Su Yuhe

Biodata

Background / History

Transmigration and Life in Reed Flower Village

Su Yuhe was a first-year high school student before transmigrating. She awoke in an alternate dynasty without household registration, money, family, or shelter. Within less than two years, she obtained a blue-brick, tiled-roof house and could afford meat every day, largely through the support of her wealthy lover, Xubai 1 7.

Despite owning a comfortable home, she remained an outsider without farmland, family backing, or scholarly rank. She regarded Li Yun—a capable hunter and cook with a good temperament—as an ideal person to share everyday life with 9 16.

Arrival of the Three Government Slaves

In March of the eighteenth year of Taihe, constables delivered Lu Mingyi, Lu Mingxi, and Meng Zhixian to her home. An unidentified benefactor had purchased them for her, and the constables handed over their slave contracts despite her objections. Su Yuhe initially saw their arrival as a threat to her relationship with Xubai and the livelihood he provided 1.

She approached Xubai while pretending to believe he had bought the men as a test of her loyalty. He denied responsibility and demanded that she bring them to him. They were briefly taken away, but Lanxin returned them when Xubai left for the imperial capital. He also delivered roughly ten taels of silver, which Su Yuhe interpreted as breakup money 2 3.

Left with three additional dependents, she began teaching them basic cooking and accommodating them in a household with only two quilts. Although they addressed her as their wife, she initially resisted that role 1 4 5.

Supporting the Household

The newcomers’ food, clothing, and tax expenses pushed Su Yuhe to take on more copying work. She also obtained assignments for literate members of the household, allowing them to contribute from home 5 9 27.

Her concern for their welfare increasingly outweighed her reluctance to spend. When Lu Mingyi injured his hand, she took him to a physician and bought healing and scar-removing ointments. After discovering that he had returned them to save money, she went back and purchased them again 13 14 15.

Following Shopkeeper Liu’s suggestion, Su Yuhe began advertising a home letter-writing service. She recruited Little He to find customers and carry letters to the post station in exchange for a share of the earnings 14 25.

Betrothal and Preparations for Severe Cold

After Li Yun questioned his place in her life, Su Yuhe explicitly called him her husband-to-be. She later wrote their marriage contract at his request. Wedding preparations were deferred until after his mourning period 30 36 37.

The imperial preceptor’s prediction of a returning great freeze created another financial burden. The village chief approached Su Yuhe about contributions toward city and village granaries, while Su Yuhe considered the cost of paying money rather than supplying labor 26.

She subsequently prioritized warm bedding, clothing, and food reserves. She asked Lu Mingyi to barter for duck and goose down, and the household acquired more than five hundred jin of inexpensive sweet potatoes to dry for storage 34 36 37.

Xubai’s Return

When strangers began asking about the three government slaves, Su Yuhe suspected Xubai’s involvement and feared that he would discover her attachment to Li Yun. She spent several days anxiously awaiting a confrontation before returning her attention to paid copying 40 42.

Upon their reunion, Su Yuhe argued that their unequal status made continuing the relationship dangerous. Xubai rejected the separation and threatened her over further involvement with the other men. She concealed both her marriage agreement with Li Yun and her romantic encounter with Meng Zhixian, presenting her recent life as little more than copying books and planning meals 46 47 48.

Xubai arranged paid work for the three men at his estate and gave Su Yuhe a heavy box of gold-colored valuables, restricting them to her personal use. She accepted the employment arrangement and brought the men to the estate the next morning, while asking that Lu Mingxi receive less strenuous duties 49 50.

Appearance

Su Yuhe considers her appearance ordinary by modern standards, but her fair complexion and even white teeth make her comparatively attractive in the countryside 1 18.

• Build: Shorter and frailer than local women; she struggles to carry even a partly filled basket of sweet potatoes 10 18.
• Features: Fair skin, eyes she does not consider especially large, and a nose she does not consider especially straight 1.
• Hair: Wears her hair partly coiled at the back and partly loose, secured with a wooden hairpin 45.
• Adornment: Usually wears little jewelry; her wrist bears a red cord threaded with one red bead 45.
• Clothing: Owns a pale yellow dress embroidered with silk tree blossoms, a gift from Xubai. Earlier, she deliberately visited him in shabby clothes to make asking for assistance easier 1.

Personality

Su Yuhe is financially pragmatic and candid with herself about her dependence on Xubai. She readily uses flattery, feigned indignation, and affection to secure help. Her interest in money is especially conspicuous when Xubai offers paid employment or expensive gifts 1 2 49.

Her growing responsibility for the household brings out a gentler side. She encourages inexperienced cooks, insists on treating Lu Mingyi’s injuries, and reassures Li Yun when village gossip makes him feel inferior to the more delicate men in her home. She also postpones Lu Mingyi’s offer to attend to her after noticing his lack of desire and physical tension 5 10 14 20.

Her kindness is guarded rather than indiscriminate. She helps Ruan Puchuan but fears being trapped in Liu Xiaobo’s accusations or demands. When openly insulted, she can be harsh and retaliatory, including directing a cruel counterinsult at his disabled daughter 7 15 18 22.

She is also pleased with her own practical ingenuity. After demonstrating her household’s hot-water system, she proudly praises its convenience, though she admits that her improvised knowledge would not qualify her to build houses professionally 30.

Abilities & Skills

Literacy and Book Copying

Su Yuhe earns money through unusually fast copying, drawing on the writing practice of her previous schooling 7.

• Writes faster than local copyists while maintaining reliable quality; her handwriting has a distinctive style rather than exceptional neatness 7 9.
• Has earned approximately eight qian per ten thousand characters, with some generous commissions paying three taels for a book of roughly twenty thousand characters 5.
• Takes additional assignments for household members and works late to meet deadlines and earn completion bonuses 5 14 37.
• Suffers hand pain from prolonged writing and sometimes copies until midnight 9 48.

Household Design

Su Yuhe adapts remembered modern information into practical improvements for her home 30.

• Hot-water system: Reproduced a tap connected by copper pipe to a boiler built into the kitchen stove, supplying the adjacent bathing room 30.
• Heated kang: Recreated a heated brick bed using principles she had encountered through novels and subsequent reading 30.
• Integrated layout: Arranged the kitchen, bathing room, and winter bedroom so that cooking heat also warms the bed 3 30.
• Limit: Regards these achievements as dabbling, not evidence that she could safely work as a professional house builder 30.

Cooking and Household Thrift

Her cooking emphasizes simple, low-effort dishes rather than elaborate technique 34.

• Teaches egg custard, sweet potato congee, and basic kitchen procedures 7 34.
• Explains how to conserve firewood when cooking 7.
• Remelts candle stubs and wax drippings with cotton wicks to make replacement candles 10.
• Recognizes Li Yun as the more capable cook and directs Lu Mingxi to continue learning from him 34.

Small-Business Organization

Su Yuhe looks for ways to turn literacy and household labor into income 5 25.

• Obtains copying work through Shopkeeper Liu and distributes assignments within her household 5 27.
• Recruits Little He as a customer finder and letter courier on a shared-earnings arrangement 25.
• Compares supply costs against expected returns, buying cheap ink for low-paid copying rather than using expensive ink 6.
• Initially lacks the courier-station connections that Shopkeeper Liu identifies as important for a letter-writing business 14.

Property & Items

• Village house — A blue-brick, tiled-roof home with a study, summer and winter bedrooms, bathing room, cellar, grape arbor, and heated kang 1 3.
• Copying supplies — Uses brushes, ink, booklets, and stationery boxes supplied or obtained through the bookshop; some low-rate jobs require her household to provide its own materials 5 42.
• Slave contracts — Receives the contracts for Lu Mingyi, Lu Mingxi, and Meng Zhixian from the constables 1.
• Red-bead bracelet — A red cord carrying a single red bead, worn when her other adornments are minimal 45.
• Xubai’s gift box — Contains heavy, golden-looking valuables that delight her; Xubai forbids her from passing them to anyone else 49.

Relationships

• Xubai — Wealthy lover and original financial supporter. His assistance gives her material security, but his possessiveness, threats, and deliberate control over how much she can save make her dependence dangerous 1 47 48 49.
• Li Yun — Betrothed and trusted practical partner. She values his hunting, cooking, and temperament, reassures him about his appearance, and writes their marriage contract 9 10 30 36.
• Lu Mingyi — One of the three government slaves placed in her household. She insists on treating his injuries and retains him as household manager even after discussing Li Yun’s future position as head husband 14 15 37.
• Lu Mingxi — The youngest newcomer, whom she treats indulgently through cooking lessons, small treats, and efforts to secure lighter work. He frequently seeks her attention and a place beside her at night 7 34 37 43 50.
• Meng Zhixian — Household member and fellow copyist who actively pursues her affection. She reassures him that she does not hate him and responds to his kisses, while withholding that encounter from Xubai 5 32 45 48.
• Ruan Puchuan — Li Wenxiu’s mistreated husband. Su Yuhe feeds him, helps him when he chokes, and arranges treatment for his injuries; her tenderness leads him to wish she were his wife 4 20 22.
• Shopkeeper Liu — Provides copying commissions, deposits, and business advice, including the suggestion to write family letters for customers 5 14.
• Little He — Local seller and business helper. She buys firewood from him and recruits him to advertise her letter-writing service and deliver letters 25.
• Liu Xiaobo — Hostile fellow villager with whom she repeatedly exchanges insults. She distrusts his demands for help and fears that he may attempt extortion 7 15 18.