Chapter 4

4.

It was still early, but some villagers were already up. When someone saw Guan Yue, they looked surprised. Guan Yue had expected them to talk to her and was prepared to brush them off, but the other person had no desire to talk to her. They just gave her a strange look and quickly lowered their head to do something else.

How could she be so unpopular?

Although Guan Yue hadn't planned to make friends with the people in this world right away, she still harbored the thought that she might meet someone like her neighbor, someone she could talk to and ask about where she could find work or food. However, she didn't expect that everyone seemed to be afraid of her and didn't want to talk to her, which made her feel a little embarrassed.

Guan Yue wasn't the type to be overly familiar with others, so seeing this, she could only pretend not to see it and continue walking out of the village.

Why don't you go find her "sisters"?

The thought only flashed through Guan Yue's mind for a moment before she immediately dismissed it. Not to mention that she didn't know where they lived, even if she did, she wouldn't go looking for them. She wanted to start a new life and distance herself from the gangsters!

Guan Yue missed her neighbors even more; at least there was a normal person who was willing to be close to her.

She walked to the big locust tree at the village entrance, and without stopping, continued walking towards a deserted forest in the distance.

Guan Yue, being a working professional who had watched a few episodes of wilderness survival short films in her spare time, had already seen yesterday that there were many undulating mountains here. The ancient landscape was untouched and should have a variety of abundant resources for her to gather. Guan Yue wasn't greedy; she just wanted to collect some firewood and some edible fruit.

This is also why Guan Yue, despite having no ancient survival skills, felt confident that she wouldn't starve to death so easily.

However, Guan Yue did not plan to go into the mountain alone. She could just search for supplies at the foot of the mountain. There were many dense bushes at the foot of the mountain, and some mushrooms under the trees. Afraid of encountering snakes, she first broke off a branch and held it in her hand, using the branch to pat the bushes to make sure there was nothing there before picking the berries on them.

The berries were all different colors. Guan Yue only looked at the ones that had been pecked by birds. She was a complete fruit idiot who couldn't recognize anything outside the supermarket, so it was impossible for her to identify what kind of fruit it was. She didn't dare touch the strangely colored ones, so she picked some that looked harmless. She also picked some white mushrooms from the ground and put them in her basket.

She also picked up a lot of fallen branches, stacked them up one by one, and tied them with rope. These tasks were not difficult, but for Guan Yue, it was the first time in her life. She did them carefully and slowly, and by the time she rested, the sun was already high in the sky.

Guan Yue felt a slight itch on the soles of her feet—probably because her shoes had a hole in them. She was also incredibly hungry, so she found a shady spot under a tree to sit down, picked a yellow berry, hesitated for a long time, and then put it in her mouth.

Sour, sweet, and astringent.

Guan Yue's tightly furrowed brows relaxed a little. This fruit tasted somewhat like the cherries she had eaten before, and it didn't have a pit. Although the taste wasn't particularly amazing, it looked like a normal fruit and wouldn't harm her.

It would be great if I could pick up some wild game to take home.

Guan Yue was lost in thought. She looked at the leaves above her head, sunlight filtering through the leaves and falling on her face and body. She couldn't help but drift off into a daze. It had been a long time since she had been so relaxed. In the past, she was always busy with work, and even when she had time to rest, she often didn't get a proper rest. She was always looking for something or someone, and she was frequently sent on business trips and training trips to other places. In the fast-paced modern society, everyone has a spring behind them that refuses to relax, being pushed around and unable to stop.

Guan Yue didn't dislike her job. Although it was busy, her colleagues and treatment were acceptable. She wouldn't say she loved it, but she didn't hate it either. However, sitting on the ground like this, looking up at the sky and ignoring the passage of time, was a unique experience for her. She felt a sense of freedom and joy. Here, she completely abandoned the etiquette that a modern person should have. She didn't shower, wore tattered clothes, and sat anywhere, even for urination and defecation. She wasn't sure if there was also a sense of self-destructive abandon in her, like a rogue.

People can do anything if they stop caring about saving face.

—That's what Guan Yue, the former hooligan, thought.

Guan Yue shook her head, trying to shake off the drowsiness that made her want to sleep in the wild. Even though it was daytime, it was too dangerous for a woman to be out in the wild. Who knew what bad people she might encounter in ancient times? She should hurry back.

Moreover, she could go to the riverbank now, since there shouldn't be many people during the day. She could try to catch some fish. Although Guan Yue couldn't cook, she always paid attention to a balanced diet. There had to be meat in the vegetables, and side dishes in the staple food. It would be too monotonous to only have berries and mushrooms.

But even after catching the fish, Guan Yue was a bit stumped about how to cook it. Grill it? Or boil it? What seasonings should she use? And does she even know how to start a fire?

As the saying goes, it's always good to have more skills. She never thought she would have to learn outdoor cooking skills. Before she transmigrated, she mostly ate in the company cafeteria or ordered takeout. She thought that being able to order takeout was the highest level of cooking skills for modern young people, but she never expected that one day she would transmigrate to a world where she couldn't order takeout.

Guan Yue had rested enough and had just gotten up when she heard a heavy thud behind her, accompanied by a piercing scream. Guan Yue was startled and quickly turned around. The sound came from behind the big tree she was leaning against. She slowly went around to the back of the tree and found a brown-black rabbit lying on the ground with bloodstains on its head.

This is……

A gift from nature?!

Guan Yue was completely dumbfounded. She had always thought that the story of waiting for a rabbit to run into a tree stump was just a fairy tale in a book, but she actually encountered such a magical thing.

She crouched down and touched the rabbit in disbelief. The rabbit was still warm to the touch, but it wasn't breathing; it was definitely dead.

If she said she found the rabbit, would anyone believe her?

Guan Yue silently thanked the kind-hearted nature in her heart, picked up the rabbit and put it into her small basket. The rabbit was quite big, weighing about four or five pounds; she definitely couldn't eat it all by herself.

Will eating this rabbit affect my IQ?

A sudden inspiration flashed through Guan Yue's mind: Hey! She could share it with her good neighbors.

She was just wondering how to get closer to others, and this rabbit was a perfect excuse. She could even take the opportunity to have the rabbit cooked for someone else; she only wanted a rabbit leg.

Guan Yue became more and more excited as she thought about it. She remembered that her former colleagues used to build relationships in this way. They liked to bring all kinds of snacks or handmade pastries to their workstations and share them with everyone, which would quickly liven up the atmosphere. She actually ate quite a lot of them back then, not because she loved snacks, but because she could feel the other person's good intentions... Of course, she also helped her colleagues with a lot of work in return.

In any case, she shared the rabbit with her neighbors, and they should be able to feel her good intentions. This way, they will know that she is not a real scoundrel, and she can also take the opportunity to ask for help from others.

She's a genius.

Guan Yue rubbed her hands together, feeling like a fly was buzzing in her head. Instantly, her legs and back stopped hurting. She picked up all her things and headed straight home.

On her way back, the villagers were already up. When they saw her basket full of things, their eyes bulged out as if they saw the sun rising in the west. Guan Yue deliberately lifted her basket to make it easier for people to see. She thought to herself that she should come out and collect more things in the future, so that her reputation might improve.

She returned to her own house and found that the door of the house across the street was still tightly closed, and she didn't know if anyone was inside.

She hesitated for a moment, then went over and knocked on the door, but there was no response from inside. Had they gone out?

Guan Yue was a little nervous and worried. Surely he wasn't still sleeping? Should she wait a little longer?

Guan Yue returned to her room, and after a while she peeked out again, but she still couldn't see any movement from the other side. The houses across the street were all surrounded by earthen walls, so she couldn't see what was going on inside. There was a tree outside, but she couldn't very well climb the tree to spy on them.

Guan Yue felt a rare sense of unease. What if the lady of the house came out and told her to get lost without a word? Women in ancient times would probably be a little timid, but she had brought a rabbit as a gift. Logically, the master of the house should be out working at this time, and it was more likely that his wife would come out. But they were all women, so it should be fine, right...? But she was a female hooligan...

The longer time dragged on, the more courage Guan Yue lost. She didn't even dare to knock on the door anymore. She paced back and forth at the door, scratching her head and cheeks as if a hundred ants were crawling all over her. Just then, the door of fate opened, and she stared wide-eyed at the person who came out.

It's a man.

And he's an adult man.

Guan Yue heard the sound of her heart sinking, completely forgetting her earlier anxiety, and excitedly stepped forward, saying, "This is the rabbit I hunted, I'm giving it to you!"

Guan Yue grabbed the rabbit ears in her hand and held them forward. The man hallucinated that there was a tail wagging behind her.

"You..." the man began, "What is this...?"

This was the first time Guan Yue had heard her neighbor speak. His voice was gentle and refreshing, just like his personality. It was like listening to celestial music that instantly soothed her ears. She continued, "Rabbit, this is something I picked up in the mountains this morning... I caught it, it's still fresh."

She looked at him eagerly and whispered, "If I could have one of your legs to taste, that would be nice."

The man looked at the rabbit, then at her. Guan Yue was still covered in mud and dirt from the mountains, and her clothes were so dirty that their original color was hard to discern. But her eyes shone brightly, making it impossible for him to refuse her.

"Thank you, but I don't need it."

The man's cold words shattered Guan Yue's heart, and her face instantly fell. Was it true that the cooked rabbit leg was still out of her reach?

It's a tonic.

"Why...why?" She heard the sound of her own heart breaking.

"Men and women should not touch each other. I should have told Miss Guan that long ago, shouldn't I?" the man said. "Please stop bothering me. If you think that I, a divorced woman with a child, am weak and vulnerable and can be insulted at will, then I will definitely take you to the authorities to prosecute you for harassing a respectable woman. At the very least, I will fight to the death and never let you succeed!"