Inside the Mustard Seed Bag were supplies prepared for her by her master and senior brothers and sisters—a large amount of gold, silver, jewels, rare medicinal herbs, various types of Alchemical Pills, ample rice, flour, grains, and oil, as well as stacks of exquisitely crafted Talismans.
Jiang Muyan extended her spiritual sense into the bag, gazing at the overflowing contents, and a wave of warmth surged in her heart. She had only just arrived in this era and was already beginning to miss her master and senior brothers and sisters.
She tried hard to suppress the nostalgia and reluctance in her heart. She didn’t know why she had come to this world, but she understood that since heaven had brought her here, there must be some meaning to it.
Her adaptability had always been strong. Now, with her skills and the “confidence” her master and the others had prepared for her, she had even less reason to fear this era.
Thinking this, she took out a Marrow-Cleansing Pill from the Mustard Seed Bag and placed it in her mouth. This pill not only thoroughly improved one’s constitution but also strengthened the body and cleared the meridians—exactly what her currently weak body needed most.
The Marrow-Cleansing Pill melted as soon as it entered her mouth, a warm medicinal force sliding down her throat into her abdomen and quickly spreading throughout her body. Jiang Muyan instinctively sat cross-legged, circulating her sect’s cultivation technique to guide the medicinal force as it slowly flowed through her body, nourishing her parched meridians and depleted Qi and blood.
After circulating the energy for two full cycles and sensing that the medicinal force had been fully absorbed, Jiang Muyan gradually stopped.
Whether it was because the Marrow-Cleansing Pill was too effective or because the original body had accumulated too much impurity, as soon as she stopped, a foul, fishy stench emanated from her body—likely the result of the pill expelling years of accumulated impurities and toxins from the original body.
At this moment, it wasn’t convenient for her to boil water for a bath, so she took out a Cleansing Talisman from the Mustard Seed Bag and used it on herself. The sticky, uncomfortable feeling instantly vanished, and the foul stench faded away, replaced by a faint, refreshing scent of grass and wood.
After finishing these tasks, Jiang Muyan once again assessed the changes in her body. Her meridians were now completely clear, her Qi and blood were abundant, and her previously weak and powerless limbs were now filled with strength.
Although the wound on her forehead hadn’t fully healed, the sharp pain from before was gone.
With her body fully restored, Jiang Muyan felt even more confident. She quietly calculated: the most urgent matter now was to settle the Karmic retribution between the original body and the Jiang family, and then leave this suffocating home for good.
As she thought this, Jiang Muyan stood up, ready to go outside. Just then, a young girl’s voice came from outside the door:
“Mom, why isn’t the food ready yet? I’m starving!”
“You brat, don’t talk about dying! Can’t you see I’m busy?”
Liu Fangmei’s voice was tinged with impatience, followed by the crackling sound of firewood being added to the stove.
“And starting today, you need to learn how to cook and do housework, understand?”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Muqian widened her eyes in shock and resistance. “Why should I? Wasn’t all this Jiang Muyan’s job? I don’t know how to do it!”
After shouting, she belatedly remembered that Jiang Muyan was still unconscious. Her heart skipped a beat, and she swallowed nervously before cautiously asking, “Then… Jiang Muyan… she couldn’t be dead, could she?”
Could it be that Jiang Muyan had died, and that’s why her mother was forcing her to do housework? Since childhood, she had never even washed her own clothes—how could she possibly handle such rough work!
Liu Fangmei shot her a sidelong glance, put down the spatula, and ordered irritably, “Enough nonsense, come over and tend the fire!”
Jiang Muqian had never done such tasks before. Her mind was still preoccupied with thoughts of Jiang Muyan, and she carelessly stuffed firewood into the stove. Before long, the stove was crammed full of wood, the flames were instantly smothered, and thick smoke billowed out.
Before Liu Fangmei could finish stir-frying the dish, she was choked by the smoke, tears streaming from her eyes. She couldn’t help but scold, “How are you tending the fire, girl? Are you trying to burn the house down?”
Only then did Jiang Muqian snap back to reality. Seeing the stove spewing thick smoke, she mumbled defensively, “Isn’t it just adding firewood to the stove?”
Liu Fangmei, her eyes stinging from the smoke, said impatiently, “Alright, alright, get up. You can’t even tend a fire properly.”
Watching her younger daughter’s clumsy movements, Liu Fangmei became even more determined to teach her household chores. In the past, she had focused all her efforts on tormenting Jiang Muyan, unwilling to let her own two children lift a finger. But her younger daughter was already sixteen, soon to be of marriageable age. If she couldn’t even handle basic chores, word would surely get out and invite ridicule.
Meanwhile, Jiang Muqian had been waiting for exactly these words. Eagerly, she threw down the wood in her hands, stood up, and walked out, saying, “Mom, I’m going to check on Jiang Muyan!”
With that, she headed toward the storage room where Jiang Muyan was staying.
As soon as she stepped out of the kitchen, she looked up and saw Jiang Muyan emerging from the room.
Jiang Muqian froze for a moment before a surge of inexplicable anger rose within her. She shouted, “Jiang Muyan, are you trying to die? You woke up and didn’t even come out to help Mom cook, and now I’m getting scolded because of you!”
“That’s your mom!” Jiang Muyan said coldly.
“Wh-what?”
Jiang Muqian was momentarily stunned, staring at her blankly. The Jiang Muyan before her was completely different from the soft, easily bullied pushover she remembered. Not only was her tone cold, but her eyes also held an aloofness that kept others at a distance.
“You… you didn’t hit your head and go crazy, did you?” Jiang Muqian asked uncertainly, eyeing the wound on Jiang Muyan’s forehead.
Jiang Muyan couldn’t be bothered to respond. This younger sister of the original host, relying on Liu Fangmei’s favor, had bullied the original host countless times.
“Hey! I’m talking to you! How dare you walk away?” Jiang Muqian stamped her foot, thoroughly provoked. In this household, Jiang Muyan had always been her punching bag—when had she ever dared to ignore her like this?
Jiang Muyan didn’t pause, her back straight and unyielding, paying no heed to Jiang Muqian’s shouts. The grievances and suffering the original host had endured in this family couldn’t be erased by a few arguments.
“Stop right there!” Jiang Muqian, now completely enraged, rushed forward and reached out to grab the back of Jiang Muyan’s collar.
Jiang Muyan had already sensed it. She sidestepped, and Jiang Muqian, caught off guard, lost her balance and fell with a thud against the doorframe of the main room, her knees aching from the impact.
“Jiang Muyan, how dare you push me!” Jiang Muqian sat on the ground, rubbing her sore knees while wailing loudly, “Mom, come quick! Jiang Muyan is bullying me! She hit me and pushed me down!”
Jiang Muyan watched coldly as Jiang Muqian shamelessly lied. “Since you’ve said it, I might as well make the accusation true!”
As the words left her lips, her wrist flicked, and a lightning-fast slap landed on Jiang Muqian’s face.
A sharp “crack” echoed through the courtyard, startlingly loud.
Jiang Muqian’s crying abruptly ceased. Half of her face swelled red at a visible speed, and a trace of blood even seeped from the corner of her mouth.
Clutching her cheek, her eyes filled with disbelief, she trembled all over from the pain. It took her a long moment to react, then she shrieked, “How dare you hit me! Jiang Muyan, you bitch! I’ll fight you to the death!”
Just then, the kitchen door creaked open with a “squeak.” Liu Fangmei emerged carrying a freshly stir-fried plate of vegetables. Hearing her younger daughter’s cries, her face instantly darkened. She set down the plate, hurried over to Jiang Muqian, and carefully helped her up, her eyes brimming with heartache.
Then, she turned to look at Jiang Muyan, a flicker of reproach flashing in her gaze. Habitually, she wanted to step forward and scold or hit her, but remembering her own plan, she forcibly held back. Her tone stiff, she said, “Muyan, how could you hit your sister?”
“She was spouting nonsense. I was just teaching her how to behave!” Jiang Muyan watched Jiang Muqian, who was clutching her face and crying in Liu Fangmei’s embrace, and thought to herself with regret—only one slap, what a pity.
With that thought, she turned and walked toward the well in the courtyard, intending to draw water to wash her hands.
Although the Jiang family lived in a small county town, they were situated in the suburbs, so their lifestyle was no different from that of the countryside. Cooking was done on a traditional earthen stove, and heavy chores like chopping firewood and fetching water had previously fallen entirely on the original host alone.
On the other side, seeing that her mother wasn’t helping her scold Jiang Muyan as usual, Jiang Muqian felt even more aggrieved. Her wails grew louder: “Mom, it hurts! She hit me on purpose!”
Liu Fangmei carefully examined her younger daughter’s body and found that aside from the injury on her cheek, her knee was also scraped red. Suppressing the anger in her heart, she whispered soothingly:
“Alright, alright, stop crying. Don’t provoke her these next few days. Just bear with it for now.”
As she spoke, she leaned close to Jiang Muqian’s ear and muttered a few words in a hushed tone—nothing more than telling her to temporarily accommodate Jiang Muyan and wait until Jiang Muyan married Director Zhang before properly dealing with her.
The resentment in Jiang Muqian’s eyes gradually faded. Though she still felt stifled inside, she understood that for now, ensuring Jiang Muyan obediently married was the top priority. She nodded and stopped crying.
They thought their voices were extremely low, unaware that Jiang Muyan, having taken the Marrow-Cleansing Pill, had long since developed exceptionally sharp senses. Every word of the mother and daughter’s secret plotting reached her ears without missing a syllable. A mocking curve lifted the corner of Jiang Muyan’s mouth: Did they really think they could scheme against her?
Just as she was thinking this, she heard Liu Fangmei’s artificially affectionate voice call over:
“Um… Muyan, come over and eat once you’ve washed your hands!”