The sofa had already been completely transformed. At home, Lin Qianyi found a piece of labor cloth—actually, there was quite a lot. After measuring, she realized it was enough to make a sofa cover. The fabric was durable and easy to clean, perfect for a sofa cover.
Without hesitation, the “great designer Lin” got to work in her studio and finished a beautiful and elegant sofa cover. Once fitted onto the old sofa, it no longer looked worn-out or tacky; instead, it appeared simple and comfortable.
With the sofa revamped, she turned her attention to the furniture. Even though the furniture was old and bulky, changing the arrangement, adding some soft touches, a few small decorations, and removing unnecessary items made a huge difference. Again, the rule was: no tackiness—just a vintage feel. A bookshelf full of books never goes out of style; it’s all about arranging it to look its best.
For Lin Qianyi, this was no challenge at all. With a few adjustments, the whole room was transformed. The same furniture, but it felt completely different, like deliberately aged, retro-styled pieces you might see in a modern setting. It still retained the feel of the era, but without the tackiness.
Moving furniture was simple. Using her spatial powers, she could effortlessly place them anywhere she wanted. These pieces weren’t hard to move anyway, and if this had been the real era, any woman could drag them around. Lin Qianyi wasn’t delicate, but she wouldn’t normally do the heavy lifting herself. And if anyone came over and saw the changes, they wouldn’t suspect a thing—they’d assume moving the furniture was no big deal. Even if Lin Qianyi couldn’t move them, her boyfriend had come the other day, right? Perhaps he had moved some things for her.
In just a few days, Lin Qianyi had transformed the room to her satisfaction. Even in this backward era, she made the most of the limited resources to create a comfortable living space. No matter where she was, Lin Qianyi always aimed to improve her quality of life.
After storing the robot vacuum, she went into her space and headed to the bathroom. She added some “spiritual spring water” and indulged in a flower bath. After drying her hair and checking herself in the mirror, she thought, Hmm, another day of looking fabulous.
She then walked to the kitchen, planning to enjoy a late-night snack. Opening the fridge wasn’t as satisfying; feeling a bit lazy, she decided to keep it simple. She found a bag of frozen sesame rice balls and made a bowl of sweet soup for herself. After finishing, she returned to her space and went to bed contentedly.
The next day, after breakfast and tidying up, Lin Qianyi headed to work feeling refreshed. Sitting at her desk, she was a bit bored—the shift was quite light, and she quickly finished her tasks. Her work mainly involved receiving, organizing, and filing documents, along with some minor errands.
Looking around the office, most people, having finished their tasks, were either reading the newspaper, drinking tea, or chatting. If it were colder, they might even be knitting. Occasionally, Lin Qianyi would secretly enter her space out of boredom.
But she reminded herself to be grateful. The factory had assigned her this office job to accommodate the original Lin Qianyi—many people had fought hard just to get an office position. Looking at the workshop workers, she saw how exhausting their work was, unlike the office staff who had it easy and earned a decent salary. She was content.
The only downside was the boredom. When Wang Lan was around, she would occasionally chat with Lin Qianyi. Now Wang Lan had gone to distribute documents in the workshop, and there was no one to talk to. Lin Qianyi wasn’t inclined to join the groups up front; most were married women chatting about family matters, which didn’t interest her.
She spent the morning passing the time until lunchtime. As soon as the shift ended, she hurried downstairs to ride her small bicycle home. At the bottom, she saw Xu Gong, who lived on the same floor, carrying a huge pile of books and documents downstairs. She quickly went to help.
“Xu Gong, that’s a lot! Let me help you,” she said.
“Oh, Qianyi, thank you,” Xu Gong replied. He was also a senior engineer at the factory, nearing retirement in a few years. When the original Lin Qianyi was a child, she called him “Uncle Xu,” but now she called him “Engineer Xu.”
Lin Qianyi helped carry the books and documents. “Are you working overtime at home?” she asked.
“Ah, there’s no choice. Some documents can’t be translated. Previously, Lin Gong and Li Gong handled most translations, but now they’re gone,” Xu Gong sighed. Few engineers in the factory were proficient in English—just him and Lin Qianyi’s parents had decent skills, and both were gone. Now much of the workload fell on him alone.
“Some documents could be taken outside to bookstores for translation, but there weren’t many people capable of doing it. There’s a shortage of personnel; many high-level professionals have been reassigned for other projects. Where else can we find qualified people?”
Lin Qianyi glanced at the materials in his hands. Some were in English.
“Can you understand them?” Xu Gong noticed her focused gaze and was impressed—she was Lin Gong and Li Gong’s child.
“Yes, a little,” Lin Qianyi nodded. Her parents had indeed taught her English when she was young.
“Lin Gong and Li Gong taught you?” Xu Gong asked.
“Yes, my parents started teaching me when I was little,” she replied, walking with him back upstairs.
“Qianyi, how about you give it a try?” Xu Gong was excited; if she could do it, it would solve many problems.
“Me? But these are professional documents,” Lin Qianyi hesitated, though intrigued. The work at the office was too easy; why not try something more challenging?
“Try it. Your parents are highly skilled; they taught you well. I’ll check your work. If you don’t understand something, ask me,” Xu Gong encouraged. She was also a factory employee, after all.
“Then I’ll try,” Lin Qianyi agreed. She had received elite education like her grandparents’ children and was fluent in several languages.
“Try it during office hours. You don’t need to take it home. I’ll inform the factory leaders,” Xu Gong reassured her. Ordinary, non-confidential materials could be done in the office.
“Okay,” Lin Qianyi nodded.
“Don’t worry, you’ll be paid extra for translations,” Xu Gong added. The factory had the budget, so she wouldn’t work for free.
“Thanks!” Lin Qianyi was delighted—an honest way to earn some extra money.
She accompanied Xu Gong to his door. He handed her a simpler document to start with. Lin Qianyi took it and headed home, preparing a quick lunch before getting to work.