The original owner didn’t even have time to to be sad, she was forced into the train heading to the countryside. After two days of tears, she realized her assigned location was the same rural area as her childhood Sweetheart, Luo Yecheng.

She calmed herself down and regarded Luo Yecheng as her last straw.

But it turned out all her efforts were in vain. After knowing her situation, Luo Yecheng dismissed their past, saying he’d only ever seen her as a sister. Then, as if to twist the knife, he revealed a shocking truth: he was dating Jiang Xiaowan, the daughter of the village party secretary, and they were already planning to marry.

To everyone else in the village, it just looked like she was desperately pursuing Luo Yecheng, and they began whispering that she was shameless and clingy. Even Liu Linlin mocked her frequently, throwing the village gossip back in her face.

The real Song Wei knew everything, but she could only cry alone in her small room, feeling desperate and abandoned. After her confrontation with Jiang Xiaowan by the river—where she had accidentally slipped in—the last of her will faded, and her soul dissipated. After that, she didn’t know how she traveled through time and space to here and became Song Wei.

This life meant everything to her now, and she didn’t feel guilty about taking it—after all, the original owner had already chosen to let go; it wasn’t as if she’d taken it by force.

She had no interest in any romance with Luo Yecheng. If she had free time, she’d rather spend it stocking up on mountain goods and preserving food for the winter.

Song Wei had a little over a hundred yuan saved up, not much but not little either. The reason she even had some savings and tickets was thanks to her brother, who was serving in the army. He would send her 15 yuan and a few ration tickets each month. Initially, her stepmother had intercepted these, but after visiting home, her brother found out and had given her stepbrother a thorough beating in front of her father and stepmother.

Since then, her stepmother hadn’t dared take the money, though she still took some for household expenses—otherwise, she’d even deny Song Wei food at home. Now, she was left with just over 100 yuan and a few tickets. It was enough to live on for the time being, but she knew no more would be coming, and she didn’t intend to rely on her brother’s support.

She’d need a way to earn money, though direct business was impossible in this era without facing accusations of profiteering. A side business was out of the question, but there was always the black market. Supplies were scarce, and the mountain’s resources were something she could make use of—provided she didn’t get caught.

After carefully hiding her money and tickets, she left the dormitory. Her headache had mostly gone, and she couldn’t sit still, gazing at the endless mountains surrounding the village. She grabbed a basket and a machete, heading eagerly into the hills.

“Here I come, dear mountains!”

Standing at the base of the mountain, Song Wei felt exhilarated by the clean, radiation-free air and the sight of normal, unmutated plants. If only people knew how much her heart was racing with excitement.

Squatting down, she grabbed a handful of fresh grass, stuffing it into her mouth to savor its bitter, earthy taste. Finally, she felt a sense of peace.

At that moment, she noticed a scrawny little boy watching her with wide eyes from a tree nearby. He was barefoot and dressed in tattered clothes, holding a few walnuts in his shirt.

She calmly swallowed the grass and met the child’s gaze. The two of them stared each other down until he finally bared his teeth and narrowed his pretty eyes in a feeble attempt to look fierce.

“mine!”

The tree he was standing under was a walnut tree. Song Wei eyed the walnuts hungrily but, with no desire to compete with a child, decided to move on.

“Alright, they’re yours.” She gave him a nod and continued deeper into the mountains, ignoring the wary look he shot her as she walked away.

“Dangerous…beasts in the mountains,” the boy said finally, a little reluctantly, before scurrying up the tree to hide.

Song Wei chuckled, calling back, “Noted,” though she had no intention of turning back.

She went to the countryside just after the busy farming season.

There are both advantages and disadvantages to this situation.

The advantage is that she doesn’t have to experience the pain of harvesting right after arriving in the countryside, which is a struggle that puts one on the brink of death every day.

Otherwise, the original owner might have ended up in the hospital not from falling into a river, but from heatstroke or exhaustion.

The downside was that she had no work points since she had just arrived in the countryside. Winter comes early in Northeast China, and it’s uncertain whether her small amount of grain will last through the winter.

In the commune, it’s not guaranteed that she can exchange enough food for her needs, so Song Wei set her sights on the mountains.

The deep mountains are home to wild animals, and many villagers are afraid to enter, which works to Song Wei’s advantage.

She soon found a tree full of fresh, plump black fungus, her eyes lighting up at the sight. Loading up a third of her basket, she continued. A little further along, she spotted some wild fruit—a local variety of kiwifruit known as “yuan jujube” that was about the size of a red date and smelled deliciously fragrant.

She picked and ate her fill, her mouth full as she gathered the low-hanging fruit. She even climbed a tall tree to get more, looking like a monkey as she scaled the branches.

However, an unexpected event occurred.

A snake as thick as an arm silently hung behind her on a branch. Just as it opened its mouth to attack, Song Wei tilted her neck, and her free right hand precisely caught the snake’s head.

Her delicate hand, with skin so fair that the dark blue veins were visible, tightened instantly, and the tendons on the back of her hand stood out clearly. She yanked the snake down, smashing its head against the tree trunk.

With a loud crash, the snake’s head nearly got crushed.

This strike killed the snake, but its body continued to writhe uncontrollably.

“Not bad. Must be about three pounds,” she said, lifting the snake with satisfaction. It was food, after all.

She stuffed it into her basket, covering it with a layer of leaves, before adding more wild mushrooms and finishing off with some kindling.

With her basket piled high, Song Wei returned, effortlessly carrying the load while hauling a thick log under one arm. To anyone watching, it was hard to believe this was the same frail young woman who had just been in the hospital.