In the tenth year of the Jianguang era of the Da Yan Dynasty, the second month in the great southwest should have been a time when spring filled the mountains and forests. Yet, it was met with an unprecedentedly long winter.
The cold wind was like a knife, forcing the faintest hints of tender green to hide beneath the tree bark, too afraid to move. The trees could still wait bitterly, but the people could not.
In the most severely affected areas, cattle and sheep froze to death, and the winter wheat in the fields was on the verge of perishing from the winter drought.
The farmers, lacking food and clothing, were in imminent danger. Famine was just around the corner, yet the imperial court’s taxes, instead of decreasing, had increased.
Thus, Zhou Wang, whose fief was in the southwest of Da Yan, raised an army in accordance with the will of the people.
The surrounding prefectures were instantly thrown into a panic, with everyone scrambling to save themselves before the rebel soldiers arrived.
“Run! The rebels are coming!”
“They kill, they burn, they’ll do anything!”
“They even eat human flesh, drink human blood, and flay people’s skin!”
Rumors ran rampant, and terrifying news spread like the wind.
Everyone was terrified, and the people of Xu Family Village, which was situated by the main road, were in a state of utter panic.
Many had already begun to pack their belongings, preparing to flee with their families.
But in one household in the village, the courtyard gate was shut tight, and the sounds of a ceaseless argument could be heard from within.
“I’m not going, I’m just not going. I’ve lived half my life, what haven’t I seen? Why would rebel soldiers come to a tiny village like this!”
On a wooden ladder leaning against the courtyard wall, a woman who looked to be in her forties but was dressed as an old matron wailed dryly, brandishing a sickle menacingly at the air as if ready to fight the rebels to the death.
In the courtyard, a young man wrapped in a thick padded jacket knelt on the ground, pleading, “Mother, just come down! There’s really a war. Those rebels kill on sight!”
“Let them come! This old woman will fight them to the death!”
The woman hacked at the earthen wall with her sickle, sending a cloud of dust flying.
Beside them, a young, pregnant wife’s face turned deathly pale with fright.
Chaos, it was utter chaos!
Xu Errui knelt on the ground, his eyes red with anxiety, but he was too tongue-tied to say more.
His mother had always called the shots in the family, but now, with a rebellion breaking out and everyone fleeing, she refused to leave. What was he to do?
There was another youth in the courtyard, wearing a straw raincoat for wind protection and a straw hat. Underneath, he wore a ragged padded jacket and tattered cotton trousers, revealing a section of his lower leg that was purple from the cold.
His long, thin face was a deathly white from the chill, and only his eyes, set under thick brows, gleamed with a deep, dark light.
The youth didn’t look at the hopping and shouting woman. He simply stared grimly at the overturned tables and chairs scattered across the courtyard, his fists clenched tight.
The old hag was usually as miserly as if her life depended on it. Now, with rebel soldiers about to descend upon them, she didn’t know to leave immediately, instead clinging stubbornly to these worthless, broken things and dragging everyone down with her.
After roaring for a while and seeing that her son and daughter-in-law didn’t dare to make a sound, the woman felt it was getting boring. Her eyes fell on the skinny youth, and she couldn’t help but start cursing again. “It’s all because you, you jinx, came here! That’s why last winter was so freakishly cold, freezing a whole litter of my piglets to death! Jinx! Bastard!”
The youth was already numb to this kind of baseless cursing, and the others in the courtyard were also used to the tirades.
Just as the woman was in the middle of her rant, her foot slipped. Her stiff, frozen body fell straight from the wooden ladder, her head knocking against a corner of the wall. She immediately began to foam at the mouth and lost consciousness…
Transmigration! Transmigration! Transmigration again!
Jiang Zhi was so frantic she wanted to curse someone’s mother!
Novels were so misleading!
Normally, aside from working in the traditional Chinese medicine pharmacy at the town’s health center, she just liked to stay home alone and watch mindless short videos of people trimming donkey hooves, scraping off barnacles, renovating old houses, and surviving in the wild.
Perhaps her only normal hobby was reading web novels.
But recently, she had become obsessed with male-protagonist novels, the super-satisfying kind. As a result, she had stayed up all night reading, and when she opened her eyes, she had transmigrated into the book.
Since she had transmigrated into a male-protagonist novel, she might as well have become a man! She could experience what it felt like to pee standing up and even visit brothels for some fun.
Or she could take the male lead’s path, leaving him with nowhere to go.
But no, her original body was a troublesome, unreasonable old shrew, which made her want to cry but have no tears to shed.
In the book, this old woman was the villainous maternal aunt, the kind of minor supporting character whose entire purpose was to constantly antagonize the male lead and serve as an easy kill for a satisfying plot point.
On the road while fleeing the famine, the villainous aunt bullied the male lead, withholding food and clothing from him, and was, unsurprisingly, offed by him.
The male lead then joined the rebel army, setting him on the path to greatness.
And the gloomy-faced, fifteen-year-old youth standing nearby was the web novel’s male lead, Ni Fantian.
No, that wasn’t right. His real name was Nie Fantian.
He was a standard-issue orphan, living with his maternal uncle’s family, oppressed by his vicious aunt, and forced to work like a beast of burden while enduring humiliation.
But now, the aunt had become Jiang Zhi, and she knew that this rebellious son was going to off her on the road.
Jiang Zhi’s mind was a tangled mess. Dying in real life was painful, but what would happen if she got offed in a book?
It probably wouldn’t be pleasant either.
Just like now, lying on the ground fully clothed, she could feel the chill seeping into her back. It was unbearably cold.
Jiang Zhi kept her eyes closed and didn’t move, which sent her “son” into a panic.
“Mother, please wake up! We won’t go, we’ll listen to you, we just won’t go!” Xu Errui said, his voice choked with tears.
He was a filial son with an honest personality. His grandparents and father had already passed away, leaving him with only his mother.
Although he wasn’t completely obedient, he was still deferential in every way.
Now that his mother was refusing to leave, even at the cost of her life, he could only stay and die with her.
Just then, Nie Fantian, who had been standing by with a gloomy face, spoke up. “Cousin, you should take Sister-in-law and leave quickly.”
“Since Aunt doesn’t want to go, I’ll stay and keep her company. I’m all alone anyway, I’m not afraid of death!”
Xu Errui was a little displeased. “Xiaotian, what time is it for you to be saying such things to provoke people? My mother usually has a bad temper, but you can’t try to harm her like this.”
Nie Fantian gritted his teeth, suppressing the contempt he felt for his cousin’s blind obedience.
If it weren’t for the fact that Xu Errui was an honest person and hadn’t deliberately bullied him, he really wouldn’t want to bother. “Cousin, you’ve misunderstood me! I want you and Sister-in-law to survive.”
Before Xu Errui could say more, Jiang Zhi, who was still on the ground, finally couldn’t bear to lie there any longer.
She was afraid that if she didn’t “wake up” soon and was really left behind with Nie Fantian, she would probably be offed on the spot.
So, she let out a long breath and slowly “woke up”!
“Mother, where did you hurt yourself?” Xu Errui was both overjoyed and apprehensive as he quickly helped her up.
Jiang Zhi adopted the original owner’s tone and said, “Not dead yet!”
Xu Errui’s heart settled: as long as his mother wasn’t injured, it was fine. But now that she was awake, he had no idea what kind of scene she would make next.
Beside them, the young wife brought over half a bowl of clear water, saying timidly, “Mother, have some water!”
Jiang Zhi looked up, and as their eyes met, the young wife’s body trembled.
This mother-in-law was fierce and capable, but her temper was too foul. She would resort to beating and cursing at the slightest displeasure.
At this moment, Jiang Zhi only felt a bitter taste in her dry mouth and discomfort all over. Ignoring the expressions on her “son,” “daughter-in-law,” and Nie Fantian, she took the water and gulped it down, letting out a long burp at the end.
Only after drinking did she realize the water was warm. It seemed this daughter-in-law was a thoughtful person.
Seeing that his mother didn’t start cursing after drinking the water, Xu Errui mustered his courage again and asked, “Mother, everyone in the village is leaving. We should go too!”
Jiang Zhi shook her head. “We’re not going!”
A chill ran through Xu Errui’s heart. It was over. His mother was dead set on dying here.
The young wife began to sob quietly. Everyone in the village was about to flee, but her family was still fighting.
In the short time she had been lying on the ground, Jiang Zhi had already come up with a plan.
Fleeing a famine wasn’t a group tour. On the road, you’d be fighting people for water, for food, and even fighting off people who wanted to rob you. Plus, there was a male lead who wanted to kill her at any moment.
Even if she safely reached the rear areas, she would be a refugee with no money, no land, and no house.
Although there was a saying that heroes are born in troubled times, for ordinary people, an era of war and chaos was a catastrophe. It was best to hide.
The male lead needed to go out and take risks to find opportunities and advance the plot. Why should a dying old woman like her join in the excitement?
It would be better to find a remote place, clear some land, and farm on her own. It wouldn’t have to be for long, just until this wave of rebel soldiers passed.
And she could get away from the male lead who wanted to off her… Perfect