Outside, Zhao Chunmei’s voice grew increasingly shrill, and amidst the noise, the faint sound of Mother Jiang’s pleading could be heard.  

Jiang An’an gritted her teeth. So they were going to be this aggressive, huh? Fine, she’d go out and give them a piece of her mind!  

But just as she was about to get up, her hand accidentally brushed against the jade pendant again. With a thud, she fell back onto the kang.  

As her consciousness faded, a flash of white light suddenly appeared before Jiang An’an’s eyes.  

Then, her body was hit with a powerful force, a strong suction pulling her in. The blinding light made it impossible to keep her eyes open.  

When she opened them again, she was back inside the space.  

Now she understood—touching the crack in the jade pendant was the key to entering the space! All that time she’d spent last night trying to figure out how to get back in had been wasted.  

Her gaze swept over the shelves in the space’s warehouse, stocked with everything from food to daily necessities.  

Heaven was on her side!  

So the betrothal gift was two bags of coarse rice, huh? Well, she had plenty to spare!  

Finally, she wouldn’t have to starve in the 1970s!  

But just as she picked up the two bags of rice, she noticed a small blackboard near the warehouse entrance that hadn’t been there before. On it were a few lines of text:  

“Friendly reminder: Any goods taken from the warehouse will disappear within 24 hours if not transferred to another person. It is recommended to promptly transfer the goods to others after leaving this space.”  

Goods taken from the warehouse would vanish within 24 hours unless given to someone else…  

Why hadn’t it mentioned this earlier?!  

So aside from the items outside the warehouse, nothing here could be consumed by her—they could only be sold or gifted.  

Glancing at the two bags of coarse rice in her hands, Jiang An’an sighed. If she returned to 1979, she’d have to give these back to the village chief’s wife as soon as possible. Otherwise, after 24 hours, they’d be gone!  

At that moment, another flash of white light appeared before her eyes.  

When she opened them again, she was back on the kang where she’d been lying earlier.  

Before she could collect her thoughts, the door was suddenly pounded violently.  

She froze, then immediately began searching around.  

Had it all just been a dream? Was there no space after all? Had she not actually retrieved the two bags of rice?  

But the next moment, the two bags of rice materialized beside her.  

At the same time, the door was slammed open.  

Zhao Chunmei stormed in, full of fury.  

“If you can’t return the betrothal gifts, then what other choice is there? Jiang An’an will just have to marry my brother!”  

Her tone was haughty.  

If Jiang An’an married Zhao Eryan, once they were officially a couple, who would dare accuse him of assault, even if the truth about last night came out? He wouldn’t have to fear execution then! She refused to believe this dirt-poor Jiang family could cough up that much grain.  

“Please, I’m begging you—An’an can’t handle any more stress right now. Can we talk outside?”  

Mother Jiang, who had followed her in, spoke meekly.  

But Zhao Chunmei showed no mercy. If anything, she became even more aggressive.  

“Why should we talk outside? Jiang An’an is right here, so I’ll say it here! And haven’t I made myself clear enough? If you can’t return the betrothal gifts, either your work points get zeroed out, or Jiang An’an marries my brother. You don’t want this, you don’t want that—so it’s just my family that has to suffer, is that it?”  

Hearing this, Mother Jiang was on the verge of tears. “Our family has nothing left to repay the betrothal gifts with. Are you… are you trying to drive us to our deaths?”  

“Don’t go twisting my words! How am I driving you to your deaths? Just let Jiang An’an marry my brother, and everything will be fine! If anything, my brother’s the one doing her a favor by not looking down on her. Who else would want a girl who goes around seducing men in the mountains?!”

As soon as Zhao Chunmei finished speaking, Jiang An’an suddenly stepped forward.  

“Who seduced anyone? I was being followed, and then I was rescued—nothing happened at all! Last night, you even promised to help clear my name! Do you need me to jog your memory?”

Hearing this, Zhao Chunmei froze for a moment, her mind flashing back to the image of Jiang An’an pressing a rock against her neck the night before. She swallowed hard, a flicker of panic crossing her face.  

But Jiang An’an only knew she had been assaulted—she probably didn’t remember it was Zhao Eryan who did it…  

“Whether you were assaulted or not, your reputation is ruined! My brother is willing to take you in—what more are you picking and choosing for? If you won’t marry him, then return our betrothal gifts! Do you even have them?!”  

She jutted her chin out defiantly.  

Did they?  

If not, then she had to marry him! That was just how things worked in this world! Refuse to marry? Then the whole family’s work points would be zeroed out, and they could starve to death!  

“An’an, don’t say anything. Let me handle this…”  

Mother Jiang, her face twisted in misery, pushed her daughter behind her and turned to the village chief’s wife.  

“I’ll kneel to you—just spare our family, please!”  

With that, her legs bent, about to drop to her knees.  

But she was suddenly yanked back up by an unseen force.  

Turning her head, she saw it was her daughter holding her arm.  

Before she could speak, she noticed the two bags in Jiang An’an’s hands—then watched as her daughter flung them at Zhao Chunmei’s feet.  

“Here’s your two bags of coarse rice. See for yourself!”  

Boom!

It was as if a thunderclap had struck. Everyone was stunned.  

Even Jiang An’an’s brother, who had been rushing in, froze in place.  

What?! All that grain?! Where did it come from?!  

But no one was more shocked than Zhao Chunmei.  

The Jiang family was the poorest household in Sihe Village—she knew that better than anyone as the village chief’s wife. That was exactly why she had used this method to force Jiang An’an into marrying her brother. Even if Jiang An’an remembered the truth later, once they were married, who would care if she accused him of assault?  

But now… Jiang An’an had actually produced enough grain to return the betrothal gifts!  

Crouching down, Zhao Chunmei untied the bags and peered inside—just as Jiang An’an had said!  

Still unwilling to believe it, she reached in and grabbed a handful.  

It was really coarse rice…  

Jiang An’an wasn’t lying.  

Zhao Chunmei slumped to the ground, her hands trembling. Then what about her brother?!  

If Jiang An’an remembered who had tried to assault her that day and reported it, her brother would be executed! He was the only male heir left in the Zhao family, the sole hope for continuing their lineage!  

If she couldn’t protect him, how could she ever face the Zhao ancestors in the afterlife?!  

No!  

She couldn’t let Zhao Eryan come to harm!  

Zhao Chunmei scrambled to her feet and glared at Jiang An’an.  

“Where did you get this grain?! Your mother just said your family had nothing to repay us with! This grain—it’s not legit, is it?! Did you steal it from someone?! Stealing grain is a serious crime!”  

She roared the accusation.  

She had to find dirt on Jiang An’an—the origin of this grain was the perfect excuse! There was no way the Jiang family could suddenly produce so much grain out of thin air.  

This had to be stolen!