Chapter 44 A Rich Harvest

Ji Tangtang had never spoken about this before. She hadn’t intended to, but thinking of how her second brother’s wife had brazenly overstepped today, she knew it was only a matter of time before she tried to trouble her daughter. Although her daughter had recently experienced extraordinary events, Ji Tangtang had watched her grow up and knew her character well. If the second sister-in-law tried to play the “poor me” act, her daughter might very well soften—and then the couple could chew her up completely.

Ji Changming said, “I happened to see your second uncle hiding the sweet potato seedlings. It had just rained, the ground was slippery… He probably got too scared and pushed me, and I wasn’t paying attention, so I fell down the slope.”

“So that’s how it happened!” Xu Guifen wiped her tears. “Why didn’t you say anything before? You’re so honest it’s unbelievable.”

“Don’t cry! The kids are grown now; don’t make them laugh at us! At the time, I thought he was my own brother; he didn’t mean it…” Ji Changming said awkwardly. “Don’t worry, if anything like this happens again, I won’t let family ties hold me back…”

Xu Guifen turned her head angrily. “You always say that! After all these years, haven’t you suffered enough?”

Seeing her parents bickering, Ji Tangtang didn’t linger. If she stayed, they might be too embarrassed to say everything. She packed a bag of buns and said, “Mom, Dad, I’m going out for a while; I might be back late, so don’t wait up for me tonight.”

Xu Guifen, still upset with her husband, hurriedly said, “Be careful tonight…” She didn’t know exactly where her daughter was going and didn’t want to pry too much. She could only remind her: “Stay safe.”

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing,” Ji Tangtang replied.

Once outside, she put the buns into her Qiankun Bag and entered the Secret Realm. Time flowed differently there; though it was nearly dark outside, it was still bright within. Based on her knowledge of the Xishan Secret Realm, she estimated it would take another three or four hours before night fell. She tidied herself up and planned to hunt for some food. Although she had brought back an extra 50 jin of grain today, improving the household diet, it was still monotonous.

Besides finding fresh food, she wanted to clear more land to plant the seeds she had exchanged with Qin Xiangdong. So she didn’t go far today. Following her memory, she reached a small river. While the water wasn’t a spiritual spring, the Secret Realm was rich in spiritual energy, and the fish, shrimp, and crabs there were full of it—delicious to eat. In her previous life, after achieving humanoid form, she loved coming to this river to gather food.

Although it was only a small river, catching its aquatic creatures was not easy. The water was icy cold, and even someone with cultivation experience could only stay in it for a short time before their body couldn’t handle it. The fish, shrimp, and crabs were unusually clever, almost like spirits, making them hard to catch. In her previous life, Ji Tangtang had gone to great lengths to catch them and had even made a special trap herself. The trap required no cultivation to use, but the bait—spiritually potent fruits and herbs—was somewhat extravagant. She had previously picked three Qingling Fruits; she and Gu Shiyu had each eaten one, leaving one as bait.

Ji Tangtang placed the Qingling Fruit in the trap and carefully set it in the emerald water, then wandered nearby. Besides the delicious aquatic creatures, a plant grew along the riverbank. It looked somewhat like a taro from the mortal world but several times taller. Once mature, it would grow a large flowering stalk rapidly, blooming and fruiting. In the cultivation world, it was called a Spirit Taro. Its roots could be eaten, and the mature fruits could be used to make pills. Cultivators usually harvested the fruits, but Ji Tangtang, as a foodie, always focused on its roots.

Wandering near the river, she quickly found a Spirit Taro. It had just matured—not yet the best time to pick fruit—but its roots were tender, starchy, and delicious. She immediately took out her tools and began digging. Once the roots were harvested, she estimated it was about time and returned for the trap. It felt unusually heavy in her hands—she was delighted; there must be a big catch!

Enduring the icy cold, she lifted the trap, and the massive fish tails splashed water everywhere, drenching her face. Wiping her face with her sleeve, she carried the trap to shore. The largest fish weighed around 30–40 jin; besides it, there were countless shrimp and crabs.

Just as she felt elated, the river suddenly churned violently, and a tremendous, overwhelming force surged toward her. Startled, she immediately fled the Secret Realm with the trap. Even at her speed, the harsh, vicious energy still affected her. As soon as she exited, Ji Tangtang fell to the ground, coughing up blood. Her previous internal injuries from hunting wild boars had not fully healed, and now new injuries had surfaced.

Ji Tangtang dared not enter the Secret Realm again. She quickly stored her harvest in the Qiankun Bag, rested on the ground for a while, and then headed to the Gu household. At this moment, Shen Meifang was cursing Ji Tangtang.

“That little wretch definitely did this! If she hadn’t gone into town ruining my son’s reputation, Hongwen wouldn’t have been pushed around at the factory!” Shen Meifang gritted her teeth. “I’m going to tear that little wretch’s mouth apart!”

Ji Tangtang’s expression turned cold. Who was she calling a little wretch? Whose mouth did she want to tear apart? Had Ji Tangtang been too nice before?

She lightly raised her fingers, flicking a few small stones from between them. Instantly, the Gu family pigs let out a series of frantic squeals and charged through the pigpen. Two of them soon ran straight out of the enclosure.

Seeing the pigs escape, Shen Meifang could no longer continue cursing Ji Tangtang and hurriedly ran out to catch them. Ji Tangtang flicked her fingers again. Suddenly, Shen Meifang’s legs gave way. “Ah!” she cried, falling flat on the ground. Gu Weiguo, who was chasing behind her, tripped over her and also fell down.

“Ow!”

“You old woman, why are you lying on the ground? You nearly killed me! My back…”

“Move off, don’t crush me!”

At that moment, Gu Hongwen and Ji Tingting returned from their tryst in the forest. They heard groans of pain and mutual complaints from the yard.

“Mom, Dad, what are you two doing?” Gu Hongwen, in a great mood after being satisfied with Ji Tingting, walked over cheerfully, not annoyed by the chaos.

“Hongwen! Your dad and I fell! Come help us up!” Shen Meifang groaned in pain.

“Fell? How did you fall?” Gu Hongwen went over and first helped Gu Weiguo up.

Gu Weiguo muttered angrily, “It’s all your mom! Always at home nagging everyone, scaring the pigs away in the process. Couldn’t even mind her words!”

“Ha! You heartless man! I did it for whom? For this family, for both of you, and you accuse me of not being virtuous!” Shen Meifang fumed and reached out to scratch Gu Weiguo.

“You crazy woman! How dare you hit me!” Gu Weiguo slapped her. Shen Meifang, whose teeth were already loosened from the fall, had two of them knocked out by the slap. Her eyes turned red with anger as she stared at the flying teeth.

“Gu Weiguo, you old bastard! You dare knock out two of my teeth? I’ll fight you—” She lunged at Gu Weiguo recklessly.