After sorting through the original host’s memories, Liang Qiaoqiao quickly came to a conclusion.
Chen Laoda’s family wasn’t just ordinarily poor.
Since the death of Chen Laoda, the main breadwinner, Chen Pozi and the original host had been living under the tyranny of Chen Laoer’s family.
The money Chen Ziming sent back every month would be snatched away, leaving the mother and daughter to barely scrape by on meager work points.
The commotion at the ancestral hall allowed Liang Qiaoqiao to leverage the villagers’ support to deal with the wrongdoers, and she managed to gain some benefits.
First, all the items stolen by Chen Laoer’s family were returned.
However, the “treasures” in the eyes of rural folk weren’t actually worth much—at least, Liang Qiaoqiao didn’t think much of them.
The savings Chen Pozi had handed over to the original host before her death weren’t substantial either.
After all, with the family being so impoverished, how much could they possibly have saved?
The survivor benefits issued by the county to Chen Ziming were snatched by Chen Laoer’s family before they could even warm their hands.
To reclaim that money, they would have to wait until the police finished investigating the case.
So, all the assets currently left to Liang Qiaoqiao were this dilapidated earthen house and those unsellable belongings.
Wooden tables and chairs missing legs, along with simple beds made of planks—even the people of Wutong Village would probably look down on them, right?
So poor that even a mouse would shed a tear at the sight?
Liang Qiaoqiao sighed silently once more.
After handling Chen Pozi’s funeral, the original host had about seven yuan, eight mao, and five fen left.
The original host had been clever enough to hide the money in the hollow of the old persimmon tree in the yard beforehand.
Fortunately, it escaped being looted by Chen Laoer’s family.
But with such a small amount, Liang Qiaoqiao couldn’t muster the energy to retrieve it, so she decided to leave it untouched for now.
Her main focus was to inventory the large envelope that Battalion Commander Mu had secretly slipped to her when no one was looking.
“This is the survivor benefits and condolences from the military for Comrade Chen Ziming’s family. It’s not much, but it’s a small token of the army’s regard,” said the strikingly handsome Battalion Commander Mu, worry evident in his voice as he cautioned her, “Comrade Liang Qiaoqiao, hide it quickly and make sure no outsiders find out.”
The only remaining young girl in Chen Laoda’s family looked frail and helpless, a pitiful sight.
Having been robbed twice in just a few days, who knew if she could protect these assets?
Battalion Commander Mu Yang was deeply concerned.
If the military base weren’t so far away, he would have assigned people to keep an eye on her regularly.
But for now, all he could do was ask Old Village Chief to look after her before he left.
Liang Qiaoqiao didn’t pretend to refuse.
She accepted the large envelope with immense gratitude: “Thank you for the army’s concern, and thank you, Battalion Commander Mu…”
What a kind soul.
Knowing she was short on money, he had come to offer support.
Liang Qiaoqiao wasn’t foolish enough to turn away others’ goodwill.
The original host’s fiancé and adoptive brother had died a martyr for the country.
As the sole surviving family member of a martyr, wasn’t it only right for her to accept the army’s condolences and survivor benefits?
The county had been stingy, offering only a hundred yuan in survivor benefits, which Chen Laoer’s family had stolen.
But the army was different.
Such a thick envelope clearly contained a considerable amount.
Liang Qiaoqiao was no fool; she knew better than to flaunt her wealth.
After experiencing the Chen Laoer family’s plundering of the ancestral hall, her understanding of human nature had been elevated to a new level.
She now clearly understood that no one was more reliable than herself.
So the moment she got hold of the large envelope, she immediately hid it secretly in the one-square-meter Treasure Appraisal Space, making sure no one saw her.
That shabby, dark, and cramped space was only useful for this much.
Thinking about the letter in the Space, Liang Qiaoqiao endured the entire day.
Finally reaching this moment, she could hardly wait any longer.
She pulled out the bulging envelope.
As soon as she opened it, she saw it was filled with quite a few items.
Liang Qiaoqiao flopped directly onto the bed.
Good heavens, the quantity was impressive.
There were banknotes of various sizes, colorful vouchers, and industrial coupons.
It was enough to make anyone’s heart leap with joy.
Wasn’t this much more substantial than what the original owner had hidden away?
Liang Qiaoqiao grinned from ear to ear, spat on her fingertips, and immediately started counting.
The banknotes were the most numerous and fragmented.
There were twenty ten-yuan bills.
Ten five-yuan bills, eight one-yuan bills, and three two-yuan bills.
Additionally, there were assorted smaller notes and coins amounting to roughly two or three yuan.
In total, it added up to over three hundred yuan.
“Hehe… not bad, not bad!” Liang Qiaoqiao cheerfully weighed the stack of banknotes in her hand, smiling with satisfaction.
The military was generous—the money they gave was three times what the county provided, and they didn’t skimp on the coupons either.
Among them were ten jin of grain coupons, one jin of meat coupons, as well as fabric coupons, oil coupons, industrial coupons…
Enough for Liang Qiaoqiao to spend on her own for a long time.
As she counted, Liang Qiaoqiao couldn’t help but fantasize: with this money and these coupons, she shouldn’t have to worry about going hungry for quite some time.
After finishing the count, Liang Qiaoqiao found two of the original owner’s hair ties, bundled the money and coupons separately, and then casually stored them back in the Treasure Appraisal Space.
Having witnessed the Chen Laoer family’s actions, she felt that nowhere was safer for these items than her personal Space.
It was just a pity that the shabby Space was a bit too small—if only it could be a little larger.
A “ding” sound, like an electronic tone, interrupted Liang Qiaoqiao’s thoughts.
A flash of light appeared before her eyes, and a line of text immediately occupied her vision.
[Ding, detected several 1970s banknotes and coupons stored in the Space. Activate the Appraisal Function?]
Liang Qiaoqiao focused her gaze on the two icons representing “Yes” and “No,” then casually tapped “Yes” in the air.
In the next second, a stream of light resembling a QR code scanner swept across, and she clearly saw new text appear.
[First appraisal completed. Total value of 1970s coupons is approximately 500 yuan. Treasure value is average. 10 points awarded.]
Liang Qiaoqiao: …So that’s how this Appraisal Function works?
You even get points for appraising? Sounds pretty good.
But what are these points for?
Though unclear, it still seemed impressive.
Liang Qiaoqiao couldn’t resist reaching out and tapping the question mark in the upper left corner of the light screen.
Sure enough, a large block of explanatory text was hidden inside.
Liang Qiaoqiao felt a bit dizzy looking at the electronic text.
She had to force herself to skim through it roughly.
She discovered that although this Treasure Appraisal Space wasn’t as chatty or fond of assigning tasks as other transmigration Cheats, this question mark could indeed provide simple answers to her doubts.
Even if the answer wasn’t comprehensive, it was enough for her to accept.
Liang Qiaoqiao nodded: This is just fine.
She had never been one to enjoy excessive talking.
Even in her previous life, she rarely spoke unless necessary.
Therefore, she absolutely didn’t want a chatterbox Cheat.
One like this broken stone suited her perfectly.
Liang Qiaoqiao scrolled directly to the bottom, focusing on the information in the points column.
[Current Points: 10. 90 points needed for next upgrade.]