Chapter 1: Traveling Through Time
The weather in April was still a little cold, with strong winds blowing and howling, and the surrounding trees were dancing wildly like demons.
Li Zheng, a 12-year-old girl who had her heart replaced, looked at the dark walls and low beams around her since she woke up a day ago. Only a small, pitiful window was letting in a little light.
"Oh" Li Zheng sighed for who knows how many times. At this moment, she was lying on this relatively good bed, observing the surrounding situation, trying to figure out the current situation and take it slowly.
The original owner's memories revealed that this was the Liang Kingdom, a different dynasty from the one she'd previously known, likely a parallel world. The original owner's home was Lijia Village, Jin County, Daoyuan Prefecture. Her father, Li Dao, was a scholar, and her mother, Xu Qing, was the daughter of a hunter. But why would a scholar marry the daughter of a hunter? Because Li Dao's grandfather's generation had fled famine, they were considered outsiders. Furthermore, Li Dao had been sickly since childhood, constantly taking medication, leading to his family's poverty. Consequently, no one in the village wanted to marry into the Li family. Later, he fell in love with the mother Xu Qing. Xu Qing's family was also an outsider, but Xu Qing's father Xu Yong was a hunter. He could hunt, use saltpeter and make leather. The family was wealthier, but there was only one daughter in the family. She was the eldest daughter who had lost her mother and had no brothers. The people in the village looked down on her, so the marriage was delayed. Finally, the Li family asked a matchmaker to introduce one to the Xu family. The matchmaker came to the Xu family to mediate. The two families saw that their situations were similar and no one could find fault with the other. If the Xu family continued to wait, they would only be a stepmother or a family with domestic violence and bad behavior. The Li family was a good family in the village and no one was willing to come. Their son was weak and sickly. Xu Qing was the daughter of a hunter and had strength and could work. Although she had no mother, she was a good person. Therefore, the two families hit it off and became relatives.
However, after Li Zheng's grandfather went hunting and never returned, her grandparents also fell ill, their medicine failing them, and they passed away one after another. When Li Zheng was ten, her mother became pregnant, and her father, Li Dao, whose cough turned into tuberculosis and whose medicine proved ineffective, also passed away. This devastated Xu's mother, and her pregnancy also failed. She suffered heavy bleeding during childbirth and remained bedridden for over a year before passing away. The original owner, Li Zheng, had been very sensible from a young age. After her mother's departure, she cared for her younger brother, Li Zhu. A few days ago, hoping to find some wild vegetables or fruits in the mountains behind the village in spring, she took them to town to exchange for silver to supplement the family income. However, instead of finding any fruits, she caught a cold, ran a fever for several days, and never woke up again yesterday. She woke up as Li Zheng, a person from another world. The original owner's name was Li Zheng, and she was also Li Zheng. It's unclear if they were connected.
"Alas," Li Zheng sighed again at the thought. She recalled that although she had been an orphan in her previous life, she had never lacked food thanks to donations from kind-hearted people. Now that she was here, she had to start with food and shelter. Li Zheng turned her head to look at her brother, Li Zhu, who was sleeping soundly beside her. His face was filled with peace and care, and she couldn't help but sigh again. Shouldn't she be able to take care of him? Li Zheng couldn't help but question herself. Never mind. She might as well make the best of it.
Li Zheng was dreaming that she had won a lottery and was feeling very happy when suddenly a car hit her on the road. She opened her eyes suddenly and saw her brother Li Zhu pressing on her chest, bouncing back and forth as if it was fun. The little girl turned her head and saw that her sister had woken up. She said to Li Zheng, "Sister, I'm hungry."
"Okay, sister will do it right away." Li Zheng got up and picked up her brother Li Zhu. While dressing him, she thought to herself: The things in this house should be enough to last for a few days.
"Sit here for a while. I'll go boil some water. Don't run out yet. It's cold outside."
"Yeah." Looking at the well-behaved and obedient Li Zhu, Li Zheng felt warm in her heart.
As soon as I opened the door, I saw a vegetable garden on the left side of the yard, with a well next to it. The kitchen was also on the left, and next to it was the utility room. On the right side of the yard were Li Zheng's room and a few unused rooms. The main house was where Li Zheng's parents lived.
She checked the kitchen and saw that the jars were running low. The combined grains, both coarse and fine, should last about seven or eight days. She then checked the garden and decided to make some vegetable dumpling soup. Picking vegetables from the garden, she noticed they weren't growing well. She remembered that the original owner was only a teenager, and even if she was capable, she couldn't know everything. She picked some and quickly washed them. As she did so, Li Zheng thought, "Thank goodness there's a well at home. Otherwise, I'd have to carry a load to the river, which would be too much for her small frame." She was thankful to have the original owner's memories when it came time to light the fire, otherwise it would have been a hassle. Li Zheng noticed it was getting late; the sun had already been out for a while, so she hurried to cook. She filled the pot with water, scooping out some once it was hot to wash her face later. She then added flour to the pot and stirred it. When it was almost done, she added the vegetables. Finally, she added some salt and a few drops of oil. The meal was ready.
"Sister, eat, eat." Following the voice, I looked over and saw Li Zhu behind the door, stepping over the threshold and preparing to turn over.
"Li Zhu, don't move, wait a moment." Li Zheng was shocked. The threshold in ancient times was very high. Children's bones are brittle. If they get hurt by a bump, the ancient medical treatment would not be very effective.
"No, Bao Ge'er." He protested with a pout, as if he was not happy with Li Zheng calling him by his full name.
"Okay, I'll call you Bao Ge'er from now on. Let's go eat." Li Zheng carried Bao Ge'er to the kitchen. Li Zheng first took Bao Ge'er to wash his hands and face before sitting at the table to eat. Although Bao Ge'er was only two years old, he could eat by himself. Although he could only eat with a spoon and would get food on himself, Li Zheng did not plan to feed him. People should cultivate a sense of independence from an early age. Although Li Zheng did not know how to raise a child, she still knew these basic knowledge. After all, she had lived in an orphanage for 18 years and usually helped the director mother take care of younger children.
"Sister, it's delicious."
"If it tastes good, eat more."
Looking at Baoger eating with difficulty while holding a spoon, Li Zheng suddenly felt that he was not a child, but a responsibility. However, it was good to have a relative. She had no family and no friends in her previous life, but now she had a blood-related family, which gave her a sense of belonging.
After dinner, Li Zheng decided to clean the house. Looking at the dilapidated house, the dirty bedding, and the cobwebs on the wall, Li Zheng couldn't stand it. She decided to clean it up first. After all, she might live here in the future.
Li Zheng first placed Baoger closer to the door so that she could keep an eye on him at any time, then she dived in and started cleaning.
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