She had grown accustomed to the survival of the fittest law of the post-apocalyptic world.
Now reborn in this world, she still championed martial prowess and the principle that the strong are respected. No matter which world she was in, only by being strong enough could she remain free from the control and threats of others.
Furthermore, she was used to being the female overlord of a base who gave direct orders. It was absolutely impossible for her to live a life of groveling and grievance in this world. If possible, she still wanted to create a legend belonging to Jun Ning once again in this corner of the world, recreating her own glorious career and life.
Jun Ning also knew from future historical records that 1977 would be the year the country restarted the National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao). Educated youth would have the opportunity to return to the city by passing the exam and getting into university.
Shortly after, on December 18, 1978, the country would begin implementing the policy of internal reform and opening up to the outside world.
If she had no other opportunity to return to the city within these two years, she would patiently stay in the countryside for another two years and then use the Gaokao to get into a university and return to the city.
Jun Ning possessed a heaven-defying “Space” containing countless supplies of all kinds. No matter where she lived, she could live very well, so she didn’t feel that staying in the countryside was particularly bad. Even if she had to perform manual labor, she could handle it.
As Jun Ning was thinking, she heard Fu Jingwei’s voice. “A-Ning, the noodles are here. May I come in?”
Jun Ning immediately sat up and smiled at Fu Jingwei. “Come in, quickly!”
Fu Jingwei walked in with a smile, placed the bowl of poached egg noodles on the table, and said to Jun Ning, “Come and eat while it’s hot.”
Looking at the warm smile on Fu Jingwei’s face, Jun Ning returned the smile. “Then I won’t stand on ceremony with you.”
Although she came from the apocalypse and had seen much of the coldness and indifference of human nature, she had also felt the preciousness of friendship from the companions and comrades who fought alongside her. Therefore, her heart was still warm; it had not turned cold because of the apocalypse.
She was twenty-eight years old when she died in the apocalypse. There were many men who admired her or had secret crushes on her, but she had never been moved, nor had she ever been in a relationship.
Now that she was in this world, Jun Ning’s thoughts remained unchanged. She wanted to find a like-minded lover with whom she shared a spiritual connection. If she couldn’t find one, she would rather be alone than settle for less.
Fu Jingwei’s cooking skills were unexpectedly good. The poached eggs were fried very fragrantly, the noodles were just the right softness, and chopped green onions were added. It was so delicious that Jun Ning couldn’t stop eating after the first bite.
As she ate, she gave Fu Jingwei a thumbs-up. “It’s delicious!”
Gaining Jun Ning’s recognition and praise made Fu Jingwei’s heart bubble over with joy. “I’m glad you like it.”
A large bowl of poached egg noodles was quickly finished by the starving Jun Ning, who even drank all the soup.
Seeing her finish, Fu Jingwei took the empty bowl away. He also thoughtfully instructed her, “A-Ning, get some good sleep. In a little while, I’ll go into the village to see who has an old hen and buy one to stew some soup for you.”
Jun Ning said a bit shyly, “No need, I’ll go buy it myself when I wake up.”
But Fu Jingwei said firmly, “Just sleep. I’ll go buy it, don’t worry about it.”
Looking at Fu Jingwei’s tall retreating figure, Jun Ning felt a bit moved. Although they hadn’t known each other for long, she felt a deep friendship from Fu Jingwei, similar to the bond she shared with her comrades in the apocalypse.
Of course, Fu Jingwei’s friendship was based on the original, lovable owner of this body. Now that she had become the original owner, in addition to accepting everything she brought, she also had to accept the karma resulting from the original owner’s way of handling things.
The good karma included the affection and support from the Old Branch Secretary, Fu Jingwei, and her uncle’s family. She had to repay the kindness and affection of these good people on behalf of the original owner.
The bad karma was the jealousy and resentment from people like Lin Qingqing.
Whether good or bad, Jun Ning could only accept and bear it. She could not escape, nor would she escape.
After eating her fill, Jun Ning went straight to sleep.
She hadn’t been sleeping for long when Lin Qingqing returned. Lin Qingqing felt very uncomfortable thinking about how she was half-dead with anger while Jun Ning was sleeping so peacefully and quietly. She deliberately banged things around and made piercing noises, intending to prevent Jun Ning from getting a good rest.
Jun Ning had already developed very alert habits and reactions in the apocalypse. When Lin Qingqing entered, the sound of the door being pushed open had already startled her awake. With Lin Qingqing deliberately making sharp noises, Jun Ning was even less able to sleep.
Jun Ning didn’t bother to argue with Lin Qingqing. She simply got up, changed into clean clothes, and went out to the male youth dormitory across the way to find Fu Jingwei.
Jun Ning’s indifference made Lin Qingqing grit her teeth in hatred. Her eyes glared fixedly at Jun Ning’s back, as if she wanted to poke bloody holes into her.
Jun Ning walked to the door of Fu Jingwei’s dormitory, knocked, and called out twice, “Fu Jingwei, Fu Jingwei…”
No one answered.
Was Fu Jingwei not there?
Jun Ning released her spiritual power and scanned Fu Jingwei’s dormitory, finding that he was indeed not inside. She decided to head out for a walk around the village.
She wanted to find an empty room in the village to rent with her own money, which would be more convenient. Living alone, she could eat whatever she wanted from the countless delicacies and spiritual fruits in her Space.
She could also use the resources accumulated and grown in her Space over the years to exchange for money and coupons on the black market, and then find a way to send some good things back to her uncle’s family.
Every month, her uncle and his family would send the original owner money, coupons, and food. Although the original owner had sent some things back, it was far less than what they had given her. The original owner had felt both moved and guilty, thinking that she would repay them properly once she returned to the city to work.
Unfortunately, she didn’t live to see the time to return to the city.
Jun Ning knew from the original owner’s memory that she had this wish, so she would naturally help her repay them.
After leaving the educated youth point, it wasn’t long before Jun Ning saw an aunt in her late forties or early fifties waving at her. “A-Ning, A-Ning, come here quickly, I have something to tell you.”
Jun Ning quickly retrieved information about this aunt from her memory. Her name was He Manfang. She was quite straightforward but had a bit of a big mouth; she was the famous “loudspeaker” of the village. As soon as she knew something, it wouldn’t be long before the entire commune knew about it.
Jun Ning walked up to He Manfang and asked with a smile, “Aunt Fang, looking at your mysterious expression, is something the matter?”
Jun Ning had commanded the largest base in the apocalypse and had seen all kinds of monsters, ghosts, and people with ulterior motives. Having experienced so much, she could naturally adapt her speech to whoever she was talking to.
As for He Manfang, she had lived in the village her whole life, and the furthest place she had ever been was the county seat. She had never even traveled far, so her vision was naturally shallow. Usually, she only cared about the small scope and interests of the village.