A village isolated from the world, where sons are favored over daughters. Women have no standing here, and every family longs for a boy. Cao Bing's wife had already given birth to seven girls in a row, making them a constant source of gossip among the villagers. A few years later, she gave birth to an eighth child, a boy. The villagers had mocked them for having seven girls, so Cao Bing and his wife were cold toward the daughters as well. In recent years, the rains had grown scarce and supplies increasingly limited. Times were no longer as prosperous as before, and supporting such a large family had become harder and harder. The sisters never had enough to eat. Seeing that the couple and their youngest son, the eighth child, were also struggling to get by, they decided to send the seven girls into the Dark Forest and leave them to fend for themselves. The Dark Forest was a forbidden zone, and no one who went in ever came back. One day, a meteorite fell here, cutting the village off from the outside world. The Dark Forest formed at the same time, surrounding the entire village, and no villager ever left again. Those who tried never returned. From that day on, the rains were plentiful and the climate mild, nourishing the land. The villagers no longer had to worry about shortages. In recent years, however, the rains had dwindled, and the village had gradually fallen into hardship. Cao Bing sent his seven daughters into the Dark Forest. No one knew what the world inside was like. The seven sisters bravely faced one hardship and danger after another in the Dark Forest, and they also met many kind people who helped them. They, in turn, helped many others in need and experienced the seven sufferings of life. The hardships along the way shaped who they are now and made them even more certain that Heaven had given them the identity of girls for a reason, and that they should cherish it. If they could, they hoped to be girls again in their next lives.
