Lin Shuya returned home alone and took a rosewood box out of her trunk.
Lin Dahai had specifically commissioned a carpenter to make the box so the original owner could keep her valuables inside.
At the very bottom was a thick piece of red cloth, which measured about two feet in both length and width when unfolded.
There was also a red cloth bundle containing a plain gold ring. It was about the width of a finger, with no patterns or decorations, completely simple in appearance.
There was also a bankbook. Lin Shuya opened it and took a look. There was exactly one thousand yuan inside, the inheritance Lin Dahai had left behind.
She had inherited the original owner’s body, so naturally, she had inherited her property as well.
From now on, this money would serve as her starting capital for building her fortune.
Besides that, the box contained scattered coins and various ration coupons for her daily expenses.
Lin Shuya picked out the money and counted it. There was one hundred and twenty-three yuan and fifty-six cents.
In an era when the price of rice, flour, grain, and cooking oil was generally less than one yuan, the original owner could be considered fairly well-off.
Perhaps because she had some savings of her own, she had never concerned herself with Lu Chaonan’s salary during their two years of marriage, nor had she ever objected to him sending money home to his family.
Now that she had money in hand, Lin Shuya felt much more at ease. She placed the two hundred yuan she had received today into the box as well.
After locking the trunk and putting it back in its place, Lin Shuya lay flat on the bed with her hands folded beneath her head and began planning what to do next.
The Third Plenary Session had been held at the end of last year, and shifting the country’s focus toward economic development was one of its core policies. Over the next thirty years, the whole of China would undergo rapid development.
Those who were quick-witted and seized the opportunities brought by the changing times would build their fortunes.
Now that such an opportunity had fallen into her lap, she could not afford to waste it.
It would probably take another decade or more before the winds of reform and opening up reached their small mountain village.
If she wanted to build a future for herself, she needed to go to a big city.
In the south, Pengcheng was still a small fishing village waiting to be developed. The directive to establish it as a special economic zone would not be officially announced until August.
Over the next few years, Pengcheng would develop at an astonishing pace, but entry and exit would still be restricted. At the very least, anyone who wanted to enter Pengcheng needed special documentation. Given her current status, entering openly and legitimately was little more than a dream.
Besides, as someone born and raised in the north, the biggest problem she would face in the south was the language barrier.
The differences between the north and south were significant, and as an outsider, she could easily run into trouble.
For the time being, the best place for her to develop was still in the north.
She could go either to the provincial capital or to Kyoto.
However, before leaving, she first had to put an end to this mistaken marriage.
In the original novel, Lu Chaonan had returned soon after the original owner was caught red-handed.
Now that she was holding the admission notice in her hands, the Lu family should be even more anxious, and Lu Chaonan would probably return even sooner.
She needed to prepare in advance so that once she had the divorce certificate, she could leave immediately.
After sorting out her thoughts, Lin Shuya sprang up from the bed.
No matter which city she eventually chose, she would first need to buy a train ticket.
In the future, buying a ticket would be as simple as tapping a phone a few times.
In this era, however, she still had to go to the train station and wait in line.
Lin Shuya decided to secure a train ticket first.
After locking the courtyard gate, she went to the village entrance, caught a ride, and headed straight for the county town.
There were not many people at the ticket office inside the train station. Lin Shuya leaned against the ticket window and waited for fifteen minutes before finally seeing the ticket seller.
“Comrade, I would like one ticket to Kyoto.”
Lin Shuya had decided to go to Kyoto first and see more of the world.
“There are no tickets left. If you want one, come back early tomorrow morning and line up.”
Lin Shuya was a little disappointed, but she asked another question.
“Then are there any tickets to the provincial capital?”
“There are. Show me your letter of introduction.”
Lin Shuya raised her hand and slapped her forehead.
She had completely forgotten that identity cards had not yet become commonplace in this era. To travel anywhere, one needed a letter of introduction. Otherwise, one could be treated as an undocumented drifter, and if caught, sent back to one’s place of residence.
Lin Shuya gave an embarrassed smile.
“I forgot to bring my letter of introduction. I will go home and get it first. Thank you.”
After stepping away from the ticket window, Lin Shuya turned and walked toward the exit.
If she wanted to go elsewhere and build a future for herself, she had to find a way to get a letter of introduction.
However, such letters were not issued casually. She needed a legitimate reason.
She had no relatives or friends outside the village, so how was she supposed to get one?
Lin Shuya was troubled by the problem.
When she looked up, she caught sight of a familiar figure in military green near the station exit.
Clothes made the person.
Among the sea of black, blue, and gray, that military green uniform was particularly eye-catching.
The uniformed man’s broad shoulders, narrow waist, long legs, and well-built physique stood out immediately.
In the blink of an eye, however, he disappeared from sight.
Lin Shuya also left the train station, but instead of hurrying back to the village, she wandered through the streets of the county town by herself.
After turning two corners, she came across a cinema. A hand-painted promotional poster was displayed at the entrance, advertising today’s film, Hope.
Lin Shuya had never watched a movie from this era before. After checking the time, she realized that she could still make it home before dark if she watched the film.
She turned on her heel and entered the cinema.
For twenty cents, she bought a movie ticket.
It was a thin slip of pink paper. The ticket price, the three red characters for “Twenty Cents,” was printed in the center. At the top was the cinema’s name, Red Star Cinema, while the seat number was printed on both sides.
Row Eight, Seat Eight, right in the middle.
The weather was hot that day, and someone was selling ice pops outside the cinema.
A box sat on the back of a bicycle, covered with a thick quilt.
Lin Shuya handed over ten cents. The ice pop seller lifted the thick quilt, and a burst of cold air escaped. She casually picked out an ice pop.
Eating it as she walked, Lin Shuya entered the cinema and quickly found her seat.
Once the film began, she was soon absorbed in the story.
…
On a train departing from Kyoto, Lu Chaonan stood by the carriage door, looking at the familiar scenery through the window.
The train slowly pulled into the station and came to a steady stop at the platform.
The doors gradually opened, and the conductor placed the boarding plank between the train and the platform.
Lu Chaonan was the first to rush out.
The closer he got to home, the more nervous and emotional he became. He had not returned in two years.
On the eve of a mission, he had received a call from Zhao Quande and learned that Lin Dahai had died in the line of duty.
Time had been tight, and he had only managed to secure five days of leave. The journey there and back had taken three days and four nights, leaving him with only two days at home.
On the first day, he had worn mourning clothes and seen Lin Dahai off on his final journey. On the second, he had taken Lin Shuya to register their marriage, placing her under his protection.
A young woman without parents could easily become the target of schemes and exploitation.
If she encountered a disreputable man, her entire life could be ruined.
By making Lin Shuya his legal spouse, anyone in the village who wanted to do something to her would have to think carefully about who Lu Chaonan was.
Everything had happened too quickly back then, and he had not had time to explain anything properly.
After returning to his unit, he had not even had time to catch his breath. One mission followed another, and before he knew it, two years had passed.
Because of his outstanding performance during those missions and his repeated meritorious service, he had now risen to the rank of deputy battalion commander.
According to the regulations of his unit, someone at the rank of deputy battalion commander could apply to have their family accompany them.
On the very day he returned to his unit after completing the mission, he submitted a request for leave to go home and visit his family.
This trip home had two purposes. The first was to visit his family, and the second was to ask Lin Shuya whether she would be willing to join him and live with the Army.
Living with the Army meant leaving one’s hometown, the place where she had lived all her life, and moving to an unfamiliar city where she would spend every day surrounded by unfamiliar people.
If Lin Shuya was unwilling, Lu Chaonan would not force her.
During his leave, perhaps the two of them could have a child.
With a child to keep her company, she would not be so lonely during the days when he was away from home.