Chapter 10: Leaving the Manor Smoothly

As for the second courtyard and the three-story medicine building, their construction materials were all crafted by powerful beings using spiritual plants imbued with spiritual energy, so they were all consumed as energy.

‘Xueli’ also told her that the large underground warehouse was still there, but it only contained some of the items she had brought over from the 21st century. As for the things stored by the previous several owners, anything that possessed even a hint of spiritual energy had been consumed as energy.

Yun Yi held the little snow fox and went to check for herself. Most of the items left behind by the previous owners in the warehouse were gone; what remained were mostly the things she had purchased from the 21st century.

Fortunately, these items were still there. As for the various seeds she had bought in the future, she didn't know if it was because they lacked any spiritual energy or because they had safely reached their destination and no longer needed to consume energy, but in any case, they had all been preserved.

Now, she had also sorted out the situation of the manor and the original owner. Returning was likely impossible, so she could only settle in where she was. Besides, she still had to find a way to locate Long Jingrui.

It seemed she needed to recover her physical strength as soon as possible and plant crops to restore vitality to the space. However, her mental energy was currently too weak, and doing everything by hand was truly time-consuming and laborious. But what other choice was there? She would just treat it as exercise.

The original owner’s father was a military official who doted on this legitimate daughter. Since she was young, the original owner loved to pester her father to teach her martial arts. Although she hadn't learned much, it would at least provide a justification for her good skills in the future.

It seemed she would have to write out a martial arts manual from memory and drag her "cheap" younger brother along to practice it. That way, she wouldn't give herself away, and it would also allow him to defend himself and build his health—killing two birds with one stone.

Looking at the empty space, she thought to herself, "It’s a pity about the original herb fields; they didn't even leave me a single strand of hair. Now I have to start everything from scratch. It really is a long and arduous road ahead."

******

The next day, at Song Courtyard, Xiao Chenrui finished washing up and paced back and forth in the study. Because of the mourning period, he hadn't been out of the manor to attend classes at the academy for some time.

But today, he had to find a way to leave the manor and seek help at the Jin Prince’s Mansion.

He had been thinking about how to leave the manor smoothly without arousing the suspicion of the people in the first branch.

Just then, he saw a servant leading his second cousin from the first branch, Xiao Chenming, inside. "Second Cousin, why are you here today?"

Xiao Chenming looked at his third brother, who had grown much thinner. "Chenrui, Second Cousin knows you are sad and grieving, but you can't keep cooped up in the courtyard. You need to go out and walk around so your mood can improve as soon as possible."

Hearing his second cousin’s words, Xiao Chenrui felt it was exactly what he needed.

After pretending to consider it, he spoke slowly, "Second Cousin is right. I should go out of the manor for a walk to clear my mind, rather than staying in the manor all day and seeing things that remind me of the departed."

Xiao Chenming smiled faintly. "That’s right. The dead cannot return to life; you must try to be open-minded."

Xiao Chenrui nodded gently. "Second Cousin is right. Are you heading out of the manor today? May I accompany you?"

Xiao Chenming gave a gentle, warm smile. "I was just preparing to head out to take care of some business, so let’s go together."

Thus, Xiao Chenrui followed Xiao Chenming out of the courtyard. Because Xiao Chenming didn't want his legal mother to know about his meeting with friends today, he didn't have a carriage called to the front gate. Instead, he went directly to the back courtyard, had a servant ready a carriage, and left straight from the back gate.

Because of this, their departure did not alert anyone in the manor.

Once they arrived at the bookstore, Xiao Chenming found the person he was meeting, and he no longer paid any attention to Xiao Chenrui.

Xiao Chenrui found an opportunity to slip out of the bookstore. Thinking that if he walked, it would take too long and he might be discovered by his second cousin, he went to the front and rented a carriage to head toward the Jin Prince’s Mansion.

Two extra chapters added. Thank you all for your support!

(End of chapter)