“You know how hard they work. In this family, only your dad and your brothers bring in a salary. The two of us rely on them to support us. Times are tough, so stop thinking about meat all the time. When you get a job, you can eat as much as you want.”

“But Mom, when will Dad be able to transfer my household registration? Without a city registration, how am I supposed to find work?”

“You think it’s that easy to transfer a household registration? Everywhere you go, you need money to make things happen. And even after that, we don’t know if it’ll get done. It’s enough to drive me crazy…”

Hearing the familiar voices, Dai Qing turned her head and was surprised to run into her former mother-in-law and sister-in-law from her past life.

Liu Min stood beside her mother, looking displeased as she listened to her nagging.

Both women were still registered as rural residents. Apparently, Liu’s father was a former educated youth sent to the countryside, who had reluctantly married Liu’s mother. When the educated youth were allowed to return to the city, he brought Liu’s mother back with him.

However, transferring a rural household registration to a city one was a complicated and expensive process. By then, they already had three children, and money was tight. The registration for the two boys had been sorted out, but after draining their finances, the registrations for the mother and daughter were never completed. The cost of such transfers had only increased over time.

In her previous life, even by the time Dai Qing married Liu Ming, her sister-in-law’s registration still hadn’t been transferred. Liu Min had been seeing someone, but his parents refused to let them marry because she was still registered as a rural resident. It wasn’t until the Liu family set their sights on Dai Qing’s two-bedroom apartment—offering it as Liu Min’s dowry—that the boy’s parents finally agreed to the match.

“Comrade, your fish is ready. Take it home and cook it with tofu. Add a few drops of sesame oil when it’s done—guaranteed to be delicious,” the vendor said, handing her the fish tied with straw.

Dai Qing snapped out of her thoughts, took the fish, and headed home. Behind her, she could still hear Liu Min pleading.

“Mom, if we’re not getting meat, at least buy a fish to stew. I haven’t had fish soup in so long! Everyone says it’s good for the skin. Don’t you want me to find a good match?”

“Eat, eat, eat! I don’t know why you’re so greedy. Have you seen our family’s financial situation? If you don’t like it here in the city, why don’t you go back to your grandmother’s place in the countryside?”

“I’m not going back! The countryside is filthy.”

“….”

Even from far away, Dai Qing could still hear their bickering. A smirk crossed her lips. Her former mother-in-law had always favored her sons, treating them like gold, while Liu Min was lazy and greedy. In her previous life, she had been the unfortunate soul bearing the brunt of their combined bullying, with mother and daughter teaming up against her under the guise of family unity.

Now, she was curious. Without her as their unpaid servant this time around, would the mother and daughter still be as close?

At home, she fried the carp on both sides until golden, then added tofu and hot water to simmer. After half an hour, she sprinkled in some chopped scallions and a few drops of sesame oil. The fragrant fish and tofu soup was ready.

She also stir-fried some celery and served it with white rice, making for a simple but satisfying meal.

Having slept late in the morning, she skipped her afternoon nap and spent the rest of the day reading in the courtyard.

After dinner, she continued practicing her meditation technique. One complete cycle of inner energy circulation took her until 9:30 PM.

With two hours left until her night shift, Dai Qing lay down to rest, closing her eyes in a light sleep until her small alarm clock rang. She got up and headed to work.

On summer nights, the stars twinkled overhead, the streetlights cast a dim glow, and the streets were empty—even cars were scarce. It was eerily quiet.

She walked into the factory, took over from the previous shift, and settled in for another eight hours of work.

Compared to the day and evening shifts, the night shift was particularly quiet. The workers and maintenance crew, in particular, took advantage of any downtime to sneak in a nap in the corners.