Chapter 57

It wasn't realistic to exchange pesticides for other products and sell them, but Qingyun still followed the system's advice. After all, pesticides shouldn't be handled by others.

"What will happen to this place after I leave? I'm practically the source of the world's development," Qingyun suddenly asked the system, as she had been thinking about this all day.

System: [Host, you can think of this as completing your game; everything is happy ending.]

Qingyun frowned. "What about the people here? Will they continue living their lives, or... or will they wait for the next person to clear the level?"

The system expressed its incomprehension: "No other players will arrive. Once you complete the mission, this world ceases to exist and will be permanently stored in the database. This is another life and existence unique to you. To put it simply, this world will remain frozen in the database forever, at the moment you completed the mission."

Hearing that really left a bad taste in my mouth. It felt like I'd developed feelings for these fictional characters. Having spent so much time with them, it was impossible for her not to have feelings for them. [When you send me back, could you erase my memories?]

System: [Of course you can, host~ Keep working hard to earn points~]

Qingyun: [Should I stay?]

System: [If the mission is completed, you can choose to die peacefully in this world. You're not the only one with this idea, host! We're a very humane company, and of course we'll fulfill some of our players' needs.]

That's really great. Hearing this, she couldn't help but sigh. But who would want to stay in such a awful place? It's so inconvenient to live here.

Qingyun was lost in thought as she walked along the path leading to the sand dunes. There was a lot of green grass growing around her, and the dust kicked up by her feet was much less. This was the result of her efforts over the years, and the creation of an oasis was just around the corner.

Today it was the turn of a few kids to go up to the forest to watch over the woods. When they saw Qingyun, they greeted her warmly.

She had only just finished talking to a few children when she heard a commotion. Amid the clamor, she caught some key words: Mu Helian.

Seeing this, she quickly pushed through the crowd of onlookers and saw a man pointing at Mu Helian's nose and cursing, "Shameless slut! Where did you hide my wife?!"

The woman remained silent with a somber expression, her cold, damp eyes fixed on the other person. This demeanor, coupled with the scars on her face, was quite terrifying. Moreover, she held the Black Dragon Whip in her hand, her fist clenched in anticipation.

The man who was pointing at her and cursing was fairly good-looking and dressed properly, not like someone who had done farm work. He wasn't afraid of Mu Helian at all, and instead became more and more enthusiastic in his speech.

"You're a kidnapper! A whore! You're just like her, a slut!"

Although Mu Helian only scoffed upon hearing this, one could still sense her displeasure and suppressed anger. Seeing this, she simply asked calmly, "Do you have any evidence?"

The man glanced around, then suddenly pointed at everyone with a sorrowful expression and complained, "Ask the Gelao villagers! My wife is always with you! Now that she's not coming home, isn't it because you instigated her!"

Mu Helian: "She's not a three-year-old child. How could I possibly have the ability to stop her from going back?"

Having said that, Mu Helian had no intention of getting entangled with him. She flicked the whip in her hand, and a rustling sound filled the air. Although it was rare to see Mu Helian take out this whip, the onlookers still unconsciously took a few steps back at the sight of her imposing manner.

Although the man looked frightened upon seeing this, he still insisted, "Hand over my wife first!"

"Get out!" Mu Helian shouted, clearly not wanting to talk to the other party at all.

"You slut! Who are you yelling at! I am a scholar, a man of integrity. You should at least show me some respect. I am only asking you to hand over my wife in private. I advise you not to be so arrogant! If this goes to court, no one will be happy!"

Standing in the crowd, Qingyun overheard most of what was going on. This man, who considered himself a scholar, was married but relied entirely on his wife for support. She had seen him before; he certainly lived a hard life, usually arriving early to work on the sand dunes.

I heard that he felt it would be beneath him to ask someone to buy calligraphy and paintings, and that it would be undignified to ask someone to copy them from a wealthy family’s house. In short, the family had no rice or vegetables and relied on his wife to earn money. Not only that, he was addicted to drinking. When things were going well, he would be nice to her, but when things were not going well, he would beat her.

It's been several days since I've eaten, and I was so hungry that I remembered there was someone in the house and started looking for them.

"If you ask me, why are you wasting your breath talking to him? Mu Helian, if you don't dare to hit him, I will!" Qingyun rolled up his sleeves and stepped out from the crowd. A gigolo, a domestic abuser, what face do you have to give him?

Seeing another unrelated person suddenly jump out from the crowd, the man instinctively became angry and was about to ask a question, but Qingyun stopped him with a gesture and then shot him a glare, "I am not her. If you keep swearing, I'll smash your mouth."

In terms of strength, this idiot in front of her can't beat her.

"Who are you! Mind your own business, it's none of your concern!" The man was momentarily intimidated, but immediately straightened up and said.

Qingyun retorted firmly, "I'm your father! You idiot."

Although no one knew what the curses were, judging from Qingyun's expression, they were probably not pleasant words.

Seeing this, Mu Helian didn't want Qingyun to get involved. This kind of scoundrel would only get more excited the more she tried to fight him. However, Qingyun wasn't one for words. Seeing that the man still wouldn't leave, she raised the hoe in her hand to chop him up, while asking, "I'm not afraid of death! I even dared to teach that old man Liu Ruo a lesson to his face. Do you really think I wouldn't dare to kill you!"

The man was about to say something more, but seeing that Qingyun's posture was not fake, he was startled and took a step back. The people standing behind him also immediately moved aside. The man lost his balance and fell to the ground. Looking at Qingyun who was getting closer and closer, he hurriedly pointed and said, "Shrew! Shrew! You're a complete shrew!"

He dared not question the truthfulness of the other party's words, so he could only immediately support himself and stand up to run.

"I knew it, he's just a bully who picks on the weak and fears the strong," Qingyun said sarcastically, watching the other person's figure.

In truth, Mu Helian should have given them a few lashes before letting them go.

The man's wife was indeed hidden away by Mu Helian. If she were left in that house any longer, who knows what kind of person she would be tortured into. Mu Helian glanced at Qingyun, clearly intending to take charge of the matter, so she decided not to hide it any longer and took her to see the woman.

The man was being hidden at the home of Mu Helian's relatives in a neighboring village. When the young woman heard that her husband had gone to see Mu Helian that day, she became extremely anxious. Upon seeing the man arrive, she quickly grabbed Mu Helian and said with a worried expression, "Why don't I go back first?"

Before the two of them could speak, she anxiously muttered to herself, "My husband must be starving to have come looking for me! There must be no rice or salt left in the house."

Qingyun: ...?

Standing to the side, Qingyun was stunned by the scene.

Mu Helian remained calm, put away her whip, and sat down. The three of them gathered in a small thatched hut. She didn't say anything, but the young lady kept chattering, her words all about how things weren't right and her desire to go back.

"Go back and he'll beat you to death?" Mu Helian hit the nail on the head, lazily raising her eyelids to look at the other person.

The young woman was stunned by what he said and fell back onto the table, clearly at a loss again. Qingyun didn't say anything, but just watched her sob softly.

"But what can I do? I've been by his side since I was a child. His family owes me a debt of gratitude. It wouldn't be too much for me to entrust my life to him!"

Qingyun: ...

This young woman wasn't originally from here. I heard that there was a famine in her original place, and she was forced to wander here. Her family wasn't wealthy either, but her grandmother took pity on her and kept her. In fact, she was being raised as a child bride. For her, who was about to starve to death, this was indeed a great kindness.

"But shouldn't you be repaying his grandmother?" Qingyun suddenly spoke up, and then two pairs of eyes were cast over. The woman stopped crying, as if she had just noticed that there was someone else there. Qingyun continued, "Shouldn't you be taking care of his grandmother in her old age and seeing her off when she passed away? Is your unwavering devotion to him just because you love the house and its inhabitants?"

Before the young lady could answer, Qingyun asked again, "Is it yes or no?"

Was it because she wanted to make her grandmother happy so she could rest in peace in heaven, or because she had feelings for him and couldn't let go of him?

"I...I just feel..." The young woman spoke for a long time, but could only manage to utter these few words.

"But what if he insists on divorcing me in this world! How am I supposed to live? You make it sound so easy." After a long while, as if she had finally found a reason, she covered her face with a handkerchief and continued to cry.

Seeing this, Mu Helian said with a hint of helplessness, "I'm just asking you, are you really determined to leave? If you want to leave, there are ways to do so."

For so many years, that man never touched her, treating her like a servant, so she never got pregnant. If he divorced her on that grounds, it would be enough. A discarded woman, how could she have the face to live in this world? Even if she lived, she would be gossiped about behind her back.

Seeing the woman hesitate, Qingyun also spoke up, "No matter how bad life gets, it's just death. Even if you're being spit on, you can still survive by being shameless. But if you go back and get sucked dry and beaten, that's a sure way to die."

After a moment of silence, a somber atmosphere filled the space. Mu Helian turned and exchanged a glance with Qingyun. She understood, and together they walked out, leaving the other person time to think.

Furthermore, Qingyun only offered this much advice; the choice she made was her own business. She couldn't possibly change someone's deeply ingrained ideas from childhood with just a few words. That's how the world defines women.

The two chatted about Lin Wanjun outside. Mu Helian paused, subconsciously touched her nose, and spoke after a long while, completely unaware of Qingyun's silent gaze on her.

"No wonder I haven't seen her for so long."

Qingyun replied, "But I haven't heard you mention her these past few days. I thought you would hear from her after she left, since she hasn't been coming to work."

Upon hearing this, Mu Helian glanced at Qingyun, then quickly looked away. "Actually," she paused, "Lin Wanjun's work hours are not counted, so I don't know which day she came or not."