Reborn and married in a swapped marriage, my aloof husband is too ruthless.

Su Jinxin rubbed her temples. Things in the palace really seemed to be one thing after another.

No sooner had they secured the special supplies than something even more exciting happened – preparing for a palace banquet.

This is no simple matter of setting up a few tables for a banquet. From tableware to decorations, from singing and dancing to dishes, everything has to be perfect and completed in a short time. It's like a hellish challenge.

Yan Cheng'an looked at the contents of the letter and smiled slightly: "It seems that someone can't stand to see you having a peaceful time."

“That’s right,” Su Jinxin rolled her eyes. “The palace is never short of trouble.”

Sure enough, trouble soon followed.

The eunuch in charge of the liaison, Zhao, smiled with a face full of wrinkles, but every word he said was laced with sarcasm: "Madam Su, all the supplies needed for this banquet are in the palace warehouse. You may go and fetch them."

Su Jinxin was no naive girl; she had long since figured out Zhao Gonggong's cunning and manipulative nature.

When they arrived at the warehouse, good heavens, the gate was tightly closed and sealed with a note that read, "Order from above, no one is allowed to enter."

Su Jinxin sneered: "The higher-ups? Which higher-ups? The Jade Emperor?"

The guards at the gate looked at each other, stammering for a long time without being able to give a clear answer.

Su Jinxin knew perfectly well that Eunuch Zhao was up to no good again.

“Madam, this…” Minister Liu, who was in charge of purchasing, rubbed his hands together, looking troubled.

Su Jinxin had heard of this Lord Liu before; he was a typical opportunist who would speak up for whoever offered him benefits.

Su Jinxin didn't waste any words with him, and directly took out a gold ingot and placed it in Lord Liu's hand: "Lord Liu, thank you for your hard work. If we can't get into the warehouse, what will we do for the banquet?"

Lord Liu weighed the gold ingot in his hand, his eyes darting around: "This... I'm powerless to help. Unless..." He paused deliberately, waiting for Su Jinxin to reply.

Su Jinxin naturally understood his meaning, and took out another gold ingot: "Unless what?"

Lord Liu smiled even more obsequiously: "Unless, Madam Su can find other sources of supplies."

"Other sources of supplies?" Su Jinxin's lips curled into a meaningful smile. "Lord Liu, besides this warehouse, where else in the palace can so many supplies be stored?"

Lord Liu's eyes darted around, and he lowered his voice, saying, "Madam Su, you may not know this, but there's another place in the palace..." He suddenly stopped, leaned close to Su Jinxin's ear mysteriously, and said, "...there's another place."

Lord Liu feigned mystery, lowering his voice as if sharing some earth-shattering secret: "In this palace, there is another... secret warehouse!" Su Jinxin covered her mouth in feigned surprise, playing along with Lord Liu's performance.

In her heart, she chuckled to herself, thinking, "Back when I was in the palace in my past life, you were probably still playing in the mud somewhere!"

Secret warehouse?

Isn't it just that run-down place behind the rockery in the Imperial Garden?

If Consort Zhou hadn't been banished to the Cold Palace and secretly hidden some treasures there, who would have known about that secluded corner?

Seeing that Su Jinxin had taken the bait, Lord Liu continued to embellish the story: "That place is known to only a very few people, and the things inside are all treasures!" He licked his lips greedily, as if those treasures were already in his hands.

Su Jinxin remained calm and continued to probe, "Oh? Does Lord Liu know how to get in?"

Lord Liu rubbed his hands together: "Well... I naturally know that. But..." He paused again, waiting for Su Jinxin to offer her "benefits".

Su Jinxin didn't give him any more gold ingots, but looked at him with a half-smile: "Just what?"

Lord Liu smiled awkwardly: "But this place is no ordinary place, and I dare not make a decision on my own..."

Su Jinxin interrupted him directly: "Lord Liu, just tell me frankly, how much silver is needed to open this 'door of convenience'?"

Upon hearing this, Lord Liu immediately made an outrageous demand, quoting an exorbitant price.

Su Jinxin didn't haggle and readily agreed.

She knew in her heart that she would get the money back from Eunuch Zhao sooner or later, tenfold or even a hundredfold.

That night, Su Jinxin secretly brought Yan Chengan to the Imperial Garden.

Based on his memories from his previous life, he found the entrance to the secret passage behind the artificial hill.

Yan Cheng'an frowned slightly as he looked at the narrow, dark entrance: "Are you sure this is the place?"

Su Jinxin smiled confidently: "Of course, come with me!"

The two entered the secret passage, which was indeed filled with all kinds of supplies, even more abundant than the warehouse that Eunuch Zhao had mentioned.

Su Jinxin carefully selected some items needed for the banquet and then returned the way she came.

The next morning, Su Jinxin appeared before Eunuch Zhao with these supplies.

Looking at the dazzling array of items before him, Eunuch Zhao's face turned deathly pale.

He never expected that Su Jinxin would be able to find these things.

"Eunuch Zhao, are these things enough?" Su Jinxin asked with a smile.

Before Eunuch Zhao could speak, a sharp voice rang out: "Zhao Defu! How dare you!" The person who came was none other than Chief Eunuch Li, who served the emperor.

Eunuch Zhao was so frightened that his legs went weak, and he knelt down with a thud, kowtowing repeatedly.

Su Jinxin watched from the sidelines, secretly pleased. That counterattack was brilliant!

The banquet preparations are proceeding smoothly.

One evening, Yan Chengan and Su Jinxin returned to the secret warehouse...

“Here…” Yan Cheng’an looked at a corner deep inside the warehouse, his eyes flickering.

Deep inside the warehouse, the air was heavy and filled with a musty smell.

Yan Chengan gently brushed the dust off Su Jinxin's face, his movements as gentle as if he were brushing against a precious piece of porcelain.

Su Jinxin looked up and met his deep eyes, which were filled with tenderness and doting.

Their eyes met, and for a moment they were speechless, with only the sound of their breathing echoing in the quiet warehouse.

Su Jinxin's heart skipped a beat. She felt a sweet scent in the air. What a darn atmosphere!

"Ahem," Su Jinxin coughed lightly, breaking the slightly ambiguous atmosphere, "Something seems... off here." Yan Cheng'an withdrew his gaze, nodded, and his eyes fell on an inconspicuous corner deep in the warehouse.

There were some boxes piled up there, covered in a thick layer of dust, looking like they hadn't been touched in a long time.

"Let's go take a look," Yan Cheng'an said, and walked over first.

Su Jinxin followed closely behind, a vague premonition in her heart that she might make an unexpected discovery.

Meanwhile, Minister Liu was also busy.

He originally intended to make a big fuss about the quality of the banquet supplies, squeeze Su Jinxin for a large sum of money, and take the opportunity to curry favor with the Emperor and show off his "eagle eyes".

He specifically sought out several so-called "experts," who were actually "shills" who had taken bribes from him, intending to deliberately find fault during the inspection and portray perfectly good products as defective.

On the day of the inspection, Liu Dachen and his "expert team" arrived at the warehouse with an air of arrogance, looking like they had the victory in their grasp.

He cleared his throat, pointed at the supplies prepared by Su Jinxin, and said sarcastically, "Boss Su, you have to check these things carefully. If something goes wrong, the Emperor's wrath won't be a joke."

Su Jinxin smiled slightly and said calmly, "Lord Liu, you've gone to so much trouble. These things were all carefully selected by me, and there will absolutely be no problems."

Minister Liu sneered and gestured to the "experts" behind him to begin inspecting the goods.

These "experts" pretended to examine the supplies, shaking their heads and sighing from time to time, while muttering technical terms as if they had really discovered some major flaws.

"This silk is dull in color; it looks like an old, worn-out item!" an "expert" exclaimed, pointing to several bolts of fine silk.

"This porcelain has uneven glaze and rough workmanship; it's simply not presentable!" another "expert" said dismissively, picking up an exquisite porcelain vase.

As Liu Dachen listened to the "experts'" "professional" evaluations, a smug smile appeared on his face.

He was about to speak, intending to give Su Jinxin a hard time, but she remained unfazed, simply uttering a few words: "Lord Liu, have you finished your act?" She turned to Yan Cheng'an, a meaningful smile playing on her lips, "Husband, it's our turn..."

Yan Cheng'an took out a roster from his sleeve, which was stamped with the bright red seal of the Imperial Household Department.

"Lord Liu, you seem to have forgotten that I have already had these supplies appraised by several masters in the palace. I wonder, between these 'experts' you have found and the masters in the palace, who is more authoritative?" As soon as he finished speaking, several eunuchs led in several elderly men with a sage-like appearance.

These elderly men were the masters in charge of appraising various items in the palace. They were all highly respected and enjoyed a very high reputation in the industry.

Minister Liu's face instantly turned liver-colored. He never expected that Yan Cheng'an was prepared all along.

The "experts" he brought were immediately speechless, their heads bowed, wishing they could disappear into the ground.

This reversal really caught Liu Dachen off guard, and netizens exclaimed: "We love to see the villain get his comeuppance!"

"This...this..." Minister Liu stammered for a long time, unable to give a coherent explanation.

Su Jinxin smiled slightly, her tone gentle yet sharp: "Lord Liu, if there's nothing else, please disperse. I'm busy preparing for the banquet." Minister Liu slunk away with his "expert team," looking like a group of defeated roosters.

With the banquet date fast approaching, Su Jinxin discovered that the originally well-arranged banquet venue had been tampered with at some point.

Exquisite silks were torn, precious porcelain was smashed, and carefully arranged flowers were maliciously destroyed... The scene was a mess, as if a catastrophe had occurred.

Su Jinxin looked at the scene before her, her face terribly gloomy.

"Investigate! Find out exactly who did it!" Her voice was icy, with a barely perceptible tremor.

Yan Chengan gently held her hand, his eyes firm: "Don't worry, I will find out the truth."

As night fell, Yan Cheng'an stood by the window, looking at the brightly lit palace in the distance, his brows furrowed.

He knew that this turmoil was far from over, and even greater challenges awaited them...

“Cheng’an, what do you want to say…” Su Jinxin walked to his side, hesitating to speak.

Yan Cheng'an turned around, looked at her worried expression, and gently pulled her into his arms. "I know what you're thinking, but this time, it's probably not just Consort Zhou..."