She had not slept well last night, had walked so much today, and had been badly frightened.
Lin Zhijin suddenly felt extremely aggrieved.
Why?
She had just been an ordinary person. Through her own hard work, she had bought a house in the city, bought a car, and finally managed to establish herself.
How had she suddenly transmigrated?
And into this era, of all times?
Tears slid down one drop at a time.
After quite a while, Lin Zhijin suddenly sat up straight and patted her cheeks.
“Pull yourself together, Lin Zhijin. You have a bigger house now, a large amount of savings, lots of clothes and jewelry, and you even landed yourself an iron rice bowl. Most importantly, you’re a full thirteen years younger than you were in your previous life. Seventeen years old. What a wonderful age. You’re in the prime of your youth. You can’t waste the opportunity Heaven has given you.”
After having a good cry, Lin Zhijin felt as though the breath that had been堵ed in her chest had finally disappeared, and her whole body felt much lighter.
She took a deep breath and restored herself to a fully energetic state.
Then Lin Zhijin went to boil some water and soak her feet.
Otherwise, her feet would definitely hurt tomorrow.
That evening, she went back to the noodle shop she had eaten at before.
The proprietress still remembered her.
“You’re back again, miss. Shredded pork noodles again?”
“I saw lion’s head meatball noodles on the menu. Give me a bowl of that, and a plate of pickled cucumbers too.”
Lin Zhijin believed that she absolutely needed delicious food to comfort her frightened little heart.
“All right! One bowl of lion’s head meatball noodles and one plate of pickled cucumbers.”
The proprietress called out loudly.
Lin Zhijin had not gone to work that afternoon, so she had arrived early.
At the moment, she was the only customer eating.
The proprietress leaned against the cashier counter and chatted casually with her.
“Aren’t you the new resident who moved into Fengye Alley? What’s your name? Do you live by yourself?”
Before Lin Zhijin could answer, the proprietress continued with a smile, “My name is Dai Fengjiao. Everyone usually calls me Boss Dai or Elder Sister Dai. I’m definitely older than you, so why don’t you call me Elder Sister Dai too?”
“Elder Sister Dai.”
As expected of a proprietress who ran a business.
Her social skills really were impressive.
“My name is Lin Zhijin. I do live in Fengye Alley. Elder Sister Dai, how long has this shop been open?”
“This shop of mine has been around for many years. My husband’s great-grandfather opened it, and it’s been passed down all the way until now,” Dai Fengjiao said proudly.
“No wonder it tastes so good. So it’s a family recipe. Is Brother-in-law the one doing the cooking?” Lin Zhijin asked curiously.
Dai Fengjiao smiled and shook her head.
“The one cooking is my husband’s younger brother. My husband wasn’t blessed with a long life. He died from illness several years ago.”
Lin Zhijin hurriedly apologized.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
“Oh, you didn’t know. Besides, he wasn’t good to me anyway. Whenever the shop made a little money, he’d take it to gamble, and he also visited brothels.”
Dai Fengjiao leaned close to Lin Zhijin’s ear and whispered, “It’s better that he died. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be living such a good life now.”
Lin Zhijin gave her a thumbs-up.
Just then, the noodles arrived, so the two stopped chatting.
While eating, Lin Zhijin saw Elder Sister Dai’s brother-in-law bring a bowl of noodles over to her.
He was not particularly tall, probably only around one meter sixty-something, but his features were delicate and handsome.
More importantly, the way he looked at Elder Sister Dai was absolutely not innocent.
Lin Zhijin shifted her gaze toward Elder Sister Dai and happened to see her shyly accepting the chopsticks the man handed her.
Tsk, tsk.
Looks like the man had feelings, and the woman did too.
“All right, I’ll eat. Hurry back inside. People are watching.”
Dai Fengjiao raised her head and happened to meet Lin Zhijin’s gaze.
Her face immediately heated up.
She quickly looked away, then glared at the man.
When Lin Zhijin went to pay, Dai Fengjiao did not mention what had just happened.
Instead, she reminded Lin Zhijin to lock her doors properly at night.
“Most of the people living in Fengye Alley are wealthy households, so it’s easy to attract attention. Especially a young woman living alone like you.”
Dai Fengjiao looked Lin Zhijin up and down.
Especially one this beautiful.
“Thank you, Elder Sister Dai.”
After returning home, Lin Zhijin wedged the door shut with a wooden stick.
Still not feeling reassured, she placed a woodcutting knife beside her pillow.
Strangely enough, after putting the knife there, she suddenly felt much braver.
She was even less afraid of ghosts.
Early the next morning, Lin Zhijin arrived at work carrying the lunch box she had newly bought and was immediately met with a round of concern.
“Xiao Lin, are you all right? Don’t be afraid. Situations like yesterday are relatively rare. Whenever we go out on field assignments, soldiers accompany us. Most people are timid and afraid of trouble, like Wang Shoucai. They wouldn’t dare provoke us.”
Elder Sister Qian looked Lin Zhijin up and down and comforted her gently.
“That’s right. Yesterday was an extremely rare case,” Li Yue agreed with a nod.
“Xiao Lin, today you and Chunhua will bring some people to decorate the assembly hall. There’s a social gathering tonight. We’ll settle some of the people first.”
Otherwise, they would just be consuming grain without working, and even the army could not afford to keep supporting them.
Lin Zhijin hurriedly nodded.
She truly did not want to go to the countryside right now.
If she could avoid it, of course that was better.
“I changed my name. It’s Wang Chunhua,” Wang Chunhua muttered unhappily.
They called it “decorating the assembly hall,” but in reality, they only had to write a few characters on red paper with a brush and paste them up.
Then they had people clean the place.
After that, there was nothing else to do.
“Xiao Lin, did you really faint from fright yesterday?”
At some point, Wang Chunhua had sidled over next to Lin Zhijin.
Lin Zhijin glanced at her.
Who had started this rumor now?
“No. Who told you that? But I really was a little frightened, so Director gave me half a day off.”
Wang Chunhua laughed awkwardly.
“I forgot who said it. Then I heard Master Chen died from sudden death during intercourse. Is that true?”
Lin Zhijin knew Li Yue would spread the story, but she had not expected it to spread this quickly.
And by the time it reached Wang Chunhua, Master Chen had already become someone who had died in the act.
“No. He was given an extremely potent aphrodisiac.”
The moment Lin Zhijin saw Wang Chunhua’s eyes light up, she gave a brief explanation.
Wang Chunhua nodded.
“Then you really should thank that bedchamber maid who drugged him. Otherwise, once Master Chen recovered, you would have been ruined by him.”
Lin Zhijin sighed helplessly.
“Elder Sister Wang, I think Director Yang is calling you.”
Wang Chunhua turned around.
He really was beckoning to her.
She immediately grinned and hurried over.
“Director Yang, what did you call me for?”
“Old Xie called and said he needs to speak with you. Go return Old Xie’s call.”
Director Yang glanced at Lin Zhijin and nodded at her before turning and leaving.
People of this era were truly full of energy.
Director Zhang and the others had spent the entire day rushing around, yet they could still attend the social gathering that evening full of spirit.
“Political Commissar Wang wrote these characters, didn’t he?”
Elder Sister Qian looked at the calligraphy on the wall and smiled.
“Xiao Lin, you can take a look around during tonight’s gathering too. If you find someone suitable, tell me. I’ll act as your matchmaker.”
Lin Zhijin froze.
She truly had not expected this gathering to involve her too.
“No, no. I’m still young. There’s no hurry.”
She was only seventeen.
That was high-school age.
Why would she get married?
“There’s no rush for Xiao Lin. She’s only seventeen this year. She should study properly first and get an elementary school diploma.”
Director Zhang did not continue, but the meaning behind her words was very clear.
Once she had a diploma, she would be able to find a better marriage partner.
Lin Zhijin felt somewhat moved.
Regardless of the reason, Director Zhang genuinely considered what was best for her.
Even her biological father had never managed that, much less the original owner’s parents who favored sons over daughters.
“I understand, Director. I’ll study hard and get an elementary school diploma.”
Lin Zhijin felt a little embarrassed saying it.
She had been a university graduate, yet now she was passionately declaring that she would earn an elementary school diploma.
At the very least, she should get a middle school diploma.
If she could obtain a high school diploma, even better.
As for university, she would see how things went.
She had already attended university once and did not particularly yearn for it anymore.
As long as her qualifications were sufficient, that was enough.
Most of the soldiers attending the matchmaking gathering today were orphans.
A few even had some disabilities from injuries.
However, judging by their shoulder insignia, they were all officers.
Lin Zhijin did not know their exact ranks because she could not understand the rank divisions on their shoulder boards.
“Lin Zhijin? I remembered correctly, didn’t I?”
A graceful woman wearing a dark green qipao and a white shawl walked over.
Before she even came close, a fragrant scent drifted over first.
“It’s me. Lin Shishu.”
“I remember you. Didn’t you go back?”
Lin Zhijin remembered her quite well.
She was an extremely sociable former concubine.
“Don’t mention it.”
Lin Shishu’s expression darkened as she said unhappily, “It was our master’s idea. I actually thought he was a good man who valued feelings and loyalty. Sure enough, all crows under the heavens are equally black.”
Lin Zhijin tugged on Lin Shishu’s arm, signaling her to pay attention to the occasion.
Tonight was a social gathering for matchmaking.
If she stood here saying all men were equally terrible, how was she supposed to successfully find someone?
Even if she did not want to find a partner today, she would eventually need to in the future.
If she developed a bad reputation, it would not benefit her.
Lin Shishu reacted and hurriedly lowered her head.
After a while, she whispered, “Thank you, Lin Zhijin. By the way, have you taken a liking to anyone?”
Only then did Lin Zhijin remember that she had not introduced herself properly.
“I’m a staff member of the Women’s Federation. I’m not here for the matchmaking.”
“You work at the Women’s Federation?”
Lin Shishu covered her mouth and pulled her toward a corner.
“How did you get in? Are there any requirements? Can I join the Women’s Federation too?”
“Probably not. I was introduced by someone I knew, and the Women’s Federation happened to be short-handed at the time. They aren’t short on people anymore.”
Lin Zhijin shook her head.
Then she looked toward a military officer not far away.
He was tall and powerful-looking, with strong features.
She changed the subject.
“What do you think of him? He’s a thirty-two-year-old deputy regimental commander. His former wife died in an accident. He has no parents and no children. If you marry him, you can be the mistress of your own household.”
Lin Shishu looked him up and down.
Her gaze lingered around his waist and back for quite a while before she shyly said, “I think he looks pretty good. I’m just afraid he won’t be interested in me.”
Lin Zhijin raised an eyebrow.
Just moments ago, hadn’t she been furious and saying all men under heaven were equally terrible?
And now she was interested again?
As though seeing Lin Zhijin’s confusion, Lin Shishu sighed softly.
“I’m a woman without a maternal family. If I don’t have a man protecting me, there’s simply no way for me to establish myself. You don’t know this, but during the few days I stayed at the hotel, several men harassed me. Right now, PLA soldiers are still patrolling the city. Once they leave, it won’t be as simple as harassment.”
“Zhijin, you’re fortunate. Once you joined the Women’s Federation, you gained people backing you. I have to find a man, otherwise…”
Lin Zhijin nodded.
“Wait here. I’ll go ask.”
Lin Zhijin had managed to become an HR manager in her previous life, so naturally, she was not socially anxious.
On the contrary, her interpersonal skills were quite good.
“Hello. I’m Xiao Lin, a staff member from the Women’s Federation. May I ask what your requirements are for a marriage partner?”
Lin Zhijin saw him looking at her intently, but she was not afraid.
What?
Was he going to hit her?
She was here to help him resolve an important matter in his life.
“There’s a woman who’s interested in you. The one over there wearing the dark green qipao. She used to be a concubine. She’s a good person. If you think she’s suitable, you can talk to her and get to know each other.”
The man narrowed his eyes and gave Lin Zhijin a deep look.
“All right.”
Watching the man walk toward Lin Shishu, Lin Zhijin gave her an encouraging gesture.
Then she turned and went to find Li Yue and the others to see whether there was anything else that needed help.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
Sorry, I’m late again. Also, this novel will enter VIP tomorrow. I hope all you babies will continue supporting it. Love you all, muah muah (づ￣3￣)づ╭?～