The afternoon sun shone on the mottled blue brick wall. A gentle breeze blew by, and the shadows of the trees swayed. Through the window lattice, one could see a woman sitting on the bed in the antique-style room, her eyes vacant and her expression blank.
Cheng Ruyi recalled that at three o'clock last night, she was working overtime in her room as usual when she received a call that her takeout had arrived. She had just stood up to go to the living room to open the door when suddenly everything went black and she lost consciousness. When she regained consciousness, she found herself in this situation...
Sigh... Although there are countless lessons from the experiences of her predecessors, and the probability of dying from overwork and staying up all night leading to time travel is among the top three on the list, she never expected that she herself would join the torrent of time travelers. If only she had known... Oh well, hindsight is always 20/20.
"My barbecue! My snail rice noodles! My fried chicken and cola! I've already paid, can't I at least have a bite before I put them on...?" Cheng Ruyi was frustrated.
After spending half a day sorting through the memories in my mind, I realized that the original owner was also named Cheng Ruyi, was also thirty-two years old, and had a similar appearance and figure, but their life experiences were completely opposite.
This is a place called Huaishan County, Chongzhou Prefecture, Dayue Kingdom. The Cheng family runs a small furniture shop in the county town. They can't be called rich or powerful, but they are well-off. The original owner's parents had her when they were quite old, so they cherished her and named her Ruyi, hoping that their daughter would have everything go smoothly in the future.
Although the original owner's mother passed away when she was young, the original owner never lacked love during her growth. Therefore, Cheng Ruyi was warm, generous, lively and cheerful in her teenage years, and was like a little sun.
Old Master Cheng, heartbroken for his only daughter and fearing she would suffer if she married out of the family, decided to find a son-in-law to live with him.
The original owner was quite good-looking and her family owned a shop, so she naturally had no shortage of suitors. Her husband, Shen Yun, was one of them. The couple had a sweet and happy marriage and had two children in three years, making others envious.
Time flies, and the original owner gradually grew from an innocent and carefree girl into the capable, thrifty, and decisive head of the Cheng family.
The couple was loving and had a son and a daughter. The family was harmonious and happy, and everyone who saw them would envy them. Unfortunately, their good fortune did not last long. Seven years ago, the original owner's husband caught a cold and never recovered.
Images flashed through Cheng Ruyi's mind like frames from a movie: her husband's face as he held her hand and slowly closed his eyes with a smile; the gloomy, rainy sky on the day of the burial; the original owner of the body, immersed in grief and weeping every day; the original owner of the body, slowly picking herself up for the sake of her family...
Recalling this, I don't know whether to laugh or cry.
After graduating from university, Cheng Ruyi immediately began her life as a corporate slave, working tirelessly from home to work for ten years. She was still single at the age of thirty-two. But after transmigrating to this place, she skipped several levels and became a widow with three children. For a moment, she couldn't tell whether she had gained or lost.
To be honest, what Ruyi was most worried about when she traveled to ancient times was the marriage system. It was the most troubling issue for her during countless nights of reading ancient romance novels. In modern times, she has always been single, not only because of her work environment and her homebody nature, but also because she adheres to the principle of "better to be single than in a bad relationship".
It's so difficult to meet the right person in modern times, let alone in ancient times when marriages were arranged by parents and matchmakers.
You can't date for several years first, let alone live together before marriage. You might even have to get married without ever having met the person. The probability of meeting someone who is compatible with you both emotionally and physically is practically zero!
Not to mention the seven grounds for divorce or having multiple wives and concubines, each of which made her feel like she was sitting on pins and needles, or had a fishbone stuck in her throat!
Whether it was a special compensation from the god of time travel, the current situation of the Cheng family could be considered quite perfect for Cheng Ruyi, who had lived alone for many years: she had been managing the household alone for many years, her husband had passed away, she had no husband's family, and her youngest child was already old enough to run errands. It felt like she was playing a game and skipping the plot to achieve a normal ending.
Speaking of the Cheng family's population composition, it really has elderly people above and young children below, but she is the only young adult in the middle.
The original owner's father, Cheng Yan, is fifty-seven years old this year. He is not tall, has dark skin, and is honest and simple. He is a typical ancient working person. Although he often looks stern, he is actually very easy to talk to.
He was not a native of the area. He was born in a poor village in the far north. About forty years ago, during the previous dynasty, the entire north suffered a severe drought, with no harvest for three consecutive years. Countless people were forced to leave their homes in order to survive.
Cheng Yan's family was among them; they fled south with the other villagers.
As the unloved second son in the family, he ate the least and worked the most. He was so thin that he almost starved to death several times on the road. Apart from his sister who would save her meager food to share with him, no one in the family cared about his life or death. So after his only concern, his sister, was sold to buy food, he became completely disappointed in his family and realized that he would definitely be the next one to be sold. Thus, the honest man had the idea of rebellion for the first time. He found an opportunity to secretly escape and never contacted his family again.
Perhaps it was a case of good fortune following great misfortune. Cheng Yan escaped the famine alone without any major incidents, and even unexpectedly rescued a beautiful woman, which led to him finding love. With his wife's help, he eventually settled down in Huaishan County and, by chance, opened a shop. His life finally turned from hardship to happiness.
Decades have passed, and his years of carpentry work have made him physically strong, but as he gets older, he inevitably suffers from some ailments.
The original owner's mother, Jiang, passed away when the original owner was seven or eight years old. More than twenty years have passed, and her face has become blurry. In her memory, she was a gentle and intelligent mother who, even though the family was not wealthy at the time, still managed to keep everyone clean and well-groomed. Moreover, she always had a book in her hand and knew a lot of knowledge that others did not know.
When the original owner was a child, she loved to stick to her the most because Jiang would tell her many interesting stories, and would also take the original owner to paint, play chess, play the piano, sing and dance. They would also often go out to play, and her childhood can be said to be very fulfilling and happy.
Judging from the original owner's memories, Jiang was born into a scholarly family, was very learned, valued rituals, and lived a very interesting life. Such a woman would never have married a poor country boy who knew nothing if it weren't for the chaotic times. Fortunately, Cheng Yan respected and loved her after marriage and always put her first. After Jiang passed away, he did not remarry, raised his daughter well, and then let his daughter take charge of the family.
Besides her parents, Cheng Ruyi also has a wet nurse named Xu Cui, who is 46 years old this year. She was specially bought by Cheng Yan to take care of her and her mother when her mother was pregnant.
Xu Cui has been with the Cheng family for many years and has long been like family to them. She is hardworking, kind, optimistic and cheerful. Half the street is full of her acquaintances. When she sees strangers on the street, she will take the initiative to go up and chat with them. She is one of the few "E" people in the entire Cheng family.
The original owner had three children. The eldest son, Cheng Yunping, was sixteen years old this year. He was frail and sickly since childhood and had an introverted personality. Fortunately, he was skillful and patient. He was currently working as an assistant to his maternal grandfather in the shop.
The second daughter, Cheng Yun'an, is twelve years old. She is very sensible at such a young age, and she is careful and conscientious in doing things. She is also a little expert in housework. She helps with cooking, cleaning, and taking care of her younger sister in every way. She is a child who has never needed her family to worry about her.
The youngest daughter, Cheng Yunle, is only six years old this year. She is delicate, sweet, and adorable, and everyone loves her.
The family was easy to take care of; the only thing that worried Cheng Ruyi was this turbulent era.
The previous dynasty experienced internal strife thirty years ago, with several princes fighting tooth and nail, ultimately leading to the country's fragmentation. The Great Yue Kingdom, where the Cheng family resided, was located in the very heart of the previous dynasty's territory.
For decades, Da Yue has been plagued by constant wars, large and small, leading to an empty treasury, chaotic government, and widespread suffering. In fact, in the original owner's memory, wars had never stopped since birth, and right now, they were locked in a fierce battle with the Western Jin Dynasty to the west.
Huaishan County is a county town of moderate size; in modern terms, it would be roughly equivalent to a third-tier city.
The county town is not far from the capital of the Great Yue Kingdom in a straight line. However, the Wuling Mountains, which run through the middle, are layered, steep, and secluded, and ordinary people cannot easily cross them. They can only take a detour. It is said that it takes four or five days to reach the outskirts of the capital by mule cart from the south gate of the county town along the official road. Why is it said that? Because the original owner of this body had never been to the capital.
This distance, neither too close nor too far, is actually quite suitable for living. It allows one to enjoy the safety and prosperity of the location without the high prices and backstabbing of the capital city. It is a place where the city is bustling yet tranquil.
Even so, Huaishan County still couldn't escape conscription every now and then.
At the beginning of last year, the imperial court issued another conscription order. At that time, the original owner's son, Cheng Yunping, was just a month away from turning fifteen. Theoretically, he did not meet the conscription standard, but there were many ways to conscript him. So the officials explicitly and implicitly asked him to spend money to avoid trouble. The Cheng family paid a large sum of money to be exempted from the quota.
As soon as the conscripts left, the original owner immediately arranged for her son to get married. The bride was Lin Xiaoman, Cheng Yunping's childhood sweetheart from the next alley. She was a year older than Cheng Yunping and a hardworking girl. Half a month ago, Xiaoman also gave birth to a healthy and chubby son named Cheng Mande.
The family was still immersed in the joy of the birth of their new life when suddenly bad news came the night before last: the Western Jin army was about to break through the border defenses of Chongzhou, and Chongzhou was in imminent danger. This caused panic in the county.
Subsequently, the government posted a notice: Huaishan County will be sealed off in three days to prevent spies from the Western Jin Dynasty from infiltrating and causing trouble. All residents in the county are not allowed to leave their homes unless necessary, and violators will be severely punished.
It is true that a small part of the Western Jin Dynasty bordered Chongzhou Prefecture, but because of the wide and turbulent Benhe River in between, the border area was always just a minor skirmish and never the main battlefield.
Therefore, if the Western Jin army really broke through the defense line on the border of Chongzhou, then this war might really have broken out in full force.
Upon seeing the announcement, people in the county town began frantically hoarding grain.
Yesterday morning, before dawn, the original owner went to the grain shop with Xu Cui. However, when they arrived at the door, they were accidentally separated by the crowd. The place was crowded and chaotic. Suddenly, the original owner was pushed hard from behind, and his forehead hit the sharp corner of the wooden box in front of him hard. He immediately started bleeding and lost consciousness.
Thinking about this, Cheng Ruyi couldn't help but feel a little confused. Was this an accident? Or was it premeditated murder?
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