With a cheat code, she travels through the 40s and hoards goods to take her motherland to new height

The family were all well-mannered, and it wouldn't be appropriate to cause too much trouble at the birthday banquet. Before the banquet was over, the Huang family of three hurriedly left under the pretext of having something to do.

"Miss, it's time!" Cuizhi knocked on the study door, calculating the time.

Shu Ran looked up at the grandfather clock; it was already five o'clock, and the front yard had been quiet for a while.

"Go to my room and get the gift I prepared for Grandma."

-

Sitting in the chair, Shu Ran picked up a spoon and took a sip of soup. This was the first time she had seen all the members of the Qian family in person.

The food was delicious, and the atmosphere at the table was quiet. In any case, Shu Ran was very satisfied with her meal.

The old lady and Qian Chengji sat in the main seats.

Beside them were eleven-year-old Qian Jiachang, the eldest son of the Qian family, and the third concubine, who was holding four-year-old Qian Jiarong.

Qian Jiachang's biological mother was Qian Chengji's fourth concubine. She died in childbirth. He was previously raised under the name of the third concubine, but after the third concubine gave birth to Qian Jiarong, he was handed over to the old lady who wanted her children and grandchildren to enjoy.

No wonder it's "true love"—her gentle temperament and innocent, delicate appearance certainly satisfy Qian Chengji's restless desire to conquer.

The woman next to the third concubine is Qian Xinyi, the female protagonist of the book, whom she has met several times.

The pretty second concubine sat reservedly, while next to her was Qian Xinyou, the fourteen-year-old eldest daughter of the Qian family, who obediently picked up the food in front of her and ate.

Speaking of the second concubine, she was really unlucky. She had a childhood sweetheart and fiancé outside, but who would have thought that Qian Chengji would take advantage of her drunkenness to do something inappropriate, trying to test the Shu family's attitude by taking a concubine.

He couldn't bear to test his true love, his distant little cousin, so he forced himself on the maid who came to help him wash up after drinking. He's worse than an animal!

Shu Ran pursed her lips. "Drunk and doing whatever you want? That's just an excuse. If you were really drunk, you would never do such a thing."

Sitting next to Shu Ran was the fifth concubine, who was holding her three-year-old daughter, Qian Xinyan. Apart from Shu Ying, this fifth concubine was the most beautiful among Qian Chengji's wives and concubines.

However, the fifth concubine was unlucky. After the family fell into poverty, she was sold to Qian Chengji by her gambling father.

After the meal, it was time for the birthday gift presentation, which the old lady had been eagerly anticipating.

With a kind smile on her face, the embarrassment she suffered at the banquet during the day seemed to have no effect on her at all.

Starting with Qian Chengji, everyone presented birthday gifts to the old lady, including three-year-old Xiaoxiaoyan, who stammered out her birthday wishes and presented a small golden Buddha prepared by the fifth concubine.

When she caught sight of the white jade Guanyin statue that Shu Ran had been longing for as a birthday gift, the old lady couldn't stop smiling. It was just a pity that Shu Ying was no longer here, and she had missed out on receiving a birthday gift.

Holding her eldest grandson in her arms, the old lady said, "It's all good! You're so kind!"

"Madam, please take a look. This is a top-grade agarwood bracelet that I specially obtained for you by having it blessed at Puyun Temple. Smell it; besides the fragrance of the agarwood itself, it also carries the scent of incense from the temple!"

The third concubine took the bracelet out of the box through her handkerchief and held it up to the old lady so she could take a closer look.

"Yes, that's thoughtful, not bad!"

"Look, I specially asked a craftsman to engrave words and coat each bead with gold powder. It will surely bless you with health and longevity!"

The third concubine readily offered kind words about not needing money, and carefully put the bracelet on the old lady's wrist.

The old lady raised her hand and looked at the golden bracelet that shimmered and exuded a mysterious aura. She couldn't put it down. Now that she was old, she just wanted to enjoy some precious things so that her life of great wealth and honor would not have been in vain!

No one noticed that Shu Ran, upon hearing "Puyun Temple" and "consecration," looked up and gave the Third Concubine a strange look.

It was Puyun Temple and a consecration ceremony. Thinking back to the "peace charm" that I had carefully put away, I later found quite a few problems with the interstellar detection and analysis instrument.

There are several toxic substances that, if in close contact with the skin for a long time, can cause physical weakness or even death.

Now Shu Ran looks at the Third Concubine like she's watching Breaking Bad, thinking, "Hey, I'm a professional poisoner."

If it weren't for the fact that Qian Duoduo's memory was accurate and that Qian Chengji had indeed poisoned Shu Ying, she would have suspected that Qian Chengji was taking the blame for his true love, his third concubine.

The old lady twirled the beads in her hand one by one, closed her eyes, and waved for everyone to disperse and go back to rest.

Cuizhi ran out for a while and returned shortly with a few extra silver dollars from her sleeve pocket.

Shu Ran didn't care, and she had more or less guessed what was going on, but she didn't expose it. It's always better to have an undercover agent with his information out in the open than to not know at all.

-

After the birthday banquet, the Qian family was indeed quiet for a while, because Qian Chengji once again investigated the entire Qian family, but of course, he found nothing he wanted to find.

The old lady stopped insisting on giving Qian Cheng a second chance at marriage, but the embarrassment she suffered at the birthday banquet had some repercussions.

It's true that the news didn't get out, but those in the Qian family who needed to know were aware of what happened that day.

"You mean, my father is going to remarry?" Shu Ran's eyes widened in disbelief.

The day after the birthday banquet, Shu Ran received the news from Cui Zhi.

"Yes, Miss. It's said that the birthday banquet was a big affair because the old lady wanted to find a fortune teller for the master..."

Although Cuizhi likes to be lazy, she is not a homebody. She often goes out to gossip with her girlfriends, so she is quite well-informed.

As for whether or not she will remarry, Shu Ran doesn't care at all; it won't affect her anyway.

Cuizhi looked at Shuran expectantly, her eyes sparkling, as if hinting at something: "Miss, if you want to know anything about our courtyard, you can ask me. I'll go and find out for you. I'm very tight-lipped and I promise I won't tell anyone."

Having received a reward from Shu Ran last time, and recalling the extravagance of the storeroom, Cui Zhi realized that she had almost missed a path to wealth.

Shu Ran followed her gaze to her dressing table, somewhat speechless, and casually picked out a small silver nude and placed it in her hand.

"Alright, that's all. From now on, when I go to my study, don't bother me, and don't let anyone in." Shu Ran looked at the silver ingots and jewelry she used for rewards in her small box, feeling that she couldn't keep them safe.

Fortunately, it will only be a few months before Shu Ran leaves the Qian family next year.

As for Cuizhi, Shuran didn't dislike her at all; in fact, she especially liked her slacking off and gave her plenty of freedom.

Although she's just an eyeliner, she's a fence-sitter, siding with whoever pays her the most. She likes it, anyway, she's not short of money!

Shu Ran was happy to spend a little money for peace of mind.

"By the way, has the person from the small kitchen returned?"

I ate at the old lady's place last night, so I don't know how the small kitchen is doing.

"I'm back. When I went to the small kitchen to get breakfast, Master Guo was cleaning up the kitchen with his apprentice!"

Cuizhi opened the food box. Inside were millet porridge, shumai, shrimp and egg custard, and a plate of green vegetables. It was a simple breakfast made by Chef Guo, delicious and nutritious.