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That afternoon, having tasted success, Zhou shi returned home with Wuyang, carrying two large bundles of foxtail grass tied with rope. Meanwhile, Xie Jiu’er had gone down below the village to pick dog milkweed. Looking at the basket full of fresh, vibrant green wild vegetables, her heart swelled with joy—who would’ve thought that even in the dead of winter, they could still eat something green and leafy?
She was just thinking of picking a bit more when she suddenly lowered her head and spotted a trail of blood in the grass, winding its way deep into the forest. The sun was nearly setting, and Xie Jiu’er hesitated. In this era, wolves were still a real threat, and the thought made her chest tighten with fear.
Judging by the trail, some animal must have been injured. If she followed it now, she might be able to catch it—and maybe, just maybe, they could finally have some meat. Since arriving in this world, she hadn’t even caught a whiff of meat.
But at the last moment, she hesitated again. What if she ran into a wolf? She’d be handing her life over right then and there.
She paused only briefly, then gritted her teeth, snapping off a thick tree branch as wide as her arm, one end sharpened into a crude point. Screw it! Meat was right in front of her—she had to take the risk.
It had been a month since she’d seen anything greasy or rich. If she kept living like a coward, hiding from everything, she might as well let the wolves eat her and be done with it.
Gripping the tree branch tightly in both hands, Xie Jiu’er crept deeper into the forest, her steps light and cautious. The blood trail led her behind a large boulder. Circling around to the front, her heart pounded so hard it felt like it might leap out of her throat. Despite the cold, a thin sheen of sweat formed on her palms.
But when she finally saw the so-called “meat,” her face instantly fell—it wasn’t an animal.
It was a man.
From the look of him, he wasn’t quite dead yet. He was tall and solidly built, but his right leg was a mangled mess of blood and flesh, the wound severe. He must’ve passed out from blood loss, but for the time being, he posed no threat.
In times like these, Xie Jiu’er wasn’t saintly enough to drag a strange man home. She quietly prepared to slip away, but just as she turned to leave, her gaze swept across his right hand—and froze.
Clutched in his palm was a white jade pendant. It looked incredibly familiar.
Her heart skipped a beat. She stepped closer, pried the pendant from his hand, and studied it carefully.
Wasn’t this the very same jade pendant that had caused her to transmigrate?
Which meant… the man lying before her was none other than the long-missing Qin Wang, Xiao Jinyu.
But no matter how she twisted or examined the pendant, it remained completely inert. No glow, no hum—no reaction at all. It looked like there was no way back.
She glanced down at Xiao Jinyu again. His face was pale as death from blood loss, and if no one helped him, he’d be frozen stiff in these mountains by morning.
A flicker of something stirred between her brows.
If she really couldn’t return… then she had to cling tightly to this golden backer right in front of her.
She’d had enough of fighting livestock for food in the wilderness and living each day in fear of being tossed into someone’s pot.
Sending the half-dead Xiao Jinyu straight into her hands—Xie Jiu’er decided to take it as heaven’s way of compensating her for all the starvation and hardship she’d endured since arriving in this world. There was nothing here—no entertainment, no comforts, and she wasn’t particularly fond of drinking foxtail porridge either. What she really wanted was grilled meat skewers, pretty dresses, and to roam across mountains, rivers, and lakes in style.
For the sake of future wealth and glory, she was determined to cling tightly to this golden backer—Qin Wang. Gritting her teeth and summoning all the strength she could muster, Xie Jiu’er struggled to lift Xiao Jinyu off the ground. Normally, she wouldn’t have been able to budge such a heavy man—but today was different. In her eyes, he was as good as pure silver. No matter how heavy, she had to carry him—her future depended on it.
Panting and stumbling, she finally managed to drag him all the way to her uncle’s house. To avoid unwanted attention, the three of them had been living cautiously, leaving all signs of daily life at the uncle’s home. That way, if danger ever came knocking, they could slip into the underground cellar in time and possibly escape unharmed.
When Zhou shi and Wuyang saw her dragging a near-dead man into the house, they looked alarmed. Zhou shi was the first to speak, her face full of worry. “Jiu’er, in times like these, we can’t afford to play the bleeding heart. We barely have enough food as it is—adding one more mouth will make this winter even harder. And who’s to say he won’t turn on us once he recovers? Just look at him—so strong and built. If he really meant us harm, we’d be no match for him!”
Wuyang blinked but said nothing. Xie Jiu’er motioned for Zhou shi to help her, and together they lifted the unconscious man onto the warm kang bed.
“Mother, look—the sun’s nearly down, and his injuries are so serious. If we don’t help him now, he definitely won’t make it through the night. Just look at his clothes—bright, clean, and finely made. Even while unconscious, he gives off this imposing air. I’d wager he’s someone important. A man like that surely isn’t starving—he wouldn’t stoop to eating human flesh. Just think of it as us doing a good deed and earning some karma.”
She couldn’t openly tell her mother and brother that this man was the future Son of Heaven, so all she could do was drop subtle hints.
Zhou shi rolled her eyes at her. “You’ve said everything there is to say. What else can I add now? Luckily, there’s still plenty of foxtail grass in the mountains. Wuyang and I bundled up a lot today, and we even picked more ground moss. You two clean up his wounds. I’ll go heat the kang. I’m not comfortable letting him sleep in the same room as Wuyang, so I’ll stoke up another bed for him.”
Xie Jiu’er nodded rapidly. She knew it—Zhou shi might be stern in words, but her heart was always soft. No matter how difficult life was, once someone was brought into the house, she couldn’t bear to throw them out.
Wuyang quickly set an iron pot over the fire and began boiling water. Xie Jiu’er took a dry cloth and started cleaning Xiao Jinyu’s wounds. As she peeled back his robes, her breath caught in her throat—the injuries were far worse than she had thought.
An arrow had pierced through the knee joint of his right leg, and from thigh to knee ran a deep gash—so deep the bone was visible. The flesh around it was torn and mangled, the wound caked in blood.
Wuyang came over carrying warm water, but the moment he saw the wound, he flinched and nearly dropped the basin. “Sister… I don’t think he’s going to make it. That injury’s too severe. There’s no physician here, and he’s already lost so much blood. It’ll be a miracle if he lasts through the night.”
Xie Jiu’er stared at the wound, tension knotting in her chest until her eyebrows twisted into a frown. He absolutely cannot die. If he dies, who’s going to fulfill my dreams of wealth and glory?
“Wuyang, go get Mother’s sewing kit.”
Xie Jiu’er stared at the torn, gaping flesh and made a firm decision—if the horse was dying, she’d treat it like it was still alive. She wasn’t a physician, but at this point, she couldn’t afford to care. She’d just pretend she was stitching a quilt.
Wuyang didn’t understand why his sister suddenly needed needle and thread, but he obediently climbed over the back wall of their Sixth Uncle’s house, ran back to their own place, and dug out Zhou shi’s old sewing kit.
Xie Jiu’er wiped the area around the wound clean with a fresh cloth. By the time Wuyang returned, she had already threaded the needle and was ready to start stitching the wound closed. Just then, Zhou shi walked in, having finished heating the kang. One glance at the scene—and at the needle in her daughter’s hand—made her rush forward in panic. “If he’s meant to die, then let it be heaven’s will! Jiu’er, you mustn’t do this. He’s a person, not a broken shoe sole! How can you use a sewing needle on human flesh?”
Xie Jiu’er slumped down on the edge of the kang, exhausted, unsure how to explain everything to Zhou shi. Instead, she simply pushed her mother back out the door. “Mother, don’t interfere. Even if it’s a sin, it’ll be my sin—not yours.”