“Congratulations, Manager Lu!”
“Manager Lu, you’re treating us!”
“Sister Ran is amazing!”
As the big boss left, the meeting room erupted in congratulations. Lu Qingran stood at the front, her face full of smiles.
“I’ll cover tonight’s late-night snacks. Order whatever you want!” Lu Qingran gestured for everyone to quiet down and said cheerfully.
The moment she finished speaking, cheers broke out again.
Lu Qingran—her father had died early, her mother remarried—was a lonely girl. She had just turned 28 a few days ago. Less than six years after graduating from university, she had become the manager of the largest department store in South City through her own abilities. It could be said that her career was a great success.
At 6 p.m., after ordering late-night snacks for everyone, Lu Qingran drove her small car home. Perhaps today’s joyful event was too grand, or perhaps heaven felt her life had been too smooth—whatever the reason, fate had prepared a “big gift” for her.
Bang!
A loud crash rang out.
A truck slammed into her car. The front of the car was crushed instantly. The smile on Lu Qingran’s face froze, her eyes wide with disbelief.
Blood ran from her forehead down her cheeks. Her consciousness grew blurrier, and in her daze, she seemed to hear people shouting around her.
“Call an ambulance!”
“Save her—hurry, help save her!”
The noise was overwhelming, making her head ache. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but no sound came out. Then, she completely lost consciousness.
…
“I won’t marry! The Yan family is so poor—I don’t want to marry into hardship!” a sharp female voice cried.
“I’ve already taken the silver! That little wretch would rather die than marry in your place. If you don’t go, what should I do? You think I’ll return the money? No way!” a woman snapped. Both her voice and her words made Lu Qingran frown.
“Whoever wants to marry can go. I won’t! If you force me to marry into the Yan family, I’ll smash my head and die at the doorstep!” the girl threatened.
“So noisy… shut up!” Lu Qingran, lying on the bed, couldn’t bear it anymore and shouted. But her voice was too weak—the two arguing didn’t hear her at all.
The quarrel continued, mixed with crying. Struggling, Lu Qingran opened her eyes. Just as she was about to find the source of the noise, the sight before her stunned her.
Mud walls on all sides, with nothing but a few cobwebs—no decorations at all.
The room was tiny, with no furniture. Beneath her was a hard wooden plank bed, and over her a rough cotton quilt full of holes, exposing black, clumped stuffing inside.
In the corner by the bed lay a messy pile of dry branches, making the place look like a slum.
“Where am I? Shouldn’t I be in the hospital?” Lu Qingran murmured.
Just as she was in a daze, a flood of memories rushed into her mind. After understanding what had happened, she could only ask:
“Heaven… are you playing with me?”
Lu Qingran had transmigrated.
That’s right—she had transmigrated. Although she didn’t read novels, one of her college roommates loved them, especially transmigration stories. That roommate would read day and night, often sighing:
“When will I transmigrate?”“Princess, consort, empress—wait for me!”
After graduation, Lu Qingran focused entirely on her career and never saw that roommate again. Three years had passed—she didn’t know whether that roommate had ever transmigrated.
But she had.
And she wasn’t a princess, nor a consort, nor an empress—just a poor peasant girl in a fictional dynasty not recorded in history.
The peasant girl was also named Lu Qingran. She lived in the Yong’an Dynasty, Jizhou, Zhushan Town, Lu Family Village, and was the daughter of Lu Dayong’s first wife.
Lu Family Village was backed by Four Kings Mountain. There were over seventy households and more than a thousand residents—considered a large village. Most villagers shared the surname Lu, with only a few families who had moved there later.
The original Lu Qingran’s father was Lu Dayong. He had married Li Taohua from a neighboring village, and they had one daughter—the original Lu Qingran.
Li was gentle and loved her daughter dearly. But tragedy struck—during childbirth, she suffered severe hemorrhaging. Although she survived, it left lasting health problems. She could no longer bear children and passed away when Lu Qingran was only five.
Lu Dayong blamed this and grew resentful, even toward his daughter. Less than half a year after Li’s death, he remarried Yao.
Yao was a distant relative of Lu Dayong’s mother. Her husband had been killed by wolves, and her in-laws blamed her, calling her a bringer of misfortune. She was divorced and driven out along with her daughter.
Less than half a year after marrying into the Lu family, Yao became pregnant and gave birth to a healthy son the following year. Lu Dayong was overjoyed and began to obey her completely. Even Yao’s daughter lived more comfortably than Lu Qingran and was renamed Lu Qingqing.
In the third year after Yao entered the family, she gave birth to another son. Her status—and that of Lu Qingqing—rose even higher. Meanwhile, young Lu Qingran became the most unwanted “burden” in the household. She did the most work, ate the least, and lived in a cramped woodshed. Even her two biological younger brothers took pleasure in bullying her. Her life was full of suffering.
The reason the original Lu Qingran was now lying in bed was because she had tried to kill herself.
As for why—this involved her stepsister, Lu Qingqing.
Lu Qingqing, originally named Wang Zhaodi, was the same age as Lu Qingran. She was the daughter of Yao and her previous husband, Wang Daniu.
Wang Daniu came from a nearby village beyond Four Kings Mountain. His father was a hunter, and Wang learned hunting from a young age. But fate was cruel—during one hunt, he encountered wolves and was bitten in the neck. By the time he was found and carried back, he was already dead.
His family blamed Yao, mistreated her, and eventually divorced and expelled her.
After returning to her natal family, Yao lived miserably, treated like a servant and constantly scolded. Later, after Li’s death, Lu Dayong’s mother arranged for Yao to marry him, and Wang Zhaodi entered the Lu family, changing her name to Lu Qingqing.
Lu Qingqing was plain-looking and had a sharp, mean personality like her mother. After entering the Lu household, she was jealous of Lu Qingran’s prettier appearance and often joined Yao in mistreating her. She also acted obedient in front of Lu Dayong to gain favor. Already disliking Lu Qingran, Lu Dayong was further influenced by them and forgot who his real daughter was.
Lu Qingqing had a marriage arrangement with the Yan family—one of the few families in the village with a different surname.
Years ago, Wang Daniu and his father fell off a cliff while hunting. There was no one around, and when they woke up, their cries for help went unanswered. As night approached, danger loomed—until Yan Lao’er, who was gathering firewood nearby, heard them and rescued them.
Wang’s father broke his leg in the fall and could no longer hunt. At the time, Lu Qingqing was only two years old—chubby and cute. Learning that Yan Lao’er had a four-year-old son, the Wang family insisted on arranging a marriage between the two children.
The Yan family was poor, but the elders were greedy. Seeing the potential benefits, they agreed despite Yan Lao’er and his wife’s objections. After that, Wang Daniu often sent game to the Yan family as thanks—but it all went to the elders and the other branches.
But within half a year, Wang Daniu was killed by wolves.
The Yan elders, seeing no more benefit, began exploiting Yan Lao’er’s family. A few years later, when the third son needed a house for marriage, they drove Yan Lao’er’s family out.
That winter, in bitter cold, Yan Lao’er’s family was expelled. Thankfully, the village head helped them, lending them an abandoned house at the edge of the village so they could at least have a place to live.