Xu Lanyin asked in surprise, "What should we do then?"

Zhao Wudao said, "They have been holding back. They must have felt that taking action in the inn would be too conspicuous, so they wanted to wait for Su Qing to leave before looking for an opportunity to strike."

They discussed until the end of the night, Xu Lan went to rest, and Zhao Wu and Li Luo went to the outer study to discuss until late at night.

Xu Lanyin was sleeping soundly when she felt an itch and numbness on her face. She knew that Zhao Wu had returned. She opened her eyes and smiled, "You're back?" She pushed him again and said, "Don't mess with me. Be careful with the child."

Zhao Wu didn't dare to act rashly and told Li Luo the result of his discussion with him.

Two days later, Xu Lanyin asked someone to rent an ox cart outside, and Aunt Jia and a steward of the Qin Mansion took Mei out of the inn and out of the north gate.

When the oxcart passed through a forest, four masked strong men with knives rushed out and stopped the oxcart. Two of them pointed at the driver and said, "If you want to die, get back."

Two of them tried to pull the curtains, but three big men jumped out of the carriage and started fighting with the four killers together with the driver. Then, four more big men came from behind and quickly captured the four killers alive.

In the car, only Aunt Jia and Sister He were real, the child in her arms was a pillow, and Mrs. Mei in a cloak was dressed as a thin constable.

The four assassins were taken to the Censorate. Under torture, they confessed that they were guards from the Changhu Marquis's residence, sent by Madam Su to hunt down Su Qing and stage a robbery. From the capital to Ningzhou Prefecture, Su Qing and her companions were with the escort team, making it difficult for them to kill them. They were also unable to kill them while staying at the inn, so they had to wait until they left the city...

They had committed a crime within the jurisdiction of the Minhu household. Although the crime was attempted murder, they were sentenced to fifty strokes of the cane. The Minhu household also sent someone to take them to the capital and hand them over to Lord Su. They also brought a letter from Mei, begging Lord Su to spare her and let her fend for herself outside. If she returned to the capital, even if Madam Su was under surveillance, she would be unable to harm her, and Madam Su's own children would not let her go in the future...

On the first day of June, Mei's health improved and she was no longer in danger. Two stewards from the Qin residence and Aunt Jia escorted Mei and her companions to Shanglin County, where they were settled and returned. Xu Lanyin also gave Mei some supplements and two rolls of soft cotton cloth suitable for making clothes and bedding for infants. She also promised to have 500 acres of land purchased for Mei not far from Shanglin County. Mei didn't want anyone to know they had so much money.

Zhao Wu had a good relationship with Captain Bao of Shanglin County, and he had Aunt Jia bring him a gift and a letter, explaining that Mei was a relative of his wife's and asking him to help take care of her. The county magistrate was not as good as the current one, and sometimes the captain of the police could be more effective.

Mei knelt and saluted Xu Lanyin, saying, "Thank you, Grandma Zhao, and thank you, Master Zhao, Master Qin, and Master Min on our behalf. You saved our lives. I will always remember this, and I will let Qian'er remember this too."

Xu Lanyin smiled and said, "Shanglin County is close to us. If you have any problems, please let Sister He know. I will definitely help if I can."

Mei bowed again, and Mrs. He knelt down and kowtowed.

Watching the mule cart gradually recede, Xu Lanyin sighed again. Not every reborn woman can defy fate. If it weren't for Zhao Wu's professional sensitivity and her help, this reborn woman would have been cannon fodder again. Of course, if it weren't for meeting a time-traveling woman like her, who rewrote the history of this world, Su Qing wouldn't have had such a fate.

On the second day of the New Year, Xu Lanyin sent Zhao Wu and Li Luo away again.

Li Luo had already agreed with Qin Che to give him two years to plan. If the results of the investigation proved too dangerous, he would first ensure his own safety and live forever as Li Luo.

Qin Che liked Li Luo's personality and knowledge, and was also very optimistic about Zhao Wu. Most importantly, his beloved daughter also believed in him. He agreed. If Li Luo's future was still uncertain after two years, he would take his daughter to live in Jiangnan, and his family would provide a large dowry. Compared to his high status, Qin Che preferred his son-in-law's safety.

Five days later, Aunt Jia returned to say that Mei had bought a two-story house in Shanglin County and a maid in her thirties. The county magistrate's wife had sent a steward to visit her, and Constable Bao's wife had even come to see her herself. Mei, a well-mannered woman, had given gifts to both families...

On the afternoon of June 11, Zhao Wufeng rushed back home, exhausted. Xu Lanyin knew he would definitely come back today because tomorrow was her eighteenth birthday.

Zhao Feng also brought back birthday gifts for Xu Lanyin from Xu Qingyan's family and the Princess Nanyang's Mansion.

He said that Gu Wangchen and Zhou Zimei were already engaged and would be married next month. It seemed that Zhou Zimei was already pregnant, and Old Master Zhou and Minister Zhou were unwilling and unable to do so.

Gu Wangchen's newly divorced, infertile wife was betrothed to the granddaughter of the Grand Tutor, which was bound to attract criticism. Coincidentally, the Tongpan (Prefectural Magistrate) of Jiaodong Prefecture had died of illness, and to avoid the spotlight, the Zhou family helped Gu Wangchen fill the vacancy.

It was also said that Mrs. Gu accidentally fell while walking and became paralyzed, unable to get out of bed, and was taken to Jiaodong by Gu Wangchen.

Xu Lanyin snorted coldly, "Serves her right. That woman is so evil. However, her paralysis must have been caused by Gu Wangchen. That man can't stand anyone who stands in his way. This time she's so happy, she found a good in-law family. Even if she has bad morals, she can still get promoted."

Zhao Wudao said, "If you have bad morals, you will get into trouble wherever you go. Lord Min was the prefect of Jiaodong for a few years and is familiar with the people there, so let them pay attention."

Xu Lanyin was delighted when she heard this. The rank of Tongpan wasn't high, but it held immense power, providing ample opportunity for crime. Gu Wangchen and Zhou Zimei were both greedy and incompetent, making it difficult to prevent them from committing crimes.

The next day, Min Jia and Xu Lanyue took leave and stayed home. Mrs. Qin brought Qin Hongyu and Xiaoxiang'er to the scene first, saying that Grandmother Qin was pregnant again and couldn't come. Then the women and children of the Hu, Min Nan, and Hong Zhen families arrived, and Li, who was three months pregnant, also came.

The men would come to have dinner after finishing school.

Xu Lanyin was a little puzzled. Xu Dashi and the Li couple had agreed to come and help first, but the guests had all arrived and they hadn't arrived yet.

At the beginning of noon, Xu Dashi finally arrived. Not only did he and his family come, but he also brought Old Man Xu, Old Lady Xu, Xu Qingming and Mrs. Gu.

Xu Dashi and Xu Lanyin spread their hands, meaning that there was nothing they could do.

Old man Xu looked more than ten years older. He was very thin, with sparse gray hair, and he even staggered when he walked.

Xu Lan was angry at the old man for bullying Qin and favoring boys over girls, but she was just angry, not hateful. Seeing him like this, her heart softened. She walked over to him and said, "Are you not feeling well? I'll ask a doctor to come and see you right away."

Seeing Xu Lanyin's attitude, Old Man Xu was so happy that his eyes turned red. He said, "Good granddaughter, I won't die yet."

Old Mrs. Xu whispered, "We just came to the provincial capital to see your grandfather. We thought it was your birthday today, so we came."

The upper room was occupied by female guests, so Xu Lanyin invited her family to the side room.