“Sister, buy more seeds. Once they mature, Caicai can harvest them with thought and replant them,” Caicai said excitedly.
“Alright.” Mu Youyou bought a large number of seeds. Fortunately, the farming system came with its own storage, so she didn’t have to worry about food and seeds filling up the entire house.
Using its mind, Caicai planted rice in all nine plots. Immediately, a countdown appeared above each plot: 72 hours.
“Only 72 hours, really?” Mu Youyou was surprised. She had thought Caicai was exaggerating.
“Now you know how amazing I am, right?” Caicai shook its little robotic head proudly.
“I know.” Mu Youyou’s gaze fell on the spirit spring well. She remembered in novels that female leads used it for bathing—she wondered what the effect would be.
“Sister, want to try?”
“Try?”
Why not? Mu Youyou took out the large wooden bath barrel she had previously bought for steaming baths and placed it in the bathroom. Using her thoughts, she filled it with spirit spring water and soaked herself in it.
Half an hour later, the once-clear water had turned pitch black. The smell was so foul it nearly made her faint. After washing herself three times with body wash, she finally felt better.
Looking at herself in the mirror, her skin was several shades fairer, more delicate and radiant.
Her body also felt much lighter. The original host had been in poor health with excess dampness, but now Mu Youyou clearly felt much stronger.
“Wow… I’m even charming myself.”
“Sister, you should head out now. The original host has to go to school today to hand over her work,” Caicai reminded her. As Mu Youyou absorbed the original host’s memories, Caicai had also gained access to them.
“Got it.” Mu Youyou left the space and opened the wardrobe, frowning.
She really didn’t want to wear someone else’s clothes. Using her thoughts, she opened the shopping system, found a section for 1970s-style clothing, and bought a light yellow dress and a pair of small leather shoes.
She stepped out of the house. The Mu family lived in a small courtyard at the innermost part of the military compound.
Along the way, she greeted familiar military family members based on the original host’s memories.
“Youyou, heading out?”
“Yes, Aunt Wang. Going to buy groceries?”
“Yes, and you?”
“I’m heading to the school.”
“You’ll be joining the army soon, right?”
“Soon.”
“Being married to a soldier is good!”
“…”
Finally, she reached the compound gate and said goodbye to Aunt Wang, then headed toward the school. Along the way, she curiously observed the streets and buildings. They were indeed different from what she had seen on TV, though the red slogans painted on the walls were quite similar.
The handover at the school was quick. After leaving, Mu Youyou wandered aimlessly down the street.
“Caicai, let’s go treasure hunting at the scrap station?” she suggested. From novels she had read, scrap stations were must-visit places for female leads.
“Yes, yes! Caicai will definitely help you find treasures!” Caicai spun clumsily in excitement, though Mu Youyou didn’t see it.
“Let’s go.” Following the original host’s memory, she arrived at the city scrap station.
At the entrance, an old man lounged in a reclining chair, humming a tune she couldn’t understand.
“Sir, I’d like to find some newspapers for wall lining,” Mu Youyou said with a smile.
“Five cents per jin. Don’t touch what you’re not allowed to,” the old man glanced at her.
“Got it!”
“Caicai, start looking,” Mu Youyou whispered after entering, grabbing a stack of newspapers.
“Sister, the right table leg.”
“The box in front.”
“There’s a hidden compartment in that bed frame.”
“The ceramic jar on your left.”
“……”
Mu Youyou directly stored everything Caicai pointed out into her space, planning to inspect them later.
“Sister, there’s nothing valuable left,” Caicai said, sounding disappointed.
“Alright.” Mu Youyou carried the newspapers out.
In a corner, she found some textbooks and stored them too—just in case she wanted to take the college entrance exam in the future.
“Five jin,” the old man said, eyeing her to ensure she hadn’t taken anything else.
“Okay.” Mu Youyou paid twenty-five cents and left.
She found a corner outside to store the newspapers in her space, then prepared to go home and cook.
She had considered trying a state-run restaurant, but having grown used to cooking in her previous life, she decided to cook herself.
Back home, she steamed a small bowl of rice. There were only eggs left in the house, but she remembered there were vegetables in the space’s fridge. She took out some green peppers, meat, and greens.
“Sister, you can also buy vegetables from the shopping system,” Caicai reminded her.
“Got it.” Mu Youyou felt that Caicai was quite thoughtful—it made her feel less lonely in this world.
For lunch, she made stir-fried green peppers with meat, steamed egg, and a vegetable dish.
Having grown up in an orphanage, starting a fire was no challenge for her.
Originally, she had wanted to cook in the space, but the houses in the compound were close together. If others noticed she hadn’t lit a fire at home, it might raise suspicion.
“Caicai, what kind of job can I do after joining the army?” Mu Youyou asked while eating in the space’s dining room.
“What do you want to do?” Caicai asked.
“I’m not sure what opportunities are there. The Eastern Military Region should correspond to Qingdao in Shandong in my original world,” Mu Youyou said, biting her chopsticks.
Since she didn’t plan to truly marry Gu Beiting, she wouldn’t use his money. Her family’s savings would eventually run out. Although she could earn money through the system, she still needed a legitimate source.
“What did you do in your original world?” Caicai asked. It could access the original host’s memories but not Mu Youyou’s.
“I was a graduate student, majoring in foreign languages,” Mu Youyou replied. She had exceptional language talent—her English was at advanced level, and she had also studied Russian, French, Japanese, and Korean.
Caicai tilted its head as if thinking. “Sister, you could work as a translator at Xinhua Bookstore.”
“Really?” Mu Youyou searched through the original host’s memories. Such a job did exist, but few people in this era knew foreign languages well enough for it.
“Sister, why not go ask this afternoon?” Caicai suggested.
“Sure! I’ve got nothing better to do anyway,” Mu Youyou agreed.
After lunch, she rested on the large bed in the space. At 2 PM, Caicai woke her up.
The Xinhua Bookstore was quite far, so she rode her father’s old bicycle.
“Hello, are you hiring translators?” Mu Youyou asked at the counter.
The female clerk glanced at her with disdain. “Can you even do it?”
“You’ll know if I try,” Mu Youyou replied with a smile. She had seen plenty of people like this in her previous life.
“Wait here.” The woman went into the back office and soon returned with a middle-aged man.
“Young lady, are you here to apply as a translator?” he asked.
“Yes.” Mu Youyou nodded politely.
“Alright, try translating this passage.” He picked up an English book and pointed to a section.
Mu Youyou recognized it immediately—it was A Modern Mephistopheles by Louisa May Alcott. She quickly translated the passage fluently.
The middle-aged man looked at her in astonishment. This young girl had translated it perfectly after just one glance—such skill couldn’t be faked.