That night, after returning to the Gu residence, the sisters gathered together after washing up.
"Finally get to see the so-called treasure map!" Sang Li couldn't help but say.
The four sisters gathered around a table, watching Xiao Han slowly unwrap the map, feeling a little nervous.
The treasure map was wrapped in a layer of paper. Unwrapping the paper revealed the treasure map which was rolled up and tied with a string.
It looked a little yellowed. Sang Li also untied the string around the treasure map and slowly unfolded it.
The sisters looked at the drawings and markings inside and frowned slightly.
"This...doesn't seem to have anything special? How do we determine if it's real?" Su Mo asked.
Sang Li looked at the map, then flipped it over.
Xia Miaomiao saw the pattern on the back cover and felt it looked familiar.
She thought about it and suddenly exclaimed in surprise: "Ah! Isn't this pattern on the back cover the same as the book cover we saw in the museum?"
Su Mo looked at it doubtfully, "Is it?"
Sang Li picked it up and looked at it carefully, "Yes, except this is only a quarter of the cover. If I remember correctly, it should be the lower right quarter. Look, this is an ink painting..."
Sang Li spoke while covering the lines on the map with her hand.
A flash of gold light suddenly flashed over the map, scaring Sang Li into immediately retracting her hand.
The sisters looked at the map on the table in surprise.
"What happened? Sister Sang Li, are you alright?"
Sang Li looked at her fingers and found she was uninjured, "I'm fine..."
Suddenly, all their cell phones dinged.
The sisters looked at each other and immediately took out their phones, only to find they had all received a message.
"What's going on? There's signal on the phones? How is that possible we received a text message?!"
Su Mo opened the message and read it mechanically.
[Congratulations on finding the first treasure map. You have half a year left to live here. Please find the other three maps as soon as possible to return to the original world, otherwise you will disappear forever.]
Xia Miaomiao and Sang Li looked at the identical content on their phones and looked at each other.
"What is this?" Xiao Han took Su Mo's phone in bewilderment and looked at the content.
After staring at it for a long time, she seemed to finally make sense of it.
"Holy crap! What kind of weird time travel is this?? What should we do? We're gonna die!" Xiao Han shouted.
Su Mo was stunned by the content of the text message and didn't speak for a long time.
Sang Li put down her phone and leaned on the table, rubbing her eyebrows.
"So... we only have half a year left here. We must find that book within half a year, otherwise we'll disappear from both worlds!"
"Ah..." Xia Miaomiao collapsed on the table.
The atmosphere suddenly became heavy.
No one spoke for a while.
Sang Li looked at them and got up to comfort them, "Don't be too discouraged, after all there's still half a year."
"So...we have to go back? Or we'll die?" Su Mo asked.
Sang Li nodded, "Yes... I think our phone battery life may be related to this. When everyone first came here, their phones were probably around eighty percent. Now we've been here for two months, the battery is down twenty percent, leaving sixty percent of power which is our remaining half year!"
"You mean it consumes ten percent battery per month?" Xia Miaomiao asked.
"It should be so."
"What about my phone? My phone is missing!" Xiao Han said.
"Perhaps you dropped it somewhere else, but it should be the same as ours."
Su Mo stood up and looked at Sang Li, asking anxiously, "Sister Sang Li, what are you going to do about Gu Zhi? Are you still marrying him?"
Sang Li paused before replying, "Of course I will. Not only will I marry him, I will get pregnant with his child before going back."
The three looked at Sang Li in horror.
"Sister Sang Li, are you crazy?!"
Sang Li remained very calm. She said slowly, "I know what I'm doing. I'm also very clear about what I want."
Sang Li had always been a strong-minded person. She was clear about what she wanted, clear about her purpose. Once she decided on something, no one could change her mind.
"You may find me a little absurd, but I like Gu Zhi. By accepting him now, it means I won't accept anyone else in the future.
I want to have his child. At least after I go back, I'll have something to reminisce about, to let me know that my relationship with him existed in reality, not just a dream.
I agreed to be with him, not just to date him! I want there to be a result between us. Even if we're worlds apart in the future, at least I'll still have his child."
The three were shocked by Sang Li's idea, and it took them a long time to react.
Even if you gave them a hundred guts, they wouldn't dare to do such a thing!
"Sister Sang Li, have you really thought it through?" Xia Miaomiao came up and grabbed her. "If you get pregnant with his child, when you go back you'll become a single mother!"
Sang Li smiled, "So what? It's not like I can't support the child."
The others still didn't quite understand Sang Li's thinking.
"You don't have to worry about me. I know very clearly what I'm doing, and I'll bear all the consequences of my decision," said Sang Li.
The others were silent for a moment. They knew Sang Li had her own ideas and there was no point in them saying more.
Xiao Han immediately came over to smooth things out, "Oh Sister Sang Li, your child will be our child in the future! No matter what decision you make, we will stand by you!"
Sang Li tidied up the treasure map on the table and handed it to Su Mo, "Su Mo, if we want to go back, we have to rely on Wu Ying to find the treasure maps. You should also think carefully about your relationship with him."
Su Mo lowered her eyes, "Sister Sang Li, I really admire you. I don't dare do what you did!"
"Then cherish your time together in this half year and have a good romance with him."
Su Mo took the treasure map, "I understand..."
That night, the sisters were all lost in their own thoughts.
...
Three days later was the day of Sang Li and Gu Zhi's wedding.
Although Gu Zhi was no longer the young master, it was still a grand affair. He was the only son of the patriarch after all, who couldn't pretend not to care.
The patriarch gave Gu Zhi and Sang Li a lot of money and belongings, enough for them to live without worries for a lifetime.
Letting Gu Zhi get away from the disputes of the Miao people and live a carefree life with his beloved was satisfying enough for him.
After worshipping heaven and earth, Gu Zhi entertained guests outside while Sang Li waited in the bridal chamber.
Gu Zhi's mind was only on Sang Li. He wanted to hurry back to the bedroom, but was dragged by Gu Fan to drink quite a lot.
"I know after you get married you’ll be leaving the Miao village. Come back and see your dad when you have time!" The patriarch patted Gu Zhi on the shoulder, also a little drunk.
"Dad, I know. I'll come back to see you when I have time! Leave the guests to you, I have to get back to the bedroom..."
Gu Zhi put down his wine glass and immediately fled the scene.
"Wife..."
Gu Zhi stumbled into the bedroom, only to find Su Mo and the others keeping Sang Li company playing mahjong in the room.
He stood stunned in the doorway.
The others also looked towards the door.
"Oh! The groom is back! Wait a minute, last round!" Xiao Han said with a laugh.
Gu Zhi walked in and sat next to Sang Li, resting his chin on her shoulder aggrievedly, "Wife... tonight is our wedding night..."
Sang Li smiled and gently said, "One last round, they'll leave after finishing the game. Who made you stay outside for so long without coming back? I was bored alone."
Gu Zhi already had some drunkenness. He nuzzled Sang Li's neck, "Want to kiss..."
Saying so, Gu Zhi leaned in to nip Sang Li's ear.