Passing through the covered corridor and the moon gate, Shen Yihuan came face-to-face with a richly dressed young woman adorned with glittering jewelry, surrounded by maids and elderly servants.
A memory immediately surfaced.
This was Shen Mingzhu, her younger half-sister.
The way she had always lorded over the original Shen Yihuan with arrogant superiority made Shen Yihuan narrow her eyes.
Despite her young age, Shen Mingzhu had inherited every bit of her mother’s vicious temperament.
She was a spoiled little tyrant through and through.
The moment she saw Shen Yihuan, Shen Mingzhu deliberately covered her nose with a handkerchief and exclaimed dramatically,
“Oh? Isn’t this my dear elder sister who married into the countryside?”
“I was wondering why the entire manor smelled so strange today.”
“So this is where the stench is coming from.”
Her words immediately sent the surrounding maids and servants into fits of laughter.
They eagerly joined in.
“Second Miss is absolutely right! I smelled it earlier too. It reeks of chicken droppings mixed with sweat. She probably hasn’t touched hot water in ages. If anyone gets closer, they might even smell lice!”
“Exactly!” another maid with neatly coiled hair chimed in, her face full of disgust.
“I heard country folk only bathe once a month and can’t even bear to buy soap. Second Miss, let’s stand farther away. We wouldn’t want to breathe in anything filthy.”
Following the maid’s lead, Shen Mingzhu deliberately took two elegant steps backward, looking even more pleased with herself.
“I say, Sister.”
“Even if your husband’s family is poor, you should at least clean yourself up before returning to your maiden home.”
“You smell so bad that even the dogs on the street would probably walk around you.”
That remark drew another chorus of shrill laughter.
Jiang Changfeng clenched both fists.
His eyes burned with fury.
They’re humiliating my wife right in front of me.
Do they think I’m dead?
He was just about to step forward when Shen Yihuan grabbed his hand.
His face instantly turned red.
Partly from anger.
Partly from embarrassment.
It was the first time his wife had voluntarily touched him.
Looking at her in confusion, his eyes seemed to ask,
You’re going to endure this too?
Shen Yihuan gently patted the back of his hand.
“Easy.”
“Leave this to me.”
With that, she suddenly darted in front of Shen Mingzhu and casually circled halfway around her.
While hidden from everyone’s view, she swiftly pulled a prank stink spray out of her space and gave the back of Shen Mingzhu’s skirt—right around her backside—a quick spray.
Then she walked back around to face her.
She cupped one hand in front of her nose, fanned the air dramatically, sniffed, frowned, and filled her eyes with contempt.
“Oh?”
“Shen Mingzhu…”
“Is something wrong with your sense of smell?”
“The odor is obviously coming from you.”
“You seriously can’t smell it?”
“And it’s so unbelievably foul…”
“Don’t tell me you went to the bathroom this morning and forgot to wipe yourself properly?”
Her exaggerated expression and sharp, theatrical tone immediately attracted the attention of servants throughout the courtyard.
“How dare you!”
“What filthy nonsense are you spouting!”
“Such vulgar language! Second Miss, don’t listen to her—you’ll dirty your ears!”
The maids and elderly servants rolled up their sleeves and charged toward Shen Yihuan.
Fortunately for her, she had rushed in and retreated so quickly that none of them had managed to stop her from approaching Shen Mingzhu.
Just then…
A gentle breeze swept through the courtyard.
The smell exploded.
It was like manure that had fermented for half a month…
Mixed with spoiled kitchen slop…
And the overpowering stench of sweaty feet.
The revolting odor forced its way straight into everyone’s noses.
Thick.
Clinging.
Utterly overwhelming.
It tightened their chests and churned their stomachs.
“Bleeegh!”
The personal maid standing closest to Shen Mingzhu vomited on the spot.
Then…
One after another…
The courtyard erupted into retching.
The maids and servants clutched their mouths as they gagged so violently that some rolled their eyes.
As for Shen Mingzhu—
Standing at the very center of the smell—
She inhaled one breath…
Failed to catch the next…
And fainted on the spot.
“Second Miss—blegh!”
“Urgh… Second Miss!”
Still dry-heaving, the maids struggled toward Shen Mingzhu to help her up.
But the closer they got…
The stronger the smell became.
After careful observation…
They all came to the exact same conclusion.
The source of the horrifying stench…
Really was coming from Shen Mingzhu’s backside.
Every maid and servant’s eyes widened into saucers.
An unbelievable thought flashed through all their minds simultaneously.
Could it be…
Did Second Miss really use the toilet this morning… and forget to wipe herself?
!!!
Heavens…
Are we going to be silenced for knowing this?
…
“Hahahahaha!”
Far away from the commotion, Shen Yihuan had already dragged Jiang Changfeng away.
She laughed so hard she bent over, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes.
Jiang Changfeng couldn’t help smiling as he watched her.
Although he had no idea where that horrific smell had come from…
As long as his wife was happy…
He was happy too.
After laughing for quite some time, Shen Yihuan finally felt all the frustration in her heart disappear.
The old saying is true.
A good laugh makes you ten years younger.
The ancients really didn’t lie.
Once she had laughed enough, she finally remembered the real reason she’d come.
Turning to Jiang Changfeng, she said,
“This is my old room.”
“Wait here and get some rest.”
“I need to go take care of something.”
“Do you need my help?” he asked.
She shook her head.
“No.”
“It’s nothing important.”
Jiang Changfeng nodded.
But honestly…
He was still worried.
So he quietly followed after her.
It wasn’t that he intended to ignore her wishes.
He simply thought that if anyone tried to bully Shen Yihuan…
He could protect her.
Meanwhile, Shen Yihuan had already anticipated that possibility.
She looked back several times along the way to make sure she wasn’t being followed.
Unfortunately…
How could her amateur caution compare with the tracking skills of an experienced hunter like Jiang Changfeng?
He could track even the craftiest foxes.
Following someone with absolutely no counter-surveillance experience was effortless.
Shen Yihuan headed first to the manor’s storeroom.
A heavy iron lock secured the door.
But that wasn’t a problem.
Having spent years living in the countryside and constantly forgetting her keys, lock-picking had become a surprisingly useful life skill.
She pulled a thin piece of wire from her space and slipped it into the keyhole.
A few quick twists later—
Click.
The lock popped open.
Removing the brass lock, she slipped inside and shut the door.
Watching from a distance, Jiang Changfeng couldn’t see the wire.
He assumed she had simply used a key.
Though he had no idea what his wife intended to do, he immediately positioned himself at the nearby intersection to keep watch.
The moment Shen Yihuan entered…
Her breathing quickened.
Money.
It was all money!
Jade ornaments she had previously seen only on television…
Furniture carved from precious nanmu wood…
Bolts of silk…
Medicinal herbs…
Rare furs…
Most eye-catching of all were the camphorwood chests stacked neatly in one corner.
Each reinforced with copper corners.
There were so many they resembled a small hill.
Unable to resist, she opened one at random.
The brilliant silver ingots inside nearly blinded her.
“Holy…”
“I’m rich!!”
Without another second’s hesitation—
Collect!
Collect!
Collect everything!
Thanks to her earlier experiment using boiling water, she had already confirmed something.
Time flowed normally only in the courtyard of her old family home.
Inside the house itself, everything possessed a preservation effect.
Food wouldn’t spoil.
So she simply stored everything on the spacious rooftop terrace.
There was more than enough room.
Even after emptying the entire storeroom…
It occupied barely a third of the available space.
She counted the camphorwood chests.
Forty-three.
Just imagining that every one of them contained gold, silver, and jewels made her heart race.
Across both her previous life and this one…
She had never been this wealthy.
Suppressing the grin threatening to split her face, Shen Yihuan hurried back outside.
She carefully restored the brass lock to exactly how it had been.
Stay calm.
Don’t get carried away.
There are still more places to loot.
With Shen Mingzhu unconscious, the entire manor had descended into chaos.
It was the perfect opportunity.
She headed first to the study.
Everything her father had displayed to flaunt his status—
His writing brushes, inkstones, paper, and ink…
Every book…
Even the bookshelves themselves…
All disappeared into her space.
Next, she slipped into the storeroom beside the kitchen.
Rice.
Flour.
Cooking oil.
Grain.
Cured fish.
Cured meat.
Dried seafood.
Bird’s nest.
Sea cucumber.
Every seasoning she could find.
She swept it all away.
Unfortunately, Madam Li’s courtyard was guarded by maids and servants.
She couldn’t get inside.
Otherwise…
She would have emptied the entire courtyard without leaving so much as a brick behind.
Still…
She wasn’t about to let Madam Li off so easily.
Taking out the prank stink spray again, she thoroughly coated every hidden corner around Madam Li’s courtyard.
Spray!
Spray!
Spray, spray, spray!
Let’s see how you enjoy living in this smell!
Soon, an indescribably foul odor drifted over Madam Li’s residence.
Satisfied, Shen Yihuan moved on toward Shen Jizu’s courtyard.
Shen Jizu—
Madam Li’s precious seven-year-old son—
Was an absolute little brat.
Back when the original Shen Yihuan had lived here, he had often forced her onto all fours so he could ride on her back like a horse.
Fortunately, he was at school today.
Only two lazy servants remained in the courtyard.
Circling to the rear window, Shen Yihuan climbed smoothly into his bedroom.
Watching her agile movements, Jiang Changfeng couldn’t hide his surprise.
Although the boy was young…
His room contained countless valuable treasures.
A gold neck ring set with rubies.
A flawless Hetian jade pendant.
A luminous pearl the size of an adult’s thumb.
Take them.
Take every last one!
Why should children born to the same father live such completely different lives?
Why did the original Shen Yihuan have to suffer such humiliation and injustice?
Once she got started, she couldn’t stop.
She packed away the tea table.
The furniture.
Silk quilts.
Every set of clothes for all four seasons.
Every pair of shoes.
She emptied the room completely.
Looking at the thoroughly looted bedroom…
Shen Yihuan felt utterly refreshed.