As Lu Qing silently observed the people fighting each other, a thought flashed through his mind: Could it be that the ancestors are stepping in to discipline them on behalf of the Lu family?

But he quickly dismissed the idea. The ancestors were known to be dignified and wise; they would never resort to throwing mud at people. It was impossible—absolutely impossible.

Even though the voice did sound like a little girl’s…

The commotion was so loud that it disturbed the peace of the patrolling officers. They came over, cursing and swinging their whips, hitting anyone within reach. “What’s all this ruckus? If you don’t want to rest, go throw yourselves into the river!”

“Damned troublemakers, disturbing my peace!”

They didn’t care who they hit. Whoever got struck was cursed out as the officers vented their frustrations.

Not far away, Gu Xingzhao, satisfied with the chaos she had caused, clapped the dust off her hands. “They’re all rolling around in the mud, yet some still think they can act superior?”

Lu Qing: “…” It really was the ancestors stepping in.

Lu Xingyan, who had vaguely heard a familiar voice, paused and couldn’t help but smile.

After flinging the mud, Gu Xingzhao remembered that the system had previously mentioned something about not being allowed to harm people from ancient dimensions. She checked and found that the system hadn’t issued any warnings, which reassured her. She guessed that it probably meant she couldn’t cause any lethal harm, but other actions were likely fine.

As she was thinking this, she noticed that Mrs. Xu was quietly slipping away while no one was paying attention.Gu Xingzhao suddenly recalled that Mrs. Xu might be planning to leave. She silently followed her… only to see that Du Hangwu, the official in charge of this escort, was waiting nearby with two other officers.

Du Hangwu glanced at Mrs. Xu and said, “Follow this road. There’s a carriage waiting to pick you up.”After speaking, he was about to leave.

But Mrs. Xu called out to him, “Sir, please wait. I have a request.”Du Hangwu frowned and turned to look at Mrs. Xu. “What is it?”His tone was harsh. A former soldier, he had little patience for people like Mrs. Xu, who tried to escape and abandoned their husbands and daughters.

He looked at her with disdain.He guessed that Mrs. Xu was probably going to beg him to take her ten-year-old daughter along as well.Those in power accepted bribes, leaving the lower-ranking officers to clean up the mess. He despised this sort of thing, thinking that the aristocrats in the capital were thoroughly rotten. But what could he do? Rank and power crushed the lowly.

When Mrs. Xu met Du Hangwu’s hateful gaze, she was so frightened that she lowered her head and dared not look up. This man was fierce, carrying a large sword likely stained with the blood of many.

Summoning all her courage, Mrs. Xu spoke, “I’ve decided not to leave. I want to ask you to relay a message to my family. Tell them that as a mother, I cannot abandon my daughter. I will not be able to fulfill my filial duties, and I hope they can forgive me.

“Upon hearing this, Du Hangwu was surprised, though his face remained impassive. Coldly, he replied, “Are you sure? If you don’t leave tonight, you won’t have another chance.

“Mrs. Xu had already made up her mind. “I’m not leaving.”

Gu Xingzhao had initially followed Mrs. Xu because she was concerned that the Lu family might worry if they discovered Mrs. Xu was missing. She planned to inform Lu Qing once Mrs. Xu had left to ensure the Lu family knew she was safe. But she hadn’t expected that Mrs. Xu wasn’t fleeing but had instead decided to stay and face hardship with the Lu family. She simply wanted the officer’s help to relay a message to her family.

At this moment, Du Hangwu seemed to gain a bit of respect for Mrs. Xu. “I’ll make sure your message is delivered.

“Mrs. Xu was grateful. “Thank you, sir.

“After Mrs. Xu left, the two officers nearby frowned with concern. “Boss, with Mrs. Xu staying, the task wasn’t completed. Will we be blamed for this?

“After all, if she didn’t leave, the silver promised by the Xu family wouldn’t make it into the hands of those above.

Du Hangwu sneered, “What, do you want to tie her up and throw her back?”

Thinking of the trouble that could follow, his expression darkened. “I’m off to take care of some business. Keep a close eye on these people, especially the Lu family. No more nonsense!”

“Yes, sir.”

Once Du Hangwu had left, the two officers grumbled, “Mrs. Xu is a fool. If it were me, I’d have run a long time ago.”

“Women’s hearts are tied to their men. I get it.”

“What do you know? When disaster strikes, couples are supposed to fend for themselves…”

The other officer, not wanting to discuss Mrs. Xu any further, changed the subject, “Why does the boss keep going to the bathroom? This is his third time today, isn’t it?”Each time, he’s gone for ages. How can someone need the toilet that often?

Gu Xingzhao covered her ears and silently walked away. She really didn’t want to hear this—just the thought of it was disgusting.

…

When Mrs. Xu returned, the Lu family was already looking for her.Lu Yang sighed in relief when he saw her. “It’s not safe out here. If you need to step away, just let me know. I’ll go with you.

“Mrs. Xu looked at her husband. His eyes were full of concern that he couldn’t hide. Perhaps because of their current situation, she suddenly felt that Lu Yang wasn’t as annoying as she’d thought.

“Okay,” she replied, handing the food her husband had given her back to him. “I don’t eat as much as you. You should have it.”Lu Yang stared at the food in his hand, stunned for a long moment before breaking into a few awkward laughs. “Alright!”His wife usually criticized him for being overweight, but now she was giving him food—she must be worried about him!

Madam Song smiled on the side, while Lu Zhou, watching his younger brother bask in his good fortune, felt a mix of disdain and resignation.

Seeing how harmonious the family seemed, Gu Xingzhao decided not to tell Lu Qing about Mrs. Xu’s earlier attempt to leave. She figured that since Mrs. Xu hadn’t mentioned it, she probably didn’t want the Lu family to know, and there was no need for her to speak up.

After staying for a while longer, Gu Xingzhao returned to the modern world. It was already 11 p.m., and after a bath, she checked the inventory in her supermarket. While there were still plenty of instant noodles and snacks, she’d need to restock soon, as the supermarket was still operating.

It was currently November, and winter was approaching quickly. Her supermarket didn’t stock cold-weather supplies, so she’d need to purchase them. Not knowing what the weather in ancient times was like, she wanted to buy these items before it got too cold. If she waited until it started snowing, the Lu family would suffer in their tattered prison clothes—possibly to the point of freezing to death.

After roughly calculating, she figured that restocking the supermarket and buying the necessary supplies would cost nearly 30,000 yuan. She currently had about 50,000 yuan in her bank account.

She suddenly realized that she hadn’t made much money since opening the supermarket. Being in a small town, foot traffic was relatively low, and while she usually wasn’t too worried—having no mortgage or car payments, and only needing to avoid losses to live comfortably—the situation had changed. Now, she had 26 people to take care of…Gu Xingzhao sighed. This was turning into a huge burden.That night, she posted on her social media: “Six days into being an instant mom. Parenting isn’t easy, so think twice before you have kids.”

…

The next morning, Gu Xingzhao went downstairs to buy breakfast and thought about how the Lu family likely hadn’t eaten meat in a long time. How could they go without meat?

“Uncle Li, I’ll take 26 portions of steamed pork dumplings, to go.”

Li, who was lying down and reading, nearly dropped his book in shock when he heard she wanted to buy 26 portions. He almost blacked out.