As soon as Yan Song died, all information about the people behind him was completely cut off.

Before the situation was fully investigated, they couldn’t report it to His Majesty.

“Third Brother, how have your studies been lately?” Jiang Yuansheng asked.

Jiang Yuanran replied enthusiastically, “Big Brother, I’m planning to set off this month and open shops in other places under Yufeng.”

After experiencing the imperial examination system, Jiang Yuanran no longer pinned his hopes on studying.

Instead, he saw things more clearly.

Business was indeed difficult at first, but after several attempts, he discovered its intricacies.

Now, handling affairs was becoming easier and easier for him.

Moreover, products like rouge and powder were extremely profitable.

Jiang Yuansheng smiled with relief.

As Yuanxi had said, Third Brother had a natural talent for business.

In just one month of managing Lan Fang Pavilion, the shop’s revenue had tripled.

Even Madam Chen, who used to be so busy that her feet barely touched the ground, now had time to enjoy arranging flowers and sipping tea.

Chun Zhi, smiling, placed the account book in front of Madam Chen.

“Madam, the Third Young Master has been in charge for a month, and we’ve made a huge profit!”

Madam Chen curled her lips into a smile. “Yuanran used to be obsessed with reading, but who knew he had such a talent for business?”

Chun Tao laughed. “It’s all thanks to Madam’s good upbringing. All our young masters and young miss are outstanding.”

The Eldest Young Master was exceptionally intelligent and a literary prodigy, now serving as an official in the court.

The Second Young Master was tall and strong, resembling his father—destined to be a great general in the future.

The Third Young Master was cautious and reserved, with a gift for business—he would surely become a renowned merchant in Yufeng one day.

As for the Fourth Young Master… well, he was the little tyrant of Shengjing. In the future… well, maybe he could just take life easy.

And most importantly, their young miss—famous in Shengjing as both the “Master of Gynecology” and the “Queen of Gossip.”

She was barely two years old when the Emperor personally granted her the title of Princess.

The first one in Yufeng’s history!

Chun Tao practically worshipped her.

That wretched An Guo Manor had truly been a curse on them.

Every time she passed by the gates of An Guo Manor while running errands, she would spit twice.

Even though those people had been exiled from the capital, just seeing that place still felt unlucky.

Chun Tao was secretly delighted.

Today, the statue of their young miss—custom-made at great expense—was finally arriving.

She had to make sure to offer her prayers tonight.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yuanxi, the center of all this chaos, was squatting at the doorway, looking pitiful.

She was using a black snake’s tail to draw circles on the ground.

[All my gold is gone, my silver notes are gone, everything is gone. Mother found them all.]

She had become penniless again.

Tears welled up in the little girl’s eyes and dripped onto the ground, forming a small puddle.

She dipped the snake’s tail into the puddle and continued drawing.

The tip of the black snake’s tail was burning with pain.

Recalling the miserable state of the Crown Prince, it could only endure.

Jiang Yuanwu approached, and both the little girl and the snake immediately looked up.

They appeared pitiful, aggrieved, their eyes brimming with tears.

Jiang Yuanwu frowned and swiftly rescued the black snake from Jiang Yuanxi’s grip.

The snake immediately fled without looking back, holding its tail high.

“Yuanxi, who bullied you? Tell me, and I’ll beat them up for you,” Jiang Yuanwu declared.

He wanted to see who had the nerve to bully his little sister.

Jiang Yuanxi’s watery eyes brightened.

She pointed angrily toward the house.

“Mother took my money and won’t give it back. Brother, go get it for me!”

Jiang Yuanwu swallowed hard.

Well… he had spoken too soon.

“Let’s go. I’ll take you out to play,” he quickly said.

Jiang Yuanxi’s eyes widened. “Money! Money!”

Jiang Yuanwu: “What? Salt? Oh, right! You need to buy salt. Got it!”

“Silver, gold, banknotes!”

“What? Roast chicken, grilled meat, braised pig’s trotters?”

“Ah, yes, yes, yes! Braised pig’s trotters!”

Jiang Yuanxi paused, feeling like something wasn’t right.

Just as they reached the gates of the Jiang residence, a soldier from the military camp arrived.

Jiang Yuanwu had no choice but to put his sister down.

Coincidentally, Jiang Yuancheng was heading out.

Jiang Yuanwu handed Jiang Yuanxi over to him.

“Take good care of Yuanxi. If she causes trouble again while I’m gone, just wait till I get back and see how I deal with you.”

“Don’t worry, Second Brother,” Jiang Yuancheng readily agreed.

Jiang Yuanwu glared at him from atop his horse.

It was precisely because he was leaving her with Jiang Yuancheng that he was worried.

“Brother, where are we going?” Jiang Yuanxi asked, holding his hand.

Jiang Yuancheng grinned. “I’ll take you somewhere fun.”

“But remember, don’t tell Father, Mother, or our brothers where we went, okay?”

Thinking it must be a really fun place, Jiang Yuanxi eagerly raised her hand in a vow.

“I swear! I won’t say a word!”

Jiang Yuancheng took his sister on a tour of the city, buying lots of snacks before finally stopping at a certain location.

Jiang Yuanxi looked up.

Thanks to her mother, she had learned to recognize many characters recently.

She immediately recognized the four large characters on the sign.

“Fu Gui Gambling House.”

After being beaten by their father and listening to his sister’s strange predictions, Jiang Yuancheng had toned down his mischief—somewhat.

But his curiosity was too strong to resist.

Anyway, since his sister had assured him their family was still doing fine, what was the harm in a little fun?

“Little Sister, watch as I dominate the gambling tables today!”

Yesterday, he had won 300 taels.

Today, he was sure to win even more!

Inside the gambling house, the air was thick with smoke, the atmosphere noisy and chaotic.

The scent of sweat, tobacco, and something unidentifiable filled the air.

Jiang Yuancheng carried his sister into a private room that had already been prepared.

Inside, Jiang Yuanxi spotted someone familiar.

Wang Hanqi, the son of the Imperial Uncle.

“You’re finally here!” Wang Hanqi clapped Jiang Yuancheng on the shoulder.

Then he noticed Jiang Yuanxi in his arms and his mouth twitched slightly.

“Why did you bring her?”

He hadn’t forgotten—it was this little girl who had cursed him, leading to a beating from his parents.

Jiang Yuanxi spoke in her soft, sweet voice, “Big Brother, tonight… you will have a bloody disaster.”

Wang Hanqi’s mouth twitched violently.

That phrase… was so familiar.

“Greetings, Princess.” Though reluctant, Wang Hanqi still followed the etiquette his parents had drilled into him.

Jiang Yuancheng was too eager to start gambling. “Be good, Yuanxi. Let Brother play for a bit, and then I’ll take you to eat roast chicken, okay?”

Wang Hanqi ignored Jiang Yuanxi and dragged Jiang Yuancheng to the gaming table.

Several young noblemen were already seated, eagerly gambling.

Only Jiang Yuanxi was left alone.

“Fourth Brother.” She tugged at his pant leg.

But Jiang Yuancheng was too absorbed in the game to notice her.

Looking at the bright red misfortune lines on their foreheads, Jiang Yuanxi sighed deeply.

She couldn’t stop people from seeking their own doom.

They were in for a world of trouble!