“Wife… do you not want me and the children anymore?”
Li Tingyun woke with a start, drenched in sweat. She sat bolt upright in bed, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.
Staring at the sunlit window ahead of her, she still couldn’t shake the sorrowful tone and resentful gaze of the man from her dream.
In his arms was a baby, while two other children stood at his sides, clutching at his pant legs. All three looked at her pitifully, calling her “Mother.”
Seven days.
For seven days straight, she had been having the exact same dream. Every single time, without exception, it was the same scene—the man holding three children, looking at her with hurt in his eyes as he questioned her.
Li Tingyun shook her head, trying hard to force the dream from her mind. She wiped the sweat from her face and reached for the cup of water on her bedside table, taking a sip.
Glancing at her phone, she saw it was already eight in the morning.
Leaning out the window, she looked down at the bustling street below. Voices rose and fell in a noisy tide as crowds of pedestrians packed the road shoulder to shoulder.
This three-story townhouse facing the street was part of the inheritance her late parents had left her. They had left behind plenty of assets, but this house was her favorite.
Not for any special reason—she simply liked waking up to lively sounds. She enjoyed the bustle of life.
After watching the crowds gathered around street food vendors for a moment, she realized she was hungry. Rubbing her stomach, Li Tingyun headed into the kitchen.
She heated up a cooked corn cob in the microwave and gnawed on it while murmuring softly, “Enter.”
In the blink of an eye, the scenery changed, and she found herself inside a mysterious space.
She had obtained this space not long ago at an antique market. At the time, she hadn’t intended to buy any jade jewelry, but when she stopped by a stall, she noticed a round jade pendant that strangely appealed to her. Since it wasn’t expensive, she bought it on a whim.
At first, she hadn’t known the pendant’s purpose. It wasn’t until a few days ago, when she accidentally cut her finger while cooking and some blood stained the jade, that she discovered the existence of an infinite storage space.
The space was enormous. The air inside was moist, the sunlight warm. Birds sang among blooming flowers, with lush mountains and clear waters all around—it looked like a hidden paradise untouched by the outside world.
Li Tingyun walked toward the three-story villa within the space. Passing by the lotus pond in front of the villa, she glanced inside and noticed that the little fish and shrimp she had bought a few days ago had already grown three times larger.
Unsurprised, she entered the villa and went up to the third floor. Casually pouring herself a cup of spiritual spring water, she sat in the hanging chair on the large balcony while harvesting the rice, wheat, corn, and other crops she had planted earlier.
Time flowed much faster inside the space. She had planted the crops only about half a month ago, yet they were already ready for their second harvest.
Fortunately, everything within the space was under her control. With just a thought, she could move all the harvested goods into an endlessly expanding warehouse.
Perhaps by coincidence, the space even contained grain-processing machinery that had already been there when she first discovered it.
Everything produced in the space was top quality.
After happily finishing the corn grown there, Li Tingyun calculated her savings and checked the notes on her phone.
Ever since obtaining the space, she had begun stockpiling supplies inside it. Not for any grand reason—she was simply socially anxious and preferred avoiding interaction with people whenever possible.
Besides, the space was so beautiful that she genuinely wouldn’t mind living there forever.
And based on all the novels she had read over the years, combined with the sudden appearance of this mysterious space and the strange recurring dreams, she had the nagging feeling that she was about to transmigrate into another world.
Even if her guess turned out to be wrong, there was no harm in stocking up anyway. She would use the supplies eventually.
By now, the crops inside the space covered nearly every kind of food that could be grown in soil. Li Tingyun turned and headed downstairs, leaving the space.
Unlike the pleasant weather inside, the outside world was gloomy and rainy, with a chill in the air.
She threw on a jacket and prepared to head to the wholesale market to buy seasonings.
She had already tested it: if hot food was placed inside the space while still warm, no matter how long it stayed there, it would still be hot when taken back out.
That meant that aside from living plants, anything stored inside the space would never spoil.
Riding her little electric scooter to the wholesale market, she stocked up heavily on everyday condiments like oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, rock sugar, and white sugar. She also bought less commonly used items like ketchup, barbecue spices, and tea leaves.
Afterward, she drove to the fabric market and deliberately picked out darker-colored clothes and fabrics.
She vaguely felt that if she really did end up transmigrating into the world from her dream—a place that looked like China in the 1960s or 70s—brightly colored fabrics would seem too out of place.
Then she went to a mother-and-baby store and bought huge quantities of clothing for every age range from infants to teenagers.
Formula milk, baby bottles, wet wipes, pacifiers, comfort cloths, bamboo strollers—she practically bought everything the store had. She also stocked up on diapers and pull-up pants in every size up to age three.
She had never raised children before, but figured that if she got married and had kids someday, supplies up to age three should probably be enough.
After arranging for the shop owner to deliver everything to a warehouse she had rented on the outskirts of town a few days earlier, Li Tingyun passed by a livestock market and suddenly remembered that she had forgotten to collect the eggs from the chickens and ducks she kept inside the space earlier that morning.
The chickens and ducks in the space produced eggs at an astonishing rate. If she skipped collecting them for two days, the ground would end up covered in eggs.
Waiting outside the warehouse until all the deliveries arrived, Li Tingyun shut the doors and waved her hand, instantly transferring all the supplies into the space.
Everything inside the space could be organized according to her will. With a mere thought, she could neatly categorize and stack all the goods. Otherwise, if she had to move everything by hand, she’d probably collapse from exhaustion.
Feeling satisfied with today’s shopping, Li Tingyun left the space and happily treated herself to a barbecue meal.
By afternoon, the weather had cleared.
As she rode her scooter past the seaside, she saw crowds of people playing on the beach.
The sight tempted her a little, but since she hadn’t brought a swimsuit, she couldn’t join them.
So she simply parked her scooter in a quieter area and sat alone on the sand, spacing out.
The blue ocean carried the damp, salty scent of the sea as waves rolled endlessly ashore. Listening to the cries of seagulls, she narrowed her eyes and enjoyed the pleasant sensation of the sea breeze brushing past her ears.
Suddenly, her phone rang.
It was the antique market owner she had arranged to meet that morning—she was supposed to pick up the old-fashioned bicycles she had ordered.
To be honest, Li Tingyun herself wasn’t even sure whether old bicycles would ever be useful. Buying outdated things just because of a strange dream felt a little absurd.
Fortunately, she had only bought two bicycles, and they hadn’t cost much.
After hanging up, Li Tingyun stood and stepped onto her scooter, preparing to leave.
At that moment, a huge wave crashed ashore.
The force was terrifying.
In an instant, it slammed both her and the scooter onto the beach, knocking her unconscious.