The system reminded her once again, and Gu Xingzhao reluctantly stepped further away, muttering to herself, “Could I really be something so terrifying or poisonous?”

But as soon as she took a few steps back, she noticed that Lu Xingyan’s heart rate, which had just been over 160, was gradually slowing down, becoming steady, and the red warning on the system’s interface turned green, indicating safety.

She quickly turned to stare at Lu Xingyan, who still appeared calm and composed, as if that intense heart rate had been nothing more than her imagination.

“You little…”

Gu Xingzhao had never been this speechless in her life.

At that moment, she even felt like taking back the red envelope she had given him, feeling as if she had been rejected.

In truth, even Lu Xingyan himself didn’t fully understand it. Whenever the ancestor approached, his body would involuntarily tense up, his blood would seem to boil uncontrollably, making it difficult to breathe and almost unbearable.

But just now, that suffocating tension had faded away, and he realized that the ancestor had left, along with the scent he had mistaken for the smell of snow.

At this time, Lu Qing took out the only two pairs of earrings they had left and discussed with his son and daughter-in-law, “Our Lu family has never offered anything to a deity, yet the ancestor has helped us greatly. I feel deeply ashamed. I’m thinking of offering these two pairs of earrings to the ancestor… What do you think?”

In truth, the Lu family usually deferred to the elder’s decisions in matters like this. But since these were the only valuable items they had left, Lu Qing thought it best to discuss it with everyone.

His son and daughter-in-law naturally agreed.

Madam Song said, “The ancestor has helped us in times of crisis many times. This is the least we can do.”

Lu Zhou nodded.

However, Lu Yang frowned. “But these are just two pairs of used earrings… Isn’t that too shabby?”

What if the ancestor is offended?

Everyone fell silent. Lu Qing too was troubled, clenching the two pairs of earrings in his hand. He worried that offering used items might offend the ancestor, but they couldn’t just keep accepting the ancestor’s help without offering something in return. That wouldn’t be in line with the Lu family’s values.

At that moment, Madam Xu suddenly produced an oval-shaped jade pendant and placed it in front of everyone.

The jade pendant was yellow-white, with a water-like pattern at the base, clearly indicating its high value.

Madam Song was stunned. “Second sister-in-law… where did you get this…?”

No one had expected that Madam Xu had been hiding such a valuable piece of jade.

Madam Xu’s eyes flickered. “My mother gave it to me on the day we left the city. I planned to save it for when we reached the northern lands, but now it seems better to use it here.”

The jade pendant had indeed been given to her by her mother on the day they left the city, intended as a parting gift to the Lu family. But because Madam Xu didn’t leave with them, she had kept it. When her father later asked for valuable items to trade for supplies, she had other plans in mind, so she didn’t offer it up. After seeing everyone suffer, she never found the right moment to bring it out.

Now, seeing that everyone was well-fed and warm, she figured that if this jade could please the ancestor and ensure a better future like the present, it was worth offering up.

However, she still felt a bit conflicted, worried that the others might think she had been hiding it for herself.

Lu Yang, oblivious to such concerns, was simply impressed that his wife had brought out something so valuable at this time. He grabbed her and cheerfully said, “My wife truly has foresight! I’ve always said you should be the one running this household. Thanks to your foresight, we now have something worthy to offer the ancestor!”

Madam Xu forced a smile.

Madam Song, with her simple nature, didn’t think too deeply about it either. After all, Madam Xu had managed the household for over a decade, and she had always done a better job than herself.

“Second sister-in-law really does have foresight.”

Lu Zhou, who never concerned himself with financial matters, was only interested in having something to offer the ancestor. He didn’t care where it came from.

As the head of the family, Lu Qing, with his many years of experience, understood better than anyone that in times of crisis, everyone would make plans for the future.

He didn’t hold it against his second daughter-in-law for keeping the jade pendant. After all, it was a sentimental item given to her by her mother.

In a solemn tone, he asked, “Once we offer this jade pendant, it won’t be returned. Are you sure about this?”

Madam Xu nodded. “Father, I’m from a merchant family and haven’t read much, but you trusted me to manage the household for over ten years. Now, this is the only valuable thing I can offer… Please accept it and offer it to the ancestor on my behalf, in gratitude for the ancestor’s protection.”

Still distracted by Lu Xingyan’s earlier condition, Gu Xingzhao suddenly heard the system notification:

[Collected gratitude from Lu family member Xu Mingzhu, offering value +20!]

Forgetting about Lu Xingyan, Gu Xingzhao quickly moved toward the old man’s group. She remembered that Xu Mingzhu was the old man’s second daughter-in-law, the one from a wealthy family. She hadn’t expected to gain 20 offering points all at once!

It was a pleasant surprise.

As she approached, she noticed the Lu family gathered together, whispering about something. Just as she was about to ask what was going on, she heard Lu Qing call out to her.

Lu Qing: “Ancestor, are you still here?”

Gu Xingzhao replied, “I’m here. What is it?”

Lu Qing said, “Ancestor, you have helped our family so much, and we are deeply grateful. We have prepared a few items to offer you, but we lack an altar or incense burner here. How should we present them?”

Gu Xingzhao was surprised. They have offerings for me?

The next moment, the system’s voice chimed in again: [Offerings from the Lu family received: one mutton-fat white jade pendant, tax deducted: 3,000 units; two pairs of jade earrings, tax deducted: 1,000 units.]

The Lu family members widened their eyes and mouths, even forgetting to breathe. They rubbed their eyes in disbelief as the two pairs of earrings and the yellow-white jade pendant they had placed on the ground suddenly vanished!

Madam Xu’s fingers trembled. “?”

Was it really offered?

Lu Yang, Madam Song, and the others were so overwhelmed with excitement that they couldn’t speak, their faces turning red.

Even Lu Qing, who had seen this kind of thing before, was astonished once more.

As the items appeared in her hands, Gu Xingzhao was filled with amazement, especially by the mutton-fat white jade pendant. She couldn’t stop admiring it. “What is this white jade?”

Lu Qing answered honestly, “This jade is an offering from my second daughter-in-law, Madam Xu, to thank the ancestor for your protection.”

“I really like this jade pendant. Please thank her for me.”

Gu Xingzhao’s smile nearly stretched to the ceiling. Although she wasn’t an expert on jade, she could tell that this piece was of high quality. It was about the size of two thumbs, with a smooth, oval shape, and the texture was fine and flawless, except for a hole at the top where a string had been threaded through.

She was so fond of it that just holding it made her happy. As a result, she didn’t even care about the 4,000-unit tax the system had deducted.