Chapter 1: My Name is Xin’er:

My name is Xin’er. I live in a remote mountain village called Xiao Li. I’m an orphan—no one knows who my parents are, and I’ve always lived alone.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve lived in a rundown little house at the foot of this mountain.

This little broken house was abandoned. People said someone died in it, and rumors spread that it was haunted, so no one dared to live there. That’s how it ended up being mine.

Actually, I was raised by a wolf mama. She stayed with me until I was six years old, but then one day, she suddenly left.

Now I’m thirteen. Ever since then, I’ve been living on my own. The villagers don’t like me.

But I don’t like them either. They call me a wild child and throw stones at me behind my back.

They say I’m a monster, a jinx who cursed her parents to death. Sometimes, I fight back.

I’ve beaten them so badly their faces were black and blue. After that, no one dared to mess with me again.

At most, they’ll curse me behind my back. Honestly, I don’t like them either—they’re annoying.

Let me tell you a secret: I’m actually very strong. Ordinary people can’t beat me.

As for why I’m this strong? I don’t know. It just feels like I was born this way.

Another secret: I’m rich. Really rich. I don’t even know how much money I have.

I actually have a space of my own, and the money came with it.

The villagers all think I’m mute. But I’m not—I just don’t want to talk to them.

Today, I caught a wild boar in the forest and put it into my space.

Even though no one taught me anything growing up, I do know this—if someone tries to bully you, hit them back.

That’s what Wolf Mama taught me. Wolves are creatures that hate evil. If you mess with one, it’ll chase you down until it gets revenge.

After coming back, I went to bed early—because tomorrow, I’m going to the county town.

Early in the morning, I set off. It hadn’t rained in a long time, and the road was dusty.

The scorching summer sun made me dizzy. I wore a big straw hat and happily walked along.

On the road, I saw a few people carrying their belongings. I overheard them saying they were fleeing to the capital to escape famine.

They said there’s food and water there, and it’s not so hot.

As I walked, I picked up bits of gossip here and there.

I heard that Anyang City had recently fallen, and the fighting might spread to here soon.

When I reached the city gates, I paid two copper coins to enter and bought some food inside. I wanted to visit the capital they talked about—mostly because I wanted to try the delicious food they mentioned.

After I finished shopping, I strolled back slowly. Once I left the city, I walked down the main road, munching on a pear.

Three men started following me from behind.

I didn’t pay them any mind, just picked up a stick from the side of the road and held it in my hand.

They followed at a steady distance. Once I finished the pear, I suddenly turned around and tilted my head.

“Uncles,” I asked, “are you following me because you want to play?”

The three men were startled when I suddenly turned around. Seeing such a pretty little girl, one of them—the leader—grinned and said, “Little girl, want to play a game with us?”

I asked innocently, “What kind of game? How do you play?”

The three of them looked shady—one had a face full of pockmarks, one was skinny like a monkey, and the last was short and fat.

They were secretly thrilled—this girl seemed easy to trick.

The pockmarked man said, “Let’s play a game with Uncle, okay?”

“Can I play with all the uncles?” I asked thoughtfully.

“But you all look so ugly. And you stink. Uncle, why do you smell so bad?”

I frowned as I said this.

The pockmarked guy got annoyed and said, “It’s just my clothes that are dirty. I’m clean underneath.”

The men grinned maliciously as they approached.

I tilted my head and said, “Then Uncle, will you play a game with me?”

The pockmarked man said, “Sure,” and reached his hand out toward me.

I clapped my hands happily. “You promised, no backing out!”

He didn’t back out. Just as his hand reached for me, I said:

“We’re going to play the ‘beat the bad guys’ game!”

Then—whack!—his hand was struck hard by the stick. It swelled up visibly.

He clutched his hand and glared at me furiously.

“You little brat! You dare hit me?!”

“You’re dead meat!” he yelled. Then turned to the other two, “Grab that damn girl!”