As dawn broke, Yan Lin heard a tinkling sound coming from outside. He quickly opened his eyes and saw that Xu Manzhi was nowhere to be seen.

He hurriedly got up and went outside.

Under the misty sky, a slender figure sat in the courtyard, her hand constantly pounding medicine with a pestle, one stroke after another, clearly struggling. She wiped away her sweat and held her back...

Yan Lin was angry.

He snatched the pestle from Xu Manzhi's hand and scolded, "What are you doing? It's only 4:30. What medicine do you need to start working before dawn?"

Xu Manzhi was pulled so hard that she stumbled.

She only takes one red pill every three days.

Two days had passed, and she was extremely weak. She almost fell to the ground, but Yan Lin caught her by the waist so she could stand up.

She looked up, her gaze softened, without a trace of anger. Instead, she smiled, looking at Yan Lin as if he were a child, and said with pursed lips, "I'm anxious. I want a good-looking husband. If you don't agree, just keep it to yourself."

"Zhizhi...it's not worth it."

Yan Lin really didn't know how to persuade her.

Curing her facial problems seemed to have become her obsession.

Why bother?

Xu Manzhi steadied herself, patted his chest, and put her hands on her hips, saying, "Since you care about me, then help me with the work. What are you whining about?"

"Alright, you're not allowed to make things difficult for yourself anymore. Leave everything to me."

Yan Lin picked up the pestle without hesitation and began to grind the medicine.

Xu Manzhi smiled with satisfaction.

OK.

This kind of physical work is left to him.

Anyway, there's still a lot to do.

To avoid arousing suspicion, she would take time to go to the mountains, pretending to pick medicinal herbs. Each time, she would leave large bags of herbs in plain sight and have someone transport them back.

I've been busy for a long time.

She has made great progress.

The last ingredient, however, requires 81 steps, including separation and recombination using machines, which could take a full six months…

I don't know if there's enough time.

Haicheng Military Region.

Jiang Pengyue came out with her pregnant belly and ran into Ye Yunzhu.

"Hello, Sister Ye," she greeted with a smile.

It was already widely known that Ye Yunzhu had brought Yan Lin and Xu Manzhi together, essentially acting as their matchmaker.

In Jiang Pengyue's eyes, Ye Yunzhu should also be detained and investigated.

Ye Yunzhu's expression was not good.

She said calmly, "Do we know each other?"

Jiang Pengyue chuckled.

With a triumphant expression, she said loudly, "Sister Ye doesn't know someone as lowly as me, but she does know someone like Xu Manzhi. If something happens to her, how will Sister Ye deal with it?"

Ye Yunzhu's expression immediately changed.

She said unhappily, "What are you gloating about? Don't grin here and piss me off. I don't care who you are, I'll still slap you."

The Ye family members also have their own tempers.

She is kind to people in her daily life, but that doesn't mean she's a pushover who can be easily manipulated.

Upon seeing Jiang Pengyue, she felt a stench and spat twice, cursing "bad luck," before turning and leaving.

"Ye Yunzhu, you just wait!"

Jiang Pengyue was furious.

She came specifically to provide evidence of Xu Manzhi's collusion with the Xu family, determined to expose her ugly face and see how arrogant Xu Manzhi would be then.

When she was first invited, she was terrified and cried and begged for mercy.

When she heard that Xu Manzhi was not a member of the Jiang family at all, but a member of the Xu family, she was completely stunned, and then overwhelmed with joy.

As memories flooded back, she suddenly realized that the Jiang family had been completely ruined by Xu Manzhi.

She is the nemesis of the Jiang family.

Grandpa's prediction was very accurate.

Unfortunately, it was all too late.

But killing Xu Manzhi became her greatest wish.

She had just returned to the house the Zhou family had prepared for her when she saw Zhou Xiangqun sitting inside with a gloomy expression. She immediately looked displeased and said, "What are you doing back here? Aren't you going out to get a doctor?"

Since she became pregnant with the Zhou family's only child, Zhou Xiangqun gradually became repulsive and less attractive to her.

The moment she saw him, she couldn't help but speak in a sarcastic tone.

*Smack*

Zhou Xiangqun slammed his fist on the table, grabbed her hair, and slapped her twice, snarling, "You slut, you're the one who made me who I am today. Let me tell you, since I'm going to have a miserable life, you won't have one either. We'll stay in hell together."

Swish.

Jiang Pengyue swung her hand back and slashed his face with her claws, causing blood to flow instantly.

She yelled in a shrill voice, "Zhou Xiangqun, if you dare hit me, I'll let the whole world know you're a eunuch..."

Zhou Xiangqun's lungs were about to explode.

He roared, "Believe it or not, I'll abort your belly, and then you won't get a single penny from the Zhou family."

"You dare!"

Jiang Pengyue was a little scared.

She didn't understand why the man who had been persuaded by the eldest brother of the Zhou family had suddenly gone back on his word and started making things difficult for her unborn child...

But we can't force things right now.

Her tone immediately softened: "Don't do anything reckless. The reason we're all entangled is because of Xu Manzhi. Now that the organization suspects her, we should unite to take revenge."

Zhou Xiangqun was taken aback.

He loosened her hair and asked softly, "Really?"

"Of course, otherwise why do you think I've been called in for questioning time and time again? To tell you the truth, Xu Manzhi isn't a descendant of the Jiang family at all, she is..."

Jiang Pengyue recounted the whole story.

Zhou Xiangqun's eyes shifted uncertainly.

He was overjoyed, as if he had seen some great joy bestowed upon him. He abandoned Jiang Pengyue and ran outside.

Family compound.

Xu Manzhi enjoyed a delicious meal, but Yan Lin took such good care of her that all she had left to do was write records. She was so engrossed in it that sometimes she was so busy that she didn't even have time to drink water. Yan Lin would force her to stop and put water to her lips, at which point she would suddenly realize what was happening and hurriedly finish a whole tub of water.

Yan Lin saw that he couldn't persuade her and had no other choice but to take care of her in every way and try his best not to let her get too busy.

But there are times when he's not around.

That morning, Yan Lin was summoned back to the military region.

He hadn't been gone long when someone rushed over.

"Xu Manzhi—"

As the shouts approached, Xu Manzhi smelled a strange odor, looked up, and was surprised to find that it was Zhou Xiangqun, whom she hadn't seen in a long time.

She said calmly, "What do you want?"

Zhou Xiangqun was about to say that he already knew everything about her, including the investigation by the organization... but he swallowed the words that were about to come out.

He took out a gold bracelet from his pocket and handed it to Xu Manzhi: "I was wrong before, I had bad intentions. I hope you can forgive me. This is a small token of my appreciation, a wedding gift for you and Yan Lin."

Someone once said that if you want to win back a woman's heart, you shouldn't approach her with malice, but rather sincerely help her, assist her, and move her... even a stone can be warmed.

Xu Manzhi's misfortune was practically a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity sent to him by God.

He wouldn't mind marrying a divorced woman.

Since he's not fully healthy anyway, it'll make a perfect pair.