Bai Li set the black eagle down beside the golden retriever and said to the three little ones, “Don’t touch anything in here. I’ll put food here for you on schedule.
Anyone who misbehaves gets thrown out. Nod if you understand!”
The three little ones nodded in unison, while the black eagle kept cooing and acting cute to show its loyalty.
Having finished training her pets, figuring out how to settle them became the next problem.
Her spatial dimension had open ground and a house, but no greenery.
Looking at the green lawn in front of the house, she considered whether she should clear it and plant vegetables, fruits, grains, and the like—then she’d have food to feed them.
Whether out of humanitarian concern or selfishness, she didn’t want to let them out, where they would become subjects of Zhao Yuntian’s perverted research again.
As for the food she had looted, she needed to plan carefully.
The journey of exile would consume a huge amount of food, and once they reached the place of exile, they’d have to rely on themselves for food and drink.
The meager grain earned through labor would certainly not fill their stomachs.
Besides, exile could last years—possibly a lifetime.
By that calculation, the food stored in her spatial dimension was far from enough.
If she could grow crops in the dimension, she’d have endless food.
No sooner thought than done—she found some tools and threw herself into the work.
The black eagle flew back and forth nearby, helping by carrying away grass roots and stones.
Once the land was tilled, she dug through the mountain of stuff and found some seeds to plant.
She had only planted two plots when a commotion reached her ears.
Dawn had broken—Eunuch Li was urging them to set off.
Bai Li grabbed a few handfuls of millet and some fruit, tossed them to the three little ones, and left the spatial dimension.
Under the watchful eyes of others, everyone changed into prisoner’s garb.
Bai Li dressed simply: a sweat-absorbing, breathable cotton outfit underneath, a loose prisoner’s robe over it, and thick-soled cloth shoes on her feet. Done.
The women changed into their prison clothes, removed their hair ornaments and jewelry, and put on shackles.
A small incident occurred at this stage: the tasseled hairpin in Bai Yue’s hair absolutely refused to come out, and it was only resolved when someone roughly yanked it free.
“Still crying! Believe it or not, I’ll charge you with defying an imperial edict and have you beheaded in public right now!”
Bai Yue’s sobs cut off abruptly, leaving her hiccupping.
Looking at the small tuft of blood-streaked hair on the ground, Bai Li fought hard to keep from laughing, finished tidying herself up, and walked out first.
“Big sister, wait for me!”
Her third uncle’s daughter, her little cousin Bai Yu, was only ten and didn’t need to be shackled. She hurried to catch up, grabbed Bai Li’s hand, and blinked.
Something hard was pressed into Bai Li’s palm. An official nearby was staring straight at them. With a thought, Bai Li sent the object into her spatial dimension.
Bai Li gave her a reassuring look, and the two girls walked out hand in hand.
At the gate, they saw the male members of the Bai household.
The men had removed their topknot crowns, pulled off their belts, and put on restraints and leg irons.
Anything of value on their persons had to be stripped away, leaving them as bare as the day they were born.
Only after everyone’s bundles had been inspected did they shoulder them and gather at the Bai residence gate, ready to set off.
Bai Li thought of the chests and trunks piled in the front courtyard and her eyes flickered.
She secretly looked forward to the expressions of utter shock when people discovered they were filled entirely with stones.
When she had passed by earlier, she had already emptied everything inside. If it weren’t for not wanting to stir up big trouble, she wouldn’t have even left the chests for those corrupt officials.
“Wait!”
A loud shout rang out as a galloping horse came racing over.
“Commandant Zhao?”
“Eunuch Li, may I have a word in private?”
Eunuch Li frowned, and only when Zhao Yuntian produced a token did he reluctantly step aside a few paces.
“Eunuch Li, I wish to ask for Bai Li’s hand in marriage once more.”
A flash of mockery crossed Eunuch Li’s eyes as he said in a sly, half-smiling tone, “Commandant Zhao, your marriage announcement has already been voided…”
“Eunuch Li, this is the witch doctor’s instruction…”
“Fine, go ahead and try. If the Bai woman refuses, there’s nothing this humble one can do.”
The two walked back, and Zhao Yuntian went straight up to Bai Li. Bai Li did not miss the look of covetous determination in his eyes when he glanced at those chests and trunks.
Hah! So the treasury had been emptied, and now he was scheming after her dowry again?
“Bai Li, I still can’t bear to see you exiled. Marry me!”
“Ugh!”
Bai Li couldn’t hold it back and vomited right then and there.
“Sorry, I just thought of something disgusting.”
She offered this explanation to her worried parents, then turned to Zhao Yuntian. “What did you say? I didn’t hear you?”
Zhao Yuntian suppressed the surge of anger rising in his chest, took a deep breath, and said again, “I said, I can’t bear to see you suffer in exile, so I ask for your hand in marriage once more, Bai Li!”
Bai Li wanted to dig at her ears, but unfortunately she was wearing shackles.
“Commandant Zhao, is your brain broken?
Our marriage announcement has already been voided, and that dowry has been confiscated into the imperial treasury. It belongs to the Emperor now—do you want to rob the Emperor?”
At these words, both Zhao Yuntian and Eunuch Li’s faces changed.
Zhao Yuntian thought: right, the dowry had been confiscated—so what was his family supposed to do?
The Zhao Residence had been emptied overnight; even the hidden things were gone. The constables were currently searching the residence and gathering clues, but unfortunately had found nothing.
Otherwise he wouldn’t have thought of coming to the Bai Residence to try his luck.
What Eunuch Li thought was: damn this Zhao Yuntian, daring to covet what belongs to the Emperor!
Thank goodness no grave mistake had been made, or if the Emperor investigated, he’d never be able to bear the consequences.
“Commandant Zhao, it’s not that this humble one won’t give you face, but the Emperor’s orders cannot be defied.”
With a wave of his hand, he said to the Bai family, “Let’s go. If not for this humble one’s mercy, you should have set off last night.
Come along—the road ahead is long!”
Eunuch Li said this in his sly, sarcastic way. He paid Zhao Yuntian no further attention, wanting only to finish the job quickly.
After handing over to the officer in charge of the escort, he ordered the chests and trunks carried off and returned to the palace to report.
Zhao Yuntian looked at the gloating expression on Bai Li’s face. If he didn’t know she lacked the ability, he would truly suspect she was the one who had emptied his home.
Bai Li: You’ve guessed the truth. Too bad you don’t believe it yourself.
“Your dowry is gone—do you still want to marry me?”
“You—!”
“Get lost! Your A-Zi is waiting for you at home!”
“Hmph! If you won’t marry me, I’ll be waiting to watch you die!”
Zhao Yuntian, rebuffed once again, stormed off furiously, his sleeve flicking. But as he mounted his horse, his foot on the stirrup suddenly seized with pain, and with a thud he fell off the horse, landing—quite coincidentally—flat on his face.
The constables: …
I’m not laughing; my mouth corners are just being disobedient.
The Bai family: …
How did someone that pathetic ever become a Commandant?
Zhao Yuntian scrambled up in a fury, glaring at Bai Li in shame and rage.
Though he hadn’t seen it, he just knew it must have been her!
Otherwise why would his leg suddenly have been unable to move?!
Bai Li lightly dusted off her hands and shot him a provocative look.
Her face practically shouted at him: It was me. What are you going to do about it?
Zhao Yuntian swept a vicious, dark glance at her and left in a sorry, disheveled state.
The Bai family watched him—his face full of sincere devotion as he begged for her hand one moment, then twisted with loathing and venomous malice the next. It was truly an eye-opening spectacle.