Suddenly, a severe headache struck, as if something was rubbing near Su Yu's neck, accompanied by heavy panting. She struggled to open her eyes.

What appeared before her was an ugly and vulgar face.

"Hey, little lady, awake already? Just in time, I was just getting bored!" The man said as he approached Su Yu.

Su Yu lashed out with a punch reflexively: "Get lost!"

Seizing the moment when the man recoiled in pain, she swiftly stood up.

Looking around, she found herself in a forest with a small river shimmering behind her.

She was full of confusion: wasn't I just going up the mountain with my master to gather herbs, and accidentally fell?

How did I end up in a place like this? Where is my master?

Before she could sort out her thoughts, a flood of strange memories poured into her mind—she had transmigrated!

The original host was a farm girl in the prime of her life at sixteen, sold by her greedy parents to a wealthy merchant over fifty years old as a concubine for several taels of silver.

Unwilling to be manipulated by fate, she escaped from the palanquin while the bearers were resting, but eventually, her strength gave out, and she was surrounded by a group of men at the head of the bridge.

With no way to escape, she resolutely jumped into the rushing river and ended up drifting to this place. She would have been lucky to be rescued by a kind person, but the current predicament was obviously not so fortunate.

The immediate priority was to deal with the scoundrel in front of her!

Su Yu kept her eyes on the man and slowly squatted down, picking up a tree branch to hold in her hand.

The man, clutching his bleeding nose, said viciously, "You dare to hit me? Watch how I deal with you!"

With that, he lunged at Su Yu.

Without hesitation, she swung the branch at his head with all her might: "You dog, I'll beat you to death!"

However, due to the dampness by the river, the branches were rotten and broke easily, failing to cause any real damage to the man.

Su Yu was then overpowered and pinned to the ground.

"You feisty woman, today I will let you taste what I'm made of!" The man gloated triumphantly.

Although Su Yu had been following her master since she was young and practiced martial arts to strengthen herself, her body was too frail to compete with a robust grown man.

Was she really going to lose her chastity to this scum today?

Rather than suffer indignity, she thought it better to take her own life, at least preserving the purity the original host had vowed to defend to the death.

Just as she was struggling internally, a loud shout came from afar: "Stop! Jiang Youfu, what are you doing?"

Su Yu turned to look and saw a man limping over, carrying a wooden bucket and a fishing spear, his features obscured against the backlight.

Seeing the newcomer, Jiang Youfu scoffed with a sneer, "Second brother, you haven't taken a wife yet; naturally, you don't understand these matters between men and women.

Let me, your third brother, teach you a lesson today. After I'm done, you can come over."

Upon hearing this, the hope that had just ignited in Su Yu extinguished instantly; she thought she had encountered a savior, only to find it was an accomplice.

Unexpectedly, the lame man threw aside the items in his hands and rushed over at lightning speed, toppling Jiang Youfu to the ground.

"Beast! In broad daylight, you dare to harbor wicked thoughts towards a decent woman!"

Jiang Youfu suddenly sprang up from the ground and, pointing his finger at the man's nose, cursed loudly, "Jiang Ziling, do you really think I respect you?"

"A cripple who's less than a pig or a dog, and yet you dare to interfere in my business!" Jiang Youfu spat furiously.

Jiang Ziling brushed off his hand with force and said sternly, "Watch your mouth!"

"What, got angry out of embarrassment?" Jiang Youfu's face twisted with scorn, "My mistake, I should not call you a cripple; you are more fittingly referred to as Jinx!"

"Your mother died in labor giving birth to you, the disaster star, and your brother was paralyzed trying to save you. If you're not a jinx, what are you?"

"You're not just a jinx, but a useless waste as well. You were driven out of your home by your own family, and you have no right to speak here..."

Before the words were finished, Jiang Youfu's face took a solid punch!

"You scoundrel, Jiang Ziling, you dare to hit me!" Jiang Youfu roared.

As the two struggled together, Su Yu seized the opportunity and hurriedly slipped away.

However, the voice behind her made her stop in her tracks.

"Jiang Ziling, go die!"

"I'll send you down to accompany your mother, so you won't waste food by living, you cripple!" Jiang Youfu said viciously.

Turning her head for a glance, Su Yu indeed saw Jiang Ziling being choked by Jiang Youfu, powerless to resist.

Clearly, he, with his disability, was no match for Jiang Youfu.

Ah, this accursed compassion!

After all, Jiang Ziling had just saved her, and Su Yu really couldn't just stand by and depart.

She picked up a suitable rock at hand and turned around to rush back.

Taking advantage of Jiang Youfu's unguarded state, she threw the rock at him with all her might.

The strike was swift and forceful; Jiang Youfu didn't even have the time to cry out in pain before collapsing straight onto the ground.

Jiang Ziling, who'd regained his breath, coughed violently and took quite a while to catch his breath before whispering to Su Yu, "Thank you..."

Su Yu waved her hand, "No need for thanks. Consider it repayment for the help you gave me earlier. We're even now."

Jiang Ziling silently nodded.

Once Jiang Youfu's complexion changed from purple to red and was back to normal, Su Yu noticed that the man was actually quite handsome, which mesmerized her for a moment, causing an involuntary smile to form on her lips.

Feeling Su Yu's gaze, Jiang Ziling became a bit shy, "Sorry for making you laugh."

Su Yu snapped back to reality, scolding herself for being foolish.

She quickly changed the subject, "Aren't you his brother? Why would he be so vicious to you?"

Jiang Ziling was silent for a moment, then he slowly said, "He's the son of my stepmother; our relationship... is not harmonious..."

Understanding, Su Yu nodded, piecing together the scene she had just witnessed.

The so-called "not harmonious relationship" was apparently something Jiang Ziling preferred not to elaborate on further.

"Miss, you should leave quickly. This man, I will bury him right here. Only you and I will know of this, and no third party will ever find out," Jiang Ziling said, moving to drag Jiang Youfu away.

Su Yu was stunned, "Bury, bury him?"

Jiang Ziling thought she was afraid and reassured her, "Don't worry, if the government ever inquires, I will take all responsibility and will pretend I never saw you."

"Seeing that you look unfamiliar, you must not be from our village. You were lured here by him today, and almost encountered misfortune..."

As Jiang Ziling spoke, a blush tinged his cheeks, and he continued, "Anyway, you are the victim. You took action to save me. Run now, I will never betray you."

So, Jiang Ziling mistakenly thought that brute was already beaten to death.

Su Yu raised an eyebrow, "Aren't you afraid of going to prison?"

"As a cripple, my life is as cheap as grass, unlike you, Miss, with your beauty shining like the moon. In the future, you will surely find a good husband, have children, and lead a fulfilled life." His words were filled with self-depreciation and envy.

After hearing this, Su Yu muttered to herself, My, what eloquence he has, why do I feel so moved?