FDNL CH 03

Chapter 3 – Home

The distance from the county town to the village wasn’t too far, but not exactly close either.
After two long hours of the donkey cart creaking and squeaking along the dirt road, they finally arrived.

During the ride, Old Matou had told Su Lianyi everything she wanted to know—
and by the end, it wasn’t Old Matou who wanted to jump off the cart anymore…
it was Su Lianyi.

Turns out, the original owner of this body really was a notorious female bully.

She lived in Su Family Village—a place where almost everyone shared the same surname, all part of one big clan.
Normally, such a village should be peaceful and harmonious.
But no—everyone feared her family.

Her father, Su Feng, was infamous for his bad temper and cruelty.
He bullied the weak, and no one in the village dared provoke him—so they simply avoided the family altogether.

Su Feng had three children.
The eldest, Su Hao, had inherited their grandfather’s skills and opened a small distillery.
He was the only reasonable one in the household.
The second child—this body’s original owner, Su Lianyi—was worse than any man when it came to causing trouble.
Su Feng adored her for being “just like him.”
As a result, everyone in the village swallowed their anger and kept their distance.

The youngest, Su Bai, wasn’t much better—cowardly but mischievous.
He usually tagged along with his vicious second sister, acting as her little sidekick.

Su Lianyi was married—an arranged marriage by her father.
Her husband was a man Su Feng had literally picked up from the mountains: ugly, simple-minded, and mostly silent.
He rarely spoke a word, but he was strong, so Su Feng kept him as a live-in son-in-law—basically another farmhand.
He worked the fields from dawn to dusk like a slave.

The original Su Lianyi, though overweight and plain, had ridiculously high standards.
She dreamed of a husband as handsome as a movie star and naturally despised her rustic, dull-looking spouse.
But she couldn’t fight her father’s will, so she had to endure it—for a while.

The Li family, on the other hand, were the richest household in Yuewang County.
They had two sons.

The elder, Li Yulan, had passed the imperial exams and was now serving as an official,
married to the daughter of a high-ranking second-grade Minister of Rites—
a man destined for great success, the pride of the Li family.

The second son, Li Yutang, was handsome and clever.
The family planned for him to manage their business empire in the future.
Naturally, expectations were high.

And the original Su Lianyi?
She’d fallen head over heels for that Second Young Master’s good looks.
She had gone to the Li residence countless times trying to woo him—
until one day she mysteriously “fell” and died.

Her own home was separate from her father’s,
and she lived with her husband—the poor man she constantly beat and humiliated.
She’d even whipped him in the middle of the street, more than once.
And that fool never resisted—he’d just stand there, taking every blow until she tired herself out.

When Old Matou finished recounting all this, Su Lianyi sat frozen, her mouth hanging open.

In her past life, she’d been a doctor who saved lives.
Now, she had become a village hooligan—a bully who beat her own husband?

That alone was shocking enough.
But what really stunned her was the world she was in now.

This country was called Luan Kingdom (鸾国)—
one of the largest nations on the continent.
Su Lianyi had been a science student with little interest in history,
but even she knew that “Luan Kingdom” had never existed in China’s 5,000 years of recorded history.

There were also neighboring states like Zhao Kingdom and Qingshan Kingdom.
That confirmed it—this wasn’t ancient China at all.
She had crossed into an entirely fictional world.

She had died and been reborn—
but not in her world’s past.
In a parallel world.

Old Matou soon focused on driving,
leaving Su Lianyi to quietly process everything she’d heard.

She faintly recalled reading about such theories—
that parallel planes of existence might hold countless different worlds.
Could it be… that theory was actually true?

The donkey cart clattered into the village.
At the village entrance, people noticed the Su family cart and immediately exchanged scornful looks.
So that shameless Su Lianyi went chasing after the Li family’s young master again? Pathetic.

Their contempt was mutual and silent—
no one dared say it aloud.
Everyone knew that provoking that female scoundrel could end badly.

“Lianyi, we’re here,” Old Matou called out as the cart stopped.

She blinked, snapping out of her thoughts.
A small courtyard stood beside the road.
The house inside looked newly built—but it was filthy.
Weeds overgrew the yard, and trash was scattered everywhere.
A new house… turned into a dump.

“Lianyi?” Old Matou called again. Then, remembering her claim about being dizzy, he added,
“This is your house. At this time of day, I reckon Dahu should be back from the fields waiting for you.”

Lianyi nodded blankly.

“Got it. Thank you, Uncle Ma.”
Her words came automatically, as if she were still dreaming.
She climbed down from the cart lightly—despite her plumpness, her movements were surprisingly agile,
probably because the original owner had been good at brawling.

Old Matou waved goodbye and drove off—he still had to report back to his employer.

The sky was dimming.
Lianyi stood outside her own gate for a long while, unable to move.
So this is it? she thought bitterly.
She had really crossed over? Already married?
Was she destined to live out her life as a crude village woman?

She let out a helpless laugh and sighed.
Then she pushed open the loosely closed gate and stepped inside.

In her previous life, she had seen countless patients struggle desperately to live.
That had taught her one thing—
life itself is precious.
If Heaven had given her another chance, she wouldn’t waste it.
As long as she was alive, she would live well.

The moment she entered the yard, a horrible musty smell hit her nose.
One look revealed piles of dirty clothes stacked high in a corner—
unwashed for so long they reeked.
Her neat-freak instincts nearly made her faint.

Holding her breath, she crossed the yard and opened the house door.
The stench inside was even worse.
It hit her like a wall, and she stumbled back out, gagging.

If I have to live in this house, I’d rather die again, she thought miserably.

After several deep breaths, she charged back in,
holding her breath and rushing to fling open every window she could find.

It was spring—yet every single window had been shut tight.
Judging by the thick layer of dust on the frames,
they hadn’t been opened in at least a year.
Did this woman even keep them closed through summer?

She managed to pry open two windows,
but the third was stuck.
Her strong lungs gave out, forcing her to gasp for air—
and instantly she choked on the foul odor, coughing and retching.

Fed up, she stepped back a few paces,
then sprinted forward—
and with a fierce spinning kick,
she sent the window flying open.

Fresh air poured in.
She leaned on the wall, breathing deeply, fighting the nausea.

The room was filthy—broken furniture, dust everywhere.
At the center stood a sturdy wooden table, carved with faint floral patterns.
It looked like something her father or brother had bought her when they still doted on her.

But the table was thickly coated in grime.
Worse still, sticky grease covered the surface,
and on top of it… something unidentifiable.

She picked it up carefully—
a withered vegetable leaf, long rotted and dry.

Maybe from last year—or the year before.

People say everyone’s tolerance has limits,
but Su Lianyi disagreed.

At this moment, she proved—
human endurance is limitless.

She didn’t vomit.
In fact, she calmed down completely.

***

Author’s Note

Everyone, please stand up,
take off your hats,
and give a thunderous round of applause—

the male lead is about to make his entrance!