A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

Just then, the village chief and his wife were going to the city to sell eggs, so Madam Meng and Qing'er hitched a ride.

An Qinghe remained, clutching the horse's reins with reluctance. "Those tea cakes are the culmination of our collaboration. You must keep an eye on them from time to time."

Gu Xixi: "Don't worry."

An Qinghe: "Go to the border, be careful on the road."

Gu Xixi: "Okay."

An Qinghe: "Don't just focus on work, eat well, drink well, sleep well, and don't overwork yourself."

Gu Xixi: "Mm."

An Qing paused for a moment, racking his brains before coming up with another sentence, "I'll go back and finish dealing with the backlog of things, then I'll come find you soon."

Gu Xixi: "...Brother An, if you don't leave soon, my trip will be delayed."

"Oh, right," An Qinghe said somewhat flusteredly, glancing up at the sky before forcing a dry laugh, "Well, I'm off then. You... take care of yourself, come back soon, don't delay on the road, and make sure you take good care of yourself..."

"And also, and also..."

This shrewd and outgoing man rarely showed his clumsy side.

Gu Xixi looked at him, her eyes softening slightly, and smiled, "You've said everything you needed to say. If you can't think of anything, don't force it."

"The Pinpo fruit in Yunling County is probably already bearing fruit, and it's almost time to bag it. I'm not at ease without you personally overseeing it."

Gu Xixi's words worked as expected. An Qinghe perked up and said, "Oh right, I almost forgot about this important matter."

After all, this involves the cooperation agreement between Gu Xixi and the seedling company.

If the bagging method is as effective as Gu Xixi said, not only will the remaining debt for the seedlings be wiped clean, but the seedling shop will also trust and rely on Gu Xixi more.

This lays the foundation for long-term cooperation between the two parties in the future.

An Qinghe didn't delay any longer. He nimbly mounted his horse and solemnly said, "With me here, I will definitely ensure that all the fruit trees are bagged exactly as you said, without the slightest error."

Gu Xixi watched An Qinghe ride away into the distance, then turned and walked towards her mule cart.

The car was harnessed early in the morning.

Aunt Zhang had already placed the two bundles, one large and one small, on the cart and fed Laifu a full meal and water.

Gu Xixi patted Laifu affectionately, "We just finished the summer harvest, and now I'm making you travel a long way again."

"Once we get to the family village, you can rest well. I'll cook you delicious food every day."

Laifu seemed to understand, tilted its head back, snorted, and pawed the ground with its front hooves, eager to set off.

Gu Xixi sat on the carriage, glanced at her own yard, and didn't plan to go in to say goodbye.

Before breakfast, seeing that He Jinglan was still fast asleep, she tiptoed and hitched the mule cart outside the gate, and even gave Aunt Zhang a heads-up.

To avoid having to go in and out again before departure, waking He Jinglan up and making her insist on going to the border.

As dawn broke, Gu Xixi drove her mule cart toward the village entrance, thinking that she would definitely have to buy a horse later, as riding alone would be much faster than she was now.

Just then, I heard the neighing of horses coming from ahead.

Horses are very valuable, and no one in the entire Huachidu Village keeps such large animals.

Gu Xixi thought she was overthinking things and hallucinating. Laifu continued walking forward, bypassing the view of the big locust tree, and Gu Xixi saw a familiar carriage.

The carriage was so spacious that it almost completely blocked the entire path.

Gu Xixi's pupils contracted, and she quickly pulled on the reins, "He Jinglan!! You come out here!"

After waiting for a moment, half a person's figure peeked out from the front of the carriage.

He Jinglan chuckled, "Xixi, come here quickly, I've already prepared the carriage for us."

Gu Xixi glared at her angrily, "So that's why you agreed so readily yesterday. You were all prepared in advance, secretly plotting to ambush me here!"

He Jinglan stopped laughing and said righteously, "Gu Xixi, I'm doing this for your safety."

"We just encountered bandits that day; what if we run into them again on the road?"

“As a young woman, sitting outside driving makes you more vulnerable to being targeted by thieves.”

"So I have to follow you and protect you."

That makes sense, as He Jinglan had bodyguards accompanying her, and even her coachman was a trained martial artist.

He Jinglan glanced at the mule pulling the cart, frowned, and said seriously, "And Laifu, it's even less safe than you."

“The bandits are vicious and cruel. With Laifu’s strong physique, he will definitely be robbed. He will either be forced to do hard labor until he dies, or he will be killed and eaten. It’s so pitiful.”

Laifu was startled and shook his head nervously, his eyes watery.

He Jinglan said, "Xixi, look, Laifu is almost crying from fright."

Gu Xixi broke out in a cold sweat, "Even if it was scared and cried, wasn't that your fault?!"

After a brief standoff, Gu Xixi finally sighed helplessly.

"Why didn't you say what you wanted to do earlier? You had to pull this stunt and now you want me to take Laifu and the cart back."

He Jinglan jumped out of the car, waving her hand with a smile, "No need for such trouble, I already have arrangements."

She reached out and tugged at it twice.

Gu Xixi then realized that there were people hiding in front of the carriage.

"Stone?"

"Why are you here to join in the fun?"

Shi Tou quickly raised his hand to clarify, "Sister Xi Xi, I just came to help lead the mule cart back."

Gu Xixi turned and glared at He Jinglan.

He Jinglan said with a straight face, "I didn't threaten or bribe you, Shitou, right?"

Stone nodded hurriedly, grinning foolishly, "Yeah, yeah, there's nothing there!"

There was no coercion or inducement.

However, the schoolteacher, He Jinglan, promised that when she returned this time, she would return the slingshot that had been confiscated from the school to a student nicknamed "Stone".

Gu Xixi knew something was amiss just by looking at the two of them, but now was not the time to investigate.

She handed the reins to Stone and said, "Go slowly, don't pull hard on the rope. Laifu knows you and knows the way home, it will follow you."

Shi Tou nodded, and Lai Fu obediently looked at him without any resistance.

After watching the stone safely enter the village, Gu Xixi and He Jinglan got into the car and set off.

With the bright moon high in the sky, the carriage arrived near the village of dependents and discovered that there was a checkpoint set up on the main road.

Fortunately, Gu Xixi was prepared and took out the pass token given to her by Huo Jiang.

Upon seeing this, the soldiers guarding the checkpoint immediately moved aside the fence. "It's Mr. Gu! Please come in."

Curious, He Jinglan lifted the car curtain and asked, "How did you know it was Boss Gu?"

The soldier solemnly replied, "Although the General is at the front lines, he has not forgotten the important matter of reclaiming wasteland back home, and has given instructions in advance."

"The General is certain that Boss Gu will come before and after the harvest. We have been preparing for this, and we will greet him properly upon seeing this token. Whatever needs Boss Gu may have, please feel free to ask, and we will do our best to fulfill them."

Gu Xixi said, "Thank you for your help."

The villagers should be asleep by now.

Gu Xixi didn't want to cause a disturbance, so He Jinglan had the carriage stop outside the village, and the two of them walked into the village carrying their respective bundles.

The courtyard and house where I used to live were very clean, both inside and out, and it was clear that someone cleaned them regularly.

Even the kitchen had fresh vegetables and rice, and the water tank was filled with clean water.