Chapter 25: You Are Doing Very Well

When Su Shan awoke, he felt dizzy and his limbs were devoid of strength. He could not even recall what had transpired before he lost consciousness.

He called out through the house for a long time, but seeing no one, he finally stepped outside, only to find Luo Yunhe standing there at the threshold.

The events that had occurred previously flooded his mind all at once, reminding him of his wife’s scheme.

Luo Yunhe raised an eyebrow as she looked at this opportunistic father-in-law, surprised that he had regained consciousness so quickly.

"Father-in-law, what do you mean by that? Should I not be here? If I shouldn't be here, then where should I be?"

Su Shan wanted to blurt out, "Weren't you taken away by someone?" but catching himself, he clamped his mouth shut, his eyes fixed on her with a piercing glare.

"Oh my, Father-in-law, I forgot to tell you something!" Luo Yunhe exclaimed suddenly, as if she had just remembered, her face painted with a look of anxious concern. "When I came out, I thought I saw a strange man carrying something away—it looked like a fairly large object. Do you think, Father-in-law, that our house might have been robbed?" She furrowed her brow, looking at Su Shan with worry, her tone tinged with unease.

Upon hearing this, Su Shan’s expression turned grim. His eyes widened, and a sense of foreboding surged within him. His wife had gone out early that morning to meet some people, promising they would arrive after a meal. Yet, half a day had passed, and both his wife and daughter were nowhere to be found. Could something truly have gone wrong?

"You—you are truly something!" Su Shan glared at Luo Yunhe, his eyes burning with fury.

Without further hesitation, he cast these words aside and stumbled out toward the road. Perhaps because the effects of the drug had not fully worn off, his body felt weak, yet his stride remained remarkably resolute.

Su Shan was frantic; he dared not imagine the horrors that might have befallen his family. As he pushed forward with all his might, he prayed that everything was merely a false alarm.

Watching her father-in-law depart, Luo Yunhe let out a scoff before returning to the courtyard, feeling completely at ease. She gathered a few tools and, carrying a basket, left the house.

The wasteland.

When Luo Yunhe arrived, the area was still overgrown with weeds.

*Ding. Host detected purchasing wasteland. Random task: Clear the wasteland! Task reward: 300 points!*

Hearing the system’s voice, Luo Yunhe looked awkward. "Didn't you say you were a 'shrew' system? Why are there tasks?"

"Returning to the host, in the absence of any 'extraordinary' events to deal with, the system will assign random tasks to the host!"

"Fine, whatever!"

Luo Yunhe set down her basket and began to clear the weeds in earnest. Although this land was classified as wasteland, it was situated right by the roadside. She cleared the weeds along the path first before venturing into the field.

She had to admit, the soil here was indeed sandy and remarkably loose. When she gave a light tug, the weeds pulled out easily, roots and all.

Luo Yunhe was surprised to find the work so effortless. Without hesitation, she tossed aside her tools and began pulling the weeds with her bare hands. Every pull successfully uprooted them, filling her with excitement and satisfaction.

As time passed, her movements became more proficient and her pace faster. Before long, a large expanse of weeds had been cleared away, revealing the fertile sandy soil beneath.

Luo Yunhe was thrilled, working away in the wasteland with great fervor.

Villagers passing by were surprised to see a young girl weeding the field. One old woman who had seen her the day before couldn't help but ask, "Little girl, what are you doing? This is just a patch of wasteland; what use is pulling these weeds? Are you planning to take them home to feed the pigs?"

Luo Yunhe turned around to see a group of village matrons. She replied, "Auntie, I’ve bought this land, and I’m just clearing out the weeds!"

"What?" the woman exclaimed, astonished. "Why would you buy this wasteland? You can't grow anything here; it’s a total waste of money!"

"Exactly! If this land could grow anything, it would have been sold off long ago. Why would it still be here? Little girl, didn't you get swindled?"

"Look at all these weeds—how long will it take to clear them all?"

The crowd murmured in disbelief, unable to fathom why this young girl would buy such a large plot of wasteland, let alone spend her time weeding it.

"Auntie, no one swindled me. The village head explained everything clearly. It is I who took a fancy to this piece of land."

"Oh my, this girl must have something wrong with her head. She wants such a desolate patch of land? Nothing will grow here; she's bound to lose everything!"

"Indeed! It's definitely a trap..."

The group looked at Luo Yunhe with disapproval. They wanted to persuade her further, but realizing she had already made the purchase, they knew it was futile. Shaking their heads and sighing, they turned and walked away.

By that afternoon, the news that the wasteland in the northwest corner had been sold had spread throughout the village. No one had expected that piece of wasteland to actually be sold—and to a young girl, no less! For a time, it became the talk of the village.

Luo Yunhe had only a simple meal at noon before returning to clear the weeds. By the end of the long day, she had managed to clear a full half-acre.

Su Jingxuan had left home early that morning. His instinct was to go hunting in the mountains, but the pain in his arm was unbearable, so he went directly to see his master.

His master, a recluse of great skill, looked at his arm with a cold, sharp gaze.

"You knew your arm was already injured and shouldn't have been moved. Now that you've aggravated it, the injury has reached the interior... I fear the fractured bone has been displaced!"

Su Jingxuan endured the agony in his arm and looked at his master. "Is there any way to stop the pain?"

The old man sighed. "Child, if I had found you sooner, I could have treated it, but now that it's displaced, it will be difficult to heal. It’s very likely your arm will be useless for the rest of your life!"

Su Jingxuan closed his eyes in pain. After a long silence, as if he had resigned himself to his fate, he opened them and looked at his master with firm resolve.

"Forgive me, Master. If it's ruined, so be it. Is there any way to dull the pain? I don't want to go home and have my family see me like this."

"I think you just don't want that young girl to see you like this, do you?"