Chapter 6: Empty Your House

There wasn’t much of obvious value in the Song household—just some pots and pans, rice, flour, oil, thermoses, and a few large wardrobes and cupboards. But her parents were filthy. The beds and the cabinets were all a disgusting mess. Back when she lived at home, she used to clean up after them. But ever since she stopped coming back, the house had fallen into utter disarray. Every time she returned, it took half a day or more just to make a dent in the cleaning.

The kitchen was no better—greasy and cluttered, with hardly any place to even stand.

Song Nanting had originally thought about clearing everything out, but looking at the state of things now, she couldn’t bring herself to do it. What if all this garbage polluted their home? That space—her and Lu Jian’an’s home—wasn’t meant to house filth like this.

Still, she didn’t have much time. Her mother and two brothers were likely still tied up in a fight with Wei Dani, but there was no telling when her father might come back from his night shift. She had to move fast and find anything of value.

The more deceitful someone was, the more paranoid they were about being stolen from.

Her parents were exactly like that. They hid anything worth money at the bottom of a pickling jar in the corner of the kitchen. She’d only found out by accident in her last life.

Holding her breath, Song Nanting dragged the jar out and found a small opening underneath. She reached in and pulled out a box roughly the size of a grown man’s palm. It had a lock, but she grabbed the garlic mortar, gave it a few hard bangs, and the lock broke open.

Inside was the accumulated fortune of the Song family over the years—bundles of money wrapped in blue cloth, all in large denominations. Underneath the cloth was another bundle. She opened it—and froze.

Inside were five neatly stacked, gleaming little gold bars, shaped like tiny yellow fish.

Judging by the weight, each one had to be at least 100 grams.

What the hell?! How did her family have something like this?

She didn’t have time to count how much money there was. She dumped it all into her space in one go.

She replaced the pickling jar and headed to the inner room—her parents’ bedroom. Inside, there was a bed, a large wardrobe, and a square cupboard. Song Nanting had often seen her mother open that cupboard to take out biscuits and milk candies—always just two biscuits, and exactly two candies: one for her older brother, one for her younger.

When Song Nanting looked on longingly, Zhao Xiue would snap at her fiercely, “What’s a girl like you doing eating such good stuff? You think you’re a princess?”

Back then, Song Nanting didn’t want to be a princess. She was just curious—what did a biscuit taste like? What did milk candy taste like?

Once, Zhao Xiue forgot to lock the cupboard. Song Nanting snuck one candy out, trembling fingers peeling the wrapper before shoving it into her mouth, afraid she’d lose her chance if she waited even a second longer. The sweet, milky taste was the best thing she had ever tasted.

But her little brother Song Nanshan saw her.

Her mother chased her through half the street, beating her bloody. A girl in her teens was nearly beaten to death over a single piece of candy.

Song Nanting took a deep breath, pushing the memory away. She stared at the cupboard and, without hesitation, pulled a set of tools from her space’s toolbox and pried it open.

This was her mother’s treasure trove. Inside were not just biscuits and milk candies, but canned fruit as well.

On the lower shelf was a metal biscuit tin. She opened it—tickets of all kinds inside: grain coupons, meat coupons, and some spare cash. Next to the tin were two large bolts of cotton fabric—one white, one navy blue. Clearly stolen from the factory by her parents.

Perfect. She’d save those for making clothes later.

What wasn’t hers before now was.

She cleared out the cupboard completely—not even leaving a candy wrapper behind.

Then she opened the large wardrobe. Holding her nose, she reached inside and pulled out a glass jar. Inside were a heavy gold necklace and a gold bangle.

A dual-income household had this kind of thing?
No time to wonder—Song Nanting dumped it all into her space without hesitation.

Take it. Take everything. It’s all hers now.

Once she was done, she grabbed the thermos, the pots and pans—everything she could sell second-hand. She took all the rice, flour, and oil too. Not a grain left behind.

In the living room, aside from the dining table and the beds where Song Nanfu and Song Nanshan slept, there was an Eight Immortals table in the middle. She dug around here and there, and managed to find both brothers’ private stashes of money.

Song Nanting felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.

Seeing the time, she knew she couldn’t stay any longer.

She found the family’s household registration book, grabbed it decisively, and left.

By now, there weren’t many people in the compound—most had already gone to work. Song Nanting wore a headscarf and kept a low profile as she slipped away, checking her surroundings carefully.

She left the housing compound and headed straight for the youth relocation office.

It just so happened that before the new year, the government had been pushing hard for more educated youths to be sent to the countryside. Most would leave after the holiday, but Song Nanting couldn’t wait even a moment.

When she arrived and saw the office director, she didn’t waste a word—she shoved twenty yuan straight into his hand.

“Director, I want to go to the countryside.”

A volunteer like her, asking to go? The director wasn’t about to say no. He wouldn’t just process it fast—he’d rush it before she changed her mind.

After all, it was already 1974. The educated youth movement had been going on since ’58—over a decade. Most people knew by now that going to the countryside was no blessing.

Normally, those from her county would be sent to local villages. But not Song Nanting.

She wrote down a location in a northeastern rural area—the one closest to Lu Jian’an.

“Director, I want to go here.”

He took the money and stamped the paperwork—simple as that.

“Alright. As long as you’re sure.”
Done. Decision made.

Song Nanting added, “I have two younger brothers who are also of age. They’re too embarrassed to come in person, so I’m here to sign them up. And I have a friend too.”

The youth office director looked surprised, but from the expression on her face, he understood what she meant.

“Is that even allowed?”

“Why not? If there’s any problem, just say it was my idea,” Song Nanting said as she slipped him another ten yuan. “You’re short on out-of-province placement quotas, right? Your kid needs to go to the countryside this year too, doesn’t he? And according to policy, my brothers should have gone already—but they’ve been avoiding it using every excuse in the book. As for my eldest brother, well, this is their punishment for hiding and lying. Wouldn’t you agree?”

That one sentence hit the director right where it hurt. He understood instantly and nodded, no longer questioning her. He wrote down all three names. After all, the names were submitted by their “relative”—if anything happened, the girl would take the blame. He was just doing things by the book. As long as she had the household registration book, it was all good.

Not only had Song Nanting brought her own household book, she had also managed to sneak out Pan Shiying’s registration page the day before. Perfect timing—she used it to sign Pan Shiying up as well.

If the three of them were fated to get into a fight today, then let them continue their “bond” in the countryside. She’d send all of them to the same place.

The entire process took about an hour.

Song Nanting also swiftly completed her own paperwork, even picking up all three people’s rural relocation subsidies, and was ready to leave.

As for whether Wei Dani and her parents would later storm into the youth office and make a scene—well, let them.

The youth office director wasn’t an idiot. His office was right next to the police station and the local party committee. If anyone tried anything, one shout over the wall would bring officers running.

So as long as he got his money and completed his quota, why wouldn’t he go along with her plan?

Sure, Song Nanting took the money—but who could prove she didn’t hand it to the rightful recipients? And even if someone wanted to track them down, no one from the youth office was going to help. If you’re so capable, take the train and chase them all the way to Northeast China.

From their county to the northeast was over 3,000 kilometers. Just the train journey alone required multiple transfers.

Though the people being sent away were big shots in their own little county, the moment they stepped out of this familiar place, they were nothing. Let alone the travel—Song Nanting had cleaned out all the household cash. They wouldn’t even be able to afford the fare to go looking for her.

Song Nanting gave the youth office director a deep bow. “Thank you.”

The director didn’t know what to say. But after looking over the three names, he realized—only one of them didn’t technically meet the age requirement. The other two did.

In any case, it was done. No one could change it now. If someone tried to make trouble, he’d just call the police—or refer them to the local committee for investigation.

Besides, he could see that this girl clearly had a deep grudge against those three. She probably wasn’t planning to come back after leaving, which is why he even gave her an extra copy of the introduction letter—just in case.

“Take care of yourself,” he said.

When Song Nanting walked out of the youth office, she let out a long breath.

There was nothing left in this city worth staying for. She was ready to leave.

From the moment she was reborn until now, not even a full day had passed—and she had already accomplished so much.

And only now did it truly feel like her rebirth had begun.

Meanwhile, Zhao Xiue and her two sons returned home, full of rage. Before they even stepped inside, they were already shouting:

“Song Nanting! Where the hell did you run off to?!”

A neighbor nearby couldn’t help chiming in, “Didn’t your Nanting go to the Pan family to slave away? I haven’t seen her come back.”

“She didn’t come back?” Zhao Xiue’s eyes shifted toward the wide-open door. A terrible feeling hit her. “Then why’s the door open?”

She looked down at the ground. The lock had been smashed.

“Oh dear heavens—we’ve been robbed!” Zhao Xiue’s wailing echoed through the entire housing compound.