Exile at the start? The princess is no ordinary woman.

Gu Nanzhi got up and took the flowers, then went to find something to dry them.

After finishing, she didn't even have time to sit down and rest. Instead, she started preparing dinner, waiting for the chestnuts to cook, peeling them, and stewing them with chicken.

"Xia He, go and take some chestnuts to Sister Wen."

"Yes, miss"

Following Gu Nanzhi's instructions, Xia He took some raw and cooked chestnuts and delivered them to her neighbor Wu Huiwen.

When the people who had been working at the house finished their work, Gu Nanzhi, along with Butler Li, gave each of them a handful of chestnuts.

"Uncle Zhao, these are chestnuts we found on the mountain this afternoon. They taste very good. You can try them. They are all cooked, but you can also eat them raw."

There's no need to keep things from the mountains privately. Everyone knows these things are edible. Whoever comes across them next year can pick them up. They might end up as natural fertilizer on the ground.

"Young Lady Jun, do you think this little fruit is edible?"

Although the village was not wealthy, it was not in dire need of famine either. Therefore, no one would take the initiative to try to see if something they did not recognize was edible. If they were to eat something poisonous, it would be a great loss. As a result, these chestnuts had never been discovered.

"Yes, is this thing really edible? I've seen it in the mountains, but I didn't know it was edible, so I didn't buy it."

"It's edible, everyone should try it. It's very soft and chewy when cooked, and tastes sweeter and crisper when eaten raw..."

Seeing Gu Nanzhi and the others eat, everyone else, with a try-it-out mentality, peeled one and put it in their mouths. And what they found truly opened their eyes to a new world!

"Hmm... they really have a big appetite, and it's indeed soft and chewy."

"It tastes pretty good, delicious, delicious!"

"It's so delicious. Let's go up the mountain later and see if we can find any more and pick some up. This stuff is really good."

"Yes, yes, I didn't know this stuff tasted so good. It's such a waste that nobody wanted it."

"Young Lady Jun, you are truly knowledgeable! If you hadn't brought this back, no one in our village would have known that this thing could be eaten..."

Everyone was smiling, as if they had missed out on this wonderful thing before;

"Uncle Zhao, everyone, you're too kind. We live off the land. These chestnuts are in season now; later on, they'll have fallen to the ground and been eaten by the animals in the mountains. If you come across any in the mountains, feel free to pick some and take them home. They're easy to eat."

Uncle Lai, grab some to take home for your family to try, so they can get to know you...

Gu Nanzhi, accompanied by Steward Li, grabbed a handful of both ripe and raw chestnuts for everyone. They were given something that cost nothing, and no one was allowed to feel bad about wasting them; they could collect more on the mountain the next day.

Furthermore, since these people are all working at home, giving them some benefits will make them work even harder.

"Alright, Miss Jun, then we won't stand on ceremony. We'll take a few back for our families to try, so they can see that this stuff is edible."

"Thank you, Miss Jun."

"You're welcome, you're welcome, thank you for your hard work."

After seeing the workers off, Gu Nanzhi began preparing dinner diligently: one pheasant for soup, and the other for stir-frying.

There was also a rabbit, and with two stir-fried green vegetables, this dinner was simply perfect.

There were two more people on the table with this bowl of rice. They were both men of good eating age, and they were able to finish all the food prepared for them.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The next morning, after a simple breakfast, Gu Nanzhi prepared to lead the group up the mountain. Jun Yanchen stayed at home as usual, while Xia He stayed behind to help prepare tea and other things.

The four men were fully equipped, with baskets and sacks ready, and just as they were about to set off, they saw a familiar horse-drawn carriage approaching their courtyard.

They had no choice but to postpone their departure and wait for the carriage to approach.

"Second Young Master Qi"

Butler Li stepped forward and helped to rein in the horses;

The person driving the carriage was Qi Zeyi's younger brother, Qi Zelin.

Uncle Li

He smiled, then gently slid down from the carriage. Instead of rushing forward to greet them, he turned around, took down a stool, and waited for the people in the carriage to get off.

"Brother, sister-in-law, we've arrived."

As they watched, Qi Zeyi, Song Yining, and Qi Zhijie, a family of three, also stepped down from the carriage.

"Fairy Sister"

It's that adorable little kid again; as soon as he got off the bus, he ran towards Gu Nanzhi.

"Huaiqing, Miss Gu"

"South Branch"

The Qi brothers and Song Yining stepped forward and came to Jun Yanchen and Gu Nanzhi.

"Um"

Jun Yanchen, as always, gave a slight, indifferent nod as a greeting, showing no concern for why they had come.

Gu Nanzhi asked the question with doubt.

"Young Master Qi, Second Young Master Qi, what brings you here?"

Rather than exchanging pleasantries and building rapport with them, she would rather run up the mountain at this moment;

“Huaiqing, Miss Gu, we thought you should have started building houses here, so we came to lend a hand.”

Although their own families were also doing these things, there were many people in their families, and they thought that Jun Yanchen's side had fewer people, so the three of them came over very early in the morning.

Song Yining came over so she could help with some of the chores that women usually do, like cooking;

"Miss Gu, Cang Ling, what's going on here?"

We shouldn't waste their kindness, but we've already hired villagers for the housework, so whether they help out or not doesn't make much difference.

But since we're already here, let's just go up the mountain with them.

“We hired villagers to build our house, thank you for your concern. But since you’re here, why don’t you come up the mountain with us? We were just about to go up to pick chestnuts.”

"Chestnut?"

The three of them looked puzzled.

What is a chestnut?

"It's an edible food. Let's go and find out."

Gu Nanzhi made arrangements directly, "Sister Yining, the mountain roads are difficult to travel, so you should stay at home with the children. Xiahe should also stay."

The Qi brothers didn't hesitate. Since they agreed to go up the mountain together, they would go together and help with other chores in the afternoon.

"Alright, then let's go up the mountain together, Miss Gu."

"Yining, you stay home with Jie'er, we're going up the mountain."

Song Yining was also very curious about the mountain, but knowing that she would hold everyone back if she went, she chose to stay at home.

"Okay, be careful."

Without lingering, the Qi brothers joined the group heading up the mountain. Just then, Wu Huiwen was carrying some vegetables to bring to Gu Nanzhi and the others.

After looking at several people, she didn't scrutinize them much, but instead headed straight for Gu Nanzhi.

"Nanzhi, thank you for the chestnuts you sent yesterday. They were delicious. These are some freshly picked vegetables. I brought some over for you. Please don't mind them."

"Sister Wen, you're too kind. These vegetables, grown in our own garden, are just so fresh and delicious."

She had various kinds of bok choy in her spatial storage, but she couldn't just conjure them out of thin air. So, Gu Nanzhi was very happy to have someone deliver fresh vegetables, and she readily accepted them from her subordinates.

"Xia He, this is a gift from Sister Wen, please accept it."

"Oh, thank you, Madam Wu."

Xia He took the vegetables;