Chapter 1

Western Moon, 1975. Shengli Brigade, Pingyang County. Beside the Sanmin River. In a small wooden cabin.

As soon as she opened her eyes, Zhang Xiyue found herself in a strange place—a small wooden cabin with cobwebs clustered on the walls and several holes in the roof. Predictably, when it rained heavily outside, it would also rain lightly inside.

Hadn’t she dragged that scheming bitch—who was fighting her over 20 million in inheritance—down with her in a life-or-death struggle? Where was this place?

Rubbing the aching back of her head and seeing the blood on her hand, she fell into deep thought. She took a step toward the door but froze. Not far outside, a middle-aged woman and a young man were whispering about dumping a body in the river.

“Mom, what do we do? Zhang Xiyue is dead. I’m scared they’ll execute me…”

“Scared of what, Zhiguo? You want to be sent down to the countryside as an educated youth? Today is your only chance. Zhang Xiyue’s family has been watching her closely. It was hard enough catching her alone today.”

“Yang Tiantian only agreed to tip me off after I paid her one yuan. If we back out now, we lose big.”

The man still hesitated. “But now Zhang Xiyue is dead… what if I don’t get the job, Mom? I’m the third child—never as favored as my older or younger brothers.”

A job? Even if he got it, would it really be his? The youngest brother was already sixteen—ready to inherit a position.

The woman’s tone was sharp: “The plan was to ‘heroically rescue her,’ but you hit too hard. Now that she’s dead, stuff her in a burlap sack, weigh it down with some rocks, toss it in the river, and pretend we never saw her.”

“Just look outside—Sanmin River is deep and the current strong. You think a dead person could crawl out? And she didn’t see that it was you who hit her.”

“Did you forget what happened to Liu Daya at the factory? Sent down south, got killed by local thugs and dumped in the river?”

“Don’t think you’re safe just because you’re a man. Look at you—handsome and a high school graduate. What if some village girl falls for you? You think you can come back to the city then?”

“I’ve asked around. The send-down location this time is in the south. They’re worked to death there—two rice harvests a year. You’re not cut out for that, Zhiguo. Trust your mom. Xiyue wasn’t a bad person. She’ll forgive you from the afterlife.”

“I killed her. You toss the body. Also—listen—your dad stole some fabric from the factory and sold it. We’ve saved the money for your dowry. I’m just waiting to hold a grandchild.”

“With Zhang Xiyue gone, you’re sure to get the job.”

She wasn’t willing to split the family or let her eldest son go. She kept his family close. Naturally, she needed another daughter-in-law to work and earn. If her eldest son’s wife hadn’t been pregnant with twins, it wouldn’t even be Zhiguo’s turn.

Three sons. Only the eldest was fertile. The second son’s wife had been married three years with no children. She didn’t like her and wanted her gone. The youngest son was too young, and the house had only three rooms. Once Zhiguo got married, she’d kick the second son’s family out.

The man’s hesitant expression shifted. “Alright, Mom. You go get the sack. I’ll wait here.”

“Good. I’ll be quick.”

The man sat on the ground, eyes vacant.

Zhang Xiyue was panicking. She was alone in the cabin. Touching the wound on the back of her head, she realized—they were planning to sink her in the river?

She staggered, caught herself on the wall, and suddenly understood—she had transmigrated.

She had become someone else—a character in the novel “The Poor Girl from the Seventies Strikes it Rich.” Worse, she was the villainess—a foil to the heroine—with the same name and face.

The male lead was Shen He, and the female lead was Yang Tiantian. Wei Zhiguo was a secondary male character.

At this time, China was in the thick of the educated youth movement. Yang Guihua and Wei Dajun had five children. Wei Zhiguo was the third and the least favored—his parents doted on the eldest and the youngest.

The original Zhang Xiyue lived in Shengli Brigade, ideally located near the city—just about an hour’s walk away.

City families were under pressure: if high school graduates didn’t have jobs, they had to go to the countryside. The original Zhang Xiyue, the youngest of five, was sweet-looking, gentle, and constantly sick—her parents adored her.

The year she was born, both her parents got promoted, and they believed she was lucky and would bring prosperity.

Wei Zhiguo and Yang Guihua faked a kidnapping to stop Zhang Xiyue from taking the recruitment exam. But Yang Guihua hit her too hard—killing her—and they dumped her body in the river. The whole scheme was cooked up by the reborn heroine, Yang Tiantian.

The Zhang family suspected Wei Zhiguo, since he was her main competitor for the clothing factory’s design department job—light work, prestigious. The two were neck and neck.

Fearing Zhang Xiyue’s death would be traced back to him, Wei Zhiguo secretly plotted against her family, leading to their eventual ruin.

Since she now inhabited the original Zhang Xiyue’s body, she would help her get revenge. Those two murderers deserved to die!

The next second, a familiar voice rang out, and a glowing white orb appeared, speaking:

[Hello. System loading… Load complete. Rage-Value Burst System activated.]

Zhang Xiyue was ecstatic—she had a system! Could she now rise to the top?

“System! Thank goodness! I almost went to see the King of Hell. So the original really died?”

[Yes. She shouldn’t have died so young.]

[You placed first in the original recruitment exam. He Qingya placed second. Wei Zhiguo was third. Yang Tiantian placed fourth. After being reborn, Yang Tiantian reported Wei Zhiguo for kidnapping you, and both missed the exam. She then got the job.]

[The system’s purpose is to restore order.]

“My head’s still spinning, and I’m weak all over. Can I get a blood-stopping pill? I don’t want to bleed out.”

“I can’t fight Wei Zhiguo either—can I get a newbie starter pack?”

[Host, granted. Starter pack includes: 100 points, 1 Strength Pill, 1 Blood-Stopping Pill. Note: Strength Pill lasts 30 minutes.]

[Host, you have three missions: 1) Avenge the original. Death is too easy for her killers—they must suffer. 2) Reclaim the luck system attached to Yang Tiantian. 3) Complete random missions to earn points and energy.]

[If you slack off after binding the system, it reserves the right to unbind and find a new host. Your rewards remain yours. One more thing—this body has a limited lifespan. The original was a premature baby and very frail. Even without this incident, she wouldn’t have lived past her late teens.]

[If you don’t want to continue living, I can send you to reincarnate. You’re already dead in your original world. There’s no going back.]

Zhang Xiyue was stunned. “So… you’re saying I have to kill people? No problem. Bind me up!”

For survival, she’d do anything.

Once bound, she immediately took the Strength and Blood-Stopping Pills.

“System, just how strong is this Strength Pill? How much can I lift?”

“Can I punch a wild boar or a tiger to death?”

If so, maybe she could go hunting and make a fortune?

(Note: Zhang’s parents already had city jobs—state iron-rice-bowl positions. They were urban residents. The family had homes in both city and countryside. They mostly lived in the city for work but moved to the countryside when Zhang neared graduation to avoid being forcibly sent down. That was a common and realistic practice.)