The warehouse had four levels.
The first floor was stocked with every kind of food imaginable—vegetables, meat, rice, fruit… everything one could possibly need.
There were also all kinds of ration coupons: grain coupons, cloth coupons, cooking oil coupons, meat coupons, food coupons, industrial vouchers, coal coupons…
There were even overseas remittance coupons used to purchase imported goods.
Besides that, there were rows upon rows of high-quality clothing—military coats, suits, cheongsams, and all kinds of beautiful dresses.
Everything was organized with meticulous precision, each category clearly labeled with oversized signs indicating its name and location, making it incredibly easy to find.
She reached for an apple on one of the shelves.
The moment she picked it up, another apple instantly appeared in its place.
Perfect.
It was an endless supply depot.
The second floor contained all kinds of equipment and tools: televisions, bicycles, tractors, sewing machines, projectors, hoes, plows, various fertilizers… as well as every imaginable type of pots, pans, bowls, and kitchen utensils.
The space even had electricity and functioning stoves.
If she ever craved hot pot in the future, she could simply come in here and cook herself a private meal.
Perfect.
The third floor housed medical supplies.
Alcohol, cotton swabs, bandages, first-aid kits, medicated balm, thermometers…
Even antibiotics that normally required official approval from the commune were stocked here.
There were also countless precious medicinal herbs: ginseng, deer antler, cordyceps, bird’s nest, dendrobium, donkey-hide gelatin, American ginseng…
It was practically a mobile hospital.
Perfect.
The fourth floor was completely empty.
It was probably meant for storing personal belongings.
Leaving the warehouse, she wandered farther into the space and discovered a small stream in the distance.
Walking over, she saw the crystal-clear creek winding endlessly toward the horizon, seemingly without an end, just like the boundless space itself.
She dipped her fingers into the shallow water.
Warmth immediately spread across her palm.
So this was the standard feature every novel’s magical space came with—
A Spiritual Spring.
Scooping up a handful, she drank it.
Warmth instantly flowed through her body, as though every cell had been awakened anew.
Her spirits soared.
Even the pain from the wound on her forehead disappeared.
“Now this is good stuff.”
She couldn’t help clicking her tongue in admiration.
And that wasn’t all.
Standing up, she looked around again and noticed something shimmering across from the warehouse.
Curious, she walked over.
It was a glowing screen.
Four large words were displayed across it.
Welcome to Taojing Mall.
She tapped it.
To her surprise, the screen transformed into an interface almost identical to the shopping apps from the modern world.
She swiped through the pages.
The dazzling variety of merchandise left her completely dumbfounded.
Everything was modern.
It felt just like browsing Taobao or JD.com.
Cars.
Smartphones.
Tablets.
Computers.
Electric scooters.
Projectors.
Smartwatches…
Washing machines.
Dryers.
Dishwashers.
Robot vacuum cleaners…
There were even sanitary pads, milk tea, spicy snack sticks, and cosmetics from countless famous brands.
Shen Xiaoyuan stared in disbelief.
Wasn’t this literally an online mall connected to the modern world?
The only problem…
Everything was absurdly expensive by 1970s standards.
A single cup of milk tea cost over ten yuan.
Back in the 1970s, that was nearly half a month’s wages for an average worker.
Enough to buy one hundred jin of rice or twenty jin of pork.
Shen Xiaoyuan shook her head and quietly exited Taojing Mall.
“I’ll come back after I make some money.”
Returning to the warehouse, she took a box of cotton swabs and a bottle of iodine.
Closing her eyes, she withdrew from the space.
When she opened them again, she was back in her bedroom.
The cotton swabs and iodine were still in her hands.
Although her forehead no longer hurt, the wound itself remained.
She carefully dipped a cotton swab into the iodine and disinfected the cut to prevent infection.
Good.
Now that her magical space was ready, all that remained was dealing with the troublesome relatives this body came with.
She took some bread and milk out of the space and ate while planning her next move.
The engagement absolutely had to be broken.
She wouldn’t accept Pan Jiaxing even if someone handed him to her for free.
But she certainly wasn’t going to cancel the engagement for nothing.
She intended to demand something in exchange.
The Shen family’s fortune had been built through the hard work of her grandfather and ancestors.
Someone in the family had once served as an official in the imperial palace, allowing them to accumulate immense wealth.
Later, her grandfather founded a textile mill and a garment factory, earning a considerable fortune.
But by Shen Hanning’s generation, all that remained was reckless spending.
As for her brother, Shen Jiawei…
He was even worse.
All he cared about was gambling, chasing women, and having fun.
Although the Shen family was no longer as prosperous as before, there was no way Shen Hanning had willingly surrendered every valuable possession to the state.
He had undoubtedly hidden away plenty of priceless treasures.
When the time came, she’d stash every last one of them into her space before fleeing to the countryside.
Once she was gone, the emperor himself would be too far away to bother her.
She had already made up her mind.
She was still going to the countryside.
Doing so would also explain the drastic change in her personality.
This wasn’t the modern world.
Nowadays, neighbors living across the hall might not exchange a single word for an entire year.
But in this era?
Whatever you ate today, whoever you met…
By tomorrow, the entire neighborhood—and probably the whole street—would know about it.
It was now 1975.
Only two years remained until the national college entrance examination would be reinstated.
She would study hard, get into university, and return to Shanghai afterward.
By then, saying she’d matured after two years in the countryside would seem perfectly reasonable.
Besides…
Living among this bunch of outrageous relatives would be unbearable.
She couldn’t exactly beat them to death.
But having them constantly harassing her wasn’t much better.
As for the Xiang family…
She had no particular plans for them yet.
Still, she’d heard that their son, Xiang Shijie, had served in the military for years and devoted himself wholeheartedly to the country.
Yet somehow his entire family had been exiled because of political accusations.
No matter how she looked at it, something about that didn’t add up.
There was probably more to the story.
But she wasn’t interested in investigating it right now.
After finishing her meal, she searched her room, intending to store anything valuable in her space before those greedy relatives got their hands on it.
Unfortunately, after looking everywhere, she found nothing of value.
The original Shen Xiaoyuan had been hopelessly lovestruck.
Whenever she had a little money, she’d spend it buying gifts for Pan Jiaxing.
Now her pockets were emptier than her face.
If there was anything valuable left…
It was probably the pendant hanging around her neck.
No wonder Shen Tiantian had kept staring at it.
She was obviously planning to steal it for herself.
Since she’d already decided to leave for the countryside…
She might as well leave those awful relatives with one unforgettable farewell gift before she went.
Just you wait.
I’m going to rob your family…
No.
I’m going to redistribute wealth from the rich to the poor.
Of course…
The Shen family was the rich.
And she was the poor.
She slept soundly that night.
The next morning, Shen Xiaoyuan fetched some Spiritual Spring water from her space and had it with two slices of bread and three packets of calcium milk biscuits.
After eating, she felt completely refreshed.
Vitality radiated through every bone, muscle, and drop of blood in her body.
Looking this healthy would only make people suspicious.
So she took out some makeup and deliberately made herself look deathly ill in the mirror.
Once she finished, she headed downstairs.
The Shen family was already having breakfast.
Her father and mother sat together on one side.
Shen Tiantian and Shen Jiawei sat opposite them.
The atmosphere was unusually peaceful.
When they saw her arrive, everyone simply pretended she didn’t exist.
Not a single person even looked up.
“Dad, Mom,” Shen Xiaoyuan said calmly.
“I’ve thought it over.”
“If you want to swap the marriage… then let’s do it.”