A Ru was scolding Yuan Bao and the guard accompanying him.

“He really slept right through it? A thief sneaks into the house and carries someone off, and you didn't even notice?” she demanded, her eyebrows sharply raised.

Yuan Bao and the man kept their heads bowed, daring not to breathe, consumed by self-reproach.

After all this time, the Mistress had finally returned home, only for the house to be no better than a public thoroughfare, with money tossed about casually... cough... the point wasn't the money, it was that people could enter and leave as they pleased, and they hadn't noticed a thing.

“Master, Master, something terrible has happened!”

Hu San’s frantic shouting came from outside the door.

Could there be trouble again at the isolation hospital?

Qi Yue moved to the front, just as Hu San burst into the courtyard.

“It’s bad, Master,” he gasped, drenched in sweat, clearly having rushed over.

“What is it? Has an illness flared up again?” Qi Yue asked quickly, already extending her hand. “A Ru, hurry and fetch my medicine chest, we’re leaving.”

“No... it’s not...” Hu San panted, clutching his chest.

“Then what is it? Spit it out!” A Ru urged sharply.

Hu... Master, he glanced left and right, moving toward the inner rooms.

“What urgent matter makes you go inside the house? Are you waiting for tea?” A Ru grabbed him, demanding.

“No, no,” Hu San waved his hands quickly, a slight smile playing on his lips. “I was just afraid someone might overhear.”

“What is it?” Qi Yue asked, smiling.

Seeing Hu San’s demeanor, she knew it wasn’t truly bad news, and a measure of relief settled in her heart.

Hu San looked left and right, edged closer, covered his mouth with his hand, and whispered a single sentence.

A Ru immediately raised her hand and smacked him.

“Speak clearly!” she commanded.

Qi Yue burst into laughter.

Hu San chuckled sheepishly too.

Their shared amusement made A Ru uncomfortable, and she glared at them both.

“Master, the money, there’s too much of it,” Hu San quickly stopped laughing and whispered to Qi Yue.

What?

“The money, a sudden, large surplus appeared,” Hu San repeated.

Qi Yue froze momentarily.

“Did your money increase as well?” she asked.

As well?

Hu San was momentarily stunned too.

“Master, yours increased too?” he inquired.

Seeing the two boxes of money in the back courtyard, Hu San’s eyes lit up.

“Indeed, Master is Master. I only have two sacks...” he muttered, shaking his head in admiration.

“It seems someone intentionally sent us money,” Qi Yue observed with a laugh.

“Not exactly sent, this money is still ours,” Hu San said, pulling two money pouches from his robe. “It’s just that I was paying wages to people I hired.”

Wages?

All eyes fell upon the pouches in his hands.

“Those laborers... who delivered the quicklime?” Qi Yue questioned.

Hu San nodded.

Meanwhile, the laborers who had driven the carts and mules were now tearing down the road, laughing maniacally.

“Going home!”

They swung their whips, and those without them slapped the cart planks, revealing great swords hidden beneath the boards, which they drew and brandished.

At this moment, their image as simple, honest laborers was utterly shattered. Simple they were, perhaps, but now with a fierce edge attached.

“Hey, Big Brother is coming to meet us!” someone shouted, pointing ahead.

Up ahead, near a perilous mountain pass, a troop of riders was descending the path, four of whom were carrying a sedan chair in which sat a heavily bearded man.

“Guan Qingniu!” Qi Yue spoke the name, yet her expression was utterly blank. “Who is that?”

“He’s the one whose chest you opened, then bound with iron wire,” Chang Yuncheng supplied.

Qi Yue frowned, thinking for a moment before realization dawned.

“He’s the mountain bandit, the rogue whose subordinates almost beat you to death after listening to malicious rumors,” Chang Yuncheng clarified, his gaze lingering on the two chests of silver piled against the corner of the wall.

So it was this man’s people...

That explained it. She had found the laborers Hu San hired from the isolation hospital vaguely suspicious, but since they were genuinely helping and business was hectic, she hadn’t dwelled on it, only ordering discreet observation.

“Oh, then am I accepting stolen goods?” Qi Yue mused aloud. “Shouldn't I turn it in?”

Chang Yuncheng looked at her, truly unable to fathom what went on inside her mind.

“Fine, you turn it in, and the officials will charge you with colluding with bandits. Maybe Guan Qingniu will even lead a jailbreak to ‘repay the favor’ later,” he retorted.

Qi Yue shot him a glare and spat.

“Why did you come today? I heard you caught a fever from the rain?” she asked, taking in his appearance.

Speaking of which, Chang Yuncheng looked rather sheepish. He had initially feigned illness following his father’s wishes, being dutiful, but before he could even summon this physician, the incident with Concubine Zhou occurred.

Now, the Marquis of Dingxi had no energy to see anyone, hiding at home and retreating from everything. Look at the people in this household: a mother-in-law intent on divorcing her daughter-in-law, a concubine plotting murder—what right did such a household have to ask anyone to return? To return for shared disgrace?

Seeing Chang Yuncheng fall silent, Qi Yue naturally grasped the Marquis of Dingxi's current sentiment and smiled faintly.

“So, that was madness born of deep affection?” Chang Yuncheng suddenly asked.

Qi Yue blinked.

“Are you talking about Concubine Zhou?” she asked.

Chang Yuncheng did not deny it.

Qi Yue reached out and lightly punched his arm.

“No, that was obsession twisted into wickedness,” she corrected him.

Chang Yuncheng watched her smile fade.

Qi Yue pursed her lips.

Chang Yuncheng couldn’t bring himself to look away.

“You mean, it was Guan Qingniu’s people who rescued that family?” Qi Yue asked again.

“Yes. Concubine Zhou hired assassins, and the hit took place right in Guan Qingniu’s territory. Guan Qingniu’s men had already scouted the area and noticed the family was carrying a lot of money. Before they could act, the men hired by Concubine Zhou struck first. Initially, they thought this was someone breaking the rules, and they intended to teach them a harsh lesson. But when they overheard talk of the Marquis of Dingxi Estate, of Madam Qi, Guan Qingniu had already instructed his men to treat you with utmost respect. They left survivors to question, only then learning the truth,” Chang Yuncheng explained.

Qi Yue laughed heartily upon hearing this.

“Me?” She pointed a finger at her own nose. “I’ve become the leader of the bandit chiefs?”

They were seated in the courtyard now, sunlight dappling the ground through the tree branches, casting fractured shadows. The woman’s smile was bright in the mottled light.

Chang Yuncheng felt his heart pound violently and stared blankly for a moment.

“And then they found out, so they kept the family alive, waiting for an opportunity to deliver a grand gift to me?” Qi Yue continued, laughing. “This person is truly interesting.”

As she laughed, she noticed Chang Yuncheng wasn’t speaking. Looking up, she saw him staring at her in a daze, and she composed her expression.

“Hey,” she lifted her chin slightly.

Chang Yuncheng snapped back to attention, flushed, and turned his head away.

“Are you finished?” Qi Yue asked.

Chang Yuncheng stammered, “Yes, yes, I’m finished.”

“Is there anything else?” Qi Yue inquired.

It wasn't really anything major, just an excuse to come and see...

Chang Yuncheng looked around the small courtyard, which was smaller than his own quarters in the estate...

“No,” he murmured softly.

Qi Yue looked at him without speaking.

Chang Yuncheng grew increasingly uncomfortable under her gaze, his ears burning. He kept his head lowered, using his foot to stomp on ants on the ground.

Qi Yue found this rather amusing. She picked up a book from a nearby table, deciding to see how long the boy could keep stomping on insects.

As dusk began to settle, Qi Yue emerged from the house. She found Chang Yuncheng still standing in the courtyard, head bowed, which struck her as both funny and slightly irritating.

“Hey,” she tapped the stone table with her hand. “You’ve stomped more than half the ants to death, and the survivors have all gone home. You aren’t planning to dig up the anthill and finish them off, are you?”

Chang Yuncheng finally stood up straight.

“Then, I’ll be going,” he said, starting to walk away with his head down.

“You’ve sat here all this time. Leave after dinner. Do you want people to say I’m stingy, unwilling to offer a single meal?” Qi Yue called out, glaring at him.

Huh? Chang Yuncheng’s mind was sluggish, and he didn't react immediately.

“Young Lord, dinner is ready, please come in,” A Ru called out from the dining area, lifting the curtain.

Chang Yuncheng hesitated even more.

“This, this, it’s not appropriate. If people knew I was eating at your place...” he stammered.

Qi Yue laughed, reaching out to thump his shoulder lightly.

“Now you worry about being an unmarried man and woman together?” she teased. “Hurry inside. Am I afraid of gossip? Haven’t I been talked about enough?”

Indeed, from being a beggar entering the Marquis of Dingxi Estate to being granted a decree of separation, when had the entire city not buzzed with gossip?

Chang Yuncheng lowered his head and stepped inside.

The small room was lit by four lamps. Four simple dishes and one soup were laid out on the dining table.

“It can’t compare to what you eat at home; ours is simple here,” Qi Yue said with a smile, sitting down first.

Chang Yuncheng hesitated briefly before sitting across from her.

“Young Lord, the Mistress made this herself,” A Hao said, presenting him with chopsticks, smiling warmly.

Chang Yuncheng’s eyes couldn’t help but brighten.

“That was when the Mistress was cooking while you were busy watching the ants,” A Hao added cheekily.

Chang Yuncheng instantly blushed again, then busied himself adjusting his bowl and plate to conceal it, but the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth became impossible to suppress.

Qi Yue personally ladled a bowl of soup for him.

“You’ve been experiencing some internal heat lately, so I kept it light. I dared not use much meat, so it’s just tofu soup—don’t dislike it,” she explained.

Chang Yuncheng accepted the bowl with both hands.

“How could I possibly dislike it...” he whispered, hesitating before daring to add, “I could not ask for more.”

Qi Yue pursed her lips, smiled, and sat down to eat.

Seeing she wasn’t displeased, Chang Yuncheng felt a surge of joy and also a touch of shyness. He looked down at the soup in his bowl, remembering the first time Qi Yue made him late-night snacks—it was tofu soup, and she often made it afterward, but he always sent it to his mother, tasting it only once or twice himself, thinking he’d have plenty of chances later. He hadn't expected that the next time he tasted it, it would be...

“What are you daydreaming about now?”

Qi Yue’s voice sounded by his ear. Chang Yuncheng quickly suppressed the bitterness, looked up, managed a smile for her, and lowered his head to eat the rice.

Qi Yue ate slowly, occasionally picking up a piece of vegetable with her chopsticks and handing it to him.

“Try this one,” she said.

Chang Yuncheng gradually calmed down. The sourness faded from his mouth, replaced by sweetness. He ate large mouthfuls with his head down, then worried that finishing too quickly would leave no excuse to linger, so he deliberately slowed down, eating grain by grain. Yet, he feared this might imply he found her cooking unappetizing, so he sped up again.

Qi Yue watched the man toggle his pace—fast, then slow, then fast again—with his bowl of rice. First, she was amused, then a pang of sadness struck her.

“Eat properly. In the future...” she started to say.

In the future? Chang Yuncheng paused his chopsticks, looking at her with sudden nervousness. Will there be no more chances in the future?

A knock sounded on the door—thump, thump.

Qi Yue stopped speaking and looked toward the outside.

“Mistress, Young Master Huang is here,” A Ru came in to announce.

Xiao Qiao? Why was he here at this hour?

“Please ask him to come in,” Qi Yue stood up to say.

A Ru smiled helplessly.

“That child refuses to enter; he’s waiting at the doorway,” she reported.

Qi Yue shook her head.

“Fine, I’ll go invite our old friend,” she said with a smile, telling Chang Yuncheng to wait a moment before heading out.

Chang Yuncheng set down his bowl and chopsticks. He felt his heart rate return to normal, feeling a mixture of relief and regret.

Ah, I apologize. Because moving into a new plotline, I can’t quite keep up with the emotional momentum. Therefore, I must pause the double updates for now. I still owe fifteen chapters; I will resume them once I recover, which won't take too long—just a few days to catch my breath. I am truly sorry, sorry.

For more novels, visit storyread.net.