The next morning, amid the sounds of roosters crowing and dogs barking, Sui Wuyou opened her eyes.
She stretched comfortably and sprang out of bed with ease.
Even though she hadn’t used her ability to heal the wound yesterday, her body’s recovery speed was astonishing to begin with.
Now, she could no longer feel any discomfort on her forehead.
She slipped on her shoes, strode to the door, lifted the curtain, and stepped outside.
The sight before her stunned her.
The warm, dazzling sunlight shining on her face told her clearly—this was no underworld.
The courtyard scenery felt both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.
“Oh my goodness, my dear child! Why are you up?”
Seeing Sui Wuyou standing blankly at the doorway, Old Madam Sui hurriedly tossed aside the broom in her hand.
She rushed over and carefully supported her.
“You still have a head injury. Hurry back and lie down. Are you hungry? Grandma will cook right away.”
“Grandma, don’t worry. I’m already fine.”
Sui Wuyou smiled and held Old Madam Sui’s arm in return.
“Lying in bed all the time is too stuffy. I just wanted to come out for some fresh air.”
She had lain in that laboratory for five whole years—she had more than had her fill of it.
Now, all she wanted was to bathe and run beneath the sunlight.
“Alright then. Wuyou, sit in the courtyard and get some air. Keep Grandma company and chat with me.”
Old Madam Sui looked at her granddaughter’s luminous pale face, her heart swelling with joy.
Since birth, the child had never uttered a word.
Now, hearing her crisp, clear voice—it was sweeter than anything.
Sui Wuyou obediently sat down, resting her chin in her hand as she watched her grandmother sweep the courtyard.
The yard wasn’t large. In one corner stood a tall pear tree, its branches lush and heavy with small green fruit.
To the right was a low thatched hut, likely the kitchen.
It looked simple and crude, yet everything was exceptionally clean and orderly.
Looking more closely at Old Madam Sui’s attire, Sui Wuyou noticed it was different from before.
She wore a dull gray coarse-cloth outfit, patched in several places with neat, even stitches.
Suspicion stirred within Sui Wuyou. Keeping her tone casual, she asked:
“Grandma, I don’t seem to remember anything from before. Could you tell me about it?”
Old Madam Sui showed no sign of surprise.
After all, her Wuyou had been unresponsive since birth—like a lifeless jade doll.
It was normal for her not to know anything about the family.
Once, a wandering beggar had come to their door and muttered madly that Wuyou’s soul was incomplete. Perhaps she would remain foolish her whole life—or perhaps one day she would suddenly awaken.
Thankfully, she and the old man had never given up.
Their Wuyou had finally woken up.
Silently thanking Heaven in her heart, Old Madam Sui looked at her granddaughter lovingly and began recounting the family’s story.
She and Old Man Sui had three sons and one daughter.
Their eldest son, Sui Jiaxing, married Liu Cui’er and had two sons: Sui Changping and Sui Chang’an.
Their second son, Sui Jiawang, married Li Meihua and had two sons: Sui Changkang and Sui Changjian.
Their third child, Sui Jiarong, was a daughter who married into Zhoujiawa, forty li away, and gave birth to two daughters: Zhou He’er and Zhou Sui’er.
The youngest son was Sui Wuyou’s biological father, Sui Jiasheng.
Bright from childhood, he had been sent to a private school.
Diligent and hardworking, he won the admiration of his teachers.
His instructor, Teacher Song, favored him greatly and gave him the courtesy name Jingxing, taken from the phrase “As towering mountains inspire reverence, so does noble conduct.”
Teacher Song had only one daughter, Song Qingxian—beautiful and exceptionally talented.
With everyone’s encouragement, Sui Jingxing married Song Qingxian.
After marriage, the couple respected and cherished one another, living happily.
Living up to expectations, Sui Jingxing passed the county-level imperial examination at just seventeen, earning the title of xiucai.
When Song Qingxian had just become pregnant with Sui Wuyou, he traveled alone to the prefectural city to take the provincial examination. That journey lasted seven months.
But just as the family awaited his return, tragic news arrived.
He had encountered bandits on the road and fallen into a cliff, his body never recovered.
Upon hearing the news while heavily pregnant, Song Qingxian went into premature labor.
After a long and painful day and night, she gave birth to a wrinkled baby girl.
Exhausted and devastated, she passed away shortly after.
Heartbroken that their granddaughter was born without parents, the elderly couple named her Wuyou—“Without Worries.”
May she live safely and joyfully, year after year without sorrow.
But from birth, Wuyou had been different from other children—unresponsive, unable to cry or laugh.
Now orphaned, too.
Gradually, rumors spread in the village.
They called her a “lone star of calamity,” cursed to harm her kin and bring misfortune upon her family.
Frightened by the gossip, Liu Cui’er and Li Meihua insisted that Old Man and Old Madam Sui send Wuyou to a temple.
But Wuyou was their youngest son’s only bloodline—how could they bear to part with her?
After much conflict, Old Man Sui reluctantly divided the family property with his two sons and lived separately, raising Wuyou on their own.
Old Madam Sui talked for a long while, tears streaming down when she reached the painful parts.
She hid nothing from Wuyou. Sooner or later, she would learn these things.
Better to tell her early so she could be prepared.
Sui Wuyou fell silent, staring blankly at the pear tree before her.
So she had truly died in that laboratory.
Now she had transmigrated into an unknown era, into a small mountain village.
She hadn’t expected such a tragic background.
Could it be that her father had staged his death after catching the eye of some powerful noble, abandoning his wife to remarry?
Her mental resilience was extraordinary. She quickly accepted her new identity.
Since Heaven had granted her another life, she would never waste it.
Looking at Old Madam Sui—identical in appearance to her grandmother from her previous life—she broke into a radiant smile.
“Grandma!”
Wasn’t this a way to make up for her regrets?
In this lifetime, she would make sure Grandma lived well.
Besides, the original body had been a soul-deficient fool. Her arrival could hardly be considered harm.
“Yes… my precious child!”
Hearing her granddaughter’s clear voice and seeing her flower-like smile, Old Madam Sui’s heart felt as sweet as honey.
Setting down her broom, she rolled up her sleeves and said cheerfully,
“Wuyou, sit in the courtyard and enjoy the sun. Grandma will cook for you.”
“Alright, thank you, Grandma!”
Sui Wuyou nodded obediently, her gaze falling on her grandmother’s wrist.
There was a pear-blossom-shaped birthmark—identical to the one her grandmother had in her previous life.
Her heart pounded. She hurriedly lifted her own sleeve.
In her past life, she had borne the same birthmark.
When the pear-blossom mark on her wrist came into view, her eyes grew moist.
Perhaps this truly was another lifetime shared between her and Grandma.
Sui Wuyou stood and slowly walked toward the kitchen.
Old Madam Sui was bustling about efficiently. Seeing Wuyou enter, she immediately put down what she was doing.
“Oh my dear, are you starving already? Go back outside. The kitchen’s messy—you might trip. Grandma will have the meal ready soon.”