When the topic of tomb raiders came up, Old Ma became serious: "Tell me, what's the situation?"

"Five days ago, I encountered some tomb raiders near Wild Boar Ridge. They thought they could speak freely in the deep mountains and forests, so I heard them clearly. They said they had inquired throughout the entire village, and the villagers, like fools, told them everything they knew for a little something. They searched all the larger tombs in the area, but haven't found anything of great value yet. They're looking for a burial complex, but I don't know what they're looking for. They haven't found anything yet, but they said a master geomancer is coming soon to continue the search. That's all."

"These despicable grave robbers won't have a good end," Aunt Ma said angrily. Since ancient times, people have valued matters concerning life and death, and anyone would be unhappy to hear such things.

Uncle Ma said, "I'll go to the county tomorrow to report this situation. Don't leave these days. We've been studying ideology lately and even formed study groups. You educated youth are in one group, so don't forget to go and check it out, and then write a report to catch up on any missed reports. The village is going to be evaluated for advanced villages soon, and the village chief is taking this very seriously, so don't be careless. Also, there are a few letters of yours at the brigade headquarters."

An Moxue felt a headache coming on when she heard there were several letters; they might all be coming to attack her.

"Okay, I understand. Uncle, do you know any big families or large tombs around here? What are they looking for? They've been searching for so long and they're still searching." An Moxue asked curiously.

"I've never heard of any. They're all small-scale operations. Just look at the time and manpower they spent on finding them. It's not simple. Maybe the common people don't know about it. In the past, the rich and powerful paid attention to this kind of thing. It's really hard to say."

"What's going on up there? Letting them run wild for so long, they should just be arrested. They're a bunch of rats, disgusting and repulsive."

"That's not something we can worry about. Just report it and wait for the higher-ups to handle it. Tell me where you've been this whole time. I thought you'd only be gone for a few days, but you've been gone for so long! Goodness, anyone who didn't know better would think you'd disappeared! You're lucky to have Guo Xiwang as your village chief. If it were any other village, things might have been different."

"Uncle Ma, don't worry, I won't do anything reckless. Uncle Guo is a good person, and most of the people in our village are good people too. I'll cherish this opportunity and never forget Uncle Guo's kindness. I went to quite a lot this time. First, I went to Hulal, then from Hulal to Hali, then from Hali I circled around to Wild Boar Ridge, and finally I circled around to Wolong Mountain before coming back. If I hadn't run into those tomb raiders, I would have been back a few days earlier. It's a pity I didn't find anything these past few days; it was a wasted trip."

"Good heavens, how far have you gone? You've already reached Hulal. Did you get lost in these deep mountains and forests?"

"No, I took a compass and kept a record every day. Uncle, let me tell you, I've made great progress this time. At first, I couldn't hit the pheasants and rabbits accurately and they got away. Later, I fought with lone wild boars and wolves with knives. Eventually, I fought them with my bare hands. Now I can kill a pig with one hand without any problem. I've never fought a wolf pack before, and I'm afraid I'm not strong enough."

"That's good. Just be realistic about your abilities and act accordingly. Take it slow. You've already made great progress. When you have some free time, you can go and ask Skinny Monkey for some advice. It's best to go early in the morning and avoid people to avoid trouble."

"Okay, Uncle. Is there anything else?"

"there is none left."

"Uncle, Auntie, I'm going back now." An Moxue said, getting up to leave, but was stopped by Aunt Ma.

"Wait a minute, I just made some pancakes a few days ago, made with sorghum flour and corn flour. Take some home and eat them."

As Aunt Ma spoke, she put on her shoes and went out of the house. A moment later, she came back with a delicate little basket filled with pancakes.

An Moxue accepted the basket without ceremony and said to Old Ma, "Uncle Ma, could you weave me a few nice baskets when you have time? I'll keep them to store things in the house. They don't need to be too big, just small, delicate, and pretty. Look how beautifully you've woven these little baskets!"

"Sure, go cut the strips yourself, and you can weave them once you bring them back."

"I'll go when I have time." With that, he picked up his basket and left Old Ma's house.

The next morning, An Moxue woke up and felt that the room was much colder. She drew back the curtains and saw a vast expanse of white outside. The desolate autumn scene above and below seemed to be an illusion.

An Moxue was suddenly inspired. She quickly dressed, went out of the house and into the courtyard, and began practicing her boxing. As she performed the boxing moves, she circulated her internal energy cultivation technique. Looking at the snow scene before her, she gained a deeper understanding of the phrase in the technique: "Chaos does not open, momentum does not stop. Heaven and earth are one, all laws return to one." Her technique was thus elevated.

She didn't stop punching, she just kept punching until the snow lessened, she stopped, she stopped, and it was over. She was still not satisfied, and she punched with more ease than ever before.

I went back inside, grabbed my watch, and checked the time. It was almost nine o'clock. I couldn't believe how much time had passed in the short time I'd only been playing. Time really flies when you're doing what you love and want to do, and you're fully immersed in it!

After having breakfast at the space, I heated the kang (a traditional heated brick bed), took the quotes of the great man and my notebook, put them in my military green satchel, and left home.

After the snow fell, there were few people chatting on the village roads; mostly children were playing wildly, running around.

First, they went to the brigade headquarters. Village Chief Guo was overjoyed to see An Moxue return and jokingly said, "You're finally back! If you hadn't come back, I was going to report it. Next time, you can't be gone this long; it's too worrying."

An Moxue quickly reassured him, "Uncle Guo, don't worry. I encountered tomb raiders this time, which is why I was a few days late. It definitely won't happen again next time."

"Did they spot you?"

"No."

"That's good. Did you tell Lao Ma?"

“I told him. I went to tell him when I got back last night. Uncle Ma said he’ll report to the county today.”

"Okay, we're studying the quotes of great men now to strengthen our ideological and moral education. You should study hard too, and don't forget to submit your report."

"Uncle, don't worry, it's in my schoolbag. I'll go to the educated youth settlement in a bit. I'll catch up on what I missed."

“Alright. Here, take these letters back.” Village Chief Guo said, opening a drawer and taking out a stack of letters, handing them all to An Moxue, adding, “These have all arrived since you left.”

An Moxue took the letter, glanced at the sender, and silently mourned for herself for three seconds—it was all over, this was the army of punitive expeditions.