Chapter 2

First, she opened the windows to ventilate the room, then covered her nose with a wet towel, turned off the gas, and opened all the windows in the house.

Her survival instincts kicked in. Like a weed in the cracks of concrete, she clung to life with fierce determination.

With the wet towel still over her nose, she rummaged through the wardrobe until she found 3,840.83 yuan—meticulously counted down to the last cent.

This money was all the original owner had earned herself. Yang Ligang’s income, since their marriage, had never been shared with her. He likely spent it on himself—or his mistress.

The mistress, named Hu Wanwan, worked at the same factory and had flaunted her relationship with Yang Ligang in front of Ye Xiaoyu multiple times, even bragging about her new possessions. It was said she’d even gotten a television from him.

Televisions in 1992 weren’t cheap. Domestic models cost 1,500 to 3,000 yuan, while imported brands like Panasonic could go up to 10,000 yuan.

The 3,840.83 yuan Ye Xiaoyu had would barely buy two domestic TVs.

Looking at the colorful assortment of yuan, jiao, and fen, Ye Xiaoyu couldn’t help but feel a twinge of bitterness.

It was 1992. According to an unreliable newspaper, the average monthly wage in Yan Capital supposedly exceeded 1,500 yuan. However, in reality, only a small number of entrepreneurs had struck it rich. State-owned enterprise employees still earned between 200 to 600 yuan per month, with top technicians earning 700 or 800 yuan. Salaries above 1,000 yuan were typically reserved for managerial staff like department heads or deputy directors. The gap between the rich and the poor was growing day by day.

The original Ye Xiaoyu’s current monthly wage was 450 yuan, meaning she could only save 5,400 yuan in a year if she didn’t spend a single penny.

At first glance, this seemed decent. However, her salary had only increased significantly in the past two years. She was responsible for all the expenses of her family of three, covering food, household items, and other living costs. She never skimped on her child’s needs, always ensuring the best for him.

She saved on her own food and necessities, yet spent generously on her son. As he grew, the money saved each year equaled his age.

In the past five years, she hadn’t bought a single piece of clothing for herself except for work uniforms. She only purchased a new pair of shoes when her previous pair was so worn out that even the neighborhood cobbler shook his head, saying they were beyond repair.

However, she never held back when it came to her son, Lele. She ensured he always had milk powder, eggs, and meat, and every Lunar New Year, he wore new clothes and shoes.

Lele was very understanding for his age. He cherished everything his mother gave him and, influenced by her, became very frugal. When asked if he wanted a toy, he would always shake his head, though his eager, longing gaze betrayed his true feelings.

The original Ye Xiaoyu felt a deep sorrow. Frugality may sound virtuous, but it was a heavy burden for a five-year-old child to bear.

Ye Xiaoyu’s heart ached for the original owner. She sighed, lamenting the loss of yet another self-sacrificing woman in this world.

She took out all 3,840 yuan and 83 cents. She carefully tucked 3,800 yuan into the inner lining of a thin sweater, while keeping the remaining 40.83 yuan in the outer pocket of her clothing.

Although her current work uniform—faded to near white and patched twice on the inside—had deep outer pockets, Ye Xiaoyu didn’t dare underestimate the skilled thieves of this era. These pickpockets, who often had master-apprentice systems, even looked down on robbers, dismissing them as lacking technical skill. She wasn’t about to test her luck against such seasoned professionals.

With the money secured, she changed into a similarly faded cotton jacket and pants, then headed downstairs.
…

The apartment Ye Xiaoyu currently lived in was built by the motor factory. It wasn’t directly allocated to employees but required a combination of factors, such as years of service and family size, to qualify for the competition.

Yes, competition.

While commodity housing was becoming available, the prices were prohibitively high. In Yan Capital, housing ranged from 1,500 to 5,000 yuan per square meter, with the lower end being subsidized employee housing. The price differences depended largely on location—proximity to the city center meant higher prices.

Some external-sale properties weren’t even included in this range. These were marketed to Hong Kong residents and overseas Chinese, with prices easily exceeding 10,000 yuan per square meter.

The motor factory’s housing wasn’t commodity housing but rather employee-funded construction, making it relatively affordable.

Yang Ligang had purchased their 140-square-meter apartment, officially listed as 100 square meters, for just 10,000 yuan. The additional space, including an extended living room and two balconies, was a bonus provided by the factory.

Despite being located in Yan Capital, the factory’s area was still classified as part of a county and hadn’t yet been elevated to city status. In future terms, it would correspond to the fourth ring road area. Even so, a 100-square-meter apartment at the time should have cost at least 150,000 yuan. The discounted price was about a third of that.

However, this came with a condition: Yang Ligang had to remain employed at the factory for another three years to officially obtain the property deed and secure ownership.

Housing prices were visibly increasing, with rates climbing monthly. By next year, the lowest price per square meter would likely rise to 2,500 yuan. Owning such a spacious apartment was one of the points Yang Ligang loved to boast about outside.

…

“Xiaoyu!”

As soon as Ye Xiaoyu stepped outside, she ran into an elderly neighbor carrying a small vegetable basket.

“Auntie Li,” Ye Xiaoyu responded politely, as she always had.

Before she had walked far, she overheard Auntie Li muttering to another elderly woman who had just stepped out.

“Did you notice? The director’s wife on the fourth floor looks a bit different today.”

“Prettier, you think? I didn’t see any change. Honestly, she can’t even keep her man. Tsk, tsk.”

“Yeah, she doesn’t really match Director Zhang, does she?”

Living in the employee housing block meant there were no real strangers. Everyone knew each other’s names and stories, much like life in a small village.

There was a saying: “In the morning, a fart at one end of the village reaches the other end by evening.” The employee housing block functioned in much the same way, thanks to these gossip-loving men and women.

Typically, people wouldn’t make disparaging remarks directly to someone’s face. However, the original Ye Xiaoyu, raised to “be kind to others,” always endured such comments silently.

Kindness isn’t wrong, but it must be reserved for the right people. Some individuals take advantage of kind-heartedness, becoming more aggressive the more they are tolerated.

It was hard not to wonder if the original owner’s depression had been exacerbated by such toxic neighbors.

Unlike her predecessor, the current Ye Xiaoyu had no intention of being a pushover. She believed in “Don’t provoke me, and I won’t provoke you. If you do, I’ll settle the score.”

She stopped in her tracks, turned around, and silently stared at the two gossiping women.

The abrupt action startled them. They hadn’t expected Ye Xiaoyu to confront them. In the past, she had always quietly walked away.

Their voices trailed off and eventually ceased altogether.

Ye Xiaoyu glanced at Auntie Li’s grandson, who was peeking out curiously, and said pointedly, “Spreading rumors and slandering others—those who do so are said to be condemned to the first layer of the eighteen levels of hell. Even if you don’t fear going to hell yourselves, at least consider accumulating virtue for your descendants.”

Whether Ye Xiaoyu believed this or not, Auntie Li and her companions certainly did. To them, such words were no less than a curse. They’d now associate every misfortune with their gossiping habits, falling into an endless cycle of superstition and guilt.

If you trust deeply, it’s not impossible to remember someone for a lifetime. Spending money to avert disaster is already a good thing.

The faces of Mrs. Li and the other person immediately fell, and they stopped calling her by name, directly saying, “What’s wrong with you, young person? Do you have no manners? Do you know how to respect your elders?”

“If a child is not kind, the parents are not filial. Your family’s younger generation is really lucky,” Ye Xiaoyu said, with an implication in her words as she looked at Mrs. Li’s grandson. Before they could get angry, she added, “A person who has never done anything guilty isn’t afraid of ghosts knocking on the door in the middle of the night.”

The two people left behind were clutching their chests, feeling suffocated.

Walking down the street, everything around her—whether buildings or people—was like the red peony quilt, giving her a visual impact.

There were both good and bad things.

People often reminisce about the past in different eras. It must be said that although the 1990s weren’t as affluent as the 21st century, the average mental state of people at the time was undoubtedly among the best, far surpassing that of the 21st century.

However, possibly due to living near the electrical machinery factory, and with many other factories nearby, fresh, clean air was absent here. If one sniffed closely, there was even a faint strange smell that lingered.

After leaving the industrial zone, she walked a little further and finally saw a bus stop.

She waited for half an hour, and the bus arrived—considered lucky, as sometimes she would have to wait an hour.

On the bus, there was not only the driver but also a conductor.

Nowadays, buses were not a fixed price of one yuan, two yuan, or five yuan, but a segmented fare system. The starting fare within the city was 50 cents for up to 20 stations, with an additional 20 cents for every 10 stations. Night buses were rare, and the starting fare was 2 cents more expensive.

Ordinary people were reluctant to take the bus, while those with money either drove their cars or took taxis, so the bus was not crowded.

“Hongxing Hospital,” Ye Xiaoyu said her destination and handed over one yuan, receiving fifty cents as change.

When she arrived at her destination, in addition to the voice broadcast, the conductor’s loud voice could be heard, showing that the conductor was still important, and the salary was definitely well-earned.

There weren’t many people waiting at the registration desk in the lobby of Hongxing Hospital.

Soon, it was Ye Xiaoyu’s turn.

The hospital didn’t have particularly specialized departments. The registration nurse asked her about potential gas poisoning, and based on the situation, she helped her register for a doctor.

The doctor asked a few questions, took a quick blood test, and then said she had no major issues. Her blood test results were completely normal. This was very different from how things were in the future, where any hospital visit involved a comprehensive check-up.

However, Ye Xiaoyu did not leave immediately.

The original person had died from gas poisoning, and she didn’t know if there would be any lasting effects. In her past life, maybe it was just that she worked herself to death. Having been given a second chance, she planned to live to seventy or eighty years old and be a fashionable old lady in the 21st century.

So, she got back in line at the registration desk.

The registration nurse, with good memory, recognized her again and asked curiously, “Didn’t you just register?”

“I feel safer if I go again. Could you please introduce me to an excellent traditional Chinese medicine doctor? Thank you.”

The nurse was speechless.

The other patients waiting in line muttered or laughed.

The laughter wasn’t surprising, but one person laughed so hard that their stomach hurt:

“That lady is really fun.”

Ye Xiaoyu turned toward the sound.

The person with the low sense of humor was a man with a buzz cut, his hairstyle fierce, and his appearance also tough. He was a muscular man, yet when he smiled, his two tiger teeth made him look unexpectedly cute.

One of his feet was wrapped in several bandages, and he was leaning on a crutch with his left hand. He laughed so hard he lost strength, causing the crutch to lean sideways. If not for his companion holding him steady, he would have fallen.

His companion was taller, lean but not fragile, with strong arms.

Ye Xiaoyu shifted her gaze to this man’s face and couldn’t help but admire his looks. He was too handsome—his sharp eyebrows and starry eyes, and more remarkably, his temperament was gentle and clean. She couldn’t help but appreciate him for a few more moments.

The man noticed her gaze and looked back. Their eyes met—his bright and clear eyes locking with her amber ones. Ye Xiaoyu didn’t avert her gaze, smiling openly.

He was momentarily stunned, then smiled back, shifting his attention back to his companion who was still laughing like a madman. If not for his injury, he would have kicked him. Instead, he sighed and said, “At ease.”

“Yes, squad leader,” the buzz-cut youth reflexively straightened up, even raising his bandaged foot.

“Third floor, second room on the left.” The registration nurse was kind and, despite Ye Xiaoyu’s strange behavior, helped her register with one of the hospital’s well-known traditional Chinese medicine specialists.

After thanking her, Ye Xiaoyu walked toward the stairs.

She was indeed overweight, but instead of slouching or shrinking back in shame, her posture was full of vitality and life. Even her back seemed to radiate happiness.