Huh? So this thing can actually level up?
Liang Qiaoqiao habitually scratched her chin.
When the broken Space first activated, it was in its initial state.
If it leveled up once, it should reach Level 1, right?
So, those points given earlier were meant for upgrading?
The first upgrade requires 100 points? That doesn’t seem too bad.
What Liang Qiaoqiao was more curious about was, what changes would occur in the Space after upgrading?
The newly activated Treasure Appraisal Space was only at its initial level, with a usable area of just 1 square meter.
If it leveled up, would the area increase?
Her demands weren’t high—at least let her store more stuff inside, so it’d be more convenient when going out someday…
Lost in thought, Liang Qiaoqiao couldn’t help but feel a surge of anticipation.
As for the points needed for upgrading? They didn’t seem too hard to obtain at the moment.
Hadn’t she just received dozens of points earlier without even trying?
Anyone who’d played video games in the modern era would be familiar with this kind of leveling mechanics.
Confident and assured, Liang Qiaoqiao wasn’t worried at all.
Just 100 points—if she put in a little effort, she could level up in no time, right?
Liang Qiaoqiao stood up, opened the door, and walked out.
The dilapidated farmyard was quiet, as if she were the only person left in the world.
In the bleak winter, a cold wind howled through the yard, occasionally whipping up a leaf or two or some withered grass, only to drop them back down.
Liang Qiaoqiao walked straight to the bare old persimmon tree in the yard and activated the Space’s Appraisal Function without hesitation.
Hadn’t the original owner hidden money in a hollow of this persimmon tree?
This was a perfect opportunity to test how many points the original owner’s legacy was worth.
However, the envelope from the military contained vouchers totaling 500 yuan.
And it was only appraised as “average value.”
Most likely, the original owner’s meager stash wouldn’t be worth much either.
As the scanning process started, lines of golden text instantly appeared in Liang Qiaoqiao’s mind.
[Ding! 2nd Appraisal: Discovered one 20-year-old persimmon tree, a small amount of era-specific vouchers, and one metal box. Total points gained: 25.]
Liang Qiaoqiao couldn’t help but gasp in surprise.
A 20-year-old persimmon tree?
So, in the eyes of this broken Space, even this persimmon tree counted as a treasure?
What an unexpected delight.
Liang Qiaoqiao instantly grasped something.
If the persimmon tree could be exchanged for points, wouldn’t the same logic apply to other plants?
She decided to test this outside later.
As for the “small amount of era-specific vouchers” mentioned in the appraisal, they were probably the ones hidden by the original owner.
But where did that metal box come from?
Liang Qiaoqiao felt a bit puzzled.
A glow flickered in her mind as a new line of text appeared.
[Treasure Collecting available once. Proceed with Treasure Collecting?]
After a moment’s thought, Liang Qiaoqiao finally tapped the “Yes” icon.
[Ding, 1st Treasure Collecting: Acquired one 20-year-old persimmon tree, a small amount of era-specific vouchers, and one metal box. All items stored in the Treasure Appraisal Space. Total points gained: 35.]
Liang Qiaoqiao blinked, staring blankly at the huge, freshly dug pit that had appeared out of nowhere in the yard.
Inside the pit, the persimmon tree that should have been growing there was now bundled up.
She stuffed everything into her shabby one-square-meter Space, packing it completely full.
Liang Qiaoqiao: …Well, this is hard to judge.
However, she was quite surprised that the Treasure Collecting points were actually more than the Appraisal points.
No wonder the daily Treasure Collection Attempts were so much fewer than the Appraisal Attempts—the value for effort was different after all.
Her face full of curiosity, Liang Qiaoqiao opened the points panel.
Seeing that her accumulated points had already reached 70, she realized she only needed 30 more to level up.
Liang Qiaoqiao: O(∩_∩)O Haha~ So fast!
She never expected earning points with this thing to be so easy!
Instantly, Liang Qiaoqiao felt full of confidence about leveling up her shabby Space.
But for now, she was more interested in that metal box. The points could wait a little longer.
Based on the usual tropes of time-travel novels, boxes buried underground almost always contained valuable treasures.
Things like gold and silver jewelry, antiques, paintings, and such—items that could be auctioned for a fortune later on.
Just thinking about it made Liang Qiaoqiao excited and expectant: “Is it finally my turn to get rich?”
Heavens knew how long she had waited for this day?
Two whole lifetimes!
Leaving the large pit in the yard behind, Liang Qiaoqiao turned and ran back into the house.
Hurriedly closing the door, she couldn’t wait to immediately examine the metal box hanging from the persimmon tree branch inside her Space.
Although the Space unlocked from that shabby stone was small, it was quite user-friendly.
Anything stored inside would fly out automatically as soon as Liang Qiaoqiao willed it.
After secretly combing through the original host’s memories, Liang Qiaoqiao had retrieved a vague memory related to the metal box from some corner of her mind.
It was on a dark and windy night—Chen Laoda and his wife had met with a refined middle-aged couple.
The four of them dug a hole together in the yard and buried this small metal box at the foot of the persimmon tree.
If the original host’s memory was correct, that middle-aged couple should have been her biological parents.
However, after being labeled as Cowshed Reform Elements, they had died on the public criticism platform at the brigade headquarters five years ago.
Otherwise, the original host wouldn’t have ended up as Chen Laoda’s nominal child bride.
It was all just a desperate plan devised by four elders who fate brought together to protect the original host.
Using her will, Liang Qiaoqiao placed the small metal box on the floor in front of her bed and pulled over a small stool to sit closer.
Looking down at the rusty exterior of the box, her eyes sparkled, her face full of anticipation.
The small metal box was square and compact, about the height of two or three stacked adobe bricks at most.
Although it didn’t seem like it could hold much, as long as there were small gold bars or similar items inside, it would be enough for her to live comfortably in this era.
Liang Qiaoqiao found some tools.
It took quite some effort to open the lock, its keyhole clogged with rust and dirt.
As soon as she lifted the lid, Liang Qiaoqiao was utterly disappointed.
The box contained none of the precious antiques she had hoped for, nor any valuable items like gold bars, silver ingots, or copper coins.
Liang Qiaoqiao: …What happened to getting rich overnight?
Did her parents not leave her a single cent?
Disappointment instantly washed over Liang Qiaoqiao’s face.
But she quickly let it go.
Her original self’s parents had been framed quite suddenly. When the whole family was sent down, their money and valuables had likely been confiscated.
Inside the small, peeling metal box lay only an unsealed letter, two notebooks, and a sealed document folder.
(Not every time traveler is blessed with financial fortune—at least our female lead’s money doesn’t come easily.)