Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

Upon hearing her sister's words, Liu suddenly reached out and covered her sister's mouth.

“It’s not worth ruining yourself for someone like that. Don’t worry, she’ll get her comeuppance someday.” Liu’s voice was low, only the two sisters could hear her, but her eyes were bright.

After understanding the situation with her younger sister, Madam Liu called in Shijiu and asked her in detail what had happened after she left the Liu family. Shijiu then recounted in great detail how she entered the Wang family, what news she heard there, and how she was sold into the Red Pavilion.

After hearing what Nineteen said, Madam Liu had already made up her mind, but she didn't show it on her face. She only instructed Nineteen to remove the disguise from Liu Xiaocui's face. When she saw her younger sister's beautiful face, and could still vaguely see her childhood appearance, Madam Liu couldn't help but hug her sister and cry again.

Here, the sisters embraced and wept upon seeing each other, but their hearts were filled with joy.

The scene at the Red Pavilion was like a dark cloud hanging over the place; everyone standing in the courtyard was trembling with fear. They kept their heads down, not daring to look at Madam Mei, who was on the verge of exploding in rage.

"Useless! A bunch of useless trash! Find them! I don't believe those two little girls could grow wings and fly away overnight. There are so many patrols in the Red Pavilion; they won't run away so easily. Go and find them!" After all the guards had rushed out to search for them, she looked at the four girls kneeling on the ground.

"Think carefully back to what Jiu'er and Liu'er did and said yesterday."

"Reporting to Madam, yesterday after lunch, Miss Jiu'er came to our room to talk to Miss, and Miss invited us to eat. When we returned, Miss was already asleep in bed, and Miss Jiu'er had already gone back," Bao Jin, Liu'er's maid, quickly replied.

"Where are you two?" Madam Mei asked, looking at Xiao Hong and Xiao Lü.

“Yesterday after lunch, Miss said she wanted to ask the other young ladies about their studies. We figured we were all in the same courtyard anyway, so we didn’t go with her. She came back in less than fifteen minutes, and nothing happened all day. We left the room after Miss fell asleep that night.”

The questioning continued. Anyone who had spoken to either of them was required to recount their conversation in its entirety. Failure to do so would result in punishment if others accused them of contact or confirmed that they had concealed information.

Therefore, Jiaojiao, who had talked to the two of them the most yesterday, told them everything that had happened at school yesterday morning.

"So you mean that yesterday, Jiu'er took the initiative to get close to Liu'er?"

"Madam." Madam Mei was about to speak when she was interrupted by a guard who rushed over.

"what's up?"

"Madam, we have a clue. We found climbing marks along several sections of the courtyard wall. It seems the two young ladies escaped by climbing over the wall." The guard who ran in whispered the situation to Madam Mei.

"Take me to see." He then looked at the people in the courtyard.

"Think carefully about what else you might have missed. If I find out any of you are helping them, you can expect to be sent to the lowest brothel. Mama Sun, keep a close eye on them." Her words made everyone in the courtyard flinch. The lowest brothel was the lowest-class brothel, and there was only one fate there—to serve customers until death.

“Yes, Madam,” Sun Mama replied in a deep voice upon hearing Madam Mei’s words.

Afterwards, Madam Mei followed the guards to the several sections of the courtyard wall to check, and indeed there were footprints. But looking at the walls, which were two people high, Madam Mei couldn't believe it. That Liu'er had tried to run past the wall a few times before, but she was always spotted by the patrolmen before she even reached the base of the wall. How could she have moved so quickly this time? And she even brought the younger Jiu'er with her.

Thinking of that obedient little girl, Madam Mei suddenly felt a jolt in her brow. Everything seemed to be related to that Jiu'er, and that little girl seemed a bit too obedient.

"Prepare the carriage, I need to go out." Thinking of that possibility, Madam Mei didn't bother to redress herself; she was going to find Madam Wang.

When the group arrived at Wang's house, her attendants rudely climbed over the courtyard wall and opened the gate from the inside. Lifting the curtain of the main room, they found Wang sitting on a warm kang (heated brick bed), eating melon seeds and chatting with two women from the village, seemingly in a very good mood.

The women on the kang (a heated brick bed) were startled when a group of people suddenly barged into the house.

"Hey, who are you people? What are you doing in someone else's house?" Wang shouted at the men who had entered the house.

Madam Mei followed the guards into the house. Her luxurious attire was quite different from when she came here before. Several gold hairpins on her head were so bright that they almost blinded Wang Shi. So, for a moment, she did not recognize that this was Granny Mei, whom she had been dealing with for many years.

"Those who are not involved, please leave. I'm looking for Madam Wang," Madam Mei said to the other two people in the room as she sat cross-legged on the kang without any ceremony.

The two women, whose legs had already gone weak from the fright of such a scene, were relieved to hear her words and staggered out the door, supporting each other.

"Madam, who are you?" The voice sounded somewhat familiar, so Madam Wang mustered her courage and glanced at Madam Mei before asking.

"Hmph, I just gave my little sister a sum of money, and you can't even recognize me after only two days?" Madam Mei said coldly.

"Are you Granny Mei?" Wang thought the voice sounded somewhat similar, but Granny Mei was older than her, with graying hair and several moles on her face. The woman before her, however, had glossy black hair and fair skin, quite different from the Granny Mei she knew.

"Jiu'er, where did you get this from?" Madam Mei asked directly, ignoring her words.

"Jiu'er? She's just a little beggar!" Madam Wang didn't understand the meaning behind Madam Mei's words.

“Tell me in detail how you met Jiu’er and how you brought her into our home,” Madam Mei said coldly.

Seeing Madam Mei's unfriendly gaze, Wang dared not hide anything and recounted everything: Jiu'er's arrival at their door to beg, her family's actions, and her thoughts. She even honestly recounted the words she had used to deceive Jiu'er. Wang's mouth was dry from talking, and white foam appeared at the corners of her lips, but she dared not pick up the water on the kang table and drink a sip.

After listening to Wang's words and carefully considering Jiu'er's appearance, Madam Mei realized that she, a hunter of geese all day, had been pecked in the eye by a goose this time. If Jiu'er really was a beggar, how could she not have any chilblains on her hands and feet in such a cold winter? Thinking of Liu'er, who had run away with her, she wondered if this was a coincidence or if Jiu'er was specifically after Liu'er. But as far as she knew, Liu'er's family were just honest farmers with no background.

Madam Mei kept her head down, her expression shifting constantly. Wang, lying on the ground, was still unaware of what was happening. She had sold children to Granny Mei several times, both boys and girls, all orphans except for Liu Xiaocui, her stepdaughter. She had guessed Granny Mei ran a brothel, but seeing her current entourage, she wondered if she was wrong.

After a long while, Madam Mei finally looked up at Madam Wang and said...

“Jiu’er ran away. Not only did she run away, but she also took your stepdaughter with her. And she took all the gold and silver jewelry I gave them. In the end, all of this was caused by you. Now, what do you think we should do?”

"What? My stepdaughter ran away!" Madam Wang stared at Madam Mei in shock. What should she do? That girl would definitely report her to the authorities. Would she go to jail? Would she be beheaded?