In the Ming Dynasty, I became invincible simply by extracting memories!

After successfully obtaining what he needed, he used the same method again, bracing himself firmly against the inside of the well wall with his hands and feet, and climbing upwards step by step until he finally escaped from the well. Once out of the well, Shen Lian didn't linger; he quickly climbed over the nearby wall and lightly brushed the dust off his clothes. The moonlight, like water, gently bathed the ground, and guided by its soft glow, he hurried towards the inn where he was temporarily staying.

Shen Lian had just reached the entrance of the post station and was about to push open the wooden door when—

Where did you go?

A voice suddenly rang out beside him, startling Shen Lian so much that he almost lost his composure.

"Who!" Shen Lian turned his head sharply, staring intently, only to find that Xia Zheng was standing quietly in the shadows beside the gate, almost blending into the night. "What are you doing hiding here so late at night instead of sleeping? You scared me to death."

Yi Xia didn't answer immediately, but just looked at Shen Lian quietly for a while before saying, "That's the question I should be asking you."

"I... I have a bit of an upset stomach, I just need to use the restroom, is that not allowed?" Shen Lian subconsciously came up with an excuse.

"To use the restroom, an hour?" Xia's tone sounded calm.

"Ahem..." Shen Lian touched his nose somewhat awkwardly and asked, "How long have you been standing here?"

"From the moment you left."

"Ahem... Well, actually..." Shen Lian stammered, trying to explain a few more words.

"It's good that you're alright." Yi Xia didn't seem to intend to delve into the matter. She simply shrugged and turned to go back into the house without listening to Shen Lian's next words.

"..."

Shen Lian pushed open the door and returned to his somewhat cramped room. He gently bolted the door shut, and after confirming that no one was around, he walked to the table and lit the candle with a tinderbox. The candlelight flickered and dispelled the dimness in the room. He slowly took out the item he had just obtained from his pocket and carefully placed it under the candlelight.

In the dim candlelight, the object gleamed with a warm, milky-white sheen. Upon closer inspection, Shen Lian discovered that it was tightly wrapped in several layers of moisture-proof oil paper—clearly, the original owner had placed great importance on it.

He held his breath and gently pinched the edge of the oil paper with his fingertips. One layer, two layers, three layers... After peeling off three layers of oil paper, the contents inside were finally revealed—it was a neat stack of papers.

Shen Lian brought the papers close to the candlelight, carefully examining each one. As he read, a satisfied and relieved smile gradually appeared on his face. These papers were not ordinary documents, but silver notes issued by a money exchange—each note worth one thousand taels of silver, ten in total, amounting to ten thousand taels. More importantly, these notes were bearer notes. This meant that anyone who presented these notes to the corresponding money exchange could exchange them for the exact amount of silver stated on the note.

"This is really... quite a windfall," Shen Lian muttered to himself, unable to suppress the smile on his lips. The stress and tension of the past few days seemed to find some solace at this moment.

If anyone were to ask how Shen Lian knew where these receipts were hidden, the answer would be quite simple. The original owner of these receipts was none other than Qian Dehou, Shen Lian's former "fellow prisoner" in the Northern Garrison Command—the former accountant of the Yan family.

When Shen Lian peered into Qian Dehou's memories, he already knew the location where the money was buried. However, at that time, Qian Dehou's own life was in danger, and he had no time to worry about this windfall. After his release from prison, he was restricted in his movements for various reasons and could not go out freely. Over time, he almost forgot about the money.

It wasn't until this chance encounter with Nanjing that Shen Lian suddenly remembered that Qian Dehou had purchased a property in Nanjing before his death, and that the 10,000 taels of silver notes had been secretly hidden deep in a dry well in the courtyard.

Since Qian Dehou was no longer alive, and he had been a member of Yan's faction during his lifetime, it was only natural for Shen Lian to take this unclaimed wealth. Thinking of this, he breathed a sigh of relief, carefully put away the silver notes, looked at the faintly white light outside, lay down on the bed, and fell asleep fully clothed.

The next day, the group packed their belongings and embarked on their journey south again.

Inside the carriage, Yi Dong looked at the sleepy-eyed Shen Lian and the mud on his clothes, and asked suspiciously, "Young Master Shen, what did you do last night?"

"I..." These two sisters are really something— Shen Lian rubbed his temples and said, "I have my own plans."

"Hmph, playing tricks." Yi Dong made a face.

"Alright, alright, please be quiet for two hours and let your young master Shen get some sleep." Shen Lian said, leaning his head against the carriage wall, closing his eyes, and trying to fall asleep again.

The group endured several more days of bumpy travel in the carriage. The constant shaking made Shen Lian feel as if his bones were about to fall apart. One afternoon, feeling increasingly restless, Shen Lian gently lifted the carriage curtain and looked out. He saw the fields on both sides of the road slowly receding into the distance, stretching endlessly. Gazing at this familiar scene, a sudden thought struck him. He quickly leaned forward and asked the driver, "Where are we now?"

The coachman turned around and respectfully replied, "In response to your question, sir, we are currently in the territory of Southern Zhili in Huizhou, I think it's... something like that county, but I can't quite remember right now..."

"Shexian County," Shen Lian murmured softly, his tone carrying an indescribable meaning.

"Oh! Yes, yes, this is it! Look at my memory!" The driver slapped his forehead and replied repeatedly.

"Heh," Shen Lian sneered upon hearing this, a complex look flashing in his eyes. "I never thought that after all this time, I would have the chance to return to this place." After a moment of silence, he turned to the coachman and instructed, "Let's rest here for the day."

The coachman hesitated upon hearing this, glanced at the sky, and said, "Young master, it's still early. If we stop now, it will probably delay our journey by half a day..."

"It's alright," Shen Lian said calmly, but with an undeniable air of authority. "I still have some things to take care of here."

"Uh... since you have something to do, young master, then I'll do as you say." Seeing this, the coachman stopped insisting and respectfully agreed.

Before long, the group of several people had settled down at the Shexian post station. After resting for a while, Shen Lian walked out of the post station alone, and Dong Yi and Xia Yi followed closely behind.

Relying on his past memories and intuition, Shen Lian slowly walked along the winding country path. After about half an hour, a peaceful and tranquil village nestled against the mountains and beside the water came into view.

This is it! With each step closer, Shen Lian's heart pounded faster, as if he could hear the thumping in his chest. After walking several hundred more steps, Shen Lian finally arrived at the thatched hut that had appeared countless times in his dreams. However, the scene before him instantly stunned him—"How...how could this be?" Shen Lian's eyes widened, staring incredulously at the dilapidated thatched hut, which was nearly half collapsed.

Just then, an elderly man of about fifty years old hurriedly passed by Shen Lian on the path beside him.

"Uncle Dong?" Shen Lian quickly called out to him. The old man squinted and scrutinized him, a look of confusion on his face: "You are...?"

Shen Lian hurriedly stepped forward, his voice tinged with excitement: "It's me, Shen Lian!"

"Shen Lian... Shen Lian! You're back!" The old man suddenly realized, quickly walked to Shen Lian, stared intently at his face, and said with a mixture of surprise and joy, "I didn't expect it to really be you!"

"It's me, Uncle Dong, I'm back."

"But weren't you arrested by the officials back then? How come you're here again now..." Before the old man could finish speaking, Shen Lian interrupted him, pointing to the dilapidated thatched hut and asking urgently, "Uncle Dong, let's not talk about that now. Please tell me, where are Uncle Liu and his family now?"

Upon hearing this, Uncle Dong sighed softly and lowered his voice, saying, "Shen Lian, you don't know this. After learning that you had been taken away, Old Man Liu was so angry that he fell ill and passed away a few days later."

Shen Lian's eyes gradually reddened, and his voice trembled slightly: "Then... what about Ru Shi? How is she?"

Uncle Dong shook his head and slowly said, "After Old Man Liu left, Ru Shi only thought about rescuing you. She went to the county government to make trouble, begged the local gentry, and even wrote to the prefect. She tried every possible method. She sold all the valuables in the house to bribe people, but she still didn't get any news about you."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lian unconsciously clenched his hands, his knuckles turning white from the force.

He forced back his emotions and pressed on, "Where is she now?"

Uncle Dong continued, "After exhausting all methods and having nothing left in the family, Ru Shi was at her wit's end. She could only try anything, spending her days at the crossroads of the main road, hoping that one day a just and upright official would pass by so she could plead her case, clear your name, and get you released. The villagers all advised her not to be foolish, but the child was stubborn and wouldn't listen to anyone. Perhaps Heaven took pity on her plight, for later a wealthy family passed through the area, saw her pitiful state, and agreed to help inquire about your whereabouts. Liu Ru Shi then went with them and was taken to the capital."

"Do you know who helped her?" Shen Lian asked hurriedly.

"I don't know about that," the old man shook his head, "but I know that family is extremely wealthy. They always travel in sedan chairs, followed by a large group of men and women. Everyone in the village saw it!"

"I understand, Uncle Dong. Thank you for telling me this." As Shen Lian spoke, he took out a few pieces of silver from his pocket and gently handed them to the old man.

Upon seeing this, Uncle Dong hurriedly waved his hands repeatedly, his face showing fear. "This is unacceptable, unacceptable!" Before he finished speaking, he turned to leave, his expression revealing obvious anxiety and haste.

Shen Lian reacted quickly, grabbing Uncle Dong's sleeve and asking with concern, "Uncle Dong, why are you in such a hurry? Where are you going?"

Uncle Dong stopped and turned back, lowering his voice to say, "Shen Lian, you don't know yet, do you? I heard the county magistrate is going to raise taxes again. This is the third time this year! If it keeps going up like this, the little grain our farmers work so hard to grow might not even be enough to pay the taxes. I don't know how many people will go hungry. Some villagers who can't stand it anymore have already gathered a group of people and are planning to go to the county government office to demand an explanation. I can't rest easy about this, so I have to go and see."

"The county magistrate?" Shen Lian's eyes suddenly turned cold, his tone icy. "Is it still that Magistrate Zhou?"

"Who else could it be but him?" Uncle Dong spat on the ground and sighed, "Although the imperial court recently dismissed and investigated corrupt officials like Yan Song, which is truly gratifying, who would have thought that in a small place like ours, there would still be such corrupt officials who oppress the people and plunder their wealth! How can this world be so unfair..."

Shen Lian narrowed his eyes slightly, lowered his head and remained silent for a moment, then suddenly looked up and said, "Uncle Dong, I'll go with you."

"You?" Uncle Dong was taken aback at first, then grabbed Shen Lian's arm nervously. "You absolutely mustn't go! What if that magistrate recognizes you and arrests you again?"

Shen Lian gently patted the old man's hand and said with a smile, "Don't worry, Uncle Dong, even if you gave that Magistrate Zhou a hundred times more courage, he wouldn't dare to do anything to me."

"This..." The old man was skeptical when he heard Shen Lian's words, but he finally gritted his teeth and nodded. "Alright, we'll go together, but if anything goes wrong, you must leave immediately."

Shen Lian simply smiled noncommittally.

So Shen Lian and the others traveled with the old man.

"Uncle Dong," Shen Lian said as they walked, "tell me more about what happened."

Uncle Dong sighed and began to speak: "To be honest, this is all the fault of the tax system in Shexian County. It should be taxed based on the amount of land, but these past few years, local officials have been finding ways to increase taxes every year just to line their own pockets. At the beginning of this year, they added a river works tax, last month they said they'd be levying a tax to repair the city wall, and now, just half a month later, they're adding some kind of 'bandit suppression tax.' But where would we get bandits in this remote mountain area? It's clearly blatant robbery! That corrupt Magistrate Zhou, he's only been in office for three years, and he's already bought a three-courtyard mansion in the city. Every single penny of that money has been squeezed from the bones of us poor people!"

Shen Lian listened quietly, his fingers clenching tighter and tighter, a chill seeping through his fingers.

It turned out that he had been caught red-handed while copying the county's accounts, accidentally discovering that Magistrate Zhou was using the collected funds for personal enrichment and bribery of his superiors. Shen Lian, young and impetuous at the time, couldn't stand Magistrate Zhou's extortion and tyranny, so he joined his fellow villagers in filing a complaint. Unexpectedly, the officials protected each other, and Shen Lian was instead falsely accused of colluding with the White Lotus Sect and plotting rebellion, imprisoned, and thus began his series of hardships and displacement. Now, he had returned to his old haunts, and this corrupt official was still there, lording it over the people and exploiting them.