Yun Yi, holding the little snow fox, personally went to inspect the underground warehouse. As 'Xueli' had said, anything left by previous owners that contained even a trace of spiritual energy had been completely consumed as energy. Only the supplies she had brought from the 21st century remained.
Fortunately, these items from the later era were all intact. The various seeds she had purchased were especially safe and sound. Perhaps it was because they contained no spiritual energy whatsoever, or perhaps the space had safely reached its destination and no longer needed to consume energy. In any case, they had all been preserved.
By now, Yun Yi had fully grasped both the situation within the mansion and the original owner's circumstances. Returning was impossible; she had to accept her situation and make the best of it. Moreover, she needed to find a way to locate Long Jingrui.
Her immediate priority was to regain her strength and restore vitality to the space by planting crops. However, her current spiritual power was too weak, and doing everything herself was incredibly time-consuming and laborious. "Consider it physical exercise," she thought resignedly.
The original owner's father had been a military officer who deeply cherished his legitimate daughter. The original owner had pestered him to learn martial arts since childhood. Although she hadn't become highly skilled, this background conveniently provided a plausible explanation for Yun Yi's future excellent physical abilities. It seemed she would need to transcribe a martial arts manual from memory and practice it with her 'adoptive' younger brother. This would serve a dual purpose: masking her own abilities while helping him build strength and self-defense skills.
Gazing at the desolate emptiness within the space, Yun Yi sighed inwardly: *What a pity about the original medicinal herb fields, not even a single blade of grass remains. Starting over completely from scratch now is truly a long and arduous task.
Xiao Chenrui finished washing up and paced anxiously around his study. Due to the mourning period, he hadn't attended the academy for quite some time. But today, he absolutely had to find a way out of the mansion to seek help at Prince Jin's residence.
How could he leave smoothly without arousing the suspicions of the main branch of the family? He pondered this repeatedly.
Just then, a servant ushered in his second elder cousin from the main branch, Xiao Chenming. "Second Elder Cousin, what brings you here today?" Chenrui asked.
Chenming looked at his cousin, noticeably thinner. "Chenrui," he consoled, "I know your heart is heavy with grief, but staying cooped up in this courtyard isn't the solution. You should go out, take a walk, clear your head. It will help you feel better."
These words were exactly what Chenrui needed to hear. Feigning thoughtfulness, he nodded slowly. "Second Elder Cousin is right. I really should go out for a change of scenery, rather than staying in the mansion surrounded by constant reminders."
A gentle smile appeared on Chenming's face. "It's good you can see that. The departed cannot return; one must look forward. I was just heading out on some business myself. Why not come along?"
"Alright," Chenrui agreed.
Thus, Chenrui followed Chenming out. To prevent his stepmother from learning about his supposed meeting with friends (actually his trip to Prince Jin's residence), Chenrui hadn't ordered a carriage to wait at the front gate. Instead, he went to the rear courtyard himself, instructed servants to prepare a carriage, and they departed directly through the back gate. Consequently, their exit went unnoticed by the rest of the household.
Upon arriving at the bookstore, Chenming quickly found the friend he was meeting and became engrossed in conversation, no longer keeping constant watch over Chenrui. Seizing the opportunity, Chenrui slipped quietly out of the bookstore. Knowing that walking to Prince Jin's residence would take too long and risk discovery by his cousin, he quickly hired a carriage up ahead and headed straight for Prince Jin's Mansion.