The wicked sister-in-law is in charge; meals include fish and shrimp.

Chapter 64 Golden Thigh

Wen Ziming looked to his other brothers for help, and Wen Zixun also looked troubled. Wen Zijin nodded to him.

Recently, there has been quiet discussion in the academy about the Zhenguo Duke's family. I never expected that the protagonist of today's event would be so close to me.

Besides his parents and younger sister, his fifth brother was the most influential person in the family. Seeing him nod, Wen Ziming went into the kitchen to fetch water.

A short while later he came out carrying a large bucket of water, followed by Wen Luozhi.

She glanced at the listless people in the courtyard and then at Wen Zijing, because Wen Ziming had just said that Wen Zijing had nodded in agreement.

Wen Zijin seemed to understand what she was trying to say and nodded at her.

Wen Luozhi then picked up a ladle, scooped a bowl of water, and handed it to Lan Cai, saying, "Drink up quickly."

"Thank you so much, little girl!" Lan Cai excitedly took the water and fed it to her daughter in her arms.

But as soon as the water was poured in, it dripped down the corner of her mouth. Lan Cai tried several more times, but the result was still the same.

Helian Qiaosong on the other side was anxious to rush over, but the shackles on his feet tripped him up.

Wen Luozhi couldn't bear to watch any longer, so she went inside, took a straw, and gently inserted it into Helian Zhiyan's mouth, saying, "Little sister, can you hear me?"

Helian Zhiyan's eyes twitched. Wen Luozhi took the bowl and placed it on the straw, continuing, "If you want to live, gently suck through this bamboo straw. Drink the water and you will survive."

She could tell that the child was probably quite ill, and since her fifth brother had given his approval, she wasn't afraid to risk trying to save him.

Helian Zhiyan's eyelids twitched but she didn't open her eyes, but Wen Luozhi noticed that the water in the bowl was obviously decreasing.

Lan Cai also noticed and was so excited that she wanted to kneel down to Wen Luozhi.

Wen Luozhi raised her hand to stop her, gave her a deep look, and said, "You'd better not have done anything heinous."

Lan Cai froze, then raised three fingers with a resolute expression: "If I, Lan Cai, am lying, may I die a horrible death."

Wen Luozhi didn't look at her again, but put two white pills into her hand and whispered, "If you trust me, I'll dissolve them in water and give them to her to drink. She should wake up before tonight."

"If you don't believe me..." Wen Luozhi shrugged, "Then it's fine."

Lan Cai glanced at the two strange pills in her palm, then looked helplessly at Helian Qiaosong across from her.

Wen Zijin was helping him up when he looked into her eyes and smiled gently at her. Lan Cai made up her mind and put the medicine into the bowl of water.

Her daughter was already in this state, so she would take a gamble! A gamble on the conscience of the people her Duke's family had protected with their lives for generations! If she gambled right, her daughter would live; if she gambled wrong, she would die with her daughter!

The water in the bowl slowly dwindled to almost nothing, and Wen Luozhi glanced at it and breathed a sigh of relief.

That was something she redeemed with 100 points in the system! Luckily, it wasn't wasted.

[Host, put away that pained expression. This system is helping you soar to new heights.]

The system's arrogant voice echoed in her mind. That's right, Wen Zijin's nod was not enough to make her save a child.

It was only because this lousy system had just told her about some surprises to come that she was barely able to convince herself.

The people inside were in a great mood, having eaten and drunk their fill, and didn't care whether or not they gave water to the people outside.

The system's chattering voice rang in Wen Luozhi's mind again: [Host, it'll be a long time before you earn enough money to upgrade this system to Max. Why not cling to this golden thigh now and enjoy endless glory in the future... sizzle... sizzle]

A series of electrical buzzing sounds came through, but then stopped. Wen Luozhi called out several times, but there was no response.

She stroked her chin and began to ponder the "golden thigh" thing the system had mentioned. Standing by the kitchen window, she looked out for a long time before finally figuring things out.

Those outside are the people of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, who are supposed to protect the country. Could it be that the kind of drama in novels, where treacherous officials slander virtuous ministers, is playing out right now?

Considering the oath the woman just made and the electrical noise from the system, could it be that some inviolable law has been violated?

Wen Luozhi thought about it more and more and felt that this made sense, so she stood back by the window and observed outside. Her sharp eyes swept over everyone, and judging from a girl's sixth sense, they really didn't seem like bad people.

"What are you looking at, girl?" Xie He patted her shoulder, startling her.

Wen Luozhi turned to look at her and asked, "Mother, weren't you just outside? Why did you suddenly come in?"

Xie He rolled her eyes at her. "I've been standing behind you for ages!"

"Daughter, don't you also feel sorry for those people?" Xie He asked tentatively, then sighed as she thought of the people in the yard.

Wen Luozhi chuckled and asked her directly, "Mother, are you planning to send them some food?"

It's just some food. Even if she misjudged them and they really were bad people, she wouldn't lose anything. What if they really were good people and she could make a comeback? If she missed that opportunity, she would be at a huge loss.

Xie He thought for a moment, "I do my good while he does his evil. They're not short of food right now, so their daughter should agree, right?"

She wanted to ask a couple more questions, but Wen Luozhi picked up the chilled drink she had prepared earlier and said to her, "Mother, please hurry, I'll go and take some things to those people in the room first."

She had put something in all the food and drinks, and by the time they woke up, the people outside had already finished eating.

Xie He was worried about her, so she finally asked Wen Muchuan to come out and deliver the things to those people in the main hall.

The officers and soldiers were quite pleased; they had never eaten such good food on their journey, even if they had spent money.

Now, not only have they already eaten, but they're even getting cool, refreshing snacks. Everyone's so happy they've completely let their guard down.

They had been cautious with the previous dishes, testing them with silver needles, but now they were simply eating them directly.

Wen Luozhi peered into the kitchen, thinking that even if they used silver needles, they wouldn't be able to detect anything—it wasn't poison! It was just an overdose of sleeping pills.

After they finished eating and collapsed at the table, Xie He and the others had also finished their work in the kitchen.

They made dumplings in two different ways, plus a pot of steamed buns, and also cooked a pot of porridge in case they couldn't handle it.

Wen Luozhi picked up a few steamed dumplings and steamed buns, wrapped them up, and stuffed them into Lan Cai's arms, saying, "Give her some when she wakes up."

"Hide it well, or I won't be responsible if you find it."

Lan Cai looked at her gratefully, her eyes glistening with tears, and took the things, hiding them behind her back.

Seeing her pitiful state, Xie He brought her some food and placed it in front of her, saying, "Girl, eat this quickly. Tell me if you need more."

"Thank you so much, Auntie," Lan Cai said, her voice choked with emotion, as she took big bites of the steamed bun.

Giving food to each person individually was too much trouble, so Wen Luozhi simply divided the food into several large portions for them to eat themselves.

Everyone looked at each other, but no one made a move. Wen Luozhi cleared her throat and said, "Sigh, if we dawdle any longer, the people inside will wake up. Then they won't be able to eat and will only starve to death." After saying that, she retreated to the courtyard gate to stand guard.

She still needed to be careful; if these people were truly evil, none of them would escape.