Seeing Yang Zinuo's terrible attitude towards Shen Jingyan, he slapped Yang Zinuo on the back of the head.

Although she didn't use much force, Yang Zinuo still covered the back of her head in grievance.

"Manager, why did you hit me?"

"You're a grown man, why are you always picking on Jingya, a young girl? Is that appropriate?"

Old Xu righteously and sternly criticized and educated her, "Jingya wanted to help, and more people means more strength. How did that become causing trouble?"

Yang Zinuo opened his mouth, but his arrogance vanished under Lao Xu's glare, and he could only let out a resentful "humph" from his nostrils.

Anzi also volunteered, saying, "Sister, I'll go with you. I know the area around the forest farm very well, and I know where the snowdrifts are."

Old Xu handed Yang Zinuo and Shen Jingyan each a flashlight, then turned to Anzi and said:

“You little brat, only three inches tall, don’t go outside. The snow outside is up to your neck. If you get buried in the snow, we’ll have to pull you out like a radish.”

Anzi pouted: "I'll grow taller!"

"Let's talk about it when you grow taller!"

Old Xu led Yang Zinuo and Shen Jingyan out of the house.

A cold wind howled, carrying scattered snowflakes, and the warmth on the three of them instantly dissipated in the icy snow.

The forest farm is surrounded by forests on three sides, and the road to Dalin Village is to the south, so it is unlikely that Gu Zhiyun would go that way.

"Jingya, you search to the east, Xiaoyang, you search to the west, I'll go to the south. If you see someone in a snowdrift, pull them out if you can, otherwise don't try to pull them out, call for help!"

After giving some instructions, the three of them went to search in three different directions.

Chen Jingyan trudged through the snow, her steps uneven as she walked eastward into the woods.

The snow reflected the light, and with the help of flashlights and the occasional bursts of fireworks in the sky, the road wasn't too difficult to walk on.

After walking for a while and passing several snowdrifts that were half a person high, Shen Jingyan checked them all but couldn't find Gu Zhiyun.

Gu Zhiyun is tall and slender, at least 1.85 meters tall, so it's unlikely that he would fall into a snowdrift half a person's height and be unable to get out.

"Comrade Gu? Comrade Gu?"

After walking for more than a mile, Shen Jingyan still couldn't find Gu Zhiyun, and she began to feel a little worried.

If he really falls into a snowdrift and can't climb out on his own, and no one hears him when he calls for help, and it's freezing cold outside, he could easily freeze to death if left for too long!

The thought that Gu Zhiyun might have suffered frostbite and fainted filled Shen Jingyan with panic.

"Comrade Gu, where are you? Can you hear me?"

Even she herself didn't realize how much she cared about Gu Zhiyun's life or death.

After running another mile, the cold wind stung Shen Jingyan's delicate face. In her haste, she walked faster and faster, and even broke out in a sweat despite the freezing weather.

Having reached the foot of the mountain, but still seeing no sign of Gu Zhiyun, Shen Jingyan panicked completely and shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Gu—Zhi—Yun!!!"

Her voice disappeared into the vast snowfield, echoing back in waves.

Even when she was besieged by zombies in the apocalypse, she was never this panicked and terrified!

"Gu—Zhi—Yun!!!"

Her panicked voice was like a stone sinking into the sea, receiving no response.

Chen Jingyan's nose stung, and tears welled up in her eyes.

She comforted herself, thinking that perhaps Lao Xu and Yang Zinuo had already found Gu Zhiyun...

But what if they don't find it either?

In the quiet snowfield, the little girl sobbed, and just as the sob subsided, a deep voice came from not far away.

"I'm here."

It's Gu Zhiyun's voice!

Shen Jingyan was overjoyed and hurriedly ran towards the direction of the sound.

A large snowdrift appeared before her, two meters deep.

Gu Zhiyun huddled in the snowdrift. As Chen Jingyan looked down, he forced his frozen hand to turn on the flashlight.

The beam of the flashlight fell on Shen Jingyan's face, and Gu Zhiyun was stunned when he saw the glistening tears on the little girl's face.

"You cried?"

The little girl's cheeks and nose were red from the cold, and there was a wet red blush at the corners of her eyes. Two teardrops were rolling down her pink cheeks.

She looked so pitiful, like a little rabbit that had been bullied.

Gu Zhiyun's heart began to pound violently, and a surge of heat spread from his abdomen throughout his body, quickly restoring sensation to his frozen limbs.

He felt an urge to rush forward, to hold the crying little girl tightly in his arms, and to kiss away her tears…

He was startled by his own bold and impulsive idea.

Shen Jingyan, unaware of what he was thinking, leaned forward, half-lying on the edge of the snowdrift, and stretched out her arm towards Gu Zhiyun.

"I'll pull you up."

The system suddenly popped up, urging, "Master, a beauty rescuing a hero doesn't happen every day! Xiao Ba suggests you rescue Gu Zhiqing, and when he's not looking, kiss him. Mission accomplished! He definitely won't hold it against you for saving him!"

At this moment, Shen Jingyan really wanted to kick this unnecessary system out of her mind.

What is this? "Regarding the system encouraging its master to act like a pervert towards an innocent educated youth to gain points?"

"Shut up!" Shen Jingyan said irritably, dismissing the system.

"Comrade Gu, let me pull you up." She resumed her efforts to rescue Gu Zhiyun.

Gu Zhiyun looked at the delicate, fair hand and hesitated, saying, "You're not strong enough, be careful you don't fall in too."

Chen Jingyan said confidently, "No, I'm strong enough to pull you up!"

She was no delicate little girl; when she was the queen of the apocalypse, she was strong enough to tear zombies apart with her bare hands.

Although Gu Zhiyun was tall, he was quite thin, weighing only around 140 pounds. When Chen Jingyan pulled him up, it was as easy as lifting a fishing rod.

Gu Zhiyun was still half-believing and half-doubting, hesitating whether or not he should reach out.

If Shen Jingyan also falls in, that would be troublesome; the two of them might not be found until tomorrow.

Are they going to spend New Year's Eve in a snowdrift?

Can the two of them survive a freezing night with temperatures dropping to minus twenty degrees Celsius?

Shen Jingyan noticed Gu Zhiyun's hesitation and said to him firmly, "Comrade Gu, please rest assured, entrust your safety to me!"

Looking at that slender arm that remained steadfast, Gu Zhiyun finally reached out his hand.

He suddenly remembered that a couple of days ago at the noodle shop in town, the little girl grabbed his arm and dragged him out with astonishing strength.

With that thought, his last remaining concern vanished.

He tiptoed slightly and grabbed that fair little hand.

The little girl's hands were like a piece of beautiful jade inlaid with ice; though small and soft, they were surprisingly full of strength.

"Hurry up!"

With a simultaneous exertion of strength from his waist and arms, Gu Zhiyun felt his feet lift off the ground and quickly rise to the ground.

Unexpectedly, his legs were so frozen stiff and inflexible, and he had twisted his ankle when he fell into the snowdrift, that he lost his balance and leaned his whole body towards Chen Jingyan...