When Gu Qianshan woke up the next morning, he felt as if his entire body were floating.
Suddenly, he smelled a foul stench. How could one describe this smell?
It was like a pair of stinky socks that hadn't been washed in ages and had been tossed into a cesspool; it was an exceptionally soul-crushing odor.
Gu Qianshan, who had been half-asleep, was instantly jolted awake by the smell.
After finally opening his eyes and getting up, he looked around but found no suspicious targets.
Eventually, he realized that the source of the smell was on his own body.
"Cough, cough... what happened? Why is it so stinky?" Gu Qianshan said in confusion while covering his nose.
As he covered his nose, he discovered a thin layer of black mud coating his hands, and his entire body was covered in it as well.
And this smell was emanating from the black mud.
Gu Qianshan hurried out to fetch well water and went into the small bathing cubicle, quickly rinsing the black mud off his body in no time.
He finished an entire pot of porridge along with the potatoes and cabbage.
The room was furnished with several tables and stools, and the blackboard was made of joined wood, blackened by fire.
All the blankets in the room were unusable because they had been permeated by the stench.
When Gu Xue arrived, she wrote the text for today's lesson on the blackboard.
Gu Qianshan also found it strange: "I don't know either. I just woke up and found my body smelling foul. I don't know who played this prank."
The meat in the house had been finished over the past few days. Gu Xue had boiled porridge, and there were still cabbages in the courtyard fields, so she stir-fried some cabbage and shredded potatoes.
By the time she finished writing, the students were already seated below.
Only then did Gu Xue pretend to emerge from her room. Looking at Gu Qianshan, who was washing clothes, she feigned confusion and said, "Grandpa, why is it so stinky in this courtyard?"
Many children had already arrived at the ancestral hall.
She hadn't used much seasoning, but the food still tasted quite good.
From inside her room, Gu Xue could hear everything clearly.
After tidying up the house, Gu Xue finished making breakfast.
By writing on the clods of earth, the characters could be seen more clearly.
Based on yesterday's ratio, she had added the Spirit Spring water more than ten times less.
Currently, she had no intention of going out, because Gu Qianshan's condition was difficult to explain; it was better to just pretend she knew nothing.
If he didn't understand, then so be it; it was rare for the elderly to be able to play the fool, but being a bit muddled was for the best.
In reality, she also found it strange. Gu Qianshan had been on the battlefield before and possessed a sufficiently strong mental fortitude.
Gu Xue was the only teacher in the village, and the village school was located in the attic next to the ancestral hall.
Gu Qianshan picked up a hoe and went to the fields to work, while Gu Xue took the prepared books and headed to the ancestral hall in the corner of the village.
By the time Gu Qianshan had washed himself several times and wiped the bed clean, he was refreshed.
For some unknown reason, even the ordinary potatoes and cabbage were delicious, and Gu Qianshan ate with great satisfaction.
These students were all children from the village who couldn't help with the labor, so they were all sent to school.
They were all very well-behaved and studied seriously; even if they had questions, they would come and ask earnestly after class.
No wonder the original owner of this body liked these children so much; they were truly too well-behaved. Gu Xue also liked well-behaved human cubs.
After all, having lived for so long in a place like the apocalypse where people were neither human nor ghost, one couldn't help but feel affection for children, who represented hope.
These children learned particularly slowly; they only managed to learn one ancient poem in an entire morning.
In the blink of an eye, it was noon. The group of children hurried back home to eat. There was only one class in the afternoon, and they would all return after taking their midday naps at home.
Gu Xue returned home and casually stir-fried two dishes. After delivering them to Gu Qianshan, she turned and headed into the mountains on her way back.
Following the previous path, she soon arrived in front of the large elm tree.
The tree, which originally had few leaves, had unexpectedly grown quite a lot of foliage over the past few days.
It looked much more vibrant.
When Gu Xue approached, she heard the voice of the great tree, which was even more powerful than before.
"Save me... save me..."
Gu Xue touched the great tree.
"You want me to save you? How can I help you?"
There followed a long silence. Just as Gu Xue thought there would be no response—
"Something underneath... something underneath..."
Then, that sentence kept repeating in her mind.
Gu Xue was speechless!
Was there something wrong with this tree?
It was as if it could only repeat one sentence, but she did learn something from what it said.
Controlling her superpower, she traveled through the roots of the tree.
She soon found a mass of black matter wrapped by the roots.
It was this thing that was obstructing the growth of the roots; the nutrients required for the tree's growth could not be replenished, which was why it had been slowly weakening.
Controlling the roots, she quickly moved the object from the base to the surface.
Once it reached the surface, Gu Xue was startled.
She had originally only felt that the object was quite large, but she hadn't expected that once it broke through the soil, it would be dozens of large crates piled together.
Gu Xue casually opened one crate; inside was filled with jewelry and ornaments. Opening others, she found jade pieces and several crates of antiques and paintings.
These items were of immense value, but similarly, if they were discovered by others, it would not be a good thing.
Even in their village, everyone knew that there was a strict crackdown happening outside.
With the obstruction removed, the large elm tree seemed to regain its vitality, and the entire tree felt much more spirited.
Gu Xue looked at these items; they seemed to have some history. To be able to hide under this tree, based on the tree's age, they must have been there for at least a hundred years.
That meant that over these hundred years, the original owner of these items should have long since passed away.
That meant these were ownerless goods. Since she had discovered them, they belonged to her.
Thinking of this, Gu Xue directly stored the pile of items into her space, which instantly occupied more than half of it.
Looking at the treasures she had obtained and then at the heaven-reaching elm tree, Gu Xue directly gave all of her superpower to the tree.
In an instant, the tree became covered in leaves.
As Gu Xue was leaving, she heard the aged voice of the large elm tree once more.
"Thank you... thank you... thank you!"
Even after she had walked a long way, the sound of the old elm tree's gratitude still echoed in Gu Xue's mind.
Returning to the foot of the mountain, she took the books from home and went to the ancestral hall.
In the afternoon, she taught some basic mathematics. When she returned home in the evening, Gu Qianshan had returned even earlier than her.
Gu Qianshan looked extremely happy. After asking around, she learned that there was news regarding the relief grain from above.
Ever since the incident with the space food, the village had been living very frugally.
Now that there was news of relief grain, once it arrived, they wouldn't have to suffer from hunger like they were now.
After hearing this, Gu Xue recalled her previous memories, and her eyes instantly darkened.
This grain will never arrive!
(End of Chapter)