"Help him!" Ye Nuan picked up the wooden stick on the ground and tried to break the lock.
"Get out of the way!" Qi Wuze drew out the black gold knife on his back and cut the lock directly, then kicked the door open.
The farmhand trapped inside covered his mouth and nose and coughed continuously, then ran out in a panic and fell when he passed by Ye Nuan.
Qi Wuze repeated the same trick, cutting the locks off several other rooms. The fire gradually grew larger and larger, and the scene became a bit chaotic. Fortunately, bamboo pipes had been buried earlier, and the water from the pond was directly connected here. Those who escaped, under Ye Nuan's command, began to use water to put out the fire.
They worked until late at night, but fortunately no one died, only two people who were choked by the smoke and showed signs of poisoning. One of the five cabins burned down, and the one next to it was slightly blackened, but the other three were still intact.
Everyone hurriedly carried the people to the open space. Ye Nuan poured some of the water she usually gave Xiao Hu into the poisoned people. They quickly regained consciousness and sat against the wall, somewhat terrified. They asked Ye Nuan, "Miss Ye, what the hell is going on? Why is there a fire when all is well? The house won't even open?"
Without a reasonable explanation, obviously no one would dare to live in this house anymore.
Ye Nuan soothed him, "Don't worry, everyone. The other four rooms are still habitable. Clean them up first and move in. Your city lord and I will be guarding outside tonight."
Qi Wuze put away his knife and said to everyone, "You all go to sleep. I will guard the place myself tonight."
The city lord is their faith. Since the city lord has spoken personally, why shouldn’t they believe it?
It was just not very kind of him to actually let the city lord guard the place. The man inside who was still calm said, "City lord, why don't you and Miss Ye go to sleep and we can take turns guarding the place."
"No need! Go to sleep!" Qi Wuze waved his hand. The man didn't want to persuade him anymore and led everyone into the house.
The winter night wind was bitingly cold. Su gave Ye Nuan a coat. Ye Nuan took it and said to her, "Mom, take Xiaohu and Aya to bed first. Let Huajuan stay outside. City Lord Qi and I have something to discuss."
Su nodded and walked back with the two children.
Ye Nuan took two steps towards the burnt wooden house, observed it, and then asked, "Who do you think did this?"
Qi Wuze didn't respond, lit the torch and walked out of the cabin. After taking two steps, he suddenly reached out to Ye Nuan. Ye Nuan didn't understand why, and then she heard him say, "Hold me, don't fall!"
The sky was already dark, with only the whirring torches lighting the two of them. Ye Nuan stared at the slender, dry hand and silently placed her own on it.
He curved his eyes and pulled Ye Nuan to check the path leading to the wooden house step by step.
After looking for a while, Ye Nuan asked softly, "Did you see anything?"
Qi Wuze frowned: "Judging from the horse hoof prints, it's a horse bandit!" He has been dealing with horse bandits for many years and is very familiar with their hoof prints.
There are only so many people in the wasteland, and Dahuang Village is unlikely to be the only ones left, so the Creation Pavilion and Chujiazhai are left.
Ye Nuan remained silent for a long time without saying anything.
Qi Wuze straightened up, looked at her, and asked hesitantly, "You don't believe it was Chu Xuesong who did it?"
Ye Nuan lowered her eyelashes, "Didn't they say that Chu Family Village doesn't kill people?"
There were thirty lives there!
"And why would he do that?"
Qi Wuze shook his head. "Although I've dealt with bandits for years, I'm not familiar with Chu Xuesong. His adoptive father, Xiao Buchen, was a perpetrator of all sorts of evil. The Xiao family's bandits were no different from the Wei family's. Eight years ago, after I severely injured Xiao Buchen, news of his death spread, and Chu Xuesong took over at that time. But it's said that he killed Xiao Buchen and changed the name of Xiaojiazhai to Chujiazhai."
"After that, he started to control the bandits, only robbing money and not hurting people. He never showed up himself, and I only saw He Xin by his side."
"I've been in contact with them the most recently, and from what I can tell, they're not exactly good people!"
Qi Wuze added: "But, we can't rule out someone framing him. After all, we didn't see anyone!"
This answer is quite pertinent.
Ye Nuan asked, "What about Jiang Ji?"
Qi Wuze said: "Although Jiang Ji is greedy for money, she would not do such things as murder and arson without reason."
Ye Nuan was about to say something sarcastic when he added, "But people's hearts are hard to predict. Maybe what she showed wasn't her true self!"
His analysis was thorough and rational.
Ye Nuan was puzzled: "No matter who did it, why did he burn down the farmhand's cabin instead of me?"
Qi Wuze shook his head: "I don't know. If he wants to cause trouble, he will definitely take action again. Crazy Man and I will be guarding here these few nights. You just stay in the main building and don't come out." Huajuan has always been very alert and will know as long as someone approaches the main building.
Ye Nuan hurriedly said: "It's better not to. Gao Shoucheng still has to guard Luomu City. You don't have to guard it all the time. Just recruit wolves or snakes to guard around the farm." The enemy is in the open, and they are in the dark. It's not a good idea to guard like this all the time.
Although Qi Wuze agreed on the surface, he still had a frown on his face.
The torch in his hand was swaying in the wind. He took Ye Nuan's hand and walked back, saying as he walked, "You go to sleep. I'll keep watch tonight."
"Let's not do that. I can't sleep now anyway."
The ends of her hair brushed across her face. Qi Wuze tucked her hair behind her ears and said in a low voice, "Be good..."
His eyes were too doting. Ye Nuan dodged twice with her eyelashes drooping, and finally lowered her head and nodded.
The north wind was still howling. She walked back along the path, went to her room, undressed and lay down. She lay there for a long time but couldn't fall asleep. She simply put on her clothes again and got up, went to the window and looked out. The sky outside was dark and gloomy, and a bonfire was burning in front of the small wooden building in the distance.
Qi Wuze sat quietly by the fire, the flickering flames forming a circle of light that completely enveloped half of his figure. From this angle, only his subtle movements could be vaguely seen, and the expression on his face was unclear.
The winter in the wilderness was very cold. Ye Nuan's hand, which was resting on the windowsill, felt a little cold. She breathed out and muttered, "...It must be boring to be alone!" Suddenly thinking of something, she got up in the dark, ran quietly to Qi Wuze's door, pushed it open, and then found the flower pot he had placed on the bedside in the dark.
He gave the flowerpot a gentle smile: "Since you've worked so hard, I'll give you a drop of spiritual spring water... just one drop." This drop of spiritual spring water is enough for it to germinate. Whether it can bloom later depends on City Lord Qi himself.
After doing all this, Ye Nuan tiptoed back to her room.
The quilt was warm, and she wrapped herself in it and fell asleep.
The second half of the night was very peaceful. At daybreak, Ye Nuan vaguely heard excited yet suppressed shouts coming from the opposite side, followed by a knock on her door.
But then the sound died down again, and Ye Nuan turned over and continued to sleep.
An hour later, she stood up, dressed, and opened the door. What she saw was a pot of emerald green, newly sprouted Emei Spring Orchids, and behind the Emei Spring Orchids was a face with flying eyebrows and eyes.
"Ah, A Nuan, it, it sprouted!" There was almost uncontrollable excitement in his voice.
Ye Nuan reached out and touched the orchid's buds, chuckling softly, "Yes, it's sprouted!"
Qi Wuze's eyes fell on her face, and he repeated very softly: "It sprouted..."
Ye Nuan: "Well, I'm talking about blooming."
Qi Wuze: "It will bloom!" He said excitedly: "Everything I planted died before. I never managed to grow anything alive."
"A Nuan, it has sprouted. I'll take it out to bask in the sun now." After saying that, he ran downstairs with the flower in his arms, and sat on the terrace in the yard holding the flowerpot to bask in the sun.
Su came out of the kitchen, took a look, and casually asked Ye Nuan who had followed, "What's wrong with him? I saw him in front of your door early in the morning with a pot of flowers. He didn't knock or move, and he kept grinning!"
Ye Nuan only picked up some of them and said, "Those are the flowers his mother planted a while ago, but they died later. They just sprouted last night, and he's so happy!"
"Oh, we should be happy indeed. This child is filial."
Ye Nuan smiled: "Yeah, he is quite filial."
The farm was originally supposed to start work at 3:15 AM, but the fire last night was so big that Ye Nuan specifically asked everyone to start work at noon.
Before starting the work, he asked someone to rebuild the burned wooden building and promised that similar incidents would not happen again in the future.
Today they were going to harvest the ripe rapeseed and wheat. Ye Nuan gave a few instructions and went back to the yard to help her mother dry the salt. Qi Wuze, who had been smiling foolishly, saw Ye Nuan busy and immediately put the flower pot back to his room, locked the door, and told his brother to take care of the flower rolls before going downstairs to help dry the salt.
The pure white salt reflected dazzling light under the sun. Qi Wuze stared at Ye Nuan while basking in the sun, then smiled, and then continued to stare, looking like a complete pervert.
Even though Ye Nuan's face was thick, it still blushed slightly.
Su coughed lightly, and Qi Wuze immediately turned his eyes away, but after a while he couldn't help but glance at Ye Nuan.
Su: “.”
After Qi Wuze left the courtyard, Su lowered her voice and asked, "Ah Nuan, what's going on between you and City Lord Qi?"
"Why does he stay on the farm and not go back? Also, why does he keep staring at you and smiling? Did he say he likes you?" Anyone with a discerning eye can see that City Lord Qi is interested in An Nuan, but if he's just interested, why doesn't he come and propose marriage?
Although she may not agree, it's a matter of attitude.
Ye Nuan didn't want to hide too much from her, so she lowered her voice and replied, "He said he liked me, but I said I needed to think about it. As for why he has been staying on the farm, I don't know."
Su was delighted: "Did he really say he liked you?" After the joy, she said, "Well, you can't agree to anyone who likes you. You have to think about it carefully. If a man is too easy to get, you won't cherish him." When Ye Ling came to propose marriage, she fell in love with him at first sight, and her mother also advised her to think about it.
But she is stubborn and if she likes something, she likes it without any consideration!
Now I think that was a huge mistake!
Su suddenly realized: "I was wondering why he was so evasive when he looked at me. It turns out he was pursuing my daughter."
Ye Nuan didn't wait for her to tease him and walked towards the field with the basket.
The area surrounding Yunjian Farm was now shaded by green trees, and the ground beneath her feet was no longer barren and brown, now covered in green grass. With every step she took, the progress bar in her mind moved forward. In the distance, workers were harvesting.
The farm is filled with the joy of harvest, with orange wheat and plump rapeseed.
The progress bar reached 100%, and no one noticed that Ye Nuan, who had been walking down the road, had suddenly disappeared. She appeared, basket in hand, beneath a giant durian tree. Next to her were sweet orange trees and apple trees laden with fruit. Not far away was a clear spring.
There is a vortex in the middle of the spring.
The metal panel in the sky made a beeping sound: "The space has been upgraded to a multi-dimensional intelligent version. Multi-dimensional version level 1: The host can freely select five plants of their choice, can enter and exit the space freely, and the space has ten plots of land."
Ye Nuan was surprised and delighted, and asked hurriedly, "Are there any restrictions on the time and number of times you can enter and exit each day?"
Lingquan Space: "Of course, once a day, one hour each time."
Ye Nuan asked again: "Then can I enter in several times, adding up to one hour?"
Lingquan Space: "...Uh...This question is a bit difficult, beyond the understanding of space."
It seems that space is not that smart!
"If you don't tell me, I'll take it as your consent."
Ye Nuan closed her eyes, and then she reappeared out of thin air on the path. A worker accidentally glanced at her and thought he was seeing things.
Ye Nuan tried to enter the space again, but found that she couldn't get in no matter what.
The system panel let out a laugh similar to "Haha": "Host, it seems you can only enter once a day. You must work hard to upgrade!"
Ye Nuan: “.”
She knew it wouldn't be that good, but she was still very happy. She carried the basket and continued walking forward. Ye Xiaohu, who was following from a distance, rubbed his eyes and asked Qi Ya beside him: "Did you see my sister suddenly disappear just now?"
Qi Ya shook his head. He hadn't even looked at it.
Ye Xiaohu scratched his head: Did I see it wrong?
After the space entered the multi-dimensional intelligent version, the energy progress seemed to be particularly slow. For an entire piece of land, it was less than 1%. If she wanted to upgrade, she would probably have to expand the planting area.
The wheat and rapeseed harvest couldn't be finished in one afternoon, so Ye Nuan had them pile everything together and leave it for tomorrow. At night, after the workers fell asleep, Ye Nuan and Qi Wuze hid in a hidden spot and listened carefully.
In the first half of the night, Ye Nuan squatted until her legs were sore but there was still no movement. In the second half of the night, Ye Nuan almost fell asleep leaning against Qi Wuze. When it was almost dawn, there were light footsteps coming this way. Qi Wuze was alert and gently pushed Ye Nuan, pressing his index finger to her lips and shushing.
It was pitch black, with only the chirping of insects. Ye Nuan understood and remained crouched, motionless. Qi Wuze groped forward, following the sound. A figure in black flashed by, and he pounced, kicking the man to the ground. He removed his hands, his feet, and his jaw, all in one go.
The people who had come with him immediately gathered around him upon hearing the noise. A fierce metallic clang echoed in the darkness. The ruby on Qi Wuze's hilt gleamed brightly. Screams rang out one after another, and someone whispered, "Hurry up..."
The attackers, knowing they were no match for them, fled with their wounds. Qi Wuze was about to give chase, but when he realized Ye Nuan was still there, he stopped and found a torch to light. The flames illuminated the surroundings, leaving the radish fields in a mess. Ye Nuan ran over and pulled off the black-clad man's face mask as he lay on the ground.
Qi Wuze's square, dark face wrinkled in pain. He looked him up and down and said with certainty, "Are you from the Chu Family Village?"
Ye Nuan's heart skipped a beat and she asked Qi Wuze, "How did you know?"
Qi Wuze pointed at the knife at his waist: "There are marks on the knife and on his neck."
Sure enough, there was one, a black crescent moon.
"Are you really from Chujiazhai? Did Chu Xuesong ask you to come?" Ye Nuan was doubtful.
The man on the ground was sweating profusely from the pain, but he didn't say a word. Ye Nuan kicked him hard, but he still didn't say a word.
Qi Wuze coughed lightly and said, "Uh, his jaw was removed." Then he bent down and moved his hand.
Snap!
Jaw closed.
Before Ye Nuan could speak, the man suddenly tried to bite his tongue to commit suicide. Fortunately, Qi Wuze was quick and removed his jaw again.
Qi Wuze said: "He probably won't say anything."
Ye Nuan snorted coldly, "Let him lie there like this all night. Isn't Mr. Chu coming tomorrow? We can just bring him in front of him and confront him face to face."
The man on the ground heard Chu Xuesong's name and his eyes began to roll around anxiously. His face turned pale, and he was obviously terrified. No one paid any attention to him, no matter how he struggled. Qi Wuze directly trapped him and dragged him to the yard. He asked Hua Juan to guard him while he and Ye Nuan went back to sleep.
The next morning, Chu Xuesong arrived as expected, still wearing the thick black bamboo jacket that Ye Nuan had handed to him. He looked more like a lovely beauty than a ball.
However, his good mood only lasted for a moment before the person at his feet disrupted it. The face of the man in black fell in front of him. His face, which was originally howling in pain, was filled with fear the moment he saw the corner of Chu Xuesong's clothes.
Qi Wuze's brows were cold as he questioned, "Boss Chu, a group of people have been causing trouble on the farm for two consecutive nights, nearly setting fire to and killing thirty people. Last night, I seriously injured more than a dozen people and captured one. Do you know him?"
Chu Xuesong naturally knew this person; he was from Chu Family Village.
He didn't respond, but looked at Ye Nuan anxiously: "A Nuan, are you okay?"
Subconscious concern couldn't be faked, and Ye Nuan became more and more confused. "Master Chu, this person is from the Chu Family Village. Did you send him?"
Chu Xuesong's gentle brows were shrouded in gloom, his eyelashes trembled, and his expression was quite hurt: "A Nuan, you used to call me Xiao Bai."
Ye Nuan frowned: "Master Chu, just answer me, did you send someone here?"
"No!" He looked directly into her eyes, his gaze calm and clear: "Even if I, Chu Xuesong, am a bad guy, I will not touch Yunjian Farm in the slightest!"
The two looked at each other for a while, and Ye Nuan suddenly withdrew her gaze and said softly: "I want to believe you, but can you explain what's going on with this person?"
Chu Xuesong's gaze fell on the person at his feet, his eyes narrowed slightly, his gaze carrying a bone-chilling chill. The moment he looked at the person underground, his entire body stiffened, and the fear engraved in his bones made every pore tremble.
Chu Xuesong turned his gaze back to Ye Nuan and said sincerely, "If you trust me, hand this man over to me. I will give you an explanation in three days."
Ye Nuan subconsciously looked at Qi Wuze, and Chu Xuesong's hand on his side tightened slightly.
"Okay, take the person back. I'll wait for your explanation in three days."
Chu Xuesong waved his hand, and He Xin immediately stepped forward to pull the man away. The man whimpered twice, and when he thought of falling into the hands of the boss, he wanted to bite his tongue and commit suicide on the spot.
Ye Nuan didn't want to say more. She brought out the prepared salt and placed it in front of Chu Xuesong. "Look, this is sun-dried salt. Five dou in total."
The salt in front of them was snow-white and fine, better than the salt from the Creation Pavilion, and considered top-grade. The bandits behind Chu Xuesong were all amazed and looked at Ye Nuan with admiration: She really can extract salt!
Chu Xuesong smiled with his eyes curved, as if he had expected this, and said softly, "A Nuan is amazing."
Ye Nuan rudely sent the guest away: "Get the salt and leave."
Chu Xuesong's smile was a bit forced. He looked at Qi Wuze, who was standing beside him with a cold face, and then looked towards the second floor of the wooden building. The child who had peeped out immediately squatted down in panic when he met his gaze. He felt a gloom in his heart and suddenly felt very disgusted with his identity.
"Okay, I'm leaving!"
He obviously had a lot to say to A Nuan, like 'The farm is still the best', 'Look at me wearing a new padded jacket, doesn't it look like a ball', 'I brought a few books for Xiao Hu to read', but it seemed inappropriate now.
Until an explanation is given, it will be inappropriate!
Chu Xuesong turned around. The north wind was bleak, and he felt a little cold. A layer of bumps appeared on his hands. He Xin, who had followed him out, handed him a hand warmer and said softly, "Master, keep warm."
He Xin was very attentive. He knew that the head of the family had caught a cold because of what happened that year, so he always carried a small hand warmer with him when he went out.
"It's so warm..." Chu Xuesong sighed softly while holding the hand warmer. When he got on the horse, he turned his head to look at the yard.
Ah Nuan's eyes were already looking elsewhere, not even glancing at him... He used to think that as long as he had food to eat, there was nothing wrong with being a horse bandit... But, she didn't seem to like it...
drive!
The cavalry vanished in a cloud of dust, and soon only a tiny speck remained. Ye Xiaohu hurried down from the building and lay at the gate, looking out. He was holding a paper frog in his hand, his dark eyes moist.
Ye Nuan stood in the corridor and looked at him for a long time, sighing silently in his heart: If only Xiaobai was not a horse bandit but just Xiaobai!
The sky has been dark these past few days, with strong winds blowing in the evening, mixed with fine ice fragments.
In the second half of the night, the entire Chujiazhai was silent and dark, with only two dim paper lanterns hanging on the high sentry tower, swaying in the wind, looking creepy.
Everyone was lost in sleep when they were suddenly awakened by a sharp scream. The sound grew increasingly shrill, carrying on the wind and piercing everyone's eardrums. Trembling in fear and guilt, they lay in bed, secretly asking those around them, "Did the boss bring anyone back today?"
The people next to him were very secretive and buried their heads in the quilt, shivering and not daring to speak.
The barking of dogs tore through the sky, candles were lit in the criminal law hall, and at daybreak, all the bandits who had been frightened all night were woken up and gathered outside the hall.
When everyone arrived, the door to the Criminal Court suddenly opened, revealing a man with a completely disfigured face, screaming as he was dragged forward by a pack of hounds. The bones in his limbs had been completely gnawed away, a terrifying sight.
In the center of the hall, Chu Xuesong, dressed in white as white as snow, stood in the dim light. His brows were kind, his eyelashes slightly raised, and the corners of his lips curled up with a hint of fierceness. In his hand, he held a thin, blood-stained piece of paper, the ink mixed with blood showing through the back. He glanced at the people outside the hall and said, "If those who set the Yunjian Farm fire come forward, I can give you a decent treatment..."
The smell of blood was too strong, and the fear of the boss was ingrained in everyone's bones, making everyone take a step back.
Chu Xuesong sneered, his voice colder than the snow outside: "Why, you dare not take responsibility for it?"
"Well, here's a list. If you read out a name, don't blame me for not remembering our brotherhood!"
The thin paper was spread out, he lowered his eyes, and his voice was gentle, like a teacher calling the name of the absent students, which was very scary.
“Wu…”
Just as he uttered a sound, more than a dozen people in the crowd suddenly knelt down, shaking their bodies and kowtowing frantically, begging for mercy: "Boss, please spare my life, please spare my life!"
"We all follow the orders of the Great Elder!"
"Please spare my life. If you don't believe me, ask the Great Elder. He was the one who asked us to do this!"
"Yes, Boss, it was the elders who asked us to go!"
Chu Xuesong's peach blossom eyes curled up slightly, and with the force of his slender fingers, the rice paper in his hand shattered into powder, and he continued to recite: "Wu Qi, Xiao Dao, Liu Nian..."
Seeing that there was no way out, the dozen or so people suddenly stood up and ran towards the Elders' Hall. The first person had not even taken two steps when Chu Xuesong caught up with him, grabbed his neck and threw him into the mud.
The gentle and elegant Chu family leader just a moment ago was like a demon possessed by a ghost. He looked gloomy and fierce, sneering, "Elders?"
"It seems that you've been so easy to talk to that you've all forgotten that the Chu Family Village's surname is Chu!"
There were hurried footsteps behind him, and a loud roar came from behind Chu Xuesong: "Chu Xuesong, what are you doing?"
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