For civil disputes like this, arguments could drag on forever.
Su Mingzhi had never expected Pei Xingzhou to be so shameless that he would actually refuse to return the dowry.
As far as Su Mingzhi was concerned, not a single word of Pei Xingzhou’s explanation was believable.
More than a dozen chests of dowry had supposedly vanished without anyone noticing?
Who would believe such nonsense?
The two families fought so fiercely over Su Qingran’s dowry that the entire capital’s noble circles heard about it.
Everyone treated it as entertainment.
Two prominent families were practically tearing each other apart over the property of an orphaned girl.
As a result, both sides suffered severe damage to their reputations.
Pei Xingzhou was condemned as a hypocrite.
The Pingyang Marquis had supported him so generously during his lifetime, yet after the old man’s death, he treated the Marquis’s granddaughter like this.
As for Su Mingzhi, he fared no better.
After inheriting the Marquis title, he had treated the old Marquis’s own granddaughter terribly.
In the eyes of the public, neither man was a good person.
The only one worthy of sympathy was the Pingyang Marquis’s granddaughter.
People heard that she had left the capital all alone.
Ironically, Su Mingzhi now regretted letting her leave.
Originally, he had wanted the so-called “jinx” out of the manor as quickly as possible.
Who could have guessed Pei Xingzhou would truly refuse to hand over the dowry?
Now the situation had become impossible to explain.
But before one crisis could end, another began.
Since Su Mingzhi had paid Su Qingran five hundred taels of silver in exchange for her supposed dowry rights, the Marquis Manor suddenly found itself short of funds.
Left with no choice, he ordered servants to withdraw silver from the treasury.
The moment the treasury doors opened, everyone froze.
“This—”
“How is it empty?!”
Zhu Yunfang stared at the scene in disbelief.
“M-Madam, we don’t know what happened!”
The servants immediately panicked.
“Quick!”
“Call the Master!”
Zhu Yunfang shouted.
Unfortunately, even if they suspected Su Qingran now, it was too late.
Because by this point, she was already far beyond the capital.
The original owner had always been branded a bringer of misfortune.
Most people considered her unlucky and avoided her.
As a result, she had no close friends and very few people paid attention to her whereabouts.
Su Qingran didn’t even bother disguising herself this time.
Alone, she drove her carriage toward the next city.
Along the way, she stopped at a roadside tea house to ask for directions to Yuzhou.
Without GPS, traveling was incredibly inconvenient.
She had simply been following the main roads the entire time.
Otherwise she would have been hopelessly lost already.
“Waiter, a pot of tea.”
The moment she sat down, she called out.
“Coming right up!”
Soon a fresh pot of tea was placed before her.
After finishing a cup, she was about to ask about the road to Yuzhou when a nearby conversation caught her attention.
“Have you heard?”
“The frontier’s in chaos.”
“What? Impossible.”
“How is it impossible?”
“General Xie has already fallen from power.”
“The soldiers on the border are dissatisfied with the court. That’s perfectly normal.”
“Honestly, the current government doesn’t have any public support left.”
“Exactly.”
“I was planning to transport goods to the capital to sell, but now everyone’s saying the city is a mess because the court is hunting General Xie.”
“Surely it can’t be that bad?”
“It’s still the Emperor’s capital.”
“Who knows?”
“I’ve brought so much premium rice from the south. I originally planned to sell it to wealthy families.”
At first, Su Qingran was merely listening to gossip.
Then she heard the words premium rice.
Premium rice?
White rice?
Instantly, she became alert.
She walked over and smiled.
“Excuse me, sir.”
“I couldn’t help overhearing.”
“You’re planning to sell premium rice in the capital?”
“I’ve just come from there.”
“The city really is in turmoil lately.”
“That’s actually why I’m traveling to stay with distant relatives.”
“But I feel embarrassed showing up empty-handed.”
“If you’re willing to sell your rice, I’d gladly buy the entire shipment.”
The merchant’s eyes immediately lit up.
“Miss, are you serious?”
He looked excited.
He had traveled a long distance and was already exhausted.
Furthermore, merchants entering cities had to pay all kinds of taxes.
Road taxes.
Gate taxes.
Market taxes.
And if unlucky, bribes to troublesome guards.
Doing business wasn’t easy.
Since he had already come this far, the easiest solution was simply to sell everything here.
“Completely serious.”
“I’ll buy all of it.”
Su Qingran replied immediately.
What a perfect opportunity.
She had been worrying that her food reserves weren’t large enough.
And this wasn’t ordinary grain.
It was premium rice.
“Can you transport all of it by yourself?”
The merchant looked skeptical.
“My servants are behind me.”
“I’m just impatient and arrived ahead of them.”
Su Qingran lied smoothly.
The merchant glanced at her delicate appearance.
She looked every bit the wealthy young lady from a prominent family.
After a moment, he nodded.
“Then please follow me, Miss.”
Moments later, the two of them were inspecting the cargo.
The moment Su Qingran saw the sacks of rice, she nearly exploded with excitement.
Bag after bag after bag.
Exactly what she needed.
The rice growing in her spiritual farmland was nowhere near mature yet.
Even after it matured, the harvest would be limited.
She had only planted a small plot.
If she wanted true food security, she still needed to stockpile supplies in the real world.
She also planned to start growing fruit soon.
The problem was that ancient-era fruit varieties were surprisingly difficult to find.
“Name your price.”
“I’ll take everything.”
She didn’t even hesitate.
A delighted smile appeared on the merchant’s face.
“May I ask your surname, Miss?”
“My surname is Su.”
She gave her real surname without concern.
After all, she had no intention of returning to the capital.
Whether she used a real name or a fake one hardly mattered.
Besides, she was terrible at inventing names.
Otherwise she wouldn’t have named her horse Goudan.
Nor would she have told Xie Yun her name was Zhang San.
“My name is Zhao Ziyi.”
The merchant cupped his hands politely.
“Miss Su should know that premium rice is difficult to produce.”
“Even if I reached the capital, wealthy families would be competing for it.”
“So regarding the price…”
He paused deliberately.
Fortunately, money was the one thing Su Qingran currently had plenty of.
“Just tell me how much.”
Zhao Ziyi raised a finger.
“Premium rice is extremely valuable.”
“I’m not trying to cheat you.”
“If you want the entire shipment, the lowest I can go is this.”
“One hundred taels?”
Su Qingran raised an eyebrow.
Zhao Ziyi smiled and nodded.
“Miss Su is very perceptive.”
“I have five full wagonloads here.”
“And every grain is premium rice.”
“At this price, I’m barely making a profit.”
“If you buy everything, I’ll even throw in some southern specialty fabrics as a gift.”
His smile grew wider.
The deal was looking better and better.