Disobey and I'll Erase You

As the system predicted, news arrived at the court the next day that the border's grain supplies had been burned, causing an uproar in the capital.

"Xiaoxi, I heard from people in the yamen that the border has sent people to ask the court for help, saying that all the grain and fodder at the border has been burned." Zhao Yuanxun said to Zhao Ruxi with a worried look on his face when he finished eating dinner.

The old lady and Lady Zhu both stopped eating.

"How could this happen? Didn't you say it wouldn't be burned? Didn't you say there were grain reserves in the nearby cities? How could it have come to this?" Lady Zhu asked in surprise.

Zhao Yuanxun shook his head. "I don't know the specifics either; after all, it's a government secret. If it weren't for those disheveled soldiers entering the city yesterday, the news wouldn't have gotten out."

"Look how clever my Miss Xi is. At first you said she was worrying unnecessarily, but now you know you were wrong, right?" said Lady Zhu.

Upon Lady Zhu's words, everyone turned to look at Zhao Ruxi, their faces filled with astonishment.

When Zhao Ruxi asked that question that day, everyone thought she was overthinking it. But now, thinking back, Zhao Ruxi didn't ask anything else, just that one question. And then, the grain supplies at the border really did get burned. If you want to talk about coincidence, this is just too much of a coincidence, isn't it?

If Zhao Ruxi had asked many questions, they wouldn't have thought much of it. But Zhao Ruxi only asked that one question, which felt like a prophetic statement.

"Miss Xi, did you have some bad feeling at the time?" the old lady asked.

Zhao Ruxi scratched her cheek. "Probably. Anyway, I was really worried about this at the time, and I didn't expect it to actually happen. It must be a coincidence."

In order to get everyone to go to Jiangnan with her, she doesn't object to people imagining that she has the potential to be a charlatan.

"Sister, could you help me predict my exam results?" Zhao Jingtai leaned closer to Zhao Ruxi.

Zhao Ruxi reached out and ruffled his hair. "I have a bad feeling about this. You'd better be prepared to get a beating."

Zhao Jingtai suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He turned around and saw the dangerous look in his parents' eyes.

He turned to Zhao Ruxi, looking at her pitifully, "Sister, you tricked me."

Lady Zhu slapped him on the shoulder. "What did I do to you? You didn't do well on the test and you want to blame your sister?"

"No, Mother." Zhao Jingtai sighed sadly.

If he didn't do well on the test, he could try to hide it or distract his parents with something else. But now that his sister had exposed him in public, he knew he would get a beating if he did poorly.

"Didn't you ask yourself?" Zhao Ruxi looked at her younger brother innocently. "I was just telling the truth. How did I trick you?"

Zhao Jingtai: "..." So he brought this on himself.

He shouldn't have asked that question.

"If you weren't so playful, would you be worried about not doing well on the exam at this time? I tell you to focus on your studies, but you never listen. Look at your sister, she's not only smart, but also diligent. If it weren't for Matron Yuan and Qingfeng reminding her, she wouldn't rest all day long with a book in her hand. And look at yourself, you start looking around after less than fifteen minutes of reading..." Blah blah blah.

Listening to his mother's incessant scolding, Zhao Jingtai deeply regretted his sharp tongue.

The border soldiers came seeking help, and many people saw them enter the city; the news couldn't be kept secret. Within a few days, everyone knew about it.

Zhao Ruyu kept a close eye on the situation at the border.

Although she had other ideas, she was still reluctant to give up on Fu Yunlang, so she would meet with Fu Yunlang at the teahouse from time to time to find out news about the Fu Yunlang.

They usually meet once every five days. If there are any special circumstances, they will send a servant to notify them at the door.

Yesterday was the agreed meeting time, but Fu Yunlang stood her up without even sending a servant to inform her, which had never happened before. Zhao Ruyu sensed something was wrong. She sent a servant out to inquire and learned that something had happened at the border.

Her feelings were complicated.

On one hand, she hoped things would be like they were in her previous life, allowing her to be with Fu Yunlang and have a happy ending. That way, she wouldn't have to risk marrying someone she didn't know and walking a completely unfamiliar path. On the other hand, she felt it was immoral to hope that the Fu Family father and son and 100,000 soldiers would die on the border and that the border people would be displaced.

Therefore, she felt very conflicted.

"Host, if you want to know news from the border, you can ask me. I can spend some energy to find out for you," the system suddenly said.

At first, it was unfamiliar with the business and didn't know how to exchange information for points. But now Zhao Ruyu was eager to know the situation at the border, and it could find out information while idly wandering around. So it discovered this way to make money.

Zhao Ruyu was overjoyed upon hearing this and hurriedly asked, "Really? Okay, okay, please help me find out the specific information about the border."

"It's a long way there, and it's all classified information, not so easy to find out. The host will need to spend six thousand points," the system said.

"What?" Zhao Ruyu almost screamed, "Why didn't you just rob it?"

Six thousand points—exactly the number of points she had painstakingly accumulated over this period. Her hands were practically raw from playing the piano; she couldn't possibly spend all those points on border news that everyone would eventually find out, could she?

"Host, if you continue to speak disrespectfully to this system, this system will eliminate you and assign you a new host," the system warned sternly.

Zhao Ruyu immediately cowered. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I... I apologize to you."

"Hmph!" The system snorted coldly and ignored her.

Zhao Ruyu had no idea that the system couldn't erase her. Having obtained the system, she considered it a priceless treasure, feeling it was her greatest asset in this life. Therefore, she dared not Gao Xing the system, much less defy its opinions.

Normally, if she encountered a situation like this, she would definitely spend some points to appease the system's anger.

But it was so hard for her to accumulate those six thousand points, and she was truly reluctant to spend them.

Her Beauty Pill, her happy life, all depend on these points.

After much deliberation, she gritted her teeth and said, "Forget it, system. I'll save these points to buy Beauty Pill. Anyway, even if I know the news from the border, it won't change anything, and there's not much use in asking around."

"Have you thought this through? If you ask me to gather information again, the price won't be the same," the system said Gao Xing. "Furthermore, some things require seizing the initiative. A moment's delay can lead to a lifetime of setbacks. You'd better think this through."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ruyu pondered the matter carefully for a long time, weighing the pros and cons.

She understood what the system meant.

If she wants to change course, the sooner she prepares, the better.

After thinking for a long time, she said solemnly, "I've thought it through. Let's buy the Beauty Pill first."