Chapter 2634 - 1517

Holding some newspapers and a few books in her hands, she quickly left the place and approached the entrance to have the uncle weigh them.

"Twenty cents."

The uncle glanced at the newspapers and books and quoted a price.

His eyes lingered on Ding Ning with some regret, lamenting how he hadn’t rushed inside faster to act quickly.

Now that Ding Ning had left, he couldn’t make any moves.

Ding Ning paid the money.

She immediately and swiftly left the area, sensing a dangerous Qi emanating from the uncle.

After Ding Ning left, the uncle hastily found someone to look after the place and went to track Ding Ning.

Ding Ning left quickly, feeling someone was following her, so she didn’t dare return straight to her family courtyard.

She wandered in circles, hoping to find a deserted place; once she entered the space, they wouldn’t be able to track her.

She quickly entered a deserted alley.

The uncle followed her in, only to find that Ding Ning was no longer there.

Then he continued forward down the alley, perhaps confident in his familiarity with the area, sure not to lose track.

He would never guess that Ding Ning had entered a space.

Ding Ning confronted the dangerous uncle at the checkpoint.

She held her breath and decided not to go out for the time being.

Ding Ning chose to tour the courtyard inside the space.

She entered the courtyard in the space and checked every room.

Ding Ning had previously seen the courtyard, the black soil outside, the river, and the distant mountains. The river water was a hot spring, but were there other prey in the distant mountains? Were there any medicinal herbs?

She hadn’t explored yet and hadn’t had time to plant seeds in the black soil.

However, time in this space ran ten times faster; an afternoon could be well spent.

In the courtyard, Ding Ning saw some unfamiliar plants. Through two lifetimes, she had never seen such precious plants, as she used to live here till old age and never visited big cities. She saw only wildflowers and weeds growing up.

Now people planted food and vegetables in even the smallest plots of land.

Who would bother growing plants?

Especially rare ones; there were no seeds to plant, or the seeds couldn’t be cultivated.

Ding Ning thought these plants and bonsai might bring great wealth in the future.

With the space as leverage, she could cultivate more here and sell them in the big city.

This small county might not appreciate these plants, but the big cities would be different.

Perhaps their provincial capital might also have wealthy admirers, as it’s already 1977, and there are still many rich people in reality.

Moreover, some previously troubled people now vindicated, with part of their assets returned by the government, could have the capital to purchase and cultivate plants.

The house with an ancient charm had five inner courtyards.

Each courtyard held a small quadrangle.

Besides, entering the larger part, there were more houses, with a grand lounge—possibly a wealthy family gathering area.

The large courtyard had a big kitchen with some pots and stoves, with half-cooked food ready on countertops. The pots held cooked dishes, steamed rice, steamed buns, and rolls.

There were also desserts neatly arranged in the kitchen.

There was a storage room with varieties of vegetables and meats—and another place for storing grains.

Ding Ning smelled the food in the kitchen, noting no spoilage, thus deeming them edible.

She wondered who prepared the food here.

Perhaps this courtyard originated from ancient times, evidenced by the antique furniture and calligraphy paintings.

It seemed the food here wouldn’t spoil, nor would the grains. Anything from this courtyard space wouldn’t rot.

Ding Ning recalled the appearance of this vast courtyard, with mountains, water, and black soil vicinity, was triggered by contracting a Jade Token.

Ding Ning pondered whether the item was passed down from their ancestors.

She noticed the inscribed characters on the Jade Token when contracted, bearing "Ding and Ning," possibly denoting the property of the Ding and Ning families.

Her mother wasn’t surnamed Ning, but her name included Ye Ningxiao.

Was her name "Ding Ning" due to this Jade Token then?

Her father was surnamed Ding, named Ding Chengxin.

Her parents’ identities were quite mysterious; however, she wasn’t concerned with that now, knowing the kitchen had food, the storage room had grains, and in an era of rationed resources, having meats and grains meant she wouldn’t fear starvation.

Then she visited some rooms, each furnished with ancient-style eight-step beds. Men’s rooms had wardrobes with traditional outfits, men’s Hanfu.

Women’s rooms also belonged to elderly women, children, and young girls—each owning different attire, similarly arranged with carved antique beds. Yet, the children’s rooms had toys, adding some distinct child-related items to adults.

There was a study, containing books spanning five thousand years.

Ding Ning wasn’t interested in viewing them now.

Many resources already existed, although the traditional clothing wasn’t wearable, the fabric could be kept to make skirts later.