After being reborn, her aloof ex-husband and her crazy deceased husband got into a fight.

Lanting Boat is truly a hit, a fire that's at its zenith.

In Danzhou Prefecture, some casinos even offered betting odds on whether he could win the top prize again in the autumn imperial examination.

Aunt Zhang, the cook hired by Gan Cai'er, has hardly spent any money these past few days when she goes out to buy groceries. As soon as she arrives at the market, vendors rush to stuff all sorts of meat and vegetables into her basket. They don't ask for anything else, they just want to absorb some of Young Master Lan's talent.

The people living at the foot of Cuiyun Peak greatly admire those who are good at reading, thanks to the Luming Academy.

Lan Tingzhou won first place in three exams in a row, achieving the best result in every exam, which even made Zhu Xiaoxiao envious.

"Ah Cai, Lan Tingzhou is so amazing, are you really going to give up?"

"Even if he doesn't like you, you can still occupy the position of Madam Lan and live a life of luxury. You're the wife of a top scholar, and who knows, he might even earn you an imperial title in the future! Why would you give it up?!"

Why should she give in? If possible, Gan Cai'er wouldn't want to give in either.

Just like Zhu Xiaoxiao said, even if Lan Tingzhou doesn't like her, as long as she doesn't act recklessly like she did in her previous life, she can live a good life just by virtue of being Madam Lan.

but......

“In my past life, not long after I gave birth to Fu’er, news came that Meng Yu had died in battle. Mei Wanyin then found a pretext to drive me out of the Duke of Wei’s mansion,” Gan Cai’er said calmly.

“At that time, I was penniless and injured, and Fu’er was only three months old. I was holding Fu’er and had nowhere to go. I almost died in the local temple.”

“It was Shen Yunxi who happened to pass by and saved me and Fu’er. Later, despite the ridicule from the whole city, she took us into the Lan family mansion to settle us down.”

"Xiao Xiao, I can't forget to repay this kindness."

Zhu Xiaoxiao remained silent for a moment.

She repays kindness with kindness and avenges wrongs with revenge; this is indeed Gan Cai'er's character.

"Why don't you find her another good husband in the future? There are so many talented people in the capital, and Lan Tingzhou isn't the only outstanding one," Zhu Xiaoxiao suggested to Gan Cai'er.

"Last time Lan Tingzhou hit his brother, it was the first time I'd ever seen him get angry, and it was really scary. But A-Cai, have you noticed that no matter how angry he is, he can't do anything about you?"

“I always feel like you’re thinking the wrong thing? He’s really good to you. At least my dad never treated my mom like that, and they’re even said to be a loving couple.”

Gan Cai'er pursed her lips and didn't say anything.

Lan Tingzhou couldn't do anything about her, but wasn't it because he had been bullied by her since childhood and had developed a habit from it? If Zhu Xiaoxiao had seen Lan Tingzhou and Shen Yunxi together, she would never have said such things again.

Keep in mind, she and Lan Tingzhou hadn't even been divorced for a few days, and he was already bringing Shen Yunxi home in a grand sedan chair carried by eight men. How impatient he was!

Gan Cai'er pursed her lips, suppressing a pang of bitterness rising in her heart.

On this day, Lan Tingzhou returned home from the academy and told Gan Cai'er that she should prepare to attend a banquet at the Wu family's residence in three days.

"You know perfectly well that Wu Xin has ulterior motives towards you, yet you still insist on going to the Wu family?" Gan Cai'er firmly disagreed.

"Lord Wu is Lord Wu, and Miss Wu is Miss Wu; they should not be confused."

"Why can't we lump them together?! I'm sure the Wu family has ill intentions!"

Lan Tingzhou paused for a moment, then suddenly asked Gan Cai'er, "If we were to compete, would it be better for the opponent to be in the open or in the shadows?"

"Of course, it's better to be in the open."

"Is it better to be in the open or in the shadows?"

Gan Cai'er fell silent.

"Now that we know the Wu family might be a threat to us, wouldn't it be safer to keep it from them knowing we do?"

"Then you have to make sure Mo Yun stays close to you and never leaves your side."

"Well, it all depends on Madam."

Three days later, Gan Cai'er and Lan Tingzhou went to the Wu residence for a banquet as agreed.

After hearing that the two were going to the Wu family, Lan Tingzhi insisted on going with them. Gan Cai'er had previously told him about Wu Xin's designs on Lan Tingzhou. He felt deeply that his brother was like a little lamb about to be tricked into a wolf's den. He had to stay by his side and prevent his brother from being eaten.

At the same time, Zhu Xiaoxiao was also worried about Gan Cai'er going to the Wu residence alone. Wu Xin was clearly a shrewd and calculating person, skilled at setting up schemes.

Although Gan Cai'er has been reborn and has become much more cautious, she is not a cunning or manipulative person at heart. She is afraid that she might easily fall into someone else's trap. Therefore, she also wants to go.

The banquet hosted by the Wu family this time was called the "Banquet of Heroes".

The three sons of the Wu family also passed the imperial examination and became scholars. The "Banquet of Heroes" was held by Wu Songping to celebrate Wu Xiong's success in the examination. Under this pretext, he invited several outstanding candidates to share in the joy.

When Gan Cai'er arrived at the Wu family's house and saw the bustling scene of people coming and going, she was suddenly filled with mixed feelings of joy and worry.

To her delight, she saw that Wei Shi'an was also there.

Worryingly, she also saw Huang Tinghai.

Although Huang Tinghai had passed the imperial examination at the county level ten years ago, he was still invited to the banquet as a prospective retainer of the Wu family.