After Shen Qingtang and Pei Wuwang, along with Pei Nian'an, arrived in Yunxi County with the exile team.
Instead of staying in the county town, they were sent to a village called Luanshi Village on the outskirts of the city, which was located at the junction of three kingdoms, as arranged by the exiled officials.
It is barren year-round, surrounded by continuous black rock mountains. The mountains are high and the roads are treacherous, with jagged rocks and even sparse wild grass. Occasionally, the roars of beasts can be heard from the mountains, exuding a desolate and oppressive atmosphere.
Most of the houses in the village have mud-brick walls and dilapidated thatched roofs, and the plaster on many of the walls has peeled off.
The exposed yellow earth and the broken doors and windows creaked in the wind, as if they might collapse at any moment.
Because Shen Qingtang had given the exiled officials money in advance, they treated her exceptionally well, not only preventing her from crowding with others but also allowing them to choose their own accommodations.
The others in the exile group saw this.
Although they were dissatisfied, they dared not say much, after all, Shen Qingtang now had a very high reputation in Yunxi County, and even the county magistrate had to give her some face.
Xiao Che and his sister Xiao Yue also came to Luanshi Village to investigate the border situation.
When Xiao Yue learned that Shen Qingtang was actually an exiled convict, she covered her mouth in surprise: "Brother, they...they were actually exiled? But Shen Qingtang is so capable, how could he be a criminal?"
Xiao Che gazed intently at the distant Luanshi Village and said calmly, "Things are unpredictable; perhaps there are hidden reasons behind this."
He looked at the food box Xiao Yue was carrying and said, "If you want to deliver it, then go ahead. Don't worry about it."
Xiao Yue immediately ran to Shen Qingtang with the food box, smiling as she handed it over: "Miss Shen, these are some snacks we brought. You and Nian'an should try them! This place looks too desolate. You just arrived, so there probably isn't much to eat."
Shen Qingtang looked at the food box and said calmly, "Thank you for your kindness, Princess, but we cannot accept this without having done something right."
She never readily accepts gifts from strangers, especially from the unidentified members of the Northern Shuo royal family.
Xiao Yue was met with a rebuff, but she wasn't angry. Instead, she felt that Shen Qingtang had become more charismatic. She smiled and took back the food box, saying, "Alright then, you can try my cooking another time when you have the chance!"
At this point, everyone had begun choosing their accommodations.
Lu Jiaojiao immediately spotted a relatively intact brick house in the middle of the village, even though the plaster on the walls was peeling off.
But at least the roof didn't leak, and the doors and windows were still intact. She proudly put her hands on her hips and boasted to Lu Jin and Lin Peirou, "See? I'm so smart, aren't I? This house is obviously better than the others; it'll definitely be comfortable to live in!"
Lu Jin and Lin Peirou quickly chimed in, "Jiaojiao, you're amazing! You really know how to choose!"
Shen Qingtang didn't care about any of this. She led Pei Wuwang and Pei Nian'an to a dilapidated mud-brick house on the very edge of the village.
The house looked dilapidated; almost all the plaster had fallen off the walls, most of the thatch on the roof was gone, and even the door was only half open.
“Auntie, this house is so dilapidated…” Pei Nian’an tugged at Shen Qingtang’s sleeve and whispered.
Shen Qingtang smiled and patted his head: "Don't worry, this house is not ordinary." She had already used her spiritual power to explore it. Although the house looked dilapidated on the outside, its foundation was exceptionally solid.
Moreover, there is a hidden cellar at the back of the house, which is spacious, well-ventilated and moisture-proof, and can be lived in with a little renovation.
Pei Wuwang also noticed something amiss, a hint of a smile flashing in his eyes: "Good eye."
The two immediately decided to choose this house.
Lu Jiaojiao saw it.
Unable to resist, she sneered, "Shen Qingtang, are you stupid? Why choose this shabby house when there are good options? You're just waiting to get soaked in the rain!"
Shen Qingtang ignored her and went straight into the house to start planning the renovation.
Pei Wuwang then took the initiative to pick up tools and clean up the clutter in the room, his movements swift and efficient.
Pei Nian'an also imitated the adults, sweeping the floor with a small broom. Although she was sweating profusely, she smiled happily: "As long as I can be with Auntie and Daddy, I'm not afraid of living anywhere!"
Afterwards, Shen Qingtang helped Shen Minglan and Shen Mingzhao choose a place to stay.
She chose two adjacent adobe houses on the east side of the village. They looked just as dilapidated as the one she had chosen, but in fact, the internal structure was intact and each house had its own small courtyard, which was perfect for her to live in after she got married.
Shen Minglan and Shen Mingzhao had complete faith in Shen Qingtang's judgment and immediately began cleaning the house.
Looking at the "good house" she had chosen, and then at Shen Qingtang and the others' dilapidated but mysterious residence, Lu Jiaojiao felt inexplicably uneasy.
But she still stubbornly told those around her, "It's definitely because I chose a better house! Their dilapidated house is useless no matter how much they repair it!"
As the sun sets, wisps of smoke rise from the chimneys of Luanshi Village. Shen Qingtang and Pei Wuwang are busy repairing the house, while Pei Nian'an chases butterflies in the yard.
The Shen family members were also busy in their respective houses. Although the place was desolate and dilapidated, it was to them.
This is a new beginning.
After choosing a place to stay, Shen Qingtang immediately took out paper and pen from her spatial storage and, relying on her knowledge of modern architecture, quickly drew a complete set of house design drawings. The main body of the house was a vast manor.
The manor is surrounded by a stone wall covered with vines, which serves both as a deterrent to thieves and adds an elegant touch; inside the manor, several independent villas are scattered throughout.
Each villa has a small courtyard, a roof covered with glazed tiles, whitewashed walls, and windows fitted with glass taken from the space, allowing light in while blocking the wind.
The center also features gardens, vegetable plots, and a reservoir, and even space has been reserved for modern appliances.
After the blueprints were completed, Shen Qingtang summoned the spirit servants in her space. These tiny figures, each only three inches tall, were small in size.
Yet they possess immense strength and never tire.
She handed the blueprints to the leader of the spirit servants, then took out steel bars and cement (prepared with modern materials in advance) from her spatial storage, combined them with local bluestone and wood, and instructed: "Build according to the blueprints, and be sure to complete it as soon as possible."
The spirit servants responded in unison and immediately sprang into action. They had a clear division of labor: some spirit servants carried materials, easily lifting heavy bluestones and timbers, moving between the construction sites.
Some of the servants mixed cement and built walls with precise and swift movements, resulting in walls that were as smooth as a mirror.
Some of the spirit servants installed doors and windows and laid roofs, even arranging the glazed tiles perfectly.
In just three days, the manor began to take shape. The dilapidated mud-brick houses disappeared.
Instead, a magnificent bluestone wall was erected.
Inside the walled compound, the main structures of several small villas have been completed, their glazed tiles gleaming in the sunlight.
The glass windows reflect the sunlight, and from a distance, it looks like a paradise that has traveled from the modern world.
The exiles checked on the progress every day, their initial doubts turning to astonishment, until finally they were utterly awestruck by the speed of the spirit servants' construction and the exquisite beauty of the houses. "My God! This house is so beautiful! It's like a palace!"
"How did Shen Qingtang manage to do that? She built it like this in just three days!"
"Those people are amazing! They moved such heavy stones just like that!"
Shen Minglan and Shen Mingzhao stood outside the manor, looking at their own villa with a courtyard.
His eyes reddened with excitement. "Qingtang, this...this house is really for us?" Shen Minglan's voice trembled. He had never imagined that he could live in such a nice house in exile.
Shen Qingtang smiled and nodded: "Eldest brother and second brother will be getting married in the future, so naturally they will need a decent place to live. I have designed the layout of the house according to your preferences, so you can just live there in peace."
Shen Mingzhao stepped forward and tightly grasped Shen Qingtang's hand: "Qingtang, I really don't know how to thank you..."
“We’re all family, why are you saying these things?” Shen Qingtang patted his hand, then looked at Su Lingwei and Qin Wanqing beside her. “I’ve also designed houses for you, on the east side of the manor, so you can all look after each other when you live together.”
Upon hearing this, Qin Wanqing's father, Qin Xian, immediately bowed to Shen Qingtang.
His tone was respectful and grateful: "Our Qin family will remember your kindness, niece! If you ever need anything in the future, please don't hesitate to ask!"
Su Lingwei also thanked him with tears in her eyes. The originally turbulent exile journey had become warm and homely thanks to Shen Qingtang's care.
Meanwhile, the Pei family and the collateral branches of the Su family watched as Shen Qingtang's manor changed day by day.
He was consumed by jealousy.
Pei's father lived in a dilapidated thatched hut in the corner of the village. Looking at the magnificent manor in the distance, he complained to the people around him, "That unfilial son! He lives in a nice house while I live in a shoddy hut! What an ingrate!"
Madam Pei chimed in, "It's all that vixen Shen Qingtang's doing! If it weren't for her, how could they treat us like this!"
But they could only grumble behind her back; they didn't dare to provoke Shen Qingtang at all.
After all, Shen Qingtang now has Pei Wuwang and his assassins protecting her.
They also have the help of "extraordinary people" like spirit servants, whom they simply cannot afford to offend.
Looking at Shen Qingtang's manor, Lu Jiaojiao stomped her feet in anger and complained to Lu Jin and Lin Peirou, "Why can Shen Qingtang live in such a nice house? We have to live in this dilapidated brick house! She must have used some kind of sorcery!"
Lu Jin and Lin Peirou echoed this sentiment, but could only watch helplessly.
The manor was still in its final stages of renovation at this time.
Shen Qingtang and her group temporarily stayed in a temporary shed built next to the manor.
Although the shed was simple, Shen Qingtang had decorated it very warmly. The floor was covered with carpets, lanterns hung from the ceiling, and the space was fully equipped with bedding, tables and chairs.
That evening, everyone sat around the shed, eating food that Shen Qingtang had taken out from her spatial storage.
As they talked about their hopes for the future, even the air was filled with a warm atmosphere.
Pei Nian'an lay down next to Shen Qingtang, her little hands tightly gripping the hem of her clothes, and whispered, "Auntie, once the house is built, we can live together forever, right?"
Shen Qingtang patted his head and nodded with a smile: "Yes, we will always be together."
Pei Wuwang, who was not far away, watched this scene with tenderness in his eyes.
He knew that this manor was not just a house, but a haven for them in this chaotic world, and home was where Shen Qingtang was.
On the other hand, the "good house" that Lu Jin, Lin Peirou, and Lu Jiaojiao chose had long lost its initial luster. It was now only "relatively intact."
However, compared to the other completely collapsed mud-brick houses in Luanshi Village, where the walls crumbled at the slightest touch, the window paper had several large holes, and cold winds howled in, and at night one lay on the earthen bed covered with dry grass.
You can clearly see the hole in the roof, and you can even spot several stars.
Looking at the dilapidated house, Lu Jiaojiao stomped her feet in anger.
With her hands on her hips, she yelled at Lu Jin and Lin Peirou, "What are you two standing there for? Hurry up and clean up! This house is so dilapidated, do you expect a pampered young lady like me to do the cleaning?"
Lu Jin used to be an idle person.
Lin Peirou had never done any manual labor before, and the two of them were at a loss when they saw the dust and cobwebs all over the room. After dawdling for a long time, Lu Jin finally picked up a broom and swept it haphazardly a few times, but the dust that was kicked up made him cough.
Lin Peirou tried to mend the window paper, but clumsily tore it into even smaller pieces, and in the end could only squat on the ground in a daze.
"What a useless piece of work! You can't even do this little thing right!" Lu Jiaojiao grew angrier the more she looked at it, so she decided to try it herself. But being pampered, she soon found her back aching after only a few strokes.
He threw down the broom and sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), panting and complaining, "If it weren't for that bitch Shen Qingtang, how could I have ended up like this? She must have done it on purpose, taking all the good houses and leaving us this lousy place!"
Despite their complaints, the house still needed to be cleaned. The three of them gritted their teeth and spent most of the day tidying up.
Not only did they fail to clean the house, they also knocked off a large chunk of the already loose plaster from the wall.
Lu Jin accidentally tore off several bundles of thatch from the roof.
As evening fell, Lu Jiaojiao looked at the house, which was even more dilapidated than before, and felt extremely frustrated, but she still stubbornly said, "Hmph, I'm a born lucky charm, what's this little shabby house? Once I've cleaned it up, it will definitely be more comfortable than Shen Qingtang's run-down manor!"
But as soon as she finished speaking, there was a "crack" sound from the already unstable roof beam.
Unable to withstand the three people's repeated handling, it suddenly broke!
Immediately afterwards, half of the roof collapsed with a crash.
Thatch, dirt, and wood chips rained down all at once, scaring Lu Jiaojiao so much that she screamed and dove to the side, barely escaping unharmed.
His hair and clothes were covered in mud, making him look quite disheveled.
"The house collapsed! Lu Jiaojiao, are you alright?" Lu Jin and Lin Peirou were so frightened that their faces turned pale, and they rushed over to help her.
Lu Jiaojiao, still shaken, scrambled to her feet. Looking at the half-collapsed house, and touching her mud-covered hair, she instantly broke down, sitting on the ground and wailing, "My house! My hair! Shen Qingtang, I'm not finished with you! You're the one who ruined this!"
Her crying attracted many exiled villagers. They all looked at the house, which was half collapsed.
Looking at Lu Jiaojiao, who was covered in mud and crying with snot and tears all over her face, and Lu Jin and Lin Peirou, who were at a loss beside her, they couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Hahaha, this is the 'good house' she chose? It collapsed in just one day, it's hilarious!"
"You can't even clean it yourself, yet you blame the house? I think you're out of your mind!"
"He was so smug and showing off before, but now he's even homeless. He really brought this on himself!"
Laughter erupted, and Lu Jiaojiao's face flushed red and then turned pale. She trembled with anger and pointed at the crowd, yelling, "What are you laughing at! What's so funny! When I become successful, I'll teach you all a lesson!"
The more she cursed, the more everyone laughed. In the end, she couldn't bear to stay any longer, so she covered her face and ran away crying.
Lu Jin and Lin Peirou could only slink behind, looking like three stray dogs.
As night fell, Lu Jiaojiao and her two companions could only huddle in a dilapidated thatched hut in a corner of the village, where the cold wind made the hut whistle loudly.
They were shivering from the cold.
Looking at the warm lights faintly emanating from the direction of Shen Qingtang's manor in the distance, and then thinking about her own situation, Lu Jiaojiao felt both angry and resentful, her teeth grinding together: "Shen Qingtang, I will never let you go! You just wait!"
The sweltering heat of midsummer had not yet completely subsided when the weather in Luanshi Village suddenly changed. The day before, the sun was blazing, but the next morning, a howling cold wind began to blow.
The wind whipped up sand and gravel, scraping against people's faces like knives. The temperature plummeted by more than ten degrees, and many people were still wearing only a single layer of clothing, shivering from the cold.
The wind blew harder and harder, and the already dilapidated mud-brick houses in the village simply couldn't withstand the onslaught.
The sounds of "crack" and "boom" echoed one after another, and the thatched roofs of many houses were blown off by the strong wind.
The walls collapsed as well, and the villagers screamed and ran out of the houses, clutching their thin blankets, shivering in the cold wind, their faces filled with despair.
Only Shen Qingtang's manor remained unscathed. From the very beginning of construction, Shen Qingtang had reinforced the foundation using modern architectural concepts, and her servants had dug three feet deep underground.
The foundation is made of reinforced concrete, which is a hundred times more solid than the rammed earth foundation of ancient times.
The walls are constructed using a mixture of bluestone and cement, with an additional insulation layer on the outside.
The roof is covered with thick glazed tiles and fixed with cement. No matter how the wind howls, the manor remains as stable as Mount Tai, and even the glass in the windows does not shake.
By this time, the spirit servants had already finished their work.
The villas in the manor are arranged in a staggered manner, with white walls and glazed tiles that exude elegance and sturdiness in the strong wind, and gardens within the walls.
The hardy green plants that Shen Qingtang had planted in advance remained lush and green, forming a stark contrast with the desolation and ruin outside the wall.
In a dilapidated shed in a corner of the village, Lu Jiaojiao was wrapped in a thin, tattered cotton-padded coat, her teeth chattering from the cold.
But she was still cursing through gritted teeth: "Shen Qingtang! You bitch! With such a strong wind, why didn't it blow down your dilapidated manor! I curse you to die a horrible death! I curse your house to collapse and crush you to death!"
She repeated it over and over, as if she wanted to vent all her resentment.
However, as time went by, the gale did not weaken at all, and Shen Qingtang's manor remained intact.
You can even vaguely see the warm lights shining from inside the manor.
Seeing this, Lu Jiaojiao trembled with rage, her teeth almost grinding to powder: "Why! Why won't her house collapse! Why can she live in a warm house while I have to freeze here!"
Inside the manor, however, it was warm and cozy. Shen Qingtang had long anticipated the sudden change in weather.
Down jackets and thick quilts were taken out of the space in advance, and modern heaters (powered by the space's electricity) were installed in each villa.
At this moment, a large round table was placed in the middle of the living room of the main house.
The copper hot pot on the table was bubbling away, filled with fatty beef, tripe, shrimp paste, and various fresh vegetables, its aroma filling the entire living room.
Mr. and Mrs. Shen, Grandpa Shen, Shen Minglan, Shen Mingzhao, Qin Xian's family, Su Lingwei, Pei Wuwang and Pei Nian'an, all sat around the hot pot.
Everyone was wearing thick down jackets, holding chopsticks, and eating with great enthusiasm.
Pei Nian'an held a bowl of warm milk tea, her little face full of satisfaction: "Auntie, the hot pot is so delicious! It's even more fragrant than the strawberry cake last time!"
Chen's mother smiled and placed a piece of shrimp paste on Pei Nian'an's plate: "Eat slowly, there's still plenty left in the pot."
She looked at Shen Qingtang with relief in her eyes, "Qingtang, thank goodness we had you, otherwise we would have really frozen to death in the cold wind this time."
"Yes, Qingtang, you're amazing!" Shen Minglan exclaimed. "This house is warm and sturdy, even better than the courtyard we used to live in!"
As everyone ate hotpot, they chatted and laughed, their cheerful conversation dispelling the chill outside.
The aroma of hot pot wafted out through the cracks in the windows, filling the entire Luanshi Village.
The villagers, braving the cold wind, smelled the enticing aroma. Looking at their own dilapidated dwellings and empty stomachs, they couldn't help but feel envious and began to whisper among themselves:
"Shen Qingtang's family is so lucky! They can still eat hot pot on such a cold day. It smells so good!"
"That's right! Their houses are sheltered from the wind, and they have warm rooms to live in. Unlike us, we don't even have a place to shelter from the wind."
"Shen Qingtang is a really capable person. If we follow her, we might be able to live a good life too!"
"I used to think she was an exiled convict, but now it seems she's more capable and kinder than anyone else!"
These whispers reached Lu Jiaojiao's ears, fueling her insane jealousy.
She clenched her fists tightly, her eyes sweeping across the surroundings with a sinister look. Suddenly, she saw a man squatting in the corner of the wall not far away. He was the village's good-for-nothing, named Wang Laizi. He was idle and lazy all day long, with messy hair and wearing a tattered shirt.
He was hunched over, gnawing on a dry, hard cornbread, occasionally whistling at women passing by, looking rather sleazy.
Lu Jiaojiao's eyes lit up, and she immediately leaned over, took out the only small piece of silver she had left from her pocket, and handed it to Wang Laizi, her voice very low: "Wang Laizi, do you want to get rich?"
Wang Laizi's eyes lit up the moment he saw the silver, and he nodded hurriedly, "Yes! Of course I want to! What are your orders, Miss Lu?"
Lu Jiaojiao's lips curled into a malicious smile as she leaned close to Wang Laizi's ear and whispered, "Do you see that manor? A woman named Shen Qingtang lives there; she's exceptionally beautiful. Sneak in tonight and defile her! If you manage to do this, I'll give you another silver ingot, and you'll never have to worry about food or drink again!"
Upon hearing this, a lewd glint flashed in Wang Laizi's eyes, and he rubbed his hands together: "Really? Is that woman really that beautiful?"
"She's prettier than any woman you've ever seen!" Lu Jiaojiao tempted. "And she's definitely off guard right now. You just need to sneak in and you'll succeed! Once her innocence is ruined, let's see how smug she'll be then!"
Wang Laizi licked his lips, looked in the direction of the manor, then at the loose silver in his hand, and finally gritted his teeth: "Fine! I'll do it! But don't lie to me, you have to give me the silver after it's done!"
"Don't worry, I keep my word!" A hint of smugness flashed in Lu Jiaojiao's eyes. Shen Qingtang, let's see how you turn the tables this time!
Wang Laizi, clutching the loose silver in his hand, looked at the malice in Lu Jiaojiao's eyes and couldn't help but sneer: "I never thought you looked so respectable but had such a vicious heart. You'd even resort to such despicable means to get revenge."
Lu Jiaojiao's face darkened, her eyes fixed on him with a sinister glint: "Do you have the right to talk to me like that?" She leaned forward, her voice carrying a hint of threat.
"Who took advantage of that silly girl in the village when she was out of her mind and defiled her? And all those young women and wives, which one of them hasn't been harassed by you with your foul language? You've done far more filthy things than I have, so stop pretending to be a good person here!"
These words struck Wang Laizi like a sharp knife, and his face turned deathly pale instantly.
Her eyes darted away, avoiding Lu Jiaojiao's gaze.
He did indeed do those things, but no one dared to expose him.
He opened his mouth to retort, but couldn't utter a single word. He could only glare fiercely at Lu Jiaojiao, clutching the loose silver in his hand. In the end, he gritted his teeth and agreed: "Fine, I'll do this job! But if you dare to lie to me, I won't let you off the hook!"
Seeing that he had given in, Lu Jiaojiao smiled smugly, turned around and went into the dilapidated shed, leaving Wang Laizi in the cold wind with an uncertain look in his eyes.
Meanwhile, Shen Qingtang was visiting the village chief of Luanshi Village with some supplies she had taken out of her spatial storage.
The village chief's house was located in the middle of the village. It was a mud-brick house that was slightly better than the other houses, but it was still drafty and dimly lit. On the kang table was a bowl of dark mixed grain porridge and a small dish of pickled vegetables, which showed that they lived a very frugal life.
Upon seeing Shen Qingtang's arrival, the village chief quickly rose to greet her, his face showing a hint of unease: "Miss Shen, what brings you here? Please have a seat."
Shen Qingtang smiled and sat down, placing the sweet potato seedlings, potato seeds, and some pastries she had brought on the table: "Village Chief, I came here today to bring you some things. These sweet potato and potato seeds are drought-resistant and can withstand poor soil conditions, and they also have a high yield. You can distribute them to the villagers to try planting, so they can have more food in the future."
The village chief's eyes lit up instantly when he saw the seeds on the table. He had lived most of his life and had never seen such seeds before.
But knowing that Shen Qingtang was a capable person, he quickly cupped his hands in thanks: "Shen Qingtang, thank you so much! The village has poor soil and there has never been enough food. With these seeds, everyone has hope!"
The village chief's wife also came out from the inner room, holding the hand of a little boy who looked about five or six years old. He was the village chief's grandson.
Looking at the pastries and seeds on the table, her eyes reddened: "Miss Chen, you are such a kind person! We don't know how to thank you..."
Shen Qingtang smiled and patted the little boy's head, then took out a handful of milk candies from her pocket and handed them to him: "Little friend, here, have some candy."
The little boy glanced timidly at the village chief. Seeing the chief nod, he took the candy, whispered "Thank you, sister," and hid behind his grandmother. He secretly peeled a piece of candy and put it in his mouth, his eyes instantly lighting up.
"By the way, Village Chief," Shen Qingtang changed the subject, "I'd like to contract some of the uncultivated wasteland in the village. I wonder if you could help me make some arrangements?"
The village chief was taken aback, then quickly waved his hand: "Shen Qingtang, those are all wastelands! The land is very barren, even weeds can't grow well, nothing can be grown there, what are you going to do with them?"
"I'm useful, don't worry. Even if I don't grow anything, I won't regret it."
Shen Qingtang explained with a smile, "Besides, I also pay rent to the village when I contract wasteland, which adds some income for everyone."
Seeing Shen Qingtang's resolute attitude, the village chief stopped trying to persuade her and could only nod: "Alright, since Shen Qingtang has made up her mind, I will help you with the formalities."
Before leaving, Shen Qingtang left some grain and cloth for the village chief's family, who thanked her profusely and saw her off.
The village chief's son and daughter-in-law happened to return from outside. Upon learning of Shen Qingtang's good deed, they immediately expressed their willingness to work at Shen Qingtang's manor. Shen Qingtang smiled and agreed, telling them to report to the manor the next day.
Over the next few days, Shen Qingtang had her spirit servants cultivate the wasteland.
Sweet potatoes, potatoes, and some drought-resistant vegetables were planted.
The village chief's grandson often runs to play near the manor.
When Pei Nian'an saw this, she took some candy and played with him. The two children quickly became good friends.
Pei Nian'an looked at her friends who genuinely cared for her, and her smile grew even brighter, even in her sleep.
Seeing the two children getting along well, and remembering Shen Qingtang's many good deeds, the village chief and his family praised her highly.
The villagers all saw it all, and when they talked about Shen Qingtang, they all gave her a thumbs up: "Miss Shen is such a kind-hearted person. Not only did she help us solve our food problem, but she was also willing to provide us with work. She is truly our savior!"
"I used to think she was an exiled convict, but now it seems she's kinder and more capable than anyone else!"
When these compliments reached Shen Qingtang's ears, she simply smiled faintly.
She does these things.
It was not only to help the villagers, but also to gain a foothold in Luanshi Village.
Unbeknownst to her, a conspiracy against her was quietly brewing in the shadows.
Shen Qingtang and her spirit servants were busy on the wasteland of Luanshi Village. Large swaths of drought-resistant sweet potato seedlings were quickly planted by the spirit servants. The tender green seedlings were neatly arranged along the ridges, exuding vitality in the cool breeze.
The villagers also joined in to help, and Shen Qingtang not only provided seeds for everyone.
He even personally demonstrated planting techniques.
I'll teach you how to turn the soil, water it, and fertilize it.
Before long, the once barren land was brought to a neat and orderly state, with sweet potato seedlings growing in the field.
The villagers finally smiled again, which meant they no longer had to worry about food. Shen Qingtang had truly solved their urgent problem.
This kindness also brought about a new transformation in Shen Qingtang's space.
As more and more villagers escaped their predicament with her help, the space suddenly burst forth with dazzling golden light.
The surprises brought by the space upgrade go far beyond this: Shen Qingtang's mental power has increased several times. Previously, he could only perceive things at a short distance, but now he can clearly cover the entire Luanshi Village and even capture the villagers' subtle movements.
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