Chapter 13 A Clash Once More

Inside the space, Wei Ci had rolled up her trousers and sleeves, working diligently.

Surrounded by flowing streams, several fertile fields brimmed with thriving vegetables and aquatic plants. Some looked peculiar but were top-grade in flavor—these were seeds given to her by her stepmother, meant to produce spiritual herbs.

Every time she worked in the space, memories of her real mother would resurface—wanting to eat these but disliking the hard work, her sweet voice always claiming “this is for my dear daughter”, but in reality treating her as free labor. Whenever she felt like eating, she would simply take it from her daughter without the slightest courtesy, bossing her around with all the righteousness of a mother.

“Ah… I wonder, without me, what she’ll do when she wants these herbs again.”

Forgetting that her mother had a cheat-like system, Wei Ci sighed, standing up to survey the lush greenery around her.

Brightly colored herbs, verdant vegetables, and the sound of streams trickling in the background.

She picked up a basket of strawberries, washed them clean by the creek, and munched as she headed toward the thatched hut.

From the outside, the hut looked plain and simple, but inside it stretched spacious and luxuriously furnished. Rows of sandalwood chests were neatly stacked in the corners, and shelves lined with jars and bottles filled the space.

On another side, racks were piled with supplies of all kinds—food, drink, clothing, daily necessities. In one corner, several wardrobes brimmed with fine gowns, cloaks, and robes, their fabrics exquisite and their designs elaborate.

A large folding screen painted with blooming flowers stood to one side, behind which rested a carved nanmu canopy bed. The embroidered quilt of mandarin ducks playing in water gleamed faintly under the light, while a jade pillow lay neatly at the head. The dressing table beside it was still adorned with used hairpins and jewelry.

This space had been decorated bit by bit by her and her mother, the supplies painstakingly accumulated over time. But now, it seemed, all of it had fallen to her hands. If her mother still wished to roam the world, she’d have to start stockpiling again.

She took out two rings sent by the system, pricked her finger, and dripped blood onto them. Instantly, the contents within spilled out before her eyes.

“Hiss—!”

Wei Ci’s eyes widened. She hadn’t seen wrong—had her mother robbed an entire shop?

One ring overflowed with foodstuffs: grain, biscuits, candies, milk powder, and even crates of clothes in old-fashioned styles not much different from the ones in her current world. Not to mention the chest full of colorful banknotes—and several crates of gold, enough to make anyone’s eyes burn green with envy.

For Wei Ci, who in her previous life only had two taels of silver as monthly allowance, this was nothing short of gold bricks dropping from the heavens!

If the first ring contained all things for daily living, the second was even more outrageous—filled with all sorts of medicines and supplements: healing salves, body-strengthening pills, beauty and skincare tonics, and numerous processed medicinal herbs. Clearly prepared for her use, they could nourish her from head to toe. This had the system’s mark all over it—her mother had the same set, and Wei Ci had grown up being force-fed them. No wonder she’d grown more and more beautiful, her looks dazzling enough to provoke the envy of her stepmother and stepsister even when she never left the house.

She casually tossed a few beauty, skincare, and strengthening pills into her mouth, crunching them like candy beans.

Just as she was about to toss the rings onto the shelves, a flash of red light darted straight into her chest before she could react, draining the color from her face.

What was that?!

Wei Ci quickly pulled open her collar.

“Ah Ci! Time to eat!”

Hearing her second brother’s voice, she hurriedly checked her chest. After careful inspection, she found nothing unusual and finally breathed in relief.

“Looks like I was overthinking.”

Shaking her head, she stepped out of the space.

These past few days, neighbors had been dropping off wild vegetables and mushrooms, even coming to help clean the yard or bring firewood. Because of that, she didn’t dare stay too long in the space, afraid of being discovered.

Wei Qingfeng cheerfully set out the bowls and chopsticks. When he saw his sister coming out, he beamed so wide his teeth showed:

“Come eat! Today your brother went up the mountain and caught a rabbit. It’s a bit skinny, but meat is meat. You should eat more to nourish yourself.”

Wei Ci glanced at the heaping bowl of rice in front of her, then at her brother’s bowl, where barely a few grains floated in a watery broth. She fell silent once again.

For the past few days, Qingfeng had been doing all the cooking. No matter what, he refused to let her into the kitchen. Wei Ci didn’t know exactly how much food they had left at home, but every time they sat to eat, her bowl was always filled to the brim, while Qingfeng’s was nothing but thin soup.

“Brother, I can’t finish this,” she said softly.

As she moved to push half of her rice into his bowl, his hand shot out and stopped her.

“You need to eat more to build yourself up. Look how thin you are. If big brother comes back and sees I’ve let you waste away, he’ll beat me to death!”

Wei Ci sighed quietly, set down her chopsticks, and looked at him with a serious face.

“Brother, did you forget—you still have a job in the county.”

Qingfeng froze, his lips drooping, sneaking a guilty glance at his sister.

“I just… I don’t feel safe leaving you here alone.”

His sister was so beautiful. With their parents gone and no one else at home, what if someone tried to take advantage of her? He’d have nowhere to cry if something happened.

“Brother, I’m not a child anymore. My mind is clear now. I can protect myself. You have your own career to pursue—you can’t spend your whole life just watching over me. Now that father and mother are gone, you and big brother will need to earn the money for your own marriages. If you keep hovering around me, are you planning to stay a bachelor forever?”

The logic was sound—Qingfeng couldn’t deny it. But still, he muttered, “Actually, I was thinking of selling the job.”

Wei Ci’s eyes widened. When his gaze met hers, she quickly changed her expression to one of guilt and self-blame. In her brother’s heart, she was still supposed to be innocent, kind, and pure. She couldn’t break that image.

“Brother… is this because of me? It’s my fault, isn’t it? Because of me you’re even thinking of giving up your job?”

Even if she hadn’t fully understood before what that job meant in this era, the recent visits from neighbors—some openly asking, some probing subtly—had made it clear to her. Having a stable state job that provided rationed grain was an enormous privilege.

But Qingfeng scratched his head. Truthfully, this wasn’t why he’d thought of selling the job.

His sister was too beautiful. If some scoundrel tried to use power to force her, he might not be able to protect her. Their big brother was far away in the army and couldn’t reach them. So Qingfeng wanted to take the college exam, earn an official position, and gain the ability to shield her properly.

“Ah Ci, now that you’ve recovered, you need to go back to school and get at least a diploma. You can’t be an illiterate. I want to go to college too. If I can land a state job, I’ll be able to protect you…”

To him, his sister was like a brilliant peony blooming suddenly in a wasteland of gray weeds—too striking, too easy to attract dangerous eyes. When she truly blossomed one day, there’d be no shortage of people who would covet her.

This era claimed to be strict about moral conduct between men and women, but parasites and scum existed everywhere. Some would surely covet her and stop at nothing to destroy her. He wasn’t naive—he knew well where traffickers sold the most beautiful girls. The fact that Ah Ci had escaped once was sheer luck. What if there was a next time, and their methods were crueler, their watch tighter? He didn’t want to gamble with her life.

School?

Wei Ci was stunned. She didn’t hear another word after that. Her mind was stuck on those two characters: “go to school.”

Back in the Right Prime Minister’s mansion, she had attended the clan’s private school. But once they forced her to memorize female rules and female virtue endlessly, she had stubbornly refused to go again. In the end, she simply hid away in her courtyard, spending her days practicing embroidery, cooking, and the hobbies she truly liked.

“Brother… do I absolutely have to go to school?” Wei Ci asked cautiously.

Qingfeng, thinking she was only afraid of being mocked for her past, quickly reassured her:

“Don’t worry, Ah Ci. I’ll tutor you in primary school subjects first. Once you’ve got those down, you can go straight to middle school. I’m in high school now, so I can still look out for you.”

Wei Ci’s heart sank. Even the braised rabbit on the table had lost its flavor. All she could think of were the terrifying scenes of being forced to recite endless lines about serving her husband’s honor.

Wait—hold on. Middle school?

She had studied middle school subjects before!

“Brother… is there a chance that I already know middle school knowledge?”