Chapter 1: Mall Fire / Time Travel to the 1970s

As the head of the merchandising department at the largest shopping mall in City A, Lin Momo hadn’t had a decent night’s sleep for several days.

The mall had been constantly updating its product lines, and as the manager, she had to oversee everything at all times, leaving no room for error.

Ever since graduating from university, Lin Momo had worked at this mall. She had clawed her way up the ranks, and by age 27, she had finally reached the position of department manager.

That afternoon, after finishing the final round of product replacements, Lin Momo didn’t even have time for lunch. She collapsed onto the office sofa and fell into a deep sleep.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen of a restaurant on the 9th floor, a chef noticed a strong smell of gas and immediately alerted the restaurant manager. Not daring to delay, the manager called the mall’s administration office.

Soon, the mall’s public address system broadcast a message ordering all personnel to evacuate. Fire trucks, SWAT teams, and even the local special forces were mobilized.

Moments after the evacuation began, explosions rang out from within the mall. The 9th and 10th floors were full of restaurants, and the fire quickly spread upward from the 9th floor.

“Where’s Manager Lin? Has anyone seen Manager Lin?” someone conducting a headcount asked, unable to locate Lin Momo.

“Manager Lin was so exhausted she skipped lunch and went back to the office to rest,” one of the merchandising staff replied.

“She… she’s still inside?”

“Which Manager Lin are you talking about?” asked a soldier in tactical gear who had just approached.

“Lin Momo. Manager Lin.”

The soldier’s face went pale instantly. “What floor is her office on?”

“12th floor—the one with the open window,” the staff member pointed out.

“Give me the building floor plan!” the soldier shouted to his team.

After taking a quick look at the layout, he ran straight into the mall.

Inside the office, Lin Momo was awakened by the choking smell of smoke. Thick black smoke had already filled the room.

Cough cough. Lin Momo covered her mouth and moved toward the door, but she felt vibrations beneath her feet—something was exploding.

Originally, the 10th and 11th floors had been designed to house restaurants, so natural gas pipes had been installed on the 11th floor as well.

Soon, the temperature soared, and flames could be seen flickering through the cracks under the door.

The wailing sirens of fire trucks reached Lin Momo’s ears. She ran to the window, but smoke was billowing up from below—there was no way to see down or escape.

The flames at the door were growing larger, the smoke was getting thicker, and the air thinner. Lin Momo’s consciousness began to fade. “Am I going to die here?”

“Momo.” A familiar voice called out.

“Cheng Jinghao?” Lin Momo saw a blurred figure approaching from the window side.

The soldier in tactical gear was none other than Cheng Jinghao—her childhood friend.

Cheng Jinghao rushed to help Lin Momo, who had collapsed to her knees. “Are you okay?”

“What are you doing here? Are you crazy? Are you here to die?” Lin Momo weakly pushed him away and fell back to the ground, shouting at him.

“Momo, don’t be afraid.” Cheng Jinghao took off his combat uniform and wrapped it around her. “It’s fireproof.”

“We can’t get out. There’s no way out, Cheng Jinghao,” Lin Momo cried in his arms.

Of course, Cheng Jinghao knew that. With no special equipment and the exterior of the mall covered in glass and tiles, there was no way for him to get Lin Momo out safely.

There were no helicopters dispatched for this mission. He and Lin Momo would not make it to the rescue.

Cheng Jinghao held Lin Momo in his arms without saying a word. Since he couldn’t take her out, he would stay and accompany her.

“Cheng Jinghao, if I had known I’d die with you in the end, I wouldn’t have argued with you so much when we were kids,” Lin Momo’s voice grew weaker.

The office door could barely hold back the raging fire outside.

Black smoke enveloped them, and Cheng Jinghao could no longer see Lin Momo’s face. He reached out and touched her cheek.

“Momo, I…”

Lin Momo didn’t hear what Cheng Jinghao said—she had lost consciousness.

——————

When she opened her eyes again, Lin Momo felt a wave of discomfort, and memories that didn’t belong to her appeared in her mind.

It was now 1973. The original owner of this body was also named Lin Momo, 18 years old, just graduated from high school, living in Beijing. Her father was the director of a flour factory, and her mother was an accountant at a steel factory. For this era, the family was fairly well-off.

She had two older brothers. The eldest, Lin Ze, was 25 and worked at the steel factory. His wife, Cao Shulan, worked at the supply and marketing cooperative. They had a son, Lin Xiaojie, who was now 3 years old and already attending preschool.

Her second brother, Lin Yu, 22, worked at the rubber factory. He had married Zhang Hui, who also worked there. They had been married for half a year.

The original owner lived in a three-bedroom apartment in the factory’s family housing. Her brothers had already moved out and only came home for meals on weekends.

The last memory of the original Lin Momo was a robotic voice saying that her mission in this world had been completed.

After absorbing those memories, Lin Momo remembered what had happened before she lost consciousness. She had time-traveled. But what about Cheng Jinghao? Where was he?

“Momo, are you up yet?” her mother’s voice came from the door.

“Mom, I’m getting up now.” There was no time to dwell on it. Since it was the weekend, her brothers and their wives would be coming for lunch. Lin Momo had to get up.

After getting out of bed, Lin Momo looked around the original owner’s room. It matched the memories exactly. As the only daughter in the family, the original Lin Momo had been doted on.

Besides some high school textbooks, the desk had a radio and a wristwatch. There was also a mirror on the wardrobe, specially made for her by her father.

Lin Momo walked over to the mirror. A fair and delicate face appeared. She reached out and touched her cheek.

Wasn’t this what she looked like at 18? It seemed like she had gained something from this—she was supposed to have died, but now she had traveled back to the 1970s, and was ten years younger.

She wondered how Cheng Jinghao was. Had he time-traveled too?

He had gone to the office for her, hadn’t he?

They were the same age. When they were 20, their parents had died in an accident. At that time, Cheng Jinghao had already been in the army for two years.

Later, he joined the special forces, and they had less and less contact.

Even though they had fought constantly growing up, they had a deep bond from growing up together. In the end, he died for her.

“Momo.” Her mother’s voice called again, urging her. “Didn’t you say yesterday that you’d come grocery shopping with me? If you don’t come out now, the pork belly will be gone.”

“Coming!” Lin Momo quickly opened the wardrobe. It was full of floral-patterned dresses. She randomly picked one, changed, braided her hair, and left the room.

“Hurry up and wash up—breakfast is ready,” her mother said, carrying out a bowl of porridge from the kitchen.

“Our daughter looks especially pretty today,” her father said as he passed by, helping carry the dishes.

“Is there a day she doesn’t look good?” The original Lin Momo’s personality and habits were much like hers, so there was no fear of being discovered as an impostor.

“True, our daughter looks good every day,” her father echoed with a smile.