“Mom, you have to share a thousand of that with me. Your darling grandson is already looking for a wife, and the bride’s family is asking for a five-hundred-yuan dowry!”
As Wen Ning’s consciousness slowly drifted back, a book’s worth of unfamiliar memories suddenly flooded her mind.
The story’s male protagonist was her husband, Huo Zheng.
Unfortunately, she was not the female lead. She was merely the wicked, disposable ex-wife who, unable to endure the loneliness of being left behind, ran away with another man and met a tragic, gruesome death.
“Stop dragging your feet! Throw that jinx and that useless girl onto the cart! They’re waiting for them on the other side!” came the urgent, harsh voice of her mother-in-law, Wang Yufeng, from outside the door.
Wen Ning’s expression darkened as the reality of her situation clicked into place. She remembered everything that had happened right before she lost consciousness.
It had all started half a month ago when Wang Yufeng received a letter from the military base. The letter mentioned that the daughter of a high-ranking officer had taken a liking to Huo Zheng. Eager to clear the way so Huo Zheng could marry into influence, Wang Yufeng and her eldest daughter-in-law, Li Zhenzhu, plotted to sell Wen Ning and her young daughter, Xingxing, into the remote mountains.
Wen Ning had accidentally overheard their scheme and immediately tried to sneak away with her daughter. But Li Zhenzhu had caught her in the act. During the ensuing confrontation, Li Zhenzhu had struck her over the head with a wooden stool.
Hearing the footsteps drawing closer, Wen Ning’s expression hardened.
They want to sell my daughter and me? They want their precious son to start a brand-new life with some high-society bride?
In their dreams!
Wen Ning scooped up Xingxing and gently tucked her behind a stack of firewood, murmuring in a low voice, “Baby, stay right here and don’t make a sound, okay?”
“Mommy, let’s go… Grandma… mean… she bullies Mommy…” Xingxing tilted her small head, tears streaming down her pale cheeks as her tiny voice trembled with fear.
Wen Ning’s heart broke for her. She leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to her daughter’s forehead. “Don’t be afraid, sweetheart. Mommy will never let anyone hurt us again.”
With the heavy footsteps drawing nearer, Wen Ning didn’t dare waste another second. She pressed a finger to her lips in a shushing gesture.
Xingxing obediently clamped both of her small hands over her mouth.
Her heart softening at her daughter’s sweetness, Wen Ning quickly slipped behind the woodpile. She reached up and unclasped the jade pendant hanging around her neck. Hidden within it was a mysterious, self-contained realm.
Wang Yufeng had tried to demand this pendant from her countless times, but Wen Ning had always refused to give it up. In the original storyline, Wang Yufeng had stolen it right after selling her off, later presenting it to the novel’s female lead, Su Wanqing, as a meeting gift. Su Wanqing had eventually discovered the realm inside—a space overflowing with rich resources, rare natural treasures, and a vast collection of ancient medical texts.
Without hesitation, Wen Ning wiped a bit of the wet blood still trickling from her forehead onto the surface of the jade. The moment the blood touched it, the pendant dissolved into her body. Immediately, a mist-shrouded, heavenly sanctuary appeared within her consciousness.
At that exact second, an inventory of every resource stored within the realm seamlessly fused into her memory.
Her eyes lit up. With a single thought, a small bottle of knockout powder materialized in the palm of her hand.
“Mom, give me a hand! I’ll go grab the little one,” Li Zhenzhu said as she stepped into the woodshed.
Before she could take another step, a delicate, sweet aroma drifted into her nose. Intrigued, she took a deep breath—and her body instantly went limp. She crumpled toward the floor.
Wen Ning caught her in a swift motion and promptly shoved a burlap sack over Li Zhenzhu’s head before thrusting her into Wang Yufeng’s waiting arms.
“Are you trying to kill me?!” Wang Yufeng barked, startled by the sudden weight.
A cold smirk played on Wen Ning’s lips. Dropping her register, she flawlessly mimicked Li Zhenzhu’s voice in a hushed whisper: “Mom, lower your voice! You’re going to draw a crowd!”
Wang Yufeng gasped, thoroughly spooked, and urged, “Hurry up and fetch the small one out!”
“Got it,” Wen Ning whispered back. She turned, slipped into the woodshed, and moments later emerged carrying a bundled-up shape, which she tossed onto the wooden cart.
Before Wang Yufeng could realize what was happening, Wen Ning turned to the two men standing in the courtyard and urged, “Take them and get moving! If dawn breaks, it’s going to be impossible to leave quietly.”
The human traffickers were already terrified of being caught. Noddng quickly, they grabbed the handles of the cart and pushed it out toward the edge of the village as fast as their legs could carry them.
Wang Yufeng stood in the courtyard, watching them until they vanished beyond the village entrance. Only then did she let out a long breath of relief. “Finally, those two jinxes are gone for good.”
Just as she turned to speak to Li Zhenzhu, the figure beside her scampered off toward the outhouse inside the house. “Mom, my stomach’s acting up—I’ve got to go!”
Watching her run, Wang Yufeng grumbled a low curse under her breath. Then, she reached into her shirt to pat the thick stack of bills tucked inside. She genuinely hadn’t expected those two bad-luck charms to fetch such a high price—two thousand five hundred yuan!
Now, when Huo Zheng married the official’s daughter, she wouldn’t have to worry about looking cheap or lacking a proper dowry gift.
At the thought of her bright future, Wang Yufeng’s spirits soared. Her steps were light and breezy, completely devoid of any remorse for selling off her own daughter-in-law and granddaughter.
As for how she’d explain Wen Ning’s sudden disappearance, she had already thought of a perfect story. If anyone asked, she would say that Wen Ning couldn’t stand being a military grass widow for five years and had run off with a lover out of sheer lonely desperation.
Once Wen Ning was trapped deep in the mountains, she wouldn’t be able to defend her reputation anyway.
Giddy at the prospect of having a wealthy, cultured daughter-in-law, Wang Yufeng floated back into her bedroom. She pulled out the heavy stack of cash and counted it twice over before stashing it safely inside a wooden box under her bed.
“Mom… the money…”
Outside the door, Wen Ning mimicked Li Zhenzhu’s voice once again, calling out softly.
“Money, money, money—that’s all you care about! Like I’d ever skimp on your share! Get your rear to bed; we’ll sort it out tomorrow!” Wang Yufeng snapped crossly.
She heard “Li Zhenzhu” mutter a few disgruntled complaints under her breath before her footsteps faded away.
After tossing and turning all night, Wang Yufeng was exhausted. With her biggest headache finally resolved, she collapsed onto her bed. Just as her head hit the pillow, a faint, sweet aroma drifted past her nose, and she plunged into a deep, heavy sleep.
Only when she was certain there was no movement left inside did Wen Ning push the door open and step into the room.
She looked down at the unconscious Wang Yufeng, a sharp, cold smirk curling her lips. Since this family didn’t treat her and her daughter like human beings, they shouldn’t blame her for showing no mercy.
She reached beneath the bed, pulled out the wooden box, and swept it directly into her portable space. She was going to make sure Wang Yufeng lost both her victim and her fortune.
She turned to leave, but after taking two steps, she paused.
Just taking the money isn’t enough!
She turned back around, and with a single flick of her intent, the once cozy room was completely stripped bare in an instant.
Without the mattress and bed frame beneath her, Wang Yufeng crashed heavily onto the hard floor, making a dull thud.
Next, Wen Ning swept through Li Zhenzhu’s room, the kitchen, and every other corner of the house, clearing out every last item. Satisfied, she slipped back into the woodshed.
“Xingxing,” she called out softly.
At the sound of her voice, a small head peeked out from behind the pile of wood. Seeing that it was her mother, the little girl’s starlike eyes lit up instantly. “Mommy” she chimed sweetly.
Wen Ning’s heart melted. She stepped forward, knelt down, and pulled her terrified child tight against her chest. “Don’t be afraid, baby. It’s over now.”
“Grandma”
Looking at the dull, vacant look in her daughter’s eyes, a fresh surge of pain stabbed through Wen Ning’s heart.
Xingxing had been such a bright, clever little girl. But when she was a year and a half old, Li Zhenzhu’s son had intentionally shoved her, causing her head to smash against a heavy stone mill. She had lost so much blood, and without timely medical care, she had suffered permanent brain damage, leaving her simple-minded ever since.
To make matters worse, her patriarchal in-laws favored boys over girls and cared nothing for the mother and daughter. They had simply brushed the entire incident under the rug.
Recalling the vast collection of ancient medical texts stored within her realm, the sorrow in Wen Ning’s eyes turned into fierce determination. She would heal Xingxing and give her the happy, normal childhood she deserved.
But right now… she still had one urgent matter to settle.
She gathered Xingxing in her arms and prepared to stand up, but a sudden wave of dizziness hit her, and the sharp pain in her head made her gasp. Remembering the spring of spiritual water inside her realm, she immediately summoned a flask. She fed a few drops to Xingxing first before taking a deep gulp herself. As the cool liquid hit her stomach, the throbbing pain at the back of her head visibly subsided, and strength flooded back into her limbs.
Without losing another moment, Wen Ning carried Xingxing out into the night and rushed straight toward the home of the village chief, Li Shouzhong.
As she neared his front gate, she patted Xingxing’s back gently, tucking the girl’s head safely against her chest. Then, she raised her hand and began pounding frantically on the heavy wooden gate.
“Help! Chief, save us! My mother-in-law just sold my sister-in-law to human traffickers!”