Lu Xiaotang noticed that she had been silent and somewhat distracted throughout their journey, so he gently squeezed her hand.

He reassured her, “Xiao Ning, don’t worry. If you don’t want to talk, there’s no need to explain.”

Xu Ning looked at him, pondering whether she should tell him.

Her original plan was to avoid using the space as much as possible after they got married.

But now that he already knew about it, it didn’t make much sense to keep hiding it. Doing so would only make him feel that she didn’t trust him.

So she decided to take a gamble on his character; the worst outcome would just be a loss, nothing significant.

She lifted her head and smiled, saying, “I’m not afraid! It’s just that this matter is too bizarre, and I’ve been thinking about how to tell you. Let’s go home first.”

Once they returned home, Lu Xiaotang helped Xu Ning take off her coat and urged her to sit on the kang to warm up while he went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

After they finished eating, Xu Ning asked Lu Xiaotang to sit down. She said, “In the first year I went to the countryside with Xiao An, I accidentally bumped my head while drawing water from a well.

When I was unconscious, a girl gave me this house filled with supplies. She said I was her past life, and I was supposed to be gone when I turned thirteen.

She once saved a person with great virtue and received this opportunity in return.

She felt that her family had suffered too much in this life, so she passed this chance to me in this lifetime, so that I could live well and take care of my parents.”

After Xu Ning finished speaking, she looked at Lu Xiaotang, who wore a surprised expression.

Thinking for a moment, she added, “Because this matter is so bizarre and hard to share, I kept it to myself. If you find it difficult to accept, I can understand.”

After Lu Xiaotang finished listening to her, his expression darkened. He said, “What are you talking about? Why would I have difficulty accepting this? Do you think I wouldn’t understand?”

With that, he walked over and tightly hugged her in his arms.

After a moment, Xu Ning poked his waist with her finger, but he caught her hand and said, “Don’t move around.”

Xu Ning replied, “What about the few wolves we haven’t killed yet?”

Lu Xiaotang recalled the wolves lying on the ground in the space and curiously asked, “What’s going on with those wolves?”

She explained the functions of the space, carefully not mentioning that she had considered bringing him inside, hoping he wouldn’t have any intuition about it. She planned to find an excuse to take him out later.

“Were those wild boars from a couple of years ago killed the same way?”

Xu Ning nodded and said, “If it weren’t for that, how could I have dared to go into the mountains to hunt wild boars? I wouldn’t have had the guts to do it.”

Lu Xiaotang looked at her seriously and said, “It’s best not to use it outside in the future, and be careful at home too. If someone discovers it, you should understand the principle of ‘possessing a jewel in your bosom brings calamity.’”

Xu Ning quickly nodded and replied, “I understand. I’m very cautious when I’m outside. Let me take you inside; you can kill those wolves in there and then bring them out to handle.”

Lu Xiaotang skinned the wolves, preparing to take the pelts to Grandpa Qi in the evening for processing. He also followed Xu Ning’s suggestion, leaving three whole wolves intact and cutting the remaining five into pieces.

Once he had finished cleaning up the wolves, the sky was nearly dark.

Xu Ning washed two apples and a bunch of grapes. She had previously been afraid to take them out, secretly eating them all by herself.

As Lu Xiaotang bit into an apple, he looked through the books that Xu Ning had taken out from the space. They were her college textbooks and some miscellaneous books she had bought, some of which had notes written in them.

Xu Ning explained to him that the girl who had given her the house had placed those inside.

Lu Xiaotang pondered, “Based on the information in these books, it looks like Huaguo is developing quite well over the next few decades; it’s truly evolving rapidly.”

Xu Ning nodded and replied, “Yes, and there are quite a few university textbooks here. By then, the college entrance examination must have been restored for a long time.”

Lu Xiaotang said, “From the information here, it shouldn’t be long before the college entrance examination is reinstated. Xiao Ning, you should take some time to review your textbooks now.”

Xu Ning thought to herself that he was quite sensitive when it came to politics; he could analyze so much from just a little information.

Later that evening, when Lu Xiaotang returned from the cow shed, he told Xu Ning, “Once the wolf pelts are processed, I’ll make a long fur coat for both you and Grandpa Qi.”

Xu Ning quickly protested, “I don’t want that! I’m fine with just wearing a coat. A wolf skin would be terrifying to wear. It’s better to make one for Dad and the others! That way, they can wear it underneath, and no one will notice.”

Lu Xiaotang looked at her and laughed, saying, “You’re brave enough to kill a wolf but scared of its pelt?”

“That’s not the same at all! I knocked it out with a single blow, and out of sight, out of mind. But wearing the wolf skin would mean having it on me every day,” Xu Ning replied.

Lu Xiaotang chuckled at her illogical reasoning and went to fetch a basin to bring her foot-soaking water. “Come on, soak your feet. It’s really cold today; let’s go to bed early.”

Xu Ning paused and said, “I’m not tired yet. You go ahead and sleep; I still need to make some shoes.”

“What kind of shoes do you need to make at night? You can do that during the day tomorrow. It’s too cold; you should get some rest,” he said, already pulling her socks off and placing her feet in the basin. Xu Ning shot him a glare.

The next morning, after breakfast, Lu Xiaotang said, “Take the pig’s head and offal from that house out. I’ll clean them up, so it’ll be easier for you to use when you cook.”

Xu Ning was delighted to hear this; free labor was always welcome. She quickly took the pig’s head and offal out for him to handle.

Lu Xiaotang spent the entire day cleaning up those items. When Xu Ning offered to help, he insisted that she focus on making shoes instead.

Xu Ning felt a bit helpless…

Once everything was cleaned up, he told her, “It’s all set. You can put it away now. Also, place the wolf meat inside and leave a little buried in the snow outside.”

Xu Ning salted two wolves and asked Lu Xiaotang to take half to his eldest uncle, while sending the other half to his younger uncle and Lu Xiaoran.

Since they got married, Lu Xiaoran had given them a significant amount of money, and it was only right to show their appreciation. Not only did Lu Xiaoran send a hundred yuan, but she also sent a lot of other things, and she did so every year.

Xu Ning glanced at the salted spicy cabbage and thought it was nearly ready to eat.

She then said to Lu Xiaotang, “This spicy cabbage is good to go. I’ll make some egg cakes tomorrow morning. You can take some to Grandpa Wang and bring back some wolf meat for them.”

Lu Xiaotang replied, “Okay. Is there anything else you need? I can go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy it.”

Xu Ning looked around and said, “Get some kerosene and a few more batteries. The ones I bought last time are almost used up.”

Lu Xiaotang nodded in agreement and added, “Also grab some wolf meat. I want to send some to my uncle’s comrade; he helped a lot last time. I should take some for Brother Jianshe and Sister Hongying too.”

Xu Ning recalled how Lu Xiaotang always asked for coal tickets from them during his visits. He also helped the village chief’s son enlist in the army.

She said, “Why not give him a bit more wolf meat? I have two rabbits to bring along too, and I’ll pack some spicy cabbage for him. He’s been quite a help over the years.”

Lu Xiaotang chuckled, “Just a bit of wolf meat and some of your spicy cabbage will be fine. I have a good relationship with him. Last year, his eldest son joined the army and was assigned to our military district; he’s under my command now.”

Xu Ning understood then that this wasn’t just returning a favor; it was a matter of friendship, so there was no need to send such heavy gifts.

Lu Xiaotang placed the items he had prepared for several families into a basket, while Xu Ning filled a burlap sack with some cabbage and radishes for Grandpa Wang.

Once she saw him ride away on his bike, she took the basin of spicy cabbage and delivered it to Yang Xiaomei.