As for the poison in her body, Julie decided she would go to town later and find a doctor at the medical center to check it. She needed a reason to visit town anyway.
She could sell the gold and ginseng she had in her space and buy some things. This house was so shabby, she could hardly bear to look at it, especially when she thought about the two-story villa she built during the apocalypse.
She wasn't picky, but that didn't mean she wanted to live in a pigsty.
Haven saw that Julie was just staring at him without speaking. His heart skipped a beat — had she noticed something?
A sharp look flashed in his eyes. He quickly went over everything in his mind, thinking if he had made any mistakes. After careful thought, he felt he hadn't slipped up anywhere.
Besides, with her intelligence, if she could figure it out, she wouldn't have been tricked so easily before. Haven sneered coldly in his heart.
Julie noticed that the water in the pot was ready. She poured the hot water into a tub and walked toward her room.
She felt it was too slow to carry small amounts of water back and forth, so she picked up two buckets, one in each hand, filled them with water, and carried them steadily without spilling a single drop.
Bailee originally wanted to help her, but when he saw her strength, he choked back his words.
Since when did the wife master get so strong after waking up?
She also became more hardworking and spoke less.
He didn't know if this change was good or bad.
But at least, compared to before, she hadn't hit or cursed them since she woke up, which was already an improvement.
Julie returned to her room and locked the door.
She poured the water into the bathtub, took off her dirty clothes, and immersed herself completely into the water.
There wasn't even soap or soapberries here. Julie took out a colorless, scentless bar of soap from her space.
She washed her hair and body twice before getting out.
Her hair reached her waist, but without proper care, it was dry and split at the ends. Julie didn't mind. Even in her previous life, she never cared about appearances.
Could beauty fill your stomach or quench your thirst?
When survival was at stake, who had time to worry about looks?
After her bath, Julie looked at herself in the bronze mirror — fine willow-shaped eyebrows, skin a little dull and rough, and long hair down to her waist. She had a natural, lazy, and sensual charm, although her beautiful eyes were cold and distant.
She understood her situation. She wasn't ugly, even slightly above average. But her body was weak — nothing compared to her previous life. She would need time to recover.
She searched the original owner's wardrobe for a long time before finding a gray robe so washed out that it had turned pale. She put it on, thinking to herself that once she understood the situation here better, she would go to town to buy some new clothes.
The rest of the clothes were either bright red and green or so dirty they clearly hadn't been washed in forever. Julie didn't even bother with them and put them back.
In her space, there were three crates of gold bars — each crate had one hundred bars. There were also two crates of jewelry, two crates of ginseng, and one crate each of lingzhi and snow lotus, all collected during the apocalypse, ranging in age from ten to several hundred years.
There were two crates of weapons — swords, knives, daggers, hidden weapons.
Even guns — although only two — and she rarely used them.
There were two crates of daily supplies.
And the last crate was filled with compressed biscuits.
Julie tore open a small pack of compressed biscuits and ate them, feeling full for the moment.
She opened the door, planning to take a walk outside.
Bailee, Haven, and Lorrie, the three brothers, were standing outside. They were surprised to see her like this.
After all, ever since they were bought and married to her six months ago, her clothes and hair had always been oily and dirty, and she had never taken care of herself.
They had tried hinting to her or offering help before, but every time she would impatiently drive them away, not even letting them near her room.
They didn't expect that now she was willing to bathe. And since waking up, although she hadn't talked to them much, she hadn't hit or yelled at them either. It gave them a little hope.
Maybe this was a good beginning?
Maybe from now on, she wouldn't beat or sell them?
Maybe life would get better?
Bailee was the first to react. He asked gently, "Wife master, you took a bath? Let me help you pour out the bathwater." He said and was about to go into her room to fetch the tub.
Julie grabbed his arm lightly and said calmly, "No need, I'll do it myself. I'm a woman — I should do the heavy work."
She suddenly remembered that in this place, men were very weak. If he spilled the tub water because he couldn't hold it steady, it would only cause her more trouble.
Bailee's arm went soft, and his face turned red. A sweet feeling spread through his heart. It was the first time the wife master cared for him.
Even though he was the oldest and the official husband, she never liked him. He wasn't good at sweet talk, and he didn't say much, so he often got beaten for being unlikable.
The youngest brother, Lorrie, got beaten the most because he always argued back and refused to submit. Bailee was next. The second brother, Haven, got beaten the least.
Haven kept watching Julie carefully but didn't say anything. Julie also looked at him calmly. Their gazes met, and it was Haven who looked away first.
He was confused inside but kept his face gentle and his tone soft, "Wife master, is there anything we can help you with?"
If she could stay like this, it would be a good thing. After all, if she died, they would also die.
In this women-ruled country, having a woman around meant life could still be bearable. If she was gone, there would be no hope left.
He only knew how to recognize poisonous plants, but he didn't know how to cure poison. He felt a little panicked, afraid she would die slowly from the poison.
If it was the old her, he wouldn't care if she died. But now... he started to regret — maybe he had made a mistake.
"It's fine. I'm just looking around. You all can do your own thing," Julie said casually.
Lorrie looked a bit awkward and angry. He wanted to apologize but couldn't bring himself to do it. He snorted and turned away, ignoring her.
Seeing that she really didn't need them, Haven and Bailee sat down and quickly started sewing pouches. Once finished, they could sell them to the embroidery workshop for a few coins. That little money was their only income to barely survive.
Julie walked out of the straw hut. In the courtyard outside, she saw weeds growing all over the ground. There were no chickens or ducks around. The straw hut looked so shaky it seemed like it might collapse in a heavy rain.
Julie wasn't the type to complain about her situation. She believed that instead of whining, it was better to use the time to do something useful and prevent bigger disasters from happening.