Help! The cunning and treacherous minister and I were reborn together!

"Madam! Madam, something terrible has happened!"

Qin was having her meal when a servant stumbled in and knelt down with a thud.

Granny Li scolded, "You insolent brat! What's with all the fuss?"

The man kowtowed three times in quick succession, saying, "I was impetuous, please forgive me, Madam!"

Qin rinsed her mouth and took the flower tea from the maid.

"Tell me, what's the matter?"

"The eldest young master... he went on a killing spree in Jingzhou, slaughtering over a thousand people! When the news reached Shengjing, the censors of the Censorate submitted memorials impeaching him and demanding that His Majesty severely punish the eldest young master!"

Jingzhou?

Slaughtering thousands?

Qin's heart skipped a beat, her mind reeling. "Who did he kill?"

"The Wang family, the imperial brother-in-law's family!"

The teacup slipped from her hand, and Qin let out a mournful whine like a broken bellows. Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.

Matsukaze-in.

Hearing the commotion outside, Yuanzhi sent Luomei out to check it out.

A short while later, Luo Mei returned looking nervous.

"Miss, the young master has wiped out the imperial brother's family in Jingzhou. The Xiao family is in deep trouble! The servants are all packing their valuables and running away. What should we do?"

Yuan Zhi's heart suddenly clenched. This hadn't happened in her past life, otherwise she wouldn't have been so unprepared.

“The Yuan family is still around, I can’t run away.” Yuan Zhi’s voice trembled. “Luo Mei, you should go.”

Luo Mei's attitude was firm: "This servant promised Aunt that she would take care of Miss for the rest of her life. A promise is a promise, and this servant cannot break her word!"

Yuan Zhi's eyes flickered, and she took Luo Mei's hand. "Alright, let's get through this together."

Fortune favors the bold, and she has always wanted control of the household; perhaps this is the opportunity!

Is there anyone still on duty at Songfeng Temple?

Luo Mei said, "Chen Qing and three guards are guarding the gate, and the young master's two head maids are also still here."

Chen Qingyuan was originally a beggar, but was later taken in by Xiao Zong and taught martial arts and swordsmanship, and learned some simple fist and foot skills.

After the last banquet, she recommended Chen Qing to the young lady.

"Where is the warehouse?"

"This servant didn't have time to go to the backyard."

Yuan Zhi calmly said, "Go find Chen Qing and tell him and the guards to stop guarding the gate and go to the backyard to guard the storeroom. There are many imperial gifts in there. If someone manages to steal them and circulate them, the Xiao family will be in real trouble!"

Luo Mei asked with a worried expression, "What about Miss?"

The Xiao family is in complete chaos right now, and there's no guarantee that someone with ill intentions won't take advantage of her.

Yuan Zhi took out two daggers from the cabinet, kept one for himself, and gave the other to Luo Mei.

God knows how grateful she was that Xiao Zong was a martial artist, even keeping weapons in his bedroom!

"We're in the same boat, no need for further words. Luomei, take care of yourself."

Luo Mei left with tears in her eyes, and Yuan Zhi closed the doors and windows and also went out.

With the household in such chaos, and the mother-in-law not stepping forward to take charge, something bad must have happened.

Yuan Zhi hurried to Qin Shi's courtyard, where she happened to run into Granny Li, who was seeing the doctor off.

"Is your mother-in-law sick?"

"Young Madam?"

Granny Li thought Yuanzhi had run away in the chaos, but she never expected that she was still there.

The doctor bowed and said, "No need for you to see me off, I can go out by myself."

Granny Li nodded slightly and invited Yuanzhi into the room.

"The doctor said it was a sudden attack of internal heat. The lady has just woken up, and the young lady and the second young master are with her."

"Second Young Master, Xiao Shen?"

Come to think of it, she had never met Xiao Zong, her younger brother, since she married into the family.

"Yes, the second young master went out to do business a while ago. When he heard about the eldest young master's situation, he rushed back overnight."

Granny Li paused for a moment, and Yuanzhi sensed something was amiss. She said meaningfully, "My brother-in-law and husband are very close, and they are even more filial and respectful to their mother-in-law. I am ashamed to admit that I am not as good as them."

Li Mama's lips twitched, and she said nothing more. She led her around the screen and said to Madam Qin, "Madam, the young mistress has arrived."

"Mother-in-law."

Yuan Zhi bowed slightly, his eyes sweeping over the group of people standing by, lingering briefly on a young man.

The man looked somewhat like Qin Shi; he was good-looking, but his eyes were shifty and made people uncomfortable.

Is he Xiao Shen?

"What are you doing here?" Qin asked weakly.

Yuan Zhi replied, "Since His Majesty has not issued an order to arrest my husband, the Xiao family may not fall. I have come to ask my mother-in-law to step in and reassure everyone."

Qin coughed incessantly, "Congyun killed the Empress Dowager's maternal family! Cough cough cough, the Imperial Uncle is dead, but the Empress Dowager is still alive. Do you think she will let the Xiao family off? The imperial decree is only a matter of time. You, go back to Songfeng Courtyard!"

Yuan Zhi didn't know what would happen to the Empress Dowager, but in her previous life, when she accompanied the Emperor, he was furious because the Emperor's brother-in-law was obstructing the new policies.

Xiao Zong was ordered by the emperor to go to Jingzhou, and his executioner's blade was aimed directly at the Wang family. It is possible that this was done at the emperor's behest.

If the emperor wanted to use Xiao Zong to eliminate a major threat and then make Xiao Zong a scapegoat, the Xiao family would naturally be doomed. But as far as she knew, although the old emperor was cunning, he wasn't shameless enough to do that.

“Even the Empress Dowager is no less powerful than the law of the land. When I was still a young woman, I heard that the Wang family bullied men and women and committed all sorts of evil deeds. Wasn’t His Majesty sending my husband to Jingzhou precisely to eliminate the Wang family?”

"What do you know?" Xiao Rong said, "The Wang family killed my father. My brother is doing this simply to avenge our father!"

As she spoke, her eyes reddened. "I understand, my elder brother has endured so much for this moment. But Mother, I'm only fifteen. I don't want to die!"

Qin wiped away her daughter's tears, "Rongrong, don't be afraid. No matter where you go, Mother will be with you."

Was Xiao Zong settling a personal score under the guise of official business?

Yuan Zhi was so shocked that he stood frozen in place.

No! wrong!

Having been given a second chance at life, Xiao Zong has plenty of time to plan his revenge; there's no need for him to risk his entire family's lives.

There is still hope!

“My husband has a mother, brothers and sisters, and a wife. He wouldn’t act recklessly for our sake. I believe he has a backup plan. It’s too early to give up now.”

Yuan Zhi calmly replied, "If Mother-in-law really can't get out of bed, you can hand over the management of the household to your daughter-in-law. I will do my best to manage the Xiao family for you."

Qin sat bolt upright. "Trying to take silver from the treasury and run away? No way! Even if you die, you'll die in the Xiao family!"

Yuan Zhi retorted, "My father's clan is also in Shengjing. Where could he possibly go? If my mother-in-law is really worried, she can send someone to keep an eye on me."

Xiao Shen, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke.

“Mother, I think my sister-in-law is right. The decree hasn’t been issued yet, and we’ve already lost our composure. If word gets out, we’ll be a laughingstock! Why don’t we let my sister-in-law give it a try, and you can take this opportunity to rest and recuperate.”

Yuan Zhi looked up. He actually spoke up for her?

Xiao Shen leaned back in his chair, meeting her gaze with a flirtatious look.

Yuan Zhi frowned. What kind of scheme was Xiao Shen up to?

Qin Shi always doted on her youngest son, and she always complied with Xiao Shen's requests, and this time was no exception.

"Granny Li, give her the account books and seal. You'll be following the young mistress for a while; she's young, so you'll need to help and guide her."

"Yes."

Having obtained the goods, Yuanzhi ordered the mansion gates closed and summoned the remaining people to gather in the front courtyard.

She instructed the steward to withdraw one thousand taels of silver from the accounts. Anyone who wanted to leave would receive two taels of silver as a severance payment, while those who stayed would receive five taels of silver as a subsidy.

Those who were afraid of dying had already run away. Of the remaining ones, some were loyal and others were taking a wait-and-see approach, and they still needed to be carefully assessed.