The height of summer had transformed Emerald Creek Village into a sea of green, with winding streams, chirping cicadas, and the sweet fragrance of blooming flowers drifting through the air. In the depths of the Jade Ridge mountains, birds sang merrily, and the air was thick with the damp freshness that comes after a rainstorm—the perfect time for foraging wild mushrooms.
Sunlight filtered through the leaves overhead, casting golden beams onto the straw hat perched atop Lin Yue’s knees, painting her in a watercolor of dappled light.
“Back in the day,” her grandmother, Granny Zhao, began, bamboo basket swinging from her hip as she settled under a towering pine, “the old folks used to say there were monsters in these hills. They’d appear on misty mornings after the rain, or on nights with a full moon, wearing strange masks. If a young woman got lost and saw the monster’s face, she’d be whisked away to be its bride—never to return!”
Yue rolled her eyes with a smile. “Granny, I’m in college now! You’re still telling me these spooky stories to scare me?”
Granny Zhao chuckled, dabbing sweat from her brow with a damp towel. “My little Yueyue is already twenty! The last time you came home, you were still in high school. Can’t you stay a bit longer this time? Granny misses you.”
Just then, Yue’s phone pinged with a message from her roommate, Yu Xiao
[ Xu Liuxia is at it again on the school forum, spreading rumors that you’re a homewrecker who seduced her ex! She even printed your number on those sleazy call-girl cards and scattered them everywhere… I reported her to the counselor, but Yueyue, hiding out in the countryside isn’t a solution. Call the cops! She’s lost it!]
Yue smiled wryly, snapped her phone shut, and dusted off her shorts. “Sure, Granny, I’ll stay until the semester starts.” She pointed toward a misty patch of forest. “I’m going to pick some mushrooms over there.”
“Don’t go too far, Yueyue! Stay safe!” Granny Zhao called after her, waving a hand.
The forest felt endless, a green maze of ancient trees arching high overhead, blocking out the summer heat and all the world’s noise. Milky fog curled around mossy roots, and Yue spotted a few plump, translucent mushrooms poking shyly from the earth.
She’d never seen mushrooms like these—round, glassy, and faintly glowing. Curiosity piqued, she grabbed a twig and poked at one.
With a soft pop, the mushroom vanished into the moss, only to reappear a few feet ahead, as if playing a game of hide-and-seek.
Yue blinked, then blinked again, wondering if she was seeing things.
She crept forward, but the mushrooms, startled, dived underground and popped up farther away, huddling together like nervous sparrows eyeing an intruder.
Mushrooms… that move?!
This is amazing! Yue grinned, forgetting all about her troubles as she chased after the magical fungi, the fog thickening around her until the path behind her disappeared.
A sudden chill breeze swept through the woods, and the mushrooms, sensing danger, vanished for good, squeezing themselves into a crack in a boulder. Only the eerie cries of strange birds echoed through the trees. Yue stopped, realizing she was lost.
She retraced her steps, listening for the sound of water, and finally heard a gentle trickle. Pushing through the undergrowth, she found a sparkling creek.
Dropping her basket, Yue knelt and splashed her face with the icy water, shivering with relief. As she rubbed her arms, she caught her reflection in the rippling surface.
Fair-skinned, with delicate features, long legs, and large, dark eyes that seemed to beg for sympathy—her friends always said she looked like a “fox spirit,” born to cause trouble.
Three months ago, the campus heartthrob had blocked her outside the library with a bouquet of roses and confessed his love. The only problem? Three days earlier, he’d still been dating Xu Liuxia, the wealthiest girl in school—and Xu Liuxia was Yue’s roommate.
Xu Liuxia blamed everything on Yue, convinced she’d stolen her boyfriend, and launched a campaign of wild revenge. Soon, rumors of Yue being a “player” and “sugar baby” were everywhere. Strangers started texting her disgusting offers, asking if the rumors were true and how much she charged for “overnight services.” Yue’s hands shook as she deleted the messages, her whole body cold with dread.
The university, Minghua College, didn’t allow sophomores to live off campus, and the dorms were full. Yue changed her number, but the anxiety and insomnia lingered, so she’d come home to Jade Ridge for a break.
After crouching by the creek for a while, Yue’s legs went numb. She shook herself from her thoughts, clutching her rumbling stomach. Turning away from the bushes, she found a smooth stone to sit on and pulled out her lunch.
Lunch was a masterpiece she’d made with Granny Zhao that morning: a fluffy steamed bun, sliced open and stuffed with melt-in-your-mouth braised pork and crisp cucumber shreds. The creek gurgled, the breeze danced through the trees, and the dappled sunlight played at her feet—so peaceful, even her toes curled with delight.
Chapter 01
*