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Day after day in prison, she finally reflected and understood what had happened. Both Changzai Zhou and the Noble Consort had used her as a pawn, yet she had no evidence. Neither had coerced her nor made their intentions clear, and she had been fooled. She was truly too naive.

After realizing this, she thought she could leave and made a scene demanding to see Master Cao, but no matter how much ruckus she caused, no one came to see her, delivering only two words: "Fool."

She slumped in defeat, indeed, if she weren’t foolish, she wouldn’t have ended up in this situation.

Now she had calmed down. The Imperial Guard Prison staff turned out to be quite decent. After completing their interrogation, they didn’t bother her anymore. She requested some books to pass the time, half-expecting her request to be denied, but in the end, they really brought some for her.

In these days, she spent her time reading these few books, one of which was a Buddhist scripture that brought much peace to her heart.

Only after experiencing significant changes do people understand certain truths. She had lived a life too smooth and had deemed the superficiality of the world too important, unable to see through or understand human nature...

In the southern part of the suburbs outside the Capital, most common folks lived here, house by house, full of the bustle of everyday life.

An ox cart, bathed in the twilight’s fading glow, lumbered forward.

A dark-skinned Old Man Wu sat at the very front, occasionally waving a whip to urge the ox on.

Next to the Old Man, a woman wrapped her head in a headscarf, her cheeks flushed with a healthy rosy glow, looking lively and vibrant.

Various household items were tied to the cart, and two people sat on either side at the rear of the cart.

The woman turned back and called out briskly to one of the people at the back of the cart, "Talented Lian, are we close?"

At her words, one of them turned his head, his face adorned with a genial smile warmed by the spring breeze, "Indeed, we are nearly there. Thank you, Old Lady Wu."

Such a young man with distinguished and clear features, a clear moon on a serene night, possessed the refined air of a scholar. His composed and detached demeanor left Old Lady Wu utterly astonished.

She stared in bewilderment. Even after watching the scholar the entire journey, she still wasn’t used to his presence and found herself staring absentmindedly.

She had never seen such a handsome scholar before; everything about him was handsome—his face, his manners, his way with words.

How to describe him? The scholar had a graceful appearance and an indescribable aura. To put it in her limited experience, his quality far surpassed that of an ordinary scholar. To use the flowery language of scholars, it was an aura like a gentle breeze or white clouds.

She used to mock the rich family at the head of the village, boasting about having a Scholar who compared himself to a noble bamboo in the wind.

She secretly scoffed, but after seeing this scholar, she genuinely felt that there were people in the world who could be aptly described as a refreshing breeze.

Of course, she hadn’t met many scholars, but this young Scholar was indeed the most handsome person she had ever encountered, and he handled things with a steady hand.

She was not world-wise. This trip to the Capital City with her husband was in response to her nephew’s request, as they were summoned to produce vinegar for her nephew’s employer. The business prospects were said to be good in the Capital, the only thing missing was a skilled vinegar maker.

On the road, their ox cart got stuck in a mud pit. The ground was too slippery, and their yellow ox couldn’t pull through no matter how hard it tried; it would slip at every effort.

She and her husband were at a loss, considering unloading the household goods from the cart to try and manage, when they came across the scholar and his Attendant Student.

This scholar said nothing, rolled up his sleeves, and together with his attendant student, began to help. They found something to wedge under the wheel, and then tied blocks of wood to the wheel. Eventually, with everyone’s effort, they managed to pull both the ox cart and the big yellow ox out.

The old couple were extremely grateful to him, but he simply waved his hand and prepared to leave with his attendant student.

Only then did they notice that the scholar’s left foot was somewhat unsteady. Feeling sympathy, they approached and asked if he needed a ride. When they learned that he was also headed to the Capital City, the couple enthusiastically invited him and his attendant student to travel with them.

On the road, the old couple learned that this was a scholar named Lian, who had just returned from taking his imperial exams in Taiyuan Prefecture. From the attendant student’s slip of the tongue, they found out he had actually ranked first place.

Indeed, he was an extraordinary scholar: reticent, calm, and courteous, never showy even though he had achieved first place, maintaining a very low profile.

Unlike that vainglorious scholar from the head of the village who, upon becoming a Scholar, was so arrogant, thinking himself superior, his nostrils turned skyward, no longer deigning to look at others.

Talented Lian completely turned over her impressions of scholars.

Before, she had thought scholars weak and of no use, always spouting incomprehensible nonsense.

After meeting Talented Lian, she realized not all scholars were like that; there were those like him who not only could study but also work hard, adept and proper in everything they did.

It was just a pity that his left foot was not quite agile, alas...

Old Lady Wu sighed inwardly, then candidly praised him, "Talented Lian, you really are handsome! You’ve got Old Lady Wu staring, if you were in our countryside, who knows how many girls’ eyes you’d blind with your good looks. Families would wear out their doorsteps coming to propose."

Lian Mu chuckled and shook his head. The entire way, Old Lady Wu had lost count of how many times she had said such things, either complimenting his good looks or his talents.

At first, she called him ’young man’ and ’brother,’ but after accidentally learning of his top ranking, she changed her address and kept calling him ’Talented One,’ unable to correct herself.

Seeing him shake his head, Old Lady Wu said seriously, "I’m telling the truth, you should ask Old Man Wu. All the young ladies we’ve met along the way have been sneaking glances at you." With that, she gave Old Man Wu a push.

The old man driving the cart turned around and laughingly agreed, "What your Old Lady says is true, Talented Lian, just accept it. Even she gets spellbound looking at you. Every young lady or young wife loves to steal an extra glance. To tell you the truth, if we had a daughter, we’d be itching to make a proposal ourselves. "

He laughed heartily as he spoke.

Although that’s what he said, Old Man Wu knew his family didn’t match up, and even with Talented Lian’s physical ailment, they were still not worthy. Scholars these days were much treasured, and one with academic honors was even more so.

He was just joking, after all.

The youth who looked like an attendant student also joined in with a smile, "Old Man, Old Lady, we’re almost there. Stop teasing the master, he’s shy. If you keep this up, he won’t dare to ride anymore, haha."

The three of them chatted and laughed, each taking their turn.

Lian Mu had no choice but to let them make their jokes. They were about to part ways anyway, so he let them be.

Today, by hurrying along, they finally managed to enter the Capital before the city gates closed.

Lian Mu had intended to part ways upon entering the Capital, not wanting to burden Old Man Wu and the others.

However, they refused, insisting that, due to his impaired mobility, they would warmly escort him and Wu Sheng to their destination.

Upon further inquiry, it turned out that Old Lady Wu’s nephew also lived in the Southern City, so they decided to go there together.