Once she opened her eyes again, Yun Tang released a deep sigh.
She's still here.
She woke up earlier feeling that her bed became hard when it was a good quality foam provided by the school.
When she opened her eyes that was when she realized her once small, but well-lit, and newly refurbished room turned into a small old dilapidated room full of woods and holes. Her single bed became a stack of woods and the foam became a woven nipa.
Yun Tang sat up straight in shock.
Where is she?
Did someone kidnap her and bring her into this room?
But how?
There are several guards guarding and patrolling the school and teachers dormitories at night. There are also several CCTVs around the campus and dormitory to monitor and check by the operator. Hence, it would be hard to kidnap her without disturbing her sleep.
Before she can think deeply a throbbing headache assaulted her. When she was about to pass out from the pain it miraculously vanished. Then, her head was gradually filled with numerous memories that weren't hers.
Well, now it's hers.
She actually 'transmigrated' in her sleep.
This is completely impossible, right?
She is familiar with the word 'transmigration' because she read and watched novels and dramas with this plotline. But never in her life did she even think it was real and that she would experience it someday.
Yun Tang tried to pinch herself to try to wake her up from her dream only to find out it hurts.
"Hiss,.. that was painful."
That didn't work, so she tried to sleep again and hoped that when she opened her eyes again everything would change to her familiar room. Maybe she will be transported again by luck.
She did it several times until she could no longer deceived herself. Not to mention there's already a big amount of foreign memories in her head.
She stayed in her hard bed and stared at the roof full of holes while trying to accept the reality.
Slowly, she reluctantly sat up and began to fix her beddings absentmindedly.
While she was in a daze her dilapidated wooden door was knocked vigorously, waking her up in a trance.
She even wondered if it would break anytime soon, because of the force the other person exerted.
It was then followed by a loud complaining voice of a woman. Who would it be other than the stepmother of the original owner.
"B*tch, the sun was already scorching hot yet you're still sleeping like a dog. Do you still want us to wait for you like a landlord?? See if I didn't plunge you, useless thing, to death once you go out of this room if you continue to laze around!! Hurry up now and cook, we're already starving to death here..,"
Hearing these vulgar and unfiltered words for the first time made her head throbbed again and face grimace in displeasure.
In her past life, she was a high school teacher—cultured, modest, and polite. Her calm presence and refined character made her the kind of teacher students admired and respected.
Even when she was in the orphanage, the dean and staff there didn't talk like this for fear that the children would imitate it. Hence, this is a very foreign and unpleasant experience for her.
Still she hurriedly finished fixing her beddings and changed to her clothes. Although she was unfamiliar at first but with the memories help she was able to handle it albeit clumsily.
She sighed several times while trying to wear the worn out clothes. It was washed to the point you can no longer identify the original color.
She really transmigrated to ancient times, but the Dynasty seemed to be unfamiliar to her.
After she dressed up in just two steps she made her way to the door, while tying her hair with a self-made tie.
On the other hand, hearing no response inside the room, this made Zhou De become more furious. And instead of knocking she kicked the door, while yelling more louder than the last.
"Sl*t, are you deaf!? Still pretending to be weak from the fall, see if I didn't really dragged you and drowned you to death myself, so that we won't be burdened by you. You useless bad ominous thi-"
The door was finally opened, simultaneously the woman already kicked with great momentum, so without the door she stumbled inside and fell hard.
In the countryside, usually the flooring of houses is just ground that was flattened. However, Yun Tang's room was originally intended as a storage room; therefore, it wasn't flattened much and there are even some stones in it, so falling on it definitely hurts. Not to mention, falling face first.
Everything happened so quickly. So, Yun Tang didn't react until the woman on the ground groaned in pain. Realizing what happened just now, Yun Tang immediately went to help, but the woman slapped her hands away instead, not wanting her help.
"GO AWAY, YOU OMINOUS THING! Ugh!" the woman yelled at her, while trying to stand up from the fall.
Seeing this, Yun Tang didn't insist anymore and just stood aside. Not knowing what to do.
Well, actually it's very interesting to watch her try to stand up.
Although she mentioned she is cultured, polite and modest, it doesn't mean that's her only qualities. She also has other not so good qualities that only her closest friend and family knew.
"M-MOM? What's that sound? Did that b*tch do something to you?"
"Zhou De, what happened? Yun Tang, what happened to your mother?"
Hearing footsteps and voices getting nearer from outside, Yun Tang's body reacted faster than her head.
She immediately ran out of the room through her window. Before the woman can react and stop her she already escapes from the room. Meanwhile the woman was still on the ground sitting, because she still couldn't stand up from the pain. Her old waist slammed hard on the ground earlier.
When the woman reacted, she could only shout and resort to threatening her stepdaughter.
"B*TCH! YOU COME BACK HERE NOW! OR ELSE I'M GOING TO KICK YOU OUT OF MY HOUSE."
Meanwhile, Yun Tang who's already quite a distance from the house just keeps running even after hearing those threats.
She is a fool if she really comes back now, after running away even if she didn't do anything wrong.
Calculating that she's already far from the house, and that they can't catch up after her for a short time, Yun Tang stops.
She's already running out of breath and her feet can't keep out now. This body is still weak from a fever that killed its owner; hence, it's already a miracle that she can keep up for a long time.
Recovering and calming herself, Yun Tang immediately looked around her surroundings.
According to the original owner's memory, she's now on the edge of their Yun town and the border of another town, called the Song town.
On this border, there's a small stream. She felt quite thirsty, so she decided to go there.
Based on her memory, the water from this small stream was from the back mountain and it has been used by two villages as a water source since she can remember. Although many houses now have their own well, some poor families still get water here; therefore, they still keep it clean and only wash their laundry downstream.
She immediately reached the small stream, and drank water.
After she quenches her thirst she can't help, but inadvertently look at her reflection in the water.
"I— t-this looks like me when I was younger." she muttered as she caressed her face in disbelief.
They look quite similar. A small oval face paired with big black eyes, slanted brows, high bridge nose, and a pinkest heart shaped lips. They both even have the same mole on the side of the left eye. The other has long hair though, while she has short hair.
Yun Tang and the other Yun Tang are 80% similar in appearance if not only for the darker, younger and thin face. An indicator how she lives a hard life.
Although she lives in the orphanage, her life was more comfortable than the original owner which made her look healthier and full of vitality. She deeply sympathizes with the original, and hopes that wherever she is now she can live a life that is different from her 1st life.
"Thank you. Don't worry, I will make sure the second half of your life will be comfortable and prosperous." She uttered in her reflection to reassure the other 'her'.
Tangtang doesn't know if it's because of the original owner's remaining feelings or whatnot, but she feels her body became lighter and relaxed.
Not long after she also washed her face as she wasn't able to do it earlier. While washing her face her stomach grumbles, so she hastens her action.
To solve her problem, she planned to look for wild fruits around the river.
In her delight she found wild berries, but the amount is pitifully small and not enough to even cushion her stomach. So, Yun Tang continued to wander, not knowing that she's already at the foot of the mountain, and was heading further inside.
If it was the original owner, she would have already noticed that she's going deeper inside and knows it's dangerous; hence, she would have stopped in her tracks and returned back.
Unfortunately, it was the other Yun Tang, who although retained some of the memories and reflexes, doesn't have the same precautions like the original, especially when she's preoccupied in filling her stomach.
In addition, the mountains and forests in her time were not considered dangerous anymore, although there are still few dangers such as snakes, but because of modernization and tourism, the animals began to hide and are seldom seen.
"There's actually so many wild berries and fruits here." she muttered while eating and picking with the other hand.
It really tasted different from the one she got at the public market in her time. Those sellers cheated and scammed her by saying those wild berries and fruits they sell contained no fertilizer/conservatives.
Bah! Bah! If those were 'natural', then what do you call these spiritual fruits?
Actually, it's not that those fruits were not 'natural' , it's that the times have changed and the soil is not the same after decades of exploitation; hence, the fruit that grows from those lands will change slowly. Moreover, not only is the soil polluted but the air and water as well; hence, the result.
*Burped*
After filling her stomach Yun Tang didn't stop picking fruits, but her picking speed slowed down. She thought that she might as well get some, so that she has something to eat at lunch, for she knows that she can't go back home. Even if she did, she won't have anything to eat.
Therefore, she might as well get some food here, while she'll still be here. Besides, it would also be a loss if these ripe wild berries and fruits got rotten, because no one would pick them.
She didn't bring any basket or container to put the berries; thus, she just improvised a simple basket made of coconut leaves she learned from her grandmother.
After picking enough, she immediately realized that she walked deeper than she expected; hence, she no longer knows the way out.
"How to go back now?"
(T_T)
As mentioned, the original owner didn't once venture deep inside here; therefore, she didn't have memories of the geography here. Without a choice she decided to find her way out and to avoid circling around she smartly put a mark by tying coconut leaves in the tree's branches.
After doing this for 20 minutes, she still hadn't found her way out and instead saw one of her marks again.
"Ahh! What to do now? I can't just keep circling here."
Realizing that she's really lost, Tangtang gritted her teeth and thought of a solution in frustration.
"Ah, yes, the river!"
Fortunately, she finally remembered that there's a river that runs from the mountains to the village. Hence, she decided to find the river instead of the way out first.
After another 20 minutes, she found that the soil she stepped on became more sandy. In no time, she really heard a water flowing that made her sighed in relief.
"God, finally! Fortunately there's a river, or else I'll never know when I can exit here." She muttered.
When she reached the river, she just looked at it for a few minutes to admire it, then decided to follow it out.
On the way out, she heard splashing sounds on the river in front which halted her steps. Hearing no voice she continued, but made sure her steps were quiet. She immediately hides behind the tree when she's near the sound.
Peering from where she is hiding, she saw the one who's making the splashing sounds.
"Ohmyghad!" she exclaimed in a lower voice and immediately hide.
"Who's there?"