Expelled from the Duke's mansion, the fake heiress is richer than a country.

After waiting for two days, Ji Chunhua finally finished tidying up the estate. She then took her son and daughter-in-law and rode in a village oxcart to the city to see her daughter.

Surprisingly, Yan Qing was also with them.

Yanqing said that it was too late when he arrived in Huangshan County, and the city gates were closed, so he couldn't enter. He went directly to the manor outside the city and delivered the things and messages that Yu Man had sent to his wife.

Yu Wanran nodded and asked Yan Bai to take him downstairs to settle in.

Only when no one was around could Ji Chunhua secretly tell her daughter the reason. Yan Qing was neither good at farm work nor at cooking. Yu Man, after a long day, still had to worry about whether the boy had eaten or slept well.

So they simply sent the people to Huangshan ahead of time!

Yu Wanran couldn't help but laugh when she heard this.

Yan Qing and Yan Bai have been practicing martial arts since childhood, living a life of constant danger. You can ask them to kill someone as easily as slaughtering a chicken or a sheep. But if you want them to live like normal people, that's extremely difficult.

Xiao Xiang had only stayed at her aunt's house for three days and was very reluctant to leave. Yu Wanran told her about having Zhong Yeliu teach Xiao Xiang how to manage a household and keep accounts, and suggested that her niece stay at her house for a while longer.

Looking at her daughter, who looked completely transformed from head to toe, Zhu Xiaozhen wondered how much money her third sister-in-law had spent on her daughter. Feeling awkward, she refused to agree!

"Third sister, this child is very naughty! You are destined for great things, how can you let her hold you back? Let her go home."

Hearing her mother say this, Yu Xiaoxiang lowered her head in disappointment.

Yu Wanran didn't want to say much about this matter. After a moment's thought, she changed the subject.

"Mother, elder brother and sister-in-law, I've also bought a shop in the city. You can sell any produce from your estate there. Would you like to come to the city to run the shop?"

Zhu Xiaozhen looked at her mother-in-law helplessly.

Ji Chunhua hesitated: "Ranran, let's think about it first."

She knew her daughter wanted to help her family, but such a big matter required a proper discussion at home. If her daughter weren't disabled, she was confident she would agree immediately. But now, her health…

She knew very well that neither her son nor her daughter-in-law were cut out for business!

Yu Wenrong listened intently, eager to try. But then he remembered that he still needed to go to a private school to learn to read, so he listlessly gave up the idea.

Ji Chunhua and the others had lunch at Yu Wanran's house, then rushed to the market to buy seeds and farming tools, preparing to return to the manor.

It was spring planting season, and although she and Yu Man had discussed it, they decided to still hire their former tenants to cultivate twenty mu of land. But what about the two mu of land they already owned, plus the newly expanded vegetable garden? They had to hurry and sow the seeds!

Yu Wanran packed up all the things she had bought for her niece and personally drove the carriage to take her family back. On the way back, she went to the market to buy a strong horse to alternate between riding and harnessing the carriage.

Calculating that there was still plenty of time before heading to Tongcheng, Yu Wanran planned to use this time to open up the second trade route she knew of. This way, she could transport goods to the capital while simultaneously escorting the Duke's entourage.

Do it when you think of it.

That evening, he instructed Zhong Yeliu to take care of the household and Yan Bai to be the guard. The next day, he took Yan Qing, rode two horses, packed his belongings, and set off.

Yan Bai knew perfectly well that he had been marginalized by his master, and he was unhappy. But there was nothing he could do; it was the path he had chosen.

Looking at Yan Qing, who was completely unaware of the situation and happily saying goodbye to him, Yan Bai's smile was bitter.

"Master, where are we going?"

Knowing that he was going on a long journey, Yu Wanran didn't say where he was going after leaving the city gate.

Yu Wanran glanced at Yan Qing. They were about the same age; one was a carefree youth, the other trapped in his own web.

She smiled slightly: "Yanqing, when I take you on long trips in the future, keep the routes and what you see and hear to yourself, and don't mention it to anyone else."

Yanqing was taken aback. Seeing her serious expression, he slowly suppressed his smile. Hesitantly, he asked, "Can't we even tell Yanbai? What about the master and mistress?"

"We can't say anything."

Yanqing nodded firmly without further hesitation.

"it is good!"

The bodyguards were trained from a young age, with "loyalty" being their primary principle. In his mind, since the Duke's Mansion had given him to Yu Wanran and also given her the indenture, Yu Wanran was his only master in this life.

It is only natural to obey orders.

Although he had a good relationship with Yan Bai and they grew up together, he valued his master more than his brother. He believed that Yan Bai understood this and felt the same way as him.

Seeing the change in Yan Qing's expression, Yu Wanran was very satisfied.

Yanqing is single-minded and not very clever in dealing with people, but she doesn't need smart people around her.

“We’re going to Xiaolin Town in Dezhou to buy a batch of goods. We’ll go to Beijing a month later and sell them there.”

Yu Wanran was actually a little uneasy, worried that her memory might be wrong and she might get the place name wrong. She brought it up so that Yanqing could help her figure out the location.

"Decheng?"

Yanqing answered without hesitation.

"It seems to be in Hezhou? It's only a four or five-day drive from Huangshan County. But I've never heard of any Xiaolin Town."

As a bodyguard, Yanqing often runs errands for his master, so he has a fairly good understanding of the Great Zhao Dynasty's territory. Even if he hasn't been there, he still needs to learn about it in case of need.

"Let's ask around when we get to Dezhou."

Yu Wanran remained noncommittal. The place name she mentioned was one from many years in the future. Perhaps that Xiaolin Town wouldn't be called Xiaolin Town now?

The two men rode at breakneck speed, traveling day and night, towards De City. On the evening of the fifth day, they entered De City just before the city gates closed.

Decheng was a small city in Hezhou, much smaller than Huangshan County, and about the same size as Tongcheng. However, because of its central location in Hezhou, it was a necessary passage for travelers from the north and south, and thus it was classified as a city.

Yu Wanran spent half a day taking Yanqing around the city to inquire, but no one had ever heard of Xiaolin Town.

After asking more than ten people, all gave the same answer. Yanqing thought that her master must have misremembered the place name. Just as Yu Wanran was also beginning to doubt herself, a coachman finally gave a casual reply.

"I've never heard of any Xiaolin Town! There is a place called Linjia Village outside the city, is that what you're looking for?"

Yu Wanran, who was initially a little dejected, immediately perked up upon hearing this and approached the driver: "Uncle, could you tell me how to get to Linjia Village?"

The driver sized up the two men, noticing that Yu Wanran and Yan Qing were both tall and thin, looking like frail young men, and shook his head.

"How do you get there? I advise you not to go! Half a year ago, the government issued a notice saying that a group of bandits had gathered in Qingling Mountain. The government troops went to suppress them many times, but they were defeated because of the treacherous terrain and difficult mountain roads."

Seeing their confused expressions, he offered a reminder.

"That Lin Family Village is in Qingling Mountain. How long has it been since anyone from Lin Family Village showed up in Decheng? That little mountain village might have been razed to the ground by bandits long ago!"

Hearing this, another coachman couldn't help but whisper, "Luckily, Qingling Mountain is far from here, and there are troops stationed in the city, otherwise..."

The coachman gave a cold laugh.

"Everyone knows what happened!"

As for what happened, he refused to elaborate, only waving to Yu Wanran: "You're obviously outsiders! I've told you everything I needed to. If you're visiting relatives and friends, you should head home as soon as possible."

"You must not go to Linjia Village!"