To be honest, Ming Fei had already been shocked once after dying and discovering she had transmigrated into a Rebirth Novel whose plot she didn’t fully understand.
Then she was shocked again upon realizing that the original host’s biological mother had also been transmigrated—and the other party seemed quite formidable.
Now, facing Ming Erde, the original host’s biological father, who was 99.9% likely also transmigrated, she felt she couldn’t possibly be shocked any further.
Looking on the bright side, with the original host’s family of three all transmigrated, this could be considered a complete set, right? But suddenly facing two people whose backgrounds were unknown, she couldn’t help feeling panicked.
Panicked as she was, she still hurried forward first. “Dad, you’re awake!”
But faster than her was Xu Cuihua, who had been standing beside her. She rushed ahead of Ming Fei’s short legs and carefully supported Ming Erde’s shoulders. “Erge, why are you up? Lie back down. I told you a man shouldn’t be doing such heavy work. From now on, leave it all to me. You just take care of the household.”
Her movements were gentle and cautious, but her words sounded strange no matter how you listened.
At the very least, the transmigrated Ming Erde felt extremely uncomfortable.
The original host had fainted upon hearing that his daughter was missing and his wife had hit her head against a wall. When he woke up, he was gone, replaced by him.
Having gained a life for free, Ming Erde cherished it greatly. The original host had been most concerned about his wife and frail daughter, so he naturally intended to take good care of them. However… the original host’s wife bore no resemblance to the one in his memories—they were completely different.
With just this one encounter, Ming Erde was certain that Xu Cuihua was just like him—her body now inhabited by some wandering soul from who knows where.
And this wandering soul seemed a bit off.
Not entirely sure, he’d observe further.
Ming Fei almost laughed out loud at Xu Cuihua’s words. Her small frame leaned against the bedside. “Dad, how does your head feel?”
“Jin Dan and Yin Dan said there’s ginseng on the mountain. They took me to look for it, saying ginseng is a good thing and you’d get better if you ate it. I wanted to come down the mountain to find Mom and dig it together, but Jin Dan pushed me down, grabbed Yin Dan, and ran off. He said the ginseng story was a lie and they were leaving me in the mountains to be eaten by wolves.” With this one sentence, she explained exactly how the original host had been tricked into going up the mountain by the Jin Dan brothers.
Perhaps influenced by the original host’s body, Ming Erde now found Ming Fei incredibly endearing. Just looking at her made his heart soften. But thinking about the meaning behind Ming Fei’s words, he mentally noted a serious grudge against the Jin Dan brothers.
Seeing both Ming Erde and Xu Cuihua darken their expressions, Ming Fei breathed a sigh of relief—excellent news. Although neither of them were the original host’s biological parents, they both seemed fiercely protective of their own.
And she, Ming Fei, was one of their own.
This was truly wonderful.
As for their identities, that could be figured out later. Right now, the most important thing was eating. If they didn’t eat soon, someone was going to starve to death!
Ming Fei first went to the thermos and poured a bowl of water, adding a spoonful of sugar and a spoonful of salt. She handed it to Ming Erde, then hobbled off to wash the sweet potatoes.
The original host had been tricked away by the Jin Dan brothers just as she was about to pick vegetables and cook. Xu Cuihua hadn’t had time to cook either before going to Ming Dade’s house to look for the original host, so now the stove was completely cold.
She couldn’t wait any longer!
After all this time, she had only eaten the persimmon Zhu Xiaoqi handed her earlier. With such intense physical exertion, she was already starving to death.
After quickly washing two sweet potatoes, Ming Fei handed the larger one to Xu Cuihua and took a big bite out of the smaller one she held.
Ming Erde was slowly sipping sugar-salt water, watching Ming Fei devour her food with bared teeth. He mentally prioritized earning money quickly to secure supplies.
Xu Cuihua also affectionately patted her daughter’s head.
They had to hurry into the mountains to hunt some game!
Both her daughter and husband needed proper nourishment.
After quickly finishing the sweet potato in her hands, Ming Fei finally felt the burning sensation in her stomach subside. However, eating cold food in such freezing weather wasn’t exactly pleasant.
She couldn’t help but think of the she-wolf left on the mountain—so much meat!
Xu Cuihua also finished her sweet potato, barely filling her stomach. She then stuffed a pillow behind Ming Erde’s back, lifted the curtain, and went out. Soon after, Ming Fei heard sounds from the kitchen.
Curious about the current Xu Cuihua, she followed her into the outer kitchen.
Xu Cuihua was washing some leafy greens, then grabbed a handful of the fine white flour originally meant to nourish the original host’s body. She poured in a little water and casually mixed it into clumps.
As she worked, she explained to Ming Fei, “Feifei, I’ll use this to make something good for your dad to help him recover. In a couple of days, Mom will get you some meat to eat!”
At this time, flour as white as snow was considered excellent for nourishing the body. Given the family’s poor conditions, all such items were reserved for their young daughter’s health, which was why Xu Cuihua spoke to Ming Fei this way.
“Mom, Dad needs it more now. It’s a shame we don’t have any ginseng—otherwise, Dad could recover quickly,” Ming Fei said, sitting behind the stove to help tend the fire while subtly sowing discord against Jin Dan and the others.
It was a pity her Space was gone; otherwise, she really did have ginseng inside.
With just over a dozen plots of land and a dozen seeds, Ming Fei naturally hadn’t used them to grow grain. Instead, she had planted medicinal herbs, including ginseng.
“Don’t let them fool you again. Those two deliberately tricked you into going up there, wanting to harm you, wanting you to be eaten by wolves.” Xu Cuihua couldn’t help frowning at the thought of those two malicious boys. Worried her daughter might be deceived again without caution, she spoke bluntly.
Ming Fei wasn’t the original host. Even if she were, the original host hadn’t really trusted Jin Dan and his brothers much either. Behind the adults’ backs, Jin Dan and Yin Dan hadn’t treated the original host well, especially Jin Dan. If not for worrying about Ming Erde, she wouldn’t have gone up the mountain this time.
Xu Cuihua’s hands moved with remarkable efficiency. After the water in the pot boiled, she first tossed in the washed leafy greens, then stirred in the flour clumps. Pausing briefly at this point, she continued, “Stay away from your uncle’s family from now on. None of them are any good.”
“Okay, I’ll listen to you, Mom!”
Even if Xu Cuihua hadn’t said it, Ming Fei would have done so anyway.
Xu Cuihua leaned over to glance at her obedient daughter, privately reflecting on the naivety of the original host’s parents.
Their kindness toward Jin Dan and Yin Dan wasn’t due to son preference—thinking they had no son and would rely on nephews for support in old age—but rather for Ming Fei’s sake.
Their daughter had been frail since childhood and had no siblings. While the couple was still young, what would happen when they grew old? They always believed that as family, by treating Jin Dan and his brothers well, their daughter would have someone to back her up in the future. They hoped that after they were gone, if their daughter were ever bullied, Jin Dan and his brothers might, out of blood ties and gratitude for the couple’s years of kindness, lend her a helping hand.
Who would have thought that the Jin Dan brothers, despite their young age, could be so vicious.
To be this cruel at such a tender age—how could they ever be reliable in the future?
Those brothers believed the couple treated them well only to have someone carry their funeral pots in the future. If they truly cared about that, the original couple would have divorced long ago. But neither Ming Erde nor the original host seemed particularly concerned about it.
Rather than relying on those three brothers in the future, it would be better for the couple to work hard themselves and leave their daughter with sufficient security.
In any case, Xu Cuihua never thought of depending on others. She would take good care of her man herself and raise her daughter to become accomplished.
First, she would take her daughter to practice martial arts—it would strengthen her body and teach her to protect herself when needed.
Ming Fei had no idea that her new mother had already planned her future lessons in her mind. She was secretly swallowing her saliva.
The noodle soup made with white flour, with fresh green vegetables added to it, smelled absolutely delicious!
Before she transmigrated, she hadn’t eaten proper food in a very, very long time. Even though she had a Space, the limited plots of land were used to grow more important medicinal herbs rather than food.
But she knew that Ming Erde was more important right now.
Although Ming Fei tried her best to hold back, Xu Cuihua, with her sharp ears and keen eyes, still heard the sound. After scooping a bowl, she poured the rest into another bowl—this was for Ming Fei.
Looking at the noodle soup left on the table and then at Xu Cuihua, who was carrying a bowl to find Ming Erde, Ming Fei suddenly felt that becoming family with someone like this might be a wonderful thing.
—Of course, it definitely wasn’t because of this bowl of noodle soup.
Ming Erde knew that supplies at home were tight and that what he was eating now was his daughter’s share, but he didn’t refuse—he needed to recover quickly so he could improve the family’s situation.
Ming Fei held her bowl, divided half of the noodle soup into it, and then pushed it toward Xu Cuihua, who had returned with an empty bowl. “Mom, you eat too!”
She had heard that Xu Cuihua hadn’t eaten lunch after returning at noon and had gone straight to look for her. That meant she had only eaten one sweet potato since morning.
Ming Fei wasn’t the type to hog food all to herself.
Even if Xu Cuihua wasn’t really her mother—even if she were—she couldn’t possibly take it for granted to eat alone when supplies were scarce. Good things taste better when shared!
When her squad found cola, they would each pour a small sip to share.
“Mom won’t eat. Feifei, you eat it.”
“No, we’re a family. I’ve eaten, Dad has eaten, and Mom must eat too—that’s what makes us a family.” Ming Fei sat on a small stool, looking up at Xu Cuihua earnestly. “A family is only a family when everyone is together!”
Xu Cuihua hadn’t rested since returning. She hadn’t even changed out of her blood-stained clothes or wiped the dried blood from her face.
Hearing the child’s words, Xu Cuihua paused for a moment, then smiled and didn’t refuse further. “…Alright, let’s eat together.”
She had been alone before, but now, in this strange world, she had a family. And this feeling wasn’t bad at all.
She used to think that children were very troublesome creatures. A mother not only had to take care of their food and drink but also raise them to become accomplished. She lacked confidence, and with her busy life, she never started a family in her previous life, nor did she take any consorts into her chambers.
The emperor who unearthed her said she was still unenlightened, but before she could gain enlightenment, she died.
Now it's perfect—everything is settled in one step: she has both a Zhengjun and a child.
…Although this Zhengjun originally belonged to someone else, and the child was also someone else's, now they are both hers.
Of course, out of a sense of conscience, she definitely wouldn't touch the man. Otherwise, she would feel guilty toward the original owner. She could simply treat Ming Erde as the widow left behind by a good sister and take care of him—there was no problem with that.
Ming Fei quickly finished her portion, patted her slightly bulging belly, and looked curiously at Xu Cuihua.
—She always felt that Xu Cuihua was thinking about something strange. How curious!
Before she could ask, she suddenly heard hurried footsteps approaching. Xu Sulan, the original owner's grandmother, was carrying something in her hand, her hair disheveled. Seeing the two at the table, she hurried over and immediately focused on Xu Cuihua.
"Cuihua? Are you alright?"
She had gone to the Gongshe for business today. Otherwise, when Xu Cuihua went to dig the river, she would have stayed home to take care of Ming Erde and her granddaughter. How could Jin Dan and the others have tricked her granddaughter away?
As soon as she returned, she heard that while she was away, her granddaughter had been tricked into going up the mountain and abandoned by those two wretched boys, Jin Dan and Yin Dan. Her daughter had fought with Ming Dade's family while searching for her granddaughter and had her head injured. Xu Sulan was nearly frantic with worry.
At that moment, she felt an overwhelming sense of panic.
"Thank goodness, thank goodness. It's fine, it's fine." Seeing her daughter and granddaughter looking relatively well, Xu Sulan breathed a huge sigh of relief.
"Mom, don't worry, I'm here. They're no match for me!"
After affectionately calling out "Grandma," Ming Fei heard Xu Cuihua's words, and the smile on her face instantly froze.
…Oh no.
This is bad. Is the fake mom going to be exposed right from the start?
Author's Note:
Comrade Cuihua is very straightforward and can't act.
Both of these parents are from ancient times, so sometimes their ideas can be a bit unconventional. Take it slow, no rush.