From cannon fodder villain to beloved heroine

Yan Rugo stared at the system warning; the bright red text flashed before her eyes like a death knell.

A chill ran from her feet to her heart, but she took a deep breath and tried to suppress her worries.

"Bring it on, I'll deal with it. I'm not afraid of you!" she told herself, trying to bolster her confidence.

The family study is filled with the lingering scent of ink. Towering bookshelves are piled high with thick ledgers, like small mountains, seemingly silently recounting the family's rise and fall.

Yan Rugo sat firmly at her desk, her slender fingers turning the pages of a yellowed ledger, and began her investigation.

The study was quiet, save for the rustling of pages turning and Yan Rugo's occasional whispers.

Time ticked by, and she, like a tireless machine, meticulously reviewed every single account.

Suddenly, a burst of noisy footsteps broke the tranquility of the study.

Several burly servants barged in, their faces bearing malicious smiles. The one in the lead was none other than Xu Ershao's confidant.

"Oh, isn't this our young lady? Why are you hiding here reading all by yourself?" he said sarcastically, his tone full of mockery.

"What's it to you?" Yan Rugo retorted coldly, her sharp gaze sweeping over the group as an ominous premonition rose in her heart.

"Hehe, our second young master asked us to help the young lady organize the account books, so that she won't have to work too hard." The servant said, snatching the account book from Yan Ruge's hand and deliberately throwing it on the ground. Then, together with the other servants, they threw the account books on the bookshelf haphazardly on the ground, and the study was immediately in a mess.

Enraged, Yan Rugo abruptly stood up and shouted, "What are you doing?!"

The servants smiled smugly. "What are we doing? Of course, we're helping Miss organize the account books! But it seems we've accidentally messed them up a bit. Please don't mind, Miss!" With that, they quickly left the study, leaving Yan Rugo standing amidst the chaos, her face ashen.

The servants around gathered and whispered among themselves, their eyes filled with curiosity, fear, and schadenfreude.

Yan Rugo glanced around, a cold smile playing on her lips. "Ha, what a show! But who will emerge victorious is still uncertain!" She bent down to pick up an account book, a glint of cunning flashing in her eyes...

"Xu family, I'd like to see what tricks you're playing!"

Yan Rugo returned to her room, took a deep breath, and activated the system's memory recovery skill.

The room was instantly filled with blue particles of light, which danced like fireflies and eventually converged on the torn fragments of the ledger.

The fragments seemed to be manipulated by an invisible hand, piecing themselves together one by one, and the damaged pages gradually returned to their original state, with the writing clearly visible.

Yan Rugo narrowed her almond-shaped eyes, her gaze sharp as she quickly scanned the restored accounts, a cold smile playing on her lips: "Heh, there really is a problem!"

A system notification sounded: "Congratulations, host, a crucial clue has been discovered! The Xu family's accounts contain numerous records of falsely reported losses, and the flow of funds is unknown."

Yan Rugo tapped her slender fingers lightly on the table, her eyes sparkling with intelligence.

She discovered that several transactions with Zhang Fushang recorded in the ledger involved huge sums of money, and there were no records of any physical transactions, which she suspected was suspicious.

When the news reached Young Master Xu's ears, his face turned deathly pale. The teacup slipped from his hand and crashed to the ground with a sharp sound, splashing tea everywhere, just like his panicked state of mind.

He never expected that Yan Rugo would have such means to restore the destroyed ledger.

He had thought victory was assured, but now he felt like a clown, with all his schemes exposed to the light of day.

Some of the elders in the family who had always supported Yan Rugo were impressed by her intelligence and decisiveness.

They whispered among themselves, their words filled with admiration for Yan Rugo and disdain for Young Master Xu.

When Xu learned that Yan Rugo had been wronged in the study, he regretted not being there to protect her in time.

He personally made Yan Rugo's favorite osmanthus cake, and carefully carried it to her room.

He knocked gently on the door, his voice tender: "Ru Ge, it's me."

Yan Rugo opened the door and saw the osmanthus cake in Xu's hand. A surprised smile appeared on her face, and her eyes glistened with tears of emotion.

She took the pastry, took a small bite, and the sweet fragrance of osmanthus filled her mouth, as if a warm current flowed into her heart, dispelling all the gloom.

The servants around them smiled with satisfaction at the sight.

They knew that the couple, who had weathered many storms, had finally come together again.

“Ru Ge, I…” Xu hesitated, but Yan Ru Ge gently took his hand and interrupted him tenderly, “I know, you don’t need to say it, I understand.”

Yan Rugo put down the pastries in her hand, her eyes resolute: "Now, let's go and meet Manager Li first."

The room of Manager Li was filled with a strong sandalwood scent, which made Yan Rugo feel somewhat uncomfortable.

Manager Li, who used to always bow and scrape before her, practically kneeling down to sing "Conquer," was completely different today. She sat cross-legged in a grand chair, twirling two walnuts in her hands, making a cracking sound. Her eyes were filled with wariness and hostility, as if she had seen a ghost.

Yan Rugo frowned slightly. Had this old man taken the wrong medicine today?

"Manager Li, I have some questions for you regarding the accounts," Yan Rugo said bluntly, her tone as cold as ice.

"Miss, you jest. I'm too dull to know anything about accounts," Manager Li said with a forced smile, his eyes darting around, avoiding Yan Rugo's gaze.

His fat face was covered in oil, which looked particularly greasy in the dim candlelight.

An eerie atmosphere filled the air, and Yan Rugo keenly sensed that something was amiss.

The air around seemed to freeze, making it hard to breathe.

She quietly activated the system's analytical skills.

"Beep—The system detected abnormal fluctuations in the target's emotional state, suggesting possible external pressure." The system's cold voice rang in Yan Rugo's mind.

Immediately afterwards, the system displayed a series of complex relationship diagrams, in which Manager Li's name appeared prominently, indicating that he was intricately connected with the forces behind the family feud.

Yan Rugo felt a chill run down her spine; it seemed the waters here were deeper than she had imagined!

The light in the room seemed to brighten a bit. Yan Rugo's lips curled into a cold smile. She clenched her fist secretly, a surge of heroic spirit rising in her heart. No matter what kind of demons and monsters they were, she would investigate them to the end!

Just then, a carrier pigeon fluttered in and landed on the windowsill.

Yan Rugo opened the envelope, which contained only one line: If you continue investigating, you'll lose your life!

The room was eerily quiet, with only Yan Rugo's rapid breathing.

Outside the window, the night was as dark as ink, a cold wind blew, and the shadows of the trees swayed, as if something was lurking in the darkness, waiting for its chance to strike.

Yan Rugo suddenly looked up, her eyes sharp as she gazed out the window…

"Ha," she sneered, "playing tricks!"