Chapter 53: The Fox Raises a Pretty Husband

When Su Tang opened her eyes again, she found herself in an old-fashioned house. The memories of the previous world, however, had already grown hazy in her mind.

Su Tang knew this was the system’s doing. Although she could no longer remember whom she had met in the previous world, she still felt strangely empty inside.

But just as Zero-One had said, her magic had indeed been weakened considerably. The spells she could use now were little more than parlor tricks.

Su Tang sighed helplessly. “That’s been weakened far too much…”

Zero-One said, “I’ve already been very lenient. Prepare to receive the memories.”

Su Tang walked over to the bed and lay down. “Begin.”

The original owner lived in a remote town in the Song Kingdom and was twenty-two years old this year.

In Su Tang’s eyes, that was still very young. But to the people here, she was already an old maid.

What was more, the original owner had once been married. On the very day of the wedding, her husband had suddenly died. Before she had even had the chance to enter his family’s home, she had been driven away.

Thus, the original owner had become a widow. Afterward, the villagers spread the story further and further, until everyone was saying that she was cursed and brought bad luck to her husbands.

And so, from the age of eighteen to twenty-two, the original owner had remained unmarried. Even now, she was still alone.

Zero-One said, “Your task is to win over a man named Song Heqing while also clearing the original owner’s name.”

Su Tang nodded, then suddenly realized something. “Does that mean the man she married didn’t actually die under ordinary circumstances?”

“You guessed correctly.”

Su Tang stood up and looked around at the antique surroundings. She was not particularly surprised; after all, she had once lived in ancient times herself. Still, this Song Kingdom was probably a fictional dynasty.

“Song Heqing?” Su Tang murmured the name slowly. “Why do I keep feeling as though I’ve heard it somewhere before?”

Over on the other side, Zero-One panicked for a brief moment. “You’re imagining things.”

Su Tang nodded. “Yes, I suppose I am.”

The original owner had died at home from a serious illness. Because she was disliked by everyone, she had never been able to find decent work.

All she could do was gather medicinal herbs in the mountains and sell them to an apothecary.

But how much money could that bring in? She could not afford medical treatment, and in the end, she had simply wasted away and died at home.

Su Tang sighed. “What a tragic woman.”

At present, however, Su Tang was terribly hungry. She searched through the house and found only a little rice. Worse, she did not know how to cook. The only thing she could make was beggar’s chicken.

Thinking of this, Su Tang felt a deep sense of crisis. “Did I learn how to cook in my previous world?”

Zero-One said, “No.”

Su Tang was startled. “Then how did I eat?”

“Ordered takeout.”

Su Tang nodded. “That makes sense.”

She vaguely remembered that the previous world had been modern.

For now, the only thing she needed to do was earn money. Unfortunately, the only way she could earn any was by going into the mountains to gather medicinal herbs.

Su Tang sighed, ate a little to settle her stomach, then slung a herb basket over her back and set off for the mountains with a small hoe in hand.

In truth, Su Tang already knew about medicinal herbs. After all, she had lived for more than a thousand years. During all those dull stretches of time, she had always needed to find something to occupy herself with, so she knew a little about almost everything.

Once she reached the mountain, Su Tang began gathering herbs with wild enthusiasm. She recognized everything the original owner had known, as well as everything she had not.

She even dared to venture deep into the woods, so before long, her basket was full.

But by then, she had already digested the little food she had eaten. She picked up a stone from the ground, intending to return to one of her old skills.

In places like this, where the ancient environment had been well preserved, there were still plenty of wild animals.

After walking only a short distance, Su Tang came across several pheasants.

She weighed the pebble in her hand, then hurled it with swift precision.

One of the birds was flying through the air when it suddenly dropped into the bushes.

At the sound of its shriek, the other pheasants scattered in every direction.

Su Tang clapped her hands in satisfaction. She did not care whether the others had escaped. As long as the one she had hit had not gotten away, that was enough.

In high spirits, she walked over to the bushes and pushed aside the grass to retrieve the bird. But just as she lifted the pheasant, she realized there seemed to be a person beneath it.

“What the hell…?”

The man was covered in blood, and Su Tang was stunned.

Still clutching the pheasant, she hurriedly backed away several steps. “Zero-One! Is he dead?!”

How had she managed to run into something like this the moment she arrived? There were no surveillance cameras in ancient times. If she quietly left now, no one would know she had ever been here, right?

Besides, she had not been the one to kill him.

Zero-One said, “Can you calm down? He’s the mission target.”

Su Tang froze, then quickly returned. She reached out to check the man’s breathing and let out a sigh of relief.

“He’s alive, he’s alive.”

With no other choice, Su Tang carried the man named Song Heqing back home. As luck would have it, her entire basket of medicinal herbs ended up serving this man instead.

Fortunately, her magic had not been completely weakened yet. Otherwise, she truly would not have been able to carry him.

It was also fortunate that the original owner’s home was so isolated. If anyone had seen her carrying a blood-covered man home, she would never have been able to explain herself, no matter how many mouths she had.

“Heave-ho!”

Su Tang abruptly flung the man from her back onto the floor.

She had not put him on the bed because he was simply too filthy.

Su Tang examined him from head to toe, found all the places where he had been wounded, and treated them with medicinal herbs.

At last, she looked at the blood-covered man and fell into deep thought.

“What am I supposed to do now?”

Zero-One replied as though it were obvious. “Change his clothes.”

The tips of Su Tang’s ears turned red. “Th-that doesn’t seem very appropriate, does it?”

Zero-One urged her impatiently, “Hurry up.”

“Ahem. Fine.”

Su Tang immediately stripped the man completely naked.

“Woo-hoo.” She gave a low whistle. “What a figure…”

After removing his clothes, Su Tang encountered another problem.

“I don’t have any men’s clothes here.”

“Wipe him clean first,” Zero-One said.

Su Tang cleaned all the blood from the man’s body. Only then could she clearly see that Song Heqing had many more wounds than she had first noticed. He had been too filthy before for them to be visible.

Now that she had cleaned him, the medicinal herbs had to be applied all over again.

By the time she finished, Su Tang was utterly exhausted, and night had already fallen.

She did not let that stop her from preparing her beggar’s chicken. By the time it was done, it was the middle of the night. Starving, Su Tang collapsed at the doorway and stared miserably at the chicken roasting in the courtyard.

“Hm…?”

There seemed to be a sound coming from inside the house.

Su Tang twitched her ears and turned her head.

The man who had been lying on the bed was now propping himself up with one arm.

Just then, he turned his head and met Su Tang’s eyes.

Then he lowered his gaze and looked at his own body.

Yes.

He was completely naked.