bai family has a great harvest this year!" His voice was filled with joy.

After hearing what the shopkeeper said, Yu Yunxin nodded with satisfaction and said, "Then let's start with ten stones and leave them outside. Someone will come to carry them."

The shopkeeper was stunned. He stared at Yu Yunxin with wide eyes in disbelief. After a moment, he came back to his senses and hurriedly replied, "Okay, I'll prepare it for you right away."

After Yu Yunxin paid the money, she turned around and left the store, leaving the shopkeeper standing there, looking at her departing back with surprise on his face.

Not long after, Erhu and a dozen other people were seen, each carrying a large sack. These people were strong and sturdy, and they looked like martial artists. Erhu and his companions quickly walked to the door of the store, and then put the large sack on the ground. When they opened it, they found it was full of rice! Yu Yunxin was so surprised that she couldn't close her mouth, but she nodded to them calmly to express her gratitude. Erhu and his companions quickly carried the sack and walked towards the inn. Looking at this scene, Yu Yunxin couldn't help but sigh in her heart: There is indeed something fishy in Qizhou!

Yu Yunxin and Qiu Shuang came to the market together, and she immediately left the mark of Yanyu Manor on the corner of the wall. This action seemed simple, but it was actually a signal, hoping to attract the attention of other members of Yanyu Manor. After completing this action, Yu Yunxin started shopping. However, she found that many people in the market were rushing to buy food, which made her feel very strange.

Qiu Shuang asked Yu Yunxin curiously: "Princess, have Yunshan and the others also come to Qizhou City?" Yu Yunxin nodded and replied: "Yes, they arrived three days earlier than us." Qiu Shuang then asked: "Then why didn't they come to us?" Yu Yunxin thought for a while and said: "Maybe they were delayed because of the things at Yueling Pavilion." Qiu Shuang listened and sighed thoughtfully.

The two continued to walk around the market, looking at the bustling crowds around them, and their hearts were full of questions. Why were everyone rushing to buy food? What secrets were hidden behind this?

"What's going on? Why are so many people scrambling for food?" Yu Yunxin looked at the chaotic scene in front of her and asked a stall owner in confusion.

The stall owner smiled bitterly and replied, "Because the city gates are closed, things outside can't come in, and things inside can't go out, which has led to rising prices. And I heard that there will be a shortage of food in a few days, so everyone is starting to hoard food."

Yu Yunxin was shocked when she heard this. No wonder there were so few people selling vegetables here. She frowned and thought about what to do next.

In desperation, Yu Yunxin had to buy some meat and fish, and then secretly took out some fresh vegetables from the space, ready to go back and make a sumptuous meal for everyone. These vegetables were all grown by her in the space before, and now they finally came in handy.