During this period, most of the work involved weeding and loosening the soil around corn, soybeans, and sorghum.
At first Yun Ting’s back and waist ached terribly, but now she had gradually adapted.
She worked well and had left a very good impression on the village aunties.
When working, she always held back a little strength. There was no need to push herself too hard and exhaust her body—it wasn’t worth it. She kept a balanced pace: not lazy enough to make people dislike her, but not so capable that she stood out too much. Every day she earned eight work points—not a lot, but not little either. Some people even earned fewer.
“Little Yun, let me tell you,” Aunt Meihua said, “in another two months, when autumn harvest comes, that’s when it’s truly exhausting!”
“Haha… Auntie, telling me this so early—you’re going to scare me!”
“Haha, I’m just giving you a mental preparation. Before the harvest comes, you need to nourish your body well.”
“Alright, Auntie, I understand.”
“Oh right, you can start collecting firewood now. Otherwise when it gets cold, the kang stove will burn through wood very quickly!”
“Okay, I’ll go to the back mountain to collect some after work today.”
“But don’t go too deep into the mountains—it’s dangerous.”
Aunt Meihua repeatedly reminded her, and only relaxed after Yun Ting promised several times that she wouldn’t go deep into the forest.
In summer it stayed light later in the evening. After work, Yun Ting headed toward the back mountain. It was her first time going up the mountain since she arrived. Living by the mountain meant relying on the mountain, and she was curious whether there were any good things there.
Recently she had been using her wood-type ability a lot in her space, and it had already grown stronger than before. She looked around—no one was nearby. Beneath her sleeve, her hand quietly activated the wood ability to sense the surroundings. Suddenly, a fine tingling spread across her palm—the wood power felt like vines awakened by heat, wildly growing along her fingertips.
About twenty steps away in a patch of bushes, wild strawberry vines were secretly winding around dead branches. The dark-red berries were swelling visibly before her eyes.
Yun Ting quickly walked over, picked one, and tasted it.
It was sweet—very good.
She placed her hand over the vines and collected the wild strawberries together with their vines into her space.
Walking further in the direction her senses guided her, she discovered wild honeysuckle berries. She tasted one and then stored them all in her space as well.
Behind three white birch trees, a gray rabbit was kicking with its hind legs, digging through last year’s hazelnut shells.
Deep inside a rotting log, fungal threads lay dormant, their network spreading through the valley like an underground river. Farther away, wild chickens fluttered in the grass, while somewhere a mountain spring trickled through cracks in the rocks.
“Hehe… spicy rabbit meat, chicken stewed with mushrooms—big sister is coming!” Yun Ting happily headed in that direction, completely forgetting whether this area counted as deep in the mountains.
Using her wood ability, she controlled vines to wrap around the gray rabbit and tossed it into her space. The same fate befell three wild chickens playing nearby—they were taken into the space before they even realized what had happened.
“With so many wild chickens around, there should be eggs, right?”
Sure enough, when she parted the grass, a nest of wild chicken eggs appeared.
“Wow!”
She went to where she sensed hazel mushrooms growing.
They were still small, so she used her wood ability to stimulate their growth. She picked some into her basket and stored the rest in her space.
Looking at the sky growing darker, she decided that was enough for today. Although she had sensed the presence of ginseng, there was no rush. Safety came first—she could come back another day.
On the way down the mountain she casually gathered a bundle of firewood. Since it was her first time up the mountain, most of her attention had gone toward collecting food, so she had only picked up this one bundle.
Near the outskirts of the mountain she ran into Aunt Fuzhen, who was also collecting firewood. Seeing Yun Ting, she smiled and gestured in greeting.
“Aunt Fuzhen, you’re collecting firewood too? I picked some wild fruit—take some back for Xiao Ling to eat.”
Yun Ting grabbed a handful of wild strawberries and honeysuckle berries from her basket and handed them over.
Aunt Fuzhen quickly waved her hands, refusing, but Yun Ting wouldn’t give her the chance. Once she had taken them out, how could she take them back?
“Aunt Fuzhen, these aren’t things I bought with money. Please don’t be polite. It’s getting late—let’s hurry back!”
As she spoke, Yun Ting quickly jogged away.
“Little girl picking mushrooms… carrying a big bamboo basket…” Yun Ting hummed softly as she walked.
She didn’t meet many people along the road—most villagers were probably already home eating dinner or resting.
The villagers who usually gathered firewood didn’t dare go as deep into the mountain as she had.
She was craving meat tonight, so she decided to cook wild chicken stewed with hazel mushrooms. Once she decided, she acted immediately, taking out a wild chicken and starting to process it in the courtyard.
When Yang Qingqing heard the noise and came out, she looked surprised for a moment.
“You know how to hunt?”
“I can’t hunt at all. Just good luck—I ran into a confused wild chicken,” Yun Ting said with a grin.
“Are you going to the mountain again tomorrow? I’d like to take a look too,” Yang Qingqing asked softly.
“Sure. I’ll wait for you after work.”
“Comrade Yang, if you want to go up the mountain, I can accompany you,” Lu Jiayan said hurriedly after hearing their conversation as he stepped out into the yard. “The mountain is dangerous. Two girls alone might not be safe.”
Yun Ting finished washing the wild chicken and hazel mushrooms. Secretly, she slowed down her movements.
Ah… maybe she could watch a little drama first.
Tsk tsk… Lu Jiayan really jumped at every chance to show off. Unfortunately, after all this time he still hadn’t won the beauty’s heart. Yun Ting was curious—had Yang Qingqing developed feelings for him yet?
“Comrade Lu, we already have company. No need to trouble you.”
Yang Qingqing’s tone remained calm and indifferent.
“Brother Jiayan… if she doesn’t want you to go with her, then come with me!” Yin Jiao suddenly rushed out and moved close to Lu Jiayan. “I want to go up the mountain too! Everyone says they’re going to collect firewood!”
“Yun Ting, it’s settled then. I’ll go back to my room first,” Yang Qingqing said before turning and walking inside.
“Comrade Yang…” Lu Jiayan called anxiously, but she didn’t even turn her head.
Watching this, Yun Ting realized something—Yang Qingqing wasn’t completely unmoved. It seemed the problem lay with Yin Jiao.
And honestly, if it were her, she wouldn’t bother either. A man surrounded by so many annoying admirers—whoever wanted him could have him. Besides, Yang Qingqing came from the future and from a wealthy family. Unless she had a love-struck brain, she wouldn’t accept Lu Jiayan at this time.
“Comrade Yun, I’ve moved to live here as well. Please take care of me in the future.”
What?
Someone please tell her what happened while she was on the mountain. Why had Yan Zheng, the second male lead from the original novel, suddenly moved into their small courtyard? And why was he greeting her so friendly?
“Ah… haha… Comrade Yan, welcome…”
“You haven’t eaten dinner yet, right? Want me to help?”
Yun Ting’s eyes widened.
What kind of strange move was this?
Alarm bells instantly rang in her head.
“No need. I’ve already finished preparing everything. I’ll go back now—goodbye!”
Grabbing the cleaned hazel mushrooms and wild chicken, Yun Ting ran off in a flash.
Yan Zheng watched her retreating figure, the corners of his mouth curling upward.
Heh… quite cute.
If Yun Ting knew what he was thinking, she would definitely say: Cute my foot! You’re the second male lead—shouldn’t you be watching the female lead? Why are you staring at me?
Unfortunately, Yun Ting didn’t know.
Because of her arrival, the plot of the original novel had already collapsed, and many things had begun to change their course.