After instructing the servants, Su Luo, Shen Yuan, and Xie Wanwan went to check on the fields. Since the estate manager was not there, three men led them there.

The three of them walked and introduced themselves, their smiles never fading.

Yushui Village is not far from the other two villages; they are practically adjacent. The two villages each cover 100 mu, but Yushui Village is the largest, covering 130 mu.

Halfway there, they encountered a man returning home. His clothes were mostly wet, and he was carrying a load of grass on his shoulder to feed the cattle.

"Manager Xie, Manager Xie, you're back."

A servant rushed up to Xie Quan and said with a smile, "Manager Xie, this is Madam Su, and her friend. She is the new master of our estate."

Xie Quan looked up, put down the load, and bowed to Su Luo: "Madam! I am Xie Quan, the manager of Yushui Manor."

This person was neither humble nor arrogant, nor did he smile. He looked at Su Luo with only ordinary respect, but when he saw Xie Wanwan wearing a veil, his eyes changed noticeably.

Xie Wanwan trembled when she saw the manager in front of her.

Su Luo turned to Xie Wanwan and asked, "Wanwan, what's wrong?"

Xie Wanwan's eyes were fixed on Xie Quan. Only when she heard Su Luo ask her a question did she turn her head back to answer.

"No...it's nothing, Madam Su, I just suddenly feel a little unwell."

After glancing at Xie Quan and then at Xie Wanwan, Su Luo understood everything. The two must have known each other before, but there were some things they couldn't say in front of Su Luo.

"If you're not feeling well, go rest at the wooden house and wait for me. Young Master Shen and I can go and see the estate ourselves."

The two turned to leave, but Xie Quan, as the steward of the estate, naturally couldn't let his master go to look after the fields by himself. Even though his clothes were wet, he followed behind Su Luo.

"Manager Xie, you should go back first, change into clean clothes, and then come find me and Young Master Shen after you've changed."

Xie Quan quickly bowed to express his gratitude, this time bowing even lower.

"Thank you, Madam."

Xie Quan picked up the load of grass for the cows again and walked back with Xie Wanwan, one in front of the other.

Shen Yuan looked at the two people, a smile on his lips, and walked behind Su Luo. He would occasionally glance at Su Luo, and when he saw that she didn't react at all, he said.

"Madam Su, can't you tell that Miss Xie and that steward from earlier are old acquaintances?"

Looking at the vast field, Su Luo continued walking with the three servants: "Everyone has their own privacy. If I interfere with everything, how will I have time to do important things?"

"What Lady Su said is true. Fortunately, we are allies, not enemies."

Having seen countless people, Shen Yuan realized that Su Luo was not petty or narrow-minded like a woman. After spending the past few months together, he could tell that Su Luo was definitely an outstanding person.

Right now, she's just building up her power; in the future, she'll definitely be a force to be reckoned with, and might even threaten the Shen family's business empire.

Everything she's doing now is unstoppable; only by maintaining good relations can the two families coexist in the future.

"Young Master Shen is too kind. I hope we can remain allies in the future."

The two inspected all the fields. The soil in the village was very good. Su Luo wanted to plant cotton all year, so she had the water drained from all the paddy fields.

There were a few trees on the edge of the field, which blocked too much sunlight and was bad for cotton production, so Su Luo had them cut down.

...

Inside the wooden house, the villagers brought Xie Wanwan a basin of fire and then left, leaving Xie Wanwan pacing anxiously inside.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. She opened it and saw Xie Quan, who had changed his clothes, coming to see Xie Wanwan. Although Xie Quan's clothes were old, they were clean and had no patches.

The moment he saw Xie Wanwan, he knelt down, tears welling in his eyes.

“Miss! This old servant knew you were still alive.”

Xie Wanwan helped Xie Quan up. This was the only elderly person from the Xie family she had seen after the house was ransacked. Xie Quan was the steward of the Xie family.

The two looked at each other with a sense of joy at having survived a disaster.

Xie Wanwan untied the veil from her head. As the veil slowly fell away, a long scar ran from her temple to her lips, sealing away her unparalleled beauty.

Only the cinnabar mole on her forehead added a touch of mystery and charm.

"Miss, your...your face..."

The Xie family was raided, the head of the family was beheaded, the men were exiled, and the women were forced into prostitution.

The young lady's beauty was renowned throughout the capital, yet she ended up in such a state, now forced to wear a veil in public.

Xie Wanwan gently stroked the scar on her face and said, "My face is fine, Uncle Quan. What are you doing here, and working as a manager in this manor?"

The two sat down, and Xie Quan sighed, telling Xie Wanwan what had happened behind the scenes at the Xie residence.

"Miss, after you were taken away, the madam committed suicide and left with the master."

The government confiscated all the valuables in the Xie family mansion. We were slaves, but we were also considered part of the Xie family's property.

This Yushui Manor was originally the Xie family's estate. As the Xie family's steward, I was assigned by the government to look after the estate.

We had been farming for the government for over a year until last month when the estate was granted to the newly appointed Deputy Minister of Agriculture, and our indentures were also given to this master..."

Xie Quan survived entirely because Master Xie took the blame for everything, saying that he was just a servant who knew nothing, and that's how he managed to escape with his lowly life.

But the master was innocent. More than a dozen members of the Xie family were beheaded, and dozens were exiled. Some died, and some were injured. They were wronged.

If it weren't for the sliver of hope that he could clear the Xie family's name, Xie Quan would have long wanted to go see his former master.

Unfortunately, he was powerless to do anything about it. As a slave, a servant who could only look after estates on the outskirts of the capital, he didn't know when he would be able to see his enemy get his comeuppance.

But now things are alright. He has seen Miss, and she is still alive. Miss and he must be of one mind and will definitely not let Master and Madam die in vain.

Xie Quan told Xie Wanwan everything, from the beginning to the end, who died and how they died. The most pitiful one was her sister-in-law, who was six months pregnant and was beaten to death, resulting in the deaths of both mother and child.

As they spoke, both of them broke down in tears. After wiping away their tears, Xie Quan continued.

"Miss, how have you been doing this past year? And why were you with the Deputy Minister of Agriculture? The young master who was with you just now, he is the son of the Shen Family Chamber of Commerce."

I sniffed to calm myself down before I could speak.

"I...I was incredibly lucky amidst misfortune. Those people paid me money to take me to another place, hoping to sell me for a high price. That's when I met Lady Su."

She helped me redeem myself from servitude, and for the past year, I've worked as a tutor in her household, living a life free from want.

Madam Su even taught me how to do business. Now we're cooperating with the Shen Clan Chamber of Commerce. I never imagined the Xie family's estate would be bestowed upon Madam Su, and that I'd even meet you, Uncle Quan, here. Perhaps this is fate.