A Farm Girl: Three Acres of Fertile Land Can Be Exchanged for a Country

"Yes, yes, come with me."

The woman wiped her hands with her apron and led the two men through the gate.

From the outside, it looks dark inside, but once you go in, you realize it's not that dark. It's just that the walls are old and dirty, never painted.

The house was a typical residential structure, with two or three tables and seven or eight stools in the main room, all covered in dust.

The woman led them through the tables, chairs, and benches, down a corridor less than three meters long, to a wooden door.

The wooden door wasn't locked; it opened with a gentle push. Inside, there was a bed, a wardrobe, and a set of tables and chairs. Although everything seemed complete, it was all old and worn, covered in a thick layer of dust.

The woman knew her room wasn't very presentable, so she chuckled awkwardly and said, "Ever since we got a car, people don't stay at hotels much anymore. They just come over for a meal. It seems like the last time we had guests was two months ago... Don't be fooled by the thick layer of dust; it's actually quite clean. I'll just get a basin of water and wipe it down."

Wutong didn't complain, because she had no other choice. Instead of being picky, she decided to ask more important questions.

How much does this room cost per day?

"Not expensive, fifty yuan."

Is there any food?

"You can eat with us if you want, it's ten yuan per person per meal, you can eat whatever we eat."

What about bedding and other items?

"I'll prepare."

Wutong glanced back at Shan, who really didn't want to stay in such a room, but had no other choice but to nod.

The place to stay was chosen, and the woman collected the money, introducing herself as Zhao. She said she and her husband used to run this inn together. The inn rarely got business, so to avoid starvation, her husband went to Phoenix City to join the army, receiving a salary and only coming back occasionally. She, with her two children, continued to run the inn, taking whatever business came her way.

When Wutong came in, she didn't see any children. The landlady said they had run out to play. No sooner had she finished speaking than she heard the clattering and laughter of children outside.

The three went outside to take a look and saw that the child was throwing stones at the car, leaving several white marks in the worst places. Fortunately, the car was already in bad shape, so there was no paint damage.

"Boss, are you two looking for death? Stop right now!"

Upon seeing this scene, the proprietress put her hands on her hips and began to curse.

When the children saw the adults arrive, they ran out the door as if in a race, still laughing.

The landlady apologized to them, but Wutong waved her hand to indicate that it was alright and asked her to fetch a basin of water so that everyone could quickly tidy up the room.

After a thorough cleaning, the room finally looked brand new. The landlady brought over two more quilts for them, and after putting them away, Wutong lay down on the bed, too tired to move.

Shan stood by the window and saw the two rascals run in again. He said with a headache, "How annoying."

Wutong patted the bedding beside her.

"Stop looking at this annoying thing. Come over and rest for a bit. Have a proper dinner tonight. We need to figure out a way to get into the city as soon as possible."

Shan obediently lay down, touched the deerskin hat on his head, and asked:

How can we find those people?

Wutong said, "Let's ask the villagers first. Since they've been searching for beautiful women everywhere, they must have come to this village as well."

Shan nodded and yawned.

"Then I'll sleep."

"Ah."

Both of them closed their eyes and soon fell asleep.

The long journey had made them sleep soundly, oblivious to the sounds outside. When they opened their eyes, it was pitch black inside and outside the house.

Wutong woke up first, and in a daze, she thought she was still in the car and reached out to touch the car door.

When he touched the wall next to the bed, he realized that he had found a very dilapidated inn.

She put on her shoes, intending to ask the landlady for a lamp and inquire about dinner time.

Just as they reached the door, Shan woke up, so after she put on her shoes, the two went out together.

The house was very dark, and the villagers were reluctant to light lamps. The moon was mostly blocked by clouds, and the light was very dim.

Only when they walked outside did the red light from Haoshan illuminate their faces somewhat. They went to the landlady's door and knocked three times.

The proprietress came over to open the door, wearing a coat.

"Shopkeeper, do you have a light?"

"Yes, wait a minute."

The proprietress brought over an oil lamp and handed it to them, saying softly, "I thought you wouldn't wake up until tomorrow. There's food left for you on the table, and there's hot water in the kitchen. If you need anything else, just ask me."

Wutong guessed that her child was probably already asleep, so she didn't want to disturb him and took a lamp to the kitchen.

Table Mountain had two bowls upside down, its belly growling with hunger. It opened them with great anticipation, only to be greatly disappointed.

"This is all you have..."

There were only two steamed buns upside down in the bowl, mixed with dark, coarse grains, and they looked like they were moldy.

Wutong picked one up and smelled it; it still smelled fresh, but it was cold.

"Eat up. Conditions in the Central Plains are not good; having this is already quite good."

"I clearly saw her washing rice when we came, and she still charged us ten yuan a meal for that..."

Shan grumbled and pinched the cornbread, breaking off a piece and stuffing it into his mouth.

After eating two steamed buns, my stomach finally stopped rumbling.

The two went to the kitchen to fetch hot water, took separate showers, and while emptying the water, they also washed their clothes and hung them on a bamboo pole in the yard. Back on the bed, neither sleepy nor with anything to do, they sat in silence, looking at each other.

Shan moved his lips, trying to make conversation.

What time do we get up tomorrow?

"Get up as soon as you wake up."

Did you read that letter?

"A letter..." Wutong's mind jolted, and she slapped her forehead. "Oh no! A letter!"

Washing clothes in the dark is no good. She was so focused on washing and hanging them up that she didn't notice there was a letter inside the clothes.

Wutong hurriedly ran out and pulled the letter out of her wet clothes. She found that it was still firm and hadn't turned into a ball. So she happily ran back, opened it by the oil lamp, and was dumbfounded when she saw it.

The paper itself was fine, but the ink on it had become a blotchy mess, making it impossible to read the words.

Shan raised his eyes and asked, "What do we do now?"

Wutong held the letter without speaking, her eyes filled with frustration.

She comforted him, saying, "Maybe it will be fine once it dries. Why don't we put the letter by the lamp to dry and read it after dawn?"

Wutong remained silent, so Shan simply took the letter himself and placed it on the edge of the table. He then put the oil lamp under the table so that its rising heat would be directed directly at the letter.

After doing all this, she patted Wutong on the shoulder.

"Sister Wutong, go to sleep."

Will a smudged letter become legible once it dries? Impossible.

Wutong knew she was trying to comfort him, so he lay silently on the bed, looking at the paper with his face turned to the side.

The letter paper was soaked through and was even dripping water.

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