Jiang Le had just gotten into university, at the peak of human intelligence, when he accidentally transmigrated into a pathetic cannon fodder character in a dog-blooded period novel—and was saddled with a useless “melon-eating” system.

It was the resource-scarce 1970s. Staring at his malnourished, sallow-faced family members who were all at risk of kicking the bucket any second, Jiang Le felt utterly devastated.

Until…

When Auntie Zhang next door bullied them again, the useless system suddenly got excited: “Host, Auntie Zhang’s husband is infertile!”

Jiang Le glanced at Auntie Zhang’s five sons and three daughters: “!!!”

System: “Ding! If you expose the truth to Auntie Zhang’s husband, you’ll earn 100 melon coins!”

When the factory director abused his power to steal Jiang Le’s cousin’s job for his niece, the system got hyped again: “Host, this factory director is colluding with the procurement officer for personal gain! Expose him and earn 500 melon coins!”

When a male educated youth who liked the female lead slandered Jiang Le, the system perked up once more: “Host…”

Jiang Le looked at the system’s shop—where a tin of malted milk cost just five melon coins and a steamed white bun cost one—and suddenly felt like he’d struck gold.

From then on, while the original novel’s male and female leads struggled just to survive, Jiang Le used his melon-earned White Rabbit candies, rare milk powder, and fashionable clothes (unavailable even in department stores) to nourish his once-gaunt family into glowing health.

The original leads are too busy with their messy love games to notice. By the time they realize what’s happening, Jiang Le, the cannon fodder they once looked down on, has been admitted to Peking University.

But Jiang Le doesn’t have time for them. He’s focused on someone else—the only reason he kept reading the trash novel that brought him here. That brilliant, tragic character… who didn’t survive the winter in the original plot.

Jiang Le clenches his fists: He won’t let it happen again!

Except… the more he protected this person, the stranger their gaze toward him became. What’s going on?!