After Xu Suihe dies of illness, she unexpectedly wakes up as a merchant's daughter.
To repay a huge gambling debt, her new body's father sells his wife and daughter to the Pei family as servants.
On the very night they enter the household, her new body's mother, unable to bear the humiliation, jumps down a well with Xu Suihe, who has only just arrived in this world.
If not for Eldest Young Master Pei getting up for a midnight snack, she'd have died all over again.
Looking at the mistress of the household, who is all smiles on the surface but venomous underneath, and Pei Zhou, who is just as hungry as she is, Xu Suihe grits her teeth.
For now, she'll stick with this fire-tending maid job that comes with food, lodging, and wages.
Others, coveting the household's power and riches, urge her to get into the master's bed. All she can think about is making her escape as soon as possible.
After saving enough money to buy her freedom, and repaying Pei Zhou for saving her life, she leaves the household.
Pushing a handcart, she sets up a charcoal brazier and an oil pan in the streets and alleys. Her little business makes a tidy profit, and at night she counts money until her hands ache.
Then she opens a small eatery beside the academy in the north of the city, providing meals every day for a few struggling scholars. Just as she's wondering which one to choose for a husband, rumors spread that Eldest Young Master Pei, who supposedly died on the battlefield, has appeared.
Little scene:
One day, someone claiming to be a relative comes knocking.
Without even looking up from her ledger, Xu Suihe says, "Throw them out!"
"Don't hit me! I'm your father!"
Pei Zhou, having taken over a worker's job, stands before the counter. "Madam Xu, I've come to seek a match today, too."
Xu Suihe stares, dumbfounded, at the boxes behind him tied with red silk. "What match?"
"A match between you and me." Pei Zhou turns to look at the scholars she has been supporting. "Shouldn't I repay you for saving my life by offering myself to you?"
"You said we'd already settled that debt."
"But back then, when you helped me get out of..."
Xu Suihe rises onto her tiptoes to cover his mouth. Ugh, he's grown taller and stronger. She can't reach his mouth at all, and ends up falling right into his arms instead.
Reader's Guide
1. Both leads are each other's only partner, 1v1.
2. Set in a fictional world. The food ingredients are all chosen for the plot, so please don't scrutinize them.
3. A money-loving "coin counter" versus a broad-shouldered "meat-eating dog."
4. Synopsis written on November 6, 2025, and screenshotted.
Theme: Food is the paramount necessity of the people.
