The old wooden door, worn down by years of use, was being pounded loudly.
“Lazy girl, get up! I’m going up the mountain to cut grass for the pigs first. Come after me and help carry it back!”
Li Chunhua’s booming voice was loud enough to wake the neighbors.
Without waiting to hear a response, she slung the bamboo basket onto her back and left. She knew the girl inside would come eventually.
Awakened by the noise, Wen Jiaojiao stared blankly at the gray brick walls. A moment of confusion flashed through her mind.
Why did this place feel so familiar?
Wasn’t she already dead?
Her eyes moved around the room, and the more she looked, the more familiar everything seemed. It looked exactly like the home she had once lived in.
No…
Wen Jiaojiao suddenly sat upright.
This was the home where she had lived for eighteen years!
What was happening?
Had her soul somehow returned?
She was about to get out of bed when she suddenly froze upon seeing the hand gripping the edge of the bed.
It was fair, delicate, and youthful.
This was not her hand!
She was nearly forty now, and years of hard labor had left her hands rough and weathered. How could they possibly have become this soft and tender?
She touched her face.
Her skin was smooth and flawless. There wasn’t even a scar.
“Where’s the mirror? Where’s the mirror?!”
Panicking, Wen Jiaojiao searched around until she spotted a large red-framed mirror hanging behind the wooden door.
The young girl reflected in the mirror had bright eyes and delicate features. Even with her hair tied into two old-fashioned braids, her natural beauty and lively charm were impossible to hide.
Her lips were rosy, her eyes clear and sparkling—but her expression was one of utter disbelief.
She had actually returned to her youth…
Wen Jiaojiao touched her face again.
The sensation was real.
She had truly returned to the time when she was young.
Thinking about everything that had happened in her previous life, a look of weariness far beyond her age appeared on the young girl’s face.
She walked out of the room in a daze.
Every brick, every tile, every piece of furniture seemed engraved into her soul. Her fingers slowly brushed over the old furniture, one piece after another.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a door opening.
“Jiaojiao, what are you doing? Didn’t your mother tell you to go help her carry the pig grass?”
Wen Laosan came out rubbing his sleepy eyes. Seeing his daughter standing there in a daze, he had no idea what she was doing.
Wen Jiaojiao stared at her father, her expression becoming even more dazed.
It was difficult to reconcile this man standing before her with the hideous face she remembered from her previous life—the father who had demanded money from her and cursed her to die whenever she refused to give him any.
Wen Laosan gave her a push.
“Why are you just standing there? Hurry up and get ready.”
The push made Wen Jiaojiao stumble.
Her eyes gradually cleared.
Without saying anything, she walked outside.
For some unknown reason, she had actually returned to the age of eighteen—to the year 1985.
Whatever the reason, this could only be a good thing.
Everything that had happened in her previous life was still vividly etched in her mind.
This time, she would never repeat the same mistakes!
After leaving the house, she didn’t go up the mountain to collect pig grass. Instead, she slowly wandered along the village road.
The sky was only beginning to brighten, and hardly anyone was out yet.
Li Chunhua was a hardworking rural woman. Every day, she got up before dawn to cut grass for the pigs. After finishing that, she would return home to cook.
Her mother was Li Chunhua, her father was Wen Laosan, and she had a younger brother named Wen Shi, who was three years younger than her.
Most of the household chores were done by Li Chunhua and Wen Jiaojiao.
The two men only had to eat.
This was common in the village.
Back then, Wen Jiaojiao had always believed she was the most favored child in the family. Although her mother made her do housework, she never gave her the heaviest tasks.
Take cutting pig grass, for example. The daughters of other families had to get up before dawn to do it. They were responsible for cooking and all the household chores as well.
But she was different.
She only had to carry the pig grass home.
She had believed that her parents loved her.
Only later did she realize the truth.
It was because she was beautiful.
They couldn’t bear to let her do rough farm work and ruin her hands like an ordinary village girl.
Their real purpose was to use her to obtain a huge bride price.
And they had succeeded.
When she was eighteen, someone came to propose marriage, offering a bride price of one thousand yuan.
The couple, Wen Laosan and Li Chunhua, had never seen that much money in their entire lives.
But Wen Jiaojiao had run away from the marriage.
The man who had proposed was nearly forty, an alcoholic, and violently abusive. Several of his previous wives had died.
Everyone in town knew about it.
But he was the town mayor’s son, so as long as it didn’t happen to their own families, no one cared enough to intervene.
By chance, he had seen Wen Jiaojiao in town.
Taken by her youthful beauty, he had developed improper intentions and decided to propose marriage.
He was even willing to offer the enormous bride price of one thousand yuan.
Wen Jiaojiao closed her eyes.
Her tragic life had begun with that escape from the arranged marriage.
She had always considered herself the village beauty. She thought that because she was pretty, she could have whatever she wanted.
She had been proud and arrogant.
Naturally, she hadn’t thought much of the town mayor’s son.
After running away, she relied on her beauty and enjoyed several years of prosperity.
But later…
She let out a self-mocking laugh.
She had never understood why her parents had treated her so cruelly.
Later, she learned the truth.
She wasn’t Li Chunhua’s biological daughter.
Li Chunhua couldn’t have children, so she had adopted Wen Jiaojiao.
Back then, a fortune-teller had told her that she was destined to have a brother and that she was destined for great wealth and status.
Great wealth and status had never materialized.
But the brother part had certainly come true.
Less than three years after Wen Jiaojiao entered the family, Li Chunhua gave birth to a son.
In truth, Li Chunhua and her husband had treated Wen Jiaojiao very well when she was little.
It was only after they had their own biological child that their affection gradually shifted.
Wen Jiaojiao let out a soft breath.
Her eyes slowly became cold and distant.
Everything she had endured in her previous life had already been repaid.
In this life, she owed no one anything.
…
The air in the countryside was still so fresh.
Wen Jiaojiao almost greedily breathed it in.
The morning sun was dazzling.
Nothing was more precious than having a healthy body.
It was as if she could already see a beautiful future waving to her.
She walked along the village road for more than ten minutes. Just as she was preparing to turn back, a middle-aged woman came toward her, carrying a basket and walking hurriedly.
The woman spotted her from more than ten meters away and immediately ran over.
“Jiaojiao! I was just about to come find you. Your aunt has something good to give you.”
Wen Jiaojiao stared at the kind-looking woman, slightly bewildered.
She looked familiar, but Wen Jiaojiao couldn’t remember who she was.
The woman was Liu Lan.
Liu Lan first glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then pulled Wen Jiaojiao behind a wall where they couldn’t be seen.
She reached beneath the scraps of cloth in her basket and pulled out an envelope.
“Jiaojiao, this is a military enlistment recommendation letter. Your aunt’s family has one spot for a female recruit, but I don’t have a daughter, so I’ll give the recommendation to you. Xiaocui has one too. Once you join the army, the two of you can look after each other.”
Wen Jiaojiao’s eyes widened.
She remembered now.
This woman was Liu Lan, the aunt of her former best friend, Liu Xiaocui.
Liu Lan had always been a kind woman who treated Wen Jiaojiao like her own niece. When Wen Jiaojiao was little, she often gave her candy.
She had never expected that after being reborn, the very first person she met would give her such a precious opportunity.
A military enlistment recommendation letter!
With this letter, she could join the army.
To serve the Party and the people was an honorable thing.
She instinctively said, “Auntie Liu, I… I can’t take this…”
Liu Lan smacked her on the head.
“Are you stupid? This can give you a future! How many people want an opportunity like this but don’t have the connections to get one? If I had a daughter, this letter wouldn’t have gone to you in the first place. Hurry up and take it. Don’t let anyone see it. Three days from now, take the recommendation letter and wait for me at the train station.”
Wen Jiaojiao rubbed the back of her head where she’d been hit.
Her heart was in turmoil.
She clearly remembered that nothing like this had happened in her previous life.
“Auntie Liu, are you really giving this to me?”
Liu Lan frowned.
“Do you think I’d lie to you? Your name is written right there on the letter.”