Sir Song, do you want to pledge yourself to me?

Song Qiuniang was a little girl and didn't know anyone in the capital. Ji Nuan thought she had vented her anger and ran back on her own.

However, after dinner that day, the sound of copper basins being knocked suddenly rang out in the village. This was usually a signal that something had happened in the village and the village chief was calling on villagers to deal with the emergency.

"I'll go take a look. You guys stay home and don't come out for now." Father Ji said this and was about to go out.

"Dad, I'll go with you." Ji Nuan was worried. She remembered that the last time the village chief knocked on the copper basin, it was because a fugitive sneaked into the village to steal things and hacked the villagers after being discovered.

"Let's go too." Ji Shan had thought of what Ji Nuan had thought of, and he was also worried about his father going out alone.

Ji Nuan hurriedly stopped him, "Brother, I'm good at fighting, so I can stay with Dad and take care of him. You and second brother can stay at home. There are women and children at home who need to be taken care of."

Father Ji nodded without hesitation and said, "Listen to Nuannuan, lock the door at home."

Ji Nuan and Ji's father hurried out and asked the other villagers who had also heard the news, but they all shook their heads, saying they didn't know what had happened. Everyone gathered in the threshing ground.

When Ji Nuan and the others arrived, almost everyone who should have come to the village had already arrived. They surrounded the village chief and asked what was going on.

The village chief became increasingly impatient after being repeatedly questioned. He stood on a high platform and shouted, "Everyone, please be quiet and listen to my explanation!"

"Song Shuanzi's daughter, Qiuniang, disappeared in the afternoon and has not been found yet. Now, each family needs to send one person. We will split into two teams. One team will search the village carefully, and the other team will follow me up the mountain to search."

As soon as the village chief finished speaking, the villagers started talking.

Going up the mountain to look for someone late at night is indeed very dangerous. Not only is the vision obstructed, but there may also be wild animals lurking in the mountains and forests.

Ji Nuan recalled meeting Song Qiuniang in the capital that afternoon. If Song Qiuniang really hadn't returned, then the city gates were already closed, and going into the city to look for her was obviously impractical. But on the other hand, if Song Qiuniang had already returned to the village, why would she suddenly go up the mountain?

Ji Nuan felt that she should first tell the village chief what she knew, and let the village chief contact the Song family to understand the situation before making a decision.

She said something to Ji's father, walked over to the village chief, and whispered, "Uncle Village Chief, I saw Song Qiuniang near the bookstore on Fucheng South Street at the end of the first hour. Her eyes were red, as if she had just cried. Do you know what happened to her?"

The village chief looked at Ji Nuan and asked instead of answering her, "Are you sure you saw her at the end of the hour of the Ox? What was she doing in the prefecture?"

"It's definitely the end of the hour of the Ox. How did the village chief know she went up the mountain?"

The village chief said: "Her mother said she might have gone to the mountains to pick wild vegetables, and asked me to take people to look for her."

"Uncle village chief, when I saw her, she was very emotionally unstable and said something about her mother wanting to marry her to an old widower. Do you think it could be related to this matter?" Ji Nuan didn't want to talk about this matter, for fear of ruining Song Qiuniang's reputation, but now the village chief obviously didn't know anything about the situation.

Ji Nuan suggested: "Uncle village chief, shouldn't we first ask the Song family if they have any clues, such as if the tools for digging wild vegetables at home are missing or the silver and money are missing." Ji Nuan suspected that Song Qiuniang had run away from her marriage.

The village chief thought of something and nodded, saying, "Yes, I'll go ask them."

Song Qiuniang's parents were right next to the threshing ground. Song's mother, who usually looked as if she disliked Song Qiuniang, was now sitting on the ground, crying and wiping her tears.

The village chief asked directly, "Are you planning to marry Qiu Niang to an old widower?"

Upon hearing this, Song's mother nodded guiltily twice, not daring to look the village chief in the eye.

Seeing this, the village chief's tone was filled with blame: "You are really confused! Qiu Niang is a good girl, how can you just promise her to an old widower? She must have heard about your plan and ran away out of fear."

The village chief paused and said, "Now is not the time to talk about this. Go home quickly and check carefully to see if there is anything missing, especially tools for digging wild vegetables or money."

Song Shuanzi and his wife woke up as if from a dream. They quickly got up and ran home while wiping their tears.

Ji Nuan also followed, followed by a group of confused villagers.

At the Song family's house, after a thorough search, Mother Song staggered out, holding a small wooden box, and cried out at the top of her lungs, "Oh my God, this damned girl doesn't want us to live!"

A neighbor who was on good terms with Song's mother hurried forward to comfort her. He took the small wooden box from her and asked, "Mr. Song, what was originally in this box?"

Song's mother cried even harder, wiping her tears and sobbing, "This is all our family's savings of more than ten years! This heartless person actually took it all away. He's going to drive us to death!"

The villagers who originally came out to help have now become spectators and started talking about the situation. Some expressed confusion and condemnation of Song Qiuniang's behavior, while others sympathized with the Song family's situation.

The village chief didn't expect that Song Qiuniang was so bold as to steal all the family savings and run away from marriage.

He looked at Song Shuanzi, his eyes filled with both blame and worry. He sighed and asked, "Shuanzi, what are you going to do now? Are you going to find the person?"

Song Shuanzi's face turned ashen, his hands clenched into fists, his knuckles turned white from the force. He gasped, his voice revealing deep powerlessness and despair: "What are you still looking for? Just treat her as...just treat her as if she died outside." Even if he found her, what reputation would he have?

The village chief understood Song Shuanzi's feelings very well. He sighed deeply and patted Song Shuanzi on the shoulder. "Shuanzi, I know you're upset right now, but it's already happened. No matter how much you regret it, it's useless. Just think of all that money as a dowry for Qiu Niang. I hope she can have a better life out there."

"Okay, the problem is solved, let's go home." The village chief said to the people who followed him, "Go back and rest."

The village chief looked at the crowd that was gradually dispersing and said to Ji Nuan, "You should go back too."

Ji Nuan nodded and followed Ji's father home.

At night, Ji Nuan was sound asleep when she suddenly felt a tremor in her consciousness that shook her unconscious. When she regained consciousness, she found herself lying in her own bed. The sunlight outside the window had already filled the entire room, and it was obvious that daybreak had already arrived.

Ji Nuan probed her consciousness into the space, and the scene before her was completely different. Beyond the land nourished by the life-giving water, the barren land was no longer barren, but instead was replaced by vast tracts of farmland and lush orchards in the distance.

Her space had finally been upgraded! Its original planting function had been restored, and the food and fruits she had painstakingly collected and planted during the apocalypse had miraculously recovered.

Ji Nuan was overwhelmed with excitement. No one could share this joy with her. She rolled around happily on the bed a few times, venting her inner joy.

Song Jinbai estimated the time Ji Nuan would arrive at the Song residence and waited in the front hall early. When he heard the doorman announce that Miss Ji had arrived, he immediately stood up and hurried out to greet her.

When Ji Nuan saw Song Jinbai, she smiled and handed him the cake she had specially prepared for him, "Master Song, this is for you."

Song Jinbai took the cake, feeling delighted in his heart, but his expression remained calm as he said in a gentle voice, "Miss Ji is really thoughtful. This cake must have taken a lot of effort."

"My sister-in-law made this." Ji Nuan smiled at him and handed over two more desserts. She said to Butler Wu, "These two are specially for Uncle Wu and the chef. Please ask Uncle Wu to pass on the one for the chef."

Butler Wu thanked her and took the cakes, secretly admiring Miss Ji's attentiveness. It was rare that even servants like them could think of this.