At noon, Zhang Fulai’s two sons and their wives returned from work.
Zhang Fulai told them about his plan to sell their jobs and move to the countryside.
When they saw the ten gold bars and cash on the table, their expressions became extremely complicated.
“Wife, now you see, right? Jiao Jiao really is a very sensible and kind person who thinks of others. Even if her parents wanted to bring her home, she wouldn’t come to live with us,” Zhang Dazhuang said to his wife.
Blushing, Zhang Dazhuang’s wife spoke with guilt, “Dad, I was just too afraid that our family would be targeted by the people with red armbands. These past few days at the factory, my coworkers have ostracized me and looked at me strangely. I was just too scared.”
She was a reasonable woman, and when she realized she had misjudged Shen Shujiao, she immediately admitted her mistake.
Compared with other daughters-in-law being bullied by their in-laws, her own in-laws were really very good.
They were capable and diligent, taking care of all the household matters and the children, allowing their sons and daughters-in-law to work without worry.
Because her own family was poor, she had even been allowed to send half of her salary back home. She truly felt lucky to have married into such a sensible family.
“Wife, now you can be at ease. Jiao Jiao not only isn’t coming to our home, but she also gave us all these things. You just focus on delivering the baby safely,” Zhang Tieniu said with a smile, looking at his daughter-in-law, who had been worrying nonstop since getting pregnant.
Looking at the items on the table and then down at her six-month pregnant belly, Zhang Tieniu’s wife spoke softly, “Mom, Dad, I think Jiao Jiao is right. The world is too chaotic now, we’re not even locals here in the city, and we’ve become targets for others. Rather than being constantly watched, it’s better if we leave this place of trouble while I still have the strength to take the train. Let’s sell our jobs and go.”
“Eldest, what do you two think?” Zhang Fulai asked, looking at his eldest son and daughter-in-law.
“I agree. We already have some savings, and with all that Jiao Jiao gave us, we can still live well in the countryside,” Zhang Dazhuang said, glancing at his wife. “What do you think, wife?”
Zhang Dazhuang’s wife, originally from the city, didn’t want to return to Hei Province. Education there could never compare to the city’s. But remembering what her parents had said about the current chaos, and knowing that her in-laws had previously served capitalists and wanted their family to stay safe, she realized that protecting their lives was the priority. With college entrance exams banned and no clear end in sight, safety came first. Once things stabilized, returning to the city would not be too late.
“I’ll follow my parents-in-law’s arrangement.”
Seeing his eldest daughter-in-law agree, Zhang Fulai, head of the family, made the final decision: they would sell their jobs and house and return home.
“Dazhuang, Tieniu, before we go home, these past nights, I want you to keep watch near Jiao Jiao’s place. She just handed over all her family property. She’s an orphan with no one to rely on, and I’m afraid someone with ill intentions will climb over and bully her.”
Zhang Dazhuang and Zhang Tieniu immediately nodded in agreement. Although their wives worried, they knew their father-in-law was right.
Shen Shujiao had been so good to their family—they should repay her in whatever small way they could.
…
Shen Shujiao didn’t know that Zhang Fulai had arranged for his two sons to guard her at night. Dressed plainly, she went to the market.
After buying some fruits and vegetables, she slipped into a secluded corner when the crowd was thick and instantly entered her space.
Inside, she used the space to give herself a disguise: hair pinned up, wearing a dark-blue wrap top, black pants, and carrying a large burlap sack—looking like a typical woman in her forties.
Among the crowd, Shen Shujiao noticed a man in a black hat glancing around the market before heading down another street.
In her previous life as a ghost, she had seen Huo Zhoubai evade multiple assassination attempts in the mountains. He would disguise himself and blend in with dirt or trees to escape.
This life, Shen Shujiao tried Huo Zhoubai’s methods—and indeed, she discovered someone was following her.
So she disguised herself as a middle-aged peasant woman to shake off her tail.
With a forty-year-old woman’s face, Shen Shujiao could now shop openly at the market.
Because her space had a department store, she didn’t need to hoard large amounts of supplies, except for live animals. For crops, she only needed the first batch of seeds—the plants would grow in her space, produce seeds, and allow repeated planting. She could sell the harvest to exchange for other goods in her department store.
Right now, her priority was live animals—fish and shrimp for water, chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, and cattle—for the best returns.
Shen Shujiao arrived at a seed shop: cabbage, radish, chili, eggplant, tomato… she bought ten packets of each seed available.
Livestock and meat were strictly controlled at the market, so she headed straight to the black market after buying seeds.
It took her an hour to reach one of the largest black markets listed by Zhang Fulai.
Perhaps she came late, or perhaps due to the unrest, few dared sell openly.
After browsing, she stopped at a stall run by a fish vendor.
“Sister, want some fish? I’ll sell cheap for you.”
Shen Shujiao saw several pounds of small, lively fish in a large iron tub—crucian carp, black fish, grass carp, and catfish. Their small size explained why no one else had bought them.
But these tiny fish were exactly what Shen Shujiao needed.
“If there’s young stock, there’s no worry—they’ll reproduce in the space. This way, she could have endless fish.”
“All right, how much? I’ll take them all.”
“Seven pounds total… you want all of them?” The vendor, a peasant woman, looked astonished. Her husband had risked setting nets to catch these tiny fish; she hadn’t expected to sell them. But with her children hungry at home, she had brought them secretly to the black market.
Seeing the worn woman’s dry lips and hopeful eyes, Shen Shujiao felt a pang of sadness.
The poorest people truly gave all their strength just to survive.
“Of course, I have a big family. These small fish are great fried with flour and oil—the kids will gobble them up in no time.”
“Yes, yes, fried like that they’re delicious, though it uses a lot of oil. You take them all, I’ll give you an even better price.”
“No need, just at the market price. You’ve worked hard enough,” Shen Shujiao said.
The woman’s eyes reddened, her voice catching: “Sister, you’re a good person. Thank you.”
She packed the fish into Shen Shujiao’s basket. Shen Shujiao added an extra yuan on top of the counted amount. The woman opened her mouth to speak, but Shen Shujiao shushed her, and she fell silent.
Shen Shujiao placed some vegetables atop the basket, with the fish at the bottom, then put the basket into her sack. Using her power of thought, she sent the eight pounds of fish into the space—the sack immediately felt lighter.
Continuing, a woman caught her attention: face grimy, a large patch of torn skin with dried blood, hair messy, looking utterly disheveled.
Yet despite her appearance, her eyes shone with confidence and met Shen Shujiao’s gaze without fear or submission.
“Auntie, want to buy chickens? These aren’t sick—they just died when I tripped going downhill. I can sell them at half price,” Qin Qingtang asked calmly, looking at Shen Shujiao.