"Speaking with a smart person is always refreshing!" Song Mingyuan smiled slightly. "It's simple. As long as you cooperate with me to keep Song Panshan in check, once I rescue my personal maidservant, you'll grant me a letter of divorce."
"In exchange, I can ensure that your family travels safely on the road to exile, with plenty of food and drink."
"If you're not at ease with this, the divorce letter can also be written after we arrive at the place of exile."
Half of this decision was for the original owner of this body. All she could do for her was rescue her personal maidservant Xing'er and escort the General's Estate one stretch of the journey.
In the original story, all the elderly, women, and children of the Zhenguo General's Estate were slaughtered along the road to exile.
The dog emperor publicly exiled them, but he never intended for them to reach their destination alive.
Because of the dog emperor's relentless ambushes, the Lu family perished along the way, with only Lu Peifeng narrowly escaping after being severely wounded.
From then on, he bore the blood-deep vengeance of his fallen clan, surviving in disgrace, lurking in the shadows, and becoming the greatest villain of the story.
Lu Peifeng lived like a walking corpse, his only purpose being to take the dog emperor's life. In the end, heaven rewarded his perseverance, and he did indeed get his wish.
However, when he fled back to the rebellious border city, he was surrounded by the new emperor's heavy forces. To avoid implicating the city's civilians, he took his own life atop the city walls.
If not for the dog emperor's excessive suspicion and his fear that the Zhenguo General's Estate's merits might overshadow the throne, the Lu family—loyal ministers and capable generals to a man—would never have been wronged and killed in a foreign land.
Song Mingyuan only planned to escort the General's Estate safely to their place of exile. Whether they could escape the dog emperor's assassins afterward and put down roots there would be up to their own fortunes.
Xing'er was the person the original owner valued most, and the General's Estate was the one she revered most.
If she knew that the people she cared about and the people she admired had escaped their death sentence, perhaps she would have fewer regrets?
Lu Peifeng was very rational and wasn't swept away by such a good deal. In fact, before today, he had never had any interaction with Song Mingyuan.
He couldn't figure out why she would want to help him like this.
"If you had the ability to keep the General's Estate safe on the road to exile, how could the Grand Tutor's Estate have you under their thumb?" Lu Peifeng struck right at the heart of the matter.
His gaze was sharp. "If the exile is real and the emperor has condemned the Lu family, even I wouldn't dare claim I could keep the Lu family safe and well-fed on the road. If you truly had such ability, a mere Grand Tutor's Estate wouldn't be able to do anything to you."
Truly someone who accomplishes great things—he'd realized the crux of the problem so quickly.
Song Mingyuan's eyes showed appreciation, and she had no intention of hiding anything.
Her personality was worlds apart from the original owner's, and with Lu Peifeng's keen perception, it was only a matter of time before he noticed.
One lie would require countless more to cover up—that was too much trouble. Rather than hiding and evading, it was better to admit it openly.
With that thought, Song Mingyuan said, "I am not the original Song Mingyuan, but I owe her a favor."
"As for whether I have the ability to keep the General's Estate safe on the road to exile…"
Song Mingyuan didn't waste words. She directly demonstrated Telekinesis for Lu Peifeng, summoning the wine jug from the table into her hand.
"Do you believe me now?"
No amount of words could be as intimidating and convincing as that single display.
Lu Peifeng's gaze trembled.
If he wasn't mistaken, that wine jug had vanished into thin air, then reappeared in her hand out of nowhere.
This was… Spells?
Though the Master said not to speak of strange forces and supernatural things, Lu Peifeng had always believed that there were many things in this world beyond his understanding.
So he was only briefly surprised before quickly regaining his composure.
He pondered for a moment, then said, "I agree."
The General's Estate was loyal and devoted, never on guard against the Emperor. If the Emperor truly resolved to move against them, then this calamity was unavoidable—exile was inevitable.
Having someone with such extraordinary abilities by his side would undoubtedly add an extra layer of protection.
In that short span of time, Lu Peifeng had already made the choice most favorable to the General's Estate.
He looked at Song Mingyuan. "What do you plan to do?"
Song Mingyuan hadn't expected Lu Peifeng to accept so readily. She had thought she would need to do much more persuading.
She had to admit, working with someone like him was quite effortless—safe and reliable, quiet and intelligent, and above all, able to withstand pressure.
As long as he wasn't a romantic partner, he was flawless in every way.
Song Mingyuan didn't stand on ceremony with Lu Peifeng either. She said directly, "Take me to the Grand Tutor's Estate."
"The Grand Tutor's Estate should have plenty of good things. It'd be a shame not to rob them."
A father who personally sent his daughter down the road to ruin, and a stepmother who mistreated and tormented the original owner of this body—if she didn't strip them clean, she'd be doing a disservice to her right to use this body.
Hearing this, Lu Peifeng's eyes flickered. "I have a register of corrupt officials, along with maps of their estates. The good things in their residences are no less impressive than those of the Grand Tutor's Estate."
"Minister of Revenue Wang Mao abused his authority to embezzle tax revenue, lining his own pockets—twenty thousand taels of gold and one hundred fifty thousand taels of silver. He purchased a lavish mansion in the west of the city to house his concubines, and to win a beauty's smile, he spared no expense in commissioning a white jade bed."
"Minister of Personnel Cai Zhongliang accepted bribes, sold official positions, and lived a life of extravagance and debauchery, keeping young boys as playthings. In just one year, he embezzled over ten thousand taels of gold and more than two hundred thousand taels of silver."
"Grand Secretary Li Wei embezzled military funds and neglected border defenses. His son oppressed the common people and committed every kind of evil. In a single villa alone, he hoarded tens of thousands in gold and silver."
Lu Peifeng listed more than a dozen corrupt officials in one breath, then added at the end, "They've purchased numerous shops and private residences in the capital—I know where all of them are."
He paused. "If you're going to steal from one, you might as well steal from several."
If misfortune was coming, let it come to everyone. If the General's Estate was going to be convicted and exiled, no one else should be smiling either.
Hearing all this good news at once, Song Mingyuan's eyes blazed with light. She had been worrying about not having anywhere to plunder now that she'd just arrived!
"As long as you can get me there, I can strip them all bare!"
These words settled Lu Peifeng's mind. It seemed he had made the right move in bringing this up.
"Wait here for me for a moment. I'll go make arrangements."
With that, he stood up, turned, and strode out of the bridal chamber.
Song Mingyuan figured that with the operation ahead, she'd be storing no small amount of things into her spatial dimension, so she didn't waste any time and immediately set about clearing space.
Her spatial dimension was a Spirit Realm bound to her soul.
Within it flowed vast and dense Spiritual Power, stretching endless black soil, and a stream formed by gushing spring water that wound its way through.
Compared to its originally barren state, many areas had already been planted by Song Mingyuan with rows of Spiritual Herbs and Spiritual Plants, with no shortage of Spiritual Fruits either.
Beyond these, a magnificent glazed palace floated in midair, appearing and disappearing among clouds condensed from spiritual energy—its upturned eaves and carved beams and painted rafters making it seem like a celestial palace.
Inside the Glazed Hall, the Spirit Treasure Pavilion housed everything Song Mingyuan had gathered from the cultivation world—all rare and precious treasures, mostly Magic Artifacts, Spiritual Tools, and various extraordinary treasures.
Unfortunately, none of these items could be retrieved at the moment.
Whether it was because she was new here and had yet to cultivate, or because she was restricted by the rules of this world, she couldn't say.
However, the mortal items on her person could be stored and retrieved at will.
Mindful of the pressing time, Song Mingyuan had no choice but to set this matter aside for now.
Within the vast palace, she set aside a separate Mortal Treasure Pavilion, casually placing her cumbersome crown and ornaments inside before changing into a lighter set of clothes.
By the time she finished, Lu Peifeng had returned.