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

For a moment, Ji Yunshu was dazed, thinking she had seen wrong. How could Zhou Yanran, an unmarried girl, be hanging out with that group of men?

She rubbed her eyes and looked again; sure enough, it was Zhou Yanran.

At this moment, Zhou Yanran was chatting and laughing with the officials. Surrounded by a group of officials, Zhou Yanran said something that made the officials burst into laughter.

Some of the officials who were planning to rest also surrounded Zhou Yanran.

Seeing this, Ji Yunshu shook her head. What's the difference between this and those brothels?

Is Zhou Yanran going to give up on herself?

She turned her head and looked at Zhou's parents, only to find them sitting not far away like wooden statues, showing no reaction to Zhou Yanran's actions, as if they couldn't see them at all.

Ji Yunshu withdrew her gaze and stopped looking. What happened to others was none of her business; she only needed to take care of the people in the Prince's Mansion.

After exchanging a few words with Xie Lin, Ji Yunshu walked into the nearby woods.

She wandered around in the woods for quite a while, but couldn't find anything to eat.

Not to mention wild fruits, even the bark of the surrounding trees looked like it had been gnawed on. She could even vaguely see a human tooth on one of the gnawed tree trunks, with a trace of blood on it.

Ji Yunshu suddenly felt a chill run down her spine.

It would be strange if there was anything to eat in this wretched place. After thinking for a moment, she decided to enter her spatial dimension and search for something edible to take out.

Just as I was about to make a move, I suddenly felt like I was being watched.

She used to be a secret agent, so she wouldn't be mistaken about being watched.

As if remembering something, Ji Yunshu withdrew her thoughts and looked around. She didn't find anything, but she did feel someone following her just now.

She pursed her lips, remembering Xie Moyao's words, and softly called out to those around her, "Xie Mu?"

A moment passed, and there was no sound from around her. Just as she was about to speak again, a dark figure slowly emerged from behind a large tree not far to her left and bowed to Ji Yunshu.

"princess."

Ji Yunshu raised an eyebrow and sized up Xie Mu standing in front of her.

According to Xie Moyao, Xie Mu and Xie Lin are brothers.

They do look somewhat alike.

However, Xie Mu seemed much more composed than Xie Lin, and perhaps because Xie Mu had been in the shadows for many years, his skin looked much fairer than Xie Lin's, and he also looked much more refined.

"Um."

Ji Yunshu stared at Xie Mu with a forced smile. It was this guy who took so long to make a move last night, wasn't it?

Okay, there's plenty of time in the future. She'll remember this debt.

Ji Yunshu coughed lightly and said calmly, "Go away, I need to use the restroom."

Xian Xiemu was stunned. Toilet? What does that mean?

Noticing his questioning look, Ji Yunshu explained, "Toilet, you mean outhouse, understand? I need to use the restroom, I need to go to the outhouse. You've been following me, are you going to watch me go to the outhouse too?"

Xie Mu's face flushed red instantly, and he quickly turned around and left in a hurry.

Ji Yunshu kept staring at Xie Mu's departing figure until she was sure he was far away and could no longer see her. Then she walked behind a big tree, and with a thought, she flashed into her spatial dimension.

Without Xie Moyao by her side, she can only stay in the space for about ten minutes now.

Once inside, she went straight to the vegetable and fruit section of the supermarket building.

There was no village or shop in sight outside the space, and the bark of the trees in the forest had been eaten by some disaster victims. If what she took out was too conspicuous, people would definitely be suspicious. After wandering around for a while, she picked out a few yams.

I plan to stew some yams with the meat I prepared yesterday, and I also took a lot of Snickers bars from the snack section and put them in my bag.

She couldn't stay in the space for too long, and she didn't have time to peel the yams, so she had no choice but to throw them all onto the ground outside the space.

The person also left the space.

He squatted down, grabbed a handful of mud, and smeared some on the yams, making them look almost as if they had just been dug up from the ground. He then grabbed a rope from the side and tied the yams together.

Only then did he carry the yams out of the woods.

The yams she took out were huge, each one as thick as an arm. She took out more than a dozen in total, enough for them to eat for two meals.

When she returned to her resting place, Zhou Yanran was still chatting and laughing with the officials. What happened next made Ji Yunshu frown again.

Ji Yunyao was actually with Xie Mohe and Xie Mojiang, the three of them whispering to each other, no one knew what they were talking about.

Upon seeing her return, the three of them dispersed on their own. Ji Yunyao acted as if nothing had happened and returned to the Zhou family's carriage.

How did these people end up together?

Ji Yunshu remembered that in the original story, Ji Yunyao was with the eldest prince. Not long after the eldest prince ascended the throne, the second branch of the Xie family, namely Xie Zhaoting and his family, also returned to the capital peacefully. Although they did not become high-ranking officials, they lived a life of wealth and honor.

She carried the yams and quietly returned to the group. Xie Mohuan and Xie Lin saw her returning with the yams and excitedly ran over.

"Third Sister-in-law, the water you asked us to boil before you left was already cooked, and the meat was already in it to cook. What is this you brought back? Is it edible?"

Ji Yunshu nodded, casually handed the yam in her hand to Xie Lin, and instructed him,

"Hmm, this thing is called yam. It's very good for the stomach and nutritious. It can be cooked into soup with meat. Let's just have this for today. You guys take it, peel off the outer skin, cut the yam into sections, put it in the pot and cook it with the meat, and it'll be ready to eat."

By the way, when you're handling these yams, try not to touch the skin with the backs of your hands. Wrap them up with something if possible.

"Why is that?" Xie Mohuan asked, puzzled.

Ji Yunshu patiently explained, "If this yam peel gets on a person's skin, it will cause itching and discomfort. When you fought with the wolves yesterday, you all suffered some injuries. If these yam peels come into contact with your wounds, it will be very uncomfortable."

Xie Mohuan and Xie Lin nodded as if they understood, and following Ji Yunshu's instructions, they found some leaves to wrap the yam peel and began to carefully process it.

Ji Yunshu left the other matters to Xie Mohuan and Xie Lin, while she picked out a few medium-sized yams from the pile and walked toward the officials.

This was the last time she would personally deliver things to the officials. If they wanted anything from her again, they would either have to do it themselves or buy it with money.

The journey to exile is still long. We don't want them to get used to us bringing them food every day; that would be truly unbelievable.

Apart from the few officers who stayed by Zhou Yanran's side, the other officers sat aside enjoying the cool air.

One of the officers, seeing her approach, smiled and rose to greet her.

"princess."

Ji Yunshu nodded. She recognized the man. Among all the officials, only his clothes were different from the others, so he must be a leader or something.