Chapter 1

“Xixi, that jade bracelet originally belonged to the Bai family. It was passed down through the generations to their sons’ wives. Now that your cousin is the one filing the marriage application with Bai Shuheng, you should give it to her!” “Xixi, are you listening? Don’t just sit there and say nothing. Auntie is telling you this for your own good!” “Listen to good advice and you’ll never go hungry, Xixi. I’m only thinking of what’s best for you. The two of you weren’t meant to be. You’ve already been accused of a hooliganism offense with a murderer. Why are you still holding on to that bracelet? Are you really hoping he’ll change his mind and come back to you?” The setting sun cast its fading glow across the courtyard. The middle-aged woman’s nagging voice seeped through the tiny palm-sized window of the earthen house, making the already cramped room feel even noisier and more irritating. Yet on the narrow earthen kang, Zhong Xixi acted as though she hadn’t heard a word. She turned over, facing the yellowish earthen wall behind her, and fell into deep thought. For the third time, she touched the long, ugly scar stretching across her cheek. Holding up a palm-sized shard of a mirror, she carefully examined her reflection. She wasn’t Zhong Xixi. No, that wasn’t quite right. She wasn’t the Zhong Xixi of the 1960s. She came from the twenty-second century and had been an ordinary corporate slave. She worked herself to the bone from early morning until midnight every day. In the end, while taking inventory of billions’ worth of goods in a business partner’s warehouse, she collapsed. Her life had ended without the slightest warning. Zhong Xixi hadn’t even had time to write a will. Oh, well. It didn’t really matter. She had no family or lover anyway. She had lived alone and died alone. But her current situation was rather difficult. After merging with the original owner’s memories, she couldn’t help feeling a sharp ache in her heart. She really was unbelievably unlucky… The original Zhong Xixi had lost both her parents at the age of fifteen. Ever since then, she had been living with her younger brother at her uncle’s home. The two siblings worked every day to earn work points. Whenever they had free time, they were also expected to take care of the entire family’s food and household chores. They did most of the housework in the home and were the hardest-working members of the family, yet they lived the worst lives of everyone there. Fortunately, her parents had arranged a betrothal for her before they died. Now that she had turned eighteen, she was about to file the marriage application with her fiancé. But then her uncle’s daughter, Zhong Chuchu, had suddenly stepped in and stolen the marriage from her. There was a reason, after all. The man to whom the original owner had been betrothed was quite an impressive catch. Not only had Bai Shuheng graduated from high school, but he was also the only son in his family. His father was even the brigade leader of the village. With such a family, they didn’t have to worry about food or clothing. How could Uncle’s family possibly be willing to let such a good match go to Zhong Xixi? The entire family had gone to great lengths to make it happen. They encouraged Bai Shuheng and Zhong Chuchu to meet in secret, while secretly badmouthing Zhong Xixi to him. As a result, Bai Shuheng gradually became cold and indifferent toward her and wanted to break off the engagement. The original owner had no one to rely on, yet she still desperately wanted to marry Bai Shuheng. So she went to him and begged him to reconsider. She never expected to stumble upon the two of them together. Humiliated and enraged, Zhong Chuchu shoved her. By sheer misfortune, the original owner’s face struck a stone. Blood immediately poured down her face! Fortunately, a reclusive man from the village happened to see what happened. He quickly carried her to the hospital, saving her life. But her face was permanently disfigured. That man could have testified on Zhong Xixi’s behalf. However, he had once served time in prison for murder and had a terrible reputation in the village. Instead, Zhong Chuchu turned the accusation back on him, claiming that he and Zhong Xixi were having an illicit affair. She even stirred up trouble until the two of them were accused of committing a hooliganism offense. The day after tomorrow, they would have to publicly confess and make a self-criticism in front of the entire village! The Bai family took advantage of the situation to break off the engagement as well. They immediately turned around and filed a marriage application with Zhong Chuchu. She had heard that they had already submitted the paperwork. Disfigurement. A broken engagement. A ruined reputation. One blow after another had completely shattered the last thread holding the original owner together. So, in the middle of the night, the original Zhong Xixi slit her wrists and took her own life. Thinking about it, Zhong Xixi let out a sigh. The original owner really had been foolish. Did she honestly think dying could make that scumbag change his mind and come back to her? In the end, wouldn’t the ones suffering be herself and her little brother, Zhong Mumu? She had died peacefully enough, but Zhong Xixi had been left to cross into this world and clean up the mess. What a headache! Outside, her aunt, Liu Meili, had a long, narrow face resembling the sole of a shoe. Her tiny eyes were narrowed as she continued nagging Zhong Xixi to hand over the engagement token the Bai family had given her when the two families arranged their childhood betrothal. It was a jade bracelet that was supposedly worth quite a lot of money. Then, in the next moment, Liu Meili’s true nature suddenly revealed itself. “You little brat! Did you sneak into my room and steal something again? I’ll break your legs!” “Ah! Auntie, please stop! I won’t do it again! I promise! I only went in because Sister is so weak. I wanted to get her something to eat!” A young boy’s frightened and timid voice immediately followed. But it was accompanied by the sounds of fists and kicks. Liu Meili had probably lost her patience after spending so long talking to Zhong Xixi without getting any response. Her words became increasingly vicious. “You’re just as worthless as your sister! You little bastard with no father or mother! I’ve already got all this anger bottled up inside me. Let’s see if I don’t beat you to death today!” Hearing this, Zhong Xixi finally reacted. She rolled out of bed and sat upright, her ears immediately perking up as she listened. Her little brother must have gone into Aunt Liu’s room looking for food and gotten caught! Thinking of the original owner’s six-year-old little brother, her heart softened. After all, she had taken over his sister’s body, which meant he was her little brother now too! How could this woman hit such a small child so viciously? Ignoring the dizziness in her head, Zhong Xixi immediately climbed down from the kang and flung open the door. She spotted the thin, vicious-looking old woman in the courtyard and instantly grabbed the shovel leaning against the wall. She swung it straight at her. “Ah!” Liu Meili had never expected Zhong Xixi to suddenly come charging out. The shovel struck her squarely, making her scream as she stumbled backward several steps. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Zhong Xixi pulled the short, skinny boy up from the ground. Leaning against the shovel and breathing heavily, she glared at Liu Meili. “Auntie, I wasn’t answering you because I fell asleep. My parents just came to me in a dream. They said they wanted to thank you properly in my dream for taking care of my brother and me all these years.” “As for the bracelet, they said they’d tell you in the dream where they put it. Consider it their way of thanking your family for taking care of Mumu and me. So there’s no need for you to keep asking me for it. Why don’t you go back to your room, lie down, and have a nice chat with my parents?” Zhong Xixi finished speaking without the slightest hesitation. Before Liu Meili could recover from her shock, she grabbed her little brother and dragged him back inside. With a loud bang, she slammed the door shut. When her parents died, they had never told the original owner where they had put the jade bracelet. Otherwise, she would have thrown it at Liu Meili long ago. The original owner might have treasured that scumbag, but Zhong Xixi certainly didn’t. The original owner had always been timid and submissive. Normally, she wouldn’t even dare to speak to someone in this manner, let alone raise her voice. This sudden change had completely stunned Liu Meili. Although people were supposed to reject all superstition and superstition was officially frowned upon, people of this era were still far more superstitious than those who came later. Liu Meili immediately broke out in goosebumps. What had happened to this girl? She had stayed locked in her room all day, and now she seemed like an entirely different person. There was a frightening viciousness in her eyes, as though she might actually eat someone alive. Could she have been possessed? Liu Meili immediately began muttering, “Amitabha, Amitabha…” After chanting for a while, she realized that Zhong Xixi had no intention of opening the door. With no other choice, she reluctantly returned to the northern room where she lived. “Hmph! So you won’t give it to me? “Fine. Those two little brats are still living under my roof anyway. Their work points are registered under my family’s household account, too. Without us, they won’t even have a single grain of food to eat.”