Just past noon, the sky quickly turned overcast. Snow as heavy as goose feathers began to fall rapidly, and soon heaven and earth merged into a vast white blur.
“Caught in the act!”
The usually peaceful Dahan Village instantly became lively.
No one cared about the cold; everyone rushed to the clinic, standing on tiptoe and peering over others’ shoulders to watch the commotion.
The young man stood with his back to the crowd, neatly dressed. Hearing the noise, he calmly turned around, his cold eyes sweeping across everyone.
A woman’s slender, pale arm was still wrapped around his waist.
“Oh my! Fang’er! I told you early this morning to ask Dr. Qin to look at my back—how did you end up hugging him here? Hurry and come… here!”
A sharp-faced woman with high cheekbones and a calculating expression shouted as she rushed forward. But when the girl raised her head, she suddenly froze.
The woman had dark hair, red lips, and a face like a blooming peach blossom. She leaned bonelessly against the man’s chest, looking utterly seductive and enchanting.
This wasn’t her daughter Cheng Fang!
The villagers who had gathered upon hearing the commotion also started speaking one after another:
“Xiao Qin, is she your wife? When did she arrive?”
“Why isn’t she wearing shoes?”
“Old Cheng’s family, even if you want Xiao Qin as a son-in-law, you can’t just make things up. Just by looking at her hands I can tell she’s not your Cheng Fang—look how fair and delicate her skin is!”
The woman being praised was Li Yingtang. She had just been dreaming—blindfolded in the dream, like King Zhou capturing Daji, she was embracing a godlike male favorite, doing as she pleased.
But a burst of noise suddenly woke her up.
As soon as she opened her eyes, a young man’s sharply defined face, as if drawn with fine brushstrokes, forced itself into her vision—even the shape of his ears was perfectly formed.
His soft, beautiful lips opened and closed as his cool voice, like moonlight spilling down, said, “So many people here—why aren’t you letting go?”
Li Yingtang stared at him unabashedly from head to toe. The man was extremely tall, about 190 cm—male model height?
Who arranged this for her? It was exactly to her taste.
He looked just like the male favorite she had been teasing in her dream.
And even more considerate—complete set design, plot, costumes, and lines. He was even wearing 1980s-style clothing, wrapped in a military coat.
If it was acting, it had to be fully immersive. Even the air felt cold.
Even the walls, furniture, and surroundings were so realistic they looked 1:1 reconstructed.
So what was her role?
Were the people at the door extras?
But something was wrong.
At the company celebration party, she had indeed had a few drinks, but she wasn’t blacked out. She clearly remembered returning home—she lived alone, and her best friend had stayed to take care of her.
She secretly pinched herself.
Hiss—
Not a dream!
Not understanding the situation, she didn’t dare let go. She buried her face in the young man’s chest and weakly said, “I feel dizzy…”
The sharp-cheekboned woman was named Hu Ping. She screamed when she came back to her senses: “Qin! Where did you hide my Fang’er?!”
The young man’s eyes turned cold. “I’ve never seen any Fang’er.”
This morning, Cheng Fang had come saying her mother had fallen and her back hurt badly. Because it was too cold to go out, she asked him to make a house call.
But halfway there, she suddenly threw a handkerchief at his face with a strange odor. Realizing he had been drugged, he knocked her unconscious and threw her into a ditch.
After returning to the clinic and administering detox acupuncture, he noticed movement in the room. When he opened the door, he was suddenly grabbed by this woman.
She smelled faintly of alcohol, was dressed very thinly—a white dress barely covering her wrists and ankles—and had bare feet as cold as snow. Likely frozen, she clung to him, stepping on his shoes and refusing to let go no matter how he struggled.
He finally managed to put his coat on her when the “caught in the act” shout came.
He understood immediately—Hu Ping and Cheng Fang had set him up and timed the scene perfectly.
“Everyone came just to watch a show? You’ll be disappointed,” he said calmly.
The crowd suddenly remembered why they came. They looked at each other and gradually left in embarrassment.
Hu Ping refused to give up. “You must have hidden her!”
“Feel free to search,” the young man replied calmly.
“I will!” she snapped.
Soon, only the two of them remained in the room. Li Yingtang’s heart was uneasy when a low voice sounded above her head: “How long are you going to keep hugging me?”
Embarrassed, she let go—but immediately felt a blast of cold under her feet. Instinctively, she jumped back onto him and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Cold… so cold.”
A helpless look flashed across the young man’s face. He lifted her with one arm, carried her to the bed, and gave her a towel and a pair of socks. He also took out handmade cotton shoes from under the bed, then turned and left, closing the door behind him.
Li Yingtang was shocked by the outside world.
Snow-covered land, faint mountains and village houses—completely opposite to the modern summer city she had just been in.
Where was this?
She checked the mirror—it was her own face, even her freshly permed hair was still there.
She put on the shoes and got out of bed, then checked the calendar on the door.
December 22, 1984.
A notebook on the table had the name “Qin Xian” written inside.
Her heart pounded violently.
No way…
Had she really gone back to the 1980s?
If this was his residence, there should be documents.
She locked the door, drew the curtains, and searched the room. Finally, she found some materials.
Qin Xian, 23 years old, from Yanjing, urban household registration, graduate of Yanjing University (Class of 1977), majoring in clinical medicine, graduated two years ago.
He initially worked in a city hospital, then was transferred to the countryside after three months and has been here since.
The place she was currently in was Dahan Village outside Yanjing.
Newspaper content confirmed the era.
Li Yingtang’s mental string finally snapped.
She collapsed onto the floor.
It’s over…
Knock knock knock.
A knock at the door.
Li Yingtang instantly snapped back to clarity, forcing herself to calm down.
She opened the door. The troublemakers were gone. Qin Xian entered with a gust of wind and snow.
“You’re sneaking around—why did you lock the door and draw the curtains? What’s your name? Which village are you from? Your pulse is normal, you’re full of energy, even stronger than a man—if you’re not sick, why are you causing trouble here?”
Li Yingtang’s mind raced.
She had no money, no identity, and urgently needed shelter.
And his place might be where she traveled through—maybe she could return someday.
He was a doctor; medical training meant he should have a decent character, better than most people.
She needed a believable reason to stay.
After thinking briefly, she said, “I’m Li Yingtang. The ‘Ying’ of reflecting sun and the ‘Tang’ of begonia flowers. I’m your mother’s… fiancée.”
The word “fiancée” felt hot coming out.
Qin Xian laughed. “My mother? Did she send you in a dream?”
Li Yingtang: “…”
So his mother was dead?
She quickly added, “Then your father! I said it wrong because I was too cold. Your father introduced me. He said you’re a top medical graduate, handsome and outstanding, and I rushed here overnight because I was afraid other women would take you away.”
He lived in the city and didn’t have a phone nearby. Even if he doubted her, it would take time to verify.
So her lie wouldn’t be exposed immediately.
Thinking this, she gained courage and continued, “But I fell asleep on the way. All my clothes and luggage were stolen… wuu…”
She cautiously looked at Qin Xian’s darkened face.
Still not believing her?
She pinched herself hard again and forced out two tears.
This time, she was really crying.
Suddenly transported to an unknown era, with no money, no home, no identity.
The more she thought, the more upset she became.