Dinner was a simple meal of cornbread and stir-fried vegetables. While eating, Uncle Li told her about the situation in the village.

Which family are outsiders, which family have relatives in the neighboring village, and which family's men often go to the mountains to chop firewood.

Xu Xinghe listened attentively and memorized all the information.

These seemingly insignificant details may one day become the key to finding Jiang Linchuan.

As night deepened, the village fell silent.

Xu Xinghe lay on the earthen bed in the west room, but was wide awake.

She quietly entered the space, drank a few mouthfuls of spiritual spring water, and recovered her strength.

After a long time, she finally fell into a deep sleep.

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, the crowing of roosters shattered the tranquility of Lijia'ao.

Xu Xinghe quickly got up, washed up briefly, and went into her space to disguise herself. After confirming that there was no difference from yesterday, she went to the main room and found Uncle Li. "Uncle Li, I saw some dirty clothes in the yard. I'll go to the river to wash them today, and I can also wash a couple more for you."

The riverbank was a key location for spies to cross the river, and also a place where the village women often gathered. They could use the excuse of washing clothes to investigate the situation and further solidify Su Xiao's identity, which was a win-win situation.

Upon hearing this, Uncle Li quickly waved his hand, "No need, no need, how could I let you do any work?"

However, he did not refuse; the two were simply business partners.

To put it bluntly, although Uncle Li is the elder, he is the one who must cooperate in their relationship.

Therefore, he could not refuse any of Xu Xinghe's requests, as long as they were not too difficult.

Uncle Li turned around and went back into the house, rummaged through two clean old clothes, and handed them to her. "Then you can wash these two. They're clean, just a little dusty from being stored for a long time. Just scrub them casually, don't tire yourself out."

Xu Xinghe took the clothes, "It's alright, Uncle Li, this is no tiring work."

She found a wooden basin, filled it with her clothes and a piece of soap, adjusted her headscarf, and walked towards the river.

The riverbank was cool in the early morning, with mist rising from the water and a thin fog floating on the surface.

When Xu Xinghe reached the section of the river he had passed yesterday, there were already quite a few people washing clothes there.

Most of them were girls around seventeen or eighteen years old, dressed in coarse cloth, gathered in twos and threes, chatting and laughing.

Married women are all at home cooking now, busy with farm work later, and rarely have time to come to the river.

The laughter by the river immediately stopped when Xu Xinghe appeared.

All the girls' eyes fell on her.

A cacophony of gazes instantly made her the center of attention.

Xu Xinghe pretended not to notice the strange looks, lowered her head and quickly walked to the far corner of the riverbank, put down the wooden basin, squatted down and began to scoop water into the basin.

“Look, that’s her, a relative from Uncle Li’s family.” A round-faced girl not far from her nudged the arm of the person next to her, lowered her voice and spoke, her eyes fixed on the birthmark on Xu Xinghe’s face.

“My God, she’s even uglier than my brother said yesterday!” Another girl with braided hair frowned, her tone full of disgust. “My brother said she has a birthmark on her face. I thought it was just a small one, but it’s so big. It looks really scary.”

“That’s right.” The girl in the blue cotton jacket chimed in, lowering her voice even further, but Xu Xinghe could still hear her clearly. “My mother said that people with such big birthmarks on their faces must have committed sins in their past lives, and that’s why they’re here in this life to atone for those sins.”

"And another thing!" the round-faced girl added mysteriously. "I heard my grandma say that people with dark birthmarks on their faces are bad luck, they'll bring misfortune to their families! Look at her, she was perfectly fine, how did she end up being sent to Uncle Li's place? Maybe her parents thought she was a jinx, that's why they sent her away!"

Upon hearing this, the girls all showed expressions of fear and subconsciously moved to the side, distancing themselves from Xu Xinghe, as if she truly carried some ominous aura.

Xu Xinghe squatted down and pressed her clothes into the water.

These gossips, on the contrary, acted as a protective shield for her.

The more people dislike her and distance themselves from her, the less likely anyone will notice her abnormality or become interested in her, allowing her to observe her surroundings more at ease.

She pretended not to hear their chatter, silently rubbing her clothes, occasionally glancing up at the river and Black Wind Ridge on the opposite bank.

The morning mist had not yet dissipated, and Black Wind Ridge was hidden in the fog, appearing exceptionally deep and secluded, with no signs of anything unusual.

There was no one on the river, only small boats moored on the shore.

A boat is only used when someone is crossing the river.

Or, during the rainy season, when there is more rain and more fish, the villagers will take advantage of those few days to catch fish and improve their meals.

"Do you think she might really bring bad luck to her family?" The girl with the braided hair was still a little worried and muttered in a low voice, "Uncle Li has lived alone for so many years and he's been fine. I hope she doesn't bring him any bad luck."

"It's hard to say... Let's stay away from her in the future, so as not to get any bad luck." The girl in the blue cotton jacket glanced at Xu Xinghe and quickly pulled the person next to her to change the subject, "Let's not talk about this, let me tell you something interesting! A few days ago, Brother Yi'an went into the mountains again, and I heard he hunted a big wild deer and sold it for a lot of money!"

"Really?" The round-faced girl stopped washing her hands with the washboard, her eyes shining like stars. "My goodness, Brother Yi'an is amazing! Last time he hunted that wild boar, my mother went to join in the fun and said the meat was very thick. Our family even bought a small piece, and it was so delicious when stewed. I still think about it now!"

“That’s right!” The girl with the braided hair blushed slightly and rubbed the clothes in her hands even slower. “Brother Yi’an has never missed a hunt. Which hunter in the village can compare to him? It’s just that he always has a frown and looks a bit fierce. Otherwise, I would have asked my mother to ask if she could learn a few tricks from him, even just how to set a trap!”

"Come on, you!" someone laughed and shoved her. "With your guts, you're afraid of even a rabbit, and you want to learn how to hunt? I think you just want to see Yi An a few more times!"

“You are the one!” The girl’s face turned even redder, but she didn’t refute it. She just muttered to herself, “It’s just that I haven’t eaten meat in a long time… If Brother Yi’an could hunt another wild boar, I would definitely ask my dad to buy two more pounds to nourish my younger brother.”

"I want some too! There wasn't enough wild boar meat last time, I didn't get enough. When is Brother Yi'an going into the mountains next time? Should we go and keep watch near his house, just in case he hunts something good again and we can buy it first?"

"Stop joking! When does Brother Yi'an go into the mountains? Besides, he always hunts at Black Wind Ridge on the other side of the river. That place is so remote, only he dares to go deep into it. But seriously, if we could eat wild boar meat again, I'd be willing to do two more basins of laundry!"