Chapter 7 — The Husband and Little Uncle Fake the Disaster, My Sister and I Clean Up the Marquis' Palace

The mother stood on the steps, looked at us, opened her mouth, then closed it again. Maybe she wanted to say something, but in the end she couldn't say a word. When Tieu Ngoc Xu passed by her side, she stopped for a step. The model was stunned. Tieu Ngoc Xu looked at her, his eyes very calm.

"You once taught me something. You said women must accept their destiny."

The model's lips moved.

“Today I will tell you.” Tieu Ngoc Xu said, "I don't accept it."

She turned around and got on the carriage. I look at this Marquis palace one last time. The door is still that door, the wall is still that wall, just like the day I got married here. But I am no longer the Tham Tri Vi of that year anymore. That year's Tham Tri Vi would kneel in front of this door, begging God to let her husband return safely. The current Tham Tri Vi only asks the people in this mansion to never come looking for her again in this life. We got into the carriage and let down the carriage curtain. The wheels grinded across the paved road, making a dull sound. Tieu Ngoc Xu leaned against the car wall, closed his eyes, then suddenly opened his mouth.

“That notebook, when do you plan to hand it over?”

I put my hand in my sleeve and touched the cover of that notebook.

“No rush.”

The carriage drove out of the alley, and the Hau's shadow through the gap in the curtain behind became smaller and smaller.

“Wait until they think they won.”

Thirty miles out of the city, we stopped to rest at a tea shop along the road. The tea shop is not big, there are only three or five tables, a water heater, the owner is a woman over forty years old, has a thick waist and a loud voice, the tea cup brought up is still chipped at one corner, but the tea is hot. Tieu Ngoc Xu held a cup of tea to warm his hands, his eyes scanning the passersby.

“Are you afraid they will chase you?”

“Not afraid.”

I cooled the tea cup and took a sip.

"Because right now what I'm most afraid of is not me running, but the notebook in my hand being spread out."

Tieu Ngoc Xu thought for a moment, then nodded. Outside the tea shop, another person walked in. A middle-aged man, wearing a half-old blue cloth robe, with a bag on his back, walked in, ordered a cup of tea, and sat down at the table opposite us. He drank the tea very quickly, finished three sips, put the tea cup down, and suddenly looked towards us. His eyes stopped on my face for a moment, then moved away again. I don't pay attention. Rest for a moment, then we'll be on our way again. The carriage had not gone more than three miles when the driver suddenly stopped the reins.

“Two ladies, there is someone blocking the way ahead.”

I lifted the car curtain. In the middle of the officials stood three people, the leader of whom I had already met. It was the middle-aged man drinking tea very quickly in the tea shop just now. Behind him stood two younger people, both with weapons strapped to their waists. The middle-aged man clasped his hands at me.

“Miss Shen, Master Tieu asked me to pass on the message to you two.”

Tieu Ngoc Xu's hand was placed on that pair of scissors. I pressed her hand back and looked at the other person from the car curtain.

"Master Tieu said that the two ladies can go, but the Marquis's belongings must be left behind."

"Silver. Land deed. There's also a notebook in Lady Tham's sleeve."

I nodded, pulled out an item from my sleeve, held it up and shook it.

“You said this?”

The middle-aged man's eyes lit up. I held that notebook up high so everyone could see. Then we tore the first page. Male face age changes. I tore the second page.

“Stop!”

He took a step forward, and the driver's whip "pop" hit the ground, forcing him back. I looked at him, my hand not stopping. Third page. Fourth page. Pieces of paper flew out from the carriage and were swept up by the wind, like falling snow scattered on the official road. The leisurely look on the middle-aged man's face was completely gone.

"Miss Shen! Master Tieu said, as long as you hand over the entire notebook, everything is easy to negotiate!"

I closed the half-torn notebook and smiled.

"Everything is easy to negotiate? So let's set a price."

He quickly nodded.

"First, let the Tieu family's people disappear from before me. Don't come looking for me today, tomorrow, for the rest of your life."

"Second, the things in my sleeve are the third year in the Marquis Palace that I will exchange with my life. Whoever dares to reach out, I will make that person like this notebook."

I tore the remaining half of the notebook, the piece of paper flew out, flying all over the sky. The middle-aged man stood there bewildered, looking at the pieces of paper falling all over the ground. He bent down to pick up a piece and turned it over to look at it. Empty. Everything is empty. His face twisted for a moment.