While Chi Wan was excitedly heading outside to plan out the land, Chi Yuanshan and Song Yinghe huddled together, whispering. "How much money do you have left?"
Song Yinghe quietly glanced out the window before whispering back, "Only a little over five thousand..."
Chi Yuanshan looked at the 200 balance in his own account and let out a long sigh.
The company had been sold off to cover debts, and their family properties had mostly been auctioned off. Now, besides the necessary living expenses in their accounts, all they had left was a single car.
"I'll go to a used car dealership in the city tomorrow and sell the car. That should help us hold on for a while longer. At the very least, I need to get you two settled. Wanwan's schooling will cost money later on, too."
Chi Yuanshan paused, then said to Song Yinghe with a hint of guilt, "Ah He, this has been hard on you... Thankfully, once this batch of fruit ripens, our finances should be a little easier."
Song Yinghe hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "How about... I go ask my family for some money..."
Chi Yuanshan gripped Song Yinghe's shoulders, his face full of disapproval. "Ah He, you know they won't lend us anything. Why would you go there just to let them humiliate you?"
The thought of the looks on Song Yinghe's parents' and her two younger brothers' faces—so different from when they'd asked him for money—made his chest tighten with frustration.
But seeing the sadness on Song Yinghe's face, Chi Yuanshan couldn't bring himself to say anything more. He just pulled her into his arms and comforted her, "Don't be sad. Some people can only share the good times, not the bad. It's better to see their true colors sooner rather than later. Like Wanwan said, we're only in our forties. This is the prime age for us to fight for our future."
Song Yinghe was finally amused by his words. "You and your daughter... you two are really something else..."
"Dad! Mom! Come quick, come quick! I have a su~per big surprise for you!" Chi Wan suddenly bounced in from outside, interrupting their conversation.
The couple exchanged a look. Before they could even ask what was going on, Chi Wan was already dragging them out of the house.
"This..."
Chi Yuanshan stared at the enormous treehouse that had suddenly appeared, so stunned he was speechless.
Chi Wan's face was flushed with excitement. "Isn't it super cool?! We don't have to worry about a house for now, hahaha! Why don't we just tear down this old house today~"
After all, who didn't dream of having a treehouse as a child?
「Ten minutes earlier.」
Just as Chi Wan was about to measure the empty lot outside, Li Xingye, who must have just finished what he was doing, heard her muttering to herself and casually asked about it.
Chi Wan didn't think much of it and, in a slightly complaining tone, told Li Xingye about how her family had been driven up into the mountains.
It wasn't that she wanted Li Xingye to help her get revenge or anything. It was mainly because Li Xingye was about her age, and they had been through a lot together. In Chi Wan's eyes, they could be considered friends.
Or, to be more precise, were they like online friends, their connection tethered to the space?
So it was perfectly reasonable to vent to a friend about the bizarre things she'd encountered.
Besides, with the wealth in the space as her backup, she was planning to build a new house on the mountain anyway. So, Chi Wan's tone was merely indignant, not despondent.
Li Xingye, however, was silent for a long time after she finished speaking.
Just when Chi Wan thought the topic was over, Li Xingye suddenly spoke up. "So, what kind of house do you like?"
"Huh?"
Chi Wan was taken aback. Thinking that maybe Li Xingye was asking about her plans for the new house, she smiled and said, "I haven't really decided, actually. Maybe I'll build it based on our old house?"
As she spoke, her gaze fell on a large tree not far from the small house, and an idea sparked in her mind. "You know, my biggest dream when I was little was to build a treehouse in a forest. Sounds like something out of a fairy tale, right?
"Later, when my dad heard about my wish, he had a big, treehouse-style bed custom-made for my room. You have no idea, I was ecstatic back then. I'd imagine I was a little wild child from a fairy tale..."
"Wild child...?" Hearing this, Li Xingye couldn't seem to hold back a soft chuckle.
"What's wrong with a wild child? Wild children are happy," Chi Wan retorted, unconvinced. "And now I really am living in the woods. In a way, isn't that my wish coming true?"
Li Xingye was speechless.
Seeing Li Xingye's seemingly speechless reaction, Chi Wan snickered to herself and went back to measuring the area.
But she had only taken a few steps when Li Xingye's low voice sounded in her ear, "Then let me help you make your wish come true, too."
For a moment, Chi Wan was so captivated by his incredibly gentle voice she nearly tripped. The next second, she realized that the instant Li Xingye finished speaking, the large tree had suddenly shot up, growing significantly taller and thicker!
Its branches extended out into the empty space, and along with vines that climbed up on their own, they slowly formed a structure nearly five meters high!
Then, before Chi Wan's astonished eyes, thick branches acted as beams while countless vines wrapped around the crisscrossing boughs, weaving themselves together.
In just a few short minutes, a massive treehouse leaning against the great tree appeared before Chi Wan, looking fresh and vibrant!
Once the house took shape, it was divided into two stories. On the side closest to the main tree trunk, Li Xingye had even woven a wicker swing for her out of vines.
But that wasn't all.
A thick, dense patch of thorny bushes sprouted from the ground, growing nearly as tall as Chi Wan, and wrapped around the treehouse to form a natural little courtyard.
In the courtyard, Li Xingye somehow produced a giant tree root. After leveling off the top, he planted it directly into the ground, turning it into a natural wooden table—he even made four small wooden stumps to serve as chairs.
As for the treehouse itself, the way to the second floor was a rope ladder woven from hanging vines, dotted with a few small, nameless flowers, giving it a wonderfully wild charm.
This dream-like scene of a house being built with a single click completely reshaped Chi Wan's understanding of Li Xingye's superpower.
'She suddenly felt a bit sheepish. All that food she'd hoarded for Li Xingye felt a bit beneath someone of his caliber...'
'Once the dust settled,' Chi Wan silently made a resolution, 'as soon as I figure out a way to get funds into my account, I absolutely have to treat Li Xingye to a Manchu-Han Imperial Feast!'
However, what was a dream house in Chi Wan's eyes was apparently still not quite satisfactory to Li Xingye. "It's a pity there's no bamboo around, or it would be more comfortable to live in. As for things like electricity, water, and a bathroom... you'll have to solve those yourself..."
"Boss, don't worry about it! This is already perfect!! It's fine to let other people earn a little money too." Seeing that all the movement had stopped, Chi Wan had long been eager to climb the rope ladder to the second floor.
Perhaps because they were grown by the superpower, the plants were even tougher than Chi Wan had imagined. Normal footsteps didn't even leave a mark on the leaves.
The air was filled with the fresh scent of grass and trees, as if the sweltering heat of summer had been swept away.
Especially the large, vine-woven bed. Chi Wan lay on it blissfully and said happily, "What's the difference between this and sleeping in the arms of nature?"