When Jiang Zhihe opened her eyes, she had become the daughter of a grain clerk on the road to exile.
A family of five, a sack of damp rice, and just nineteen coins left. Her little sister was so hungry she swallowed her saliva, yet still said she could go without eating.
Having worked as a chef for years, she borrowed an old pot and lit the stove. From taro-scented rice to fresh fish soup, from cooking over a communal stove to setting up a street stall, she would use her skills to earn a better life for her family.
The aroma of her food brought back old customers. It also made the boatman who never budged a single coin on the freight charge gradually become someone she cared about.
Just as life began to improve, an old grain ledger suddenly made her father turn pale...
