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

Gu Xixi opened her eyes and looked up into the darkness above, saying, "No."

"Those people are nearing their end. They wouldn't have resorted to such desperate measures if time weren't so tight."

"Given that their men have already been severely weakened and beaten, there are probably not many left."

"There are many skilled fighters inside and outside Huachi Ferry Village, and the defenses are tight."

“At times like this, as long as you and I are here, they won’t risk a direct confrontation with the village’s guards.”

"As for burning the village, that would be too commotional. Not only would it provoke a counterattack from the nearby guards, but it would also immediately attract the Northwest garrison. If that were to happen, those assassins themselves would not survive."

He Jinglan breathed a sigh of relief, "That's good."

"In other words, as long as the assassins clearly target the two of us, they will be able to do what they want. They are currently limited in strength and time, and they don't have the time to enter the village and harm Aunt Zhang and the others."

"Furthermore, unless they are pushed to the limit, they will not dare to set fire to the village."

“Yes,” Gu Xixi said calmly, “They will only keep a close eye on this estate, waiting for an opportunity to strike at you and me.”

She glanced at He Jinglan and asked, "Are you scared?"

He Jinglan chuckled, "Tch! Afraid? If I were afraid, I wouldn't be surnamed He!"

"Last night you invited me to stay at your estate for a while, did I do anything to trip you up?"

Gu Xixi smiled as well, "Miss He is exceptionally brave and valiant."

He Jinglan's face suddenly fell, and she complained, "It's just too hot!"

"This place is nowhere near as cool as our home at night. The house is small, and we can't open the doors and windows. It's so hot it makes my heart race!"

In the stillness of the night, the small room was tightly shut, and it was inevitably stuffy inside the mosquito net.

Gu Xixi raised her hand and fanned herself, making the air circulate.

The two of them finally felt a little better.

Gu Xixi said, "There's nothing we can do. Your bodyguards all said it's best to keep the doors and windows closed. We, the people being protected, should listen to their advice. If something really happens, we shouldn't be a burden to them."

"As the saying goes, a calm mind brings coolness. Don't toss and turn. Try lying down with your eyes closed and calm your mind. This is the outskirts of the city after all, so it should get cooler in the middle of the night."

He Jinglan lay down as instructed, while Gu Xixi idly fanned herself.

After an unknown amount of time, they both drifted off to sleep...

The next morning, He Jinglan woke up and, before even opening her eyes, reached out and touched the side of her twice.

Not finding anyone, she was startled and sat up abruptly.

"Xi Xi! Gu Xi Xi!!!"

He Jinglan called out to Gu Xixi as she quickly dressed and got out of bed.

She flung open the door and ran out; it was already broad daylight outside.

He Jinglan saw that Old Li was sweeping the ground in front of the house, and knew that nothing should be wrong, so she calmed down a bit.

"Uncle Li, what time is it now?"

Old Li replied with a smile, "About... half past 9 AM."

He Jinglan felt a little embarrassed; she had actually slept in until this late!

"Then where did you see Boss Gu go?"

Old Li casually pointed to the field, "Boss Gu got up at the crack of dawn, saying he was going to hoe the ground and sow seeds."

“I suggested asking two brothers to help, but she refused, saying she could handle it herself and that everyone should just do their own job as before.”

Old Li smiled and looked at He Jinglan, "There's water boiling on the stove, some dry rations from yesterday, and some mung bean and millet porridge cooked by Boss Gu. This old servant will bring Miss some water to wash her face, and then we'll prepare her meal, how does that sound?"

He Jinglan waved her hand, "No need, didn't Xixi say it's the same as before?"

"I can do all of these things myself."

Her eyes searched for Gu Xixi's figure across the field, and she hurried away while talking.

Old Li watched his young mistress's retreating figure with deep emotion, "The head of the family said that everything is up to the young mistress."

"But it's still quite inconvenient for the young lady not to have a maidservant by her side..."

In the past, when a young lady went out, she was accompanied by at least four maids and an old woman.

Now that he sees the young lady doing everything herself, Old Li doesn't know if this is the right thing to do.

The land on the estate should have been thoroughly plowed after the last harvest.

However, after that, the Northwest officially went to war with the imperial court, and there was no time to plant new crops here.

Gu Xixi marked out the easternmost half-acre plot and just hoeed away some of the weeds that had grown on the surface.

When He Jinglan ran closer, she saw Gu Xixi leaning on a hoe and looking around.

He Jinglan asked, "What are you looking at?"

Gu Xixi pointed to the designated area, "From here to here, we'll build trellises and plant cucumbers. This side gets plenty of sunlight, so we'll plant watermelons, and this row in the middle will be planted with persimmons."

He Jinglan was amazed by Gu Xixi's mentality, "We're both on the verge of death, and you still want to farm?"

Gu Xixi turned to look at her and smiled, "The entire estate is already set up with traps, what else can we do besides farming?"

"If the assassin really breaks in, can you fight me, or can you kill me?"

“Poison,” He Jinglan said. “Didn’t you bring a lot of poison with you?”

Gu Xixi said, "I kept some for self-defense, and gave the rest to your family's bodyguards."

"Some have already been taken to the government offices, and the rest are temporarily on standby."

He Jinglan thought for a moment and agreed, "It seems like all we can do now is farm."

"Where are the seeds? Give me some, I'll help you sow them."

Gu Xixi chuckled, "Seeds can't be scattered just anywhere."

She pulled He Jinglan back, saying, "These three kinds are especially hard-won, we can't waste them."

"It is best to promote germination and seedling cultivation first, and then transplant the well-grown seedlings into the soil. This will result in a high survival rate."

He Jinglan nodded as if she understood, "Aren't you going to build a greenhouse?"

Gu Xixi said, "Yes, let's take it one step at a time."

"Anyway, we're trapped here now, and we'll have to wait for someone to rescue us."

He Jinglan was taken aback, realizing that she still knew too little.

She quickly looked around and lowered her voice, "Waiting for someone? Who?"

Gu Xixi stopped, leaned close to He Jinglan's ear, and whispered a few words.

Then, withdrawing from the conversation, he said, "I can't make too many arrangements in advance, and I'm also taking a gamble."

"If we're really unlucky, we'll end up having to rely on our own two legs to escape. You should be prepared for that."

He Jinglan's eyes sparkled with emotion. "Gu Xixi! I knew you were prepared. You wouldn't deliberately kill yourself!"

Gu Xixi coughed twice. "I've already said that we can only wait now. I'm not entirely sure either."

He Jinglan was full of confidence and fighting spirit, "So for now, I'll just live my life as usual, farming, eating and drinking."

“Those people who are secretly watching us aren’t afraid of us at all. If they were to force their way into the estate, they would have to think twice about whether it’s a trap. It’s a deceptive tactic, isn’t it?”

"Xixi! You're so smart! You should have told me sooner so I could have cooperated with you!"

Gu Xixi forced a smile.

She hadn't really thought that much about what kind of deception was involved.

She simply thought she had nothing better to do than bring some seeds with her before she set off.

Planting seeds earlier allows them to absorb more sunlight.

When winter comes, you can sit on a heated kang (traditional heated brick bed) and enjoy a sweet and cool watermelon!

In Huachidu Village, a soldier in plainclothes knocked on Gu Xixi's door...