Siheyuan, integrating everything, cultivating the city

"Why is he here?" Li Xiangqian's heart suddenly tightened, and thoughts quickly ran through his mind. He had been coming out frequently at night these days, although it was for work in the fields, but after all, the time was special, and he didn't want to attract other people's attention, let alone He Yuzhu. Everyone in the village knew that He Yuzhu was a chatterbox, and if he told others about what happened today, I'm afraid the whole village would start talking about it.

He quickly lowered the lantern in his hand to minimize the light, bent down, and slowly retreated behind a haystack. He knew that the haystack here was high enough to cover his figure. Next to the haystack was a depression, and the humidity of the depression made the air dull and faintly exuded the smell of soil. He held his breath, pressed his body close to the ground, and tried not to make any sound.

He Yuzhu walked slowly, and it seemed that he did not notice him immediately, but he was obviously observing his surroundings. Li Xiangqian was getting more and more nervous, and his mind was thinking quickly, if he was caught in the act, how would he explain it? Should he say that he was just here to see the land, or make up a random excuse to fool people? But these excuses could not stand up to scrutiny. He clenched his teeth, and cold sweat was already oozing from his forehead.

"Why is this guy still awake at night? What is he doing following me?" He thought angrily. He was exhausted from the busy day, and he didn't expect to have to deal with He Yuzhu at night. He couldn't help but regret that he hadn't been more careful.

He Yuzhu's steps got closer and closer, and his light began to flicker around the haystack where Li Xiangqian was hiding. The light was jumping, as if searching for something. Li Xiangqian's breathing became lighter, and he even held his breath for a few seconds, only hearing the "thump thump" of his heart. He clenched his fists tightly, and his palms were full of sweat.

"Strange, someone has been here." He Yuzhu muttered. He bent down and shone the light on the ground, and found that the soil was trampled hard in several places, obviously someone had just walked by. He frowned, looked around, and took another step closer to the haystack.

Li Xiangqian could almost hear the sound of He Yuzhu's feet stepping on the soil, and the slight "crunching" sound was like a series of muffled knocks in his ears. He gritted his teeth and thought to himself: "If I take another step closer, I will definitely be discovered. But it's too late to run now, what should I do?" His brain was working quickly, and suddenly he thought of a trick. He immediately grabbed a handful of dry grass on the ground and threw it fiercely to the other side of the haystack.

"Rustle..." The sound of dry grass falling to the ground was clearly audible, and then caused a slight noise. He Yuzhu was stunned, turned around abruptly, and walked towards the direction of the sound with the lamp in hand. "Who? Come out!" His voice was low, but it was intimidating.

Li Xiangqian took the opportunity to quickly move from behind the haystack to the other side, lowered his body and slid a few meters to the shadow beside the ridge, leaning against a low bush. The light was darker here, and He Yuzhu's light could not reach it at all. He took a few deep breaths, trying hard to calm his heartbeat, and was glad that his previous action had successfully diverted his attention.

"Am I overthinking?" He Yuzhu muttered as he stood there, then turned around and looked around. Seeing no one around, he chuckled, "Hey, maybe it was the wind." He picked up a dead leaf, threw it on the ground, and turned back.

Li Xiangqian hid behind the bushes until the sound of He Yuzhu's footsteps completely disappeared, then he dared to carefully stick his head out to confirm the safety of the surroundings. He breathed a long sigh of relief, feeling that his clothes were soaked with cold sweat.

"I almost got caught." He whispered to himself, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and secretly thanked He Yuzhu for not continuing to investigate. His heart gradually calmed down, but his eyes still scanned the distance vigilantly, until he was sure that He Yuzhu had completely left, he dared to stand up again.

When he returned to the field, he looked at the crops and suddenly felt a complex emotion. This piece of land was his only hope and his biggest secret. If it was discovered, it might cause all kinds of trouble. But he also knew that he had to keep going on this path, otherwise all his efforts would be in vain.

"It's okay, I just need to be more careful next time." He comforted himself in his heart and forced himself to refocus. He squatted down and continued to check the soil in the field, feeling the moisture level. He knew that these crops needed more attention, and he could only be more careful and work harder than ever.

The night was still dark, but Li Xiangqian's heart slowly calmed down. He looked up at the stars in the sky and thought silently: "No matter how difficult it is, I still have to continue tomorrow. I was lucky not to be discovered today, but I have to be more cautious in the future and not take risks again."

In the night wind, Li Xiang held the lantern and hurried back along the ridge of the field. The thrilling scene just now was still lingering in his mind. He Yuzhu's appearance was like a stone, disrupting his peaceful night patrol plan and making him realize that his actions might not be as secretive as he imagined.

"I'll have to change the time next time, or go a longer way." He thought to himself, staring at the ground, but couldn't help looking up at the stars in the sky. The sparse starlight and dim moonlight made the earth even more quiet, but this quietness hid unknown risks. He couldn't help but sigh, feeling that the responsibility on his shoulders was like an invisible boulder, weighing him down so heavily that he couldn't breathe.

However, just as he approached the village entrance, his steps suddenly stopped. At the entrance of the alley in the distance, a figure stood under the dim light. The familiar figure and slightly hunched back made him nervous: "Uncle? Why is he still not asleep?" Li Xiangqian quickly lowered the lantern and tried to quietly go around, but he still couldn't avoid the man's gaze.

"Xiang Qian, what are you doing so late at night?" The uncle's voice was particularly clear in the night, and the deep and caring tone made Li Xiang Qian feel uneasy. He stopped, pretended to be calm, smiled and said, "Uncle, why haven't you rested yet?"

"You can't sleep, so you come out for a walk." An old man walked over with steady steps, looked at Li Xiangqian, glanced at the lantern in his hand and the mud on his trouser legs, frowned slightly, "You went to the fields in the middle of the night?"

"Yeah...yes." Li Xiangqian knew he couldn't hide it, so he nodded honestly, but secretly complained in his heart. He didn't expect the old man to be so careful, and he didn't know how to explain it so as not to arouse more suspicion from the other party.

"It's not a good thing to run around in the fields so late at night, right?" The old man's eyes were filled with scrutiny, but his tone was not harsh, just caring.