Chapter 068: Catastrophe from the Heavens

Chapter 068: Catastrophe from the Heavens

Fan Qingyi hurriedly covered Li Zhenzhu's eyes and pulled her into her embrace with one hand.

"Zhuzhu, don't be afraid. They promised Mom that they won't hurt us anymore."

Li Zhenzhu clung to Fan Qingyi's hand and peeked through the gap.

The two large beasts withdrew their gaze disdainfully. The little creature nestled between its parents growled softly at Li Zhenzhu, its voice harmless and infantile.

Li Zhenzhu's scream turned into a different pitch, "Ah... oh."

"Ao~ wu~"

Li Zhenzhu burst out crying and wriggled out of Fan Qingyi's arms, "Mom, why are the big beasts here? They..."

She paused mid-sentence and looked around.

With bright eyes, she asked, "Mom, where are we? How did we suddenly end up here?"

"This is what I was about to tell you."

Fan Qingyi held her youngest daughter and showed them the jade ring on her middle finger. "Yuanbao has been asking me for this ring. It was left to me by my mother, your grandmother. My stepmother took it when she came in. I went back today to get it..."

"On the way back, I accidentally cut my finger, and some blood dripped onto the ring. Then, Coral and I somehow ended up here. According to the instructions in the thatched hut, this is a space where we can plant crops and raise livestock and wild animals..."

Fan Qingyi shared everything she knew with her daughters and warned them, "This must remain a secret among us. Do you understand?"

"I understand."

Li Zhenzhu nodded immediately, "Dad taught us that having something valuable can attract unwanted attention."

"Attention is the least of our worries; this thing could bring disaster!" the young voice sounded worried.

The sisters are too young; if someone cunning tricks them into revealing it, it would be a catastrophe!

The word "disaster" reminded Fan Qingyi of her nightmare.

Looking at her daughters, she sternly reminded them, "Possessing something extraordinary without being guilty can still bring calamity. If bad people find out about this, our whole family could face grave danger. So, you must always be vigilant and never reveal this secret, understood?"

The sisters exchanged a glance and nodded emphatically.

"Mom, don't worry. We'll keep it a secret," Li Zhenzhu said, patting her chest.

Li Liuli also nodded, "Mom, we won't tell anyone."

"Right, except Dad, we won't tell anyone," Li Zhenzhu added.

Li Liuli thought for a moment and instructed her sister, "If Li Yuanbao asks, we'll say we don't know anything about the ring and have never seen it. If she tries to trick us, we'll ask her why she's so interested in the ring..."

Li Zhenzhu nodded vigorously.

Fan Qingyi smiled and patted the heads of her children.

"From now on, this will be our second home. I plan to plant crops near the thatched hut so we won't run out of food."

"Mom, do we need to go to town to buy corn and millet seeds?" Li Liuli asked.

Fan Qingyi recalled the contents of the instructions and shook her head, "No, the store seems to offer free seeds."

As she mentioned the store, a page popped up in front of her, listing several free seeds.

They were common vegetables: green peppers, white radishes, cabbage, eggplants, leeks, loofah, cucumbers, green beans, tomatoes, potatoes, and water spinach.

Fan Qingyi looked down at her daughters, "Shall we plant a bit of each?"

To test if the space really accelerates growth as described in the instructions.

Both girls nodded.

Fan Qingyi tried clicking "purchase," and the seeds appeared in her backpack.

Opening the backpack, she indeed saw the seeds inside.

However, the land needed to be prepared and watered first.

Recalling that the store had a function to till the land instantly, she quickly opened it and pressed the button.

The ground transformed as if by magic, becoming loose and soft but somewhat dry.

She searched around and found that the watering function was grayed out, indicating it was available at level twenty.

Looking up at the space, they were currently at level one.

The mother and daughters used shovels to dig the soil, scattered the seeds, and covered them with dirt.

"Mom, we need to water them."

The mother and daughters looked at the nearby river, "We don't have a bucket. Should we use our hands?" Li Zhenzhu squatted down, resting her chin on her hand.

Fan Qingyi checked the store again and found a free wooden bucket, which she promptly bought.

The wooden bucket felt heavy, and she left Coral with her daughters while she fetched water from the river.

As the water poured over the seeds, they visibly sprouted, broke through the soil, and grew rapidly.

Li Zhenzhu exclaimed in amazement, "Mom, is this magical soil? It's incredible!"

The three big beasts also looked bewildered as they watched the seedlings grow rapidly.

Fan Qingyi was full of amazement.

No wonder Li Yuanbao couldn't forget it; this jade ring is truly a remarkable treasure.

It's too bizarre and otherworldly.

She murmured softly.

Li Shanhu sighed, "I can even reincarnate into a novel set in another era; what's so strange about a space similar to a farm?"

Fan Qingyi, "..."

Now that she thought about it, it did make sense.

She lowered her eyes to look at her youngest daughter and smiled gently.

Li Zhenzhu stared intently at the growing plants. Li Liuli approached her mother and whispered, "Mom, aren't you scared of people anymore?"

Fan Qingyi was taken aback, "...Still a bit, I guess?"

"Mom, when you saved me and Zhuzhu, you weren't afraid of those big beasts!"

Li Liuli looked up, her eyes shining with joy. "When we escaped and just now at the door, you spoke to the uncles and aunts from the village without any fear. You even looked them in the eye, Mom. You're not afraid of people anymore, right?"

Her eyes were filled with hope.

Fan Qingyi was slightly stunned. Was she really not afraid of people...?

But thinking about facing people outside still made her want to hide and run away, her heart constricting with fear.

At that moment, she wasn't afraid, probably because...

In a life-or-death situation for her daughters, she couldn't afford to be afraid.

Fan Qingyi smiled and stroked her eldest daughter's face.

"Yes, Mom isn't afraid of people anymore. From now on, Mom can argue with others too. Grow up well, and Mom... will protect you."

Li Liuli's eyes lit up even more.

Then she shook her head, "We don't need Mom to protect us. After Mom isn't afraid of people anymore, she can go out and talk with the aunts in the village. She won't have to stay home alone, being bullied by Grandma and Eldest Aunt..."

Fan Qingyi's heart trembled, feeling both warm and soft, her eyes moistening.

She kissed her eldest daughter's forehead with a smile. "Okay, from now on, Mom will talk more with the aunts in the village and won't let them bully us."

Li Liuli's eyes curved into a smile, sighing contentedly.

"That's great."

The mother and daughters lost track of time in the space until someone knocked on the door outside.

"Wenfeng's wife, I've come to bring you dinner."

It was Aunt Song.

Fan Qingyi hurriedly called her two daughters, and the four of them left the space together.

Li Zhenzhu opened the door with a smile, "Grandma Song."

Seeing her rosy cheeks, Aunt Song smiled, relieved. The child was resilient and hadn't been scared.

On her way over, she had worried that if the child was frightened, she might develop a high fever at night, which could be dangerous.

"I cooked sweet potato porridge, stir-fried tomatoes with eggs, and cucumber with herbs."

As Aunt Song brought out the dishes, Aunt Li in the courtyard was cursing loudly.

"These gossipy women, always spreading nonsense. We all have families; who doesn't do housework? Why say I mistreat them?"

"If I catch them again, I'll tear their mouths apart..."

After cursing the villagers, she singled out Fan Qingyi.

"Second Wife, you two are really heartless. The children are young and don't know better; when they knocked you down, we apologized and compensated you. But you still won't let it go and incite the whole village against us!"

"...Can we even live like this? Are you only satisfied when you bully us to death? Come out, let's talk things through. How have I wronged you all these years?"