“Qiao Qingqing!”
“Qiao… classmate?”
Qiao Qingqing heard someone calling her and shaking her arm. She opened her eyes to see two girls in school uniforms smiling at her.
“I was just talking to you, how did you fall asleep? Were you out last night being a thief?”
Qiao Qingqing looked around, and in an instant, all memories came flooding back. She realized she was leaning against her dorm bed.
On the bedside table was a small round mirror. She picked it up and saw her younger self—hair black as night, skin pale as snow, and a face full of youthful vitality.
She had returned.
Really returned.
Her first instinct was to check her spatial storage. All the supplies she had hoarded were there, intact. Relief washed over her immediately.
It was a four-person dorm. Back then, on-campus housing was scarce; those who stayed were either children of staff or of officials. Everyone had gotten along well. But when her family fell into misfortune and she was expelled, the others quickly distanced themselves from her, even adding minor complications during the revolutionary committee’s questioning.
Qiao Qingqing understood their desire for self-preservation but had no intention of wasting time on their pretense.
“What’s the date today?” she asked.
“The 16th,” one of the girls replied.
Qiao Qingqing frowned. “September 16th?”
“Yes… what’s wrong?” The classmates looked puzzled.
Her heart skipped a beat. September 16th—too close. The next day was the day her parents would be arrested, and she would be expelled.
She glanced at her wristwatch. It was already 9 p.m.!
Without hesitation, Qiao Qingqing ran out.
“What’s going on?” the other girls whispered to each other as she vanished like a gust of wind.
Qiao Qingqing didn’t waste any time. She retrieved her bicycle from the school bike shed under the cover of night and, passing through the school walls, rode off at full speed.
The journey from school to home spanned half the city. By bus, it would take nine stops, and much of the route was rough; cycling would take at least an hour. But her strength and stamina were much improved this time, so it wasn’t overly exhausting.
She sped through empty streets. Only the main roads were lit; the rest were pitch-black. The whole city seemed asleep, and she was the only one racing through it.
Her spirits soared—every familiar feeling returned. This was her time.
In her previous life, she had spent countless journeys searching for relatives in the remote provinces. She remembered the 39-hour train rides on hard seats, the cold night reflected in the train windows, seeing her pale, numb face staring back. She had been constantly on the move, but hope had long vanished.
Now, her home was just ahead.
The bright moonlight lit the roads as she pedaled relentlessly toward her university housing.
She stowed the bicycle in her spatial storage when she reached home—but realized she had left everything behind in her rush. She couldn’t find the key.
Knocking on the door, she trembled.
“Who’s there?” a familiar voice called from inside.
Qiao Qingqing couldn’t hold back tears, which streamed down her face as she whispered shakily,
“Mom…”
In the quiet night, she lost control, overcome with a strange sense of grievance, letting out a sharp, childlike cry.
“Mommy!!”
Inside, Chen Liping’s heart skipped. She rushed to open the door, seeing her daughter covered in tears, and hastily embraced her.
“My dear girl, what’s wrong? Don’t cry, Mommy’s here.”
Qiao Qingqing tried to control herself but couldn’t, and she cried in her mother’s arms.
Hearing the commotion, her father Qiao Yimin came running from the bedroom, followed by her brothers, Qiao Fangyu and Qiao Junnian, who stood tensely by.
“Little sister, don’t cry, don’t be afraid… do you… know something?” Qiao Fangyu asked.
Qiao Qingqing wiped her tears, meeting her mother’s gaze earnestly. “Yes, I know everything.”
Silence fell over the family.
At this point in the timeline, her parents had already handed 30 gold bars to the Lin family, entrusting her to Lin Chaohai. His marriage report had been submitted. They had planned to pick her up when she was desperate. Only she had been left in the dark.
Qiao Yimin sighed and spoke harshly, “Qingqing, you should stay at school. Don’t come home for now. We can’t even protect you if things go wrong.”
Qiao Qingqing shook her head, saying nothing, but turned to Chen Liping with a serious look. “Mom, I need to talk to you alone.”
Chen Liping, noticing her daughter’s tear-streaked face, nodded immediately, “Alright, I’ll listen.”
Mother and daughter went into Qiao Qingqing’s room. Standing in the familiar, tidy room, she paused for a moment before carefully closing the door. On the way, she had decided to tell her mother everything.
Her maternal grandfather had been a prominent entrepreneur, educated abroad, leaving the family a large fortune. But after his death, the family scattered. Her uncles went overseas during political upheaval, leaving only Chen Liping behind, which later made her a target of criticism.
Chen Liping was cautious and sensitive, often anxious, but Qiao Qingqing knew the truth couldn’t be hidden from her. It was better to tell everything than leave her worrying.
Qiao Qingqing spoke bluntly:
“The revolutionary committee is coming tomorrow. Our family will be sent to the northern wastelands.”
Chen Liping’s expression didn’t show surprise. She sat heavily by the bed. “So soon… how do you know?”
Qiao Qingqing approached her. “Mom, you have to trust me. I’ve come back from the future. I know everything that will happen.”
Under her mother’s gaze, she emptied all the gold jewelry she had purchased from her spatial storage onto the bed: gold necklaces, rings, bracelets…
Next came colorful candies, scattered until the bed was piled high.
Then she laid rice bags on the floor, first 8, then 16, 32, until her mother was almost surrounded.
Chen Liping was dumbfounded. Qiao Qingqing didn’t speak, waving her hand to return all the items to storage.
After a long moment, Chen Liping’s voice cracked, “My dear girl… you really came from the future? You… what did you say?”
“From the future, I was reborn back here,” Qiao Qingqing said, taking her mother’s hand. “I know you gave 30 gold bars to the Lin family, had me marry Lin Chaohai, and that tomorrow the committee will come. You and Dad will be sent north, my brothers expelled, and I will write a severance letter. Eventually, we all would have died.”
Chen Liping’s face paled. The words sounded incredible, but seeing her daughter manifest gold and supplies out of thin air—it was impossible not to wonder.
She realized her daughter could not have known this unless Lin Chaohai had told her everything, which he hadn’t. The revolutionary committee had indeed sent documents about needing workers for the northern wastelands; few knew of it.