Chapter 5 Traveling Through 80 Years

Lin Anran opened the door and was immediately blinded by a beam of light. She quickly covered her eyes and realized she was hallucinating. Suddenly, she remembered the warehouse she had rented—the door hadn’t been locked—so she drove there.

She felt tired as she drove along a narrow mountain path when a large truck appeared coming toward her. At a critical moment, the brakes failed. Panicking, Lin Anran shielded her eyes and tried to steer, but the truck accelerated and pushed her car off the cliff.

“Ah!” she screamed as both she and the car slid down the slope. The windshield shattered, sending glass shards flying everywhere. She and the car tumbled down to the bottom of the cliff. Blood filled her mouth as she tried to call for help. When the car door opened upon impact, she seized a moment of clarity to crawl out. She noticed the vehicle leaking oil drop by drop.

Summoning all her strength to stay conscious, she slowly crawled toward an open area. Suddenly, with a loud “bang,” the car exploded, sending fragments everywhere as flames erupted. Lin Anran covered her head with her hands and collapsed unconscious.

The truck driver, terrified, stared at the twisted, burning wreck at the bottom of the cliff. He clasped his hands together, trembling, and muttered, “Don’t come after me if she dies! I had no choice… I have children who need me. Please… don’t haunt me…” Lin Anran, however, could no longer hear him; she had slipped into unconsciousness.

—

She felt a sharp pain in her neck and thought she had died. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a mud-brick house. Dark red tables and cabinets looked freshly painted. Looking down at the earthen floor, she thought she must be dreaming. She quickly closed her eyes and opened them again—the scene remained the same.

She noticed a nylon rope hanging from a beam. If it hadn’t been loose, she wouldn’t have fallen onto the bed. On the yellowed walls, she saw a faded inscription: 1980. She realized she had traveled back in time. Her mind flashed with memories of a 20-year-old girl’s life: born into a small capitalist family, her life had been pleasant until a sudden tragedy caused the death of her parents. She studied at a nursing school for two years and lived with her aunt. When she reached marriageable age, her aunt married her off.

Having grown up in a life of ease, she had assumed happiness would continue. But the sudden misfortune left her mentally fragile, increasingly foolish, and unable to care for herself. She became overweight—her weight rose from 88 jin to 150 jin—and neglected hygiene. Her body emitted an unpleasant odor, dust coated every surface, and dirty clothes piled high.

Her new husband, disgusted by her condition, ignored her completely. She wept daily, and on their wedding night, he refused to share the bed. Exhausted, she dozed off for a while, only to awaken at night to a faint light from a side room. Curious, she quietly approached and heard muffled moans. She opened the door to see her husband with another woman, engaged in an affair. When she tried to confront him, he shouted, calling her ugly and even comparing her unfavorably to a pig.

Enraged, she stormed to her in-laws for justice, but they ignored the situation and scolded her instead: “Don’t waste time; we need grandchildren…” Though mentally impaired, she wasn’t completely naive—she realized her life had been miserable. Filled with resentment, she tied a nylon rope to the beam and hanged herself, cursing that her soul would not rest. She told herself she was the previous incarnation of the girl and that the mirror bore the same name as hers. She vowed to avenge her past life.

Lin Anran rose and examined the house. Despite some wear, it was manageable. A mirror on the wardrobe reflected her current body: 160 cm tall, 150 jin, undeniably unattractive, her face showing the effects of the past life’s neglect. The pile of old, filthy clothes repulsed her. No wonder her husband had avoided her entirely, even on their wedding night. The original owner had led a humiliating life.

Drawing on the memories of her previous incarnation, Lin Anran noticed a well in the yard. She took the bedding outside to dry on the clothesline and laid the dirty clothes on a stone table. Rolling up her sleeves, she began cleaning the house. She sprinkled water on the floor, swept up debris, and used an old towel and a basin of water from a wooden bucket to scrub the cabinets, tables, and bed thoroughly. She even cleaned the glass. Despite her overweight body, she worked diligently and, after about half an hour, the windows were sparkling clean.

After half a day of cleaning, the room looked considerably tidier. As the sun began to set, she brought the bedding back inside and spread it out. Famished, she realized there was nothing to eat.

Her in-laws lived in the outer house, often keeping the doors tightly shut, afraid she might come asking for food. She was starving and wondering what to eat when, suddenly, fruits and milk appeared on the table. Wondering if the space had also come through with her, she was overjoyed!

Lin Anran stepped into the space and saw that her tree had sprouted, the wheat in the fields was ripe, and the rice in the paddies had turned yellow. Several large buckets of milk were also there. She went to the kitchen and warmed a bowl of milk. Using her willpower, she harvested some of the wheat herself. She then went to the river and saw that the chickens, ducks, and fish had grown; she collected a few eggs.

She began preparing a meal. First, she scrubbed the iron pan, then poured in some rapeseed oil. Once the oil smoked, she cracked eggs into it, frying them until cooked, adding salt and seasoning. When finished, she plated the eggs. Drinking the milk and eating the scrambled eggs to her satisfaction, she used her willpower to harvest the grains, feed the cows, sheep, and chickens, and water the fruit trees.

Looking at her overweight body, she felt disgusted with herself. She went to the yard and picked a ginseng fruit; instantly, her skin became smooth and radiant, and she lost ten jin. Seeing her clothes were too dirty, she went to get a set of clothes, but realized all she had bought were sizes S and M. She sighed—considering how overweight the original owner had been, she knew she still needed to lose weight.

Having eaten and drank her fill, Lin Anran thought about the unpleasant smell on her body and decided to take a bath. It was May; though it was a bit hot during the day, the nights were still cool. She went outside to the kitchen area, gathered some firewood, fetched water, and heated a pot of water to wash off the smell. She mixed in some cold water to get the temperature just right, closed the door, and began bathing.

Afterward, she felt refreshed. She placed the washed clothes on a stool behind the door. Since she had done laundry in the afternoon, the clothes hadn’t dried yet, so she couldn’t wear them. Just as she was finishing her bath, she heard a series of urgent knocks at the door…