For a moment, Shen Danru couldn't remember who Qi Shuoyu was, so she simply stopped thinking about it.
Besides, she didn't take him seriously. They were just allies in distress now, and they wouldn't have a chance to meet again after leaving this valley.
Sensing Shen Danru's gaze, Qi Shuoyu smiled and looked back: "Is there a problem?"
"Why did you tell me your real name? You're not trying to kill me to silence me again, are you?"
Shen Danru shrank her neck.
"Miss Shen is the first woman, besides my mother, to care about me."
"Well."
This time, Shen Danru felt embarrassed. She had only asked him a few questions yesterday because she was doing a system task, but she didn't expect him to take it seriously.
Qi Shuoyu ate as elegantly as yesterday, and after finishing one bowl, he asked for a second one.
Shen Danru stared blankly, completely mesmerized. How could a man be so handsome even while eating?
"Don't just look at me, you eat too."
Seeing that the other party had noticed, Shen Danru blushed and lowered her head to eat.
Seeing her shyness, the man's lips curved into a beautiful smile.
The two finished their meal quickly.
"I see that you are no longer seriously ill. Why don't we find a way to leave here as soon as possible?"
"Hey~ hey~." Qi Shuoyu coughed repeatedly, clutching his chest.
"My internal injuries are quite severe, and I'm afraid Miss Shen wouldn't be so heartless as to abandon me."
Shen Danru rolled her eyes at him.
He seriously suspected that the scoundrel was faking it.
Shen Danru wanted to leave him alone in the mountain stream, but she couldn't bear to.
Qi Shuoyu stayed in the mountain stream for a full five days.
Shen Danru ignored him and went to find the exit on her own. Qi Shuoyu had no choice but to follow her.
The compass indicated that the exit was inside the cave. They took torches and followed the compass, walking for two hours before finally reaching the end.
The sunlight was dazzling, making people squint.
Both of them raised their hands to shield their eyes from the sunlight, and only lowered their hands after their eyes had adjusted.
Outside the cave was a forest, filled with the sounds of many small animals, but no one dared to venture into it easily.
They followed the compass through the misty forest and came across a stream with crystal-clear water where several small fish swam happily.
Shen Danru couldn't help but scoop up some stream water and wash her face.
It's so refreshing.
After passing through the misty forest, there was a village outside.
Some people saw them emerge from the misty forest and looked on in surprise.
They tried to stop someone to ask for directions, but the people avoided them like the plague.
After much effort, they managed to call out to a young man: "Young man, what kind of place is this?"
The boy stared at them for a few moments before asking, "Did you two come from the Misty Forest?"
The two looked at each other and nodded.
At this time, Shen Danru was still wearing men's clothing.
She didn't know how Qi Shuoyu could tell she was a woman, but this young man certainly didn't.
"This is Ningzhou."
Shen Danru was somewhat surprised: Ah, we've arrived in Ningzhou so quickly?
The boy glanced ahead and said, "No one who goes into the Misty Forest has ever come out alive. You are the first."
"Six people from the village didn't believe in this superstition and went into the Misty Forest as a team. They all died inside. One of them did manage to escape, but he was covered in wounds and his eyes were filled with terror and confusion. When asked anything, he just shook his head blankly. He died shortly after he came out."
The two exchanged a glance, each secretly making a guess.
There must be wild animals in this misty forest. They were lucky to have a compass, otherwise they would have been trapped like the other villagers.
"Brothers, you were lucky this time. Don't go in there again next time, it's too dangerous."
The two thanked him repeatedly.
The boy kindly offered a few words of advice and then left.
Having reached Ningzhou, Shen Danru felt much safer.
Looking at the countdown, she realized that the system task only had one day left. She felt a surge of anxiety and knew she needed to hurry to Shangqing Village.
"Qi Shuoyu, we've arrived in Ningzhou now, let's part ways here."
Without waiting for the man beside her to reply, Shen Danru asked around to find out where she could rent a horse-drawn carriage.
Turning her head, she saw the man was still following her, so Shen Danru took out a twenty-tael silver note and placed it in his hand:
"Don't follow me anymore. Here, take this. Let's go our separate ways."
She had a total of one hundred taels of silver notes on her, and she gave him twenty taels, which was more than enough.
Qi Shuoyu frowned.
Does this woman hate him that much?
Seeing that Qi Shuoyu had accepted the silver note and hadn't followed after her, Shen Danru felt a pang of resentment and cursed him inwardly for being heartless.
Shen Danru inquired at several households in the village. There were no horse-drawn carriages in the village, only donkey carts, so he hired a donkey cart to go to the prefectural city, and then switched to a horse-drawn carriage.
Shangqing Village is a small mountain village in the southern part of Sifang Town. It is not close to the prefectural city. It took the carriage two hours to reach Sifang Town.
After making inquiries from various sources, the carriage stopped in front of the Shen family's house at dusk. She gave the driver one tael of silver, and the driver drove the carriage away.
Shen Danru stood in the Shen family's courtyard and observed it. The courtyard was not small, but the houses were very dilapidated. There were six brick and tile houses, the remaining outbuildings were made of adobe, and there was a thatched shed in the courtyard.
The curtain in the main room was lifted, and a woman in her fifties walked out.
Shen Danru looked her over. She was around sixty years old, with slightly graying hair. Her gaunt face made her cheekbones stand out even more, and her triangular eyes were sunken. She was wearing a coarse linen dress, which was unusual because it had no patches.
Chen's thin lips parted slightly: "Who are you looking for?"
She sized up Shen Danru. This man didn't seem to be from this village. He was quite handsome, and if he wasn't married, he would be a good match for her granddaughters from her first and third wives' households.
"Excuse me, is this the Shen Cheng family's residence?"
Chen looked her over again: "Who are you?"
“I am his daughter.”
Madam Chen immediately realized that this was the second wife's daughter who had been switched at birth.
I thought a handsome young master had arrived; what a pity.
Madam Chen circled around Shen Danru and saw that she had no bundle on her back, that the fabric of her clothes was not good, and that she had no headdress or earrings, only a hairband to tie her hair up.
When Madam Chen saw that Shen Danru had returned from the Marquis's residence without bringing anything back, she felt somewhat annoyed.
They must have been kicked out of the Marquis's mansion.
Hmph, yet another freeloader has come knocking.
"Why did you come back? This isn't your home, get out!"
Shen Danru was momentarily stunned. This mean-spirited old woman must be her grandmother, right?
At this moment, a woman came out from the east room. When she saw Shen Danru, she understood the situation. Her eyes darted around, and a scheme flashed in her mind.
"Mother, is this the second daughter that my second brother switched at birth? She's so pretty even dressed as a man. How beautiful she would be if she changed into women's clothes."
She stepped forward, took Shen Danru's hand, and introduced her: "Child, come inside quickly. This is your grandmother, and I am your aunt."
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