After collecting the cubs, Xu Qingqing prepared to climb down the tree when she noticed that the light ahead had suddenly dimmed. Looking up at the sky, she saw a large patch of dark clouds moving in her direction.
Xu Qingqing sensed something was wrong and quickly climbed down the tree, running back the way she came. The dark clouds overhead were getting closer and closer to her, and thunder could be heard from time to time in the clouds.
As they crossed the stream, a sudden downpour began, instantly soaking Xu Qingqing's hair and causing the large raindrops to sting her face.
Xu Qingqing hid in her space, took off her wet clothes, dried her hair with a towel, and began to sort through her haul from the previous night. Apart from the dozen or so wild animals she had killed at the beginning because she couldn't control her strength, she gradually gained control of them and gathered the surviving animals into a mountain.
Next, we started cleaning up the dead wild animals, boiling water, plucking their feathers, and removing their internal organs. After a lot of work, we finally got it all done.
The torrential rain continued until the next day, but the dark clouds overhead remained, and the sky was still gloomy.
Xu Qingqing left the space, and the stream behind her was gone, replaced by a larger and wider river. Luckily, she had the foresight to cross the stream, otherwise she would have had to find a way back.
Along the way, Xu Qingqing discovered many white-stemmed, red-umbrella-shaped mushrooms, as well as other fungi. She took out a small basket from her spatial storage and picked only the mushrooms she recognized. Soon, she reached the edge of the area and found that many people were searching for mushrooms there.
The others also noticed Xu Qingqing. Seeing the small basket in her hand, they assumed it was someone from another production team coming to pick mushrooms. After all, their area was the only one with mountains, and they would come to pick mushrooms whenever it rained.
Among the crowd, Liu Yan, who had come to the mountains to pick mushrooms with other educated youth, spotted Xu Qingqing not far ahead.
Liu Yan was overjoyed and ran to Xu Qingqing: "Comrade Xu, I really didn't expect to meet you here. Thank you for what happened last time. If it weren't for you, I don't know where I would have been sold, and my life would probably have been ruined."
Xu Qingqing was also surprised, not expecting to meet her here. She looked at the others and asked in confusion, "Are you in the Sanli Production Team?"
Liu Yan nodded, then noticed the small basket in Xu Qingqing's hand. After looking around and not seeing any other unfamiliar faces, she quickly asked, "Comrade Xu, did you come to pick mushrooms by yourself?"
Xu Qingqing hummed in agreement, chatted briefly with Liu Yan, and then hurriedly left. After all, she hadn't been home for a day and two nights, and she didn't know if Bo Jingran would be so worried that he would report her to the police.
On the other side, Bo Jingran was very anxious, just as Xu Qingqing had thought.
Bo Jingran paced back and forth in the dormitory, unable to calm down. In the past, when Xu Qingqing went out to teach people a lesson, she would not return until midnight at the latest. She had not returned for two consecutive nights, and he was worried that Xu Qingqing might have encountered trouble.
Finally, unable to wait any longer, he opened the door and went to the police station.
Xu Qingqing hurried along but almost slipped several times. The dirt road was difficult to ride on after being washed by rain, and it was a mess with puddles everywhere.
After finally getting back to the city, Xu Qingqing was so exhausted that she almost collapsed. She leaned on the handlebars, panting heavily, and looked at the pedestrians coming and going in front of her.
Bo Jingran, together with Qin Gong'an, searched for clues about Xu Qingqing, checking one by one the places she frequented. Xu Qingqing had a distinctive appearance, and when they asked the supply and marketing cooperative staff, they all said they had seen her the day before yesterday.
Following this lead, an elderly woman quickly provided information; she was one of the women from the group that had been contacting them a few days earlier.
The old woman said, "I saw that girl you're talking about the day before yesterday. She asked us how to get to Sanli Production Team. I advised her not to go alone. Now it seems she went to Sanli Production Team to watch a movie."
Qin Gong'an frowned. He did know that projectionists would go to various production teams to show movies every year, and given Xu Qingqing's love of excitement, she would certainly be interested.
"Thank you, ma'am!"
After expressing his gratitude, Bo Jingran led Qin Gong'an towards the Sanli Production Team. In their haste, they failed to notice Xu Qingqing lying ahead, and neither did Qin Gong'an.
Xu Qingqing was furious as the two of them walked away as if she didn't exist. How could they not notice her, a grown woman like herself?
Xu Qingqing was too exhausted to shout, so she picked up a small stone from the ground and threw it at Bo Jingran.
Bo Jingran felt something hit his back, and it hurt terribly. He reached back and touched his back, his expression contorting in pain.
Seeing that Bo Jingran's expression was off, Qin Gong'an asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing, it just hit me. Maybe some naughty kid threw it. Let's get on our way."
Bo Jingran thought it was just some naughty child and didn't take it to heart. He only had one thought in mind: to get to Sanli Production Team as soon as possible to find Xu Qingqing.
Qin Gong'an remained silent upon hearing this and led him to the Sanli Production Team.
Xu Qingqing rolled her eyes behind her back, picked up five or six of them, and threw them all at him. This time, not only Bo Jingran, but also Qin Gong'an was hit a few times from behind.
The two looked at each other and turned around at the same time, only to find Xu Qingqing not far from them, covered in dirt and holding a few pebbles in her hand.
Xu Qingqing froze, then lowered her hand, secretly tossed it behind her back, and coughed a few times to greet them: "The weather is so nice. By the way, were you looking for me?"
Bo Jingran let out a long breath and rushed forward to hug her, but Xu Qingqing waved her arms, refusing Bo Jingran's approach:
"No, no, no, what do you think you're doing in public? Be civilized."
Although Bo Jingran felt regretful, he was finally relieved. Then, thinking that Xu Qingqing had been away for the past few days, he asked her, "Wife, where have you been these past two days?"
Qin Gong'an was also very curious about what Xu Qingqing had been doing for the past day and two nights.
Xu Qingqing felt the two men staring at her. She looked up at the sky, wondering what excuse she could use to get away with it. She couldn't very well say that she went to the mountains to buy goods.
After racking her brains, Xu Qingqing's eyes lit up with an idea. She slapped her thigh and explained to them, "The day before yesterday, I was watching a movie and saw a suspicious person running into the mountains. I knew something was wrong with him, so I secretly followed him."
The man was very wary, so I could only follow him from a distance. I noticed he was holding a piece of paper and comparing something. I searched like that all night.
Later it rained, so I found a cave to take shelter from the rain and waited until the rain stopped on the third day before I returned, bringing back some local specialties along the way.
After speaking, she pointed to the small basket hanging on the handlebars and showed the two the mushrooms she had picked. The mushrooms, big and small, were arranged neatly, and they were quite beautiful.
Bo Jingran gave Xu Qingqing a thumbs up: "My wife is great. When we get back, I'll stir-fry some mushrooms for you."
Xu Qingqing readily accepted, giving Bo Jingran a smug look.
Qin Gong frowned, harboring doubts. The mushrooms were real, but he still felt something was off about what Xu Qingqing had said earlier.
"Comrade Xu, you said that person was looking for something on the mountain. Do you remember the location?"
After Qin Gong'an finished speaking, he stared intently at Xu Qingqing, carefully observing her reaction.
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