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

Gu Tiezhu was pushed by Aunt Zhang, and his cane fell to the ground.

Fortunately, Mrs. Liu reacted quickly and caught him, preventing him from falling.

Then look at Aunt Zhang, who has already barged into the yard as if no one else is there, searching everywhere for someone.

"Gu Qingye! Gu Qingye!! You must come out and explain yourself today!"

Gu Tiezhu's face contorted with rage, his eyes seeming to spit venom.

"Qingye is sick. She went home and went to sleep. She can't come out to see you!"

"Get out of my house right now!!"

However, Aunt Zhang acted as if she hadn't heard anything, kicked open the main room door with a bang, glanced at Gu Laosan inside, and without saying a word, went on to kick open the door of the west wing.

Gu Qingye had been lying in bed pretending to be asleep when she heard the door being kicked open.

She had to slowly sit up, pretending to have just woken up, and asked, "What's going on? Who is it?"

Aunt Zhang didn't have time for nonsense and simply asked Gu Qingye why, out of the three of them who went into the mountains, only she returned.

Where did Gu Xixi and Chen Fang go?

Gu Qingye intended to answer truthfully, but in the blink of an eye she saw Gu Tiezhu standing outside the door, his expression terrifying as if he wanted to devour someone.

Even Liu gave a knowing look and secretly shook her head.

Gu Qingye swallowed and followed the story Gu Tiezhu had taught her: "We went down the mountain together."

"Sister Xixi told Brother Chen that she had other things to do, so we parted ways at the foot of the mountain."

Aunt Zhang frowned. "They're carrying so many mountain goods, where else can they go if they don't put them home first?"

Gu Qingye shook her head, and to hide her guilty conscience, she boldly smiled at Aunt Zhang.

"I don't know that."

"Sister Xixi would never consult me ​​before doing what she wants."

Seeing that she couldn't get any more information from the family, Aunt Zhang gave them a warning glare and hurriedly left.

The old doctor hadn't gone to sleep yet; he was waiting for Aunt Zhang to return in the courtyard.

After discussing it again, the two felt that something was off about Gu Laosan's family, and that Gu Qingye was more likely hiding something.

The old doctor pondered for a moment and said, "If Gu Qingye is lying, Xixi and Xiao Chen might still be in the mountains."

"Oh?" Aunt Zhang's eyes welled up with tears. "Won't they freeze to death?"

The old doctor comforted Aunt Zhang, "There are only three or four hours left until dawn. Xixi knows how to save herself, and Chen Fang is quick-witted. With the two of them together, there shouldn't be any major problems."

"Besides, it's pitch black outside and we can't go into the mountains to search at all. There's no use in us being anxious."

Aunt Zhang wiped away her tears and said, "Then what can we do now?"

"Get enough sleep to recharge," the old doctor said. "As soon as it's light, go to the village chief's house and ask him to mobilize the whole village to search the mountains for the person."

The old doctor's words reassured Aunt Zhang.

She nodded. "Okay, I'll do as you say!"

The moon was high in the sky, casting its silvery light all over the cave.

Mu Nanzhao had already gotten off Gu Xixi's lap on his own.

He moved to the other side, sat with his back against the cave wall, closed his eyes to rest, and hasn't said a word since.

Gu Xixi observed Mu Nanzhao; he remained as indifferent and self-willed as ever.

Moreover, he showed absolutely no signs of developing feelings for her or being tempted by her.

Gu Xixi's tense nerves relaxed a little.

She knew Mu Nanzhao wasn't actually asleep. "It's so cold. If you can't sleep, let's chat."

Mu Nanzhao kept his eyes closed. "Let's talk."

Gu Xixi considered it for a moment, then smiled and said, "I was just helping you improve your blood circulation and warm up, and I warmed myself up in the process. It's nothing like saving a life, so please don't take it to heart."

It's best not to remember this!

"Hmm." Mu Nanzhao hummed, his expression unreadable.

The eastern horizon turned a jewel-like blue.

The sound of the bronze bell shattered the faint dream of early morning.

Old Qian rang the bell vigorously until the villagers hurriedly gathered around, at which point he stopped.

“Gu Xixi and Mr. Chen from our village went to the back mountain yesterday and have not been found since.”

"Everyone, go home now and grab your ropes and machetes. Come with me into the mountains to search for the person!"

Without hesitation, the villagers sprang into action.

Huachidu Village is nestled against the mountains. If someone gets lost in the mountains, the whole village will mobilize to search for them. This has been a tradition passed down through generations.

As Old Qian walked, he complained to Aunt Zhang, "My niece Xixi and Mr. Chen have disappeared. You should have told me yesterday!"

Aunt Zhang sighed, "It's my fault for being careless. I thought Xixi had something else to do."

"When they still hadn't returned by dinner time, I realized something was wrong and went to Gu Laosan's house to ask."

Old Qian said angrily, "That Gu Laosan! If I find out that his family is lying and cheating, I'll teach them a lesson this time!"

Are you kidding me? Gu Xixi was the strategist he met by sheer luck, and Chen Fang was the teacher he had been looking forward to for many years, someone indispensable for establishing his private school.

If anything were to happen to those two, he'd be ready to wipe out Gu Laosan's entire family!

As dawn broke, all the villagers in Huachidu Village who were able to climb the mountain flocked to the mountain path.

But no one from the Gu family was seen.

Liu appeared at the village entrance when the bell was rung.

However, when she learned that they were to search the mountain for Gu Xixi, she immediately pretended to be dizzy.

Liu said that her daughter Qingye may have offended the flower goddess in the mountains yesterday, and was frightened by Aunt Zhang at night. After that, she had a high fever and was talking nonsense.

She hadn't slept all night taking care of her daughter, and now she felt unwell all over.

At the time, everyone else was busy going home to prepare for their trip into the mountains, and no one had the time to verify whether what Liu said was true or false.

After returning home, Liu and her family stayed indoors and pretended to be sick.

After going up the mountain, the villagers split into four groups to search.

Aunt Zhang and Lao Qian were in the same group. Aunt Zhang was responsible for guiding Gu Xixi on a route she often took.

A ray of dawn shone into the trap, and Gu Xixi groggily opened her eyes. "Is it daytime?"

Mu Nanzhao's voice came from the other side, sounding much clearer and stronger than last night, "Sleeping until now in the middle of the night, aren't you afraid of being carried away?"

After taking a nap, Gu Xixi felt much more refreshed, and she jumped up to stretch her muscles.

"What's there to be afraid of? Unless they're starving, jackals and tigers aren't stupid enough to jump into a deep pit when they see it."

She looked at Mu Nanzhao, her smile bright in the morning light, "Besides, don't I still have you?"

Just as Mu Nanzhao was about to speak, he suddenly became solemn and silent, listening intently for a moment.

"There are people coming this way, and there are several of them."

Gu Xixi's eyes lit up, "At this time, they can only be coming to find us!"

Mu Nanzhao raised his hand, but before he could say anything to stop her, Gu Xixi had already yelled at the top of her lungs:

"Help! Someone help me!"

"I'm Gu Xixi! Chen Fang and I are here! Help!!"

Mu Nanzhao closed his eyes in despair. Fine, he had never been so humiliated in his life.

Old Qian put down the rope and personally pulled Gu Xixi and Mu Nanzhao up.

"Is everything okay?"

Mu Nanzhao cupped his hands in thanks, "It's alright, thank you all for saving me."

Gu Xixi smiled and said, "We're not injured, we're just a little hungry."

Aunt Zhang came over with red eyes and handed over a soft egg pancake and a jar of water.

She knew the two children had been hungry all day, so she prepared food and water in advance and carried them up the mountain this morning.