Su Yanxi slightly furrowed her brows.
That was the voice of a eunuch.
Another item from the palace.
What was going on tonight?
Why did she keep running into things related to the palace?
But this was a good thing. The Da Yong Dynasty was now riddled with problems, and the common people had long been living in misery. There were hardly any valuable items left among the populace.
All the good things were in the hands of the noble families and the imperial clan.
Since she had encountered them now, they belonged to her!
Her sharp gaze fell upon the carriage.
The items on the carriage were covered with tarpaulin, making it impossible to tell what they were.
The two horses pulling the carriage seemed to be struggling, and the vehicle was surrounded by a group of martial artists dressed in black attire.
Even if Su Yanxi couldn’t identify their backgrounds, she knew these people were no ordinary folk, and the items on the carriage were even more extraordinary!
Moreover, these items were likely obtained through illicit means.
Otherwise, there would be no need to transport them secretly in the middle of the night.
Su Yanxi felt tempted, but she knew she was no match for those guards in black attire and dared not act recklessly.
Just as she watched the carriage moving farther away, thinking the opportunity was lost and preparing to retreat, a glint of cold light reflected off the wall beside her hiding spot.
Then, the clashing of metal echoed through the air.
When she looked back, she saw that a group of black-clad figures had appeared out of nowhere and were now engaged in a fierce battle with the guards escorting the carriage.
Without hesitation, Su Yanxi continued to hide.
Fortune favors the bold.
If these two groups ended up injuring each other, she might just reap the benefits.
As she was thinking this, a sudden neighing of horses broke the silence.
The two horses pulling the carriage went wild and charged straight toward her.
Su Yanxi was startled.
Before she could react, the two horses dragged the carriage into the alley they had come from.
The eunuch escorting the carriage and the guards tried to pursue but were blocked by the black-clad figures.
Seizing the opportunity during the chaos, Su Yanxi gritted her teeth and chased after the carriage.
She had initially thought that if she couldn’t catch up, she would simply let it go.
But before she had gone far, one of the horses let out a neigh and collapsed to the ground.
After convulsing twice, it foamed at the mouth and stopped moving.
The other horse neighed twice in response, anxiously circling the spot a few times before it also collapsed.
Su Yanxi glanced behind her—no one had caught up yet.
A perfect opportunity!
She hurried over and, without bothering to check what was inside the boxes, stored everything directly into her Space.
Then, she quickly made her way back to the Champion Marquis Family.
Before she even reached the woodshed, she could already hear the drunken, lewd voices of Liu Bantou and the other constables discussing the girls from the Brocade Pavilion, coming from the direction of the main gate of the Marquis Family.
Su Yanxi quickened her pace.
But as soon as she turned the corner, she ran straight into the group of constables.
For a moment, Su Yanxi felt a surge of tension.
In the next instant, she was hoisted over someone’s shoulder like a sack.
At the same time, Su Qingyu’s voice reached her ears, “Little sister, don’t be afraid. It’s your second brother.”
Su Yanxi felt slightly reassured.
In the blink of an eye, Su Qingyu set her down, and she found herself inside the woodshed.
The door to the woodshed was immediately shut.
Shortly after, Su Qingyu slipped in through the window.
By then, the voices of the constables outside had already reached the door.
“Burp… Did any of you just see a figure run past? It looked like they were carrying a girl over their shoulder?”
“Hahaha… Du Qiang, you must have carried too many girls tonight! Everything you see looks like someone carrying a girl!”
After the conversation, the lock on the woodshed door was opened.
At this moment, Su Yanxi was staying by the unconscious Su Houye’s side along with the Marquise and the three sons of the Su Family.
The Marquise’s eyes were swollen from crying.
Liu Bantou, heavily intoxicated, counted the heads and only after confirming the numbers matched did he issue a fierce warning.
“Stay put! No tricks!”
“Sister, I apologize for my recklessness earlier.”
After the constables withdrew, Su Qingyu immediately stood up and clasped his hands in apology to Su Yanxi.
Su Yanxi’s heart trembled.
She had expected the Su Family to blame her.
After all, it was her late return that nearly got them implicated.
She never imagined…
The Marquise frowned, looking sternly at Su Qingyu, “Second Son, you must learn to control this impulsive nature of yours.
The Marquis Family doesn’t even have a single lamp now, and your sister has just returned. What if you frightened her?”
Su Yanxi didn’t know what came over her.
She naturally reached out and took the Marquise’s hand, “Mother, the situation was urgent just now. It wasn’t Second Brother’s fault.”
At these words, the Marquise looked at her with both nervousness and excitement, “Yanxi, what did you call me?”
The Marquise gazed at her with fervent eyes, hot tears streaming down her cheeks.
Su Yanxi herself didn’t know how the word had slipped out.
But having said it once, the second time came more easily.
She smiled obediently, “Mother.”
The Marquise immediately embraced her excitedly, “Yes, my dear daughter!”
Feeling the Marquise’s hot tears falling on her shoulder, her cold heart seemed to warm slightly.
The three Su brothers watched this scene with both relief and guilt on their faces.
Their sister was so wonderful.
Yet all these years, they hadn’t given her anything.
Instead, they had given everything that should have been hers to an ungrateful wretch.
Now, even though they wanted to give her the best of everything in the world, they no longer had the means.
The Marquise held Shen Yanxi’s hand as if she had endless things to say.
Until Su Qinghe came to remind them, “Mother, it’s getting late. Let Younger Sister rest first.
You should rest too. Second Brother, Third Brother and I will take turns watching over Father.”
Only then did the Marquise, immersed in the joy of reuniting with her daughter, remember that the Marquis Family had been exiled.
They still had to continue their journey tomorrow.
She lowered her eyelids, her expression darkening further.
Her heart swelled with overwhelming guilt toward her daughter.
Seeing that look in her eyes, Su Yanxi knew she wanted to apologize again.
She really didn’t want to hear any more apologies from the Su Family.
After all, the switching between her and Su Qingyan wasn’t something the Su Family had intended.
She quickly pretended to yawn.
The Marquise immediately urged her to go rest.
Su Qinghuai led her to the makeshift “bed” they had prepared with straw.
His eyes were also filled with guilt, “Younger Sister, we’ve wronged you.””
Seeing Su Qingyu’s long gown spread over the straw, Su Yanxi felt a warm current flow through her heart.
The Su Family… were truly good people.
Earlier today, while collecting supplies from the Shen Family shop, she had been thinking that although the Champion Marquis Family had a good reputation, these nobles were often skilled at maintaining appearances.
She would follow them for a while – if they proved to be genuinely good people, she would protect them all the way to Shachang.
But if they turned out to be rotten inside despite their noble exterior, she would abandon them.
Now it seemed…
Let’s go with the Su Family for now!
“Get up, get up! Let’s go, let’s go!”
The next day, before Su Yanxi had even woken up properly, the door to the firewood shed was thrown open, and the harsh shouts of the yamen runners echoed through the room.
By this time, Su Houye’s high fever had subsided, and he had regained consciousness.
But the pain in his lower back and buttocks made his movements slow as he tried to get up.
The Marquise and Su Qinghe supported him, not daring to move too quickly.
Yet, because of this slight delay, the yamen runner’s whip lashed out viciously, striking Su Qinghe.
“Hurry up! What are you dawdling for? If we miss the deadline, none of you bastards will live to see another day!”