Although the common people were suffering, their hardships were not caused by her.

Perhaps when she had the ability, she would help them, but she would not burden herself with guilt for not being able to help them now.

After traveling for just an hour, Bai Yong’an felt his legs trembling, his entire body drenched in sweat.

He was exhausted and thirsty.

Seeing him covered in sweat, Shen Qingwan kindly handed him a water pouch. “Second Master, do you want some water? Only a thousand taels of silver per jug,” she said with a sly grin, looking like an old fox obsessed with money.

Bai Yong’an’s eye twitched at her words, secretly cursing her as a profiteer.

But thinking of his current predicament, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and accept.

“Fine, a thousand taels it is.”

Seeing that Bai Yong’an was seriously about to take out a banknote, Shen Qingwan chuckled and quickly stopped him. “No need to take it out, I was just teasing you. Second Master’s money is too easy to earn.”

Bai Yong’an glared at her, annoyed that she still had the mood to joke. “I told you to take things from the treasury. Why did you only take so little?” he asked in a low voice.

He had expected her to carry at least a hundred pounds of gold when she entered the treasury. But to his surprise, she only packed a small bundle, which probably contained no more than two or three hundred taels of gold. What a pity to leave behind an entire treasury filled with wealth—at least a million taels of silver and tens of thousands of taels of gold, all falling into the hands of the mountain bandits.

Feeling guilty, Shen Qingwan rubbed her nose. “There wasn’t enough time, so I couldn’t take more.”

Bai Yong’an sighed in frustration. “Those bastards really lucked out.”

Shen Qingwan’s lips twitched—why did she feel like she was being scolded for no reason?

Bai Yong’an was on the heavier side, weighing at least 200 pounds, making him stand out among the thin refugees. This was his first time walking such a long distance, and his body was struggling to keep up. However, Shen Qingwan simply told him he was too fat and that walking more would help him lose weight.

To make the journey less dull, Shen Qingwan occasionally chatted with him, but the scorching sun made traveling unbearable.

By noon, the heat was intense, making the ground feel as if it were burning.

Many people, wearing straw sandals, stopped under the shade of trees to rest.

Many villagers’ shoes were already worn out.

Shen Qingwan’s cloth shoes had holes in them, exposing her toes.

She discreetly took out a pair of black sneakers from her personal space and changed into them. Thanks to the cover of her skirt, no one noticed. With better shoes, she finally felt some relief.

The village leader gathered everyone near a forested area to rest and eat before continuing their journey.

As soon as they stopped, Datou’s wife, along with her mother-in-law and son, approached the village leader with teary eyes. “Uncle Village Leader, our family has run out of food. You can’t just ignore us!”

The village leader frowned, sympathizing with their situation.

Fortunately, his family’s grain had been placed on a donkey cart and taken to Qing’an Prefecture by his two sons, so it was safe.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t even be able to help if he wanted to.

“Datou’s wife, your family isn’t the only one without food. But there are only a few households with surplus grain, and it’s impossible to give it all away. If you’re willing, you can borrow some grain for now, as long as you promise to return it later. I’m sure others would be willing to lend some to you.”

Giving away food for free wasn’t an option, but lending was the only solution they had.

Datou’s wife was dissatisfied and turned to Shen Qingwan. “Village Leader, the ones with the most food are your family and Shen Qingwan’s. Let’s not talk about your family, but Shen Qingwan got a lot of stolen money from the bandits. Why don’t you ask her to contribute some to buy food for the villagers? The journey to Suzhou is still long. We can’t starve along the way.”

She kept glancing at Shen Qingwan but avoided direct eye contact when Shen Qingwan looked at her.

The village leader frowned. “Datou’s wife, Shen Qingwan earned that wealth through her own means. If you had the ability, you could have tried as well. But she has no obligation to share her money with anyone. If you want to borrow money, you can ask her properly, and she might lend it to you. But demanding it outright? That won’t work.”

Datou’s wife sneered. “It’s stolen money anyway. Using it to help the villagers would be an act of kindness. How do you know she wouldn’t agree?”

“Why should our family’s money be given to you?” a voice interrupted. “There are plenty of others in the village who also got wealth from the bandits—like Lu Dachuan, Lu Dajiang, and Zhang Kui. If you’re looking for money, go ask them!”

Lu Wenzhi suddenly stood up and pointed at Datou’s wife, exposing the truth.

Hearing this, the villagers turned to look at those four families. Lu Laotou angrily kicked Lu Wenzhi. “You idiot, why are you blabbering nonsense?”

Lu Wenzhi looked confused. “Father, I’m telling the truth.”

Last night, those men had taken a lot of valuables, while he got nothing. He was already feeling resentful, so when Datou’s wife started making a scene, he exposed the truth without thinking.

Shen Qingwan cursed in her heart—this fool was dangerous and had to be dealt with before he became a bigger problem.

“Your third brother is quite amusing. And he’s supposed to be educated?” Bai Yong’an chuckled, teasing Shen Qingwan.

“I have nothing to do with him,” Shen Qingwan quickly clarified.

Zhang the Hunter hadn’t expected Lu Wenzhi to expose the situation.

They had all agreed to keep it a secret, but now, thanks to him, everyone knew.

If word spread, losing the money would be a small issue—getting killed for it would be a bigger problem.

Lu Wenzhi had just made enemies of four families.

Even Lu Dajiang and his brother were glaring at him in displeasure.

The village leader had only noticed the heavy bundle his son brought back earlier, but now he realized it was stolen goods from the bandits.

Seeing the tense silence, Shen Qingwan stepped forward and spoke firmly. “It doesn’t matter whether the goods were taken from the rebel bandits or the mountain bandits. We risked our lives to obtain them. They have nothing to do with you. If anyone wants to borrow money, as long as they sign an IOU, I believe any of us would be willing to help. But if you’re thinking of taking our money by force, you’d better be ready for the consequences.”

Her eyes flashed with killing intent, making the villagers shudder.

They had witnessed her kill before, and they knew she was no longer the same sharp-tongued troublemaker from the past.

“Shen Qingwan is right,” Zhang the Hunter quickly added. “If anyone needs food or money, as long as they sign a loan agreement, we’ll help. We’re all from the same village, and we need to work together to make it to Suzhou.”