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

There was a granary in Lin County, and the granary was indeed owned by the Lu family, but the land on which the granary was built belonged to the Xie family, and the money used to build the granary came from the wife's dowry.

The granary could store tens of thousands of catties of grain, but not all of that grain belonged to the Lu family. The Lu family's estate was not large; it was bestowed upon the late Marquis by the late emperor, totaling twenty acres of land, plus a barren mountain forest.

Of the twenty mu of land, five mu were fertile, ten mu were of medium quality, and five mu were of inferior quality. The so-called inferior quality land was land that was not very suitable for growing grain.

When the old Marquis was alive, those inferior fields were all abandoned. After the lady took over, she switched to planting medicinal herbs, and fenced off areas where even herbs couldn't be grown to raise livestock.

The Lu family were neither civil officials nor military generals, so they were not eligible for good land.

Good farmland yields 500 catties per mu, medium-quality farmland yields 200 to 300 catties per mu, and inferior farmland yields negligible amounts. One-third of the grain produced is supplied to the Marquis's mansion, and the remaining two-thirds are used for planting, personal consumption, and selling some to cover the daily expenses of the estate.

The ledgers contain all that information; Xie Chaoyun and the Xie family owed nothing.

"You own more than just this one estate? What about the grain from the other estates?" Ji Wanwan asked. "Could it be that my sister embezzled it?"

The steward smiled enigmatically and cupped his hands, saying, "Miss, you may not know this, but the Lu family's estates are all in rather remote areas. Apart from this one in the neighboring county, the rest of them all rely on the Marquis's manor for subsidies."

The implication was that they were being kind by not asking the Marquis's mansion for anything.

Xie Chaoyun had long since discovered the drawbacks of the estate. After taking over the estate, she suggested to Lu Huai and Madam Lu that they sell those estates. Madam Lu refused, saying it was a matter of face for the Marquis's mansion.

Xie Chaoyun had put in a lot of effort to support these estates.

Ji Wanwan paced back and forth, clutching the ledger: "Fine, hurry up and have someone sell all the grain listed here, sell as much as you can."

The housekeeper looked at Madam Lu, who had her eyes closed as if chanting scriptures. She took the account book, then took her leave.

The steward told Xie Chaoyun about the grain sale, but Xie Chaoyun didn't want to get involved in the Lu family's affairs anymore and told the steward to do as Ji Wanwan instructed. Lu Zhiyuan was writing at her desk, her small regular script with flowers in her hair was crooked and messy, not because her handwriting was bad, but because the brush in her hand was not very obedient.

While writing, he also strained his ears to listen to the commotion. When the steward asked whether the grain should be sold low or high, he suddenly looked up and said, "The Emperor has issued an edict that anyone without a token is not allowed to leave the country for three days. The Marquis's grain cannot be sold, and even if it could be sold, at this critical juncture, no one dares to travel a long distance to the neighboring county."

The Xie family didn't deliver the grain to the Marquis's residence, but instead sent it to a granary in a neighboring county. If they wanted to sell the grain, they had to go to the neighboring county, either sell it there and get the money back, or bring the grain to the capital to sell. Another option was to sell the grain to a merchant and have the merchant pick it up from the neighboring county.

However, all of this is predicated on the Emperor not issuing an edict, no strange figures causing trouble in the capital, and merchants operating normally. Given the current situation, even if the steward dared to go out, no one would dare to buy anything, much less go to the neighboring county.

What if there are strange people on this road?

"How could I have forgotten about this!" The steward slapped his forehead. "I will report to the old lady immediately. Please keep the doors and windows closed. If this news gets out, I'm afraid neither the old lady nor the young lady will have any peace."

"It's alright, I brought people from the Xie family." Xie Chaoyun bent down and saw that Lu Zhiyuan's handwriting was as messy as a dog's scratch. He took her hand and taught her to write. "As for the servants in the Marquis's mansion, I, Xie Chaoyun, have treated them well. I think they won't make things difficult for me."

The butler nodded and left.

Lu Zhiyuan changed the paper and said to her mother, "The treasury is empty and the granary is empty. Their only option right now is to ask you for help."

Xie Chaoyun helped her adjust her grip on the pen: "They want to borrow money from me? What will they do if I don't lend it to them?"

“Mother should borrow!” Lu Zhiyuan paused, a smudge of ink appearing on her pen. “Mother has silver, and Second Uncle has a token. Mother can use this to bargain with them and get them to sign the divorce papers. They’ve already given away so much grain, a little bit of silver won’t make a difference.”

Lu Zhiyuan smiled with narrowed eyes: "The Marquis's mansion and the money will all end up in Yuan'er's pocket."

Xie Chaoyun let go: "Don't you want to go with Mother?"

Lu Zhiyuan shook her head: "It's not that we don't want to, but that we can't! Only if Yuan'er stays can they feel at ease letting Mother leave."

Xie Chaoyun hugged her: "No, Mother can't leave you alone in the Marquis's mansion. They can send you to another residence and leave you to fend for yourself, but they can also find other ways to torment you. Yuan'er, you are Mother's only child!"

Lu Zhiyuan patted her back: "Mother, don't worry, Yuan'er understands. Times have changed. Yuan'er is no longer the one in the other courtyard. Neither Grandmother nor Father can touch Yuan'er in the slightest."

She took out a jade pendant and stuffed it into her mother's hand: "This was given by the Emperor. Seeing the jade pendant is like seeing the Emperor. Besides the Emperor, there is also the Empress and the Princess. They dare not take Yuan'er's life."

Xie Chaoyun came to her senses. Yes, her Yuan'er was no longer the same as before.

He placed the jade pendant in her hand and whispered, "Was it you who sabotaged those grains? The old lady doesn't know, the Marquis doesn't know, Ji Wanwan doesn't know, but your mother knows perfectly well. The old Marquis came from a farming family and liked to store grain at home, and this was still the case in your father's generation. The grain in the granary could last at least three or four months. Besides the grain, there were also some dried vegetables, so we wouldn't be without rice as the steward said. After thinking it over, only you would dare to do such a thing."

Lu Zhiyuan blinked: "Yuan'er doesn't know, Mother, please don't wrong me. Maybe I was sold out by that Ji Wanwan."

"You little devil, what are you plotting now?" Xie Chaoyun tapped her nose: "Be careful, don't let anyone find out. Even if they do, it's okay. Remember to find your mother. You're still young, you need someone to support you."

Xie Chaoyun and Lu Zhiyuan waited for a long time in Fangfei Courtyard until Lu Huai woke up. Only then did Old Madam Lu and Ji Wanwan bring up the matter of borrowing money and grain. Following Lu Zhiyuan's suggestion, Xie Chaoyun offered money in exchange for Lu Huai signing the divorce papers. Old Madam Lu made an exorbitant demand, insisting that Xie Chaoyun leave behind half of her dowry. Xie Chaoyun refused, and Old Madam Lu stormed off.

Lu Huai didn't leave, staring at Xie Chaoyun with his reddened eyes, "You actually offered money as a bargaining chip to divorce me?"

Xie Chaoyun looked at him coldly: "Otherwise what? Continue to stay in the Marquis's mansion, to be a despised, nominal Marquis's wife?"

Lu Huai stepped forward, and Xie Chaoyun stepped back. Lu Huai was annoyed and rushed up to her, grabbing her arms: "A name without substance? Xie Chaoyun, is this really what you care about? Just say you want it, why play these tricks of playing hard to get?"

"Your Excellency has misunderstood!" Xie Chaoyun looked directly into his eyes: "What Yunniang said about being all name and no substance is not what Your Excellency is thinking."

"Whether it's true or not, we'll find out soon enough." Lu Huai leaned down, only to be struck in a sensitive spot by Xie Chaoyun, causing him to wince in pain: "Xie Chaoyun, I'm divorcing you!"