After leaving the space, Shen Zhiyao followed Bai Bai’s instructions and found the key under the bed. She went to the desk, unlocked it, and took out an iron box. Inside, it was neatly packed with money and a few notes. Counting it all, she had 310 yuan and 5 cents. She also opened a bankbook, which held exactly 10,000 yuan.
“Heh, not bad—plenty of money,” she muttered.
Shen Zhiyao knew that in this era, people’s monthly salaries were only a few dozen yuan. Compared to the billions she’d spent before, this was a fortune. Converting it to her previous world’s money, it would easily be worth a million!
She placed the iron box safely in the bedroom of her space villa—it was the safest place by far—and collected the high school textbooks from the desk. It was now 1975. If her life followed the same trajectory as the original, the college entrance exams were still two years away. Her registration for going down to the countryside was already submitted; after two years, she could return to attend university.
She also organized the clothes and shoes in the room. Her little cleanliness quirks meant she couldn’t wear other people’s clothes, so she decided to keep them to give away later.
When she opened the door and stepped out, Shen Congguo and Li Guizhi happened to return at the same time. Their eyes met. Li Guizhi’s fleeting surprise revealed that she had expected this girl—who she thought would cry when registered for the countryside program—to be weak enough to manipulate. Her plan was to later find an excuse, claim she meant to register Niu Xiaohua instead, and then trick Shen Zhiyao into transferring her job and house to Li Guizhi.
But now, faced with Shen Zhiyao—the modern woman—no trick or scheme could escape her sharp eyes.
“Oh, you’re both back. Aunt Li, why are you standing there? Go cook! You want me to starve?”
Li Guizhi’s eyes flickered with malice, and she quickly changed her shoes and headed to the kitchen.
Shen Congguo saw that Shen Zhiyao ignored him and felt a bit embarrassed. He muttered as he changed shoes, “Yao Yao, your uncle is back… why didn’t you greet me?”
“Heh, uncle, come sit. I just happen to have something to discuss with you,” Shen Zhiyao said lightly.
Shen Congguo’s face immediately fell—this tone sounded like someone visiting his house, not the niece who lived there. But he couldn’t offend her openly. This girl would be sent to the countryside in three days, and her job wasn’t handed over yet. So he forced a polite smile and said, “What’s the matter, Yao Yao? Tell your uncle.”
Shen Zhiyao smiled faintly. “Well… Aunt Li secretly registered me to go down to the countryside. I suppose I should support the policy, but I’m not sure what to do with my job and house…” She feigned difficulty, acting like she didn’t know what to do.
Shen Congguo immediately said, “Yao Yao, don’t worry about going down to the countryside. Your uncle has taken care of you all these years. You’re just a temporary worker at the steel mill—good pay, but not a permanent job. When you leave, I’ll take your post, and aside from the household expenses, I’ll send your salary to you. The house? Don’t worry. I’ll watch over it. When you return, it’ll be just as you left it!”
Shen Zhiyao chuckled. “Alright then, uncle. The procurement officer at the state-owned store is worth 800 yuan outside. Since we’re relatives, you can have it for 700, plus 50 yuan in notes. I’ll transfer the job to you before leaving, and I won’t ask for the house—so 1,300 yuan for the job and house combined, 2,000 yuan plus 50 in notes total. Fair, right?”
Shen Congguo’s eyes flared. “What the hell? I’m your uncle, and you’re asking me for money? I’ve worked hard taking care of you for four years! Even if I haven’t accomplished anything, there’s sweat and effort!”
“You yelling? Let me remind you, I was bitten by a dog as a child. You scare me onto the floor, and it won’t be solved with money alone!”
Shen Congguo’s chest heaved in anger as he raised his hand to strike. Shen Zhiyao smiled slightly, grabbed his arm with one hand, and casually picked up the iron tea cup on the desk with the other. In this era, tea cups were made of iron. She swung it at his head. Shen Congguo didn’t even dodge, and blood immediately spurted from his scalp.
Hearing the commotion, Li Guizhi initially thought she could take advantage of the chaos, but when she saw the blood, she panicked, ran out, and screamed, “Murder! Murder! Someone help!”
Before she could finish, Shen Zhiyao took three quick steps, reached Li Guizhi, and smashed the tea cup on her head. Without giving her a chance to scream, Shen Zhiyao delivered a hand chop to her neck, and Li Guizhi immediately fainted!
Shen Zhiyao glanced back at Shen Congguo, who was wide-eyed and speechless. Even though the previous Shen Zhiyao had been somewhat domineering, she had never acted like this physically.
Shen Zhiyao slowly approached. “What’s the matter? No more pretending?”
Shen Congguo pointed at her with trembling hands, unable to speak. Taking advantage of his hesitation, Shen Zhiyao delivered a hand chop to him as well.
Looking at the two “trash” on the ground, she muttered to herself, “Thinking they could take advantage of me with this little skill!”
She wiped the blood from their faces and clothes onto herself—her new clothes were stained. Then she retrieved hemostatic medicine from the space; after the bleeding stopped, she smiled slightly and ran to the door, shouting, “Murder! Call the police!”
The neighbors, finishing dinner and bored, all came out at once. Seeing Shen Zhiyao covered in blood, they gathered around. “Girl, what happened?”
Shen Zhiyao pinched herself, letting the pain bring tears to her eyes. She cried out convincingly: “Uncles and aunts, my uncle wanted me to give him the house and job! Today, Aunt Li secretly registered me for the countryside program! I’m leaving in three days. I don’t want to give away my parents’ house, and he tried to kill me!”
“Is there any justice in the world? What kind of people are these two?”
“I told you before, her uncle clearly came here to take advantage!”
“Don’t be afraid, girl. My son has already gone to the police station by bike!”
The neighbors scrambled to help Shen Zhiyao to the hospital, but she refused. “Uncle, auntie, I won’t go to the hospital. I don’t have money, I’ll handle it myself.”
By now the police had arrived. Seeing Shen Zhiyao, they went inside, looked at the two people on the ground, and were at a loss—they didn’t seem like the perpetrators. Shen Zhiyao pinched herself again: “Officers, they tried to attack me together. I panicked and dodged. One hit the table, the other hit a stool. I ran out asking for help in the chaos!”
The police looked at her frail frame, the tears, and the blood all over her. Not doubting her anymore, they splashed water on the two unconscious adults and dragged them away before they could recover.
Shen Zhiyao thanked the neighbors, closed the door, and let out a gleeful laugh as she returned to the space.
“Bai Bai! Bai Bai! How was my acting? Could I get into the entertainment industry? Maybe even win an Oscar someday!”
Bai Bai rolled his eyes. “What’s next? Oh, here’s a juicy tidbit: Shen Congguo secretly stole steel and hid it in the suburbs. In this era, that’s punishable!”
Shen Zhiyao laughed. “Perfect! I wanted him to spend a few days inside anyway. I’ll take his money, handle the house and job, let him go without work or money when he returns—finally giving Shen Zhiyao the justice he deserved. And now he doesn’t even have to worry about a place to stay—found a board-and-lodging place. Hahaha!”
“Alright, go wash up. You’re filthy,” Bai Bai reminded her.
Shen Zhiyao stuck her tongue out and turned to the villa to shower and change.