Song He'er grew angrier the more she thought about it, so she simply yelled:

"Jiang Huaifu! What do you take me for! Do you think I was involved in these things?"

Jiang Huaifu was slightly taken aback. "I was just asking a question as usual. You don't need to get so angry."

"Is that a normal questioning attitude? It's clearly an interrogation. If you think I'm the kind of person who has completely lost his conscience, then why are you still helping me? You might as well turn the boat around and go back, and never do this business again!"

Jiang Huaifu thought about it carefully and realized that his tone was indeed a bit inappropriate. Although Song He'er was young, she had a very strong personality and would not tolerate any words that questioned her character.

"Alright, just pretend I didn't say anything. The reason I came to see you today is to tell you this one thing, so that you can be mentally prepared. You should know that once this matter comes to light, even I will not be able to protect you."

Song He'er naturally knew the seriousness of the matter. Song Xiaoqi was simply audacious. He hadn't been satisfied with just one instance of ransacking their home and wiping out their entire family; he wanted to do it a second time. It seemed he wouldn't stop until he had them all dead!

“We’re wanted criminals, already exiled here. If he makes a mistake, we won’t escape either. But what can we do now…?”

Song He'er was somewhat disappointed and couldn't think of a solution for a moment.

If we're going to make the worst-case scenario plan, then the only option is to get rid of that old bastard Song Xiaoqi ahead of time to prevent future troubles!

"There are solutions, of course, but they are very difficult to implement."

"What method?" Song He'er asked.

“Removing your name from the family genealogy proves that you have no relation to the Song family anymore. Otherwise, whatever your father does, your whole family will bear the consequences.”

Jiang Huaifu's expression was grim, as if he had already foreseen the outcome.

After thinking it over carefully for a long time, Song He'er finally came up with a solution that was somewhat acceptable.

"Either my father divorces my mother and I am adopted by my third uncle, then we can probably escape this calamity, right?"

Jiang Huaifu thought she was a bit naive. After hearing these words, he shook his head and said, "Does that mean your third uncle doesn't have the surname Song? Does that mean he's not a member of the Song family?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Song He'er fell into deep thought. The only one she could protect now was Qin Xiaoniang. She was just a concubine in the General's Mansion. As long as a letter of divorce was issued, she could completely sever ties with the General's Mansion.

The most difficult thing to solve now is the safety of myself and Huan-ge'er...

"He'er! Where have you gone?"

Not far away, Song Xiaoyu's urgent voice could be heard. It seemed that she had finished arranging everything before returning to get more things.

"This matter needs careful consideration. You should go back now, and I will come to see you again tomorrow," Song He'er said softly.

Jiang Huaifu nodded, turned around, and stepped onto the deck.

Under the moonlight, Song He'er quickly returned to Song Xiaoyu and Li Qiang's side.

"Hey, where have you run off to again? If your stepmother finds out, she'll blame me for not taking good care of you."

"Third Uncle, I was just taking a walk, don't worry about it. Hurry up and grab your things, let's go home..."

Song Xiaoyu had the sharpest eyes; she spotted that lithe, black figure in just one glance.

"I think I just saw someone walk by. Were you talking to someone?"

Song He'er coughed awkwardly, "It's just those servants who are carrying goods. I told them to be careful. It's just a normal person's concern. Third Uncle, why are you always so fussy? If we delay any longer, Third Aunt will start nagging you again."

Song Xiaoyu was indeed annoyed by Zhang Xiue's nagging. Thinking this, she counted all the things on the ground and then politely asked the servant, "How much money do we still owe you merchants for all these things?"

One of the tall servants paused before replying, "The grain can be paid for with one day's wages, but these everyday items will likely require additional payment. We'll settle for that in cash and include it in tomorrow's wages, as agreed beforehand..."

Song Xiaoyu smiled and said, "Thank you all."

After saying that, Song Xiaoyu happily hoisted the things onto her shoulder and swaggered toward the tent.

Song He'er turned her head and looked toward the light on the riverbank. In the moonlight, a tall figure stood leaning against the boat, looking slightly melancholy.

When they returned to their tent, Zhang Xiue was digging a pit and burying the grain she had received in exchange.

"Third Aunt, it's so cold, go to sleep. We can deal with these things tomorrow."

Zhang Xiu'e shook her head. "What do you know, you little girl? Those women over there are eyeing us like hawks! Once they discover that we have so much extra grain out of nowhere, they'll definitely get greedy and try to steal it for themselves!"

"Third Uncle and Uncle Qiang are both sleeping outside. We'll know immediately if anything happens, so there's no need to worry so much, right?"

Song Xiaoyu smiled and patted Song He'er's forehead. "You silly girl, your third aunt is right. As the saying goes, you shouldn't have the heart to harm others, but you can't be without the heart to guard against them! Go to sleep now, you don't need to worry about things here!"

Song He'er shook her head helplessly. Since they weren't tired, she decided not to interfere and went to bed to rest.

The next morning, the sun shone as brightly as ever.

With the new basins and other utensils, everyone can boil a kettle of water in the morning and get a good wash.

Li Qiang's wife cooked some rice porridge. After eating wild vegetables for several days, everyone was happy to change things up.

“The weather is good today. The mud bricks we made a few days ago are almost dry. We need to hurry up and build the courtyard wall. If we have a few more heavy snowfalls by the winter solstice, even if we are strong, we who sleep outside will not be able to withstand it!” Song Xiaoyu said as she chopped firewood.

Zhang Xiue styled Nianjie's hair into a beautiful bun and replied with a smile, "You can't just do this little bit of work without a second thought, but we still need to keep an eye on those merchants' oil-paper umbrellas; we still owe them money!"

"Of course I know that. In short, the house needs to be built, and the work needs to be done! By the way, why hasn't the young woman who came yesterday arrived yet?"

......

My darlings, starting today, my nucleic acid test result has turned negative!

So I'm gradually resuming updates, but I might not be able to update twice a week, because I still have a cough and aren't sleeping very well...

I'd like to remind everyone again to drink plenty of water and take precautions!