After being sentenced to death, she came to her senses.

Under the cover of night, Granny Qian secretly came to South Alley and walked all the way in, following the narrow path to a grove of trees. In the bamboo forest, she could vaguely see a house.

Before going in, she looked around to make sure no one was watching her, then gently knocked three times. The door opened slowly, but the person inside didn't come out; they simply made way for her. She hurried into the room, then quickly closed and locked the door.

She stayed inside for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, then quietly came out and did the same thing as before, continuing on to the next place.

"Next place? How many places did she go to in total?" Fang Xiaoran frowned as she listened to Wu Guicheng report this to her.

By going to multiple places late at night, Granny Qian was looking for someone, but that wasn't all she was looking for.

Wu Guicheng said, "I went to three places, in three different directions, and stayed in each place for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."

"Did you hear any conversation?" Fang Xiaoran's question made Wu Guicheng a little embarrassed. He touched his nose and replied somewhat awkwardly, "My martial arts skills are only at the beginner level at best. I really can't hear from that far away."

Fang Xiaoran wasn't asking him, but that wasn't important. At this moment, Wu Guicheng said, "Anyway, Granny Qian's behavior is very suspicious. I feel that the person you're looking for is definitely inside."

"You didn't trespass?" Fang Xiaoran asked.

"I had that idea, but that young man stopped me. He told me to come back and report to you first." Wu Guicheng chuckled twice.

Sure enough, Fang Xiaoran couldn't help but shake her head.

Luckily, there was a small stone following them.

"Has Granny Qian returned yet?"

"We just got back. What should we do next? Should my brother and I arrest these people tonight?"

"The target hasn't even shown up yet. Doing this will only alert her." Fang Xiaoran glanced at him and said in a calm tone, "Keep an eye on her. We'll have some results in three days."

Two days later.

The old lady recovered quickly after taking the Yi Shen Dan, but to stabilize her condition, she needed to take the Yi Shen Dan continuously. Once she had fully recovered, the amount of Yi Shen Dan she took was gradually reduced until she could take it about once a month.

The problem is where to get the Spirit-Boosting Pill now. It's already extremely difficult to get even one pill, and that was after a deal with Fang Xiaoran. If you take it continuously, not to mention the cost, finding the Spirit-Boosting Pill itself will be even more difficult.

After being told by the doctor, Fang Zhengyong felt a terrible headache. The old lady had also woken up and, seeing that he looked unwell, asked him what was wrong. Not wanting to worry the old lady, Fang Zhengyong shook his head and said, "It's nothing. You should rest well. I will come to visit you again tomorrow."

He then called the doctor away, seemingly to discuss the matter outside.

The old lady saw through his thoughts at a glance. She had been very ill these days and was always in a daze, but even so she could feel her son's filial piety, because she could see him every time she opened her eyes in her daze.

“Yong’er has indeed worried too much about me. Shufang, go and stew some black chicken and lotus seed soup for him and send it over later so he can have some nourishment.”

"Shufang isn't here; she's been recovering from her injuries recently."

Granny Zhou stepped forward and bowed.

Upon hearing this, the old lady's expression changed drastically. "Recovering from injuries? What happened to her?"

"This..." Granny Zhou seemed a little embarrassed, unsure of how to begin, but the more she hesitated, the more curious the old lady became. "Stop stammering, tell me quickly, what happened?"

"It's nothing serious. Shufang had a fight with the Sixth Miss and was punished by her. She wasn't seriously injured and will recover in half a month in bed," Zhou Mama replied.

"Nonsense! Shufang is my woman, how dare this little brat bully this old woman like me? This is clearly a slap in my face." The old lady slammed her hand on the table in anger, her chest heaving and her face turning very ugly.

This frightened Granny Zhou, who quickly stepped forward to help her catch her breath and advised, "You've just recovered, so please don't get angry. If I had known, I wouldn't have told you all this. I would have waited until you recovered."

"I've only been sick for a few days and the Fang family has already changed so much. Go and fetch Sixth Sister for me. This matter absolutely cannot be left like this!"

"Sixth Miss is probably asleep by now, you should rest too. It's not worth arguing with a junior. Shufang is tough, she can take a few dozen blows."

"Dozens of blows? Good, if we don't teach her a lesson today, won't she take advantage of us? Go and call her here right now."

"Alright, alright, I'll go right away. Please don't get angry."

After a stick of incense had burned for a while, Granny Zhou arrived at the North Residence. At this time, everyone in the North Residence had gone to sleep, leaving only a lantern on the gate, making it look exceptionally dark.

Granny Zhou cleared her throat first, then shouted at the top of her lungs toward Fang Xiaoran's room, "Is the Sixth Miss asleep? The Old Madam wants you to come over."

Fang Xiaoran had only just fallen asleep, but when she heard Granny Zhou shouting so loudly, she didn't want to pay any attention to it. It was Ziju and Qinglan who were woken up.

The two of them temporarily stayed next to Fang Xiaoran. After renovation, the place was barely habitable, so they no longer had to squeeze under the same roof with Fang Xiaoran. There was only one bed, and it was too crowded for the three of them to sleep together.

Ziju and Qinglan Caocao got dressed and opened the door, rubbing their sleepy eyes and yawning as they said, "Granny Zhou, our young lady has already gone to bed. Let's talk about it tomorrow."

“No, the old lady said that Sixth Miss should go now. Has Sixth Miss grown too big for her britches and no longer listens to the old lady?” Granny Zhou was clearly putting pressure on her. She knew the old lady's two maids couldn't do anything about it, but she didn't want her young lady going to Cining Hall so late at night, so she gently persuaded, “But Miss is already asleep…”

“She’s asleep, not dead. You two girls are really insensible. Hurry up and wake up the Sixth Miss. If you don’t go, then this old woman will have to go myself.”

"You!" Qinglan was so angry that she wanted to curse, but then she remembered that her young lady had warned her, so she had to swallow the words back.

The two maids were caught in a dilemma. They didn't want to wake their mistress, but they were also afraid of being questioned by the old lady. They didn't know what to do.

At this moment, Fang Xiaoran's voice came from the room:

"Grandma just recovered from her illness and she's already in such a hurry to see me. Could it be that she wants me to treat her again?"

"Sixth Miss knows what she has done. You should hurry and come with me. Don't keep the old lady waiting."

"What did you do? I don't quite understand what you're saying, Granny Zhou."

As soon as she finished speaking, Fang Xiaoran pushed open the door and rushed out like a bolt of lightning.

Before Granny Zhou could react, Fang Xiaoran had already appeared behind her in an instant, raising her foot and accurately kicking Granny Zhou in the back of the knee. Caught off guard, Granny Zhou involuntarily fell forward.

However, just as she was about to fall, Fang Xiaoran reacted quickly, grabbing her arm and catching her steadily, preventing her from falling. Thus, Granny Zhou was forced to kneel on the ground in an extremely awkward position.

Fang Xiaoran's icy voice came from beside my ear:

"Why don't you show me with your actions, Granny Zhou?"