Chapter 002

002  

Dropping out was out of the question. Qingyin slung her schoolbag over her shoulder, mounted the only brand-new bicycle in the compound, and pedaled straight to school.  

Though the original owner of this body had been naive, her intelligence was above average, especially excelling in math and science. She often ranked in the top three of her class and attended the best high school in the district.  

After leaving Compound No. 16, she rode along Apricot Blossom Alley. As she passed the public restroom, Qingyin nearly gagged—  

This was the time when every household had just emptied their chamber pots, and the sanitation workers hadn’t arrived yet. The stench was so overpowering that even the nearby garbage dump paled in comparison.  

Holding her breath, Qingyin sped past. Just as she reached the end of the alley, she spotted a few young men lounging against the wall, dressed in sailor shirts and green military uniform pants. Instinctively, her hands trembled slightly.  

This was the original owner’s conditioned response. These were the local delinquents who loitered around—bullies who would yell at kids, kick stray dogs, and whistle at pretty girls like Qingyin.  

The original Qingyin had been timid. Every time she encountered them, her face would flush red, her heart pounding as she fled in panic, afraid that even her shadow might be trampled if she ran too slowly.  

But who was Qingyin now? She had grown up in the countryside and, after starting work, had encountered all sorts of troublemakers—from unruly patients to oddball street loafers. As she passed them, she didn’t so much as glance their way, showing no sign of nervousness or haste. She simply glided past, as if they didn’t exist.  

She didn’t even spare them a backward glance like she used to, blushing as she stole a peek.  

“Hey, Gangzi, was that little Qingyin just now? Am I seeing things?”  

“Nah, that was her. Why isn’t she scared of us anymore?”  

“Her biking skills seem way better too.”  

“Heh, you think Brother Anzi taught her?” The group burst into laughter.  

“Last time, Brother Anzi laid down the law—none of us around here are allowed to mess with little Qingyin anymore. Rule one: no scaring her. Rule two: no whistling at her. Rule three: no…”  

“Yeah, yeah, we know—rule three: no staring at her. The ‘three no’s,’ right? Man, having someone backing her up sure makes her bold.”  

……  

Qingyin had no idea she was the subject of such gossip. She soon arrived at the school gate, where the guard asked why she was so late—classes had already been underway for half an hour. But then, remembering the tragedy in the Qing family, he sighed sympathetically.  

The Qings really were down on their luck.  

Once inside, Qingyin didn’t head to the classroom. Instead, following the original owner’s memories, she went straight to the homeroom teacher’s office.  

At this hour, only a handful of teachers were scattered around the office, quietly preparing lessons. Qingyin knocked twice on the door.  

“Oh, Qingyin? Come in.” Li Xiuneng set down his fountain pen. He remembered this student well—not only was she pretty, but she was also academically outstanding. She rarely caused trouble and never participated in extracurricular activities, focusing solely on her studies.  

As he studied her, Qingyin studied him in return. Li Xiuneng had only been teaching for a year, and the faint stubble around his lips still looked youthful. After all, this was his first class—he was barely a year or two older than Qingyin and her peers, and his speech still carried a hint of inexperience.  

“Didn’t you take leave for family matters? Is everything settled? If… if you’re still feeling down, you can take a few more days off. Don’t worry about missing class.”  

Qingyin lowered her head. If she had to force tears, she wouldn’t be able to squeeze any out.

“Or if there’s any trouble at home that requires the teacher’s help, just let me know.”

Qingyin looked up, “Thank you, Teacher Li. I’m doing alright.”

Seeing her reluctance to elaborate, Li Xiuneng assumed it was because the office was crowded and she was too shy to speak up. After all, this student had always been well-behaved and timid. So he led her to the small flower bed outside the office.

“Go ahead, what’s the matter?”

“Teacher Li, I wanted to ask if it’s possible to apply for a leave of absence from school?”

Li Xiuneng was startled, “You want to take a leave? Is your family unwilling to support your education anymore?”

Qingyin didn’t deny it. Currently, her love-struck aunt was busy pursuing romance and actually resented her for being a burden, being persuaded to abandon her.

“How could they… You’re such a good student, how can you not continue? This is simply… No, I’ll go to your neighborhood committee to ask what’s going on. It’s the last semester… If they don’t intervene, I’ll go to your parents’ factory. The labor union should handle this, or the women’s federation. If no one does anything, I’ll go straight to the factory management, find the director and party secretary.”

Qingyin hadn’t expected him to be so passionate!

In the original host’s memory, there wasn’t much impression of the homeroom teacher because she never served as a class officer and rarely sought out teachers—a true idle soul.

“Don’t lose heart, Qingyin. I’ll definitely help you get justice.”

“Thank you, Teacher Li.” Qingyin bowed deeply. “I came to apply for a leave of absence to retain my student status and records. Then, by the end of the term, I’ll return on time to take the graduation exams. That won’t affect me getting my diploma, right?”

During these times, with the emphasis on labor education, it wasn’t uncommon for rural students to take month-long leaves during busy farming seasons. Schools often turned a blind eye as long as proper documentation was provided. The process was actually quite straightforward.

“Teacher, you know my family situation. Now that my elder brother is gone and my sister-in-law has no job, relying solely on my niece to support us is very difficult. So I want to start working early to ease the family’s burden.”

It was 1973, still far from the resumption of college entrance exams. Attending high school didn’t hold much significance—there wasn’t much proper teaching, and little academic knowledge was gained. Missing school wouldn’t matter as long as she could eventually get her diploma.

There were more important things than high school right now.

Seeing her calm expression, without a trace of grievance or sadness, Li Xiuneng repeatedly confirmed that this was her voluntary decision and that she would return for the exams. He sighed deeply, “It’s good that you think this way.”

“I’ll handle it for you today. You can come get it tomorrow.”

Li Xiuneng had another role at the school—he was the principal’s son, and his mother worked in the district education bureau. While Qingyin might struggle on her own, his help made things much easier.

Qingyin thanked him sincerely.

“Though I’ve only been your teacher for half a year, remember: once a teacher, always a teacher. If you ever face difficulties, you can always come to me.”

Qingyin was moved. After walking a few steps, she suddenly remembered something. “Oh, Teacher Li, have you been having trouble sleeping lately, with dry eyes?”

Li Xiuneng was taken aback. “Ah, yes. Why?”

“Could you find time to get your liver checked at the hospital, please?”

Li Xiuneng wasn’t convinced. After all, reading too much would make anyone’s eyes dry, and Qingyin was just a student, not a doctor.

“Please trust me. You should go to the hospital as soon as possible.”

Qingyin thought to herself that she would remind him again when he came to collect his proof in a few days. If he still hadn’t gone, she would find a way to treat him herself. Based on her years of experience practicing medicine with her grandfather, she was certain there was something wrong with Teacher Li’s liver.

Considering his young age and lack of bad habits, it probably wasn’t anything serious.

She wanted to just take his pulse and prescribe medicine right away, but would Li Xiuneng believe her?

She had forgotten—the Qing family was a renowned Traditional Chinese Medicine lineage!

To her surprise, Li Xiuneng gratefully agreed, “Thank you, Qingyin. I’ll go to the hospital soon. I heard you often study with your father—you must know a thing or two about medicine, right?”

Qingyin: “???” Was this for real?

She had been worrying about how to gradually reveal her medical skills and clinical experience without raising suspicion, and here was the perfect opportunity!

“Your father is a highly skilled doctor—everyone around here knows that. You must have learned a lot from him.”

Images flashed through Qingyin’s mind: an elderly man with white hair and beard examining patients while a little girl played nearby, counting the patients’ hair strands; the old man preparing medicine while the girl trailed behind, sneakily tasting the herbs and grimacing at the bitterness…

The original owner had spent her time with Old Mr. Qing purely playing around.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have brought it up. You should go home and rest.”

Snapping out of her thoughts, Qingyin bid farewell to Li Xiuneng and happily rode her bike away from school.

***

Meanwhile, at the Shucheng Steel Mill’s publicity department, Qing Huihui was about to leave work when a man and a woman walked in.

The man was of average height, with thick eyebrows, bright eyes, and neatly trimmed short hair. He wore a crisply ironed blue work uniform and glasses, smiling warmly.

Qing Huihui blushed. “Brother Zhiqiang.”

“Sister Hongxing, you’re here too?”

“What, can he come but I can’t?”

Qing Huihui’s face instantly turned tomato-red, and she twisted her body awkwardly.

“You two chat. I have things to attend to in the workshop—I’ll head over first.”

As soon as Liu Zhiqiang left, Liu Hongxing linked arms with Qing Huihui. “You—if he doesn’t come to you, can’t you go to him?”

“Everyone’s watching…”

“So what? Can’t people develop deep revolutionary friendships?” Liu Hongxing scoffed, then yawned and rubbed her eyes.

“Sister Hongxing, what’s wrong? Didn’t sleep well last night?”

“Ugh, don’t even ask. Come on, let’s talk in the restroom.” No matter the era, restroom chats always seemed more worthwhile.

The factory restroom was much cleaner than the public ones in the alley. A thick wall separated the men’s and women’s sides, and they hid in the farthest stall, falling silent whenever someone entered and resuming once they left—no one noticed two women deep in conversation.

“Yesterday, the Educated Youth Office sent another notice—someone has to go. Zhiqiang’s a college student, so he’s exempt. My older sisters are married, so it has to be me. I’m so worried.”

“I’m in the same boat. If only I had a job, I wouldn’t have to worry about being sent to the countryside. We’ve been closest since childhood, so I’m telling you this from the heart—I wouldn’t dare say it to anyone else.” Blah blah blah.

Ten minutes later, Qing Huihui was visibly moved, her entire face glowing with an unnatural flush. “Sister Hongxing, I didn’t know you’ve been so worried lately. If I’d known, I would have helped you sooner.”

Liu Hongxing gave a bitter smile. “How could you help? Your father just passed, and you have a whole family to support. It’s already hard enough for you—my heart aches just seeing it… But it shouldn’t be long now. Once you and Zhiqiang settle things and join our family, you won’t have to struggle like this anymore.”

Qing Huihui blushed deeply, overwhelmed by the unexpected favor.

She had feelings for Brother Zhiqiang—many knew that. But Brother Zhiqiang was the type to smile warmly at everyone, so she couldn’t be sure if he returned her feelings. Yet the way Liu Hongxing spoke today, wasn’t it practically spelling it out?

“What about Brother Zhiqiang’s thoughts…?”

“Pfft, that’s just how he is—can’t squeeze three decent words out of him. You know how he is. The whole family feels the same way,” she said with a suggestive chuckle.

Qing Huihui felt as though she’d swallowed a calming pill.

Liu Hongxing stoked the fire further: “Ah, but who knows if this’ll work out? I’d love to have you as a sister-in-law, but with the way the Educated Youth Office is pushing, I can’t avoid going. If only I could get a job here… If I could stay in the city, I’d definitely put in a good word for you two. Save him from his blockheadedness—can’t even take the initiative, honestly, it’s maddening.”

Qing Huihui bit her lip. “Sister Hongxing, you should stay.”

Liu Hongxing gave her a look as if to say, “Are you joking?”

“I have a way for you to stay. After my father passed, the factory said his position would be kept for our family. If you don’t mind, you could take it.”

Liu Hongxing put on a conflicted, understanding expression, but inwardly, she was overjoyed!

Mind? Only a fool would mind! Qingyang’s old job was in the medical office—the most notoriously cushy department in the whole factory. Qingyang had muddled through his whole career without learning a lick of medicine, but his 115-yuan salary was the real deal!

What did 115 yuan mean? Liu Zhijian, the Liu family’s pride and joy as a college graduate, was only making 55 yuan as a 13th-grade worker—not even half of old man Qingyang’s pay!

Of course, she knew she wouldn’t start at that salary if she took over Qingyang’s position. But she was certain that with enough time, she could become the female version of Qingyang—maybe even use the steel mill as a stepping stone to an even better workplace.

The Liu family lacked many things, but brains weren’t one of them.