Early in the morning, Luo Zhiyao woke up.
This was a habit she had developed in her previous life—getting up early to run and exercise. Even when it rained, she would stick to indoor workouts; even climbing stairs was better than nothing.
That was why, in her past life, she had been strong and healthy—unlike this body, which was soft and delicate, clearly not suited for labor.
After tidying herself up, she went over to the male educated youths’ quarters to borrow a sickle, then headed toward the back mountain.
The sight shocked everyone present. This pampered young lady knew how to use a sickle? Had she gone mad? Wouldn’t she just end up cutting herself and then crying about being injured so she wouldn’t have to work?
Luo Zhiyao paid no attention to their reactions. Since she had decided to change, she didn’t care about others’ opinions. After all, they weren’t familiar with her—causing trouble at the beginning was normal. Now that several days had passed and she had accepted reality, change was only natural.
She walked all the way up the back mountain. There was no city noise here, no pollution like in later times. It made her feel refreshed, as if her whole spirit had been lifted.
“The weather is so bright today, the scenery is beautiful everywhere…” In such lovely weather, she couldn’t help but hum a tune.
It had rained a few days ago, and many mushrooms had sprouted beneath the trees—boletes, termite mushrooms, lion’s mane, morels…
As she walked, she gathered them. When she realized she couldn’t carry any more, she casually wove a bamboo basket to hold them. She also tossed a bit of each type into her space to cultivate—so she’d never run out of mushrooms in the future.
“Ah, wild mushrooms in their natural state—so many! I’m in for a treat today!”
She kept picking until the basket was full, then stopped. She couldn’t be too greedy—she had to leave some for others.
But this body was truly weak. After just a short while, she was already panting heavily.
“This body is way too frail. Clearly raised in comfort—can’t endure even a bit of hardship. How did she end up chasing a man all the way to the countryside? Wouldn’t staying at home have been better? Now there’s no way to go back.”
“But even if I did go back, I’d be afraid of being exposed. The body is the same, but the soul inside has changed. If people found out, I’d probably be burned as a monster.”
Muttering to herself, Luo Zhiyao decided not to dwell on it. Her family situation wasn’t good anyway—they had been sent down to Xinjiang. If she had stayed and gone with them, she might have suffered even more, possibly being assigned somewhere unknown.
After all, this was a turbulent time—everyone was trying to protect themselves. Her family, wanting to safeguard their only daughter, hadn’t strongly opposed her decision to go to the countryside.
“Forget it, forget it…”
She continued walking deeper into the mountain, looking for anything worth planting in her space.
As she walked, she heard a rustling in the grass nearby. She slowed her steps, thinking: If it’s a small animal, I can finally have some meat. If it’s a big one, I’ll just enter the space—once it’s in there, I’m in control. I can deal with it however I want.
Pushing aside the grass, she spotted a rabbit. Her eyes lit up.
Rabbit—spicy rabbit head, stir-fried rabbit meat, braised rabbit, roasted rabbit… Just thinking about it made her mouth water.
Sensing her intense gaze, the rabbit quickly darted into a burrow.
“Haha! There’s actually a rabbit nest here. Little rabbits, today I’m going to catch you all in one go!”
She checked her space for tools and found a few fishing nets.
Blocking off the nearby burrow exits, she left two openings—one to release smoke, the other as an escape route. At the escape hole, she set up the net so that when the rabbits fled, they’d run straight into it.
Before long, she caught an entire nest of rabbits. One of them was even pregnant. She burst into laughter.
“Heaven really is treating me well!”
She threw the rabbits into her space, which automatically created a designated area for raising them.
Seeing the change, she exclaimed, “Whoa, whoa, whoa! It even has this function? This space is way too advanced! Oh heavens, I love you!”
After observing the rabbits for a while and confirming they had adapted well, she left them alone and continued wandering.
Perhaps the fresh air had intoxicated her, making her linger longer than intended. Before she knew it, it was almost time to start work.
“Oh no, oh no—it’s almost work time!”
Glancing at her watch, she realized she was running late and hurried down the mountain. She barely made it to the gathering point one minute before work started, panting heavily. The people around her were stunned.
Especially since she was carrying a basket full of mushrooms.
And this kind of breathless, disheveled state didn’t suit a pampered young lady at all.
People began whispering among themselves.
“Did something happen to this Comrade Lu? She seems off.”
“I think she actually seems more normal now. Before, she was too delicate—this looks better.”
“Is that basket full of mushrooms? Can a spoiled young lady like her even tell which ones are poisonous?”
“Exactly. But she does seem more like a countryside person now.”
“She looks much more pleasant.”
“Those mushrooms look so fresh—I should have my son go pick some too.”
“It rained the night before last—perfect time for mushrooms to grow.”
Luo Zhiyao ignored them, thinking: As long as I’m no longer that annoying ‘Miss Lu,’ that’s enough.
Captain Wang assigned her the same task as yesterday—pulling weeds.
Her face fell. Pulling weeds again? It was exhausting. But she remembered tomorrow was a rest day—she could go into town to buy some things.
Working alongside Aunt Wang again, she felt her hands were about to develop blisters. While no one was looking, she took out a pair of gloves from her pocket (actually from her space) and put them on.
An older woman nearby saw this and sneered, “These educated youths from the city are so delicate—wearing gloves and all. A capitalist young lady is truly different.”
Her tone was full of disdain and jealousy. Luo Zhiyao frowned—being labeled a “capitalist” in this era was no small matter.
Just as she was about to respond, Aunt Liu, the team leader’s wife, spoke up sharply:
“Liu Meifang, what does it matter to you whether she’s delicate or not? Mind your own business! Wearing gloves makes someone a capitalist? My husband wears gloves too—does that make him one?”
Aunt Liu was furious. Her husband also wore gloves—did that mean he was being insulted too? Besides, although Luo Zhiyao had been troublesome before, she had been doing quite well these past two days. She had probably adapted and given up hope of returning to the city.
Hearing this, Liu Meifang’s face turned pale. The team leader’s wife wasn’t someone to mess with. And since the team leader himself wore gloves, her words had implicated him too—if she got on their bad side, things wouldn’t end well for her.
“Guifen, I was just talking nonsense. Don’t take it to heart! I won’t say anything more.”
Aunt Liu’s name was Liu Guifen, though everyone simply called her Aunt Liu.
“Comrade Xiao Lu, don’t listen to her nonsense. Wearing gloves is nothing. You city girls have delicate hands—it’s only natural to protect them. She’s just jealous. Ignore her.”
Luo Zhiyao smiled and thanked Aunt Liu. Her gaze toward Liu Meifang, however, was no longer friendly. If Aunt Liu hadn’t stepped in, being labeled like that could have led to serious trouble—she might even have been targeted and sent away to the frontier.