☆【Space (Brain Storage Area)】☆
A few strange red clouds drifted across the sky, a phenomenon that had already lasted for half a month.
“Recently, false rumors claiming that ‘abnormal energy has caused magnetic field disturbances and will bring about the end of the world’ have been spreading among the public, causing panic. Experts state that this is merely the effect of ordinary solar flares and is expected to disappear within three days. We urge everyone not to believe or spread rumors—”
Li Shu scrolled through this rumor-debunking news and leisurely gulped down a mouthful of her happy drink.
She had been working herself to the bone lately, rushing to make money. Several projects were finally wrapped up, and the savings she had accumulated would be enough for her to splurge for ten years. She even owned a small three-story villa where she could grow flowers and plants. Life could now be enjoyed to the fullest—pure bliss.
After finishing the news, she stood by the window, looking at the scenery outside.
Just as she was about to boast to herself, she suddenly saw a flash of light streak across the sky, nearly blinding her.
The next moment—
That eerie light pierced through the glass window and shot straight at her forehead!
At the instant she was struck, Li Shu only wanted to curse this wretched heaven.
Was this really a solar flare? This looked more like some so-called miracle flash! Could she possibly be the only victim of this phenomenon?!
Damn it!
When Li Shu woke up, she found herself trapped in a rather dark room.
Her body felt stiff and sore, as if she had just been beaten. She lifted her head and looked around, only to see somewhat ancient-style doors and windows. A rotten wooden smell filled the air. This place was… a woodshed?
Her heart skipped slightly. Suddenly, a sharp pain stabbed into her head, and fragments of memories flooded in!
She had transmigrated!
The original owner, Ah Li, was seventeen years old and lived in a border town of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Her mother had died from complications during childbirth. Less than three months later, her father remarried. In five years, he had three more children. From then on, the original owner had to live while watching her stepmother’s moods, leading a hard and pitiful life.
Fortunately, the stepmother cared about her reputation. In public, she would put on a show, giving Ah Li a little breathing room.
Two years ago, the original owner was arranged a marriage.
Her maternal uncle, a low-ranking soldier, had once rendered some service by saving Captain Ma. Captain Ma wanted to repay him and, upon hearing that the uncle’s niece was good-looking and gentle, planned to take her as his son’s wife. The uncle, thinking of how pitiful the original owner was under her stepmother’s hand—and that she might not marry well in the future—shamelessly pushed this marriage onto her.
The wedding was set for yesterday.
She should have married into the Ma family.
But yesterday, another girl—the Yao family’s daughter, who lived in the same alley—was also getting married. On the way to the weddings, rumors spread that bandits were rioting. The people panicked, the procession fell into chaos, and in the confusion, the bridal sedan chairs were carried to the wrong places.
The Yao family girl married into the Ma family in her stead.
And the original owner… married into the Qi family, who made a living selling oil.
If it had been an ordinary family, it might have been tolerable. What was infuriating was that the Qi family’s only son, Qi Yanfeng, had a widely known bad problem. It was said that he had injured his head years ago, leaving him with violent mood swings. Normally he seemed quiet, but once stimulated, he would go mad and violent—so out of control that he would even beat his own mother.
When the bridal chamber was entered and the veil was lifted, the original owner realized the mistake!
Qi Yanfeng was in love with the Yao family girl and had spent a great deal of money to secure that marriage. The moment he saw the original owner, both mother and son’s faces changed. They immediately sent someone to the Ma household to inquire. Though the messenger traveled quickly, by the time he arrived, things were already settled beyond reversal.
The Qi family had emptied their savings for this marriage. They felt that if they returned the original owner, their sick son might never find a girl willing to marry into their family again. Moreover, the original owner was known to be diligent and good-looking. Thus, they decided to accept the mistake.
Qi’s mother even directly locked the two of them in the room.
The result was…
The original owner was beaten.
She had never experienced such a thing before. Being young, she was naturally terrified. With reddened eyes and a face full of resistance, she refused to consummate the marriage.
Yet she also knew she could not return to the Ma family, nor could she go back to the Li family. The hope she had just grasped was completely shattered, plunging her into despair, unsure of what to do.
At that moment, Qi Yanfeng’s illness flared up, and the original owner became his sole outlet.
During the episode, Qi Yanfeng beat her unconscious, then fell asleep himself. When he woke up the next morning and saw her condition, he was also startled.
“I didn’t mean to hit you. Everyone in this town knows I have some problems with my body. Yesterday I thought I was marrying Ah Ning, but I didn’t expect someone else. I was stimulated, that’s why this happened. Don’t hold it against me.” These were Qi Yanfeng’s exact words.
By then, the original owner was already on her last breath.
When Qi’s mother came to take a look, she frowned, hardened her heart, and said, “What’s the use of saying so much now that you’ve already hit her? Things have come to this—there’s only one way forward. We’ll just accept this bad luck and acknowledge the marriage. As the saying goes, marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog. She has no room for regret. Lock her in the woodshed for three days. After three days, even the toughest temper will soften. Then you’ll accompany her back to her parents’ home. Once neighbors, relatives, and friends all see it, she’ll truly be part of our family.”
“Although the one I wanted was Ah Ning… Ah Ning is already married. If I were to send her back, she would also be criticized. In the end, I’m the one not worthy of Ah Ning—there’s no fate between us. Since that’s the case… let’s just live like this.”
After hearing this, the original owner died.
All memories abruptly ended there.
Li Shu was so angry she felt numb.
Her whole body felt stifled. Aside from the searing pain of her injuries, her chest felt tightly blocked. They were only memories, no different from scenes in a film, yet it was as if she had lived through the original owner’s entire life—the loneliness, the indignation, and the humiliation of merely surviving all surged up in her heart.
Li Shu rubbed her wrist and stood up.
The original owner had gone into marriage hungry the day before. Up until now, when the sun was already high in the sky, she hadn’t even had a sip of water. Clearly, the Qi family intended to thoroughly discipline her.
Li Shu had no strength left and felt depressed. Her little villa was gone. Her eight-figure savings were gone. As an orphan, how hard had it been for her to build that bit of wealth!
Damn solar flares!
Thinking of that flash of light, Li Shu subconsciously touched the spot on her forehead where she had been struck.
Suddenly, it felt as if her mind connected to something strange, and she instinctively understood that she seemed to have gained a space.
Her eyes lit up. She felt inseparably linked to this space. With just a thought, she knew its origin—it wasn’t a solar flare at all, but a fragment of space formed when a certain planet exploded and space itself shattered under compression.
Li Shu immediately sensed the size of the space.
It was huge, but lifeless inside—like a stagnant, ashen world. It probably only had storage functions, but that was still very convenient.
She shifted her thoughts and turned her attention back outside.
Unfortunately, this space had no purification function. Otherwise, it would have been the perfect place to use as a graveyard.