After transmigrating, I became a stepmother.

Lan Yue pondered for a moment and said, "Although Yin Xue hasn't been with me for long, we have a bond, and I hope she has a bright future. Let's round up the ransom to one hundred taels, how about that? It's my wish for her to have a perfect future!"

She was naturally pained to say the price, but since the person had already paid, why not do a favor?

Lin Kan could tell from her expression that the price wasn't too high. Luckily, she was prepared and had enough money, otherwise, wouldn't all her efforts have been in vain?

"Hmm, Lan Yue, is that right! Lan Fang Ju still knows how to treat people well!" Lin Hao looked satisfied and gave Lan Yue a barely perceptible nod. He took out a silver ingot from his sleeve and placed it on the table.

Lan Yue saw this and reached out to take it, but Lin Hao tapped the back of her hand with her outstretched fan.

Lan Yue looked at him and smiled apologetically: "Look at me, I've lost my mind. I'll go get Yin Xue's indenture right now!"

While Lan Yue was away, Lin Hao looked at Yin Xue.

"Let's pack up! We're leaving right away."

Yin Xue had been on tenterhooks ever since Lan Yue entered. She could tell that this girl was a woman, and the experienced Lan Yue was certainly not without discernment.

Unexpectedly, the girl remained seated, never facing Lan Yue directly, and always covered her neck with her fan, so Lan Yue never noticed that she didn't have an Adam's apple.

Seeing her calm and composed demeanor, Yin Xue realized that the girl hadn't bothered to hide her identity in front of her just now; otherwise, she might not have been able to discover it!

After the three of them left Lanfang Residence, Lin Hao had Zhu Jing drive the carriage towards a bustling area. Only after confirming that no one was following them did she finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"Hey, change into these clothes first! This outfit of yours is really eye-catching. Also, put this on your face."

Lin Hao handed Yin Xue a pile of clothes and pointed to the small bottle on top.

Seeing her hesitation, he said, "Don't worry, it's just some ointment that will make your skin look a little darker and yellower. It will wash off and won't hurt your face."

After Yin Xue had settled in, Lin Hao took her to stay at an inn, pretending to be a newlywed couple to outsiders, thus making sure she was settled.

This was something Lin Hao had already thought of. After all, given Yin Xue's worth, redeeming her would definitely be very expensive, and Wang Shi wouldn't pay too much money. They couldn't just ask Da Fang to pay for it!

Then the only option is to try to lower the price, but if someone can run a brothel, they must have powerful backers. Bargaining is simply out of the question for someone of Gu's status!

So, Lin Hao had to play the tiger for once, but thankfully everything went smoothly!

When she got back, she was determined to get her money back from Wang Shi, with interest!

As expected, when Madam Wang heard that resolving this matter would cost 110 taels of silver, she was reluctant but still gritted her teeth and agreed.

However, she still asked Lin Hao, "Why did you say that the ten taels was a kickback you asked for?" She could have easily said that she had spent that much money and that she wouldn't have known.

“No way. A gentleman loves money, but he earns it in a proper way. The money I’ve earned through hard work, running around and worrying, is what I deserve. If I were to cheat you, I would be acting against my conscience. I won’t earn money that doesn’t come from a conscience,” Lin Hao said frankly.

Upon hearing this, Madam Wang seemed to understand why Lin Hao, despite having only been in the family for a short time, was more favored by the old lady than she was. She figured it wasn't just because of her status as a daughter-in-law, but also because of Lin Hao's personality.

Even she couldn't help but want to like her, could she?