Exile? A mad, wicked woman empties the national treasury to escape famine.

Zhang Lizheng and the others only saw Ji Yunshu go over and talk to the eldest prince, but they didn't know what the two talked about.

But when they heard from Ji Yunshu that the eldest prince was going to send them money, they were all incredibly excited.

"Yes, yes, Your Highness, we understand, we understand!"

"Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Your Highness!"

"Thank you, Your Highness!"

The crowd cheered and many people stood up and surrounded Chu Jinsheng's carriage.

Dr. Wu and the others had just arrived and knew nothing about the situation. When they saw the villagers gathering in this direction and heard Ji Yunshu's words, they were all somewhat confused.

Wasn't Ji Yunshu an exiled prisoner? Where did she get the audacity to speak to the First Prince in such a tone?

Just when they thought the Crown Prince was about to lose his temper, Chu Jinsheng waved his hand at them.

"Alright, Xiao Wu, take some men and distribute the silver to them. Also, send Ji Yunshu her thousand taels of gold! I want to see how these few people, with Xie Moyao being a cripple, can manage to carry a thousand taels of gold on their way!"

While waiting on the road, he would figure out a way to get that thousand taels of gold back.

No matter how capable Ji Yunshu is, he can't possibly carry a thousand taels of gold on his journey.

Xiao Wu nodded without saying much. He led a few guards to distribute the silver that Doctor Wu and his team had just brought to the villagers one by one, while the whole box of gold was sent to Ji Yunshu.

Dr. Wu and the others were completely dumbfounded, watching helplessly as the money was handed over to someone else.

But since the eldest prince had spoken, none of them dared to ask what was going on.

Chu Jinsheng was extremely annoyed, watching helplessly as the silver was sent away like water, his heart was bleeding.

His Crown Prince's mansion was filled with countless treasures of gold and silver. He wouldn't normally care about this amount of silver, but given his current situation, it was extremely important to him.

Unexpectedly, before it even had a chance to settle in with him, someone else took it away.

Although he knew he would find a way to get the gold back sooner or later, watching it go to someone else's hands, especially Ji Yunshu's, made him want to vomit.

He suddenly remembered the durian tree that his men had found in the woods.

Durian is a very rare fruit; even he had never seen it before.

According to Ji Yunshu, durians are extremely nutritious. If he could get this durian tree to be planted in the capital, a single durian could fetch an astronomical price!

Thinking about it this way, the loss of one thousand taels of gold doesn't feel so painful anymore.

He bent down and beckoned a guard over, then whispered a few instructions in the guard's ear.

The guard nodded, then turned around and led about a dozen guards away from the spot without making a sound.

The guards acted quickly, and in no time they had distributed all the silver to the villagers, with each villager receiving several dozen taels of silver.

The crowd kept rubbing the silver in their hands, grinning from ear to ear—

They had never seen so much silver in their lives!

The events of the past few days have been a bittersweet experience for them.

Ji Yunshu and the others sat together, looking at the box of gold in front of them, all of them with somewhat worried expressions.

"Third sister-in-law, why didn't you ask the eldest prince to give you this gold later? They have more manpower and are traveling the same way. If we leave the gold with them, they can help us carry it and save us energy," Chen asked疑惑地.

Li was holding a small dumpling in her arms when she glanced at the box on the ground.

"Yes, Third Sister-in-law, didn't you say that the road ahead is difficult to travel? Even the carriage can't move. This cart is too crowded, as it has to carry supplies, Third Brother, and this box of gold."

As soon as the two finished speaking, Sherlin hurriedly said from the side:

"You can take it, you can take it! Madam, Second Madam, don't worry, you can definitely take it! The money has already been sent over, we can't just send it back!"

He patted his chest.

"Since Your Highness can push it in a cart, I'll leave it empty-handed. I still have some strength, so please let me handle it."

The group was moving slowly anyway, so I carried it forward section by section. This thousand taels of gold must be taken with us. When we get to the Northwest, with this thousand taels of gold, we won't have to live a life of hardship!

Li and Chen exchanged a glance, both feeling a bit amused and exasperated.

Sherlin was strong, but this was a whole thousand taels of gold; how could he just carry it on his back?

Ji Yunshu was also somewhat amused and exasperated. How could Xie Lin, with his small frame, possibly carry such a thousand taels of gold?

"Sister-in-law, don't worry. Since I asked the First Prince to send this gold over, I naturally have a way to take it with me. When you put my husband on the cart later, put the box next to him."

This cart is of excellent quality; it should have no problem hauling this much stuff.

As she was saying this, Xie Moyao lifted the carriage curtain and looked over in their direction.

Ji Yunshu nodded to him, and in an instant, Xie Moyao understood what Ji Yunshu meant. Then, he spoke calmly.

"Sister-in-law, second sister-in-law, Xie Lin, since Yun Shu says she has a solution, let's trust her. Besides, this cart looks quite spacious; there's more than enough room to put a box on the side."

Since Ji Yunshu and Xie Moyao had both said so, the others didn't say anything more. Xie Lin consciously packed some of the slightly heavier items from the carriage into a bundle, intending to carry them on his back later to lighten the load on the cart.

After seeing that all the villagers had received their silver, Ji Yunshu told Zhang Lizheng that they were about to set off.

Zhang Lizheng and the villagers had already packed up. After Ji Yunshu and her group left, they also got up.

The rest were the officials.

The officials had obtained some crocodile meat, but they weren't entitled to any of the silver.

Speaking of this, Ling Yun was absolutely furious.

He had stayed in Yuncheng for several days before, and it was the eldest prince who allowed them to rest and recuperate there, saying that he would make up for it with money later.

Everyone else just received their silver, but the First Prince didn't have anyone distribute any to them. The meaning is obvious; he probably doesn't intend to give any.

They could only suffer in silence, unable to express their bitterness.

After the villagers left, Ling Yun gathered the officials and led the other exiled prisoners to follow the procession.

Once everyone else left, only the eldest prince and his entourage remained.

They had just distributed all the silver to the villagers and Ji Yunshu, and the atmosphere in their group was clearly not good.

As it grew darker, they realized that staying there was not a solution.

Finally, Xiao Wu steeled himself and went to Chu Jinsheng's carriage.

"Your Highness, most of the others have already left. Should we follow the group? It's getting dark, and it might not be safe in this forest."

Chu Jinsheng was already quite annoyed. Hearing Xiao Wu's words, he didn't even lift the carriage curtain, and coldly said,

"In that case, why don't you hurry up and come with us! Oh, and keep a close eye on Ji Yunshu and the others, especially regarding that thousand taels of gold!"