“Tomorrow, I’ll personally take you to inventory those dowry assets.”
“Those rare treasures and the deeds to those thriving shops are all yours!” Sang Deben deliberately paused, greed and calculation gleaming in his eyes. “With such a fortune backing you, once you marry into the Eastern Palace, you’ll finally have a firm foothold there.”
The night breeze carried the chill of late autumn.
In the quiet darkness, the greedy laughter shared between father and daughter sounded especially harsh.
“Father is right. Thank you for planning so carefully for me,” Sang Rourou replied sweetly, unable to hide the excitement and scheming beneath her delicate voice.
“Once we’ve completely finished sorting through that jinx’s mother’s dowry, even if I only become the Crown Prince’s secondary consort, I’ll still have more than enough confidence to hold my head high.”
Listening to the nauseating conversation, a cold light flashed across Sang Wanwan’s eyes.
Using her mother’s money to dream about their glorious future?
Sorry.
Their grand ambitions were about to shatter into pieces tonight.
Sang Wanwan couldn’t be bothered wasting words on these two parasites. She didn’t even want to show her face.
With a thought, the half-used bottle of highly concentrated medical ether appeared in her hand.
She quietly slipped a thin medical tube through the crack in the window and aimed it toward the study desk.
“Hiss…”
The faint sound of escaping gas was completely drowned out by the wind outside.
Inside the study, Sang Deben was absentmindedly playing with several brass keys when he suddenly sniffed the air.
“Hm? What’s that smell? Why does it smell sweet…?”
Before he could finish speaking, the room spun around him.
His eyelids felt as heavy as lead.
Thud!
He collapsed face-first onto the expensive rosewood desk. The keys scattered across the surface with a loud clatter.
“Father? What’s wrong with you…?”
Startled, Sang Rourou jumped to her feet.
But before she could take a step forward, the rapidly spreading ether entered her lungs.
Thud!
Her eyes rolled back, and she crumpled onto the carpet like a lifeless rag doll.
Within seconds, she lost consciousness completely.
After confirming both of them had fallen into a deep sleep, Sang Wanwan lightly vaulted through the window, landing inside the study like a ghost.
She didn’t rush to pick up the keys.
Instead, she glanced at the unconscious father and daughter with undisguised disgust.
“Sleeping pretty soundly, aren’t you?”
With a cold laugh, she lifted her foot and stomped hard on her scumbag father’s face.
Then she deliberately ground her heel into Sang Rourou’s priceless cloud-brocade dress.
Only after venting a little of her anger did she finally get down to business.
Bending over, she collected the brass keys.
These were the keys to the Marquis Manor’s underground treasury and several important storage vaults.
But before heading downstairs, Sang Wanwan slowly surveyed the lavishly furnished study.
Masterpieces from famous artists of previous dynasties hung on the walls.
The treasure shelves displayed glazed cups gifted by distant western kingdoms.
Even the desk had been carved from a single block of premium yellow rosewood.
“Since I’m here to stock up, I shouldn’t be picky.”
She twisted the black wooden ring on her finger and revealed the kind smile unique to professional zero-dollar shoppers.
Walking to the enormous desk, she lightly tapped it with her fingertip.
“Store.”
Whoosh!
The massive wooden desk vanished instantly, disappearing into the frozen warehouse section of her Infinite Space.
Bang!
Without the desk supporting him anymore, Sang Deben crashed face-first onto the floor.
Even unconscious, he let out a painful groan.
Sang Wanwan didn’t spare him another glance.
Like a human vacuum cleaner, she began a thorough sweep of the room.
Her finger brushed across the treasure shelf.
“Store.”
Whoosh!
Every antique porcelain vase, jade ornament, and decorative treasure vanished instantly.
She touched the wall.
“Store.”
The priceless paintings, premium writing brushes, and treasured inkstones all disappeared into her space.
By the end, she looked at the beautifully crafted redwood treasure shelf itself.
The wood was excellent.
“Can’t waste that.”
“Store.”
The enormous shelf vanished as well.
Less than five minutes later, the once luxurious study was completely empty.
Aside from the unconscious father and daughter sprawled on the floor, not even a single stool remained.
“That’s only the beginning.”
Satisfied, Sang Wanwan dusted off her hands and fixed her gaze on the wall at the far end of the room.
According to fragments of memory the original owner had overheard, behind this wall lay the true lifeline of the Marquis Zhen Guo’s Manor.
The underground treasury.
After searching for a moment, she found a slightly raised hidden mechanism where a landscape painting had once hung.
She pressed down firmly.
Click… click… click…
The sound of gears turning echoed through the silent night.
The thick brick wall slowly split apart, revealing a dark stone staircase descending underground.
A cold draft carrying the scent of mildew and metal drifted upward.
Sang Wanwan pulled out a high-powered flashlight and walked down without hesitation.
The staircase descended the equivalent of two stories.
At the bottom stood a massive century-old bronze door reinforced with iron plating.
A steel lock the size of an adult’s fist hung from it.
Taking out the keys she’d acquired from her father, she selected the largest one and inserted it into the lock.
Twist.
Click.
The lock sprang open.
Taking a deep breath, Sang Wanwan placed both hands against the heavy door and pushed.
Rumble…
The treasury door slowly swung open.
The moment she saw what lay inside, even someone who had seen the world’s finest modern vaults couldn’t help sucking in a breath.
Four fist-sized luminous pearls were embedded in the walls, casting a soft glow throughout the chamber.
Under their light and the beam of her flashlight, mountains of treasure came into view.
Gold.
Silver.
Wealth beyond imagination.
The treasury covered nearly half a football field and was divided into several sections.
Closest to the entrance stood dozens of large red lacquered chests.
Sang Wanwan casually opened one.
Silver flashed before her eyes.
The chest was packed with fifty-tael government silver ingots, stacked neatly like a miniature mountain.
One chest contained five thousand taels.
There were fifty such chests.
Further inside sat over a dozen finely crafted purple sandalwood boxes.
The moment she opened them, she nearly went blind.
Gold bars.
Every box was filled with gleaming, heavy gold bars that radiated an irresistible brilliance even in the darkness.
This was the staggering fortune the Marquis Manor had accumulated through decades of corruption, extortion, and the theft of her mother’s dowry.
“No wonder that old bastard guarded this family’s wealth with his life.”
A cruel smile appeared on Sang Wanwan’s face.
“Too bad. Everything you’ve swallowed over the years is coming back out tonight, with interest.”
Without the slightest hesitation, she launched herself into the treasury like a starving wolf entering a flock of sheep.
Her hand touched a chest of silver.
“Store.”
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The heavy silver chests disappeared one after another into her Infinite Space.
Then she moved to the gold.
“Store.”
The gold bars and even the expensive boxes vanished instantly.
But the treasure went far beyond gold and silver.
Deeper within the vault were countless priceless artifacts.
One entire wall displayed exquisite white jade Guanyin statues, blood-red coral trees taller than a person, and luminous goblets presented by foreign kingdoms.
There were dozens of chests filled with luxurious silk and cloud brocade.
An entire medicinal cabinet contained century-old mountain ginseng, thousand-year-old fo-ti roots, and top-grade Tianshan snow lotus.
“I’ll take this.”
“I’ll take that.”
“I’ll take everything.”
Her fingers became a blur.
Wherever she passed, nothing remained.
The antique shelves emptied.
The medicine cabinets emptied.
The silk chests vanished.
Every treasure the Marquis treasured as dearly as his own life became part of Sang Wanwan’s personal collection.
Then her gaze landed on a raised platform at the deepest part of the treasury.
Three ancient yellow rosewood chests sat quietly atop it.
Faded red seals still clung to the lids.
Although time had worn away much of the color, the writing remained visible.
Sang Wanwan’s heart trembled.
Memories surged through her mind.
These were her mother’s dowry chests.
The assets her grandfather had deliberately left behind as a safeguard, fearing his daughter might suffer in the Marquis Manor.
Stepping forward, Sang Wanwan tore away the seals and opened the first chest.
Inside were thick stacks of property deeds.
Prime commercial properties.
Fertile farmland.
Luxury residences.
The second and third chests held an entire set of golden phoenix wedding regalia inlaid with priceless gemstones, along with countless exquisite pieces of jewelry.
Every item was worth a fortune.
More importantly, each carried a mother’s love for her daughter.
Yet the original owner had never even been allowed to look at them before being forced into a substitute marriage and sent to her death.
“Mother, don’t worry.”
Gently stroking the cold phoenix crown, Sang Wanwan’s gaze became unwavering.
“From now on, no one will touch a single coin that belongs to us. As for those who owe you, I’ll make them repay it a thousandfold.”
With a thought, she carefully stored the three dowry chests in the safest area of her space.
At last, the enormous treasury had been completely emptied.
But Sang Wanwan still wasn’t satisfied.
“If you’re going to clean out a household, you should do it professionally.”
Her eyes shifted toward the massive wooden shelves that had once displayed the treasures and medicinal herbs.
Every one of them had been crafted from premium golden nanmu wood, an ancient luxury material worth a fortune on its own.
“Can’t waste good firewood. It might come in handy in Kuhan Province.”
She waved her hand.
“Store.”
The shelves disappeared instantly.
Then she looked up at the four luminous pearls embedded in the walls.
On the black market, those alone could sell for astronomical prices.
Pulling a military dagger from her space, Sang Wanwan climbed the wall with practiced ease.
Pry.
Pop.
One pearl.
Then another.
Then another.
Then the last.
All four disappeared into her space.
The moment the final pearl was removed, absolute darkness swallowed the entire underground treasury.
Sang Wanwan switched on her flashlight.
Its beam swept across the massive chamber.
The place that had once overflowed with wealth was now completely bare.
Nothing remained except naked brick walls.
Even the dust on the floor seemed cleaner than before.
The treasury was spotless.
So clean it was practically shining.
If a mouse wandered in, it would probably leave in tears.
“Perfect.”
Satisfied, Sang Wanwan brushed off her hands and headed back upstairs.
When she returned to the study, her scumbag father and Sang Rourou were still sleeping like dead pigs.
Neither had the slightest idea that the foundation of their wealth had been ripped away completely.
Ignoring them, Sang Wanwan climbed out the window and disappeared into the night once more.
Standing atop the roof of the Marquis Manor, her hair dancing in the wind, she looked at the mountain of treasure now piled inside her space.
She was already delighted.
But somehow, it still didn’t feel complete.
Slowly, she turned her gaze toward the most luxurious courtyard in the rear estate.
The residence of the fake heiress, Sang Rourou.
“That’s it?”
A cold smile curved her lips.
The expression was enough to make anyone shiver.
“The old bastard’s treasury is empty now.”
“But I haven’t visited my dear green-tea little sister’s room yet.”