If not for fear of being discovered, Cheng Qiqi would have taken everything in the room. She picked and chose, taking away all the inconspicuous items.
Leaving the master bedroom, Cheng Qiqi was about to leave when she turned and entered the servants’ quarters. She took all the bedding, clothes, shoes, and socks from the beds.
The clothes and bedding of maids in wealthy households were comparable to those of young ladies from modest families outside.
After leaving the main courtyard, Cheng Qiqi went to the old madam’s Songxiang Yuan. She had only been there once before, but now she moved as if in an unguarded territory. Prying open the storeroom, her eyes lit up at the sight of various medicinal herbs and treasures—she took everything!
Lixiang Ge!
The residence of Houfu’s only concubine, Lin Huilan, and her daughter Jin Xue’er.
The mother and daughter had constantly mocked her and Suian as country bumpkins, unworthy of their status.
After ransacking the place, Cheng Qiqi couldn’t help but sigh: Lin Huilan and her daughter had nothing but jewelry and accessories, along with chests of clothes and various fabrics. With only two bodies, how could they possibly wear so many clothes and fabrics?
Cheng Qiqi headed straight for the small kitchen. Seeing it filled with pastries, she unceremoniously stored them all in Kongjian. The mother and daughter truly knew how to enjoy themselves.
Returning to Mozhu Yuan, Chuntao was digging up sweet potatoes and potatoes with her three-year-old daughter.
“Mother, look, this potato is huge!”
Jin Suian, holding a potato larger than her fist, ran toward Cheng Qiqi with a beaming smile.
“Good girl.”
Cheng Qiqi crouched down and hugged her daughter firmly. This child, whom she had risked her life to give birth to and had carefully nurtured for three years, must stay safe and sound.
“Shizifei, even if we dig up these sweet potatoes and potatoes, we can’t take them with us,” Chuntao anxiously ran over and said. “Nanny Wu has already gone to the front courtyard. What should we do?”
With Houfu surrounded, Shizifei and the young miss couldn’t escape either.
“Chuntao, wrap all the steamed buns in oil paper.” Holding her daughter’s hand, Cheng Qiqi began filling bamboo baskets with potatoes and sweet potatoes.
Chuntao: “…” What kind of time is this? How can Shizifei still be thinking about steamed buns?
Chuntao packed all the steamed buns into a bundle and worriedly said, “What should we do? Why don’t you take the young miss and escape through the dog hole? It might be a bit embarrassing, but at least you’ll survive. We…”
A stack of banknotes cut off Chuntao’s words.
“Take these banknotes, escape through the dog hole, and buy a few carriages, bedding, clothes and shoes—especially shoes, buy plenty—as well as medicinal herbs and food.”
“Buy one good carriage. For the remaining two, the exterior can be plain and simple, but line the inside with plenty of straw.”
“When the time comes for exile, deliver them outside the city.”
Cheng Qiqi took out a deed of servitude from her bosom and said, “This is your deed of servitude. From today onward, you are free.”
“Shizifei.”
Chuntao knelt directly on the ground, choking back tears as she said, “Chuntao won’t leave. Please take the young miss and run quickly.”
If not for Shizifei’s kindness, she would have died long ago.
Tears streamed down Chuntao’s youthful face. Cheng Qiqi helped her up and wiped her tears with a handkerchief. “I can’t leave anymore. Take the money, go out, buy some things, and send them to us. On the exile journey, An’an and I will have a better chance of surviving.”
“Shizifei.”
Chuntao panicked, unsure of what to do.
“Hurry up.”
Cheng Qiqi’s tone was firm and brooked no argument as she pushed Chuntao out the door.
“Shizifei, I, I will definitely buy good things and bring them to you.”
Chuntao tucked the silver notes into her innermost undergarment, then took out the small bits of silver she had saved up over time before finally starting to walk out.
Once Chuntao had left, Cheng Qiqi crouched down, handed a steamed bun to Jin Suian, and stroked her soft hair, saying, “An’an, be good and eat your bun here. Mama will be right back, okay?”
“An’an will be good.”
Jin Suian held the bun, taking small, careful bites.
“Then, can An’an count ants? Count to one hundred?” Cheng Qiqi asked.
“One, two, three…”
Jin Suian lowered her head, counting ants and eating her bun.
Cheng Qiqi glanced back, hearing her daughter’s clear, crisp voice: “Twenty, thirty…”
“One, two, three, four…”
Cheng Qiqi shook her head helplessly. Her daughter could only count up to thirty at most before starting over again.
She swiftly gathered all the vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, eggplants, corn, and edamame into her Kongjian, not even sparing the spring onions.
The ginger and old ginger stored in the cellar—Cheng Qiqi collected every bit into her Kongjian. Looking at the now barren land, not even a blade of grass left, she felt immensely grateful for her habit of planting vegetables wherever she went.
Suddenly, sounds came from outside. Cheng Qiqi quickly ran over to Jin Suian and hugged her.
“Cheng Qiqi, where is Jin Suian?”
Six guards, each holding a long sword, stood in a row, their expressions fierce and menacing.
“An’an, be good, don’t be afraid.”
Cheng Qiqi picked up Jin Suian, thinking to herself: They’ve finally come!
“Move!”
The sword-wielding guards ordered them to leave.
Cheng Qiqi said nothing, carrying Jin Suian and slinging the buns over her back as she headed toward the front courtyard.
“Mama, are we going to see Daddy?”
Jin Suian held her bun, looking around curiously, her little face puzzled as she asked, “Why is Daddy sleeping in a big wooden box?”
Cheng Qiqi looked down at her daughter’s hopeful expression and nodded, saying, “An’an, eat your bun quickly. When we see Daddy sleeping, you mustn’t disturb him, understand?”
The little girl didn’t understand what death meant, and explaining it wouldn’t make it any clearer. It was better to tell a kind lie.
“Mhm.”
Jin Suian nodded emphatically, her big, round eyes sparkling as she asked, “Mama, then, should I save the biggest, tastiest meat bun for Daddy?”
Cheng Qiqi: “…”
Even though she had poured all her love into her daughter over the past three years, she still couldn’t replace a father.
“Mama, will Daddy eat it? Will he like An’an?”
Jin Suian’s beautiful, large eyes were filled with unease.
“Our An’an is so well-behaved and adorable. Your daddy will definitely like you. An’an, you need to eat your fill so Daddy will be happy.” Cheng Qiqi looked up at the path leading to the front courtyard. Her daughter would probably never experience a father’s love.
The Houfu had fallen. Even if they were exiled, she would protect her daughter well.
“An’an be good, eat up, An’an eat bun.”
Jin Suian took big bites of her bun, her obedient demeanor making Cheng Qiqi’s heart ache even more.
As Cheng Qiqi carried Jin Suian into the front courtyard, a wave of the smell of blood hit her.
She held her daughter tighter, pressing her against her chest, and whispered, “An’an, later we’ll play a make-believe game. Everything we see will be pretend, so An’an won’t be scared, okay?”
“An’an is not afraid, An’an is the bravest.”
Jin Suian obediently nestled against Cheng Qiqi’s shoulder.
Entering the front courtyard, corpses lay scattered in disarray, blood flowing like a river.
Cheng Qiqi suppressed the nausea in her heart and walked toward the center. The former marquis, his wife, and the young masters and ladies were all in a wretched state.
In the center, the marquis lay on the ground in a white inner robe, completely soaked in blood, barely clinging to life. The marquise, stripped of her usual grace and nobility, wept as if her heart were breaking.
Beside them lay the body of her original self’s husband, the Zhongyong Hou Shizi, Jin Mozhi.
Cheng Qiqi tightened her hold on her daughter. The situation was even more dire than she had imagined—the other party had even moved the Shizi’s body out of the coffin.
Shattered armor mingled with long-dried blood, and his sun-tanned skin, weathered by wind and sand, could not conceal the innate nobility he possessed. Even as he lay quietly on the ground, he could not be overlooked for a moment.