Chapter 2

After Lu Jingzhe walked away, Xia Qingning pulled her thoughts back and gathered her clothes. The clothes were long and wide, wrapping her slender body completely. She stood up and thanked everyone:

“Thank you all for your help today.”

“No problem, no problem. Go back quickly,” the kind aunt continued, “Be careful when you walk in the future. Don’t fall into the river again.”

Xia Qingning nodded and thanked everyone again. Seeing that she was fine, the crowd dispersed.

Following the memories of the original owner, Xia Qingning walked towards “home.”

Her expression was somewhat heavy. In the real world, she was a third-year student in the fashion design department. Her parents were successful businessmen, and she was the only child, spoiled since she was young. She was a real white and rich beauty.

Suddenly crossing from the materially abundant real world to the 1970s, where people lacked food and clothing, anyone would feel a little depressed.

But she was always optimistic and soon figured it out. Since she was already here, and there was no way to go back for now, she would first use this body to live well in this world. Maybe this was just a dream, and one day she would wake up and go back.

After figuring this out, Xia Qingning began to sort out the background of the story in the book:

Lu Baichuan, the returnee intellectual from overseas, who was also the male lead Lu Jingzhe’s father, was sent to the countryside for reform due to inappropriate remarks during the movement. His wife at the time, Wang Mingfang, was afraid of being implicated. After hearing rumors, she immediately divorced him. To show her determination to draw a clear line with him, she didn’t even take their one-year-old son, Lu Lidong, with her.

Lu Baichuan, who returned to the countryside for reform with his child, met the beautiful Su Hui. They had similar interests and fell in love, and soon got married. They quickly had a son, the male lead Lu Jingzhe.

The original owner’s father was the village head of the village where Lu Baichuan was sent down. He had helped the Lu family in distress, and later even lost his life saving Lu Lidong from drowning.

A few years later, Lu Baichuan was rehabilitated and resumed his work. He took his wife and children back to the city. Before leaving, he promised to repay the Xia family by arranging a marriage between Lu Lidong and the original owner.

Back in the city, Su Hui gave birth to a daughter, but due to overwork and illness, her body was too weak, and she passed away after a few years.

When the original owner was almost 16 years old, Lu Baichuan took her to the city, hoping that she and Lu Lidong would cultivate their feelings first, and then get married when they reached the age.

The original owner, who had just come from the countryside, was ugly and clumsy. Lu Lidong, who worked at a state-owned restaurant, naturally looked down on her, especially since he was secretly dating someone at the time.

He didn’t want to marry her, but he didn’t want to break off the engagement either, for fear of being accused of being ungrateful. So his mother, Wang Mingfang, came up with an idea. She had Lu Lidong get Lu Jingzhe, who was visiting his family, drunk, and then set up the original owner to sleep with him.

The next day, Lu Jingzhe woke up from his hangover and found the original owner lying beside him. Naturally, he thought she had climbed into his bed while he was drunk. The original owner was clumsy and didn’t know how to explain. She just kept crying.

Things developed like this. Although Lu Jingzhe was very angry, he could only agree to marry the original owner.

After that, Lu Jingzhe quickly returned to the army. When the original owner turned 18, he applied to the army and got a marriage certificate with the original owner.

After sorting this out, looking at the current situation, the college entrance exam hadn’t been restored yet. She couldn’t go to college. If she stayed at the factory, her boss was plotting against her. If she went into business, it was a time of strict crackdown on profiteering.

If she divorced Lu Jingzhe now, she would only have to go back to her original owner’s family in the countryside.

The situation of the original owner’s family was even worse: her deceased father, her weak mother, her crippled brother, and her young brother.

With this frail and delicate body, if she went to the countryside, she wouldn’t be able to carry or lift anything. If she relied on work points to live, she would probably starve to death soon.

After thinking about it, it seemed like the only way out was to cling to the male lead, Lu Jingzhe. After all, he was already a regiment commander at a young age. He was capable, and his uncle, who was the army commander, could promote him. He would definitely have a bright future.

If she could go with him to the army, she could find a clerical job in the army. Then she could take the college entrance exam next year. After the reform and opening up, she could make some money. Her life would definitely not be hard in the future.

With a plan in mind, Xia Qingning felt relieved and continued walking forward. Soon she was almost home.

All the way back, she was met with inquiring and scrutinizing gazes. In this era, it was indeed unusual for a girl to wear men’s clothes on the street.

But Xia Qingning didn’t care too much. Since she was already wearing them, she might as well be bold and confident. If they wanted to look, let them look. She couldn’t cover people’s eyes anyway.

After walking through an alley, she entered the compound where the original owner lived. It was almost dinner time, and everyone was busy preparing meals. No one paid attention to Xia Qingning. Just as she was about to go home, a woman’s reproachful voice suddenly came from the sink:

“Oh, Lu family’s second wife, what are you wearing?” The woman said, her eyes constantly scanning Xia Qingning up and down. She said with a sly smile, “Your outfit, tsk tsk, it’s quite trendy.”

Xia Qingning looked sideways and saw a woman in her forties standing by the faucet, washing vegetables while looking at her with a smirk.

The woman’s name was Zhao Cuilan. She was a saleswoman at the department store. Her husband also worked at a state-owned factory. They had a son and a daughter, and their life was pretty good.

Her voice was loud, and it quickly attracted the attention of those around. Everyone turned their gazes to Xia Qingning.

This was exactly what Zhao Cuilan wanted. Seeing that everyone was looking, she continued:

“Oh, it’s men’s clothes, isn’t it? The style is pretty good. I haven’t seen it in the department store. Where did you buy it?”

Zhao Cuilan was a snob. She looked down on the unsophisticated people from the countryside. In this compound, only the original owner was from the countryside. So she often ridiculed her.

But after the original owner came to the city, she grew more and more beautiful. Last year, she even got a job at a state-owned textile factory. Her daughter couldn’t get in, even though her family had pulled a lot of strings. So she became more and more annoyed with the original owner, and she felt more and more that she had used some improper means to get into the factory.

The original owner was timid and cowardly, so Zhao Cuilan bullied her all the time.

Xia Qingning glanced at Zhao Cuilan, who was harboring ill intentions, and didn’t pay any attention. The clothes inside were cold and damp, and they felt uncomfortable against her skin. She just wanted to go back to her room quickly and change, then take a comfortable bath.

“Hey, hey, hey, don’t go.” Seeing that she was about to leave, Zhao Cuilan quickly picked up her washed vegetables and blocked her way. Then, as if she had discovered a new world, she said in surprise, “Oh, your hair is still wet…” Then she suddenly laughed and said with a deep meaning, “Haha… You wouldn’t have gone for a romantic swim with someone, would you?”

Her shouts attracted everyone from inside the house.

“Aunt Zhao, don’t talk nonsense. The Lu family are all decent people. They wouldn’t do anything shameful,” said Mrs. Wu, who lived near the front door, as she changed the coal briquettes in the stove.

“The other members of the Lu family are decent, but she…” Zhao Cuilan didn’t finish her sentence. She just smiled and snorted mockingly from her nose.

Facing Zhao Cuilan’s rude remarks, Xia Qingning’s face slowly turned cold. She looked sideways and asked:

“What’s wrong with me?”

Meeting her gaze, Zhao Cuilan was stunned. This girl used to be timid and submissive, and she never dared to look at her like this. Why was she suddenly different today?

Zhao Cuilan was a little surprised, but she didn’t back down. She sneered and asked back:

“What’s wrong? Hehe, what kind of decent wife wears men’s clothes and walks around on the street?”

“Alright, Zhao Cuilan, just say a few less words. Don’t you see that she’s all wet? It’s okay to borrow a man’s clothes. It’s not against the law. Why are you so concerned?” said Li Qiulian, the women’s director who lived in the same compound.

Xia Qingning was a little surprised that she would speak up for her. Because Li Qiulian and Lu Jingzhe’s mother were close friends, she had always been disgusted by her climbing into Lu Jingzhe’s bed. She hadn’t paid much attention to her over the years.

“Director Li is right. Aunt Zhao, stop it. Let Qingning go back and change her clothes. She’ll catch a cold later,” Mrs. Wu also chimed in.

“She dares to walk around on the street in men’s clothes in broad daylight, and you don’t want people to talk about her.” Zhao Cuilan felt that she had lost face in front of everyone, and she was very unhappy. She started talking nonsense: “What man’s clothes? I think it’s her lover’s!”

Although Xia Qingning’s personality was gentle, she wasn’t weak. Seeing that Zhao Cuilan was slandering her out of thin air, she didn’t back down and asked back:

“Lover? Did you see it with your own eyes or catch him? Everything needs evidence. You’re spreading rumors and ruining people’s reputation without any basis. Aren’t you afraid of me suing you?”

Zhao Cuilan had just been quick-witted for a moment, and she didn’t have any evidence. She was used to bullying the original owner, and the original owner never resisted, so she spoke without any restraint. Now, suddenly being confronted by Xia Qingning, she was speechless for a moment.

The situation suddenly reversed. Everyone was surprised to see that Xia Qingning, who had always been weak, suddenly stood up for herself. Li Qiulian’s gaze towards her even had a rare hint of approval.

Zhao Cuilan had never lost any arguments with the original owner, and she couldn’t stand it. After recovering, she immediately cursed:

“Humph, you shameless little girl. You’ve been in the city for two days and you’ve lost your mind, haven’t you? You want evidence, right? The clothes on your body are the evidence!”

She seemed to have found a key point and sneered: “These clothes on your body aren’t from a lover. Could they be your husband’s? Hehe, everyone knows that your husband hasn’t been back for over four years. Where did you get the clothes to wear?”

Xia Qingning was about to retort, but she suddenly caught sight of a figure in army green standing behind the crowd. She didn’t know how long he had been standing there.

Everyone’s attention was on her and Zhao Cuilan, and no one noticed him.

Xia Qingning suddenly had an idea. Since she had decided to cling to him, she had to arouse his protectiveness first. So, she kept her mouth shut and didn’t explain.

Seeing that she didn’t answer, Zhao Cuilan became even more excited. She said arrogantly:

“Oh, why aren’t you talking? Where did your confidence go?”

She reached out her hand and unceremoniously tugged at Xia Qingning’s clothes. She looked inside and out at the fabric, with a sarcastic expression:

“Such good clothes, don’t tell me you found them on the road.”

After hearing Zhao Cuilan’s words, everyone looked at Xia Qingning. She was looking down, her lips pursed, with a look of grievance, but she didn’t explain a word.

Seeing her like this, Li Qiulian, who had just changed her opinion of her, felt a little frustrated. She looked at her and asked:

“Whose clothes are they? Just tell us. Don’t be wronged by being slandered and not saying anything.”

“That’s right, Lu family’s second wife, where did you get these clothes?” Mrs. Wu also asked from the side.

Zhao Cuilan glanced at Xia Qingning, who was still looking down as usual, and she smirked, looking proud:

“Yes, tell us. Don’t let people think I’m wronging you. Whose clothes are these? What’s their name? There has to be an owner, right?”

Surrounded by everyone, constantly being questioned, Xia Qingning looked helpless and wronged. Just as she was about to lose her patience, a cold and stern voice came from behind:

“They’re mine.”