Tick-tock, tick-tock, the raindrops fell steadily off the eaves. The arrival of the rain did little to ease the summer heat; the air was thick with stifling humidity.

"Wow, wow, wow!" A baby's cries broke the afternoon stillness and woke Wu Qingqing from her nap.

Wu Qingqing broke free from the nightmare, drenched in sweat. She gently touched her aching forehead, which still bore a swelling that often throbbed with pain.

Wu Qingqing pushed open the heavy wooden window and looked out, but her thoughts drifted far away. This was the fifth day since she arrived here, and these five days had been filled with recurring dreams about this little girl.

This little girl is the same as Wu Qingqing, just 12 years younger than modern times.

This is a fictional dynasty called the Dahu Dynasty. The original owner lived in a place called Taohua Village.

Twenty years ago, natural disasters were frequent, and wars were incessant. Wu Qingqing's grandfather brought his whole family and abandoned their business, fleeing from the north to a town called Junan County in the south.

Ju Nan County was sparsely populated, with fertile land and abundant water sources. At the time, the county magistrate opened the city gates wide and welcomed many refugees, allocating farmland for them.

Mr. Wu and his family, along with many others fleeing from the north, settled in Taohuacun village of Ping'an Town.

Taohua Village is a village with various surnames, currently home to about 300 households.

Five days ago, the original owner went to the market and was startled by a horse, fell to the ground, and accidentally hit her forehead against a stone on the roadside, fainting. In 2022, Wu Qingqing by chance entered this body.

Wu Qingqing was born in a rural area in 2022. After graduating from junior high school due to poor academic performance, she entered society directly and worked various jobs, including serving as a waitress, working in factories, selling insurance, and peddling herbal medicines.

Wu Qingqing had experienced the harsh realities of society and was already tired of the city's noise. She had always planned to save enough money to return to her hometown and open a farmhouse with her parents. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned, a car accident brought her here.

Wu Qingqing has been in a daze these days, missing her elderly parents dearly. She knows they are already gone in modern times and there is no going back. All she can do is hope that her siblings in modern times will take good care of their parents.

Wu Qingqing let out a long breath and thought, "Since I'm here, I might as well embrace it. I can't just drift through life anymore. Since fate has given me a chance, I want to live a good life in this dynasty, pursue my dreams here, and enjoy a simple life like an idyllic countryside retreat. I believe my parents will be fine in modern times and will pray for me, bless me." As Wu Qingqing thought about it, she immediately felt alive again, her eyes gradually becoming more determined.

When a person has ambition, life has meaning, and so does life. At this moment, Wu Qingqing has rediscovered the meaning of her life.

Modernity is not an ending, but a continuation of the ancient in another form.

Don't ask me where Wu Qingqing from ancient times went, I don't know either. Maybe they are the same person? When modern Wu Qingqing arrived, the soul of ancient Wu Qingqing was no longer there.

Wu Qingqing got out of bed and walked to the blurred bronze mirror. The mirror in front of her, etched with the marks of time, was still the same one that her biological mother had taken as a dowry when she got married.

Wu Qingqing looked at the blurry and haggard face in the mirror, slightly twitching the corner of her mouth.

The original owner was not bad-looking, with big eyes and a small, high nose bridge. However, because of malnutrition, they looked pale and thin.

Wu Qingqing picked up the wooden comb, which had broken three teeth, and combed her hair according to the original owner's memory. She then stepped out.

Pushing open the heavy wooden door, it revealed a small courtyard enclosed by a fence. At this time, the courtyard was muddy from the rain's soaking.

Wu Qingqing stepped out of the house and onto the eaves. Beneath the eaves was a layer of stone slabs, which were relatively dry at this time. A gentle breeze swept in, adding a touch of coolness to this sweltering summer.

Wu Qingqing's home is located in the east of the village. There are few people here, only their family lives here.

After their separation from the old house last year, Wu Qingqing's parents took her and her two sisters to build this rural courtyard with the 8 taels of silver from the division of property and the 4 taels borrowed.

Though this farmhouse courtyard is small, it has all the necessary amenities.

The house faces south and is situated north, a three-unit row house. The middle unit is the main hall, and the two side units are wing rooms. Wu Qingqing and her two younger sisters live in the left wing room, while Wu Qingqing's parents and their three-month-old son Shi Tou live in the right wing room.

On the right side of the house, a simple kitchen was built. Behind the house, a thatched shed was constructed. Inside the shed, a pigpen and a coop were built. At the beginning of this year, the original owner's mother caught a small piglet and brought five more back to raise. Now, the pigs weigh over a hundred kilograms and have begun laying eggs.

"Sister, sister, you're awake!" Two skinny little kids, covered in mud and rain, rushed into the courtyard. These were the original owner's two twin sisters.

"Sister, look what we caught!" the younger sister Wu Yueyue said excitedly, carrying a small wooden bucket.

Wu Qingqing looked down, and there were five or six mud loaches in the small bucket.

Sanmei Wu Yuanyuan excitedly said: "Today we went to the rice paddy to let water in, and we saw mud loaches in the ditch. We were lucky enough to catch a few. Sister, let's cook fish soup for Mother later. Recently, Xiao Shitou has been crying because he hasn't eaten enough. After Mother eats the fish soup, Xiao Shitou will eat it too. Sister, you should also eat fish soup so that the wound on your head can heal faster."

Wu Qingqing looked at her two younger sisters' innocent and carefree appearances, listening to their caring words, her heart was filled with emotion. Thinking about how everyone in the family had been so concerned about her these past few days, she couldn't help but tear up.

Though this home is poor, it has given him infinite warmth. He silently vowed in his heart: He must take good care of his parents and younger siblings for the original owner, and he must strive to make this family live a better life.

"What have you been up to, making such a muddle, aren't you afraid of the cold?"

With a shout, Wu Qingqing's mother, Wang Fen’er, walked out of the room.

The twin sisters glanced at Wang Fen'er, and weakly called out, "Mother," then lowered their heads in fear, constantly tugging at their sodden, patched clothes with hands covered in dirt.

Wang Fen'er glanced at the loach in the wooden tub, sighing deeply: "I heard the conversation of the three sisters just now. The two young children also went to catch these loaches because they needed to earn money to survive. I wonder when this hard life will end."

Looking at the two little boys' dejected expressions, Wang Fen'er felt deeply pained and was unwilling to blame them too much. She said with concern: "You two hurry back to the house and change your clothes. Mother will go to the kitchen to boil some hot water for you to wash up. Children shouldn't wear their clothes like this." After Wang Fen'er finished speaking, she turned and walked towards the kitchen.

"Okay, Ma," the twin sisters put down the tub and smiled at Wu Qingqing before quickly running back to their room.

Wu Qingqing thought that since she had been lying in bed for so many days, she should still do something to help. Although her head was still aching, she could still manage some small tasks. So Wu Qingqing followed Wang Fen'er into the kitchen.

Wang Fen'er saw Wu Qingqing follow into the kitchen and said with a frown, "Qingqing, your head wound hasn't healed yet. You don't need to work these days. Go back to your room and lie down."

"Mother, I'm much better now. Let me help you start the fire," Wu Qingqing said before Wang Fen could object, and she already sat down by the stove.

"Sigh," Wang Fen'er watched Wu Qingqing sigh, and stopped speaking.

Wu Qingqing was born in a rural area, so tending a fire wasn't difficult for her. However, when she first encountered flint and steel, Wu Qingqing still struggled. Following the original owner's memories, she tried several times before successfully igniting the fire.

Wang Fen'er used a wooden ladle to scoop up a pot of water and boil it. After the water was hot, she scooped it into a large wooden basin and asked Wu Qingqing to help carry the large wooden basin into the children's room.

Wang Fen'er then cooked some ginger soup and instructed the twin sisters to wash up before coming out to drink it.

Looking at the busy mother in front of her, so thin, only a few years older than herself, yet already the mother of four children, during Wu Qingqing's dazed days, she took meticulous care of her. Although she didn't speak much, Wu Qingqing felt endless gratitude towards her.

"Wow wow wow," there was a baby's cry from the room next door. It must have been their youngest brother, Shito, who had woken up. Wang Fen'er put down her work and hurried back to the room.

"Oh oh oh, my darling Stone woke up, my darling Stone don't cry, Mommy is here!"

Soon, a lullaby could be heard from the inner room.