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

"I'm not avoiding him, there's no need for that."

As Gu Xixi spoke, she turned her head and complained, "I told you not to follow me. I could have gone and come back quickly by myself, but you insisted on coming along."

He Jinglan smiled and said, "I can't not come. If there's any danger, I'll be there to share life and death with you."

"Pah, pah, pah!" Gu Xixi spat, "Can't you say something auspicious?"

He Jinglan laughed a few times, looked up at the sky and said, "I heard him tell Aunt Zhang that he's leaving this afternoon. I wonder if we'll have time to say goodbye to him?"

Gu Xixi was silent for a moment, then said, "I'll try my best."

Outside Qingtian County, Manager Liao led the way, showing them the eight mu of fertile fields and the fifteen mu of farmland.

The conditions were indeed as described before: the fields were large, the soil was fertile, the terrain was flat, there was an irrigation source, and the sunlight was adequate.

Gu Xixi looked at the two connected cottages in the farm and said, "They do look nice, but my budget is limited and the previous quote was too high."

Manager Liao smiled confidently and pulled out a miniature abacus from his pocket.

"Mr. Gu, please take a look."

He held the abacus in one hand, showing it to Gu Xixi as he quickly moved the beads, saying, "This is the original price."

"This is the current price."

Gu Xixi and He Jinglan exchanged a surprised glance when they saw the number on the abacus.

He Jinglan said, "I remember the price I saw last time, but now that number has dropped by a full 30%?"

Shopkeeper Liao laughed and said, "Nowadays, not only in Qingtian County, but also in the Northwest region, real estate is priced but not available, which is why I dared to make this guarantee last time."

He said with some emotion, "Actually, I didn't expect that even after bargaining to this extent, the other party would still agree."

“I have checked the land deed. It has the signature of the middleman and the seal of the Qingtian County Government. It is complete and valid.”

Gu Xixi nodded and said, "Manager Liao is meticulous in his work, and it is all thanks to your mediation and help."

The price is slightly lower than Gu Xixi's budget, so why wouldn't she buy it?

Gu Xixi immediately asked Manager Liao to lead the way to the seller.

The mule cart entered Qingtian County, and the seller was indeed a wealthy family.

Only the steward and a few servants remained inside the grand compound.

The butler was eager to get to work and complete the task his master had given him, so he barely spoke to Gu Xixi when they met.

Cash on one hand, land deed on the other.

During the Daye Dynasty, a complete land deed only needed to be drawn up by the seller at the time of the initial sale, signed by the intermediary, and finally stamped by the government office.

The land deed had neither the buyer's name nor any official record.

After this process is completed, the land deed will become a negotiable document, similar to a banknote that does not require special exchange.

This resulted in the land belonging to whoever held the land deed, making it difficult for ordinary people to prove they were the owners of the land even if their land deed was stolen.

Gu Xixi understood that this matter required utmost caution.

She didn't understand much about it herself, so she handed the land deed to He Jinglan.

The estate was sold as a whole, with only one land deed. The other eight acres were divided into three land deeds.

He Jinglan carefully examined the contents and seals on the land deed, and then checked the yamen's seal against the sunlight.

After a long while, he nodded to Gu Xixi and Manager Liao.

The transaction was successfully completed.

Before leaving the mansion, Gu Xixi put the four land deeds into the bottom of her crossbody bag.

It was covered with all sorts of medicinal powders.

If anyone dares to steal or rob, she'll poison them until their head turns to a pig's!

It was almost noon, and Gu Xixi paid Manager Liao his commission as agreed, according to the commission rate for land sales in Qingtian County.

Manager Liao accepted the gift generously, cupping his hands in a respectful gesture and smiling, "Then I'll look forward to the millet harvest in the fall."

Gu Xixi said, "The newly purchased land still needs to be adjusted, and it's not easy to find suitable workers so quickly. So I plan to plant some trial crops first, and we'll talk about planting grains at the end of the year."

"But don't worry, of the millet we're growing at home, I'll keep 40% for you and give you 60%."

Manager Liao was delighted. "That's wonderful!"

"I hope for a good harvest next year, so that Mr. Gu and I can make a fortune."

He thought for a moment and then said, "If Boss Gu grows anything else besides grain and discovers other ways to make money, don't forget about me, Liao."

Gu Xixi smiled, "Definitely, definitely."

Returning from the county town along the same route, the sun was blazing overhead, and even the cicadas in the trees had stopped chirping.

Wearing a bamboo hat, Gu Xixi saw no one around and felt uneasy because it was too secluded.

In the summer, to avoid the heat on the road, she would leave early in the morning and head back late in the afternoon, often encountering trucks and people carrying goods along the way.

I just didn't expect that when I was traveling at noon today, there were really hardly any people walking on the road.

Thinking of the previous assassin, Gu Xixi wanted to drive faster, but she was also worried that Laifu would suffer from heatstroke.

He Jinglan noticed that Gu Xixi was acting strangely and asked from behind, "Xixi?"

"Xixi, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing," Gu Xixi reluctantly agreed. "Hold on tight, I'll have Laifu run faster."

We're still two miles from Huachidu Village; with a little more effort, we'll be safe.

Just as Gu Xixi was pulling on the reins, a loud bang was heard.

Before she could pinpoint the source of the sound, she felt the car suddenly tilt.

Laifu was startled and cried out. It struggled forward, but couldn't move.

He Jinglan turned to look under the cart floor and exclaimed, "Oh no, the wheels are stuck on rocks."

Gu Xixi was too busy trying to control the reins and calm the restless Laifu to respond.

When I looked up unintentionally, I saw something even worse.

The familiar black-clad, knife-wielding thug, dressed in broad daylight.

In an instant, Gu Xixi disregarded everything else and shouted, "Jinglan, run!" as she jumped out of the car.

He Jinglan reacted quickly; she jumped out of the car and, as Gu Xixi ran over, the two of them held hands and ran wildly toward the village entrance.

The cart and the purchased items are all external possessions.

The assassin in black's goal was to kidnap two living people, so he probably wouldn't target Laifu.

Gu Xixi could hear the whistling wind in her ears. She regretted that she should have insisted on not bringing He Jinglan with her this morning.

Even if he gets arrested for buying land, it's his own fault.

But He Jinglan is innocent. If He Jinglan is implicated...

What usually seems like a short distance now feels incredibly long.

Gu Xixi held He Jinglan's hand tightly, her clothes already soaked with sweat.

They didn't have time to look back, but they could already hear the killer's running footsteps getting closer and closer.

How to do how to do?

Why can't we see the village entrance yet?

Where are Master Liu's men, who were supposed to be stationed near the official road?!

Gu Xixi was so exhausted from running that her lungs felt like they were going to explode, and her vision began to blur.

She reached into her bag and grabbed the powdered medicine.

"Jinglan, I'll count to three, then I'll spray the medicine to hold them off. You run!"

"There is a man named Master Liu at the entrance of the village."

“No way!” He Jinglan refused. “If it were three or five people, your method would be effective and hit the mark, but now, these people are like a swarm of wasps.”

She gasped as she ran, saying, "How can they be so brazen in broad daylight? Are they insane?!"