Chapter 280: Three Days and Three Nights

In the afternoon, Gu Xixi used the broken basin and wooden box from the farmstead, filled them with fine sand and soil, and began raising seedlings.

The seeds had already been soaked while at home; almost every one had sprouted, so they only needed to be lightly buried in the moist sand and soil, waiting for the sprouts to continue developing into seedlings.

He Jinglan leaned over the table, looking seriously, and said, "The seeds Mu Nan Zhao gave us probably have a pretty high survival rate, right?"

"Mm." Gu Xixi said while working, "They're all good seeds."

She muttered softly to herself, "It's a miracle that I, an amateur, bought seeds without being cheated."

He Jinglan snorted with a laugh, "Are you praising him, or are you praising him for doing a good job this time?"

Gu Xixi stared fixedly at the sand and soil, asking, "Is there a difference?"

From afar came the muffled thud of a heavy object hitting the ground, accompanied by two somewhat indistinct screams.

Gu Xixi and He Jinglan turned their heads together to glance at the window.

Then they calmly turned back and continued facing the tabletop.

Since after lunch, similar disturbances have occurred for the third time.

From time to time, assassins break into the farmstead, but each time only one or two appear, possibly just probing, not a full-scale attack.

Dark guards and mechanism traps block them; so far no assassin has managed to reach the vicinity of this house.

He Jinglan rested her chin on her hands, smiling at Gu Xixi, "I still remember him proposing to you,"

"If, I mean if we join forces and survive this tribulation safely, would you consider his proposal?"

He Jinglan leaned in excitedly, "If you marry and move to the capital, we could see each other every day and never be apart."

Gu Xixi thought seriously, "Although I also want to see you often, the price for this marriage would be too high."

She shook her head, "No."

He Jinglan tried to tempt, "There are many fields around the capital; my family even has several manors."

"Once you go to the capital, it won't affect your farming, and it'll be convenient for us to do business together and make money!"

Gu Xixi looked at He Jinglan, "All those things you mentioned, I could do without marrying Mu Nan Zhao."

He Jinglan said dejectedly, "I'm just racking my brains to match you two up."

Gu Xixi smiled and patted her, "Don't worry, if the chance comes I'll definitely go to the capital to have a look."

"When the time comes, as the host you'll inevitably have to entertain me well."

He Jinglan perked up upon hearing that, "Of course! We'll eat our way through the capital, play our way through the capital. My family has no elders to restrain us; you can stay at my place for as long as you like!"

Gu Xixi secretly let out a sigh of relief.

At least the topic was diverted.

After nightfall, the batches of assassins breaking into the farmstead became noticeably denser, and their numbers increased.

Old Li knocked on the door using the prearranged signal.

He brought in the food, his expression clearly not as relaxed as during the day.

He Jinglan asked, "Uncle Li, what's the situation outside?"

Old Li said, "As soon as it got dark, five people forcefully broke in."

"The brothers at the front door used strong crossbows to take out three, and a plank struck and injured one; the wounded man together with the other two continued to break in."

"To prevent them from reaching this side, several brothers joined forces to surround and attack, and they have already subdued them."

He Jinglan worriedly asked, "How are our people? Has anyone been injured?"

Old Li replied, "No one is hurt; young lady, rest assured."

He paused, then solemnly said, "Tonight will certainly not be peaceful; with limited visibility in the darkness, lest we fail in our protection, young lady and Boss Gu should try to go out as little as possible."

Gu Xixi and He Jinglan nodded in agreement.

He Jinglan thought, "If tonight is like this, tomorrow will surely be even less stable."

"Pass on my order: block them if you can; if you really can't, it's okay to loosen up a bit. There's no need to insist on keeping the thieves far away just to protect me."

"Anyway, the area around these two rooms has the most mechanisms; with the aid of traps, we can at least hold out longer, avoiding unnecessary losses."

Old Li stared for a moment, glanced at He Jinglan, then clasped his fists and replied, "Yes."

Until dawn, the first night passed with fright but no danger.

The next day, however, was surprisingly calm; not even a scout intruder appeared.

Gu Xixi and the others all felt something was wrong.

Although yesterday we didn't let any captive go back, the assassins outside probably observed and discovered that the guards inside the farmstead are not sufficient.

So everyone made early preparations; by evening, all had eaten and drunk their fill.

What we will face shortly is bound to be a fierce battle.

Sure enough, when the moon rose to the treetops, the front and back gates of the farmstead were simultaneously attacked.

Each side had set up a strong crossbow; although long-range attacks were effective for defense, they could not withstand the enemy's superior numbers.

Soon, some who slipped through the net entered the farmstead, sprinting straight toward the small house.

Inside the house there were no lit lamps; the two women sat facing each other.

Hearing the commotion outside draw nearer, the two stood up, took each other's hands, and walked outward……

Dawn broke, the ground littered with mess.

The assassins' corpses have already disappeared; the dark guards are hurriedly resetting the mechanisms.

Old Li wiped his sweat and said, "Last night they were really crazy, coming in three waves without stopping!"

"Thanks to Boss Gu's poison mechanism helping a great deal, only one of our brothers suffered a minor external injury."

"Otherwise, even if we could barely hold out through last night, this third day probably wouldn't last until dark."

The dark guards who previously built the mechanisms stuffed the poison prepared by Gu Xixi into a bronze pot, hid it in a concealed high place, and also installed a launching mechanism inside the pot.

As long as an assassin comes within ten steps of the small house, the mechanism will be triggered, spraying the poison powder directly onto their face.

Because Gu Xixi said the medicine was limited, we need to use it sparingly.

Such effective mechanisms can only be used in the most critical positions.

But the poison is now gone.

He Jinglan's expression was somewhat heavy.

Lao Li instead perked up, clasped his fists, and said, "Young lady, don't fear; we have been ordered to protect the young lady. No matter what happens today, we will surely escort Boss Gu and the young lady out at the cost of our lives."

After Lao Li finished speaking, he went back to work with everyone.

They had gone two full days without sleep or rest, their eyes filled with bloodshot veins.

Although the duty of the Dark Guard is just that.

But He Jinglan couldn't bear to watch them sacrifice themselves for her.

She anxiously stamped her foot and said, "Heavenly spirits, earthly spirits, please let our reinforcements arrive quickly!"

Night fell again, the manor was pitch black, without a single light.

Gu Xixi and He Jinglan crouched beside the small hut.

Lao Li told them to hide here tonight.

Fifteen mu away, the clashing of weapons could be faintly heard.

The two were listening intently when suddenly—Boom!! A loud bang made their hearts pound wildly.

He Jinglan grabbed Gu Xixi's hand, her palm already slick with cold sweat.

"They wouldn't have come again in large numbers and forced their way in, would they?"

Gu Xixi patted her reassuringly, but her eyes remained fixed on the distance.

The fighting sounds continued in the distance, not advancing toward them.

However, Gu Xixi narrowed her eyes and suddenly saw a figure emerge from the darkness, running toward them.