Behind his house lay an uninhabited wild mountain slope. Hearing the commotion, Su Ying ran a great distance without stopping until, certain no one was following, her legs gave way and she collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.
The heart-pounding thrill left Su Ying lying in the grass, laughing uncontrollably.
After over a decade confined to a hospital bed, she had never been chased like this before, nor had she ever experienced such exhilarating clarity after a desperate run.
Everything carried the scent of spring’s arrival.
Just like her—a withered tree reviving, finding life in despair, beginning a new chapter.
She didn’t dwell on her emotions for long. A new path had begun, and with it came fresh difficulties and thorns. She needed to face them with all her strength to make this second life worthwhile.
After Mrs. Ge’s shout, likely the entire village was searching for the thief. She had to cover her tracks to avoid suspicion.
Her clothes were torn—appearing in public like this would surely raise eyebrows.
Her gaze swept around and landed on clusters of Rattling Vine Grass nearby. A plan suddenly formed in her mind.
This grass had long vines covered in hooked thorns that easily clung to clothing.
She gathered large handfuls, bundling them against her back. She arranged longer vines to hang naturally in front, completely covering the torn garments and leaving only her dark, smudged face visible.
After completing this disguise, she deliberately took a different route, meandering back into the village.
Mrs. Ge had sent people searching the surroundings. As Su Ying emerged, she encountered a group of village women chatting while scanning for suspicious figures.
All eyes locked onto her the moment she appeared.
“Isn’t that Su Erya? Where’ve you been? What’s that on your back?”
Su Ying had been keeping her head down, hoping to slip past unnoticed, when an elderly woman suddenly blocked her path with the question.
“Gr…grass…w-what of it!”
Su Ying startled herself by stammering. But remembering the original host’s habitual silence, she relaxed.
Social anxiety—of course.
“Why are you coming from this direction? Did you hear about the thief at He Juren’s house?”
“N-no…no…” Su Ying waved her hands, thinking she really needed to practice speaking more. This stammering was unbearable.
“What do you need this grass for? Your family doesn’t raise pigs or chickens. Don’t tell me you’re eating it?”
One auntie eyed her suspiciously.
“S-someone…who knows my father…said…it c-cures faces…”
Su Ying pointed to her scar-covered cheek.
The women couldn’t suppress mocking smiles. Their expressions showed none believed the grass could heal her face, but if she wanted to be naive, what could they say?
Seeing their unrestrained laughter, she didn’t linger, brushing past them directly.
Back when the original host was the region’s celebrated beauty, these gossips had constantly spread rumors about her, their tones dripping with jealousy. Now they only clicked their tongues in pity.
Returning successfully to the dilapidated old courtyard, her elder sister Su Juan and younger brother Su Mo rushed forward with anxious expressions.
“Where have you been? Why are you bringing back so much grass!”
Though Su Juan’s tone was sharp, concern still showed on her face as she helped Su Mo carefully remove the Rattling Vine Grass from Su Ying’s back.The three siblings were usually together, and it was rare for anything to escape their notice. Su Ying had no intention of hiding the truth either. With a face full of remorse, she recounted how the incident had started.
Upon hearing this, eight-year-old Su Mo furrowed his thick brows deeply. He took a sharp breath, gritted his teeth, and stormed furiously into the kitchen, emerging with a kitchen knife.
Su Juan was scolding Su Ying in frustration when she suddenly noticed Su Mo brandishing the knife. Both sisters quickly rushed to stop him.
“Eldest sister, second sister, step aside! That bastard dared to bully my second sister—I’m going to kill him!”
Despite his young age, Su Mo was enraged, his chest heaving with such intensity that Su Ying feared he might harm himself from the anger.
“Don’t go!”
The two sisters blocked him and shouted in unison.
“I can’t swallow this insult! If I don’t deal with him now, what if he bullies second sister again? Our parents are gone, but I’m still here! If anyone dares to bully my family, I’ll show them we’re not pushovers! Move aside!”
“Will killing him solve anything? Even without him, there will be countless other villains who might bully me and your second sister. But if you kill him, your life will be ruined. When others come to harm us, will you still be able to stand up for us then? We need to calm down and find a way to solve the problem, not create more!”
Su Mo stubbornly lifted his head and glared at his eldest sister, his eyes filled with resentment.
Endure, endure, endure—everyone seemed to be trampling all over them. If they didn’t stand up for themselves now, would they have to wait until someone harmed all three siblings before taking action?
Su Ying understood Su Mo’s frustration, especially because their eldest sister had also suffered injustice.
When their parents were alive, they had arranged a promising marriage for Su Juan with Wang Shangnian, the son of the village head of Xiaohe Village. The young man was upright, talented, and had studied for several years.
But two years ago, when Su Juan went to the Su family’s new house to borrow money and grain, she slipped and fell into a filthy ditch. Only the hem of her pants got wet, and no one had seen her on the way.
Yet, after meeting those so-called relatives, rumors spread within two days that Su Juan had fallen into a river, drenched and seen by others.
Later, the Wang family seized the opportunity to break off the engagement. Everyone thought the matter would end there, but unexpectedly, Su Hao, the eldest cousin from the second branch of the Su family, took over the engagement. Within a month, the two families became in-laws.
Now, at nineteen, Su Juan remained unmarried, as no one dared to propose to her.
However, Su Juan had come to terms with it. She often said that as the eldest sister, she was like a mother. With their parents gone, her duty was to care for her younger siblings, not to think about marriage.
Recalling Su Juan’s fate in her previous life, Su Ying shuddered. Su Juan had been gambled away by their gambling-addicted second uncle to a local ruffian, leading a life worse than death.
Su Mo hadn’t fared much better either. Upon learning that the original host had been violated, he had grabbed a kitchen knife, just as he did now, and gone to seek revenge.
He Changchun discovered it in time and rallied the villagers to tie Su Mo up. He was later confined to the village ancestral hall, where he eventually died from a snakebite.
That was why Su Ying was determined to prevent such a tragedy. If she could stop him from seeking revenge today, perhaps Su Mo’s fate could be changed.
“Little brother, don’t be angry or anxious. That beast didn’t manage to take advantage of me, and besides, I knocked him unconscious. No one saw me leaving their house when I returned, so if you don’t make a scene, no one will find out about this.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t let him use me as a pawn for nothing. I’ve already thought of a way to deal with him!”
Facing her close sibling, Su Ying spoke much more fluently.
She held Su Mo’s hand, trying to calm him down and prevent him from getting so agitated.
Su Juan glanced at her and stepped forward to snatch the knife from Su Mo’s hand. “Now that your second sister has grown more cautious, let’s trust her this once. Give me the knife. We must not mention this matter again to avoid anyone overhearing!”
“And you,” Su Juan glared quite sternly at Su Ying beside her, “shouldn’t you hurry back and change your clothes?”
Su Ying wrinkled her nose, glanced at her, and quickly ran off to change.
Though she was already twenty years old, a year older than this elder sister, it was frustrating that she didn’t possess even half of her authoritative presence.
While muttering to herself, a voice from outside interrupted.
It was that Aunt He, who had done all sorts of wicked deeds yet maintained a good reputation.