“Feng Wan, don’t be so ungrateful!”
Shen Baoguo slammed his hand down on the lacquer-peeling Eight Immortals table, making the enamel mug rattle violently. The red characters for “Model Worker of the Textile Mill” on the mug were faded and chipped from years of use.
“Going to the countryside is a policy requirement. You came from the countryside anyway, so we’re doing this for your own good,” he huffed, his finger nearly poking Feng Wan’s nose. “That eldest Jiang son is a production team leader, a fine young man for miles around! Mingzhu is going to marry the logistics director’s son, and they can arrange a job for your brother! You? What do you have?”
Feng Wan jerked her head away, pursing her lips and holding her breath. Shen Baoguo’s breath, from years of smoking and yellowed teeth, was truly foul!
Good heavens, she had been in this body for three days and had heard “for your own good” for three days straight.
Three days ago, she had been preparing ingredients in her own restaurant when she slipped and hit her head on the sink.
When she opened her eyes, she had become the “true daughter” of the Shen family in the textile mill compound in 1975—an unfortunate soul who had been swapped at birth for eighteen years. Less than half a month after being brought back from the countryside, she was already being arranged to take the fake daughter’s place to go to the countryside and get married.
The original owner of the body had been abrasive and headstrong since childhood. In the half-month she was back, she had turned the Shen household upside down, leaving it in a chaotic mess. The fake daughter, Shen Mingzhu, was timid and frail; sharing a room with her, she didn’t even dare to speak.
When Feng Wan first arrived, she thought this was some “true vs. false heiress” battle. She hadn’t expected the entire Shen family to be so patriarchal. The fake daughter had a lovely name, but she wasn’t valued at all; her life was even worse than the original owner’s had been in the countryside.
Three days ago, the original owner had been acting out. Late at night, she had snuck into the kitchen to steal a boiled egg. While hiding under her covers to eat it, she had suddenly choked and died.
Shen Mingzhu, who slept in the bottom bunk, heard the tossing and turning above. Thinking the other girl was causing trouble again, she had covered her head in fear and trembled, hardly sleeping all night.
That night, after the original owner passed away, Feng Wan transmigrated. As luck would have it, the egg was still stuck in her throat. She had to thrust her chest against the bed rail to perform a makeshift Heimlich maneuver just to save her own life. Even now, several days later, she could still feel the phantom sensation of suffocation in her throat. It had been a close call; she nearly died and went right back.
She surveyed the main room, which was less than twenty square meters. Shen Baoguo and his wife, Wang Xiulan, stood like two door gods, blocking the way to the inner room. The Eight Immortals table still held the remains of dinner: a bowl of noodles with a poached egg, drizzled with a few drops of sesame oil.
Wang Xiulan had made this specifically for Feng Wan. Everyone knew exactly why.
Seeing that Feng Wan remained silent, Wang Xiulan softened her tone and stepped forward to pull her hand. “Wanwan, Mom knows you’ve been wronged. You’ve only been back for half a month, and I know you’re reluctant to leave. But think about it—even though that eldest Jiang son is in the countryside, he’s not just a production team leader. He also has a brother in the military who sends home twenty yuan in allowance every month! If you marry him, you’ll be the mistress of the house. Isn’t that better than earning ten yuan or so as an apprentice in the city?”
“Exactly!” Shen Baoguo chimed in. “This marriage alliance was promised by your Aunt Wang’s family years ago. If you weren’t my daughter, such a good match wouldn’t even fall to you. As for Mingzhu, she’s marrying the only child of the logistics director. They’ve promised to give her a permanent job slot, and once things settle down, they’ll even get her a temporary job. They’ll be a dual-income household! It’s the best of both worlds!”
Feng Wan let out a surprised “Ha!” as she watched the two old fossils scheme. Their metaphorical abacus beads were practically flying in her face.
“The best of both worlds?” Her voice wasn’t loud, but it brought a sudden silence to the room. “I go to the countryside, and Shen Mingzhu stays in the city. I marry a country bumpkin, and she marries a big idiot. Who is this ‘best’ for? Isn’t it just for your precious golden boy?”
Wang Xiulan’s expression flickered. “We’re all family, why distinguish between you and her…”
“Family?” Feng Wan laughed. She turned and walked to the five-drawer chest, pulling open the top drawer. Inside were several neatly folded sets of semi-worn clothes, with a small cloth bundle tucked at the very bottom.
She took out the bundle and opened it in front of them.
Inside was a stack of various ration coupons and forty-two yuan and eighty cents.
“This is the money I brought from the countryside that you were ‘keeping safe’ for me.” Feng Wan pulled out ten yuan and set it on the table. “My room and board comes to seven yuan and twenty cents. The rest of this is what I got from selling my house and land back home, plus what the villagers chipped in for me.”
Shen Baoguo’s eyes widened. “What do you mean by this?”
“I mean,” Feng Wan carefully tucked the remaining money and coupons into the inner pocket of her patched jacket, “I’m taking the money. From today on, I’m cutting all ties with the Shen family.”
“You dare!” Shen Baoguo roared, reaching out to grab her.
Feng Wan dodged to the side. At some point, she had produced a kitchen knife she’d swiped from the kitchen. The blade was bright and sharp, having been sharpened just a couple of days ago.
“Dad,” she said, her voice still gentle, “my grandma in the countryside said I’ve been stronger than most since I was a child. Do you want to find out for yourself?”
Shen Baoguo froze. He looked at the knife, then at Feng Wan’s terrifyingly calm eyes. He suddenly felt that the loud, blustering daughter he had brought back half a month ago was an illusion. The girl standing before him now was the real her… a stranger who made his spine turn cold.