Female-dominated society: Striving for the position of powerful minister, doting on Xiao Yunqing

Mu Yan and her group walked along the road into the depths of the woods. At first, everything seemed normal, but the further they went, the stranger it seemed.

The forest is sometimes quiet, sometimes noisy.

When it's quiet, you can clearly hear the sound of the wind rustling through the leaves; when it gets noisy, it's as if all the birds in the forest are chirping and chattering together, which is very noisy.

Sometimes it would let out a few mournful cries, so terrifying that they would give you goosebumps.

The light in the woods was always flickering, with only a few beams of light visible coming through the gaps in the trees, giving it a somewhat Tyndall effect-like appearance at first glance.

However, the scene was far from beautiful; the further you went in, the darker it became. If it were nighttime, it would be pitch black.

Mu Yan quickened her pace, still holding Mu Yunqing's hand tightly with her left, while Xiao Ran skipped and hopped ahead of them.

It was almost dusk, and the sun would soon set, at which point we really wouldn't be able to see anything. We needed to find a place to rest quickly, as we were in the deep mountains and forests and there was no guarantee that wild animals wouldn't appear.

"Ayan, look!" Xiao Ran said, pointing to a tree with a red ribbon tied to it on the left front, her eyes still showing a hint of fear.

Mu Yan followed her gaze and saw a tree with a red ribbon tied to it.

She didn't find it strange at first, but thinking back, she realized she had seen several of the same trees along the way.

Furthermore, these ribbons are tied in a very distinctive way, all uniformly tied to the second trunk of each tree, with another tree every few meters, which seems to be done by human hands.

But who would do something so pointless in this deep mountain forest? Mu Yan fell into thought.

“I’ve seen several of the same trees already, Ayan… could there really be ghosts here…” Xiao Ran said as she quickly ran to Mu Yan’s side.

To be honest, she was still a little scared. In the past, when watching horror movies, she would cover her eyes as soon as a ghost appeared, and she felt scared just by listening to the background music.

Waaaaah, please don't let me run into her! She absolutely hates ghosts.

"These are all man-made, just to protect the trees, don't be afraid," Mu Yan said in a scientific manner, although she was just talking nonsense.

“If you’re really scared, then don’t look at them. Your Highness, it’s getting late, we need to find a place to rest first.” Mu Yan said as she walked forward.

"Hmm, okay, there shouldn't be any ghosts, right?"

Well, she also hoped there were no ghosts. Xiao Ran thought to herself and happily followed Mu Yan.

The three continued walking forward until they came to a large forest ahead, at which point they stopped.

It's really bizarre. Mu Yan wanted to curse the forest's ancestors for eighteen generations. They're really taking advantage of us. The more we give them face, the more shameless they become.

This forest stretches on and on. Even Sun Wukong knows to rest when he urinates, but this guy has absolutely no idea what the word "quiet" means!

Besides, she went there for disaster relief, not for tourism. Who is this green and dark forest for?

If this happened during the COVID-19 pandemic in the 20th century, it would have been a blatant obstruction of rescue efforts, and the government would have burned it down.

Even if it were to catch fire, the firefighters probably wouldn't want to bother with this rotten forest.

Tsk, Mu Yan was getting annoyed by what she was thinking. She scratched her head and had no choice but to keep thinking.

Well, what can you do? She got the lead role, so she's destined to save the world.

"Look, do you see that? Fog is rising in that forest," Mu Yan said, pointing to the forest in front of her.

"It's still daytime, how come it's foggy?"

Xiao Ran is really going to die on the spot. Who would be so terribly wronged just for going out to do something? I need help urgently.

Shouldn't she have transmigrated into a palace drama? Why is it so mysterious?

Waaaaah, I'm about to break down! She suddenly realized that scheming and backstabbing are actually pretty good, and love-hate relationships are nice too. Everything is good, at least she doesn't have to be startled every few steps like this.

“I don’t know why the fog is rising in the forest, but it’s absolutely not safe to go in now,” Mu Yan said with certainty.

At this moment, Mu Yunqing, who had remained silent, nodded approvingly at her.

There's clearly something wrong with this fog.

"Where should we go? It's getting dark."

Xiao Ran was anxious, she was really anxious. Her mind was filled with the thought, "The gates of hell open at 12 o'clock, the gates of hell open at 12 o'clock." So she had to fall asleep before 12 o'clock.

"Let's go to the right and find a place to rest first," Mu Yan said, walking to the right.

She had already surveyed the area; the trees were relatively sparse, so there shouldn't be any large wild animals around. Furthermore, she could faintly hear the sound of flowing water, so there should be a river nearby.

"Ayan, how are we going to sleep tonight? Are we going to sleep on the floor?"

Xiao Ran suddenly imagined the scene: the three of them lying on the ground, with the sky as their blanket and the ground as their bed, the two of them huddling together for warmth, while she was left feeling cold.

Ugh! This world is so unfair to single people! Suddenly, she felt that shipping couples wasn't so great anymore, and that they should just break up!

"Let's find a place first, and then see what we can use."

Mu Yan said, pushing aside the branches beside her and glancing at Mu Yunqing, "Let's go over first."

"Okay." Mu Yunqing responded softly and walked forward.

"Princess, come here quickly!" Mu Yan beckoned to Xiao Ran.

"Coming!" Xiao Ran clumsily ran towards Mu Yan.

"Be careful."

"Hehe ? ///▽/// ?."

The three of them walked into the woods together and found a place to rest before sunset.

Just as Mu Yan had thought, there was indeed a river in front of her.

Muyan chose a good spot; it was spacious, well-lit, and you could see the blue sky just by looking up.

Behind them was a grove of trees, and in front of them flowed a river, its current gentle enough not to disturb their rest at night. Scattered bushes surrounded them, making it the best spot they had visited that day.

"Ayan, you're amazing! We're finally free from living in darkness!"

Xiao Ran was overjoyed. She had been wondering how to get through this "real" dark night, but now she could see the sky. Even if there were no stars, there would be a moon, so it definitely wouldn't be pitch black.

"Judging from the weather, it shouldn't rain. Let's go gather some firewood to start a fire," Mu Yan said, taking a knife out of her bundle.

"Great! This is a good opportunity to heat up the meat buns!"

Hehe, I'm starving after walking all day, I need to start a fire quickly to quench my hunger.

So the three of them went into the woods. Xiao Ran and Mu Yunqing were in charge of gathering firewood and starting a fire, while Mu Yan was in charge of setting up a shelter. The three of them went their separate ways.

Mu Yan cut off several tree branches and carried them back to the campsite.

After these few days of walking practice, her physical strength is getting better and better. Although her physical strength is far less than before, at least she can lift things with her hands and carry things on her shoulders.

When she returned to the campsite, Mu Yunqing was starting a fire. You have to admit, he was quite skilled at it, and soon the wood he was drilling started to smoke.

Mu Yan stuck a tree branch into the soil to make a triangular support, then covered it with leaves, thus creating a simple shelter. Finally, she also laid a layer of leaves on the ground to reduce moisture and make it more comfortable to sleep on.

"Ayan, come quick! The steamed buns are ready!" Xiao Ran waved to Chao Muyan.

"Okay." Mu Yan said, putting the knife back into her bundle and then walking towards the campfire.

"Ayan, this is yours!" Xiao Ran handed a piece of steamed bun to Mu Yan.

"Okay, thank you, Princess!"

Mu Yan took the steamed bun and sat down next to Mu Yunqing. She took the opportunity to glance at Mu Yunqing and thought, "Why does he seem a little unhappy?"

Perhaps noticing Mu Yan's gaze, he buried his head between his knees and hugged his legs tightly with both hands.

Is he disliking her? Or what? Mu Yan was a little at a loss. To her, Mu Yunqing's actions meant he was angry, but she had just been holding his hand today...

Oh no, she forgot for a moment that you shouldn't hold a boy's hand, but she had been holding his hand all day.

Last time, he only held her hand twice before his face turned sour, and this time he didn't even bother to look at her.

"Mu Yunqing?"

The person beside her kept their head down and ignored her.

"Mu Yunqing?"

...That's it, now I don't even want to talk to her anymore.

Xiao Ran, who was watching from the side, was really engrossed. Hehehe, what did she say today? Speak of the devil and he appears! Oh my, what an incredibly cute jinx she is, everything she says comes true.

Oh ho ho, the young couple is arguing.

"Mu Yunqing? Are you angry?" Mu Yan said, reaching out to touch his head.

Are you really angry?

Are you sure you're not going to talk to me?

"Mu Yunqing?"

Mu Yan asked him in a very gentle tone, but the person in front of her didn't even raise his head.

Very good, man! You've successfully caught my attention!

Mu Yan put the steamed bun aside, leaned close to Mu Yunqing's ear and whispered, "If you mind, I won't hold your hand anymore..."

Mu Yunqing felt the warm breath from Mu Yan's mouth, and his old face suddenly turned red. He quickly turned his face away.

His mind was buzzing, filled with Mu Yan's words, "I will never hold your hand again."

"..."

Mu Yan was completely stunned. [Non-still image]

Was she being rejected? Surely not? Mu Yan thought, took a breath and sniffed. She didn't have bad breath, so why was she reacting so strongly?

Xiao Ran couldn't hold it in any longer, and she laughed so loudly that both of them could hear it clearly.

People in ancient times were so conservative when it came to dating. And that aloof male god was too shy. Ah Yan was the same; her technique was terrible. She should have just gone up and kissed him.

Sigh, her thinking is still not advanced enough! Xiao Ran thought about her friends from the 20th century, who changed boyfriends and girlfriends every three to five days, and were always staying in hotels or going to bars.

Look at the two people in front of me again...

Ugh, my head hurts, I've never had a headache like this before.

While everyone else is speeding along the highway, these two are still here doing Makka Pakka.

This really is the bus to kindergarten.

"Ahem, ... Um, Ah Yan, the moon is really beautiful tonight!"

Xiao Ran realized her rudeness and tried to change the subject to ease the awkwardness, but when she looked up...

……

Giao!!! Where's her moon?!

Why hide in the clouds!

That's it, now it's even more awkward.

"Hehe, Yan, aren't these steamed buns especially delicious?" Xiao Ran said with a smile.

Mu Yan ignored her with a cold face. Whoever wants to be friends with this princess can have her. This was the first time in her life she'd been mocked, and laughed so loudly, while still trying to argue. Unforgivable!

"Wow, you think it's delicious too? I think so too."

Xiao Ran was speaking to Mu Yan, but her eyes were looking elsewhere.

Mu Yan: "..."

"What? You want me to go to sleep? But it's still early!"

Her tone and that surprised expression deserve an Oscar.

Mu Yan: "..."

"They'll kill me if I don't sleep! Ah! That's terrifying! Don't worry, I'm going to sleep right now, I'll definitely sleep well!"