The next morning, Yunyi set out for the back hill a quarter of an hour earlier than usual. Once she entered the back hill, she immediately activated her Qinggong. She rushed straight to the place where the bacon was being smoked, worried that the firewood she had laid might not be enough to keep the fire from going out. Fortunately, everything was in order when she arrived. No animals had visited, and the location was perfect for smoking meat. After adding more firewood, she left and used her Qinggong to head to her usual spot for practicing martial arts. With her current skills, aside from those reclusive experts, she was likely unmatched by most. After all, many Ancient Martial Arts Techniques had been lost. Her Qinggong alone was probably unparalleled. As the sky began to lighten with the first hint of dawn, she started to meditate. Facing the rising purple glow from the east, she emptied her Sea of Consciousness and circulated the Inner Strength within her body through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians. Only after exhaling a breath of turbid air did she conclude her practice. She returned to the bacon smoking area, added enough firewood to last the entire day, and then left. Today, the villagers were scheduled to deliver their public grain levy. Those not involved were free to do as they pleased. After breakfast, Yunyi asked around the village for a place to buy pickling jars and ceramic crocks, then set off to find it. Unexpectedly, she ran into Qiao Yuxiang walking towards her. She’s certainly lucky, Yunyi couldn’t help but think. How come no wild animal in the mountains snatched her away? After yesterday’s events, Yunyi’s opinion of Qiao Yuxiang had plummeted into the negatives. Qiao Yuxiang looked disheveled, as if she had just come down from the mountain. Yunyi deliberately asked, "Qiao Zhiqing, where have you been to get yourself into such a state?" The source of thɪs content is ɴovelfire.net Qiao Yuxiang’s expression turned quite sour. "Nowhere special. I just took a tumble." With that, she quickly passed by Yunyi and headed towards the Zhiqing Point. The neighboring village had a kiln specializing in firing earthenware pots, jars, and small porcelain crocks. While Yunyi was on her way there, she overheard several people still discussing the previous night’s events. "Speaking of which, has anything been resolved between Zhang Mazha and that Deng Zhiqing?" "I heard Deng Zhiqing absolutely refuses to marry Zhang Mazha. She even said that if they keep pushing her, she’ll go to the public security bureau and claim Zhang Mazha forced himself on her." "Now that they’ve been found out, she claims it was forced. If they hadn’t been discovered, who knows how wild she would have been! Truly shameless." "Would Zhang Mazha agree to that?" "Of course, Zhang Mazha disagrees. But he’s also put the word out: anyone who dares to marry Deng Zhiqing will be making an enemy of the Zhang Family." "Well, it looks like they’re digging their heels in now." "After what happened, if she doesn’t marry Zhang Mazha, who else would marry her?" Someone noticed Yunyi approaching and called out, "Chu Zhiqing, where are you off to?" Yunyi smiled and nodded to the woman. "Sister-in-law, I’m heading to Nanbai Village’s kiln factory to look around. I want to buy a few pickling jars and small crocks, thinking of making some sauerkraut and pickling a few jars of vegetable roots." "That’s the right idea! This is how one should live. Don’t be like those people at the Zhiqing Point, always dreaming about unrealistic things." Yunyi didn’t respond directly to this but said politely, "Sister-in-law, I’ll be on my way then." She also nodded to several other women and older ladies nearby before taking her leave. After she was out of earshot, someone remarked, "Chu Zhiqing’s medical skills are so good; it’s a real shame to have her doing farm work." "Exactly! They should suggest to the village leaders that Xue Linfang be replaced. It’s a waste for him to get eight work points a day for nothing." "You’ve hit the nail on the head, but who dares to bring it up? If the Xue Family finds out, they’d probably show up at your door causing trouble." "Doctor Gong isn’t in good health and can’t return to the clinic. Xue Linfang hasn’t learned any real skills and is worried about his position being taken, so he’s adamant about not having Chu Zhiqing around. Ultimately, it’s us villagers who suffer."