Chapter 28: A Helping Hand

"What should we do now?" Yinxin tilted her head and blinked.

Luo Yunqiao’s lips curved into a faint, elusive smile. "Wait for nightfall."

As the saying goes, the darkest nights are best for murder and arson.

...

As twilight faded into darkness, three shadows darted swiftly across the Marquis’s estate, reaching the accounting office with practiced ease. Jinxin appeared nervous; it was clear she had never engaged in such clandestine activities before, and her voice trembled.

"Miss... why are we coming to the accounting office in the middle of the night? It’s pitch black everywhere, it’s terrifying."

As she spoke, Jinxin scanned her surroundings cautiously, fearing that some terrifying thing might emerge from a corner at any moment.

Luo Yunqiao, however, had a clear objective and issued instructions calmly and unhurriedly.

"Didn’t the accountant say during the day that he couldn’t find the account books? Such important items—he surely can’t account for them if they’re lost. We’ll simply find them for him."

Yinxin’s eyes widened. "Doesn't that mean we're stealing the ledgers? We can't do that, Miss."

Luo Yunqiao asked, "Tell me, do you think those ledgers are legitimate?"

Though Yinxin didn't understand why her mistress would ask this, she nodded honestly. The eldest miss had not collected her monthly stipend for several months, yet the books showed no discrepancies. It was obvious the accountant had been falsifying the records.

Luo Yunqiao continued, "Since there is a problem, do you think they would just hand them over honestly?"

Yinxin fell silent.

Luo Yunqiao sighed. "I know that sneaking around is dishonorable, but if we don't use extraordinary measures, these hidden truths will never come to light. I am forced into this."

Hearing this and recalling what Luo Yunqiao had suffered in the Marquis’s estate, Yinxin nodded firmly, her eyes filled with resolve. "Miss, I understand. We aren't here to harm others, but we shouldn't be afraid of them either."

Yinxin was sharp; she understood things even when they weren't fully spelled out.

Luo Yunqiao didn't waste any more breath, simply instructing the two maids to continue searching for the ledgers while warning them not to make any noise. As for herself, she was looking for something else: the registry of indentured servants.

She figured that rather than asking others, it was better to go straight to the source and find the records of where the maids had been sold off.

The three of them split up, and before long, Luo Yunqiao found the registry and the whereabouts of the missing maids. They had been sold to the Wanhong Pavilion on East Street.

Luo Yunqiao clenched her fists, feeling a sense of injustice for these maids who had suffered for no reason. In a way, they were just like her—innocent, and in the eyes of these powerful people, utterly worthless.

With one glance, she memorized the names of those poor women, vowing to find a way to redeem them all.

Just then, Yinxin let out a soft cry; it seemed she had found the account book. Luo Yunqiao walked over to the two maids. Before them lay the very book the accountant claimed was lost.

Luo Yunqiao reached out to take it, but in the next second, she grasped a cold sword hilt instead.

A sword had appeared out of thin air, blocking her hand. Following the hilt to its owner, she saw a figure in night-traveler's gear, wrapped from head to toe in black.

Luo Yunqiao frowned and said coldly, "May I ask who you are? Why mask your identity after sneaking into my Marquis’s estate?"

The man pulled down his mask. With one look, Luo Yunqiao recognized him.

"It’s you!"

He was one of Xiao Muyuan’s men! She had seen him standing beside Xiao Muyuan at the wonton stall that day; he was clearly a trusted aide. But why was he in the Marquis’s storehouse in the middle of the night?

Before she could ponder further, the man bowed. "Please forgive my intrusion, Miss Luo, but you cannot take this ledger today."

Luo Yunqiao was puzzled. "Why?"

The man explained the scheme plotted by Luo Yunzhen and the accountant. The real books had long been moved; this was merely a falsified copy with balanced accounts, left here to lure them into a trap. It seemed Luo Yunzhen and the accountant had intentionally left clues for Yinxin to find.

She had been played!

Luo Yunqiao was indignant, but she kept her wits, asking instead why he had broken into the estate. Surely, he hadn't come just to help her?

The man was stunned, not expecting Luo Yunqiao to still be suspicious. But then again, he realized, if she weren't this cautious, she would have been picked clean by the people in this mansion long ago.

"The Prince sent me to find something in the estate. Breaking the Second Miss's trap was merely a coincidence." He added, "The Prince ordered that we should assist the Eldest Miss whenever possible, which is why I risked exposure to warn you."

Luo Yunqiao was even more confused. What could possibly be in the Marquis’s estate worth Xiao Muyuan taking such risks? And why would he order his men to help her?

However, the situation allowed for no further thought. Footsteps approached from outside, followed by a low male voice—the accountant’s.

"Hurry! There are thieves in the storehouse! We must capture them!"

Luo Yunqiao’s heart sank; the situation confirmed what the man in black had said. It was all a trap laid by Luo Yunzhen and the accountant. Otherwise, there was no explanation for why the accountant would arrive with a group of servants in the middle of the night to catch thieves.

Jinxin was on the verge of tears. If they were caught, not only would her mistress be punished, but the maids would likely be sold off. Theft was the greatest taboo in a great house.

Seeing the danger, Luo Yunqiao had no choice but to ask the man in black to lead the servants away. Bound by Xiao Muyuan’s orders, he did not hesitate. He vaulted out the window, deliberately making noise to draw the servants toward the southwest.

Luo Yunqiao then led Jinxin and Yinxin back the way they came, though she made sure to wrap up the fake ledger and take it with her.

...

No sooner had Luo Yunqiao returned to her quarters than someone knocked on the door, announcing that there had been a theft in the storehouse and the Master was furious, ordering everyone to report there.

Luo Yunqiao had to go. But before leaving, she sent Yinxin on an errand, then took Jinxin to the storehouse.

When she arrived, everyone in the Luo family except the Matriarch was present, and not a single servant was missing. Since it was the middle of the night and the matter was shameful, they wouldn't dare disturb the grandmother.

But this also meant one thing: she had no one to shield her now.