After transmigrating into the book, I helped my mother reconcile with her divorced husband.

Lu Huai scratched his head, spun around in place, and put his hands on his hips, saying, "Didn't Lu Yong say they left through the back door? It's getting late, and with so much rice and grain they're carrying, they can't have gone far. Let's go to the estate and call for people, and bring everyone who can run and move. They won't be able to take a single grain of my grain."

"Then let us do as Your Highness says." Xie Chaoyun curtsied. "I will return to the estate and wait for Your Highness's triumphant return."

Lu Huai reached out his hand, and Xie Chaoyun turned around, took two steps and then stopped: "Has Your Excellency considered that the person who could transport so much rice and grain in such a short time is no ordinary bandit? I hope Your Excellency will reconsider."

"I am an official, they are thieves, why should I be afraid of them?" Lu Huai angrily turned around, and when he looked up, Xie Chaoyun had already gone far away, leaving only Lu Yong following him.

Lu Huai was surprised that Xie Chaoyun had really left. He hesitated and took two steps toward the back door. Seeing that it was dark there, he couldn't help but recall the tragic deaths of the warehouse manager and the shop assistant. His calves trembled, and he turned around.

"My lord, what is this—"

“Let’s go back to the manor first and see what happens tomorrow morning.” Lu Huai waved his hand: “What can we possibly see in this pitch black? Tomorrow morning, we’ll go to the yamen to report that my grain was lost on their territory and they will bear a great responsibility.”

"You're right, my lord. I went to report to the authorities early this morning." Lu Yong's eyes were sinister. Taking advantage of Lu Huai's unpreparedness, he struck him on the head with a club.

With her hands bound, Madam Ruan sat back in the carriage, yawning repeatedly. When she saw Xie Chaoyun come out, she greeted him: "Madam, why did you come out by yourself? Did you quarrel with that man again? You two should just get a divorce. A fickle man like that is not good enough for you at all."

Xie Chaoyun remained expressionless as he untied the rope: "Why didn't you escape?"

"Escape?" Madam Ruan played with the hemp rope she had untied. "So that's what you meant, Madam. I thought you were neglecting me and deliberately left me in the carriage to watch over it."

Ruan blinked, leaned against Xie Chaoyun sweetly, her eyes full of regret, "What a pity, we missed our chance, we can't escape now."

"There's still a chance." Xie Chaoyun pushed her away, indicating that Lu Huai and Lu Yong hadn't arrived yet.

Madam Ruan shook her head and shamelessly leaned closer: "I'm not running anymore, it's too tiring. If I follow you, at least I'll have a full meal before I die."

“Madam Ruan.” A dagger was pressed against Madam Ruan’s neck. “I gave you a chance. You are a smart woman and know what I want to ask.”

"Doesn't Madam just want to know what happened that night?" Madam Ruan yawned, not taking the dagger seriously. "Madam is right. I am a spy from Southern Chu. I was ordered to approach Steward Lu and steal the granary key from him."

"To obtain grain, the border of Southern Chu is more suitable."

“It’s not just about taking grain.” Madam Ruan blinked. “Those who guarded the granary for you, Madam, are dead, aren’t they? Are their bodies still warm? You must think the grain was only recently transported away, but in fact, this plan began on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Tonight, the last batch of grain in the granary is being transported away. If nothing unexpected happens, in a few days, a lot of grain from the Lu and Xie families will appear in the capital, and those who buy the grain will experience varying degrees of poisoning. Since the doctors in the capital are not familiar with the poisons of Southern Chu, they will mistake the poison for a sudden epidemic.”

"You used our grain to poison us?" The dagger sliced ​​through Ruan's neck, and his eyes suddenly darkened: "You're lying to me. Northern Liang is not Southern Chu. They have very strict control over grain. It's impossible for you to transport large quantities of poisoned grain to the capital, let alone sell it on a large scale."

"Madam is still too naive." She pushed the dagger away with her fingertips. "Who says grain has to be transported in large quantities? With enough people, we can transport grain into the city in small quantities and multiple times in the shortest time and in the simplest way. Who says the grain we transport into the city is necessarily poisoned? We can poison it after it enters the city. Who says we have to sell it legally and compliantly? We can sell rice at low prices; there are plenty of restaurants and eateries willing to buy it. We can also distribute it for free in places where the poor gather, under the guise of relief. With so many people in the capital, who will notice us?"

Cold sweat soaked his entire back. Xie Chaoyun gripped the dagger and slowly put it down.

"Are you telling me this to show off?"

"Don't you remember me, Madam?" Madam Ruan smiled, her eyes crinkling. "Eleven years ago, at Chishui Pass, you saved a family of three who were being chased. The little girl had a snake-shaped mark on her body. The snake's head had been slashed by the pursuers with a sharp blade, and it was you, Madam, who applied the wound medicine. Seeing that her clothes were tattered and barely covered her body, you gave her a red dress, with only a flower embroidered on the collar. A very small, pale blue flower that didn't quite match the red."

"You are--"

“I am the little girl that was saved by the lady.” Madam Ruan tore off the right side of her clothes.

The snake-shaped mark was still there, and the scar hadn't completely disappeared. Instead, a flower was tattooed on the scar—a pale blue flower, the kind she liked when she was young.

Ruan straightened her clothes and said, “I told you, Madam, because I owe you a favor and want to repay it. I am a spy, but I wasn’t born a spy. I was captured by them. My parents sold everything they could to save me and borrowed a lot of money. They didn’t know that those bad guys were in cahoots.”

Madam Ruan looked at the swaying carriage roof and laughed: "Those who kidnapped us, those who borrowed money, those who chased us—they were all in cahoots. After being rescued by Madam, we fled to the mountains and lived a peaceful life in a cave for a while. After winter came, there was no more prey in the mountains, nor the mountain fruits that could sustain us. Father went out to find a way to make a living and was discovered by the group that was chasing us. Father died, Mother was captured by them, and I was taken back to that place by them."

“You were powerless when you were young, but now you can choose again,” Xie Chaoyun said. “With your abilities, it won’t be difficult for you to get rid of those people.”

“I can’t start over.” Nguyen raised her hands: “Do you see? These hands are red, stained with the blood of different people.”

Xie Chaoyun looked at Ruan Shi without speaking. She understood that some things were not as simple as they seemed on the surface. Organizations are like marriages—easy to get in, hard to get out; most people are trapped inside until they die.

Madam Ruan told Xie Chaoyun that on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, she went to the estate to see Steward Lu in order to steal the key from him. Although Steward Lu acted irrationally and had his own selfish motives, he was loyal to the Marquis's mansion. He knew that someone was coveting the grain in the granary, so he deliberately made a fake string of coins and carried it with him.

Unaware that the Ruan family had taken the fake key with them, the outcome was predictable: they were unable to open the warehouse.

After being reprimanded by the leader, Ruan returned to the estate in her night clothes and accidentally discovered the secret of the deputy steward, Lu Yong.

Madam Ruan looked into Xie Chaoyun's eyes: "That secret is related to Madam! It's also related to Steward Lu's sudden resurrection."