America: The neighbor's wife is so incredibly hospitable!

"Wow," Chen An exclaimed dryly, "This is truly... full of historical weight."

"The key is under the doormat, that's George's habit." Sarah came over, carrying a brown paper bag containing bread and sausages.

"This is your dinner. I doubt you could find even a mouse to eat here."

"Thanks."

Chen An took the paper bag, and his fingers inadvertently touched Sarah's fingers.

Her hands were warm, and although they were a little rough, the warm and delicate touch was still clearly felt.

Sarah didn't pull her hand back like a young girl would after being electrocuted. Instead, she paused for half a second, her big, watery eyes staring straight at Chen An.

It seemed to be anticipating something, or perhaps scrutinizing this little lamb from the East.

The two were standing very close.

Chen An could even smell the scent emanating from her, a mixture of milk, flour, and the unique fragrance of a mature woman—an extremely dangerous yet alluring aroma.

That's the taste of someone else's wife.

"Ann." Sarah leaned forward slightly, lowering her voice, and the oppressive feeling brought by her voluptuousness was overwhelming.

"It might be a bit cold tonight. I'm not sure if the fireplace chimney is blocked, so it's best not to light a fire."

"If... I mean if, you feel cold or scared, even in the middle of the night, you can come to my house next door. My white house is just behind the hillside."

"Tom won't mind?" Chen An took a small step back, maintaining a polite distance, but his eyes didn't flinch as he looked directly into Sarah's eyes.

That look is very bold.

Sarah was stunned for a moment.

She had expected this handsome Eastern boy to be shy and blush, but Chen An was not.

His gaze was deep, like a bottomless lake.

"Him?" Sarah scoffed, a seductive glint in her eyes. "He's dead drunk in the living room downstairs, completely unconscious. I'm sleeping upstairs."

After saying that, Sarah seemed startled by her own suggestive words and hurriedly tidied the stray hairs by her ears.

"I mean... I can't sleep anyway. Okay, I have to go back and cook for those kids."

She turned around and strode quickly toward the beat-up pickup truck, its leather straps taut over her jeans.

Those were plump, millstone-like buttocks that swayed from side to side with each step, tracing a breathtaking arc.

"Buzz—"

The pickup truck started, Sarah rolled down the window, and shouted one last thing:

"I'll bring some milk tomorrow morning! Remember not to sleep too soundly tonight, wolves might come knocking!"

The taillights gradually disappeared into the twilight.

Chen An stood there until the roaring sound was completely gone, and only then did the polite smile on his lips slowly fade.

He looked down at the brown paper bag in his hand, then at the farmhouse in front of him that looked like a haunted house.

"The start is a bit difficult."

Chen An sighed and took out the crumpled property certificate from his pocket.

The 120-acre property includes the wooded area behind it, a dilapidated house, and an old barn.

There is also approximately $20,000 in unpaid property taxes, according to the lawyer.

If we don't raise the money soon, the land will be auctioned off by the state government next year.

"Without a system, you can only rely on yourself."

Chen An remained calm.

He crouched down and, sure enough, found a cold brass key under the tattered doormat in front of the door.

"Click."

Insert it, the rusty lock cylinder groaned, and the door opened.

A musty smell that had been gathering dust for a long time wafted over.

Chen An didn't rush into the house. Instead, he took advantage of the last bit of daylight to glance in the direction of Sarah's farm next door.

A warm light shone faintly from that side.

"The neighbor's wife, her good-for-nothing alcoholic husband, children who need care, and this damn $20,000 in taxes..."

Chen An walked into the house, closed the door behind him, and kept out the cold night wind of Montana.

Although he doesn't have any special advantages, he has a keen eye for opportunities and a heart that isn't as honest as he appears.

The room was pitch black.

He fumbled around on the wall for a while, found the switch, and pressed it with a "click".

zizi——

The old-fashioned incandescent bulb above flickered a few times before reluctantly lighting up, its dim yellow light illuminating the messy living room.

Beer cans littered the floor, and the yellowed calendar remained stuck in 2023.

There were dirty clothes piled on the sofa, and a double-barreled shotgun that had been disassembled and was half-cleaned on the coffee table.

Chen An walked over, picked up the hunting rifle, and skillfully inspected the chamber; the barrel was in fairly good condition.

"Click."

After chambering the gun, Chen An raised it and aimed at the empty wall.

"The hunt has begun," he murmured to himself.

It's for this desolate land, and also to live a better life than anyone else in this wild foreign land.

Just then, he spotted a red leaflet at the very bottom of the pile of messy letters.

That was a notice from the local community:

[Rare mushroom harvesting season begins in the Rocky Mountains! Seeking the finest morels, with prices up to $80 per pound! Contact Aurora Fine Dining Restaurant for details.]

Chen An raised an eyebrow.

If he remembers correctly, he got a perfect score on the fungi chapter of that useless botany elective in college.

Moreover, when he entered the door, he seemed to smell a unique, damp, earthy scent from the roots of the dead oak tree near the entrance.

But beneath that fragrance, there is something else.

It smells like money.

Of course, perhaps borrowing some tools from the kind-hearted Sarah tomorrow would be a good reason to go into the mountains.

After all, a handsome, helpless boy from the East who had come from afar wanted to try his luck in the dangerous forest.

As a kind-hearted older sister next door, how could I not worry, or even want to protect her "closely"?

Chen An put down his hunting rifle, picked up the brown paper bag containing his dinner, and took a big bite of the now-cold hot dog.

………………

The mornings in Montana seem to come earlier and are colder than expected.

Six o'clock in the morning.

Chen An was awakened by the cold.

The chill wasn't just seeping in from the cracks in the window; it was a damp cold that seeped into your bones from all directions.

He curled up on the leather sofa, which smelled of musty.

The only thing that kept them warm was a wool blanket left by Uncle George, the original color of which was no longer recognizable.

"Achoo!"

Chen An sneezed, rubbed his sore neck, and sat up from the sofa.

Last night, because there was no hot water, he simply washed his face and went to sleep.

It now appears that the house's heating system has probably been completely broken for a long time.

He stood up, walked to the sink, and turned on the tap.

"Clang! Clang!"

A terrifying noise, as if it were about to shake the walls apart, came from the water pipes.

Then came a wheezing sound like asthma, and finally he vomited several streams of turbid, rusty yellow water.