For the first five minutes of the video, everything was quiet, and there was no movement at the rockery.

However, after five minutes, Shen Qingwan saw a figure suddenly appear behind the rockery in the video.

She paused and replayed the footage several times, confirming that the person had indeed appeared out of nowhere.

Shen Qingwan felt a mix of emotions she couldn’t fully describe.

The figure was…

Ye Lingxue.

She was also a time traveler, and it seemed she had a portable space to hide in.

Ye Lingxue didn’t know she had been exposed yet.

She had exchanged points in the system store for an infrared crossbow, but since she had never killed anyone and didn’t know how to use a crossbow, she had to get one with an infrared scope, otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to aim properly.

She intended to kill Shen Qingwan and was also determined not to spare Ye Minglan.

Gu Tingyi could only be her father, not Shen Qingwan’s.

After her first assassination attempt failed, Ye Lingxue began planning a second attempt.

This time, she planned to target Ye Minglan first.

Ye Minglan had no defenses against her, and Ye Minghui personally brought a plate of osmanthus cakes to Ye Minglan, saying they were made by Ye Lingxue and wanted her to try them.

Ye Minglan picked up a piece to taste when Shen Qingwan hurriedly stopped her. “Mother, this is a cake my cousin made, so Aunt should try it first.”

Shen Qingwan moved the cake to Ye Minghui, who took a piece from the edge of the plate.

“Aunt, why don’t you take one from the top? I think this one is fine. Why don’t you try this one?” Shen Qingwan said, taking a piece from the top.

Ye Minghui, startled, dropped the plate with a loud clatter and instinctively took a step back.

“Oh no, look at me, I’ve knocked the plate over. We can’t eat this one. I’ll ask Lingxue to make more.”

Ye Minghui said as she was about to leave, but Shen Qingwan grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

She then seized Ye Minghui’s chin and forced the cake into her mouth.

“No, don’t!” Ye Minghui struggled desperately.

Ye Minglan was confused at first but quickly realized the cake must have been poisoned.

“Aunt has said it’s my cousin’s kindness. We can’t waste it,” Shen Qingwan grinned and forced the whole cake into Ye Minghui’s mouth, making her swallow it.

“Cough, cough, help… help me!” Ye Minghui truly feared now.

She hadn’t expected Shen Qingwan to be so ruthless.

She could clearly see the cake was poisoned but still forced her to eat it.

“Mother!” Ye Lingxue arrived just as Ye Minghui was forced to eat the cake.

She looked anxiously at Ye Minghui, but Ye Lingxue shook her head subtly.

“Mother, you haven’t taken your medicine today. Take it now,” Ye Lingxue hurriedly took out a small porcelain bottle from her pocket and poured out a few pills to give to Ye Minghui, but Shen Qingwan snatched the bottle from her.

“Cousin, this medicine can’t be taken casually. It can kill people.”

Shen Qingwan looked at the pills, and it was clear they were the antidote.

“Cousin, give me the medicine. It’s a supplement my mother usually takes to condition her body.”

Ye Lingxue was getting anxious.

The poison would act quickly, and without the antidote, her mother would certainly die.

Shen Qingwan poured out the pills, letting them fall to the ground through her fingers, making Ye Lingxue furious. “Gu Qingwan, did you do this on purpose?”

Ye Lingxue didn’t know that Shen Qingwan had always used the Shen surname and assumed she had already reverted to the name Gu Qingwan.

Now, in her panic, she couldn’t care less.

Shen Qingwan looked at her coldly. “Ye Lingxue, do you really think everyone else is a fool? Putting poison in the cakes… You actually came up with this idea. Or do you think my mother and I are easy to bully?”

Ye Lingxue, facing Shen Qingwan’s cold gaze, pretended to stay calm. “Cousin, what are you talking about? How could I put poison in the cakes?”

“Really? Then what are you afraid of?” Shen Qingwan’s eyes swept over the mother and daughter, making Ye Lingxue’s heart tremble.

“Cousin is just joking. We were just afraid you’d misunderstand. Since Aunt and Cousin have no other issues, I’ll take Mother and leave. I’ll make more cakes tomorrow and send them to Aunt.”

Ye Lingxue said as she helped Ye Minghui up and prepared to leave.

Ye Minghui, enduring the pain in her stomach, began to bleed from her lips as soon as they stepped outside.

Ye Lingxue helped her continue, relieved that she could still exchange another bottle of antidote.

She quickly took out the new antidote and gave a few pills to Ye Minghui.

Although taking the antidote was a little late and hurt her body, the poison was neutralized, and Ye Lingxue realized just how formidable Shen Qingwan was.

She no longer dared to act carelessly.

In the meantime, Prime Minister Su had sent many people to search for his grandson, but there had been no news.

Su Ruoyun often quarreled with Lu Wenzhao because of the child, and now that Lu Wenzhao had become a useless man, Su Ruoyun disliked him even more.

But with the child still missing, Su Ruoyun was becoming more and more anxious.

She had sent people to look for the girl Xiaoyu, but there was still no word.

After several attempts, Shen Qingwan had confirmed that Ye Lingxue was a time traveler and also possessed a portable space.

She had failed to kill her multiple times, and Prime Minister Su had been secretly sending people to deal with her.

But unfortunately for them, Shen Qingwan was not so easily dealt with.

Shen Qingwan was preparing for a counterattack, though she wasn’t sure if Prime Minister Su would be able to handle it.

That night, she looted Lu Wenzhao’s house and then emptied the Prime Minister’s mansion.

Lu Wenzhao’s meager assets were not even comparable to the Prime Minister’s wealth, but Shen Qingwan didn’t mind the small amount.

With the theft at the Prime Minister’s house, Prime Minister Su was too preoccupied to deal with Shen Qingwan.

Moreover, with the Spring Banquet coming up, he was extremely busy, and even Lu Wenzhao had no time to cause trouble for her.

Finally, Shen Qingwan could find some time to locate Lu Jiaojiao.

The Spring Banquet, which was originally just a gathering of noble young women for a spring outing, was being hosted this time by the Third Prince and Concubine Liu.

Usually, such events would be attended by noblewomen from the capital and wouldn’t disturb the officials.

However, with the current situation, the banquet would inevitably lead to bloody consequences.

Shen Qingwan, being just a common woman, didn’t care much for the political affairs surrounding the banquet.

She only wanted to bring Lu Jiaojiao back as soon as possible.

Once Xiaoyu was found, they would return to Dahe Village, where they truly belonged.

Old Madam Lu was also worried about her daughter but was afraid Shen Qingwan would make things difficult for her, so she had never dared to bring up Jiaojiao’s matter.

Nevertheless, Shen Qingwan had already begun to gather information on Lu Jiaojiao’s whereabouts.