In the original body’s memories, she had only ever wandered the outer edges of the mountains, for the elders all warned that deep within the woods lurked bears and tigers.
Apart from seasoned hunters, few villagers from the surrounding hamlets dared venture into the mountain depths.
But now, Ye Qing had found her direction. What others feared to do, she intended to try. Even without her old powers, her survival skills honed in the wilds would be more than enough to keep her fed.
With a clear path forward, Ye Qing stopped dwelling on the matter and let her mind rest.
She lay back on a wooden chair, lazily closing her eyes to bask in the sunlight.
It was the busiest time of day, when everyone in the village was out working in the fields, so no one passed by. The small courtyard was quiet save for the clucking of the two hens raised by the Xiao family.
Wrapped in the warm rays, Ye Qing felt as if she were caught in a beautiful dream. She drifted into a drowsy slumber, yet woke up every so often with a start, opening her eyes just to confirm she had truly escaped the apocalypse.
Seeing the peaceful courtyard before her, she would smile and close her eyes again.
Falling asleep and jolting awake in turns, she still managed to doze off for about an hour. When she woke fully, she stretched long and hard. Spotting the axe still resting beside her, she reached for it to put it back in its place.
The moment her hand closed around the handle, Ye Qing frowned and let out a soft sound of surprise.
She stared down at her palm, then hefted the axe a few times.
Before she had fallen asleep, the tool had felt unbearably heavy; now it felt surprisingly light. She could even toss it into the air and catch it easily—what had once been a burden now felt no heavier than a sandbag in her grasp.
Delighted, Ye Qing paced back and forth across the yard like a donkey turning a mill, searching for other heavy objects to test her strength.
After several attempts, she realized with joy that her physical condition had improved greatly. More importantly, her special abilities had followed her into this new world as well.
Though her body was still not as strong as it had been in her past life, she could feel her powers slowly returning. With them, she no longer hesitated about heading into the mountains—the woods behind the village would soon become her own private domain.
One thing remained unclear, however: was this a case of her soul traveling through dimensions, or her entire body having crossed over?
Unable to make sense of it after much thought, she simply set the question aside. Cheerful now, she began humming a tune, not caring that she was off-key.
Glancing up at the sky, she saw the sun nearly overhead—noon must be approaching. She turned and walked toward the kitchen.
Every member of the Xiao family was out in the fields, sweating through their work. Ye Qing had no intention of living off their kindness just because she was supposedly ill. From her previous life, she had learned a hard truth: no group would long tolerate someone who contributed nothing, and the Xiao family had no obligation to feed her.
Chen Xiuzhi, the matriarch, did not keep close watch over her daughters-in-law; the grain bins and stores were left openly in the kitchen, though the door was kept shut.
As soon as she stepped inside, Ye Qing spotted the large grain jar. She lifted its wooden lid and peered in. There was no rice or wheat flour inside, only half a jar of cracked corn. Scattered across the floor beside it were piles of sweet potatoes.
It seemed the previous year had brought a bumper harvest of corn and sweet potatoes, so these were the only two staples still in good supply during this lean season between harvests.
Beyond that, the kitchen held only half a jar of salt, a small jug of soy sauce, and barely a splash of lard left at the bottom of its container. After searching further, Ye Qing also found a crock of salted pickled vegetables and a handful of dried chili peppers. This was all the food the Xiao family had left.
Ye Qing fell silent as she took stock. With five adults in the household, even if they stretched every meal, their supplies would last at most ten days.
She would need to finalize her plans for going into the mountains as soon as possible.
Ye Qing had never learned to cook. Back in the apocalypse, lighting fires was too dangerous, so she had no desire to waste food by making a mess of it here.
Knowing everyone working in the fields would be thirsty under the midday sun, she lit the stove and boiled a pot of water. She looked around for a kettle to let it cool, but found none, so she ladled the hot water into ceramic bowls and set them aside.
When the water had cooled to a lukewarm temperature, sounds came from outside the courtyard. Ye Qing walked slowly out to see what was happening, only to come face-to-face with Shi Fengxia.
The moment their eyes met, Shi Fengxia looked as if she had seen a ghost, her face filled with shock. “How did you get out of bed?”
“I’m sick, not paralyzed,” Ye Qing said, amused. “Why would I stay lying there all day?”
In truth, her strength had already returned significantly, and she could walk normally without trouble. But worried that recovering too quickly would raise suspicion, she deliberately moved with a slight limp and unsteady gait.
To forestall questions, Ye Qing added, “I’ve heard it’s not good for people who are ill to stay in bed the whole time. Getting up and doing light chores can actually help you heal faster.”
“Is that true? I’ve never heard of such a thing,” Shi Fengxia muttered. Seeing that Ye Qing was still able to stand and move about, she stopped questioning it and hurried into the yard, heading straight for the kitchen.
“Where are the others?” Ye Qing followed slowly behind her.
“Still working in the fields, of course,” Shi Fengxia replied with a glance. “We can’t stop the whole family just for lunch. I came back to cook, then I’ll bring the food out to them. Once everyone’s eaten, we have to go right back to work.”
“Why is there water on the table, and fire still burning in the stove?” Shi Fengxia asked, noticing the bowls of cooling water and the glowing embers. Realizing Ye Qing had boiled it, she raised her voice in concern. “You’re still not fully recovered! Why are you up doing chores? If you strain yourself now, you could end up with permanent problems later! You really don’t look after yourself at all—you should just stay in bed and rest. I would have boiled water myself.”
For all her loud scolding, Shi Fengxia walked over and drank the water down in one go. She emptied the first bowl and quickly reached for a second, clearly parched from working in the sun.
Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she turned to start preparing the meal. Without a word, Ye Qing sat down behind the stove to tend the fire.
Shi Fengxia kept glancing back at her, muttering again and again that Ye Qing should return to bed so she wouldn’t hurt her health.
At first, Ye Qing found it hard to get used to such a talkative companion. But seeing that Shi Fengxia, heavily pregnant, had spent the morning laboring in the fields and still had to rush back to cook, she said nothing. She simply fed the fire quietly, letting the other woman’s words go in one ear and out the other.
The crackle of burning wood filled the air, and flickering flames danced in the hearth. Ye Qing stared into the fire, lost in thought and silent, while Shi Fengxia kept glancing her way.
As she cooked, Shi Fengxia began to chew nervously on her lower lip.
She poured the cracked corn into the pot to make porridge, then glanced back at Ye Qing again.
When the contents began to boil, she stirred them with a ladle and turned to look once more.
Shi Fengxia was feeling anxious. Earlier that morning in the fields, she had managed to pry information from her mother-in-law, who had hinted at calling off the arranged marriage and sending Ye Qing back to her family. Ever since, her mind had been in turmoil.
She worried that Ye Qing might leave and refuse to return the betrothal gifts, but she also feared that if Ye Qing stayed, she would become another mouth to feed without contributing anything.
Unable to hold back any longer, Shi Fengxia finally spoke up. “So what have you decided? Do you plan to stay with the Xiao family, or go back to your parents’ home—or your uncle’s house instead?”