What is a "sea girl"? Of course, don’t think it’s just a literal interpretation, like a daughter of the sea; that’s all nonsense. The Yangshu Village where the Yang Family resides is actually in a village in Quanya County, Funan Prefecture, along the southeast coast of Great Zhou. People here who live near the sea rely on fishing for a living, and those a little further away, like Yangshu Village, rely on farming.
The sea girls are prepared for those fishermen.
People who live by the sea know that there are many customs when it comes to sailing, such as not saying bad luck words, setting off firecrackers, and scattering rice flour in the sea, etc. Among these, offering sacrifices to the sea god every year is the most important and particular one for the fishermen.
In order to seek the sea god’s protection for their fishing boats, fishermen would, every year during the Sea God Festival, personally dedicate a young girl to serve the god. This girl, offered as a sacrificial item, is called a "sea girl".
The girl offered by the fishermen is naturally not their own daughter. Instead, they usually get together with other families to buy one from the town. Those who do this business are called "sea envoys", and are considered to be the envoys of the sea god, responsible for selecting the sea god’s maids.
This year’s Sea God Festival is on the sixth day of the sixth month, which is just a few days away.
Yang Xiao’an, who had been living in the town, suddenly came back with his family, saying that there was a new book in town. The bookseller claimed that as long as you read the book, you would definitely pass the exam and become a Recommended Man. Therefore, Yang Xiao’an, who was already a Cultivated Talent, couldn’t wait to come back and get the money for the book.
But it was a difficult time when the harvest was far away, and there was no spare money at home. Old Lady Hua didn’t want to delay Xiao’an’s progress, so she thought about selling a sea girl.
After some calculation, she counted five granddaughters in the family. But three of them were her own, and only the two from the third branch of the family were not. Among the two, one was still young. Yang Chuxia was the most suitable one. Moreover, that little brat had seen something she shouldn’t have. So, Old Lady Hua set her sights on Yang Chuxia from the third branch.
That’s why, during the daytime, Yang Chuxia accidentally dropped half a steamed bread. Old Lady Hua got so angry that she scolded her for wasting food, then took a big thick stick and hit her head straight away.
The big stick was as thick as a man’s arm. With one hit, Yang Chuxia’s head started bleeding and she died on the spot.
Originally, selling a living sea girl would have been more profitable, but Old Lady Hua thought that if she were alive, that little wretch would definitely refuse to cooperate. If she got agitated and revealed Old Lady Hua’s secrets, then it would be disastrous. So, she decided to take the life of Yang Chuxia.
After Yang Chuxia was confirmed dead, she asked her grandson to find her lover and tell him to inform the sea envoy that he could come and take the girl away.
Unfortunately, the events that followed were beyond her control. Old Lady Hua probably never expected that Yang Chuxia’s heart would be replaced.
"Damn it, what the hell is going on?"
Lying on the bed, Yang Chuxia received the memories of the original owner while cursing. These days, even stepmothers are so arrogant. And the original owner’s grandfather - he was as good as dead already. How could he just watch his two step-grandchildren bully his own son’s family? What the hell was wrong with his brain?!
"Xiaxia, Xiaxia, are you awake? Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?"
Yang Chuxia’s low voice curse woke up Ms. Wang who had been watching over her at bedside.
In the moonlight, Yang Chuxia saw her current mother bend down, then a rough hand touched her forehead.
"Ah, finally the fever’s gone." Ms. Wang sighed faintly.
"I’m not unwell; I just want some water." In fact, she didn’t want water. She just wanted to let Ms. Wang know that she was fine now.