Chapter 20
The wooden door creaked open. Qingyun had been preoccupied with something all day. She carried the hoe until she put down the basket before noticing something was wrong. She glanced around, turned around, and locked the door from the inside. The room was immediately plunged into darkness, with only a little light coming in through the window.
"Who's here?" she demanded sharply.
Qingyun picked up the hoe again, adopting a defensive posture. "If you don't come out soon, I'll send you to the authorities. Do you still want to try my hoe?"
The surroundings were silent. The system spoke in her mind, "[Host, there is no one here.]" Qingyun did not answer. She was certain that there was someone in the room. As she approached the bed, she heard a rustling sound.
The person hiding inside seemed genuinely afraid that Qingyun would send her to meet the King of Hell with a single blow from his hoe, and hurriedly rolled out.
"Spare me! Spare me!" The little maid came out, nervously clutching her sleeve.
If you say there's no one inside again, then...
【…………】
Upon hearing this, Qingyun narrowed his eyes slightly and sized up the other party. "Did Liu Ruo send you?" But upon closer inspection of the other party's clothing, she did not seem to be a maid from that old man's mansion.
The young maid shook her head, her expression tense and conflicted, clearly pondering how to answer Qingyun's question. After a long pause, she slowly replied, "I only came to your house to search for some valuables; I have no other intentions." As she spoke, she knelt down. "I'm truly destitute, with no rice or oil at home, which is why I had no choice but to resort to theft."
Looking at the other person's earnest gaze, Qingyun tilted his head and chuckled, "Do you really think I'm a fool? I advise you to tell the truth, I don't have that much patience."
The clothes she was wearing were woven fabric, and although it was uncertain whose they belonged to, they must have belonged to a maid, not some commoner who had to steal food because she couldn't afford it.
Qingyun raised her hoe, giving the woman a threatening look. The little maid trembled with fear. Just a few days ago, she had heard from others that this woman dared to speak rudely to even Lord Liu, showing disrespect to her superior, and had even gone to his residence to hurl insults at him.
She was genuinely afraid of this person, who might actually be capable of murder. She quickly begged for mercy and blurted out everything, "I came here on the orders of the Second Princess, I am..." Her eyes darted around as she tried to find the right words, but Qingyun didn't give her the chance and pressed her for an answer.
"What does the Second Princess want you to do?"
"If you use the Second Princess's name to commit any improper acts, that will be another crime, and I will personally have Her Highness deal with you then!"
"No, no! I am indeed a maidservant of the Second Princess. My name is Liuyue," the maidservant immediately replied.
Qingyun was puzzled upon hearing this. He put down his hoe and wondered what kind of trouble Song Chaohua was up to. "What did the Second Princess call you here for? Explain yourself clearly. Do you think you can rest easy just because the Second Princess is helping you? I'll have the First Princess punish you just the same way!"
"Your Highness, Your Highness sent me to steal the medicine you prepared. She told me to switch the medicine and give it to her instead." Liu Yue confessed everything after being provoked. Qing Yun was even more puzzled after hearing this. What did she need this stuff for? It couldn't be eaten.
No wonder she caught me red-handed today; she usually wouldn't be home by this time. If that's really the case, is that why the insect infestation hasn't progressed these past few days? Or did I mix up the medicine bottle?
Qingyun asked doubtfully, "You said change? What did Her Highness the Princess tell you to change into?"
Liu Yue hurriedly replied, "It was some medicine she ordered someone to brew; this servant doesn't know anything about it."
After asking a few more questions, Liu Yue truly knew nothing. Qing Yun also didn't know the truth of the matter, so he just told her to go back first, but not to tell Song Chaohua about what happened today, and to do as she was told.
Qingyun didn't plan to play cards with Song Chaohua right now, since she didn't know what Princess Lin Gui was up to. Looking at the medicine bottle in her hand, she opened it and smelled it. It seemed to be just a very ordinary Chinese medicine smell.
After the incident, Qingyun secretly switched the medicine back, and also instructed Qin Yao to keep an eye on the command post. The water quality returned to normal, and these past few days they've been busy working on the isolation strips between the trees.
She was exhausted, but thankfully the electronic panel started working again, and the ice plants she had planted were growing well.
From a distance, it was a sea of green. Although the plants weren't very dense, it was still much better than before. The wind blowing in her face brought Qingyun's thoughts back to her. She realized that she had some free time today and could ask Song Chaohua for clarification.
As the sun set, she slowly shouldered her hoe and walked back. The wind lifted the hem of her clothes, and Lin Wanjun, who was walking with her, said with a smile, "The weather seems to be quite cool lately."
Qingyun nodded, but her attention was elsewhere. With her sharp eyes, she noticed that the overseer seemed to be talking to the others. She gently nudged Lin Wanjun, pointed to the overseer's thatched hut, and asked, "What activities have been going on lately?"
Lin Wanjun shook her head. Qingyun found this strange; why would the supervisor question a large group of subordinates if there was no activity going on? Lin Wanjun followed her gaze and immediately spotted Mu Helian. She suggested, "Why don't we wait until Lord Mu and her entourage have dispersed before questioning them?"
So the two of them stopped and squatted on a rock not far away, waiting for Mu Helian to finish her meeting.
Qingyun was bored, so she tapped the system to ask what time it was, only to realize that it had been running for half an hour. She thought it must be something more complicated than it seemed.
Once the crowd had finally dispersed, she rushed forward with Lin Wanjun and grabbed Mu Helian, asking, "What were you all talking about?"
Seeing this, Mu Helian first glanced at Lin Wanjun standing beside her before replying, "A strong wind is coming. The warden ordered that we only need to work half a day in the morning." The three of them talked as they walked.
Qingyun frowned upon hearing this, "The wind?"
As if remembering something, she thought, "Oh right, strong winds do blow in the desert, but how strong are they?" "Could it be a tornado? A storm?" She quickly grabbed the other person, wanting an answer.
Mu Helian pondered, "It should just be a tornado. The reason for all this talk is to prevent people from getting caught in it, since you can't outrun the wind, right?"
Qingyun's focus wasn't on that. Her expression was grave. "Are you sure? This wind is blowing this way?" she asked, voicing her most pressing concern. "What about the seedlings? Some of them haven't even been planted for very long."
Speaking of this, Mu Helian was still considering whether to tell Qingyun, after all, she had seen how hard Qingyun had worked in the past few days. She turned around and looked at the other person helplessly, "If they really want to promote us, people are the most important thing. Who would care about these seedlings?"
Qingyun quickly waved her hands and shook her head, reacting very strongly, "How can it not be important!" The others were a little puzzled by her reaction, because they did not know that Qingyun had a mission. If she blew away all the seedlings she had worked so hard to plant, wouldn't that be going back to square one?
Qingyun quickly tapped the system: "Check if a storm is coming. You can detect that, right?"
The electronic voice simply stated indifferently, "Inquiry in progress," before falling silent. Qingyun was anxious, walking so fast that the two behind her couldn't keep up. After a long while, the system's electronic voice finally sounded again: "[Host, a small storm is forming 600 kilometers away from Muyun City.]"
Qingyun: [So it's true? What about the saplings? If they're all blown away, will I even survive?! Quickly, think of a solution for me!]
The system first offered some reassurance, stating that the storm's trajectory might not be heading towards Muyun City. Although it would affect some saplings, there was no need to worry; some losses were normal. It then provided Qingyun with some measures to take when facing the storm.
Qingyun: [I can't give up on even a single seedling! Besides, I'm betting on the possibility, but can I win the bet?]
She bit her fingers anxiously, her pace quickening until Lin Wanjun grabbed her arm, bringing her back to her senses. She looked at Lin Wanjun with a dazed expression, wondering what could possibly cause Qingyun to look like that.
But she calmed herself down and comforted him, "This happens every year, don't worry, the guards will take care of these things." As she spoke, she lowered her eyes and thought for a moment, "Is this the first time you've faced something like this and you're afraid?"
Qingyun was afraid, but what she feared most was the implication in Mu Helian's words. She quickly grabbed Mu Helian, who was standing beside her, and said, "If that's the case, we should make plans sooner rather than later! We're still unsure whether they'll come to our side, so let's hurry up and take precautions!"
Mu Helian didn't mince words and directly pointed out her thoughts, "How can we protect ourselves? Tornadoes come all the time, what can we do to protect ourselves? No matter what you do, how can you withstand the wind? We can only wait for the wind to pass." She patted the other person's hand to comfort them, "If a tree is broken, we can just replant it."
"How much time will it take to replant!" Qingyun shouted.
Lin Wanjun and Mu Helian were both startled by the shout, clearly sensing that something was wrong. Lin Wanjun rushed forward and threw herself on Qingyun, "What's wrong with you? Why are you in such a hurry?"
Mu Helian's expression was also unpleasant, her face expressionless. "Can seedlings be compared to human lives?"
Upon hearing this, Qingyun clicked her tongue, realizing that her emotional outburst just now was completely inexplicable. It was because she was caught in a dilemma, unsure of how to choose. She was gambling that the storm hadn't yet arrived, and there was still a chance to salvage the situation.
Her anxiety stemmed from the fact that no one would be willing to do it; she feared even Song Chaoyun wouldn't support her. The thought of the saplings she had painstakingly grown, or the mature trees she had planted before, all being uprooted was also a source of anxiety.
How could she not be anxious? Was she really going to just wait in this world until she died, until she was old? She couldn't afford to wait! Nor did she want to wait!
This uncertainty, the confusion about the future, and the feeling of all her previous efforts being wasted all mingled in Qingyun's heart in an instant, and she was extremely disgusted by this feeling.
Qingyun suppressed her temper and said "I'm sorry" in a hoarse voice. Then she resolutely turned to leave, but Mu Helian grabbed her again, "What do you want to do!"
Qingyun turned to look at her, her eyes resolute. "I have things to do."
Mu Helian remained silent for a moment upon hearing this, but did not let go of her hand. After a long while, she said, "I know you have a plan in mind now." She glanced at Lin Wanjun beside her, gesturing for her to hold on as well. "Can't you tell us? Are you going to do all this by yourself?"
Mu Helian frowned. "We've been through thick and thin together. Do we still need to hide things from each other? When I first met you, I told you that you could call me if you needed anything. I wasn't just saying that casually. Qingyun, I like you a lot, so I hope you can discuss your ideas with us."
"Don't shoulder everything alone."
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