"Cotton?" Xiao Rui suddenly remembered the warm material Jiang Qinyu had mentioned. "The kind that makes warm clothes and blankets?"
Jiang Qinyu nodded repeatedly.
She truly hadn't expected it! To see cotton growing so well in this place, at this time of year!
But she soon realized what was going on.
The valley here is more like a natural hot spring than a lake, but the outside temperature is very pleasant; she estimated it to be around ten degrees Celsius.
This temperature is exactly what cotton grows at, and it's already winter now; the temperature was probably even higher before, which would have been more conducive to cotton growth.
"Is that all of that island?" Xiao Rui asked, suppressing his excitement.
Jiang Qinyu nodded, "They are all of them. I don't know how they ended up here."
All she could say was that nature is truly amazing, and surprises are everywhere.
"Then I'll have someone pick them all right away!" Xiao Rui said, about to call for help, but Jiang Qinyu stopped him.
"Wait a minute!" Jiang Qinyu's voice was urgent. "We can't just pick them! Besides, although there seem to be a lot of cotton here, there won't actually be much after processing. The most important thing is to keep the cotton seeds from the bolls so we can plant them next year. Then we'll have an endless supply of cotton!"
The system didn't know what was going on; it only provided finished cotton products but not cotton seeds, meaning she couldn't grow them.
If she can't grow the crops, she'll have to keep buying them with points in the system. Although they're not expensive, the cost adds up over time. If she can be self-sufficient, she naturally doesn't want to use her points to buy them.
Xiao Rui quickly calmed down after hearing her words and nodded, saying, "Madam is indeed very thoughtful. We really can't just look at the present; leaving behind the seeds is the most important thing."
Jiang Qinyu and the others quickly headed towards the island. Although the island was surrounded by a lake, there were many large rocks on the way from the island to the shore where Jiang Qinyu and the others were standing. As long as they were careful, they could pass through without any problem.
Not long after, Jiang Qinyu arrived on the island.
From a distance, you can only see cotton, but once you get closer, you realize that this island has a rich variety of plant species.
What surprised Jiang Qinyu even more was that there was a mine under the island!
She didn't disturb Xiao Rui and the others. Instead, after teaching the others how to pick cotton, she secretly peeked at what was underneath when no one was looking.
She found the thinnest part of the soil and dug down. After a short while, she saw what was underneath and stared in astonishment.
My God! It's a gold mine!
Jiang Qinyu subconsciously covered the soil back up.
"Madam, come and see if I picked the wrong one?" Lu Wanqing called out to Jiang Qinyu from the other end.
Jiang Qinyu quickly stood up, "Coming."
But she couldn't calm down at all.
She discovered a gold mine!
However, before she could recover from her excitement and had only taken a few steps, a system notification sounded in her mind.
[Ding! A large gold mine has been detected near the host. Do you wish to submit it? Friendly reminder: Gold and silver mines can help upgrade the system.]
Jiang Qinyu was stunned for a moment. System upgrade?
She remembered that the system had previously swallowed the gold and silver she had obtained from Qinggang Mountain, which led to her first upgrade.
But that guy has swallowed an immeasurable amount of gold and silver! If she clicks "agree," will the system take away all the gold in the mine?
Jiang Qinyu dared not take the risk, especially with Xiao Rui and the others present. If the island collapsed after she submitted the document, wouldn't these people die for no reason?
Helpless, Jiang Qinyu had to suppress her eagerness and ruthlessly put the task out of her mind.
Xiao Rui and the others went crazy picking cotton. Fortunately, the land wasn't big, otherwise they might have had to stay there for several days.
Seeing that they had almost finished harvesting, Xiao Rui said to Eleven, "Leave two people to continue processing the cottonseeds, and we'll go find a coal mine first."
Jiang Qinyu thought so too. Hearing Xiao Rui's words, she nodded to herself. This prince was indeed quite something.
Lu Wanqing had just received guidance from Jiang Qinyu and was currently busy and happy. When she heard that it was time to leave, she was a little reluctant. "Cousin, why don't you finish picking before you go?"
Xiao Rui glanced at her. "You want to stay?"
“I…” Lu Wanqing choked, then honestly shook her head, “Then forget it, I’ll go with my cousin.”
Jiang Qinyu glanced at Lu Wanqing's feet without making a sound, then quickly looked away.
This girl went out into the mountains wearing embroidered shoes; it's easy to imagine what has become of her.
Seeing that her toes were almost showing, Jiang Qinyu couldn't bear it and silently took out a pair of shoes from her bundle and handed them over, "Miss Lu, please change your shoes before you go."
Lu Wanqing lowered her head, her face flushed, and hurriedly said, "I'll go change right away!" before running off.
Xiao Rui remained silent for a moment before speaking, "Thank you, Madam."
Although Lu Wanqing was an accident, given her status as his cousin, he should have been more concerned about her. Now that Jiang Qinyu was reminding him, he felt a little embarrassed.
Jiang Qinyu shook her head. "It's nothing."
Xiao Rui thought for a moment, then took out a small silver ingot and handed it to her, saying, "Please accept this, Madam. Consider it a gift from your cousin."
A pair of shoes isn't a big deal, but Jiang Qinyu herself put them on. If she gave them to her cousin, and something happened to her, she wouldn't have any to wear, so some compensation was necessary.
Jiang Qinyu accepted it generously, her eyes crinkling with a smile, "Young Master Rui is so generous."
The shoes she gave Lu Wanqing were bought in town before, costing only a little over a hundred coins a pair, while Xiao Rui gave her five taels of silver.
Although it wasn't a huge sum of money, she still made a fortune.
Jiang Qinyu was secretly pleased, and afterwards she treated Lu Wanqing even more kindly.
It was soon noon, and Xiao Rui saw that Lu Wanqing was too tired to walk any further, so he ordered her to rest on the spot.
On the eleventh, everyone was given some dry food and water, and then allowed to sit for a while before continuing their journey.
Jiang Qinyu didn't want to drink cold water in this weather. After finding a sheltered spot to sit down, she calmly took out a small stove from her bundle, then pulled out a rough porcelain bowl, poured water into the bowl, and boiled it.
Lu Wanqing looked at Jiang Qinyu with envy, then at the dry rations in her hand and the cold water in her water pouch, and suddenly lost her appetite.
"Madam Lu has made such thorough preparations!" Lu Wanqing exclaimed.
Eleven looked over as well, and then blurted out, "Is Madam's bundle some kind of magic bag? How come it has all sorts of things inside?"
His words startled Xiao Rui, who then looked at the bundle Jiang Qinyu had placed on the grass, his eyes thoughtful.
From the outside, it looked like an ordinary cloth wrapping, and at first glance, there was nothing inside.
But what has Jiang Qinyu brought up along the way?
With so many things packed inside—tents, shoes, seasonings, a stove, bowls—how could her bundle still look empty?
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