Author: Ah Ru (阿茹)
Description:
When she woke up, she transmigrated to the 1960s. There was a shortage of clothes, food, supplies, provisions, and everything. In addition, there was also an evil stepmother, a father who was a henpecked husband, a weird stepsister, and a weak and pitiful younger sister.
Fortunately, a space is at hand, so she has everything. She exchanged her supplies for money, tickets, and jewelry. It was like Taobao at the flea market. Her henpecked father was transformed, then she took the family to the bright future, and accidentally found the best man who spoiled and loved her.
Characters:
Zhao Xiulan – main character
Zhao Weiguo – MC's father
Zhao Xiuzhu – MC's younger sister
Ma Yumei – MC's stepmother
Li Lijuan – MC's stepsister
Liu Gensheng – production team leader
Liu Jianguo – production team leader's son
Wu Jinhua – Gou Dan's mother
Gou Dan – boy MC saved from snake bite
Liu Xiaohong – extra character / bumped into MC
Guo Aidang – first person MC had a trade with
Lu Qingguo – ML's friend and old classmate
Jiang Cheng – male lead
Mrs. Chen – middle-aged woman MC saved
Mr. Chen/Chen Deming – ML's mentor
Liu Lanlan – production team leader's daughter
Jiang Xiaoya – granddaughter of the Jiang family
Jiang Tiedan – grandson of the Jiang family
Mr. Jiang – ML's granduncle
Mrs. Jiang
Song Caixia – Qingguo's wife
Lu Liangliang – Qingguo's son
Lu Juanjuan – Qingguo's daughter
Xu Cuihua – Lijuan's friend
Zhao Xiulan felt a pain in her forehead. She woke up and found herself lying in a dilapidated room with yellow muddy walls and a dull color.
There was a small cabinet beside the bed. The bed was made of wooden planks with a thatch underneath it, and it was covered with a thin dark and moldy quilt.
There was also a strange smell that lingers, which made her head dizzy and heavy. She wanted to get up, but her body was so weak.
Where am I?
Her forehead was suddenly painful again and the memories that did not belong to her emerged in her mind.
She had transmigrated! The owner of her current body was also named Zhao Xiulan. She was now in the year 1960, just in time for the famine happening across the country.
The original owner lived in an ordinary family in the countryside, with a total of five family members—father Zhao Weiguo, younger sister Zhao Xiuzhu, stepmother Ma Yumei, stepsister Li Lijuan, and a baby in the womb of the stepmother, who had not yet been born.
In this era of scarcity of supplies, the Zhao family, like most other families, needed to work and earn work points. Every year, the production brigade would distribute the provisions according to the accumulated work points of each family. However, since the beginning of the Great Famine of China in 1959, the harvest of foodstuffs had declined sharply, and there were not much foodstuffs that could be distributed every year. In addition, the Zhao family had a large population but little labor, so her life was not good.
The original owner had a very difficult life in this family. Her own father was under her new wife's thumb and her stepmother didn't like her. Most of the time, she couldn't have enough meal and was enslaved to work. The original owner was seventeen years old, but because of frequent starvation, she seemed to have not grown up yet. Her whole body was thin and skinny, which looked like she had no flesh on her body. Long-term malnutrition had caused her complexion to be sallow, her hair to be dry, her head to be big but her body to be small, and her eyes to be sunken.
Original translation is from . Please read it on the translator's website.
In spite of that, Xiulan was still happy because of this transmigration.
Compared with the turmoil and hardships of the 1960s and 1970s, and the suffering of the original owner after being bullied, the apocalypse she lived in before was even more hopeless.
The apocalypse did not only have the shortage of water and food, but you also had to defend against the attacks of various zombies. Compared with the danger that the apocalypse may put you in at any time, this era was at least safe. She didn't need to worry about the danger of zombie attacks, so she could sleep peacefully.
Suddenly, after thinking of these things in general, Xiulan quickly took a look at her space.
Great! Fortunately, her space was still there.
This space suddenly appeared in her body before the apocalypse. The time inside was static, so the things she put inside would stay exactly in the same condition, and it would not change no matter how long it had been there.
At that time, the rumors about the apocalypse were also raging online. With the sudden appearance of the space, Xiulan made preparations in advance and spent half a year hoarding supplies all over the country.
The space not only stored enough foodstuffs for twenty people to eat for decades, such as rice, flour, and cornmeal, but also some daily necessities, clothes, quilts, various fruits, vegetables, stewed vegetables, and cooked food.
Beef, lamb, pork, chicken, and other meats were also stored in large quantities in the space.
She also went to the countryside to buy hundreds of thousands of catties of native eggs; and she also went to the seaside cities to buy hundreds of thousands of catties of fish, shrimps, and other seafood.
Being afraid that some delicacies would not be available due to the approaching apocalypse, various kinds of barbecues, hot spicy foods, rice casseroles, and fried skewers were stored in hundreds of thousands of servings.
Snacks and milk teas were even more essential, so she had bought thousands of servings as well.
Oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, tea, daily necessities, et cetera, everything that she could think of had been purchased and stored in large quantities in the space.
The environmental sanitation in the apocalypse was extremely poor, so some self-defense tools and medical supplies had to be prepared.
In this way, Xiulan basically had everything in her space.
A year later, the apocalypse really came and Xiulan relied on the supplies she had in the space to survive for several years.Unexpectedly, she had an accident during an operation to rescue her companions. After being injured and unconscious, she came to this era.With the space at hand, her life would not be too difficult even in this era of scarcity.There was still severe pain on her forehead and her whole head was groggy.She stretched out her hand and touched her forehead. It was burning badly. The high fever in her body made her extremely uncomfortable.This time, the original owner's high fever was caused by none other than her stepsister, Li Lijuan.The production team leader's son, Liu Jianguo, liked the original owner and took care of her most of the time, so Lijuan was very jealous.After repeatedly warning the original owner, she still ran into the original owner talking to Jianguo. She confronted the original owner and argued with her in private, then Lijuan pushed the original owner into the river by mistake.Although the original owner was rescued, she developed a high fever and died. It just so happened that Xiulan's soul transmigrated and occupied her body.Before she could pity the tragic experience of the original owner, she heard a sharp voice from outside her room."You, good-for-nothing, why don't you just chop off your head? What about our family who fed and raised you? It's already noon, but you haven't cooked anything for lunch yet, so what are we going to eat now?"Xiulan frowned. It was her stepmother, Ma Yumei, who was yelling. The original owner had suffered under Yumei's hands, so she was very afraid of this stepmother.She thought,the original owner has a high fever now, but she's still expecting her to cook?When Xiulan didn't move, Yumei kicked the door angrily. "Xiulan, are you deaf or dumb? Do you want to be beaten? Do you want someone to clean you up? I'm telling you, quickly, get up now before I kill you!"*Original translation is from . Please read it on the translator's website.As Yumei was saying that, she lifted the quilt covering Xiulan and picked her up.Yumei lifted the thin Xiulan just like a chicken.Xiulan frowned even more and tried to push Yumei away. Then, she heard her younger sister, Zhao Xiuzhu, who followed into the room and pleaded with Yumei, "Auntie Mei, my sister has a high fever, so just let her rest and I'll cook instead."After Xiuzhu said those words, Ma Yumei sneered. "What's the big deal of having a fever? We should not be afraid of sacrifices and we have to overcome all difficulties. Who in the production team felt sick and didn't go to work? Is she some kind of a noble?"Besides, if you are sick, then you have to move more!""But Auntie Mei… my sister's body will not be able to take it," Xiuzhu replied bitterly and looked at Xiulan's weak face with worry."Hmph! She's just pretending to be lazy on purpose and doesn't want to work." Another sarcastic voice joined in, it was the original owner's stepsister and Yumei's daughter, Li Lijuan.After hearing that, Xiuzhu lowered her head for fear that Lijuan would say something to her as well.
Xiulan looked at the mother-daughter pair who sang the same tune.The original owner did not dare to deal with them, but it was different now, because she was not that weak to be bullied easily.Fighting back the pain in her head, she snarled at Lijuan, "Hmph! Lijuan, don't talk nonsense, when did I become a bad person?"Considering the social status from my father's side, we are the third generation of poor peasants in our Zhao family, and I am also a Genzheng Miaohong!1根正苗红 – Genzheng Miaohong – root is red and the seedling is right – which means people from a good family. A specific term during the Cultural Revolution which meant that someone came from a good family. At that time, the good standard was that there were three generations of poor peasants in the family, and it had nothing to do with the bourgeoisie, landlord class and other classes that needed to be overthrown. In a classy family, no matter how you are, you will always be looked down upon by others. You will not share in good things, and you will be the first to think of bad things, which is very unfortunate. The so-called "root red" means that the family has a good background, such as the children of workers, poor and lower-middle peasants, and the military.The so-called "Miao Zheng" means "born in the new China and raised under the red flag" and is not influenced by old ideas."In addition, when did I get lazy and stop working? Lijuan, do you dare to go to the production team leader's place with me and compare our work points to see who has more work points and who is the lazy one?"Do I still have to cook for you even if I have a high fever? Why don't you do it yourself?"If you don't want to cook or go to work, then what? Do you just want to eat and order the others to serve you? It's you who should be punished and educated!"Both Lijuan and Yumei were a little astounded by that attack.Normally, Xiulan couldn't even let out a single fart around them, otherwise, it would be impossible for them to bully and knead her. They wondered why was she so eloquent today.They thought,was she still that same Zhao Xiulan from before?After being stunned for a moment, Yumei became even more angry. She pointed at Xiulan and scolded her, "Whoa! Xiulan, so you're tough now, huh? You dare to yell in front of me now?"A lazy girl who doesn't want to work, see if I can't take care of you!"*Original translation is from . Please read it on the translator's website.Before her fist came over, Xiulan warned her coldly, "Auntie Mei, if you have the ability, then go ahead and hit me. At worst, this is just making a fuss. However, let me ask you this. Lijuan pushed me into the river and attempted to murder me, so how do you regard this matter?"It caused me to have a fever and get sick. So how can I be so willing to cook for you now?!"After Xiulan finished speaking, Lijuan's face paled for a moment. "You… Xiulan, what are you talking about? When did I push you into the river, when did I deliberately kill you…"In this era, murder was also a big crime and this would get you to jail. Lijuan was still young and she didn't want to go to jail."Lijuan, do you think that not admitting to it will give you an advantage? I was rescued by someone and that person saw that you pushed me into the river."If you quibble and if the worst comes to worst, I'll report this case to the police. Anyway, there is a witness, so I believe that the law will give me a fair execution result."Attempted murder is enough to lock you up for decades!"Xiulan dropped some powerful words which made Lijuan even more frightened. The aura of Xiulan in front of her was frightening, so how could she dare to say anything else?Although Yumei was furious, she was also afraid that Xiulan would really cause trouble. She also didn't want her daughter to have a lawsuit, be caught, and go to jail.In the end, she gritted her teeth and gave Xiulan a fierce look. "You shrew! Don't eat if you don't want to cook! Just stay in this room, let's see how long you can last."After speaking, Yumei rushed out of the room in a furious rage. Lijuan glanced at Xiulan and quickly followed her mother out.After this weird mother-daughter pair went out, Xiulan lay back on the bed with her weak body.After sleeping for a day, when they mentioned about lunch, she felt very hungry.Fortunately, there was enough supplies in her space. So, even if Yumei would not give her anything to eat, she was not afraid of starving to death.Xiuzhu stepped forward and asked worriedly, "Sister, how are you? Are you feeling better now?"
Xiulan took a look at her new younger sister.
Xiuzhu was six years old this year. The children of poor families had long been in charge of the household and were very sensible, so children as young as six years old could do all kinds of housework.
Just like the original owner, long-term malnutrition caused this younger sister's body to be thin, to have dry and yellowish hair, dark skin and skinny, with bulging eyes, just like a monkey.
She was wearing an ill-fitting dress with several patches and holes on it, and it was a little whitish after repeated washing.
She looked really poor and pitiful.
In this era, the supplies were scarce and the Zhao family was also extremely poor.
Looking at Xiuzhu's concerned eyes, Xiulan twitched the corners of her mouth and said with a smile, "I'm okay, Xiuzhu, I feel much better now."
After hearing her sister's assurance, Xiuzhu heaved a sigh of relief, and then looked at all the windows and door in the room to confirm that no other person was there. Then, she secretly took out a piece of wowotou1窝窝头 – wōwōtóu – a kind of breadfrom her pocket and stuffed it into Xiulan's hands.
Pictures of wowotou
"Sister, you haven't eaten for a long time. You can take this wowotou. It was given by the leader of the production team today and I secretly hid it," whispered Xiuzhu.
In the production team, if you went to work every day, you would get something to eat. Some would just eat it directly, and some adults were reluctant to eat it, so they would keep it and take it back for their children to eat.
The wowotou was made with some coarse grains, as well as wild vegetable leaves and stalks, and it tasted a little nauseous.
Even so, in this era where there was a scarcity of foodstuffs, whatever could fill your stomach was considered a good thing.
Some people did not have enough foodstuffs that even the tree bark on the mountain was good for them. In order to survive, they would go and eat grasses, eat tree barks, and even cook and eat their leather belts.
Xiulan knew some of the history in the 1960s and knew the difficulties in this era. Only when she really came over did she feel the struggles in this era at firsthand.
Original translation is from . Please read it on the translator's website.
Xiuzhu was able to keep a wowotou, with the thought of giving her something to eat, which made Xiulan's heart feel warm.
"Xiuzhu, you can eat it. You are hungry too, so you don't need to give it to me." With just one wowotou, it couldn't even fill Xiuzhu's hunger.
Looking at her younger sister, who was so thin, Xiulan wondered how to make her gain weight.
There were a lot of good food in her space, so she was not afraid of getting hungry. However, how to take them out and explain the source was a troublesome thing.
"Sister, you are hungrier than me and sick as well, so you should eat this." Xiuzhu pushed the bread to her sister again.
"I actually have something to eat!"
Xiuzhu stared at her sister with her black eyes, obviously a little curious.
Xiulan pretended to put her hand in her pocket. With a movement in her mind, she had two boiled eggs in her hand, which were still a little warm, and then took them out of her pocket.
"I actually have two boiled eggs. Come on, you will eat one and I will eat the other."
Xiuzhu was taken aback, then lowered her voice and asked Xiulan, "Sister, where did you get these eggs?"
In this era, there was no way for anyone to eat all kinds of food. Eggs were undoubtedly an excellent thing at this time. After Xiuzhu saw them, her eyes were shining.
Xiulan smiled slightly and casually made an excuse, "I picked them up from the haystack. I didn't tell Auntie Mei, then I cooked it secretly. Xiuzhu, let's eat one for each of us, but don't tell Auntie Mei about this!"
Although Xiuzhu was still young, she was very smart, knowing that if Yumei knew about this good thing, it would definitely not get into their hands.
Without a doubt, she nodded heavily. "Sister, I got it, I definitely won't tell Auntie Mei about this!
"Great! I haven't eaten eggs before. The eggs at home are either exchanged for other foodstuffs or eaten by Auntie Mei and Sister Lijuan, and I heard that eggs are delicious
When Xiulan heard that, her nose became sore. These siblings did not receive their mother's love and their father was a henpecked husband to his new wife. They had really suffered a lot in the past few years.She stuffed a boiled egg into Xiuzhu's hand. "You can eat it now, Xiuzhu. With your older sister here, I will definitely make you live a good life. In the future, I will make you full even if I beg for food.""Okay!" Hearing Xiulan's words, Xiuzhu didn't have any doubts. She believed that her sister would definitely be able to do what she just said. As long as she could fill her stomach in the future, everything would be fine.The two sisters peeled the boiled eggs and ate them. The smooth and tender eggs were undoubtedly a delicacy for the hungry sisters.After eating, Xiulan instructed Xiuzhu to throw the eggshells away and dispose of them.Then, she lay back on the bed again to rest.While no one was around, she secretly took out a glass of water from the space and an antipyretic medicine.Her body was burning so badly and it was not okay to just let it be, because she herself would have to suffer.After eating a boiled egg, she was not full yet, so she took out a little bit of plain rice porridge from the space and gobbled it into her stomach.The original owner's stomach had not taken any greasy foods for a long time, so eating meat would be too much for her now. She could only eat these kinds of light food for the meantime.After taking the medicine and having a full meal, Xiuzhu felt a lot better. She lay on the bed and slept for another day.*Original translation is from . Please read it on the translator's website.Early the next morning, her fever subsided and she gained some strength on her body.She had been lying down for so long and her body was a little sore, so she got off the bed and went out to move.Upon seeing her came out, Lijuan squinted her eyes and said angrily, "Yoh! Someone finally knows how to get up now, huh? I thought you will still continue hiding in your room and do not want to work!"However Xiulan just ignored her and thought that talking to such a person was a waste of her time.Being directly ignored by Xiulan, Lijuan gritted her teeth even more angrily."Xiulan, are you feeling better now?" asked Zhao Weiguo, who also came out of the other room and saw his eldest daughter.Xiulan responded with a faint voice. She didn't have a good impression of this new father, who was a henpecked husband.Weiguo glanced at her and said, "Xiulan, since you are in good health now, then you should take care of the chores here at home. Your Auntie Mei is pregnant and it is inconvenient for her to move around."After listening to her father's words, Xiulan knew that Yumei had definitely gone to Weiguo's bedside to blow wind past his ears1吹耳边风 – Wind past your ear – Listened to the words without taking it to heart; words you don't pay much attention to / in one ear and out the otherand accused her of being lazy and not doing household chores.This father didn't know that he was partial to his biological daughter, but greatly favored Yumei's mother-daughter pair. She was really speechless for his attitude.Now that she had prepared a plan, she had to let Weiguo stand by her side slowly."Hmm, I understand, Dad. I had a high fever for the past two days and I still feel a little unwell. If I can help with the chores, I will definitely help." Xiulan made a weak and pitiful appearance.Weiguo saw his daughter's pale face and weak body, and suddenly felt that he was a bit too much.He knew that his daughter was a sensible girl and she usually did a lot of chores at home. It was only because she was sick, so she couldn't do housework for now. However, Yumei told him that this daughter was a slacker. Thinking of this, he had a little more opinion on his wife."If you're still not feeling well, then you should rest! After you've rested enough, then you can do the housework again," Weiguo said something thoughtful which was rare and then he gave an order to his stepdaughter, "Lijuan, you'll take care of the housework for the next few days and cook our meals!"When Lijuan heard his instructions to do the housework, she immediately became unhappy. Her mouth pouted very high and complained, "Uncle Zhao… Xiulan has always cooked for us, so why should I do it now?"