The guards in the courtyard heard the commotion and immediately rushed in.
The entire residence fell into chaos in an instant.
Meng Wantang hid in the shadows, watching the disorder before her, a sly smile flashing in her eyes.
This was exactly the opportunity she wanted! While everyone’s attention was drawn to the corpses—
She immediately dashed into Meng Wanqing’s inner chamber and activated the power of her space.
Meng Wanqing’s room was incomparably luxurious. The dressing table was covered with gold and silver jewelry.
The wardrobe was filled with all kinds of fine silks and satins.
There were bolts of top-quality Yunjin and Shujin, piled high. The chests in the corner were packed with precious medicinal herbs and silver banknotes.
There were even several boxes of priceless rouge and cosmetics.
Meng Wantang showed no courtesy. With a wave of her hand, she swept all the jewelry and fine fabrics into her space.
The banknotes and medicinal herbs were taken without leaving a single trace. Even the jade hairpins and golden ornaments on the dressing table were cleared away completely.
In mere moments, the once lavish room became utterly empty, leaving only a few tables and chairs and a mess strewn across the floor.
Meng Wantang clapped her hands and looked at the bare room with satisfaction, her eyes full of amusement.
Didn’t Meng Wanqing love to show off? Didn’t she enjoy acting high and mighty? She would make her lose everything!
After finishing, she used her spatial invisibility once more and silently left the Liu residence.
She returned to her own side courtyard.
The moment she stepped inside, she saw the little one waiting with wide, bright eyes.
When he saw her, he immediately threw himself into her arms. “Mother, are you alright? They didn’t bully you, did they?”
Meng Wantang held him close and gently stroked his head. “Mother is fine. From now on, no one will dare bully us again.”
Under the moonlight, her smile was gentle, but her eyes shone with unwavering determination.
Tonight was only the beginning. She would reclaim everything that belonged to her, protect those by her side, and never again allow herself to be at the mercy of others.
……
In just a short while, Meng Wanqing’s courtyard was crowded with servants who had rushed over at the noise.
The maids were pale with fright, shrinking to one side without daring to speak. Several sturdy matrons trembled beneath the corridor.
Their eyes avoided the two corpses on the ground.
Meng Wanqing sat collapsed on the cold stone floor. Her skirt was soaked with night dew, yet she felt nothing. She pointed at the bodies of Xinghua and Hehua, her voice trembling as she repeated, “How could this happen… How could they die here…”
The sounds of chaos faintly reached the neighboring courtyard. In Meng Wantang’s bedroom, the candlelight flickered dimly.
She slowly opened her eyes.
There was no trace of drowsiness—only calm composure.
Her son stirred at the noise outside.
She immediately reached out and gently patted his back, drawing him closer into her embrace. Her lips pressed together slightly as she closed her eyes again, slowing her breathing, pretending to remain fast asleep, as if the turmoil outside had nothing to do with her.
“Princess Consort, something terrible has happened!” An old nanny stumbled in from outside.
Her face was even paler than before as she leaned close to Meng Wanqing’s ear, her voice quivering with tears. “The storeroom in our courtyard… someone has tampered with it! The gold and silver jewelry, and all the ornaments you saved—everything is gone!”
“What?” Meng Wanqing suddenly looked up, her eyes bloodshot as rage surged to her head.
Her vision darkened.
She nearly collapsed to the ground. A maid hurried to support her, but she shoved her away and forced herself upright, her chest heaving violently, teeth chattering. “My things! Who dares to touch my things!”
At that moment, Xiao Jingyuan stepped into the courtyard, his dark outer robe gleaming coldly in the night.
His gaze swept over the corpses on the ground before settling on the nearly hysterical Meng Wanqing. His voice was low. “What happened?”
Meng Wanqing seemed to have grasped a lifeline. She staggered toward him, only to be discreetly blocked by the guard at his side.
Tears filled her eyes as she cried, “Your Highness! You must stand up for me! Look—these two maids were from Meng Wantang’s courtyard. How could they die here? And my belongings are all gone! Someone must be deliberately framing me. Perhaps… perhaps it was Meng Wantang…”
Her words clearly directed suspicion toward Meng Wantang, the implication unmistakable.
The servants around them held their breath, secretly observing Xiao Jingyuan’s expression.
His brows furrowed deeper. Ignoring Meng Wanqing’s sobbing accusations, he turned to the commander of the guards awaiting orders. “Investigate whether Meng Wantang left her courtyard tonight.”
The commander immediately stepped forward and bowed. “Reporting to Your Highness, this subordinate has kept people watching Meng Wantang’s courtyard. The candle in her room was extinguished at the hour of Hai. Since then, neither she nor the young master has stepped out even half a step. The maids and matrons in her courtyard have remained in their own rooms. Nothing unusual.”
The words were like a resounding slap.
Striking Meng Wanqing across the face.
The color drained from her face. Her lips moved, but not a single word came out. Her earlier grief and accusations froze awkwardly in place.
Suppressing her humiliation, she put on a pitiful expression, her voice trembling softly. “Your Highness, even if she didn’t go out, she could have arranged for someone else… Two maids died here, and my belongings are gone. We can’t just let it go, can we?”
Xiao Jingyuan looked at her coldly.
There was not a hint of warmth in his eyes as he interrupted, “Someone has died, and property has been stolen. I will investigate.”
His gaze swept across her pale face, his tone firm and unquestionable. “But do not make wild speculations here, nor drag others into this. I will give you an explanation. Until then, behave yourself.”
With that, he did not spare her another glance.
Turning to the guard commander, he ordered, “Seal the courtyard. Examine the scene carefully. Find the clues.”
Then he strode away, his dark robe brushing the shadows beneath the corridor.
Leaving behind a courtyard steeped in silence—and Meng Wanqing standing frozen in place, her face a mixture of humiliation and venomous resentment.
As Meng Wantang stored the gold and silver jewelry taken from Meng Wanqing’s courtyard into her space—
The moment her fingertips touched the spatial barrier, a warm current flowed through her meridians.
In the next instant, a soft white light filled the space. The spiritual field, once only half an acre in size, quietly expanded.
Even the alchemy furnace and talisman rack in the corner glowed faintly.
Her space had silently upgraded.
With a thought, her consciousness sank into the space, instantly sensing the newly unlocked abilities.
Her invisibility, which had previously lasted only half the time of burning half a stick of incense, had now doubled in duration.
Her teleportation range, once limited to several courtyards in the rear residence, could now clearly sense the location of the house outside the estate where her biased parents and four elder brothers lived.
Wherever her mind reached—
It felt as though she could cross the distance and arrive there in the next instant.
Even more surprisingly, the flow of time within the space had changed. One stick of incense outside equaled an entire hour inside.
This meant she would have far more time to cultivate, refine pills, and draw talismans without worrying about trivial disturbances from the outside world.
“A pleasant surprise indeed.”
A faint smile curved Meng Wantang’s lips as she glanced down at her peacefully sleeping son.
His warm breath brushed against her neck, easing the tension in her heart slightly.
Tonight was the perfect opportunity to establish her foundation.
The abundant spiritual energy brought by the space’s upgrade would help her break through the bottleneck.
The path of cultivation defied the heavens, and establishing one’s foundation was the first great hurdle. She would have to endure the searing pain of spiritual energy scouring her meridians—one misstep could shatter them completely.
But she was no longer the woman who allowed herself to be bullied.
This pain was nothing more than a stepping stone toward the summit.
She gently tucked her son beneath the brocade quilt.
After securing the corners, she prepared to circulate her technique and draw spiritual energy into her body.
Suddenly, she sensed a sharp gaze upon her—piercing through the window lattice with scrutiny and inquiry, almost enough to expose her disguise.
Meng Wantang’s heart tightened. Instantly, she restrained the fluctuations of spiritual energy around her and slowly lowered her eyelids.
Her long lashes cast faint shadows beneath her eyes as her breathing gradually slowed.
Returning to the steady rhythm of deep sleep.
Even the hand resting on her son maintained a gentle curve.
As if that fleeting stiffness had been nothing but an illusion.
Outside the window, Xiao Jingyuan stood beneath the corridor with his hands clasped behind his back, his dark robe stirring slightly in the night breeze.