I Own a Garden with One Hundred Herbs - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: A Beautiful Husband

Bai Caoshi did not expect to transmigrate into a book.

She transmigrated to the beginning of an ancient novel with the same name as her original self. She was even criticized for being shameless and immoral. Then, she was tied up like a dumpling and thrown in front of the Whitewater River.

She raised her head with difficulty and only then did she notice—

On the chaotic riverbank, she was surrounded by villagers wearing thorn pins, cloth dresses, and rough linen clothes.

Suddenly, a young woman wearing a hairpin cursed, “Bai Caoshi, you little hussy. You’re so shameless. You actually had an affair with a pretty boy secretly. How can you face our third brother who has passed away? It’s too easy for you to sink into the pond. You deserve to be sold to a brothel.”

After being stunned for a long time, Bai Caoshi could not come back to her senses.

She was originally a university student studying Traditional Chinese Medicine. She used the flying water method to separate the heavy metal impurities in the cinnabar in order to develop a calming pill. In the end, the separation experiment probably failed, and she actually poisoned herself to death after testing the medicine.

Tsk, could there be a transmigrator who was more miserable than her?

Others transmigrated with a spatial spiritual spring, a prince who was a great catch, and a miniature version of a cute child. She only had a ruined reputation and thin arms and legs that were malnourished at the age of 16 or 17.

Though, there was no need to lose weight.

Tsk, nothing can be done to change the situation. I can adapt to it.

After some time of mental preparations, a smile appeared on her face as she prepared to save herself. “Everyone, please listen to me…”

However, Madam Wang did not give her a chance to speak. “What’s the point of hearing you speak? Eldest son of the Xie family, second son of the Xie family, don’t you want to avenge your third brother?”

The eldest son of the Xie family, Xie Bochang, and the second son of the Xie family, Xie Zhongyi were the elder brothers of Xie Shuping, the husband of Bai Caoshi.

Their father was the chief of the village, and Xie Bochang’s wife was the daughter of a concubine of a minister in town. The Xie family could do whatever they wanted in Whitewater Village. The two brothers grabbed Bai CaoShi’s hair and pushed her into the pigpen.

Bai Caoshi was in so much pain that her eyes were filled with tears.

“Wolfsbane White Aconite, Datura Asarum.”

Bai Caoshi recited. What she recited was all Chinese herbal medicine, but at the same time, they were poisonous. The most satisfying revenge she could think of was to feed poison to these people who bullied her.

“What are you muttering about?” Madam Wang kicked the cage.

Bai Caoshi endured the pain and gritted her teeth. “It’s never too late for me to take revenge. Wait for me to come back on you!”

Madam Wang’s hair stood on end when she saw the venomous look in Poem’s eyes. She turned to Xie Zhangfa, who was in the center of the crowd, and asked, “Father, what are you waiting for?”

The Village Chief Xie Zhangfa gave a look and ordered, “Sink in the pond.”

“Stop!”

A voice came from outside the crowd. It was not loud, but it was clear and cold with terrifying power.

The crowd automatically dispersed and a middle-aged woman and a handsome young man walked out.

The woman was in her thirties and there were already wrinkles at the corners of her eyes. “Cao’er1!”

It was Poem’s mother, Madam Bai Li. Seeing her daughter suffer, Madam Bai Li’s tears flowed freely.

As for the young man, he looked like he was eighteen or nineteen years old and had the appearance of a celestial being. Although his face was unhealthy and cold, his eyes seemed to condense the stars, the sun, the moon, the mountains, the ravines, and the beautiful scenery of the human world. His eyes seemed like crushed starlight, and his thin lips were untainted with a beautiful curve. His lines were like those of a banished immortal. He was wearing a heavenly green shirt, like a tall pine bamboo in the snow.

The villagers gasped collectively. How handsome.

Bai Caoshi had seen countless handsome men when she was alive, but she also felt that the person in front of her was ranked first or second, much better than popular celebrities.

Under everyone’s gaze, the young man panted and coughed as he approached. Because of the strenuousness, the corners of his eyes were slightly red, making it even harder for people to look away.

“You pretty boy, what are you doing here?” Madam Wang shouted and gritted her teeth at the young man.

The villagers who were gossiping came to a realization. This was the person who had an affair with Bai Caoshi. But looking at this glorious scene, it didn’t seem like it.

“If I don’t come, cough cough… Do you think I’ll let you bully the innocent, cough cough… disregard human lives?” The young man’s eyes turned, and there seemed to be only a deep amber light left in the world.

The eldest son of the Xie family protected his wife and pointed at Bai Caoshi. “She had an affair. She deserved to die.”

The young man walked around the field with his hands behind his back. His tone was slow and powerful. “The law of the dynasty is respectful and virtuous. It emphasizes benevolence and righteousness and seeks to protect the people. Cough, cough. Bai Caoshi was benevolent to save Zhe Yu from danger. She was righteous to be dutiful and diligent in the Xie family. Cough, cough. She had the etiquette to do her duty and has never gone overboard. Although you’ve made things difficult and humiliated her in every way, she tolerated it on account of you being her elder sister-in-law. She had ethics. What right do you have to sink such a person?”

Perhaps because he had said too much, the young man, Zhe Yu coughed violently again.

Zhe Yu? This was the male protagonist of the book. Bai Caoshi also knew that Zhe Yu was just an alias he used to conceal his identity.

For a moment, her heart ached. Even though she was trapped in a pigpen, her heart still ached for Zhe Yu. It wasn’t because she was lustful, but because the readers liked and admired the male protagonist, and they were worried about his fate. It hadn’t been easy for him.

In terms of eloquence, no one present could compare to Zhe Yu.

Xie Bochang’s sleeve was pulled by his wife, Madam Wang. He straightened his neck and said, “Don’t talk nonsense. Can you deny the fact that both of you lived in the same house?”

In order to take care of Zhe Yu, it was an undeniable fact that Bai Caoshi had shared a room with him.

Zhe Yu looked around and observed the villagers’ reactions. “In the face of life and death, Miss Bai’s disregard for trifles is what I admire the most. If the one who is about to die is you—” Zhe Yu pointed at the eldest son of the Xie family, “…and you are met by Miss Bai, do you hope that she will keep her distance and ignore you, or save you from your predicament?”

After empathizing, the practice of Bai Caoshi did not deserve the death penalty.

When the Xie family saw that the villagers were slowly rooting for Bai Caoshi, Madam Xie was the most indignant. “How can you be so reasonable about such an improper thing!”

“Sigh, in the end, I was the one who tarnished her reputation.” Zhe Yu gave Bai Caoshi an apologetic look and continued. “According to the laws of the dynasty, when the husband or wife died for three years, they can divorce after mourning. As for me, I’m willing to take Miss Bai as my wife. If any of you want her dead, step over my dead body!”

14-year-old Bai Caoshi married the third son of the Xie family, but after a month, Xie Shuping died. She was only 17 years old this year.

Tears welled up in Poem’s eyes. She swore that if she survived, she would do everything in her life to heal his body and help him reach the peak of his life.

The villagers were also moved by the young man in front of them.

The members of the Xie family each held a weapon in their hands, but no one dared to step forward. After all, there were two lives.

Everyone’s gaze focused on Village Chief Xie. He was the real head of the family and even the village.

Before he could say anything, Zhe Yu had already quietly approached him. No one could see how he had gotten there.

“Village Chief Xie, you should be able to tell who I am.” He said in a voice that only the two of them could hear. He took out a jade pendant from his sleeve and waved it in front of Village Chief Xie’s eyes before putting it away. “I was originally training outside, but the people serving me have already found me. Believe it or not, if you dare to touch me and Miss Bai, your Xie family will meet your doom today.”