And then there was the greenhouse. To prevent the house from being overrun by cat spirits or staging some bizarre romantic comedy scene, Cheng Ying decisively halted in her tracks.

Ah, Cheng Ying was utterly bored, actually finding time to languish within her personal space. This truly felt like entering early retirement mode.

It had been so long since Cheng Ying had spent time inside the space; she missed it more than she realized.

By the edge of the pond, she scrutinized her reflection. Youthful and beautiful—why was she already contemplating retirement? She raised an arm, her posture agile; where was that vibrant youthful energy?

Cheng Ying sighed and hauled several rattan chairs from the storeroom.

They were strewn carelessly throughout the space; wherever she wished to sway for a while, she could. Life was wonderfully comfortable.

In her mind, the various saplings in the space had already been moved several times, but unfortunately, Cheng Ying remained unsatisfied with any arrangement.

Did none of them look quite right? Perhaps the planning wasn't flawed; perhaps her perspective was simply skewed.

Cheng Ying began to wander the space again, looking down or up at her realm from every angle, striving to elevate the spatial layout to the next level. Still not quite content.

Cheng Ying mused, "Isn't this an elegant corner? Isn't it tasteful enough?"

The large stone didn't even offer Cheng Ying a reaction. This woman must be on her cycle; look at this restless energy.

She hadn't seen her meticulously manage the space in years, so why the frequent visits and disruptions lately?

Was this woman’s mental state normal? It certainly warranted a thorough examination.

Cheng Ying blinked, instantly moving from the armchair by the bank to the one under the grape arbor, feeling that the light here wasn't quite right; better move again.

With another thought, she appeared under the honeysuckle trellis. The fragrance was too heady, cloyingly sweet. Cheng Ying’s face darkened, and her consciousness instantly retreated, and before she even settled where to lie down, plop—she tumbled into the pool.

Uh. So, one needed to decide on a destination before transferring, otherwise, unforeseen consequences could arise.

Cheng Ying had an epiphany: this was telling her that life required goals; otherwise, even within her own domain, one could suffer losses.

Cheng Ying felt the fish swimming right over her head; with a single thought, she was ashore. She tossed the fish she held back into the water, wiped the water from her face, “Damn, that’s possible?” But clearly, she felt much more alert now.

Since she was so idle, she might as well organize the space properly.

First, she’d pick the grapes from the arbor so they wouldn't block the light. Then again, it never got truly dark here; she could see clearly. Where exactly was the light coming from? What was she being so fussy about?

In the midst of this self-reflection, Cheng Ying finally managed to settle her mind by focusing on work.

Unfortunately, there were far too many ripe grapes in the space. Cheng Ying didn't have enough jars on hand.

Otherwise, think of all the wine! Aged for a few years, that would be pure profit.

Another point: Cheng Ying wasn't worried about storage space anymore. When she built the factory structure on the five acres behind the house, she had constructed three large storage rooms specifically for the strategic relocation of her space’s contents.

For instance, to give the grapes in her space time to ferment.

Or to temporarily stash items she moved out.

In any case, Cheng Ying believed that for someone bearing secrets, having extra hidden rooms was never a bad thing.

The power of intention was remarkably useful within the space. After shifting all those things, it hadn't taken much time at all.

Cheng Ying began sorting corn. Although she hadn't planted much in the space, she could always boil ears of corn whenever she wanted; this was purely a matter of personal taste. Sometimes she’d forget, and the corn would ripen before she remembered.

Over the years, Cheng Ying had stockpiled quite a bit. She directly shelled these kernels, bagged them, and put them away.

Luckily, this was all happening inside the space. Outside, these tasks would require physical labor and consume significant time.

As an afterthought, Cheng Ying tossed a few tender ears of corn outside the boundary of the space.

Potatoes, squash, sweet potatoes—Cheng Ying dealt with them one by one. What needed to be stored, was stored; what needed harvesting, was gathered. Naturally, anything looking decent was tossed outside to use for dinner that night.

Though the individual items weren't huge, they had quantity. Over time, they became inventory. If some kind of natural disaster struck, Cheng Ying figured her family of three wouldn't have to fight others for food.

After all this frantic activity, Cheng Ying still felt unsettled and irritable.

Carrying a sack of honeysuckle, she sat by the pond, worrying. This work was too easy; it simply couldn't consume that much of her time.

Cheng Ying sighed, and then she noticed a roll of red silk floating in the pond.

Cheng Ying picked it up and unfolded it. Oh my goodness, “This thing definitely wasn't like this before!”

Looking at the object in her hand—a bracelet of crystal clarity that seemed ready to drip water, pure white jade—she gasped, “Wow, this is amazing.”

Cheng Ying thought to herself, so I had such a simple path to wealth! This thing was far more translucent than when she had first placed it inside.

Cheng Ying quickly wiped the bracelet clean on her clothes and looked again. It was still exquisitely dewy. This was a qualitative transformation!

Cheng Ying hastily fetched two stones from the pond—simple pebbles she had tossed in while idling on the riverbank.

She examined them closely. “Still just stones, but they do look significantly finer.”

Cheng Ying picked up the jade bracelet again. “It’s not a qualitative change; it’s a quality change.”

Cheng Ying sighed. Even the finest treasures aren't truly hers; she couldn't take them out and risk them, or she wouldn't be able to replace them if anything happened.

Thinking of this, Cheng Ying thought of Chi Wu. This item belonged to the Chi family.

These past few days, Cheng Ying had deliberately ignored Chi Wu.

When that boy was near her, Cheng Ying felt suffocated, seeing him only brought a sense of stifled frustration.

But now that he wasn't around to offend her eyes, she wasn't feeling any more comfortable either.

She truly couldn't fathom her own mind. Cheng Ying was a bit lost about her own feelings.

She wondered how that boy was doing, if he was adjusting.

Then, Cheng Ying felt her heart calm down. If she didn’t think of the troublesome kid, she wouldn’t have to.

Cheng Ying wrapped the bracelet back in the red silk cloth and placed it back in the water to soak. Consider it my value-added processing on the Chi family heirloom.

She turned and left the space. Her heart felt much lighter.

Oh, Cheng Ying looked around at the chaotic mess of things surrounding her. Even Chai Hu and Jie Geng were scattered all over the ground.

Apparently, they had been pulled out of the space just now.

She spotted a small millstone specifically for grinding beans—a genuinely useful item.

The single grinding stone in the yard was already enough to make the old lady turn the house into a farmers’ market; if she added a bean curd maker, how much more chaos would the old lady create?

But since she had brought it out, Cheng Ying didn’t want to put it back. If she didn't use this thing, it would just be waste.

With a thought, she put it into the space, planning to bring it out again later in a suitable spot. Look, no physical labor required. The space was too convenient. How could she have neglected using it this much for years?

Cheng Ying frowned in thought. When facing such situations before, how did she handle them? Did she really have to use every ounce of her strength to move things?

Heh, unlikely. Cheng Ying pursed her lips and smiled. When Chi Wu was around, all these physical chores were handled by him.

It seemed this boy had been enslaved under her command for several years. Perhaps he was quite useful after all? The space was only so useful on its own.

A useful man and a magic space—in Cheng Ying’s view, these were practically equivalent.

She really shouldn’t dwell on this. Cheng Ying feared that if she considered Chi Wu too indispensable, it might cause her trouble later.

Carrying the corn cobs, sweet potatoes, peanuts, and bean pods, she headed to the kitchen to start a fire to boil them.

She picked out two sweet potatoes and placed them in the steamer basket. One pot was ready.

The rest of the goods, Cheng Ying began organizing into the kitchen.

Finally, seeing the weather was nice, she started laying out the honeysuckle to dry.

She also spread out the goji berries. If only she had a drying machine; why bother with all this effort otherwise?

Looking at the courtyard covered in scattered items, there was barely room left to place anything.

When the old lady returned, she saw the spread and asked, “What is all this? Where did it come from?”

Cheng Ying thought, since I’m telling one lie, I might as well go big. “Someone just dropped it off for me. Look at the grinder I specially ordered for you—what do you think? It’s specifically for making bean curd.”

The old lady examined the delicate millstone. “What a good thing, Yingzi. It’s much smaller than the one at our mill. It’ll be perfect for the three or four of us.”

Cheng Ying replied, “Exactly, it’s just us few people. Using the big millstone, those few beans wouldn’t even cover the surface.”

The old lady exclaimed, “Oh, my Yingzi knows her grandmother’s heart. I just wanted to eat fresh tofu made at home.”

Cheng Ying felt a surge of pride. Who understood the old lady better than she did? “I want soy milk.”

The old lady slapped her thighs and turned toward the house. “I’ll go soak the beans right now.”

Cheng Ying said, “No need, Grandma, I already soaked them.”

Just as the old lady was about to praise her granddaughter, a scent reached her nose. “What is that smell? It’s so fragrant!”

Before she finished speaking, Cheng Ming entered. “Is it early Mid-Autumn Festival already? Why does it smell like boiled corn?”

Well, the old lady didn't need to ask anymore. It was definitely that smell.

Someone with a nose like a hound dog smelled it out.

Cheng Ying looked down on the clueless boy. “Just because it’s not a festival doesn’t mean we can’t eat this, right? Your sister can eat it whenever she wants.”

Cheng Ming sniffed deeply, saliva dripping from his mouth. “It’s not easy to eat this here. Back in the village, we could just break off a few ears by the courtyard and boil them. Here, there’s really nowhere to find it. I’ve been craving it for ages.”

Cheng Ying scoffed, “Scram, you’re disgusting.”

Then the old lady asked, “Where did you get this?”

Cheng Ying said, “They came with the millstone—all local specialty items. See how thoughtful I was?”

Then she turned and brought over a basin of boiled peanuts. “How about these?”

Cheng Ming was too eager. “Oh, they need to soak a bit longer; are these even cooked yet?”

The old lady looked at Cheng Ying again. Cheng Ying thought, these people can’t keep their mouths shut when eating. They are so different from Chi Wu. Are they deliberately trying to find fault with me? “Are they tasty? If they’re tasty, close your mouth.”

The old lady looked at her granddaughter. Some habits needed to be addressed early. If a time came when they couldn’t eat and were starving, they mustn't let this small issue lead the child into making a mistake. “You didn’t steal them, did you?”

Cheng Ying said, “Grandma, these are from the greenhouse. They just harvest them like this. And I have green beans too; I’ll get them for you later, don't rush.”

Before long, the three of them had a table laden with food spread out under the grape arbor.

The old lady shelled peanuts, her thoughts drifting to her grandson-in-law. “It’s a shame Wu Zi isn’t home. This is the very first of the season.”

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