Luna-s Replacement

In the chill of winter, as the morning mist began to dissipate, Lily opened her eyes with the first rays of dawn. Yawning, she deftly dressed herself and, carrying a teacup from the table, hurried outside to the courtyard on her little legs.

She glanced at the tightly closed door of the woodshed and squatted beside a wooden barrel, scooping water from it. After fetching the water, she carefully returned to her woodshed with the cup in hand.

The interior of the woodshed was extremely sparse, furnished with only a bed and a table, the rest filled with clutter and bundles of dried firewood. Placing the cup on the table, she struggled to drag a stool to the other side of the woodshed—

Inside the woodshed, there was another room, but at the moment, its door was secured with heavy chains, leaving only a window through which one could see inside.

Lily dragged the stool under the window and placed the cup on it before climbing up. This series of actions was performed smoothly, a testament to how many times she had done it.

Holding the cup with one hand and gripping the window bars with the other, she stood on her tiptoes and knocked on the window, whispering, "Grandma, are you there?"

The sound of fabric rustling against dry grass was followed by an elderly womans face appearing at the window.

Gaunt and haggard, she looked at Lily, took the teacup through the gap in the window, and coughed while muttering, "Lily, dont go near the well. If you accidentally fall in, how would grandma... how would I explain..."

"Grandma has told me many times, and I remember. I only scoop from the barrel," she said, clinging to the window and coaxing in a childish voice, "Yesterday, mom was angry again. Grandma, dont talk to them today, and mom wont scold you. When grandma gets better, dad will let grandma out to play with Lily."

Hearing this, the old womans eyes dimmed, and she reached out her rough hand to touch Lilys head.

Lily, touched by the old woman, couldnt help but smile, innocently saying, "Lily will bring food later, and grandma wont be hungry."

She greedily rubbed her cheek against the old womans rough palm.

"Lily, have you hidden the things I told you to?" the old woman asked, her cloudy eyes welling up with tears as she inquired about her granddaughter, "Did your sister and stepmother see them?"

Lily nodded, bragging, "Lily has always hidden them well. Grandma, wait for Lily a moment."

She jumped off the stool, squatted at the end of the bed, moved a pile of firewood, and removed a brick, reaching into the hole to pull out a bag.

The coarse cloth was gray, and Lily patted off the dust before turning to hand it to the old woman.

The old woman slowly opened the cloth bag, revealing a very delicate crescent-shaped jade pendant inside.

The jade was smooth and moist, of excellent quality, which seemed out of place with the old womans current situation.

"Why do I have to hide it, grandma?" the little girl asked innocently, which made the old woman sigh slightly.

Touching the "Lily" engraved on the jade, she murmured, "Lily, you must hide it well. This thing is very important."

—The reason was simple: it was proof of Lilys identity.

Lily was not Grandma Xus biological granddaughter but was picked up by her on the road.

At that time, Grandma Xus daughter-in-law had been barren for many years, so they went to the Holy Temple to pray for a child and happened to find Lily on the way.

The newborn baby, still in a basket with bloodstains, was crying incessantly.

Beside her was a jade pendant engraved with the character "Lily," and there was nothing else to prove her identity.

Grandma Xu and her daughter-in-law did not recognize the origin of the jade, but they knew it was valuable and had an extraordinary background.

They went to the mountain to pray for a child but found a child on the way. Seeing her cute and feeling a connection, they took pity and adopted her as a daughter of the Xu family, naming her Lily after the character on the jade, and doted on her.

Unfortunately, when Lily was less than a year old, Grandma Xus daughter-in-law passed away due to illness, and after half a year, Mr. Xu remarried.

The new wife, Mrs. Liu, was bold and not very upright. Grandma Xu had known for years that she had secretly been involved with her own son and had never agreed to let her into the house. However, Mrs. Liu was humble for half a year and managed to deceive Grandma Xu, eventually agreeing to the marriage.

After entering the house, Mrs. Liu showed her true colors and, for some reason, persuaded Mr. Xu, and together they imprisoned Grandma Xu.

Grandma Xu knew Mr. Xu was ungrateful and understood that Mrs. Liu was extremely greedy. If they saw this jade pendant, they would immediately seize it, either to wear it themselves or to sell it for a good price, without considering Lilys interests.

Grandma Xu sighed and solemnly instructed Lily, "Lily, you must hide this well and not let anyone deceive you into giving it away."

She knew in her heart that this jade pendant proved Lilys significant origin and was the only proof for Lily to find her true family.

Now that she was old, there would come a day when she could no longer protect Lily, and at that time, only this jade pendant could protect her.

When Mrs. Liu and Mr. Xu got up, Lily had already washed her face with the remaining water in the barrel.

Susan came to the backyard and saw her sitting on the steps basking in the sun, then stood at the door and shouted loudly to those behind her, "Mom! Mom! Come quick—Lily, that lazy girl, is loafing around here early in the morning, come and see—"

Her voice was thin and long, startling Lily, who quickly stood up and ran to Susan.

"Sister, Lily didnt—"

Before she could finish, Susan screamed, pushed her down, and stepped back in disgust, angrily shouting, "Who told you to stand so close to me?! This is the new dress I just made today. What if you dirty it!"

Susan, with her round head and wearing a peach-red dress, looked like a fortune doll from a New Year painting.

She formed a stark contrast to Lily, who was dressed in a gray, tattered outfit, looking like a little beggar.

"And who gave you permission to call me sister!" Susan frowned at her, shouting, "You are a child without parents!"

Mrs. Liu was soon attracted by Susans voice, grumbling, "All you are is a bunch of lazybones! Ive raised you for years, and now you dont do any work. Do you still think youre a young lady in the house?!"

Mrs. Liu appeared at the door, saw Lily on the ground, and her face immediately turned ugly.

She looked around, grabbed a piece of dead wood from the side, and stormed towards Lily to hit her.

"You stinky girl! I didnt even ask you to wash the clothes, and you just waste them like this. Im busy every day, and you dont give me a moments peace. Are you going to be like your dead mother and that old bone, trying to anger me to death?! I must teach you a lesson!"