1 Memories From Her Past Life

It was during a cold autumn rain. Yan Qixun leaned against the door frame of a thatched cottage and looked at the drizzling autumn rain outside. Sorrow filled her heart while she looked at the view. 

During the fire last night, she had fainted from the thick smoke. When she awoke, she had unexpectedly awakened the memories of her past life. She looked at the thatched cottage that looked like it was from the 1950s or the 1960s of her past life. Yan Qinxun felt that she had died too early in her past life. She tossed and turned all night, not knowing whether she should be happy or upset. Her feelings were conflicted.

After a whole night of thinking, she could only sigh. The Soup of Forgetfulness wasn't what it used to be, as if they cut corners while making the soup. She could have happily reincarnated and lived in this ancient mountain village for eight or nine years. Why was she able to recall what happened in her previous life? 

Could she no longer be the carefree peasant girl she used to be? However, one should not think so negatively. Perhaps there was nothing wrong with the Soup of Forgetfulness. 

Yan Qixun was a young and talented thirty-eight-year-old academician in China in her previous life. She had made outstanding contributions to the development of science and technology and had great merits. However, she reincarnated as a poor peasant girl in this life. The era she now lived in was not very friendly toward women. 

So, was it possible that God had given her some compensation? Could this be the reason why she was able to tap into the memories of her past life? Would this thought make Yan Qixun feel better?

Yan Qixun did not have any regrets about her premature death in her previous life. She had died to save someone, which could be considered a glorious sacrifice.

Yan Qixun's parents had passed away in her past life, and her uncle had a family of his own. Besides, she was not married and led a single life. The experimental science project that she was in charge of was a success, and the country that she lived in was already the most powerful country in the world more than ten years ago.

However, what made her sad was this current life she had reincarnated into. A fire had burned her home down to ashes yesterday. Other than two boxes of books, nothing else survived the fire.

Her family moved to where her late grandfather lived before he passed away. It was about 10 meters away from the small courtyard they used to live before the fire. The house was empty after the passing of her grandfather. It was initially a house with mud walls and grass roofs. As the home was vacant for a few years, it was already in poor condition. Fortunately, there were three rooms, and her parents repaired the roofs at least once a year. At least there were no leaks, and it could still accommodate the family. However, having a house to live in wasn't enough for her. 

Yan Qixun shrunk her shoulders. She was wearing a medium-sized shirt when she slept yesterday. The shirt was thin and stained with soot. However, she did not have other clothes to change into.

It was the beginning of September on the lunar calendar. Winter was just around the corner, and the weather was getting colder. There was no food, no clothes, and sheets at home after the fire.

Yan Qinxun had dug out all of her family's savings from the burnt house. She only managed to gather less than five taels of silver and two hundred copper coins.

She could not access the pocket dimension of her previous life. She wasn't sure if the pocket dimension had disappeared or if she just could not enter it at this current moment. For now, she has to prepare for the worst.

Yan Qixun's elder brother had followed their father to the Capital to attend an exam, and they would not return until April next year. Her mother was a young lady from a wealthy family. She excelled in chess, music, calligraphy, and painting. Yan Qixun could not count on her mother to support her family.

She has a second brother and third sister who were twins in this life. They were twelve years old. Yan Qixun and her fifth sister were twins, and they were only eight years old. As such, all four of them weren't old enough to support their family. It would be difficult for them to survive this winter. 

After looking at the rain outside, Yan Qixun wiped her face and sighed again. She did not want to lie in the house and rely on straw and a ripped quilt to keep her warm. In these ancient times, walking was the only form of transportation, and shouting was the only form of communication. The only form of entertainment was just folks being intimate on the bed. 

The poor prodigy shivered in the cold. Putting aside the thoughts that filled her mind, Yan Qixun began to think about how she could use her brains to earn some money to support her family. Just as she was brainstorming, she heard the door of the bamboo fence open. 

While she looked, Yan Qixun saw a woman in her fifties who walked into the compound. Women of her age in this era were considered old. She was the only neighbor of Yan Qixun's family— Grandmother Zuo. 

The Zuo family was made up of the two old folks and their only son. As they were hunters, they did not live in the village because going up the mountain would be more convenient. Instead, they lived at the end of the village at the foot of the mountain. It was about two hundred meters away from where the villagers gathered.

Yan Qixun's father, Yan Yongwu, was born in the Capital. His parents passed away when he was young, and his grandparents then raised him. His grandparents, who worked in the Imperial Academy, passed away when he was fifteen. Yan Yongwu brought their ashes back to his hometown and settled down at their ancestral home. After getting married, he became a neighbor with the Zuo family.

When Yan Qixun saw Grandmother Zuo walking in the rain, she quickly asked, "Grandmother Zuo, why are you here?"

Grandmother Zuo was wearing a raincoat woven with straw and was carrying a bamboo basket. She held a basket wrapped in oilcloth, and no one knew what was inside.

Grandmother Zuo closed the fence door and quickly walked toward the house through the mud. After cleaning off the dirt from her shoes, she entered the house and said, "Thinking about the disaster that happened here last night, I thought you would have nothing left. We can't help much, but we can spare you some rice noodles. I was afraid that you wouldn't have anything to eat. I'll send some over. Are you the only one at home? Where is your mother? Where are your siblings?"

Before Yan Qixun could answer, Grandmother Zuo put down the basket. She held Yan Qixun's hand and said, "Oh my little darling, is this all you have to wear? It's so cold. What if you get sick? Go and lay down on the bed. We will have to find you a thicker set of clothes."

Grandmother Zuo knew that apart from two boxes of books, a few taels of silver, and a few copper coins, nothing else could be salvaged from the aftermath of the fire. 

Last night, Yan Qixun was wearing a tattered quilt that Grandmother Zuo sent over, and it belonged to Uncle Zuo. As a grownup, he said he would be okay with staying cold all night and temporarily lending the quilt to Yan Qixun.

Yan Qixun's mother noticed that Yan Qixun had a slight fever and fainted last night. So, she borrowed the tattered quilt lent for the time being. She still needed to return it to Uncle Zuo on the next day. Because of Yan Qixun's fever, her mother brought her siblings out to look for supplies while Yan Qixun stayed home. 

Yan Qixun saw the worried look on Grandmother Zuo's face and quickly explained, "My mother brought my brother to town to buy some sheets and cloth, and my sisters went to Great-Granduncle's family to ask for some food."

Grandfather Zuo was unhealthy and under medication. Even though he was a hunter, he had a difficult life. His family only had three acres of dry land, but they still needed to buy food for themselves. How could Yan Qixun's family even think of asking them for food? That was why her sisters went to Great-Granduncle's family to ask for food. Great-Granduncle was the younger brother of her great-grandfather. The two families were blood relatives.

As they lived far from the village, last night's fire did not alarm the villagers. After a while, the fire had subsided in the middle of the night, so the villagers were unaware of the incident. 

In the morning, the entire village woke up to the news of the fire because Yan Qixun's house was at the village's entrance. So, everyone had to pass through her house while entering or exiting the village. No one from the village came to visit, probably because her sisters had already gone into the village. 

Grandmother Zuo helped Yan Qixun onto the bed and wrapped her up in the thin and tattered quilt. 

"Although this autumn's harvest is scarce, your great-granduncle's family has thirty acres of paddy fields in addition to the ten acres of paddy fields rented from your family. Their supply should be sufficient, so they can still lend you some money." Grandmother Zuo comforted Yan Qixun. 

"Besides, when your great-granduncle was still alive, he has always adored you and your siblings. He would not wish to watch you all suffer. I have only brought you a few jars of mixed flour and two jars of rice. It should be enough for you to eat for a few days."

With her parents being away, Yan Qixun was afraid to take things from others, so she declined.