“You’re saying you want me to move into this room?” Xiao Yu could hardly believe his ears.
Bai Zhi replied calmly,
“That’s right.”
“How can that work?! A younger brother-in-law sharing a room with his sister-in-law is… it’s…”
He couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.
Although Xiao Zelan remained silent, it was obvious he found the arrangement difficult to accept as well.
Bai Zhi ignored Xiao Zelan and simply stared at Xiao Yu.
Three people sharing a room was nothing.
During exile, it was common for dozens of people to sleep together in a ruined temple.
“The charcoal is running low,” she explained. “At most, it’ll last another three or four days. If Xiao Yu moves in here, we’ll save one brazier. Then the charcoal can last seven or eight days.”
More importantly, the system mission specifically mentioned surviving seven days in the villa.
That meant there was a good chance exile would begin after those seven days.
And if danger arose during that period, staying together would be safer.
When neither brother spoke, Bai Zhi continued,
“We can put a screen in the middle. Nobody will be able to see anyone else.”
Xiao Yu secretly glanced at Xiao Zelan but still remained silent.
Bai Zhi stopped persuading them and simply waited.
In the end, it was Xiao Zelan who spoke and told Xiao Yu to move in.
Once the decision was made, they immediately began preparing.
The brothers spent a day observing the villa.
They quickly discovered that security was astonishingly lax.
Practically nonexistent.
Xiao Yu explained that the Crown Prince’s Eastern Palace was the real focus of imperial attention.
Xiao Zelan had merely pleaded for the Crown Prince.
There was no evidence that he had participated in factional struggles.
The Emperor was simply venting his anger on him because of his closeness to the Crown Prince.
Still, since exile awaited them later, there had to be some reason behind it.
And even if there wasn’t, the Emperor could always invent one.
Since nobody seemed to care what happened inside the villa, Bai Zhi immediately recruited Xiao Yu for a treasure hunt.
Starting from one corner of the estate, they searched room after room.
If they found a lock, they opened it.
If they found something useful, they carried it back.
The cook tried to stop them and even attempted to frighten them by invoking the Emperor’s authority.
Xiao Yu rolled his eyes.
“Then go tell Father Emperor.”
“Tell him Fifth Brother and I are scavenging for junk in the villa.”
“Ask him to hurry up and punish us.”
The cook left in a huff.
Bai Zhi and Xiao Yu continued their search.
Inside the two largest rooms of the villa, they found two folding screens.
One was placed in the middle of their room as a partition.
The second was arranged in a curved shape against a wall to create a temporary indoor toilet area.
Bai Zhi had noticed that Xiao Zelan barely drank any water anymore.
Having a private corner inside the room would make things easier.
Besides, winter was growing colder by the day.
No one would have to go outside at night.
She also found five or six quilts and spread them outside to air out.
The quilts in this era didn’t have removable covers.
Bai Zhi wasn’t used to that.
She found several bedsheets and planned to sew quilt covers the next day.
Meanwhile, water was heating in the kitchen.
Once it boiled, she intended to wash all the sheets.
Except for the cook’s room, every room in the villa had now been opened.
The two divided the work.
Xiao Yu searched for valuables.
Bai Zhi searched for metal.
Bronze mirrors.
Scissors.
Candlesticks.
Hot-water bottles.
Even locks.
All were metal.
Other than the hot-water bottles, Bai Zhi stored all metal items in a neighboring room and locked it.
She had plans for them later.
As the search continued, they collected everything useful.
Candles.
Needles.
Thread.
Anything they could get their hands on.
Xiao Yu became increasingly excited.
His face turned red.
Whether from excitement or the cold wind was impossible to tell.
By the time they finished, the room was practically overflowing with supplies.
Xiao Zelan, leaning on a crutch, sat nearby and began sorting everything into categories.
That evening, Bai Zhi couldn’t be bothered to cook.
She tossed the cook a small piece of silver and told her to make noodles.
The woman curled her lip in disdain.
Clearly she thought the payment was too little.
But after experiencing Bai Zhi’s methods, she didn’t dare refuse.
Dinner turned out to be plain noodles.
Truly plain.
Not a drop of oil floated in the broth.
Bai Zhi simply went into the kitchen herself and fried six eggs.
The sight made the cook grind her teeth in frustration.
With the screen now dividing the room, Xiao Yu slept on the couch opposite them.
Though called a couch, it was large enough for him to sleep comfortably.
Almost no different from a single bed.
Bai Zhi put all six quilts to use.
Each bed received two quilts underneath as padding.
Another quilt was layered on top of the original bedding.
Once the quilt covers were finished, everyone would have their own blanket.
Tonight, Bai Zhi slept on the inside.
The hot-water bottle had already been filled and tucked beneath the blankets.
The bed was wonderfully warm and soft.
The charcoal brazier remained beside Bai Zhi and Xiao Zelan’s bed so he could add charcoal during the night.
As for Xiao Yu…
Being farther away would have to do.
With two quilts underneath, two on top, and a hot-water bottle in his arms, he wasn’t going to freeze.
Before sleeping, Xiao Yu mentioned another detail from his dream.
He dreamed they would be exiled.
Xiao Zelan fell silent for a while before replying,
“Exiles are usually carried out in spring or autumn.”
“It’s already winter.”
“The possibility is small.”
“But if we’re truly exiled now…”
He didn’t finish.
He didn’t need to.
It would mean someone wanted them dead.
The atmosphere immediately became heavy.
No one spoke afterward.
Late that night, Xiao Yu was just drifting off when he suddenly felt someone staring at him.
His eyes snapped open.
A scream rose in his throat—
Only to be smothered by a hand.
Xiao Yu stared in horror.
Bai Zhi was sitting beside his bed, expressionless.
Leaning close to his ear, she whispered,
“Come outside with me.”
The two quietly slipped out of the room and entered the room Xiao Yu had previously occupied.
Holding a candle, Bai Zhi finally asked:
“Tell me.”
“What exactly did you dream?”
Xiao Yu immediately became wary.
“What do you mean?”
Bai Zhi forced a very friendly smile.
“Your Imperial Brother doesn’t believe you.”
“I do.”
“So tell me. What did you see?”
Xiao Yu remained silent.
Bai Zhi continued,
“We’re all tied to the same rope now.”
“If you know something, we can prepare.”
“Otherwise, in weather this cold, do you really think you can get your Imperial Brother safely to the place of exile by yourself?”
That struck home.
Even if Bai Zhiluo hadn’t abandoned them in the original timeline…
His Imperial Brother still wouldn’t have survived the journey.
After thinking for a moment, Xiao Yu finally spoke.
“I dreamed we were exiled.”
“When?”
“The first day of the eleventh lunar month.”
“Six days from now.”
Bai Zhi’s expression darkened.
“Was there a prison cart?”
“No.”
“What about your Imperial Brother’s leg?”
Xiao Yu blinked.
Clearly he hadn’t expected that question.
Then he answered:
“We bought a handcart from a vegetable supplier.”
Bai Zhi nearly choked.
Push Xiao Zelan all the way to exile?
That would kill someone from exhaustion.
“And then?”
“And then Imperial Brother died.”
His voice carried obvious resentment.
“And after that?”
“I struggled all the way to the exile settlement.”
“I barely survived there for six months.”
“Then I died from illness.”
Bai Zhi froze.
“You died?”
Wasn’t this supposed to be a protagonist’s story?
Wasn’t he supposed to rise from adversity?
Find a powerful mentor?
Gather loyal followers?
Discover hidden opportunities?
Eventually return in glory?
How did he just… die?
After a long silence, Bai Zhi spoke seriously.
“I can help you get your Imperial Brother safely to the place of exile.”
“But once your lives are stable afterward…”
“I want a divorce.”
She still didn’t know how women established independent households in this dynasty.
After a moment’s thought, she added:
“And if I need your cooperation to register my own household later, you’ll have to help me.”
Xiao Yu stared.
“You want a divorce?”
“Yes.”
He instantly became angry.
“What’s wrong with my Imperial Brother?!”
“How is he not good enough for you?!”
Bai Zhi: “…”
That’s your concern right now?
Her patience began to wear thin.
“So?”
“Are we cooperating or not?”
“…We’re cooperating.”
Bai Zhi extended her hand.
“A gentleman’s word—”
Xiao Yu slapped his palm against hers.
“—is as good as a galloping horse.”
The deal was made.
In the middle of the night, Xiao Zelan woke up to add charcoal to the brazier.
On the way back, he noticed Bai Zhi had kicked off her blanket again.
Sighing softly, he covered her up.
Only after painstakingly settling himself back into bed did he relax.
Listening to Bai Zhi’s steady breathing, he gradually drifted back to sleep.
Xiao Zelan woke up from the cold.
Or rather—
From being frozen.
At some point during the night, Bai Zhi had kicked away her blanket.
Now that she was cold, she had burrowed into his bedding.
One of her icy hands had even found its way under his clothes.
Xiao Zelan shivered violently from the cold.
But he didn’t move away.
Only after Bai Zhi finally warmed up did he climb out of bed.
One of his legs was practically useless.
The other could still bear some weight.
“Imperial Brother!”
“I’ll help you.”
Xiao Yu immediately jumped up and hurried over.
“Don’t.”
His outstretched hand froze midair.
Xiao Zelan lowered his voice.
“Don’t help me.”
“I want to try by myself.”
“…Okay.”
Slowly, painfully, Xiao Zelan shuffled behind the screen.
By the time he returned, he was drenched in sweat.
Watching him, Bai Zhi sighed inwardly.
His leg would have to be treated somehow.
Otherwise their little group—
one child,
one invalid,
and one half-starved girl—
wouldn’t survive many days on the road.
Only after Xiao Zelan settled back into bed did Bai Zhi pretend to wake up.
“Morning.”
Xiao Zelan smiled.
“Morning.”
Bai Zhi rolled over under the blankets.
“This is so comfortable.”
She got up and headed to the kitchen.
While scooping flour, she noticed scratch marks around the cupboard lock.
Someone had tried to pick it.
Bai Zhi sneered.
She had modified the lock the previous night.
From the outside it looked normal.
But internally, she’d fused the locking mechanism together with her metal ability.
The key couldn’t open it.
Lockpicks couldn’t open it.
The only way inside now was to smash the entire lock apart with a hammer.
She prepared four bowls of noodles.
Today she intended to make steamed sweet buns.
Just then a shout came from outside.
“Bai Zhiluo! The vegetable supplier is here!”
“Coming!” she answered.