Chapter 12

Chapter 12: My Jade, Swallowed by the Fairyland

After Mo Lingwei left, Shen Ningning felt sad for a while.

However, thinking about his reunion with his family, she felt happy for him.

If one day she could recognize her parents, she too would rush into their embrace without hesitation.

The jade pendant Mo Lingwei left behind was particularly important to Shen Ningning.

She decided to enter the fairyland and carefully placed the jade pendant on an empty shelf where she stored herbs.

This way, she wouldn't lose it accidentally!

However.

The next day, Shen Ningning went to check on it.

But she discovered that Mo Lingwei's jade pendant had vanished!

"How could this happen!" Her face turned pale with anxiety as she searched frantically around, going over the area several times.

But it was nowhere to be found!

No one else could enter the fairyland except her, and the jade pendant couldn't just walk away on its own!

When she realized the jade pendant was truly lost, she sat down on the ground and cried heartbrokenly.

"Ningning is so silly, I lost my brother's jade pendant."

She wiped her tears with her small hands, full of self-reproach.

Just as Shen Ningning looked up unintentionally, she saw the door leading to the back hall, which was originally locked, had opened slightly.

She paused, then stood up, supporting her small body, and walked towards it.

Approaching, she smelled the fragrant scent of earth after rain.

Shen Ningning pushed the door open, and the sight that met her eyes astonished her!

Neat, fertile plots of land lay right before her.

Divided into areas, some soil was black, some yellow, and some red.

Each different section had a sign hanging above it.

But Shen Ningning couldn’t yet read the words on them.

She walked forward in amazement when suddenly, thunder rumbled from the blue sky and white clouds above this space.

Within two seconds, large raindrops started pouring down.

Shen Ningning quickly took shelter under the eaves.

She watched in surprise as the fertile soil, under the rain's nourishment, appeared even more lustrous.

After a while, the rain ceased.

The sky cleared again, revealing serene, drifting white clouds.

An idea formed in Shen Ningning's little head, and she quickly wiped away her tears.

She turned and ran into the main hall where the herbs were stored, grabbing a random seed.

Then, the little girl buried the seed in the soil, followed by a period of waiting.

Leaning against the door frame, after a while, thunder sounded again from the sky.

Sure enough, another heavy rain began.

After the rain stopped, a green sprout emerged from the soil where she had planted the seed.

"Amazing! It’s growing so fast!" Shen Ningning was astonished.

This phenomenon confirmed her guess about the fairyland.

It turned out that her fairyland not only had ready-made food and medicinal herbs.

It also allowed for rapid planting and harvesting.

Having seen Uncle Qin toiling in the fields, she knew how hard it was to farm, involving watering, fertilizing, weeding, and pest control.

But in her fairyland, those laborious processes seemed unnecessary!

She only needed to wait for the harvest!

She just didn’t know how long it would take for the seed to fully mature.

Shen Ningning noted the time and then left the fairyland.

Remembering the missing jade pendant, the little girl still felt somewhat disheartened.

"Could it be that my fairyland needs to consume jade pendants to grow?" she wondered, her small face clouded with worry.

The next time she saw her brother, she would have to apologize!

It was the afternoon.

Granny Qin, having taken her medicine, fell asleep on a pile of hay.

The Black Wolf King returned from outside and nudged Shen Ningning's hand with its nose.

"Hmm? Wolfie?"

The Black Wolf King let out a soft growl.

Shen Ningning immediately followed it outside, "Where are you taking me?"

The Black Wolf King didn’t waste words; it lay down, allowing the little girl to climb onto its back.

Then, the pair, a girl and a wolf, headed into the depths of the forest.

After about half an incense stick's time.

The Black Wolf King stopped and raised its head, signaling Shen Ningning to look ahead.

Shen Ningning turned her gaze and instantly covered her mouth in surprise.

Before her was an abandoned old mansion standing in the depths of the mountains!

The dusty gateway and the dilapidated plaque and eaves showed significant damage.

Yet, the mansion's broad and grand scale made it easy to imagine its former splendor and magnificence!

Shen Ningning stepped inside, finding the place covered with dust and spider webs.

The Black Wolf King followed by her side, howling softly as if to explain.

It turned out that this mansion was originally built fifty years ago as a retirement home for a high-ranking official.

But it seemed his family encountered some trouble, causing them to leave in a hurried and hasty manner.

Nobody knew that such a large mansion was hidden here.

When Shen Ningning was younger, she only heard from Granny Qin about a haunted house in the back mountain, which they should never visit.

Besides, with so many wolves on Wolf Mountain, people wouldn’t come here.

The Black Wolf King licked Shen Ningning’s small hand.

Wolves, by nature, live in caves.

However, it couldn’t bear to see the little girl sleeping in a pile of hay and developing a rash.

Therefore, it found her a home.

Shen Ningning walked around, her eyes dazzled with joy and excitement.

The mansion was old and dilapidated, but fortunately, most of the bricks and tiles were still intact.

Inside, besides dust, all the basic furniture was present.

"Wolfie! This is great! Let’s clean up this place and then bring Granny and the wolf pack here to live."

The Black Wolf King nodded enthusiastically.

That was exactly its intention.

Shen Ningning, eager to start, rolled up her sleeves, picked up a broom that had fallen against the wall, and began sweeping the dust in the courtyard.

The Black Wolf King picked up various debris with its mouth and threw them outside the mansion.

However, there was so much dust that Shen Ningning choked on it after just one sweep.

"Cough cough!" Her little face was covered in dust after it cleared.

Even so, she continued to laugh merrily.

For three consecutive days.

She and the Black Wolf King set out before dawn and didn't return until it was dark.

Later, the Black Wolf King even summoned the rest of the wolf pack to help.

Granny Qin, not yet fully recovered, stayed in the wolf den to cook delicious meals for Shen Ningning and the wolf pack.

With the wolves' help, they managed to clean the front courtyard and two rooms.

She even found a letter under one of the beds.

But the letter was so old that the rice paper had turned yellow and the writing was blurred. Most importantly, she couldn’t understand it.

Nevertheless, Shen Ningning carefully stored it in her space.

She was determined to read and understand it once she learned how to read.

To her delight, she discovered an old study in the mansion!

Inside, there was a whole wall filled with books.

She took out a book, attempting to read it.

Wolf Three approached her, and to make her happy, pretended to read a book with its wolf paw.

Catching sight of this, Shen Ningning burst into laughter, "Wolf Three, your book is upside down!"

The other wolves howled, as if they were laughing at him.

Wolf Three silently swept its tail and lay down, covering its eyes with its front paws in embarrassment.

Just as the little girl and the wolf pack were enjoying a moment of laughter and fun.

Suddenly!

A distant howl of a wolf echoed from afar.

This was the patrol wolf left by the Black Wolf King to watch over Granny.

The Black Wolf King immediately stood upright, and the entire wolf pack's gaze turned fierce.

Hearing this sound, which sounded both sad and pleading, the little girl’s expression changed, and she instantly dropped her book.

"Something’s happened to Granny, Wolfie, we need to hurry back!"