Shang Yueli swiftly kicked him to the ground and landed several solid punches to his face.
By the time Zhang Zhen reacted, his head had already swollen into a giant pig’s head.
“Spare me, warrior! Please spare me!” He wept, prostrating on the ground and begging for mercy.
Shang Yueli tied him up with a rope and snatched the keys.
When the door opened, the glare nearly blinded her titanium-alloy eyes.
Gold, silver, and treasures were piled up in crate after crate. There was so much loot that the lids couldn’t even close properly!
Shang Yueli took a deep breath. How much had this petty county magistrate embezzled to amass such wealth?
With a wave of her hand, she stored everything in her space.
Zhang Zhen only saw her enter and emerge moments later, locking the door behind her and then… crushing the keys into powder?
He suddenly felt the urge to urinate, straining hard not to lose control.
Zhang Zhen shrank back until his back hit the wall, trying to make himself as small and unnoticeable as possible.
If he provoked her further, wouldn’t she crush his skull like she did the keys?
Before he could dwell on it, Shang Yueli stomped on his chest again.
“I’m giving you three hours. No matter what method you use, ensure every citizen in Yicheng receives their rightful share of grain within that time.”
“If I find out you’ve hidden any…”
Shang Yueli slammed her fist into the wall beside Zhang Zhen’s ear. When she pulled her hand back, the plaster crumbled, leaving a deep dent in the wall.
Zhang Zhen’s eyes widened in terror, and he hurriedly replied, “Warrior, don’t worry! I promise I’ll get it done!”
Satisfied with his answer, Shang Yueli calmly walked away.
Once above ground, her tightly controlled expression finally broke. Her brows and eyes scrunched up in pain.
“Dammit, if I’d known punching the wall would hurt this much, I’d have aimed for his face instead!”
“Oww, it hurts so bad!”
She blew on her reddened knuckles, muttering “pain, pain, go away,” and retrieved some trauma medicine from her space.
The ointment felt cool and soothing upon application, and the pain vanished instantly.
As Shang Yueli stared into the dark secret passage, she suddenly remembered she’d forgotten to untie Zhang Zhen.
“Oh no!”
Meanwhile, Zhang Zhen, still bound, wriggled along the floor like a worm.
Suddenly, a dagger descended from above, embedding itself right beside his head…
Zhang Zhen felt a chill run down his spine, tears and snot mixing as he broke into loud sobs.
“Mother, your son was wrong! I should have listened to you and become a bandit in the mountains!”
“Wahhh…”
Outside the County Magistrate’s Mansion.
“You have the nerve to hoard grain, but not the guts to open the doors for us?”
“That’s right!”
“Make that corrupt official face us, or we’ll storm the Magistrate’s Mansion!”
The crowd grew increasingly agitated, brandishing brooms and kitchen knives, ready to break down the gates.
Suddenly, the heavy wooden doors creaked open, and Zhang Zhen emerged, looking much more haggard than before and wearing a change of clothes.
“He’s out! That corrupt official is out!”
“Zhang Zhen, return our grain!”
Zhang Zhen instinctively raised his arms to shield himself, afraid they might hurl kitchen knives at him.
“Sir, shall we suppress them by force?”
He shook his head, took two steps back, and gestured for the crowd to quiet down.
“Don’t worry, everyone. I will soon open the granaries. Every citizen in Yicheng will receive their share!”
“Really? Is that true?” someone questioned skeptically.
Zhang Zhen waved his hand. “I never lie.”
As he spoke, attendants behind him carried out bag after bag of grain, piling them on the ground.
Su Moli looked triumphantly at the crowd.
“See? I told you to come and make a scene earlier.”
“If it weren’t for me, you’d all still be lying on the ground begging!”
Su Moli lifted her head and closed her eyes, waiting for everyone to thank her.
Instead, she was jostled so violently by the crowd that she nearly lost her balance.
Everyone rushed headlong toward the food distribution area, paying no attention to Su Moli whatsoever.
Her almond-shaped eyes blazing with fury, she glared at the crowd.
“I’ve had it with you people! No good deed goes unpunished. I should never have helped you in the first place!”
“Hmph!”
Su Moli stormed off in a rage, muttering under her breath things like “This isn’t how the plot is supposed to go.”
Suddenly, she spotted a familiar figure heading in the opposite direction from the County Magistrate’s Mansion.
“Why is she here?”
Su Moli’s eyes darted around thoughtfully before she immediately decided to follow.
Not long after, Su Moli stopped in her tracks, looking around in confusion.
“Huh? Where did she go?”
“I’m sure she came this way.”
She scratched her head, perplexed.
“Young lady, may I help you?”
Shang Yueli closed the window, blocking Su Moli’s searching gaze, and said:
“Shopkeeper, bring me your finest garment here. Also, prepare sixty sets of ready-made clothes. They must be soft in texture but not too ostentatious in appearance.”
After a brief pause, Shang Yueli added, “Both men’s and women’s clothing.”
Hearing this, the shopkeeper immediately beamed with delight.
“Madam, please come this way for some tea. I’ll fetch the items right away!”
“Mm.”
Shang Yueli paid using the “savings” from her space and, while no one was looking, stored all the clothes inside her space.
She changed into the shop’s “treasured centerpiece” brought by the shopkeeper, freshened up, and adorned her hair with jewels and hairpins.
When she emerged from the changing room, she was completely transformed.
The shopkeeper barely recognized her and stood frozen in place.
“Shopkeeper, what time is it now?”
The shopkeeper glanced at the sky and replied, “There’s about two hours left before nightfall.”
Shang Yueli nodded and hurried to the largest grain shop in Yicheng.
During this period, the price of rice had skyrocketed from seven hundred wen per dan to five taels of silver per dan.
Even so, the queue of people buying rice remained long.
Shang Yueli said to the shop assistant, “My mistress has business to discuss with your owner. Please inform him.”
Seeing Shang Yueli—a maid—dressed so luxuriously, the assistant feared her mistress must be someone of considerable status and didn’t dare delay.
“Please come inside. Our owner will be with you shortly.”
He then instructed someone to serve Shang Yueli fine tea and snacks before rushing off to find the owner.
Soon, a man who looked quite wealthy emerged.
“Young lady, what brings you here?”
Shang Yueli finished her tea, placing the cup back on the saucer with a crisp “clink.”
“My mistress wishes to purchase all the grain in your shop.”
Calmly, she drew a golden Token from her sleeve.
The man’s pupils contracted slightly—clearly recognizing it—and his expression instantly turned obsequious.
“What requirements does your mistress have?”
Shang Yueli chuckled lightly, retracting the Token. “My mistress says she will buy the grain at three times the price, on one condition.”
The man leaned in attentively.
“Sell the grain to the common people at the normal price, and do not raise the price for three years.”
Shang Yueli’s method was straightforward and forceful.
If Yicheng’s largest grain shop slashed its prices overnight, the others would have to follow suit.
Three years later, with bountiful harvests, grain prices would only fall, not rise.
The man was already intimidated by the “Madam” behind her, and now with triple the payment offered, he was more than willing to comply.
“May I ask, how will your Madam settle the payment?”
Shang Yueli curled her lips into a sly smile. “Go find Zhang Zhen and tell him my Madam’s jade ruyi has shattered. Ask him to cover the bill.”
After the man eagerly escorted Shang Yueli out, the shop assistant approached, puzzled. “Boss, why did you agree to this? Isn’t this just asking for trouble?”
“Didn’t you see the Token in her hand? That’s an official item. Besides, if her Madam can make that stingy, corrupt magistrate foot the bill, her status must be anything but ordinary!”
The assistant suddenly understood.
[Ding! Resolved Yicheng’s famine crisis. Virtue Points +10. Congratulations on upgrading to Silver Host!
Silver Level Privileges: Daily 10L Spirit Spring.
Spirit Spring now adds detoxification function!
Space area increased by 50 square meters!
Note: 35 Virtue Points required for next level. Keep up the good work!]
Thirty-five Virtue Points?
How many years would that take?
Unwilling to give up, Shang Yueli asked, “Darling, how much would it cost to buy them with money~”
[Ten million taels of gold.]
[Host, would you like to proceed? Detected that the total value of all items in your Space amounts to exactly ten million taels of gold. I can deduct it directly from your Space~]
Shang Yueli waved her hand dismissively at the air.
“I was just joking, hehe.”
No way! Thirty-five Virtue Points could still be accumulated over time, but ten million taels of gold? That was her lifeline! This unscrupulous System could forget about it!
But this thing…
She rubbed the Token in her hand, her fingers brushing off a bit of gold powder.
She had taken it from that palace maid when she left Jing City.
Shang Yueli never expected that an official Token would be made of copper, merely coated with a thin layer of gold powder!
“Tsk, tsk, that stingy emperor is truly miserly.”
She stored the Token back into her Space. With some time to spare, she went to buy more firewood, rice, oil, salt, cooked food, and dry rations.
After finishing her tasks, she changed back into her coarse linen clothes. As she passed by an alley, someone suddenly grabbed her wrist.
Shang Yueli immediately grew alert and drew her dagger.
A familiar voice sounded in her ear—it was Mu Yunsheng.
She relaxed and withdrew the dagger into her Space, only to hear him enunciate slowly:
“It was you who made Zhang Zhen open the granaries and stabilize Yicheng’s grain prices, wasn’t it… Madam?”