Yes, I can cut wood!

Twelve years ago.

Jihen Era, also known as the Years of Barren Abandonment.

…

Lai Yiteng's mother had been beautiful and looked a lot like Lai Yiteng. There was no one else at the farming village that could compare with her. She knew how to sing and play the flute, too. But her personality was not weak or meek in the least, and she was known to blow things into a big fight if anyone dared disrespect her.

She befriended a straight-laced and diligent farm boy who was good at managing her temper, and they later married. He became Lai Yiteng's father.