Chapter 5

In the space, after Gu Qinghuan had eaten and drunk her fill, she carefully examined the area.

Apart from the spiritual spring, the soil here seemed to be of good quality as well. In the future, she could plant some fruits and vegetables, saving money on groceries. Besides, the vegetables grown with the spiritual spring should taste pretty good, right?

Gu Qinghuan had never had any grand ambitions in her life. She simply wanted to save enough for her retirement and then live a small life filled with eating and drinking every day.

The biggest surprise for her was the Vending Machine.

To put it simply, it was just an online shopping platform, much like certain popular e-commerce sites.

She had originally thought that once the food in the villa was gone, that would be the end of it. She never expected there would be a shopping platform. Now, she really had nothing to worry about.

Moreover, not only could she buy things from it, but she could also sell things.

Although she didn’t have anything to sell at the moment, the appearance of the Vending Machine did make her feel relieved.

It was just that Yama was being too inconsiderate. He had promised to return the remaining three hundred thousand in savings to her, but in the end, she only got three thousand. What could three thousand even buy?

Far away in the Underworld Palace, Yama sneezed loudly.

Wait, was that right?

One pound of pork for eighty cents?

One pound of Northeast rice for fifteen cents?

White flour for eighteen cents?

Well, it seemed like she had wronged Yama. It appeared that the Vending Machine’s prices had automatically adjusted to the price levels of the era she was in.

The three hundred thousand from the future had been reduced to three thousand in this time.

But the purchasing power of those three thousand was still quite decent. Yama had done a reliable job, even knowing to exchange it for the currency of this era. Aside from the vending machine, she could use it outside as well. Not bad at all.

Gu Qinghuan happily put the money away. It was all she had at the moment.

Looking at the woman in the full-length mirror, she curled her lips in disdain.

The original owner’s appearance was actually quite similar to her own, but the original owner was thinner. However, the chest area was quite ample, though Gu Qinghuan had no idea how it had developed like that.

She also had the envy of modern girls—the long, slender legs, straight and shapely.

Due to prolonged malnutrition, her skin looked a bit sallow, and her lips were unnaturally pale. Her hair was dry and yellowish.

The clothes she wore were full of stains, but because she was skillful with her hands, the colors of the stains were well coordinated, which made her appearance seem less terrible.

Gu Qinghuan decided to wash herself thoroughly, from head to toe.

She lit a scented candle, played some relaxing, soothing music, and lay in the massage bathtub, enjoying the 360-degree rotating nozzle spa treatment. The bathroom was filled with mist, creating a slightly tipsy feeling of happiness.

In her previous life, she had been busy all the time, constantly working to earn money, often live-streaming until late into the night. It was rare for her to have time to indulge in such a relaxing moment.

Although Yama had tricked her and sent her to this hard era, he had also given her another way of life. With her “golden finger.” she didn’t need to work herself to the bone this time. She could live comfortably without struggling.

After the bath, Gu Qinghuan directly lay on the two-meter-wide bed and fell into a deep sleep.

She decided that today would be enough. Everything could be dealt with tomorrow.

---

She slept deeply until the sun was high in the sky.

Thanks to the nourishment from the spiritual spring and a good night’s rest, she felt much better.

After careful consideration, two paths lay before her.

The first option was to return the money to the old Xu family, move back to the educated youth compound, and pretend that nothing had happened. 

However, doing so would ruin her reputation, and it would completely offend the old Xu family. Her future in Xu Family Village would likely involve constant exclusion from others.

The Cultural Revolution would still last for more than a year, and returning to the city wasn’t an option for now. The educated youth compound was also a complicated small society, full of intrigue and constant backstabbing.

The second option was to accept this “business.” take the opportunity to start her own life in the village, live independently without having to rely on anyone, and occasionally help out the family in the Cattle Shed.

The only downside was that she would have to support three more people. The Madman loomed over her like a ticking time bomb, and there were also two little villains, though she didn’t know what their situation was.

Comparing the two options, each had its pros and cons.

Given the choice between being ostracized and caught up in intrigue in the educated youth compound, constantly being monitored, and not having access to the space, she would rather spend money supporting the three people next door. Providing them with food was a small effort.

After much contemplation, she found it hard to decide.

After freshening up in the villa, Gu Qinghuan took off her silk nightgown and put on the plain clothes again.

Gu Qinghuan had already washed and dried her old clothes with the washing machine last night. They were ugly, but at least they were clean now.

After applying some skincare products and tidying up a bit, she tied her hair into two braids and left the space.

The sun was already high in the sky.

As Gu Qinghuan looked at the spot where she had slept last night, goosebumps covered her body.

The old Xu family was really lacking in any standards. The Old Residence had become so run-down, yet they still sent people to live here.

The walls were full of large and small holes, and the roof had gaps in it. There were also the spider webs Gu Qinghuan had seen yesterday, covering the entire room.

The room contained nothing but a dirt stove, and it was covered in dust. No one had bothered to clean it.

It was hard to imagine what kind of grudge they could have with their son to throw someone into a place like this to fend for themselves.

This house was definitely uninhabitable—full of holes, and even if it were repaired, it wouldn’t be livable.

Gu Qinghuan felt a headache coming on.

She opened the door, and by the entrance, there was the patched-up aluminum lunchbox, clean and washed.

Gu Qinghuan stared for a few seconds, then put away the lunchbox and searched the entire house. The only person she found was the Madman lying on the stove, his eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling, looking quite eerie.

The two little ones were nowhere to be found. They might have gone out looking for food.

She remembered that last night, the boy had told his little sister that they would go to the mountain early in the morning to find food for her.

The children from the mountain were wild, accustomed to going up the mountain and down to the river. It wasn’t unusual for them, so Gu Qinghuan didn’t look for them.

Right now, she had a few important matters to attend to.

The first thing was to go to the county town to check on the situation with the original owner’s mother.

The original owner had sold herself to save her mother, which showed just how important her family was to her.

Having taken someone else’s body, it was only right to give back in some way, to take on the responsibility of caring for their family. This was a must.

Additionally, she needed to negotiate with the Branch Secretary. After all, he was “The Madman’s” biological father, and if she wanted to rid herself of this burden, some sort of payment was inevitable.

This broken house was absolutely unfit for living.

When she opened the door earlier and saw the lunchbox, she had already made up her mind.

Every child was born a blank slate, and it depended on how those raising them chose to fill it.

Education was a mysterious thing—day after day, year after year, subtly influencing a child, and one day, you would realize that they had grown into the person you had envisioned. It was magical, and beautiful.

Although the two children in the book were portrayed as pure villains, they weren’t inherently bad. Part of their misfortune was shaped by the indifferent society and the people around them.

Throughout their limited lives, they had faced nothing but malice, with no happiness in sight.

The protagonist had even callously drained their luck, making their already miserable lives even worse. This could have been a major factor leading them down a path they could never return from.

Having grown up with parents who were separated, Gu Qinghuan had been left with a significant psychological scar, which was why she had never considered marriage or having children. Her focus had always been on earning money so that she could live independently when she grew older.

Now, becoming a mother without pain, taking on the role of guardian for the two children, was a novel experience for her, and she was curious to see what it would be like.

At the very least, she could ensure that they were well-fed and warm, not worrying about basic survival. If she could guide them in the right direction, helping them walk a proper path in the future, it wouldn’t be a bad thing.

The main reason she chose to stay was that she didn’t want to return to the educated youth compound. There, several people shared a room, and it was inconvenient to access the space. Having a little personal freedom was difficult.

She could never live that life again, where one meal was corn porridge and the next was black bread.

The idea of moving out to start her own life was even more impossible. The land in the village was owned by the locals, and why should they give a plot to an outsider like her?

In a way, this situation worked out better. By “marrying” Xu Huai’an (The Madman), she was now considered part of Xu Family Village. She could live privately without anyone questioning her. 

She would wait for a couple of years, and once the overall environment improved, she could figure out a way to leave. During this time, she hoped she could influence the children positively.

Above all, she needed to teach them to stay away from the male and female leads’ family, to never trust others too easily, or they might end up being used and discarded without even realizing it.

---

T/N: I unlock 1 chapter everyday!

---