As they passed a rabbit burrow, Lin Ranran asked Ji Junxiao to put her down.
“Honey, I think there’s a rabbit trap over there. Go take a look. There might be wild rabbits inside.”
Ji Junxiao went over to check and, sure enough, found two wild rabbits.
Lin Ranran was delighted.
“Wonderful! We can raise them.”
Ji Junxiao rubbed her head affectionately.
“As long as you like them.”
Lin Ranran took a roasted sweet potato out of her hidden space.
“I brought a few sweet potatoes up the mountain earlier, but after everything Xia Zhiyuan pulled, I completely forgot about them. You must be hungry. Eat one to fill your stomach first.”
Ji Junxiao really was hungry.
He peeled the sweet potato and held it to her mouth.
“Wife, you eat first.”
“I already had dinner.”
She hadn’t, but while climbing the mountain, she had been so hungry that she’d secretly eaten some fruit and several roasted sweet potatoes from her hidden space.
“Just one bite.”
Lin Ranran took a bite.
Only then did Ji Junxiao happily finish the rest.
She then took out a water flask from her hidden space.
“I don’t know why, but the water you prepare always tastes sweeter. After drinking it, all my exhaustion disappears.”
Naturally.
Whether it was truly a spiritual spring or not, the stream water in her hidden space was far better than ordinary water.
“Then I’ll fill it for you every day.”
“Thank you, Wife.”
The two continued down the mountain.
Passing a spot where pheasants often searched for food, Lin Ranran had Ji Junxiao check another trap.
Inside were two wild pheasants.
“Listening to my wife really does mean there’s always meat to eat. Tonight’s harvest is amazing. It’s all thanks to you,” Ji Junxiao said happily.
He felt that Lin Ranran was his lucky star, always bringing him pleasant surprises.
“Of course. If you ever stop listening to your wife, you’ll be kneeling on durians.”
“That’ll never happen!”
Ji Junxiao continued carrying her down the mountain while she held the pheasants and rabbits in both hands, happily singing:
I smile with pride,
I smile with delight.
Laughing at the world while staying forever young.
I smile with pride,
I smile with delight.
Wishing for a carefree life.
I smile with pride,
I smile with delight.
Raising my cup and singing for today.
I smile with pride,
I smile with delight.
Wishing for a carefree life.
Ji Junxiao listened in amazement.
“Wife, that sounds wonderful. That’s not the full song, is it?”
Only then did Lin Ranran realize she’d become so excited that she’d unconsciously started singing.
She blinked mischievously.
“Want to hear the whole thing?”
“Mhm.”
“Then praise me first.”
“You’re my lucky star,” Ji Junxiao replied without hesitation.
Lin Ranran pouted inwardly.
That’s it?
She’d been expecting something like ‘My wife is so beautiful.’
As expected, she shouldn’t expect too much from a straight man.
Still, she couldn’t refuse his eager expression.
Clearing her throat, she sang the complete song.
Her voice flowed through the quiet mountain forest like a gentle stream.
When she finished, Ji Junxiao praised her without holding back.
“That was incredible. Your voice is heavenly.”
“Of course. If I started singing publicly, Xia Zhiyuan wouldn’t stand a chance.”
Lin Ranran couldn’t have been happier.
Before transmigrating into the novel, she’d been an ordinary office worker at a Fortune 500 company.
During work she’d secretly read novels whenever she could.
After work she’d put on makeup and livestream herself singing.
Her livestream had been surprisingly popular, attracting millions of followers.
None of her coworkers had ever imagined that the singer they spent money tipping online was actually the quiet office employee sitting beside them every day.
“Of course she can’t compare. She isn’t even worth one of your fingers. But from now on, just sing for me in private.”
Ji Junxiao’s words were possessive—and just a little jealous.
“What? Afraid I’ll go sing mountain songs?”
“Mhm. I don’t like other men looking at you.”
Oh? So my husband is jealous.
Lin Ranran couldn’t help laughing.
“All right. I promise.”
“By the way, Wife, I’ve never heard that song before. Did you write it yourself?” Ji Junxiao asked curiously.
Lin Ranran laughed inwardly.
She certainly wasn’t that talented.
Still, she smiled and nodded.
“Of course. Isn’t your wife amazing?”
“You are.”
“Do you admire your wife?”
“I do.”
“Then here’s your reward.”
Before he could react, Lin Ranran leaned over and kissed him lightly on the cheek.
Instantly, Ji Junxiao felt his blood boil.
His wife’s kisses really were lethal.
If she hadn’t been pregnant, he would’ve wanted to make love to her right there in the wilderness.
At the foot of the mountain, Ji Junyong was anxiously looking around.
The moment he spotted a flashlight approaching, he hurried over.
Sure enough, it was his older brother and sister-in-law.
“Big Brother! Sister-in-law! You’re finally back. I was so worried.”
Lin Ranran handed him what she was carrying.
Ji Junyong’s eyes lit up.
“I can’t believe you two were up there this long because you actually found something!”
Earlier, he’d been worried sick, even thinking about heading back up the mountain to look for them.
“Of course. From now on, we’ll have meat with every meal,” Lin Ranran declared confidently.
Ji Junxiao’s expression turned serious.
“How’s… that person?”
A fierce look flashed across Ji Junyong’s face.
“She felt guilty and deliberately stayed at the back of the group. She’s already fallen into the trap I prepared. She cried so loudly everyone thought it was a ghost. They all hurried home instead.”
Ji Junxiao said coldly,
“Serves her right. Let her stay in the mountains overnight. If she doesn’t learn a lesson this time, she’ll never change.”
Ji Junyong gritted his teeth.
“Exactly. I won’t feel satisfied unless she’s bedridden for a few months.”
Lin Ranran pretended to scold them.
“I never expected you two brothers to be so mean.”
Scratching his head, Ji Junyong explained,
“Sister-in-law, we’re not bad people. She’s the one who wanted to hurt someone first. Her injuries shouldn’t be too serious, so don’t worry.”
Ji Junxiao added,
“We’ve let her off again and again, but she never learns. She forced our hand. Ranran, don’t tell Dad about this.”
“It’s a secret between the three of us. When dealing with bad people, you can’t be soft-hearted. Otherwise, you’ll be the one who suffers.”
As she spoke, Lin Ranran handed Ji Junyong a roasted sweet potato.
“Second Brother, you must be hungry. Eat this first.”
“I really am. Thank you, Sister-in-law.”
He accepted it gratefully.
“Later tonight, have Yang Daniu bring her back. If a wild boar really kills her, we’d become responsible. She may deserve it, but we don’t want anyone to die because of this,” Lin Ranran said.
Ji Junyong sighed.
“Sister-in-law is too kind.”
“I just don’t want your hands stained with dirty blood. Xia Zhiyuan isn’t worth it.”
Her eyes were filled with disdain.
When they returned to the educated youth compound, Ji Junshan had just arrived as well.
The whole village was celebrating.
They had successfully hunted two wild boars.
The meat was divided according to the number of people in each household.
Everyone had gone so long without meat that simply looking at the raw pork made them drool.
Since the Ji family had contributed the most, they received twenty catties of pork.
The family gathered around happily, smiling from ear to ear.
“Sister-in-law, I earned one hundred yuan selling the bamboo products today, and another one hundred fifty from the embroidered shoes. After spending fifty on supplies, we still have two hundred left.”
Ji Junshan handed the money to Lin Ranran before enthusiastically reporting his market research.
“Right now, Pearl Yellow corn sells especially well in the city.”
Lin Ranran nodded knowingly.
That was exactly why she’d asked him to buy the seeds earlier.
“Bama fragrant pigs are also very popular. If we could encourage the villagers to raise them and establish sales channels, the whole village could become prosperous.”
Ji Junshan’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
Lin Ranran nodded approvingly.
“Third Brother really does have a good head for business. In just one day, you identified the two most profitable industries. Tell us a few more.”
Ji Junshan eagerly listed several other industries with strong potential.
Lin Ranran encouraged everyone to listen carefully so they could discuss them together.
After a long discussion, she realized that aside from Ji Junxiao and Ji Junshan, the others’ analyses lacked depth.
After all, business required vision and talent—not everyone possessed those qualities.
Still, she believed that if her husband were properly guided, his future achievements would surpass even Ji Junshan’s.
Finally, Lin Ranran summarized.
“Combining everyone’s ideas, if we want to lead the villagers toward prosperity, bamboo crafts and embroidery alone aren’t enough. We have to develop Pearl Yellow corn and Bama fragrant pig farming. Let’s focus on these two industries first. Think about them for the next few days, and then everyone hand me a proposal.”
After thinking for a while, Ji Junxiao said,
“Unless our family buys the pigs and lets the production team raise them for free, the team probably won’t be willing to take the risk. The investment is simply too high.”
Ji Junyong frowned.
“We’ll also have to master both the farming and breeding techniques.”
Lin Ranran smiled confidently.
“Don’t worry about that. The books I bought include cultivation and livestock-raising methods. We’ll study them together.”
Everyone’s eyes lit up.
Just how many more surprises was their sister-in-law hiding?
Ji Junyao asked curiously,
“Sister-in-law, exactly how many books did you buy? Every time we turn around, you pull out another one as if by magic.”
Lin Ranran smiled mysteriously.
“Guess.”
Ji Junzhan joked,
“Sister-in-law, if you suddenly pulled the sun out of the sky, I’d believe it.”
Mother Ji beamed proudly.
“Of course. Your sister-in-law is incredibly capable. All of you should learn from her.”
Father Ji added,
“Ranran is both intelligent and far-sighted. I’ll go ask Team Leader Yang what he thinks later.”
Just as everyone was enthusiastically discussing their plans, someone knocked on the door.
Chen Jing stood outside looking anxious.
“Hello… Did any of you see Xia tonight when you came down the mountain?”
The moment they heard Xia Zhiyuan’s name, every member of the Ji family frowned.
Mother Ji especially looked disgusted.
She assumed Xia Zhiyuan was once again trying to make her presence known.
Too embarrassed to come herself, she’d sent someone else to ask instead.
Father Ji, however, answered fairly.
“We did. That girl actually contributed tonight by helping us come up with hunting strategies. I never expected someone so young to know anything about hunting.”
In his eyes, right was right and wrong was wrong.
Even though Xia Zhiyuan had previously spread rumors about the Ji family, she had indeed contributed during tonight’s hunt.
Chen Jing became even more anxious.
“But she still hasn’t come back.”
Ji Junzhan casually replied,
“I think she was walking behind everyone else.”
Ji Junyong’s eyes suddenly brightened with an idea.
“She’s probably too happy after getting all the attention tonight. Maybe she’s out on a date with Daniu. The two of them have been singing mountain songs together these past few days—maybe they fell for each other. If she still hasn’t returned later, just go ask Daniu.”
Lin Ranran silently gave Ji Junyong a thumbs-up.
His acting skills are incredible.
Poor Yang Daniu had somehow become the scapegoat.
Hearing that, Chen Jing relaxed slightly.
“That’s good. Sorry for bothering you.”
After Chen Jing left, Mother Ji finally vented her frustration.
“I don’t like Xia Zhiyuan. She’s always trying to make herself noticed around our family. If any of you start associating with her, then you’re making yourselves my enemies.”
Everyone immediately declared that they would never have anything to do with Xia Zhiyuan again.
But by the middle of the night, Xia Zhiyuan still hadn’t returned.
Chen Jing was frantic.
Left with no choice, she woke several of the female educated youths.
After a full day’s labor, everyone had been sleeping soundly and was irritated at being awakened.
But when they heard Xia Zhiyuan hadn’t come back all night, their sleepiness vanished as they began speculating.
“Could Xia have fallen for Brother Daniu after all those mountain songs and ended up spending the night with him?”
“Exactly. Chen, aren’t you making too big a fuss? If we go looking for them now, what if we ruin their romantic moment?”
Chen Jing was nearly in tears.
“Xia would never fall for Brother Daniu. I’m worried she’s still trapped on the mountain. Let’s at least ask him first.”
The group hurriedly got dressed and knocked on Daniu’s door.
When Daniu learned Xia Zhiyuan hadn’t returned, he panicked.
He immediately woke several young men, and together they headed up the mountain carrying torches.
At that moment, Xia Zhiyuan was trapped inside a small pit.
Her leg was broken.
The agonizing pain nearly made her lose consciousness.
At first, she screamed herself hoarse, crying desperately for help.
But no one came.
She had clearly seen Ji Junyong pass by.
No matter how loudly she shouted, he never looked back.
Eventually, she became too exhausted to keep screaming.
Afraid her cries might attract wild boars, she could only sob quietly while praying that someone would find her.
The mountain forest at night was terrifying.
Animal cries echoed from every direction.
Xia Zhiyuan was so frightened that she felt her heart would leap out of her chest.
After what seemed like an eternity, she finally summoned enough willpower to crawl out of the pit.
But her broken leg couldn’t support her weight.
She could only drag herself across the ground.
The mountain was covered with thorny bushes.
After crawling only a short distance, her palms were shredded, covered in bloody puncture wounds.
The unbearable pain robbed her of the courage to continue.
Leaning against a large tree, she’d doze off from exhaustion, only to wake instantly whenever terrifying images filled her mind.
Terrified that wild boars or other beasts might suddenly appear, she remained tense every second, never daring to relax.
Finally, sometime after midnight, Yang Daniu and the others found her.
Her face was deathly pale.
Her eyes were vacant, almost lifeless.
Everyone was shocked by her condition.
Yang Daniu quickly carried her on his back and hurried down the mountain.
Fortunately, Doctor Zhu happened to be staying at the educated youth compound that night.
After Xia Zhiyuan was brought back, Doctor Zhu was awakened as well.
The Ji family was also disturbed by the commotion.
Seeing Xia Zhiyuan’s injuries, Father Ji stared in shock.
He couldn’t understand how the girl had ended up in such a state.
Hadn’t everyone agreed to come down the mountain together?