A Scumbag Marrying A Second Wife? Then Let’s Empty Out His Family’s Estate!
A Scumbag Marrying A Second Wife? Then Let’s Empty Out His Family’s Estate! Chapter 33

Chapter 33: Three Years

Just as she furrowed her brow and looked around, a black figure swooped down from the branches.

Wei Yunlan breathed a sigh of relief. “Leader Yu.”

Hearing their young mistress’s address, Tingxue and Ningshuang looked curiously at the woman in black.

She looked about the same size as Suihe, both slender. But just by looking at her light footwork, one could tell she was no ordinary person. Just like Suihe, who looked frail but was actually incredibly strong, she was someone who didn’t reveal her true capabilities.

“This is Seventh Lady Yu, Leader Yu, who has been protecting us in secret,” Wei Yunlan introduced them.

Ningshuang and Tingxue politely bowed. “Thank you for your protection all this way, Leader Yu.”

“No need,” Seventh Lady Yu’s gaze swept over them lightly. “Your young mistress paid.”

Ningshuang and Tingxue: “…”

They didn’t know how to respond to that.

Fortunately, Seventh Lady Yu didn’t need them to respond. She bowed slightly to Wei Yunlan and continued, “Miss Wei, Master has prepared two steeds for you. They are waiting behind the mountain.”

“Steeds?” Wei Yunlan looked surprised. She hadn’t requested that.

If it was simply out of sympathy for her father, that reason was a bit weak.

Seeing the confusion in Wei Yunlan’s eyes, Seventh Lady Yu said, “The information you provided was very helpful to the Master.”

“You mean the earth dragon turning?” A flash of understanding appeared in Wei Yunlan’s eyes.

She had only thought of using Seventh Lady Yu to convey this information to Tianshu Pavilion, hoping that they could prepare beforehand and lessen the impact of the disaster on the people.

She hadn’t expected that her kind reminder would benefit her first.

This Master of Tianshu Pavilion was truly kind and thoughtful.

“……”

Under the cover of night, Wei Yunlan and her group of four descended from the slope.

At the same time, in the Capital.

The kind and thoughtful person in Wei Yunlan’s eyes was standing by the window, opening the tube tied to the right leg of the sea eagle.

The letter was sent by Tianshu Pavilion’s secret branch, detailing the disaster that had struck the northwest of the Great Yong Dynasty that evening.

Even with a heads-up and some preparation, the disaster still affected nearly ten prefectures.

Hundreds of thousands of people were affected!

After carefully reading the contents of the letter, the man rubbed his temples in pain and closed his eyes.

A moment later, he abruptly opened his eyes, determination flashing in them.

He said in a deep voice, “Let’s go.”

With this command, several figures hidden in the shadows simultaneously left.

The night was quiet, like the calm before a storm.

As the sky began to lighten, the curfew ended.

When the city gates of the Capital opened the next day, news of the earth dragon turning, which had affected nearly ten prefectures within the Great Yong Dynasty, reached the Capital.

At the same time, rumors of “the current emperor’s incompetence, causing the wrath of Heaven” also spread throughout the Capital.

“……”

The aftershocks of the earth dragon turning occurred five times in total.

The first three were very close together and powerful. The last two were separated by half an hour each, and their intensity was much less than before.

Wei Yunlan and her group descended the mountain and left after the third aftershock ended.

They changed into the clothes they had prepared in their bundles, dressing as men.

Seventh Lady Yu rode with Wei Yunlan, and Tingxue and Ningshuang rode together. They deliberately avoided open areas and traveled along the western mountains of Liangzhou.

They set off at night and traveled for half a day. Near noon, they were blocked at Qingya Slope, less than a hundred kilometers from Suijiang.

Due to the earth dragon turning, rocks had fallen, and the only road leading north was blocked by debris.

Four or five villages at the foot of the slope had been affected. Fortunately, there were no casualties, but only a little more than 40 percent of the crops they had worked hard to grow all year had been harvested.

And the date for collecting taxes was less than half a month away…

Wei Yunlan and her group stopped at a village called Xiaya Village at the foot of Qingya Slope, using the village well to fill their water bags.

Standing by the well, they could hear the villagers grumbling.

“If we are taxed this year based on the old rules, giving up thirty percent of our grain means we’ll only have ten percent left. We won’t even last until winter, let alone next year!”

“With so many mouths to feed at home, how can this little grain be enough?”

“Ah, how are we supposed to survive in this world?”

The village head stepped forward to calm everyone, “Everyone, don’t be anxious. Just wait a little longer. There might be an edict coming down to reduce this year’s taxes in a few days…”

Even the village head sounded a bit uncertain, and the villagers were skeptical.

“Uncle Village Head, don’t let everyone dream in broad daylight!”

“A few months ago, Tanzhou suffered a flood, and they received nothing. Did the court reduce their taxes? Can our disaster be worse than Tanzhou?”

Upon hearing this, the villagers who had held onto some hope sighed in disappointment.

Sitting under the large banyan tree near the well, an old man with a hunched back, fanning himself with a palm leaf, sighed, “How great it would be if the late emperor were still alive. When Liangzhou was hit by a flood, the late emperor not only exempted us from taxes for a year but also sent disaster relief money and grain, and even sent officials to help the village rebuild.”

“He even sent officials to help rebuild houses? That would have been wonderful.”

The old man continued, “I heard that the Crown Prince was raised by the late emperor himself. If the Crown Prince ascends the throne, he should be able to show compassion for the common people just like the late emperor. Ah, I wonder when the Crown Prince will…”

Before the old man could finish, someone next to him covered his mouth.

Several younger villagers looked warily at Wei Yunlan and her companions, who were unfamiliar faces nearby.

Such treasonous words should not be spoken in front of outsiders!

Wei Yunlan understood the villagers’ feelings and pretended not to hear. After filling their water bags, she cupped her hands in gratitude to the village head and the villagers, “Thank you for allowing us to enter the village and for your hospitality.”

The village head exchanged a few polite words.

The old man, who had just been allowed to speak, noticed the dark circles under Wei Yunlan and the others’ eyes and said, “You haven’t rested all night, have you?”

“The road ahead will take several days to clear, and detours will take even longer. If you don’t mind, why don’t you rest in the village for a while before continuing your journey?”

Wei Yunlan and the others exchanged glances. They had already traveled over a hundred li that day.

Seventh Lady Yu was fine, but for Wei Yunlan and the others, who hadn’t trained much, continuing to bounce around on horseback was indeed taxing.

Rather than rush off, it would be better to rest in the village for half a day and set off again at dawn.

The family they stayed with was the old man who had talked about the late emperor and the Crown Prince.

Their house was next to the village head’s, with a spacious courtyard and a stone house built of blue bricks, which was even larger than the village head’s house.

The village head introduced them, “Don’t be fooled by the fact that just Old Uncle Xue and his son live here. They are among the better-off families in the village. The old man’s two sons are both in the Northwest Army, and the elder son is even a centurion!”

As he spoke, there was a hint of warning in the village head’s eyes. Wei Yunlan understood he was cautioning them not to underestimate Old Uncle Xue’s family just because they were few in number.

After all, they were currently disguised as men, and even though they might appear somewhat “weak,” they would still raise suspicions.

Old Uncle Xue was not as wary as the village head. He was very hospitable to Wei Yunlan and her group. After the village head left, he opened the empty west room in his home. “This was my second son’s room. Although it’s empty, it’s always kept clean. You can stay comfortably here. The bedding is in the cupboard; feel free to use it if you need it.”

He then called his grandson, Huzi, over and told Wei Yunlan’s group, “If you need firewood or hot water, just ask Huzi to take you to the kitchen. Don’t hesitate.”

“Thank you, Uncle,” Wei Yunlan and her companions said gratefully.

At Wei Yunlan’s signal, Tingxue handed Old Uncle Xue a small piece of loose silver, but Old Uncle Xue waved his hands repeatedly, shaking his head. “It’s hard for everyone these days. You should take this silver back!”

Wei Yunlan didn’t insist on giving it to him and decided to leave it behind when they left the next day.

The west room had a large kang, more than enough space for Wei Yunlan and the others to sleep.

After they made the bed, Ningshuang and Tingxue went with Huzi to the kitchen, leaving Wei Yunlan and Seventh Lady Yu alone in the room.

As the room quieted down, Wei Yunlan couldn’t help but recall Old Uncle Xue’s previous remarks about the late emperor and the Crown Prince.

In truth, she didn’t know much about the late emperor and the Crown Prince.

She was still young when the late emperor passed away, only knowing that he was a true enlightened ruler, beloved by both officials and the common people.

The Crown Prince was raised by the late emperor himself, and her parents often praised him, mentioning more than once that if the Crown Prince had succeeded the throne directly after the late emperor’s death, the Great Yong Dynasty would not be in its current state.

Even today, there were many people in the court and among the commoners looking forward to the Crown Prince’s ascension.

But in Wei Yunlan’s memory, the Crown Prince hadn’t lived many more years than she had…

She vaguely remembered that news of the Crown Prince’s death was announced shortly after Xue Linglong gave birth to her second son. Xue Linglong had discovered her pregnancy just two months after entering the family, and the second son was born only a year after the first.

Calculating from that time, only three years had passed since the Crown Prince’s death!

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