The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 225: Who’s Tougher?

Chapter 225: Chapter 225: Who’s Tougher?

Old Granny Wu immediately became as chaff, unable to speak a word.

Who would have known that Second Young Miss Wang, the maid who used to chase after the Song Family’s wild bastard, would actually have such a temperament, ready to kill at the slightest disagreement!

If she had known, she would have never dared to speak those words in front of this grim reaper.

Aunt Wang, who stood beside her, also got frightened, "Yongzhu, you mustn’t be confused, killing someone means paying with your life! Quick, let go, let go!"

Wang Yongzhu’s hand was steady, and the sickle at Old Granny Wu’s neck was just as steady, "Repeat what you just said? Let me hear, what exactly is the reputation of the Wang Family?"

Old Granny Wu was scared witless, "Granny, young granny! I was talking nonsense! Nonsense and gibberish, spewing rubbish with my mouth! Please, have mercy on me, spare me! I won’t dare again! The reputation of the Wang Family in Qilidun is top-notch! Young granny, you are as beautiful as a flower, surely you will marry into a good household..."

Towards the end, she almost cried.

Only then did Wang Yongzhu retract her sickle, before she casually glanced at a stone by the roadside, nudging it lightly with her foot, kicking the stone several meters away, then spoke indifferently, "If I ever hear again that someone in the village is speaking ill of the Wang Family’s reputation, whoever says it, I’ll let them try which is harder, the stone or their mouth!"

A few gossipy old women didn’t even dare to breathe, watching as Wang Yongzhu, with her basket on her back, slowly walked away.

It wasn’t until she was far off that they collapsed to the ground, each of them with sweat-soaked clothes on their backs.

It took quite a while before someone quietly spoke, "Since when did the Wang Family have such an ancestor!"

Looking at the stone a few meters away, they all got goosebumps.

Sharing a look, with young granny showing such strength, who would dare to utter half a bad word against the Wang Family?

Someone probably thought that one kick from the young granny could end half their lives, right?

With that thought, they didn’t even dare to stay longer, afraid that Wang Yongzhu would come back to settle scores, and they quickly got up and hurried home.

Wang Yongzhu, holding a grudge in her heart, was determined to revive the Wang Family, to shut these gossipy old women up! By then, what else could they say? They probably wouldn’t praise the Wang Family enough!

Entering the mountain, she walked head down for quite a while, before she managed to dissipate the anger in her heart.

In this vast mountain, where could she find Persicaria tinctoria?

Of course, she had to use her ultimate skill.

"Come out—Xiao Tiantian!" Wang Yongzhu summoned Xiao Tiantian.

Xiao Tiantian appeared promptly, "Host, do you need the Scanning System? Satisfaction guaranteed, scan wherever you point, whatever you wish to scan."

Wang Yongzhu nodded, "Scan the area for me, see if there are any Persicaria tinctoria, or madder, Hong Hua, turmeric, gardenia, purple gromwell, and perilla around here."

"Sure, no problem! Would the host agree to exchange 1 point for the scanning service?"

"What are you talking about? Wasn’t it free? Why are you charging now?" Wang Yongzhu exploded.

"Host, before the System was upgraded to version 2.0, this service was offered for free to help the host complete tasks faster and better! But now that the host has completed the Primary Level tasks, the services provided by the System are charged!"

"Then don’t upgrade. Besides, I don’t have any points left now! If you don’t scan for me, how am I supposed to find Persicaria tinctoria in this huge mountain? If I can’t find it, how will I complete the task? If I don’t complete the task, you won’t be able to upgrade! If you can’t upgrade, how are we going to reach the Farming Pinnacle..." Wang Yongzhu implored Xiao Tiantian laboriously.

"The host can owe the points first, and I’ll deduct the points owed from the host once the task is completed!" Xiao Tiantian remained unmoved.

"Xiao Tiantian, I can’t believe you’re this kind of System! So petty, you’ve really disappointed me!" Wang Yongzhu was truly disappointed. Had she known earlier, she wouldn’t have upgraded the System. This upgrade has made it even harder to appease.

"I also didn’t expect that you would be such a host!" Xiao Tiantian System retorted strongly.

What else could she do? She could only choose to forgive, pffft, she could only choose to owe!

Still, she bargained and exchanged one point for all the scanning services of the Xiao Tiantian System 2.0 version.

Xiao Tiantian activated the Scanning System, and after the upgrade, its scanning range had expanded as well, mastering everything within a ten-mile radius.

"Host, if you go down from Qili Slope and enter the territory of Dahei Mountain, walk about five hundred meters ahead, there is a large patch of Persicaria tinctoria. Near that area, there is also a patch of madder. Do you need navigation?"

"Does navigation cost extra?" Wang Yongzhu, now short of both cash and courage, mustered her shamelessness and asked clearly first.

"Navigation is included in the scanning service, thank you. Do you need navigation?" Xiao Tiantian was speechless, but as a dedicated professional System, it couldn’t look down on its host.

"Guide away!" Wang Yongzhu followed Xiao Tiantian’s navigation route and slowly entered the expanse of Dahei Mountain.

This was Wang Yongzhu’s first time entering Dahei Mountain. At the foot of the mountain, the terrain was relatively gentle with large swathes of wildflowers blooming and wild grasses growing lushly.

The place was seldom visited, with just a narrow sheep intestine-like path left by hunters and men with guts to go up the mountain.

Upon entering Dahei Mountain, it seemed as if the surroundings became quiet, the temperature around her also dropped, and a breeze brought the faint sound of pine waves.

Occasionally, there were a few bird calls overhead, but looking up, she couldn’t see any trace of birds.

Wang Yongzhu checked the direction, then tightened the cuffs of her pants and sleeves and donned her hat firmly before slowly proceeding along the narrow path into the mountain.

Because of the navigation, some areas, although pathless, had been scanned by Xiao Tiantian and were relatively flat, so Wang Yongzhu just walked straight over.

The mountain was void of people, eerily empty.

Wang Yongzhu idly chatted with Xiao Tiantian to pass the time and relieve the boredom.

Before long, she indeed saw a large patch of Persicaria tinctoria, its green leaves, purple-red stems, and pink flowers swaying in the breeze, quite picturesque in a wild sort of way.

But at the moment, Wang Yongzhu wasn’t in the mood to admire them. What was needed was the leaves to make indigo dye, and she was also hoping to come back in three months to harvest more, so she had no choice but to stoop down and pick the leaves.

After gathering half a basket, Wang Yongzhu estimated that it should be enough. She still had madder on her mind, so she walked further in.

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before she saw a large patch of madder.

The madder needed for dyeing comes from the roots, which can be fresh or dried after harvesting. For the madder roots to produce color, they need to be more than three years old.

Wang Yongzhu wasn’t sure how to distinguish them, but seeing this large undisturbed patch, she figured it must have been lonely in the forest for who knows how many years.

Because this area was remote yet fertile, the madder roots could be pulled out with a bit of force, roots and all.

The extracted madder roots, with their gnarled and interwoven appearance, seemed ancient.

She had just pulled out two roots when Wang Yongzhu suddenly felt something was off. She couldn’t quite place the feeling. It was as if the surroundings had gone quiet all of a sudden, and she thought she heard the breathing of animals, and even sensed a faint musky scent typical of animals.

And a faint smell of blood?