Shen Yanrong’s heart finally truly settled.

Lu Yao also breathed a sigh of relief.

To be honest, she was really afraid that he would ask some strange questions, and she would have to rack her brains to come up with reasons. That would be too difficult for her.

Feeling happy, she simply waved her hand, her hand gliding over the trays, wooden boxes, and jewelry boxes. As she touched them, the things she touched instantly disappeared.

In the blink of an eye, the small hall that had been filled with things became empty.

Shen Yanrong rubbed his eyes, which were a little sore from being wide open in shock.

After hearing his wife talk about it, he was mentally prepared, but when he saw it with his own eyes, he couldn’t help but be shocked and amazed.

Thankfully, he was a man of strong character and quickly recovered. Thinking of the ordeal their family was about to face, he told Lu Yao that he would go and boil some hot water to prepare, and he would also go out to buy some things before the officials came to confiscate their belongings tomorrow.

Before, they had no choice, but now, with the celestial being’s treasure, they could prepare more in advance, and his wife and children would suffer less.

“No need,” Lu Yao said, “I collected a lot of things in that world, it’s enough for us for now.”

Because of the apocalypse, she had developed the habit of hoarding. Whenever she had the chance, she would try to put as many things as possible into the space, just in case. Except for her infancy, she would secretly move things into the space.

Shen Yanrong was overjoyed, “Yao Mei, you’re so capable!”

He was truly impressed by his wife. Although it made him seem incompetent and useless, this was his wife, no one else had such good fortune.

Just thinking that this most special and wonderful woman in the world was his wife made him feel proud and proud.

He was so lucky, so happy.

Lu Yao was amused by Shen Yanrong’s attitude, and she couldn’t help but feel proud, “Such an excellent wife, you have to cherish her.”

“Of course!”

Even if she hadn’t had such a magical experience, even if she hadn’t had the celestial being’s artifact, she was the only woman he wanted to cherish with all his heart for the rest of his life.

Oh, Yueyue, that little girl didn’t count.

The two of them chatted while drinking their warm milk tea, waiting for the people from the main courtyard to deliver the things.

As for the conversation, it was mainly Shen Yanrong listening to his wife talk about her magical experience during her unconsciousness. He was truly curious.

Regarding this, Lu Yao didn’t make up any more stories. She simply picked and chose some of her experiences from her previous life. Even just a glimpse of the iceberg made Shen Yanrong marvel and be amazed.

“That world was so good.” Hearing his wife talk about that world where everyone was equal, every child could read and learn, regardless of whether they were orphans, disabled, or sick, they all had corresponding benefits and guarantees. Most importantly, everyone could eat and dress warmly, and every meal had meat and white rice. He sincerely sighed, his tone full of envy and longing.

Unfortunately, according to Yao Mei, using the development of the other world as a measure, their Great Yong Dynasty was still in a feudal society, thousands of years away from a modern society.

Hearing Lu Yao talk about how her parents sacrificed themselves in that world, how social order collapsed, and how she survived in a world of monsters, he couldn’t help but feel heartache and self-blame, “If I could have been by your side…”

After going through so much, his wife still maintained her original intention, while he, as her husband, wasn’t there to accompany her…

“Are you overthinking again?” Lu Yao guessed what he was thinking from his expression, and said impatiently, “It was the celestial being’s test for me.”

Shen Yanrong smiled and didn’t explain.

Even if it was the celestial being’s test for her, it didn’t stop him, as her husband, from feeling heartache, guilt, and self-blame.

He secretly decided that he would be even better to his wife in the future.

Perhaps knowing that Lu Yao and Shen Yanrong were not easy to fool, or perhaps they had other plans behind the scenes, when they came to deliver the things again, the people from the main courtyard didn’t play any tricks.

This time, the leader was a middle-aged man, the head steward of the Shen family, Shen Shiren’s most trusted old man.

The head steward’s attitude towards the two of them was clearly much more respectful.

First, he apologized to them, saying that the servants were ignorant of the rules and had wronged them. Master and Madam had already punished them, and he asked them to forgive the servants and not take it to heart.

Then he had the servants put down the things they had brought, and he took the initiative to take out the list and check it with Shen Yanrong one by one. After confirming there were no errors, he signed it and then left.

He was efficient, his words were shrewd, and he didn’t show any surprise or disdain even when he saw the empty hall.

Lu Yao couldn’t help but sigh, “This head steward is truly worthy of being a head steward.”

Shen Yanrong smiled, even now, he hadn’t fully figured out this person.

This person had been serving Shen Shiren for a long time, and later, when the Shen family became prosperous, he also rose with the tide.

When his mother was still alive, this man was very attentive and flattering to them. After the Rong family’s accident and his mother’s death, this man didn’t bully him like the others, and he would secretly take care of him, which made his life in the Shen family a little easier.

Therefore, even though the Shen family treated him like this, he was grateful to this man in his heart.

However…

After knowing that the Shen family was involved in the incident back then, he wasn’t sure whether this man’s care for him was out of guilt or for other reasons.

But none of that mattered anymore.

Lu Yao saw that he was lost in thought, she reached out and waved her hand in front of him, pointing at the piles of silver, “Do you think they might think that we’ll have trouble moving everything if it’s all changed into silver, and make us look bad?”

Shen Yanrong nodded, he also guessed, “Perhaps they think we won’t be able to leave for a while, or maybe they’re waiting for me to take the blame, and then, when we’re just a widow and orphans, we won’t be able to protect these things, and they’ll still belong to them.”

According to the Shen family’s character, this guess was probably the most likely answer.

However…

They looked at each other and smiled. They probably couldn’t have dreamt that their perfect plan would be useless, and that having it all turned into silver was exactly what they wanted.

With this money, no matter where they went or what they did, it would be the best guarantee.

They did the same thing, putting everything into the space. They then walked around the small courtyard, inside and out. With their excellent frugal and thrifty character, they packed up everything they might need in the future, including the water tank.

They were like a goose plucking feathers wherever it went.

However, they didn’t know that the next day, when the officials came to confiscate their belongings, they saw the dilapidated courtyard and the family of four’s clothes, and they all felt sympathy and pity. Because of this, they received a lot of care in the days that followed.

Of course, this is all a story for another time.

Now, with everything in place, Lu Yao and Shen Yanrong didn’t delay any longer. They went to bed quickly, knowing they needed to be well-rested to face whatever came next.

Because of their worries, they only slept for less than two hours before getting up early.

Yunhao and Yueyue, the two little ones, slept soundly. When they saw their parents getting up, they didn’t continue to lie in bed.

The courtyard had been temporarily cleaned up, but only the bedroom and the small hall had been tidied. It was fine for a night, but only for sleeping.

The four of them got dressed and didn’t bother with formalities. They went directly to the Shen family’s large kitchen.

It was still very early, and the servants in the kitchen were preparing breakfast for the masters. Seeing the four of them, they were surprised and a little disdainful. Were they starving ghosts?

“We’re really sorry, you four. We’re still preparing the meals for the master and the old lady. Why don’t you go back and wait?”

The kitchen steward was a shrewd person. He knew that these four were not favored by the masters, but he didn’t want to offend them openly, so he tried to appease them by delaying them. He would decide whether to prepare meals for them after asking the masters.

Lu Yao and Shen Yanrong were just going through the motions, they didn’t really want to get food here. Hearing the steward say this, they seemed very accommodating and said that they could go back and wait, but the children were very young and might not be able to hold on for long.

The steward chuckled and nodded, quickly explaining that they would prepare their meals as soon as they finished the master’s business and confirmed everything.

After sending them away, he spat.

Just because they were kicked out of the house, they really thought they were still masters.

Lu Yao and Shen Yanrong didn’t really believe the steward’s words that they would prepare their meals and send them to the side courtyard later. These people were all about judging people by their appearance. They had just tricked the Shen family last night, and they didn’t think the Shen family members would become friendly because of the deal behind the scenes.

Because they had promised their two children that they would take them shopping today, the two of them left directly from the back gate, planning to have a hearty meal outside and go shopping.

The gatekeeper was a little stunned when he saw them, but he opened the gate after being urged.

There were no instructions from above, so he should… let them go, right?

To be safe, the gatekeeper specifically asked them where they were going, what they were doing, and when they would be back. Lu Yao and the others didn’t hide it, saying that the children were hungry and they were going out to have breakfast and go shopping.

Shen Shiren had already left for the morning court. The officials had prepared a grand gift for him today. Calculating the time, it would be just about right for them to have some food and go shopping and come back.

It was still very early, but the streets were already bustling.

Yunhao was six years old this year, he remembered many things. Seeing the bustling streets outside, he wasn’t as excited as his lively sister, Yueyue. However, he was a good brother, and he patiently answered his sister’s endless questions in his own way. If he didn’t know the answer, he would have to ask his parents.

Lu Yao and Shen Yanrong didn’t get tired of it. They took their children to a well-known noodle stall first, ordering three bowls of their signature noodles. Two adults had one bowl each, and the two children shared one bowl, just right.

The two children had never eaten outside before, they were a little excited. However, when they actually took a bite, they looked at their mother and agreed that her cooking was still better.

Lu Yao took their words as praise, she pinched the two little ones, “Eat quickly, then we’ll go buy other delicious things.”

Little Yunhao and Little Yueyue cheered and immediately sped up their eating.

Leaving the noodle stall, they strolled along, seeing delicious and fun things. Shen Yanrong and Lu Yao, breaking their usual habit of being frugal, waved their hands and bought everything they saw.

Little Yunhao was mature and sensible. Knowing the situation at home, he saw his parents spending so lavishly and couldn’t help but tug at their sleeves. He was a little worried, but he was afraid that his parents would mention their sadness, so he asked tactfully, “Do we still have money?”

Lu Yao and Shen Yanrong blushed. How poor had they been before to leave such a deep impression on their child?

“Don’t worry,” Shen Yanrong’s face was thicker, he patted his pouch, “We definitely won’t leave you here.”

Yunhao’s gaze swept over his parents’ faces, making sure they weren’t just trying to make a good impression on him and his sister, he then felt relieved.

But…

“Did they send Grandma’s things?” This was the only thing he could think of.

Lu Yao rubbed the little guy’s head, “Little kids think too much, it’ll make you short.”

It was heartwarming to see the child mature and intelligent, but it also made her 心疼 (xīn téng, a feeling of heartache or pity). And it also made her feel like a bad parent.

Was this a sweet kind of trouble?

“Today, you can be a real child.” She pinched the little guy’s cheeks, sighed silently, they would soon lose their freedom.

Thinking about this, she felt even more guilty.

Husband and wife were of one heart, Shen Yanrong and Lu Yao felt the same way.

They looked at each other, both seeing helplessness and guilt in each other’s eyes.

As if they had made an agreement, they each picked up a child and went to the next stall, continuing to buy, buy, buy.

After buying from the street stalls, they went to various shops to shop.

Although Lu Yao had said that there were many things in the space, and they didn’t need to prepare anything specially now, Shen Yanrong still felt that they should prepare as much as they could. After all, they had plenty of money now, and they should buy more while the capital was still abundant. Once they got to Ganzhou, they might not be able to buy anything.

Moreover, they didn’t know how long they would be exiled for. What if it was for a lifetime…

Lu Yao understood the man’s thoughts and agreed with his foresight. She didn’t stop him, but instead joined in the shopping spree with even more enthusiasm. This made the two children very helpless. They were always worried that they wouldn’t have enough money to pay and would be chased away by the shopkeepers.

Fortunately, their parents didn’t run out of money, and they didn’t have to worry.

However…

They had bought too much, and they couldn’t carry it all.

“Should we buy less?” Little Yunhao asked tentatively.

Lu Yao and Shen Yanrong shook their heads without thinking. How could they put back the things they had carefully chosen?

The shopkeeper was very good at doing business. He immediately said that they could deliver the goods to their door.

Hearing that they would deliver the goods, Lu Yao and Shen Yanrong were instantly excited, and they shopped without any hesitation.

Clothes, shoes, fabrics, jewelry, pens, ink, paper, and inkstones, rice, flour, oil, salt, needles, thread, and miscellaneous goods… they chose a lot of everything they thought they might need.

When it was almost time for the agreed delivery, the four of them reluctantly headed back.

That’s right, in the end, Little Yunhao and Little Yueyue also joined the buying spree.

The delivery men were also very punctual. When they returned to the back gate of the Shen residence, the goods from each shop had just been delivered. After confirming that everything was there, the two of them led the people inside, but they were stopped by the gatekeeper.

It was ridiculous, they really thought the Shen residence was a place where just any cat or dog could enter?

Lu Yao didn’t care, it was fine if they didn’t go in. As long as the gatekeeper could move these things to their courtyard.

The gatekeeper naturally didn’t want to, so he found someone to follow the delivery men inside, ostensibly to ensure safety.

Lu Yao shrugged and apologized to the group with a smile. The delivery men didn’t care either, they were just delivery men, what kind of families hadn’t they seen?

However, being used to being treated badly didn’t mean they liked it.

When the goods were delivered to the courtyard, they were unexpectedly given ten copper coins each for their hard work. Now, any slight dissatisfaction they had was gone.

After sending the delivery men from each shop away, Shen Yanrong ignored the person who had been called by the gatekeeper to monitor them. He directly closed the door, blocking out all prying eyes from the outside.