Xu Hongli feared Old Ge the most—she dreaded seeing young, beautiful women around him, afraid someone might use the same tricks to steal him away.
If An Ning knew Xu Hongli’s worry, she would have laughed and called her crazy.
Old Ge was old, ugly, and greasy—who in their right mind would try to lure this old man over using her schemes? That would just be asking for trouble.
With that enemy completely out of the picture, An Ning could focus entirely on dealing with the Jiang family.
The Jiang family’s treasures were already in her space. From what she knew, apart from the treasure on Fenghuang Mountain, there wasn’t much of value in the small courtyard where the Jiang family now lived.
But even if the items weren’t extraordinary, for a once-wealthy family like the Jiangs, these things would be enough for a normal household to live comfortably for a lifetime.
Currently, Jiang Chenggong’s two sons lived there, along with over a dozen family members.
The main branch was Jiang Yan’s family—her father was Jiang Chenggong’s eldest son, with one son and one daughter. The daughter was Jiang Yan, one of the original story’s heroines.
The second branch was Jiang Sisi’s father’s family, with two sons and one daughter—the daughter being Jiang Sisi, the other original heroine.
An Ning decided that while she still had hospital records as evidence and could avoid suspicion, tonight she would head to the Jiang family home and move everything of value from the courtyard into her space.
She recalled the book mentioning that some of the Jiang family’s wealth was secretly buried in the garden of the courtyard.
Even Jiang Chenggong didn’t know about it—his wife had hidden it. It was a single iron box with some gold bars on top.
Inside, besides gold bars, there were a few high-quality imperial green jade pieces and two warm jade stones, said to feel warm in winter and cool in summer—a very restorative type of jade.
There were also two pearl necklaces, each with thumb-sized pearls, carefully selected—clearly extraordinary pieces.
Compared to the Fenghuang Mountain treasures, these weren’t much, but even small gains counted.
As night fell, under the moonlight, An Ning made her way to the Jiang house, avoiding the patrol dogs and slipping silently into the courtyard. Moonlight washed the garden as she began digging at the spot she remembered.
Soon enough, she unearthed the iron box. Opening it, the gold bars, imperial green jade, warm jade, and pearl necklaces gleamed seductively in the moonlight. She quickly transferred them into her space.
Next, she searched the house for other valuables: porcelain, paintings, jewelry—anything movable, she took.
Just as she was finishing, she heard footsteps. Someone in the Jiang family had noticed something in the night.
An Ning steeled herself, quickly transferring the remaining items into her space. Amid the chaos, she scaled the wall and escaped. By the time the Jiang family reacted and tried to pursue, she had vanished into the night. She silently congratulated herself—her plan had worked. Now she could sit back and watch the Jiang family’s predicament.
The first to notice was Jiang Chenggong’s eldest son, Jiang Dakuai. Passing the living room, he realized many things were missing.
Then he heard noises in the kitchen and realized there was a thief. He rushed toward the kitchen to catch them.
But when he arrived, the kitchen was empty—no thief in sight.
“A thief!” he shouted. Immediately, lights went on across the Jiang family courtyard.
The whole family came out and nearly fainted in shock. The living room was stripped—TVs, fans, radios—all gone. Only a single wooden chair remained.
Jiang Chenggong rushed to the study, praying the thief hadn’t reached there.
But his prayers were in vain. The study was empty too. The safe he had stored in the cabinet had been taken—cabinet and all.
His heart sank. Everything was gone. Aside from lost wealth, the safe contained a few letters from abroad.
Years ago, when they had tried to escape, the eldest, second, and third branches had all been killed by bandits en route. Only his branch remained. His two aunts and one maternal aunt had successfully fled to Hong Kong and then to America. Their families were now doing well overseas.
Jiang Chenggong had kept in contact with them, hoping that if things went south, he could flee with his family. With help waiting abroad, their escape would be much safer.
Just a few days ago, he had received letters from them, asking why he hadn’t left yet. At the time, the situation abroad was very favorable—land could be bought without limit for those with money.
Jiang Chenggong had been seduced by this prospect, storing those letters without dealing with them immediately.
Who could have imagined such a cunning thief would steal even his safe? If he found out who it was, Jiang Chenggong would skin them alive.
But the priority now was retrieving those letters. The jewelry and household items were secondary.
He couldn’t imagine the consequences if the letters were exposed—total ruin for the Jiang family.
But how could he find the thief? They had no clue who it was, running around like headless flies wouldn’t help.
Jiang Chenggong felt ten years older in an instant. He collapsed onto a chair, stunned.
Had the Jiang family finally reached its breaking point? He wouldn’t allow it. He had endured quietly for so long.
Meanwhile, An Ning quietly returned to her hospital room. Around two or three in the morning, the corridors were silent, not a soul in sight.
A chill ran through her, goosebumps rising. She entered her room and closed the door tightly.
Her neighboring bed was empty. She placed a pillow under her blanket to make it appear as if someone was sleeping. From the outside, it would look like the bed was occupied—any intruder would only notice the deception upon entering.
She checked her space for tonight’s spoils. Anyone who had gotten up during her operation would have unwittingly contributed—everything she had passed by was now safely stored.
Even the kitchen, which she had climbed out of, was emptied into her space. After all, she planned to return to the countryside, and everything in the kitchen would come in handy there.