Chapter 1: Preface
In the prosperous days of Tian’an, there was a small village named Anyi where a simple farming family, the Lin family, lived. They led a modest life, relying on their agricultural work. Lin Yulan, the only daughter of the Lin family, was intelligent and resourceful from a young age, earning the affection of both her parents and the villagers. Although her family struggled financially, her parents held high hopes for Yulan, encouraging her to learn a skill that could bring hope and prosperity to their lives.
Yulan displayed exceptional intelligence early on. She was eager to learn, not just from the limited knowledge available at the village school but also from the books her father bought at the market, often spending all his money on them. She was kind-hearted, and diligent, and frequently lent a helping hand to her neighbors. Her parents took pride in her accomplishments, and the villagers often praised her as a “jade-like child.”
Unbeknownst to Yulan, her seemingly ordinary family harbored a significant secret: they were once part of a prominent aristocracy that had fallen into decline due to a political conspiracy.
Chapter 2: Sudden disaster
As night falls, the north wind blows by. At Yulan’s home, her father had just entered the door when he heard the sound of rapid footsteps coming from outside the door.
“Remember that…don’t …live…? Quite…found it,” a small voice came.
Her father got up uneasily and decided to go out and take a look. Unexpectedly, he was one step late. He saw several burly men in black clothes who looked like bandits standing in front of the door, looking fierce.
“What do you want to do?!”
The robbers did not answer but suddenly broke into the door, the swords in their hands flashing coldly in the weak candlelight. The father hurriedly protected his wife and daughter, trying to block these assailants, but was unable to withstand their ferocity. In the chaos, her mother quickly pushed Yulan into an old wooden cabinet and whispered in a trembling voice: “No matter what happens, don’t make a sound, don’t let them find you.”
Yulan’s eyes widened, wondering why her home was suddenly attacked. She listened to the shouts and collisions outside, her heart beating like thunder, and her hands tightly covering her mouth, for fear that she would scream involuntarily. After a while, the room fell into silence. Yulan could no longer suppress her inner fear. She peeked out from the gap in the cabinet and saw her parents lying in a pool of blood. Her eyes were still full of worry for her.
This scene was deeply engraved in Yulan’s heart. She couldn’t believe that her mother, who was with her just now, taught her harshly but loved her deeply, and her father who supported the family so ruthlessly, was so ruthlessly taken away. Life. Yulan held back tears and did not dare to make a sound for fear of being discovered by the group of thugs. She was shaking all over, and her mind went blank. She couldn’t see anything clearly except the ground stained red with blood.
After a while, the robbers who took away Yulan’s beloved, and after a search, found that Yulan was missing.
“It’s strange. Didn’t the lord say that there is another daughter? Where did she go?”
“Hey! It’s a girl who’s not yet an adult anyway, so I think I’d better forget it!”
Those people gave up looking for her and left quietly. However, Yulan’s home no longer has the warmth of the past, and only a deathly silence remains.
Chapter 3: Displacement
After confirming that the murderers were far away, Yulan climbed out of the wooden cabinet. She stumbled over to her parents, threw herself on their bodies, and burst into tears. She didn’t know why such a tragic thing would happen to her, and the fear and sadness in her heart almost made it impossible for her to think; she could only hope that she was young and ignorant and didn’t understand the purpose of all this.
After dawn, Yulan endured her grief and gave her parents a simple burial. She knew she couldn’t stay here any longer. This broken “home” was no longer safe. She fled around the village and finally came to a remote valley. Just as she was despairing, an elderly woman discovered her and took her back to her cabin.
The old woman’s name was Granny Xu. She took care of Yulan tenderly and gave her a safe refuge. Yulan did not disclose the tragedy in her family, only saying that her name was Yu’er and she was a homeless orphan. Although Granny Xu found it strange, she didn’t ask any more questions and just patiently taught her some survival skills.
As time passed, Yulan began to recover slowly, but the pain and confusion deep in her heart still lingered. She couldn’t forget the scene when her parents fell, and she couldn’t understand why the family suffered such a disaster. What confused her even more was the vague name written on the ground in blood when her mother fell – Jingyu Lin.
Chapter 4: The pursuit comes again
Yulan spent several months of relatively peaceful life under the care of Granny Xu. However, this lasted only a short time.
One day, when Granny Xu went out to buy groceries, Yulan stayed alone in the hut and suddenly heard rapid footsteps outside. She was shocked. Isn’t this similar to the situation at that time? Yulan fearfully looked out from the gap in the window and saw a few strangers looking around, obviously looking for something.
Yulan immediately understood that these people were the murderers who attacked her home that night. She didn’t know why they were chasing her, but she couldn’t think about it anymore. She quickly packed up a few belongings and slipped out of the back door, determined to escape this dangerous place again.
After running in the mountains and fields for several hours, Yulan finally escaped “their” pursuit.
As night fell, Yulan found a hidden place to sit down in a dense forest. She was exhausted and filled with helplessness. Looking at the starry sky, she recalled her mother’s loving smile and her father’s strong back, and tears blurred her eyes again.
“Yu, you have to be strong… you have to live…” Her mother’s words echoed in her ears. She knew she couldn’t give up. No matter how difficult it was, she had to persevere and find the truth.
Yulan reluctantly stood up, wiped away her tears, and decided to move on. She didn’t know where to go, but she knew that only by leaving this familiar land could she escape the group of people who were chasing her.
She trudged out of the dense forest and walked along an unknown mountain road. The road was winding and winding, and there was silence all around as if she was the only one left in the world. Magnolia dragged her tired body and walked forward step by step. Until her feet could no longer support her, she sat down on a rock by the roadside. She was so exhausted that she couldn’t even open her eyes.
Just when she was about to lose consciousness, a vague figure appeared in her sight. An old woman, dressed in simple clothes, was holding a small basket filled with herbs. She seemed startled by Magnolia’s appearance and quickly stepped forward to check.
“Child, why are you here? This road is not easy to walk on.” Her voice was full of concern. She helped Yulan up and asked gently.
Yulan tried her best to open her eyes, and when she saw this kind old man, the fear in her heart eased a little. Yulan forced out a smile and replied weakly: “I…I’m lost…”
When the old woman saw her in such a mess, she immediately realized that something unusual must have happened to her. “Come home with me, rest for a while, and wait until you regain your strength. Just call me Aunt Zhang.” She said softly, then carefully supported Yulan and walked towards a hut in the mountains.
Aunt Zhang has lived in this valley for many years and makes a living by collecting herbs. She placed Yulan in her simple hut, cooked her a bowl of warm medicinal soup, and let her have a good rest.
Yulan gratefully took the medicinal soup, a warmth rising in her heart. For the first time in this strange place, she felt a sense of security that she had not seen for a long time. Aunt Zhang didn’t say anything, she just took care of her patiently so that she could have a good rest.
A few days later, Yulan’s body gradually recovered, and she began to help Grandma Zhang with simple housework. The two got along very well, and Yulan Zhang also taught her simple herbal knowledge.
Yulan decided not to escape anymore. She wanted to find the truth of all this and find out why her mother wrote that name at the last moment. She asked Aunt Zhang about it but found that she knew nothing about “Lin Jingyu”, which made her feel even more confused.
Yulan lives a comfortable life here, but she knows in her heart that those people may appear again at any time, and she should not stay here for a long time. Yulan is grateful to Aunt Zhang for saving her life; however, she knows that she will eventually leave and continue to pursue the truth.
One morning, Yu Lan packed her simple luggage and decided to say goodbye to Aunt Zhang. She bowed deeply and said in a choked voice: “Aunt, thank you for taking care of me. I must leave…”
Aunt Zhang patted her shoulder gently and smiled kindly: “My child, you have your own way to go, I understand. There are some dry food and herbs here, and a little money, which you will need on the road. Take good care of yourself remember, no matter what happens, you must live strong.”
Yulan took the small package handed over by Aunt Zhang, tears welling up in her eyes, but she held back the tears.
After bidding farewell to Aunt Zhang, Magnolia once again embarked on an unknown journey. Although her heart was filled with fears and doubts about the future, she was determined not to escape anymore.
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