The Cold-Hearted Princess Who Transmigrated Here

After dinner, Wang Xiyue once again gathered Mingzhe and her brother in her room.

"Mingzhe, tell me about what you've learned today."

After bowing respectfully, Mingzhe began to summarize the day's achievements.

“Miss, young master, I mainly investigated two districts today, the East District and the North District. I had been mainly in the West District before, so there is still the South District that I haven’t had time to investigate.”

"Hmm, it's alright. We can check the remaining area when we have time. No rush. Tell me about the three areas we've already learned."

Wang Xiyue felt that Mingzhe was already very fast; she had previously thought that he would only be able to figure out one place at most today.

During the time Mingzhe had been back, he had actually gone through all the news in his mind again and again.

He had rehearsed his speech in his room beforehand, so he was now very confident.

“Miss, although beggars are a very low-class group, there is still a boss in each place who controls them.”

“I used to work in the West District. The boss was called Wang Dasheng. He was in his forties. He was always taciturn. I didn’t find out any details about him, but I knew that his wife had died and he had no children.”

"He seemed to have no desire to live and just drifted through life aimlessly. One day, the former boss of the West District was about to rape a young female beggar when he saw it. He killed the former boss without thinking, and after that, the beggars in the West District tacitly accepted him as their boss."

"Although he doesn't admit it himself, he often silently steps forward to protect the weak beggars from being bullied. Gradually, many helpless beggars come to him for help."

"Therefore, the number of beggars in the West District is the largest compared to other places, with about a hundred people. Although there are many people, they are mostly the elderly, weak, sick and disabled."

“People usually rely on begging for leftovers to survive, and they can only live in dilapidated temples or abandoned houses.”

"My siblings and I have survived all these years thanks to his secret care."

"If my siblings and I hadn't been rescued by you, Miss, and if Boss Wang were gone one day, none of us would have survived..."

Mingzhe's trembling hands were clenched into fists, as the sight of the scene reminded him of the hardships he had endured in the past.

He was not only grieving for his own past hardships, but also for those poor souls who had no future.

"Mingzhe, don't be afraid. With me here, no one will dare to bully you again."

"As long as I live, I will do my best to protect them, and you will too. When you become strong enough, you can also protect more people you want to protect."

Mingzhe looked up abruptly, meeting Miss Xiyue's gentle yet firm gaze. The grief and coldness in his heart instantly vanished, replaced by excitement and satisfaction. "Thank you, Miss. Mingzhe will remember this!"

Mingzhe quickly composed himself and continued the previous topic.

“Miss, the situation in the North District is completely different. They have the fewest people there, around twenty, but they occupy the largest area, especially the shops on the main streets of the city.”

"This group of people are all fierce and ruthless. There seems to be no leader. There are all sorts of strange and wicked people in there. Some are thieves, some are robbers, and some are wanted criminals by the government. But basically, everyone has a foundation in martial arts."

"Compared to ordinary people, they are very strong and not to be trifled with, so few people dare to compete with them for territory."

"Their source of income was protection money collected from merchants and ordinary people, which made them very wealthy, and their mansions were also very nice courtyards."

"If you don't know their background, most people would think they are nouveau riche. I heard that the government can't do anything about them."

Wang Xiyue's heart skipped a beat. "Did you encounter any danger today?"

Mingzhe recounted the harrowing events of the morning in detail, saying, "Because I have been in Shancheng for eight years, I know a little about these secrets. With the reminder from Boss Wang of the West District, I also made some preparations."

"However, there was still a problem today. When I went to investigate, I accidentally attracted their attention and almost got caught. Fortunately, Brother Wang Yu protected me in secret, and I escaped a disaster."

Wang Xiyue's tone was somewhat stern, "If you know in advance that the gap between your opponent and yourself is too large, or if there are uncertainties, you must discuss it with me beforehand and not act blindly."

Mingzhe immediately nodded: "Yes! Mingzhe knows he was wrong."

"Okay, continue." Wang Xiyue knew that Mingzhe was too eager to repay the favor, so he acted very hastily, which was not a good thing, so she needed to give him a nudge from time to time.

“Miss, the situation in the East District is a bit different. There are about forty people, all strong and healthy homeless men. Their leader is called Li Zhuzi, and he is a bully who preys on the weak.”

"They mainly make a living by robbing money and food from ordinary people, and occasionally they also rob other beggars of things they have asked for. Most of them are not kind people and often take pleasure in bullying the weak."

"Miss, that's about all I know for now. I don't know if it will be of any use to you."

After hearing this information, Wang Xiyue's eyes were opened, and she gained a completely new understanding of beggars and homeless people for the first time.

At present, it seems that only those in the West District who are truly helpless and unable to protect themselves need to be rescued.

The people in the East and North districts are not worth saving at all. If they cannot be brought to justice, they must be eliminated as soon as possible. Such organizations that reap without sowing should not exist in the world.

"You did a good job. I will send someone to verify it again later. You can continue to investigate the situation in the South District tomorrow."

"You've had a long day, go and rest now!"

"Yes, Miss!" Mingzhe bowed and left the room.

Wang Xiyue looked at her brother, who had been silent all along, and asked, "Brother, what are your thoughts right now?"

To outsiders, my brother usually seems carefree and nonchalant, but he is actually quite thoughtful.

Having lived in the capital for twenty-one years, a place where power struggles are complex and people's hearts are unpredictable, Wang Xijie naturally knows better than his sister how wicked human nature can be.

He knew his younger sister's character; although she appeared aloof, she possessed an extraordinary kindness within her, and he also knew that her kindness was tempered with a sharp edge.

She was never a fool. Her personality was both righteous and wicked. In her eyes, there was no such thing as a hierarchy or the supremacy of imperial power. She had her own set of standards and often acted with a rationality that bordered on ruthlessness.

Because he knew his sister so well, he and his parents never stopped her from doing anything.

And he would always firmly support her, saying, "Yueyue, whatever you want to do, I'll always be your strong support. If you say you'll save us, we'll save you; if you say you'll kill us, I'll draw my sword."

Wang Xiyue smiled helplessly and couldn't help but joke, "Brother, if you keep spoiling me like this, aren't you afraid I'll cause a huge mess?"

Wang Xijie laughed heartily, reached out and patted his sister's head, and made a grand promise: "Even if you tear the sky apart, I'll fix it for you."

"And I trust my judgment."

"My sister is not a bird in a gilded cage; you are an eagle soaring high."

“Your brother, father, and mother don’t want to restrict you. We just hope to give you a space where you can fly freely.”

Wang Xiyue felt both fulfilled and pressured. She was afraid that she was not good enough to deserve such precious yet heavy family affection.

"Alright, bro, stop flattering me. I have something really big to tell you, so you'd better be prepared for the worst!"

Seeing his sister's suddenly serious expression, and recalling her private trip to the prefect's office today, Wang Xijie's mood plummeted. "What is it? Tell me slowly, I'm listening."

Wang Xiyue leaned close to her brother and quietly recounted everything she had seen in the formation that day in a concise manner.

Although Wang Xijie had mentally prepared himself, he still gasped in shock upon hearing the words "dragon robe," exclaiming, "What did you say? Dragon..."

Wang Xiyue quickly covered her brother's mouth, signaling him to calm down, "Brother, keep your voice down."

Wang Xijie suppressed his wildly beating heart; he was almost scared to death, not only by the dragon robe but also by that strange and unpredictable killing formation.

However, seeing that his sister remained calm, he gradually relaxed his tense nerves. "So what should we do now?"

She stated bluntly, "I want to take everything from the camp."

Wang Xijie didn't care about the jewelry, but he was worried about his sister's safety. "How confident are you?" he asked.

Wang Xiyue thought for a moment and gave a conservative answer, "If it were just me alone, I would only have a 30% chance of success, but now that I have Shadow with me, I have a 70% chance of success."

In fact, given Shadow's abilities, there should be a 100% chance of breaking the formation. However, this involves more than just entering and exiting the formation.

They also had to figure out how to secretly move the items out of the camp, and keep it a secret from the prefect.

The most difficult part of the plan is to completely separate the Prime Minister's residence from the project, leaving no trace of connection whatsoever.

"We'll discuss this later. We need to get the message to Father first."

Seeing his sister so calm, Wang Xijie also understood that regardless of whether the formation could be broken, he had to tell his father to prepare a countermeasure as soon as possible. This was the most important thing. The things inside the formation could not be taken out overnight. To succeed, the right time, the right place, and the right people were all indispensable.

He suggested, "How about sending a message back by carrier pigeon? We'll receive the news in a day."

Wang Xiyue shook her head. "That's not a good idea. It would be troublesome if the message got intercepted by people in the capital. For safety's sake, I want Wang Yu to take the message with him."

Wang Xijie scratched his head sheepishly, "That's definitely safer. I'll tell Wang Yu to set off tomorrow."

"Brother, I'll write the message. I have a special potion that most people can't detect."

After Wang Xiyue finished speaking, she took out a small bottle about two fingers thick from the medicine box, dipped a pen in the medicine, and began to write a letter. The words on the paper were in light blue characters.

After writing a few lines, she held the letter up to the candlelight to dry it slowly.

Wang Xijie watched in amazement; the writing on the letter had completely disappeared, leaving only a blank page.

Seeing her brother's puzzled expression, Wang Xiyue patiently explained, "After the paper is dried like this, even if you wet it with water or other chemicals, the writing will not show up. Only the original writing solution will work."

"I came across some interesting herbs while I was learning medicine from my master at the temple, so I prepared a few bottles myself for emergencies."

"Their effects are also different. Some can make the mark disappear after drying, some can make the color last for a long time, and there are also some special drugs and hallucinogens, etc. They are all strange little things. If you need them, come and get them from me."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony with you. When you have time, prepare a copy of each of these for me." Wang Xijie felt that he wanted to give Ling Hong a taste of these strange and unusual things.

Wang Xiyue changed to a different pen, dipped it in regular ink, and wrote down some of her experiences on the road and let her parents know she was safe on the back of the previously dried letter paper.

"Brother, just tell Wang Yu that he's delivering medicine to Father and Mother, and include a note saying we're safe."

"Also, make him separate the medicine and the letter and keep them safe separately."

Wang Xijie was surprised to hear this: "Aren't you going to tell him the truth?"

Wang Xiyue carefully instructed: "Brother, this is a matter of life and death. The fewer people who know about it, the better, and it's even safer if they don't know."

Often, a person's psychological endurance is limited; exceeding that limit becomes a burden.

Knowing that there are things beyond one's control will make anyone feel fearful, and once a person is afraid, they are more likely to reveal their weaknesses.

Few people in this world can completely control their emotions and prevent them from showing.

To be able to prevent others from prying into one's heart requires an extremely strong will and perseverance, and Wang Xiyue certainly doesn't have that ability right now.

Seeing that the important matter was settled, Wang Xiyue tilted her head to look at her brother, her tone light and cheerful, "Brother, you still haven't told me what you've gained today?"

Wang Xijie chuckled. Stimulated by what had just happened, he had completely forgotten why he had come here tonight.

So he happily began to share his negotiation results, "I guess it's because Prefect Ling was guilty that he agreed to all my requests."

"He gave me a villa covering about 30 acres, and around the villa there were about 40 acres of mountain land and farmland, all of which could be cultivated."

"According to him, it was because the descendants of that villa were unfilial and squandered their ancestors' property, which gradually fell into disrepair. When the government saw that no one had lived there or taken care of it for more than ten years, they confiscated it directly."

"He also made new house and land deeds for me. Although the location is a bit remote, the main structure of the house is said to be very sturdy, with dozens of empty rooms. With a little repair and modification, it can easily accommodate two or three hundred people at the same time."

"As for money, he promised to give me 100,000 taels of silver first for the renovation of the house and resettlement expenses."

"He said that if we don't have enough money, we can ask him for more, and he will do his best to cooperate with as many people as we need to help."

Wang Xiyue snorted, "This amount of money is a huge sum for our prefecture, but it's just a drop in the ocean compared to the prefect of Shancheng."

Wang Xijie then belatedly realized, "That's right! Even a random ornament in the main hall of his government office is worth more than 100,000."

He then angrily cursed, "That old bastard actually treated me like a beggar! Fine, very well, just wait until I get him a taste of his own medicine."

Wang Xiyue patted her brother on the shoulder, "Brother, don't be angry. Let's discuss countermeasures after Mingzhe reports on the situation in the South District tomorrow!"

“He bullied my brother like that, I’ll definitely empty his family’s coffers to get revenge for you.”

"It's getting late, brother, you should go back and rest!"

Wang Xijie felt much better after being comforted by his sister and thinking of the scene of Magistrate Ling losing money and vomiting blood. "Okay, I'm leaving now. Yueyue, get some rest too."

"Ah."