Once the matter was settled, Zhang Xiue happily returned to everyone's side.

"Third Aunt, are you gone?" Song He'er asked.

Zhang Xiue proudly raised her head, "They slunk away. Don't worry, they won't dare to cause trouble again anytime soon!"

The uncle carrying the stick next to him breathed a sigh of relief. "Phew, they're finally gone. Otherwise, they would have made a huge fuss. I was already starving and in poor health. If something had gone wrong, I'm afraid I wouldn't have made it to the end of the year."

Qin Xiaoniang handed him a money bag and said gently, "This is the copper coin for all of you, a total of twenty-three coins. Please distribute it to everyone. Thank you for your help today."

The middle-aged man waved his hand and said, "No rush, we haven't finished our work yet, how can we take your money so soon?"

"Please accept this. We can handle the rest ourselves. To be honest, it's our fault for not explaining things clearly beforehand, which almost brought you trouble. This is just our way of showing our appreciation, so please accept it..."

Qin Xiaoniang knew perfectly well that they had brought these people here simply to exploit them, and there was no question of whether they would actually work or not.

Now, filled with remorse, all I want is for them to leave quickly, lest those troublesome women recognize their true colors and cause them further trouble in the future.

"Since you're so kind, madam, we'll accept it." The man took the money pouch, beckoned to the person next to him, and prepared to leave.

Before leaving, they didn't forget to thank them repeatedly.

As Song Xiaoyu watched them walk away, doubts arose in her heart once again.

"If we manage to avoid this hurdle today, there might be a second or third one in the future. We still need to address the root cause."

Qin Xiaoniang nodded, "Yes, we still need to find the person who caused the trouble and teach them a lesson once and for all, so they won't keep bothering us."

Ruizhen overheard their conversation and immediately understood the gist of it. It was probably Zhao Changming who was secretly causing trouble and making things difficult for them.

Thinking of this, she stepped forward and explained, "You could have had a smooth life all along. It's all my fault for causing you trouble. That shameless Zhao Changming is capable of anything. I'd better go back and settle things with him privately, so as not to implicate you here."

Just as Ke Ruizhen was about to leave, Qin Xiaoniang grabbed her arm. "What do you mean by 'implicated'? Even without you, I still hate this kind of man. So when we help you get revenge, we are also helping all the women in the world. Why are we born to be men's appendages? Why should we have to suffer such humiliation!"

Upon hearing this, Ruizhen's eyes reddened. "My lady, have you had a similar experience to mine?"

Upon hearing her question, Qin Xiaoniang paused slightly, her expression gradually freezing as a memory she didn't want to recall resurfaced in her mind...

Song He'er stepped forward and smoothed things over, "Who can be a comfortable concubine? My mother also hated those fickle and self-righteous men. So, Aunt, saving you is also a kind of redemption for my mother..."

"Redemption?"

Song He'er almost forgot that these kinds of words were probably incomprehensible to these ancient people.

"I just wanted to fulfill my own good intentions."

No sooner had she finished speaking than Zhang Xiu'e, with her straightforward nature, rushed forward and grabbed Ruizhen's hand, saying, "Take us there now! Zhao Changming lives on the mountain. Once I find him and find out what happened, if he really sent people, I'll castrate him! I'll make him a living eunuch and see if he can still be carefree in secluded places!"

"Pfft~" Chun Di next to her couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Song Xiaoyu quickly went over and shoved Zhang Xiue, saying, "Watch your mouth, none of us sisters are married yet!"

"Ah... never mind, I'm just a rough guy, I don't know how to talk. Let's hurry up and find Zhao Changming. If we don't resolve this today, he'll cause you trouble again tomorrow, that would be a real headache!"

Ruizhen nodded and led a few strong men up the mountain.

Song He'er didn't have to go along, but she still had to go up and take a look. There were some details that others might miss, but she might be able to find them. For example, where Zhao Changming's livelihood came from, and whether he, like Song Xiaoqi, had any connections with outsiders.

Qin Xiaoniang and the two unmarried girls stayed in the cave to take care of the children. To avoid any danger, Li Qiang stayed behind to protect them.

The road up the mountain was very flat, which suggests that someone had taken good care of it. Zhao Changming must have some money saved up, otherwise how could he have money to hire people to do things for him?

After walking for about half an hour, the group finally arrived at the door of an exquisite wooden house.

This is a very large and spacious house, with two side rooms on the east and west sides for cooking, and a courtyard surrounded by bamboo poles.

"Hmph! This despicable man abandons his wife and children in the cave, yet he stays here with prostitutes. What face does he have to live in this world!" Zhang Xiu'e said angrily.

"I'll go in first, you all stay behind and don't rush in!" Song Xiaoyu reminded them.

"Third Uncle, what if there are too many people inside and you get taken advantage of?"

"How many people could there be? Besides, Zhao Changming injured his leg that day and he can't walk properly, so there's no need to be afraid of him."

Leg injury?

Song He'er couldn't help but feel a little guilty. It was just a trick she used with anesthetic. The effects of the drug wore off overnight, and she could still be lively and energetic without any problems.

Zhang Xiue also reminded them from the side, "It's safer if we go in together."

Song Xiaoyu hesitated for a long time before saying, "Alright then..."

After discussing it, Song Xiaoyu gently pushed open the courtyard gate, which wasn't closed very tightly.

Song He'er looked around and realized that this place was even better than Song Xiaoqi's. She could tell that he was a man without any guile and didn't know how to be low-key.

At least Song Xiaoqi knew to avoid the limelight and chose to live in a dilapidated wooden house!

Before they even entered the main house, they could smell a strange fragrance emanating from inside.

"What are they doing? It's broad daylight, why does it smell so strange?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than the sounds of metal being struck came from inside.