Chapter 2: Family Separation and the Mystery of the Parcel Box Space-Dividir a família e morar numa caverna? Fico rico graças às entregas do futuro.(Qing Jue Chen Chen)

By the time Mrs. He from the He family reacted, she was already in the well.

"Mother!"

People from the first and second branches immediately rushed forward, forgetting about grabbing Yu Jinzhen. They hurried to the well's edge, trying to find a way to save her.

Yu Jinzhen remained indifferent to everything.

Mu Guhuai arrived behind them, wanting to go forward to check on his mother, but the first and second branches were crowding the well’s mouth, making it impossible to get through.

He could only approach Yu Jinzhen. "Jinzhen, are you okay?"

Yu Jinzhen shook her head. "I'm fine."

Soon, a crowd gathered around.

Seeing the gathering, a villager asked, "What's going on?"

"Mrs. He from the Mu family fell in."

"Falling in isn’t a problem. It hasn’t rained here for two years. Last time I drew water, more than half the bucket was silt; no one can drown in this."

"Exactly, this well has dried up."

Yu Jinzhen’s expression remained unchanged.

She had long known this was a dry well; she couldn't bring herself to kill someone.

Before long, the Mu brothers used a rope to pull Mrs. He, covered in mud, out of the well.

Although startled, Mrs. He was still in good spirits.

As soon as she was pulled out, she saw Mu Guhuai and Yu Jinzhen standing together, showing no concern for her, their own mother. She nearly died of anger.

Just as she was about to scold them, a sharp pain shot through her right ankle, and she suddenly collapsed onto the ground.

Yu Jinzhen raised an eyebrow. "Even with a twisted ankle, you’re still so arrogant?"

Mrs. He glared venomously at Yu Jinzhen. "Ungrateful child! How dare you push me into the well? I’ll report you to the authorities and have you punished!"

Yu Jinzhen replied coldly, "Ungrateful? I’m not even your biological granddaughter, and you never raised me. Push you? False accusations deserve punishment too. Many people just now saw you fall in on your own."

Mrs. He suddenly looked around; indeed, many people looked at her with disdain.

"You fell in yourself but want to blame a child? You’re truly regressing with age."

"Mrs. He has always disliked this child. It’s no surprise she would say such things. I saw her chasing the child just now, like she wanted to devour her."

---

"Eh? Has this child recovered from her illness?"

Only then did everyone realize that the once quiet and frequently ill Yu Jinzhen now stood before them, full of vigor.

Yu Jinzhen smiled softly. "Thank you all for your concern. I’m well now, but just as I recovered, grandmother set her sights on me, saying she wanted to sell me to the Lin family as a child bride so she could enjoy a lavish life. What could I do? I had to run desperately, and when she chased me, she tripped and..."

She didn’t finish, but everyone understood.

Seeing her pitiful expression, the crowd murmured in sympathy.

"Everyone knows the Lin family’s search for child brides is a pretense; they truly enjoy abusing children."

"Mrs. He is truly cruel. Sending one biological granddaughter away isn’t enough; now she wants to send off a foster granddaughter too."

"It’s understandable, though. Only with money can one live well. It hasn’t rained here for two years, and families have sold everything. If it doesn’t rain soon, I’d consider selling my own children too."

...

Liu Shi pushed through the crowd to the front. Seeing her husband and foster daughter there, she asked in confusion, "What happened?"

Everyone turned to look at Liu Shi.

Seeing her disheveled state, the crowd was taken aback.

Yu Jinzhen scrutinized her foster mother.

Two months ago, due to the extended drought, the family had no harvest, and their stored grain and silver were almost gone.

The children were crying from hunger, possessions sold off, debts mounting, and creditors demanding payment.

To keep her family alive, Liu Shi had sold herself in the city to a human trafficker.

However, her excellent cooking skills and some knowledge of medicine caught the eye of the general’s steward, and she became the general’s household cook.

Today was her first time returning home since selling herself.

Mu Guhuai saw his wife return, clothes dirty and face bruised, and anxiously asked, "Child’s mother, what happened to you?"

Liu Shi smiled lightly. "Don’t worry, just a little accident."

Yu Jinzhen’s eyes flickered. Suddenly, she approached Liu Shi with concern. "Godmother, you look like you’ve been punished for something. Is that true?"

If the third branch of the Mu family was to prosper, it would only be by separating from the others and not being exploited.

Just now, she had confirmed that the fast-delivery mystery box space she had bound to herself half a month before death in her past life had come with her.

She could open one mystery box every day.

The items she obtained covered all aspects of life: food, drink, entertainment, clothing, and shelter.

She could even open various lands, complete with crops, grains, and animals.

Pastures, fish ponds, shrimp ponds, crab ponds—all could be opened, and the lands could be transferred elsewhere.

Perhaps in her past life, she hadn’t lacked food, and the time with the space was short.

So, the items were mostly non-edible, focusing on daily necessities.

Though two days before her death in the last life, she had opened a piece of land with potato plants and another with cherry trees.

Though each was only one plot, each spanned four square meters, and the crops could be harvested again six hours after picking.

It was more than enough to support her and the entire third branch of the Mu family.

Liu Shi was stunned and had no time to speak when her foster daughter mischievously winked at her, comforting her: "Godmother, it’s alright. No matter what punishment you face, our family will always stand by your side and share the burden with you."

Mu Guhuai, unaware of Yu Jinzhen’s glance, anxiously asked, "Made a mistake? What happened?"

Liu Shi wasn’t naive. Today’s scene likely meant Mrs. He was bullying her family again.

She knew her husband was the least favored by Mrs. He, which was why she had come back today to see for herself.

Unexpectedly, something really had happened.

At this moment, she had no time to ask why Yu Jinzhen had suddenly changed so much.

Ever since her biological daughter died, she had harbored a deep hatred for Mrs. He. Sighing along with her foster daughter’s words, she said, "Yes, I made a mistake. A big one. The master of the general’s household is displeased and wants to turn me over to the authorities. The family will also be implicated. Soon, someone will come to take us away."

Yu Jinzhen stood beside her as she spoke, quietly whispering a few words.

Mu Guhuai was also beside his foster daughter and clearly heard what she said.

Indeed, this was the perfect opportunity to separate the family.

Otherwise, he feared all his children would be harmed by their so-called mother!

What?

The family would also be implicated?

Mrs. He immediately became anxious. She had hoped Liu Shi would live well, but now she would be dragged down first. She shouted loudly, "Liu Shi, you actually made a huge mistake? How could you be so careless! It wouldn’t matter if you died, but if my eldest or second son were harmed, could you pay for that?"