Chapter 2: Wishing to Follow the Autumn Wind Home

Between the rise and fall of life and death, Wen Sheng suddenly regained sensation. The darkness made it impossible for her to breathe, her head was buzzing, and muffled sobbing reached her ears, sounding inexplicably heart-wrenching.

"My child, ugh, how could you be so reckless? If something happened to you, what would your mother do? I worked so hard to raise you; you're taking my life away! When your father returns, how can I face him? I won't live either..."

Wen Sheng vaguely sensed something was wrong. She frowned and struggled slightly; her eyelids felt as if they were weighed down by a thousand pounds. What felt especially strange was that, aside from her neck, she felt no pain anywhere else on her body. At this moment, she seemed to be lying flat somewhere, her body utterly exhausted, yet this feeling was clearly that of being alive.

How could such a massive fire have failed to burn her to death? How could that be?

The weeping did not stop, but later, it seemed someone persuaded the woman away, and Wen Sheng's ears finally grew a bit quiet.

Her head throbbed with splitting pain, so she could only lie there obediently, filled with doubts, until drowsiness overcame her and she fell into a stupor.

When she woke again, she was actually lying comfortably in bed under a cotton quilt. It was quiet around her, save for a strange woman with swollen, tearful eyes guarding her side.

Although Wen Sheng's mind was clear, her throat was so uncomfortable that she could not speak. The woman carefully touched her forehead and said softly, "Sheng'er, don't be afraid. Mother is here for everything."

Wen Sheng was secretly astonished. She did not recognize the woman speaking, and this room was even more unfamiliar, yet the gaze the woman cast upon her was filled with worry and heartache. Moreover, she had heard this voice many times during her period of semi-consciousness.

Seeing Wen Sheng staring wide-eyed and dazed as if she had lost all will to live, the woman's eyes reddened, and she began to cry again. Between sobs, she said, "It's alright now, good child. Your uncle and aunt have both promised me; they will find a way and ensure everyone present keeps their mouths shut. No one else will ever know about that matter. It wasn't your fault to begin with. Sheng'er, just act as if nothing happened. Mother will surely find you a good marriage..."

Wen Sheng was utterly confused by her crying. She didn't pay much mind to the rest of the woman's rambling; instead, she shifted her body, attempting to see her surroundings clearly.

The woman claiming to be her mother was only about thirty years old. Although she wore simple clothes and a thorn hairpin without any makeup, her face was very gentle and pretty, possessing a somewhat charming and delicate grace.

The furniture and decorations in the room were old and simple, suggesting that life was not particularly prosperous.

Wen Sheng desperately wanted to know what had happened to her. Where was she?...Who was she?

The arm stretching out from under the quilt was very thin, looking as if it might snap at any moment. Her wrists were tinged with blue, and there wasn't a single trace of a burn from the fire.

A strange body and strange family—if it weren't for the burning pain in her neck, Wen Sheng would surely have thought she was trapped in an absurd dream.

She forced herself to calm down and closed her eyes to think about what was going on. In an instant, an inconceivable suspicion vaguely formed in her mind.

For some reason, her soul had not dissipated; instead, it had attached itself to the body of this woman's young daughter, who had just attempted suicide by hanging. From the sound of it, it seemed this young girl had encountered a scandalous incident that damaged her reputation.

Suddenly becoming another living person and personally experiencing legends of ghosts and gods, Wen Sheng had no leisure to worry about the original owner's troubles in the short term.

Seeing that her precious daughter had woken up this time without crying or making a scene, but merely looking somewhat listless, the woman, Lady Li, breathed a sigh of relief. However, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense for two days since the incident, felt uneasy again. Taking advantage of the moment the cook brought in medicine, she sent her to the eastern neighbor to invite her sister-in-law, Lady Jiang.

Before long, Lady Jiang arrived to visit.

"Sister-in-law, I heard Sheng'er is better?"

Before Wen Sheng could see her, she heard the voice. A round-faced woman pushed the door open; her eyes were bright, and her movements exuded a sense of shrewdness and capability.

She sat by the bed with a face full of affection, reached out under the quilt to take Wen Sheng's hand, and said reproachfully, "What a silly girl. It's not as serious as you think. You're only fifteen; the good days are still ahead of you. Do you have the heart to make your mother so sad and make your aunt blame herself for the rest of her life?"

Hearing the words "blame herself," Wen Sheng's heart stirred slightly. It seemed that in her accident, this woman could not be cleared of involvement.

Seeing her indifferent expression, Lady Jiang immediately felt a bit awkward. After a few words, she used an excuse to pull Lady Li out of the room.

Wen Sheng tilted her ear to listen to them.

"I stepped forward to help block it, and besides, Sheng'er was only wearing her undergarments at the time, so she didn't suffer much. Don't worry, I will definitely do what I promised. Patron Zhao has already agreed to her eldest uncle; he will never let a single word of gossip spread. He has already warned those two old servants to keep their mouths shut. In a few days, when his new shop opens, he will send both their families far away."

"That's good, that's good." Having received a firm assurance, Lady Li breathed a sigh of relief.

"The Patron also said that he feels very guilty about such an occurrence. Here is ten taels of silver; take it to buy some supplements for Sheng'er to calm her nerves. I told you long ago that Patron Zhao is a righteous gentleman, but you didn't believe me."

"No, no, I absolutely cannot accept this silver..."

Listening to the two sisters-in-law outside arguing over the ten taels of silver, Wen Sheng's expression became somewhat subtle. She slowly reached out to touch the wound wrapped on her neck. In her previous life, she hadn't even been engaged before she died. Now, having become a girl from an ordinary family without the protection of a clan, someone was already making moves on her at such a young age?

Lady Li eventually accepted the silver, because Lady Jiang advised, "I see you only have one cook here to manage the cooking and laundry, which is fine for now. But after what happened to Sheng'er, why not add a maid once she recovers? That way, she'll have someone to talk to and distract her, so she doesn't stay home overthinking things. Besides, Sheng'er is already so grown; how many years can you keep her? You also need to prepare a dowry."

Lady Li wiped her tears in gratitude. "I've relied heavily on your help all these years, Sister-in-law."

"Don't say such things. Since your husband isn't home and you have matters here, if my husband and I don't look after you, who else can we rely on but outsiders?"

Lady Jiang stayed for a short while and then left. When Lady Li returned, her expression was much better.

Wen Sheng looked and looked, realizing that this woman truly seemed to lack any schemes; she wondered how she had managed to raise her daughter.

After this great illness, Wen Sheng had to lie there for over half a month before she could sit up. Lady Li noticed that her daughter had become less close to her than before and spoke less, but she assumed it was just the shock of having faced death, and did not realize anything was wrong.

Wen Sheng remembered that when she was dying in her previous life, it was clearly winter and heavy snow was falling in Luoyi, but now it was late autumn.

She had been in this strange place for over forty-nine days in the blink of an eye. If the various things of her seventeen years in her previous life were not illusions, then once the forty-nine days had passed, the reincarnation of a dead soul was a settled matter. Even if the Yama of the Underworld discovered she had reincarnated without drinking the Soup of Forgetfulness, he would have to let the mistake stand.