Marquis Xi Ning left with his reluctant wife. Wanwan and Wan Yuechi watched the departing carriage of the Marquis's residence and then happily high-fived.

Xiao Qi and Cao Chengye had not yet returned, so Wanwan and Wan Yuechi packed their things and went home first.

Wan Suizhou was drinking tea in the courtyard. As people get older, the things they do become more and more limited. Wanwan comes in ten times and sees her grandfather drinking tea six times. But that's fine too, so no matter who comes back, they can greet her grandfather.

"Grandpa!" Wanwan sat affectionately next to Wan Suizhou, who patted her head with a smile, as if he were petting a cat.

"What did Wanwan do today?" Wan Suizhou asked, his eyes slightly closed, slowly stroking his beard with one hand.

Wanwan then recounted the events of the day with great enthusiasm and gestures.

"Not bad." Wan Suizhou's aged face was filled with a look of gratified joy. "Wanwan is becoming more and more clever and brave."

Wanwan was so happy that her eyes curved into two crescent moons.

“However,” Wan Suizhou changed the subject, “physical evidence alone is not enough; witness testimony is also crucial. If there is only one, it will leave room for criticism, just like before, and the case will not be closed.”

Upon hearing this, Wanwan and Wan Yuechi's eyes gradually dimmed. They exchanged a glance and a resolute look.

Soon after, Xiao Qi and Cao Chengye returned with physical evidence. Before they could explain in detail, Wan Suizhou called them aside for a long talk.

Xiao Qi's expression grew increasingly cold and serious. After discussing the matter, he also felt that finding witnesses was of utmost importance and could not be delayed. He couldn't recall who was more suspicious. After the four of them gathered in a circle and discussed for a while, they all remembered the guard who had saved Xiao Qi and escaped to Hailan Village with him back then.

When Xiao Qi entered the capital, in order not to arouse suspicion, he specially asked his guards to find him another place to stay. When needed, Xiao Qi would come to him.

This time, Xiao Qi took Wanwan with him, while Cao Chengye stayed behind to recover from the injuries on his face, and Wan Yuechi dealt with the official duties that had been left unfinished due to the investigation of Prince Sui'an.

The guards lived in a remote mountain village. Hailan Village was built around water, while this mountain village was built around mountains.

When Xiao Qi led Wanwan to the guard, he was roasting a rabbit over a fire.

He recognized Xiao Qi, who was nineteen, and Wanwan, who was sixteen, at a glance. He warmly invited them to sit down. The fire was cozy, and the fatigue from the long journey seemed to disappear in the warmth.

"Young Master," the guard cleared his throat as he roasted the rabbit, as if he had something important to say, "Have you and Miss Wanwan gotten married?"

Wanwan, who was drooling over the rabbit meat, was stunned. Xiao Qi glared at the guard warily as if he had been stung.

After all these years, this kid is still as annoying as ever.

"No……"

The guard immediately became serious after being glared at by his young master. "I remember that back then we did need an important witness, namely the steward of the Marquis of Xining. However, he is quite old now, and more than ten years have passed. He has probably retired to his hometown long ago."

Wanwan and Xiao Qi exchanged a glance, then looked at the guards with a tacit understanding.

"Fortunately, I remember where he lived in his hometown," the guard said smugly, sprinkling some salt on the rabbit meat.

Tempted by the warm campfire and the enticing aroma of rabbit meat, the two insisted on eating the rabbit with the guards before setting off to find the steward.

A person who would help his master frame a loyal minister is certainly not a good person. During the time that Marquis Xining was being closely watched by the emperor, the steward's son got into trouble again and committed murder.

The offended family was no pushover either. They stood guard outside the steward's door day and night, attacking anyone who showed their face. They threatened to either hand over five thousand taels of silver or have the steward and his family kidnapped and imprisoned.

The housekeeper and his crew were so frightened that they dared not leave the house for ten days or half a month.

While looking worried, the steward thought of Marquis Xining, so he secretly went to the capital and found Marquis Xining, hoping that he could help him.

Unfortunately, Marquis Xi Ning was preoccupied with other matters and was caught in a dilemma, so he kept making excuses to the old steward.

He knew that if he ignored the steward, the steward would most likely use the case of Prince Sui'an to threaten him, so he couldn't refuse openly and could only engage in a tug-of-war with him in secret.

The old steward wasn't stupid; he quickly realized that Marquis Xining had no intention of helping. He harbored some resentment but dared not show it openly, so he had no choice but to return to his hometown in a huff.

During his absence, Wanwan and Xiao Qi found the family that had the accident.

The family all looked like thugs and hooligans. When the two entered, they saw their matriarch eating sunflower seeds at the gate. The ground was covered with a thick layer of sunflower seed shells, and there was all sorts of garbage in the yard. A layer of black and smelly grime had formed on the corner of the wall, and the sour stench could be smelled from the gate.

The main gate was tilted and couldn't be closed properly. A few flowers were planted symbolically at the entrance, looking sickly and even less vibrant than the courtyard. The inner room door was wide open, and two burly men covered in sweat sat inside.

The group of people were relaxed and carefree, showing no signs of having just died.

Seeing someone approaching, the mistress narrowed her small eyes and spat a mouthful of sunflower seed shells onto the ground. "Who is it? Have you finally come to bring us money? Or do you just not want to go to jail?"

Wanwan and Xiao Qi exchanged a glance, both showing the same disdain in their eyes.

The mistress stood up, patted the sunflower seed shells off her clothes, and strode to the door. She looked the two men up and down carefully. Seeing that they had an extraordinary air about them and didn't seem like village women and farmers, she curled her lip, her eyes filled with disappointment and disdain. "They're not the ones sent to deliver money. Don't ask me for directions, I don't know the way."

After saying that, she was about to close the crooked door.

A sudden idea struck Wanwan, and she darted forward to stop them, smiling sincerely as she said, "Auntie, we're here to give you money."

The mistress's cloudy eyes darted around, and she stared at Wanwan warily like a mouse. "Little girl, don't try to fool me. You two don't look like locals, do you?"

"No, no." Wanwan waved her hands repeatedly, admitting it readily. Then she leaned closer to the woman, covered her mouth, and said mysteriously, "To tell you the truth, that family also has a grudge against us. He used to live in the capital and didn't get along with my grandfather. Later he moved away, but we still can't swallow this grudge. We came here this time to let Auntie take advantage of the opportunity he offended you and teach him a lesson."

The mistress narrowed her eyes. "Young lady, you think you can just order things around like that? We're not anyone's thugs."

Wanwan looked like she understood perfectly. She took the hairpin off her head and put it in the mistress's hand. The mistress's eyes lit up instantly, her mouth opened wide, and she quickly wiped the hairpin with her sleeve.

Wanwan pressed her advantage, saying, "I'll give my aunt some payment, and she'll help me put on a show. After it's done, I'll give the rest to my partner."

The mistress held the hairpin up to the sunlight, examining it closely. When she heard Wanwan say that there was still half left, she immediately nodded vigorously, "Yes, yes, yes, whatever you say, young lady."