Chapter 27 Proposal

The villagers felt both excited and worried about Ji Tangtang’s proposal.

One villager said, “But we’ve only ever grown crops, never medicinal herbs. We don’t even know how to plant them!”

Ji Tangtang replied, “We can explore and try! Nothing is mastered from the very beginning.”

Liu Daocheng nodded, agreeing with her. This was also a rare opportunity. Their team’s productivity was among the lowest in the county. If they didn’t think of a solution, they would remain at the bottom. Ji Tangtang’s idea of planting medicinal herbs to generate income wasn’t guaranteed, but it was an opportunity nonetheless. No matter what, trying wouldn’t hurt.

However, no one nearby had ever planted medicinal herbs before—everything would have to start from scratch. He frowned slightly and said, “But planting medicinal herbs requires seedlings and seeds. It’s not like we can just trade for them.”

Although Ji Tangtang could easily produce a good number of herbs from her space, she didn’t intend to take everything upon herself. She understood human nature. Sometimes, if you handle everything alone, others won’t necessarily be grateful—on the contrary, they might resent you.

So she said, “After the busy farming season, everyone can go up the mountain together to dig up herbs to use as seedlings. I recognize some of them, and I’ll do my best to teach everyone.”

Liu Daocheng nodded. “Alright, tomorrow I’ll find time to go to the commune and see if they’ll approve. It’s late already, let’s all head home.”

The villagers had worked hard all day, and their questions had been answered. No one stayed any longer, and they went home in small groups. Ji Tangtang also rode her bicycle back.

Inside her Qiankun pouch, a wild boar was still waiting to be dealt with! Perhaps because she had lost her cultivation and was now in a mortal body, she got hungry especially easily. Right now, she felt like she could eat an entire pig.

She couldn’t help recalling the braised ribs she had eaten at noon. Even though it was just ordinary food without spiritual energy, the flavor had been delicious. She wondered how it had been cooked. Once she finished processing the wild boar, she planned to cook a big feast and eat to her heart’s content.

At the same time, Xu Guifen had already looked outside anxiously several times. Thinking of her daughter’s upcoming marriage and how they didn’t even have a proper new room at home, she hadn’t lingered after work but hurried back instead. She planned to tidy up the house, let Xiaohui share a room with them, and free up a room for her eldest daughter’s wedding.

Because she came straight home, she missed the commotion in the village. She didn’t know her daughter had sold medicinal herbs for more than 400 yuan, returned with a bicycle, and even set several big matters in motion.

Now, seeing Ji Tangtang riding back on a bicycle, she was stunned into silence.

“Wow! A bicycle!” Ji Xiaohui exclaimed, leaping to her sister’s side, reaching out to touch the bike as if in a dream.

Xu Guifen finally came back to her senses, shocked. “Where did this bicycle come from?”

“Bought it,” Ji Tangtang answered as she entered the house, then calmly added, “But I told outsiders that I borrowed it. The bike came from the black market, without a purchase voucher. Today Fang Juan stopped me at the road and accused me of having a stolen bike…”

In just a few sentences, she explained what had happened at the road, so her family would be prepared.

Hearing that her daughter would go with Gu Shiyu tomorrow to the commune to register their marriage, that the wedding date had been set, and that they’d even need to renovate a house—one shocking piece of news after another—left Xu Guifen reeling.

But more than shock, she felt anger. She scolded, “That Fang Juan really is worthless. She was just jealous. If you hadn’t reacted quickly today, you could’ve been harmed by her.”

“Forget her for now. We bought plenty of things today, let’s sort them out and eat first.”

Ji Tangtang pulled out the rice and flour from her basket and handed back the money Xu Guifen had given her earlier. “I earned plenty from selling herbs, so I didn’t use your money. You keep it.”

Xu Guifen wiped her tears and waved her hand. “You take it. It’s my fault, not having the ability, making you suffer outside. You and Shiyu will need a lot of money after marriage. Your father and I are useless—we can’t help, but at least we won’t hold you back. From now on, this household will listen to you.”

Ji Tangtang could tell that her original body’s mother wasn’t strong-willed. In fact, not only was she not forceful, she often appeared somewhat weak. She really wasn’t able to handle being head of the household.

So Ji Tangtang put the money away again and nodded. “Alright then. If you need anything, just tell me. Here, this is fabric I bought—Mom, you can sew more clothes for the family.”

Aside from fabric, there were also toothbrushes, toothpaste, salt, and other daily necessities. She had already sorted them into her basket on the way back. For now, there was only one set of toothbrush, toothpaste, and salt, not much. The rest she kept in her Qiankun pouch, planning to take them out at a better time.

Even so, it left Xu Guifen astonished. “So many things? That must’ve cost a fortune!”

Ji Tangtang said, “I earned a lot from selling herbs today. If I don’t spend it, people will get jealous.”

Thinking of the trouble her daughter had already faced on the road, Xu Guifen no longer felt distressed about the money. Indeed, just as her daughter said, unspent money would only tempt thieves. Better to spend it for peace of mind.

Fortunately, her daughter had her strange fortune now, so she didn’t have to worry. With her daughter’s abilities, she could surely protect herself.

After packing the things away, she said, “Let’s eat first.”

Ji Tangtang didn’t really want coarse grains, but Ji Changming had already prepared dinner at home, so she could only make do for tonight.

After a simple dinner that wasn’t particularly tasty, Ji Tangtang said to Xu Guifen, “I’m going to the Gu family to talk with Gu Shiyu about going to register the marriage tomorrow. I still have things to do tonight, so I might be back late—don’t wait up for me.”

Xu Guifen nodded. “While you’re there, ask his measurements. I’ll sew him a set of clothes. If I work on it over the next few nights, he’ll be able to wear it on your wedding day.”

Ji Tangtang had bought plenty of fabric and had originally planned to make Gu Shiyu a set of clothes herself. But hearing Xu Guifen talk about staying up late to sew, and glancing at the unlit electric lamp—since the power was out again—she said, “Don’t stay up late sewing. Tomorrow when I go to town, I’ll take the fabric and have a tailor make it.”

Although the village had electricity, power outages were frequent, so they often relied on kerosene lamps for lighting. Sewing by oil lamp was far too damaging to the eyes.

Xu Guifen wanted to protest that going to a tailor would cost money, and that saving what they could was better—but Ji Tangtang had already left.

After leaving home, Ji Tangtang didn’t go straight to the Gu family. Instead, she first entered the secret realm and brought out the wild boar she had hunted that afternoon.

The wild boars in the secret realm were different from ordinary ones—their hides were extremely tough, and ordinary weapons couldn’t cut through. She retrieved the weapons she had hidden under the peach tree, chose a particularly sharp knife, and gutted the boar.

Once she had completely processed it, she stored the meat in her Qiankun pouch. The pouch not only held items but also preserved them—the things stored inside stayed exactly the same as when they went in. She could keep the pork there and eat it gradually.

Though this boar hadn’t yet developed spiritual intelligence, it had grown up eating the secret realm’s spiritual plants and herbs, so its body also contained spiritual energy. For that reason, she didn’t discard the innards either. However, she didn’t want to wash them right then, so she tossed them into the Qiankun pouch as well, planning to deal with them later.