Chapter 1: Return from the Sea Sacrifice, Rebirth

In Qingyu Village, within the Song family courtyard.

Pale-faced and drenched from head to toe, Song Chuman lay on the ground.

A crowd of people gathered around, clamoring and arguing.

"Mother, I beg you, please get a doctor for Aman. She's still alive!"

"Grandma, Sister still has breath left, please save her!"

"Li Cuicui, just for five taels of silver, you pushed her out as a sacrifice. Now that she's finally come back, how can you be so heartless as to ignore her?"

"Exactly! When your eldest son returns, he'll hate you to death!"

Being nagged, Li Cuicui stood with her hands on her hips and said impatiently, "She's dead, so why call a doctor? She was sent onto the boat yesterday and only drifted back today. The boat is gone, and with this cold weather, she's either drowned or frozen to death. I say we just throw her into the mountains and be done with it. A child rejected by the Sea Goddess herself is not one our family can keep."

"Sister isn't dead! She isn't dead!"

Song Chuman, her consciousness blurred, stirred slightly.

Sacrifice?

The Sea Goddess?

Why did that sound so ridiculous?

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through Song Chuman's brain as a segment of memory that did not belong to her flooded in.

She, a precious medical student from the year 2060, had actually transmigrated into a six-year-old girl?

The original owner of this body shared the same name, Song Chuman, and lived in a fishing village.

The area surrounding the village was all saline-alkali land, unsuitable for crops; the villagers had made their living from the sea for generations.

However, in the last two years, due to poor weather, maritime accidents had become frequent. Nine times out of ten, fishermen would run into trouble when heading out to sea, making life increasingly difficult for every household.

A few days ago, a Taoist priest suddenly appeared in Qingyu Village, claiming that if they sacrificed to the Sea Goddess, they would live better lives in the future.

The village head decided to hold a sacrifice. As long as someone was willing to offer up their own child, the village would pool funds to donate five taels of silver.

The original owner's grandmother, Li Cuicui, viewed her as a "money-losing goods" and a waste of resources. Taking advantage of her father's absence, she had pushed her out without hesitation.

The original owner's mother, Sheng Shuwan, and her twin brother, Song Chuhuai, had fought desperately to save her, but Li Cuicui had locked them in the house.

Before dawn the next day, the original owner was knocked unconscious and sent onto a small boat, gradually disappearing into the sea with the waves.

Unexpectedly, after a day and a night, she was washed back to the shore and brought back to the Song house by kind-hearted people.

Having endured the sea wind all night, the original owner had been running a fever. Because Grandma Li Cuicui refused to spend money on medical treatment, she had died from the fever, which was how Song Chuman had transmigrated into her.

Hearing this, Li Cuicui let out a sneer. "So what if she's not dead? She's a lowly brat rejected by the Sea Goddess. How would I dare spend money to treat her? What if the Sea Goddess takes her anger out on me?"

Sheng Shuwan sat on the ground, clutching her daughter tightly to her chest, her face covered in tears. "Mother, the child's father has always honestly handed his monthly wages to you. Aman is your own granddaughter; how can you just let her die?"

A neighbor also tried to persuade her: "Exactly. Your eldest son is usually so filial. This child clearly still has breath left. If she really dies because you wouldn't pay for treatment, aren't you afraid she'll come back to claim your life at night?"

Another neighbor added, "We've never had a custom of sacrifice here. Perhaps the Sea Goddess took pity and sent Aman back. Auntie, this might be a blessing!"

Li Cuicui frowned at the two of them and snorted. "What blessing? Aren't you afraid of being cursed by the sea and encountering shipwrecks every time you go out? If you're so concerned, why don't you take this money-loser back to raise her yourself!"

The two were stunned and fell silent.

Some things were better left to superstition; they were quite mystical.

Li Cuicui sneered mockingly, "I thought you were being kind, but it turns out you're just afraid of bad luck."

She didn't want to waste any more time and looked at her other two daughters-in-law. "Hurry up, throw this money-loser into the mountains."

"No! If any of you dare touch my sister, I won't be polite!"

Hearing this, Song Chuhuai stood fiercely in front of his two aunts, spreading his small arms and hands, trying his best to protect his mother and sister.

The two daughters-in-law stood there, somewhat hesitant.

It wasn't that they were afraid of Song Chuhuai—how much trouble could a six-year-old child cause?

It was just that Sheng Shuwan was pregnant and was currently holding the girl very tightly. If something happened during a struggle, they wouldn't be able to bear the responsibility.

The laws of the Xuanling Kingdom stipulated that anyone who caused a pregnant woman to miscarry would be punished.

Previously, an old woman in the village had tried to intimidate her daughter-in-law by forcing her to do heavy labor every day, resulting in a miscarriage. As a result, the daughter-in-law's family sued the old woman in court, and she was sentenced to thirty strokes of the heavy paddle.

Seeing her daughters-in-law failing to move, Li Cuicui gritted her teeth fiercely. "If you won't throw her, I'll do it myself."

With that, she walked toward Song Chuman.

By now, Song Chuman could open her eyes. She tried to move her fingers, but she still had no strength.

With her current body, trying to deal with several adults was nothing short of wishful thinking.

Just as she was growing anxious, a screen appeared before her eyes.

【Detected that the host is in danger. Providing a Newbie Gift Pack: You may modify one character in the upcoming plot.】

【Modify, or do not modify.】

Two options appeared on the screen.

"Modify!"

Song Chuman made her choice decisively in her mind.

Immediately, a line of text appeared on the screen.

{Li Cuicui walked toward Song Chuman aggressively. Her second son, Song Hemao, was nearby chopping wood. He glanced at his mother's situation from time to time. Seeing that Song Chuman was about to be dealt with, he smiled triumphantly and continued chopping wood.}

Without a moment's hesitation, Song Chuman changed the character "wood" (柴 - chái) in "chopping wood" (砍柴 - kǎn chái) to "mother" (娘 - niáng).

In an instant, Song Hemao, who had been feigning wood-chopping outside the door, suddenly rushed toward Li Cuicui with his knife, shouting, "I'll chop, I'll chop!"

Hearing the noise, the surrounding people quickly scrambled out of the way, fearing they would be struck by the blade.

Li Cuicui thought her second son was going to help her deal with Song Chuman.

Without a second thought, she stepped aside, intending to deliver Song Chuman to her son's blade.

To her surprise, her son's hand slipped, and the sharp wood-chopping knife slammed heavily into her shoulder with a *clang*.

"AHHH!!!"

Li Cuicui screamed in agony as bright red blood sprayed out, splashing all over Song Hemao's face.