Chapter 7: Informing the Duke of England’s Residence of the Truth, Making Preparations in Advance

In the original story, Yun Ruoxi constantly picked on Su Lingling out of jealousy over the crown prince’s favor.

But now that Yun Ruoxi had inherited the original host’s memories, there wasn’t the slightest trace of the crown prince in her mind, let alone any romantic feelings.

At present, her understanding of Su Lingling was limited to hearing that the Prime Minister’s residence had recently acknowledged an illegitimate daughter and even included her in the family genealogy.

Yet both the Duke of England’s residence and the Marquis of Wu’an’s household had never provoked Su Lingling—so why was she so hell-bent on destroying them both?

With this in mind, Yun Ruoxi decided to speak frankly. She didn’t want her maternal family to be implicated because of her and end up suffering a loss that outweighed any gain.

With a solemn expression, she spoke earnestly to her grandfather and grandmother:

“Grandfather, Grandmother, I know you love me and can’t bear to see me suffer. But this calamity that has befallen the Marquis of Wu’an’s household was, in fact, orchestrated entirely by Su Lingling—the illegitimate daughter whom the crown prince and Prime Minister Su just recognized. The Marquis of Wu’an’s family has been loyal for generations, descended from a long line of military generals. Now, with the nine princes vying for the throne, taking sides is an incredibly sensitive matter. Our Duke of England’s household and the Marquis of Wu’an have always been staunch royalists and have never meddled in the power struggle. But even so, there’s no guarantee the emperor won’t grow suspicious.”

As soon as she finished speaking, everyone present was stunned.

In their eyes, this girl, who had been pampered since childhood, now spoke with such clarity and insight into the capital’s political situation—it was truly unexpected.

Her grandfather swept his gaze around the room, then raised his hand to signal everyone to leave. In the end, only he, her grandmother, and Yun Ruoxi remained in the hall.

Even Yun Ruoxi’s own parents were “mercilessly” sent out and forbidden from eavesdropping.

Her grandfather looked at her with both concern and caution, softly asking,
“Ruoxi, tell Grandfather—how do you know all this?”

Yun Ruoxi pondered for a moment. To save herself the trouble of explaining over and over again later, she decided to reveal the truth.

“I had a dream. In the dream, I saw a book. The book recorded the legendary life of a girl named Su Lingling. In that story, both the Duke of England’s residence and the Marquis of Wu’an were portrayed as villains. Most of the Wu’an family perished on the road to exile. Our household, in an attempt to save them, offered a blood-written memorial, but even that could only prevent them from being demoted to commoner status.”

Her grandparents were visibly shocked, clearly struggling to believe what they were hearing.

“How could that be? Maybe someone just made up a bunch of nonsense?” her grandmother couldn’t help but interject.

Yun Ruoxi gently shook her head and continued,
“I understand how hard this is to believe. But in that dream, I also met a master.”

Her grandmother quickly asked, “What kind of master?”

Yun Ruoxi cleared her throat and explained,
“He was dressed in white, with a long flowing beard. He called himself a wandering immortal and said he was fated to meet me, so he took me as his disciple.”

At this point, she suddenly remembered something. Her eyes lit up, and she slapped her forehead with excitement.
“Oh, right! Master also gave me a magical item—it can store a lot of things!”

Without waiting for their response, she lifted her hand and waved it lightly. In the blink of an eye, all the tables and chairs in the main hall vanished, taken into her spatial storage.

Then, under her grandparents’ stunned gaze, she returned everything exactly as it was.

“Grandfather, Grandmother, now you believe me, right? Master also gave me many spiritual medicines, all of which are good for nourishing the body. I’ve saved them just for you.”

As soon as she finished speaking, a jade bottle appeared in the palm of her hand, filled with ten drops of spiritual spring water.

She had quietly prepared this during her return home, using her divine sense to retrieve it from her storage space.

“This is celestial dew given to me by Master. Just one drop can expel toxins from the body and rejuvenate it. No matter what kind of hidden illness, it can heal it instantly.”

Her grandfather’s eyes flickered with desire upon hearing this.

Seeing this, Yun Ruoxi quickly added,
“There are ten drops in this bottle, and I saved them especially for you. Master said celestial dew is extremely rare—even cultivators can hardly obtain it.”

Hearing her words, her grandparents began to believe her a bit more.

Yun Ruoxi thoughtfully reminded them:
“Grandfather, Grandmother—only one drop is needed at a time. Never take more than that, or your body won’t be able to handle it. Also, after taking it, the body will expel impurities and it won’t smell good, so you should choose an appropriate time to use it.”

Recalling what just happened, her grandfather asked curiously,
“Then do you know why the Marquis of Wu’an was targeted for confiscation in the first place?”

Yun Ruoxi’s expression turned stern as she spoke solemnly:
“They were framed for embezzling disaster relief silver. But I searched the entire Marquis of Wu’an’s residence and found nothing—until I saw three million taels of official silver in Su Lingling’s courtyard.”

“What? Are you certain of this?”
Her grandfather’s face darkened instantly. He was so shaken he leapt to his feet.
“If this charge is confirmed, not even the gods can save the Marquis of Wu’an’s household!”

Her grandmother’s face was clouded with sorrow, and she murmured,
“No wonder even the blood-written memorial couldn’t save them… So that’s the reason.”

Her grandfather, growing increasingly anxious, began pacing back and forth across the room, muttering,
“This won’t do. Since we now know they were framed, we must plan ahead. We can’t let the Marquis of Wu’an meet the same fate again.”

Understanding her grandfather’s concerns, Yun Ruoxi quickly stepped in to stop him.
“Grandfather, even if we save the Marquis of Wu’an, it won’t change the outcome. In six months, the entire Great Ye Dynasty will be struck by a massive drought—even the capital won’t be spared.”

“What?”
Her grandparents immediately panicked, their eyes wide in disbelief.

Seeing this, Yun Ruoxi continued calmly,
“So I’ve thought long and hard about this. Since they intend to pin false charges on us, I might as well play along—make the charges real. We’ll raid every household that’s ever offended us and stockpile food early, then leave the capital when the time comes. Survival is our top priority.”

Her grandfather, meticulous as always, thought further ahead.
“How long will this drought last?”

Yun Ruoxi’s face turned grave as she slowly uttered two words:
“Three years.”
“And after the drought, chaos will erupt in the capital. The nine princes will plunge into all-out war for the throne, and the Great Ye Dynasty will suffer through ten years of warfare. In the end, the crown prince and Su Lingling will emerge victorious—but the war will exhaust the people, devastate the treasury, and shake the very foundation of the nation. The new dynasty will only last five years before it’s conquered by Xiliang.”

Fearing that her grandfather might cling to their current status and honor, Yun Ruoxi quickly urged,
“Grandfather, no matter what, staying alive is the most important thing. According to the book, in the end, only Fifth Brother survived from the entire Duke of England’s household. He aligned himself with Prince Duan, but still died in the palace during the final power struggle. Please, Grandfather, think this through carefully. Our household and the Marquis of Wu’an share the same position right now—sooner or later, we’ll both be destroyed by the crown prince and Su Lingling.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Yun Ruoxi realized her grandparents were already in tears.
“Grandfather, Grandmother… I spoke too bluntly. Please don’t be upset.”

Her grandfather reached out with his aged hand, wiping his face roughly. His eyes were full of disappointment.
“Seems… I trusted His Majesty far too much. You’re right, Ruoxi. We must protect ourselves. The most important thing is for the whole family to live in peace and safety.”

Just then, the family members waiting outside pushed open the door and entered.

The eldest uncle spoke first,
“Father, Ruoxi is absolutely right. If chaos is coming, we must prepare as early as possible.”

Yun Ruoxi’s father echoed his words,
“Father, nothing is more important than staying alive. Time is short—let’s act immediately.”

Though the others said nothing, their expressions were united—they all agreed.

Her grandfather gave a heavy nod and let out a long sigh,
“Very well. What we thought was just the downfall of the Marquis of Wu’an… is actually a prelude to nationwide disaster. Enough. I’m too old to keep defending those unworthy of our trust. From now on, our family’s survival comes first.”

The eldest uncle, Yun Qingfeng, pondered for a moment, then proposed,
“Let’s get to work immediately. Begin gathering grain and supplies in secret, stockpile early—and when the time comes, we’ll store it all in Ruoxi’s magical artifact.”

Yun Ruoxi quickly raised a hand to stop him.
“Uncle, no need to rush. I specifically asked my master for storage rings—each one holds up to 100,000 cubic meters. That’s more than enough to feed an army of 100,000 in the northwest.”

As she spoke, she summoned a dozen storage rings into her palm.
“This black one has the largest space. The others are 10,000 cubic meters each—everyone can use one to store their own supplies.”

She had prepared them in advance, one for each member of the Duke of England’s household.

Uncle Yun Qingfeng was delighted but still concerned,
“Ruoxi, you’ve brought out so many storage rings… Won’t your master mind?”

Yun Ruoxi smiled and waved her hand dismissively.
“Master taught me cultivation methods and gave me many treasures before he left to wander the world again. Before leaving, he told me I could use these things however I wished. I still have plenty more storage rings.”

Her eldest brother, Yun Ruoyang, was full of curiosity and couldn’t help but ask,
“These rings are so small—how can they hold so much? What if someone steals one?”