Chapter 11

It’s so hard to buy nice clothes these days.

Gritting her teeth, she took out 20 yuan from her little stash and handed it over.

With her newly bought dress in hand, she now understood a phrase: why, after buying an LV bag in modern times, you need matching clothes and shoes to go with it.

Looking at her beautiful dress, she had no desire to wear her dusty, dull shoes.

But she only had ten yuan left in her pocket.

She wouldn’t be able to buy leather shoes.

After browsing the shoe section for a while, she finally picked a pair of nine-yuan white sneakers.

Now she only had 2.5 yuan left, so she bought a pound of meat and her pocket was nearly as empty as her face was clean.

Resisting the urge to shop more, she headed home.

She thought about going to the black market next time to buy some chicks to raise in her hidden space.

After storing everything in her space, she headed back home.

As soon as she entered, she saw Xu Ruhua crying in Xu Xiuhong’s arms, and her father sitting by the desk with a dark expression.

The first thing her father did was ask:

“When did your sister ever hit you? Every time, I see you hitting her instead.”

Xu Niannian smiled, covering her chest as she replied:

“Sis is just too sensitive. I only mentioned a foul smell, who knew she’d take it so seriously? If it’s not true, then it’s not true.”

“Oh, by the way, Dad, where did you put the money my mom left me?”

Hearing this, her father froze. Did Niannian’s mother really say something like that before she passed?

His voice wavered a bit:

“What money… What money are you talking about? We’ve already cut ties with your mom’s side; it’s probably with your grandma and grandpa.”

Niannian’s face formed a subtle, knowing smile.

When she’d read the book, her father had given the protagonists a box of gold fish after the economic reform. Considering his family had been poor farmers for three generations, there was no way they had that money.

Could it be that the money her own mother left her was used as the protagonists’ golden advantage?

Tsk, she really wanted to take it back.

No rush; she’d investigate slowly. Sooner or later, the truth would come out. She wondered how her grandparents were doing.

Since they were just relatives of a minor character, the book only mentioned them in passing, describing how they, due to age and lack of resources, tragically passed away on a snowy day just before they would have seen a brighter future.

That meant they had at least two years left.

Her father saw Niannian’s smile and felt a twinge of guilt, his fingers trembling slightly.

Who knew what Niannian’s mother had told her before she passed?

But that was marital property, right? She married him, so it was his money now.

Why was he panicking?

But he felt guilty nonetheless, and he’d already forgotten about Ruhua being scolded by Niannian outside.

Trying to compose himself, he took a deep breath and, nervously, said:

“I sent a telegram to Lu Huaijin yesterday, asking him to come meet you. Will that satisfy you?”

Ruhua clenched her fists, her knuckles turning pale. How did things change so fast? Weren’t they supposed to beat her up?

Meanwhile, Xu Xiuhong thought to herself that there might really be some hidden money. After all these years, she knew the look he had when he was lying. Her life had improved a bit after marrying him, but she hadn’t seen a cent of surplus money.

Returning to her room, Niannian drew the curtains. After a morning of work, she was sweaty, but a rinse in the 20-degree water from her space made her feel refreshed.

When she reached the spring, she noticed a jade bracelet under the jade cup, its surface smooth and flawless, free of any imperfections.

Unable to resist, she tried it on. It fit her wrist perfectly.

As soon as she put it on, she felt that her clothes looked more upscale, the jade casting a gentle glow. In that moment of admiration, the bracelet on her wrist suddenly flickered.

Then, without warning, it vanished.

… The sudden disappearance startled her, but after experiencing something as outlandish as transmigration, it didn’t seem impossible.

That night, it seemed someone would lose sleep, as her father lay in bed, torn between blaming Niannian’s mother and feeling guilty about her.

A single tear of remorse slipped down his cheek.

With so many eyes on him, he dared not check if anything had been stolen.

Xu Xiuhong could feel her husband tossing and turning and wanted to scoff at him. She’d been with him for years, yet he’d kept things from her. Well, it would all go to her son eventually.

She would wait him out.

On Monday at ten in the morning, while sipping tea and reading the paper in his office, Xu’s father was called by Xiao Chen from the phone room, informing him of a call from Lu Huaijin’s military unit.

The other party, polite yet distant, confirmed the date: July 16th at noon, at the state-run hotel for Niannian’s blind date.

The conversation was over in just a few sentences.

Xu’s father mumbled to himself, “July 16th at noon.”

During lunch, Xu’s father asked:

“Where’s Niannian? Off somewhere again?”

Xu Xiuhong replied:

“I don’t know. She hasn’t been home since she returned.”

Xu’s father snorted:

“Off messing around again. If you see her, let her know about the… July, what was it… oh, the 16th at noon, to meet with Lu Huaijin.”

Ruhua’s hand froze, her knuckles turning pale as she clenched her bowl.

Of course, Xu Xiuhong noticed and smiled as she said:

“You should tell the girl yourself, or she’ll end up blaming me.”

Xu’s father slammed his chopsticks down:

“She’d better not! I’m her father, and I’m sick of her always glaring at me. I don’t even know who she’s trying to impress.”

Xu Xiuhong could only nod in agreement.

After Xu’s father left in the afternoon, Ruhua grabbed her mother’s arm.

“Mom, let me go tell Niannian.”

Xu Xiuhong patted her hand:

“Alright, go tell her.”

What had Niannian been up to at noon?

With her pocket as empty as her face was clean, she felt uneasy. This anxiety outweighed the risk of being caught. She calculated that it wouldn’t be easy to get caught as long as she didn’t sell large quantities.

Perhaps she had a hoarding instinct from her past life; she always felt uneasy without some money on hand.

After saving up food for over a day, she put on the same outfit as last time and headed toward the steel factory’s family quarters. Taking advantage of the lunch break, she found Aunt Wang, who lit up at the sight of Niannian’s large basket and pulled her into the house.

Since her son and husband were both in the living room, Aunt Wang led her straight into the bedroom.