Chapter 1

1968, Beijing.

“Jinghua, don’t hesitate anymore. Even if you won’t do it for yourself, at least think of our son.”

“As long as we survive, there’s always hope. Our son is still young—he deserves a better future. We can’t just accept our fate like this!”

A storm was about to hit their home, yet her husband still wavered. Despite the resentment in her heart, Zhu Qingyuan kept her tone gentle and persuasive.

Xiang Jinghua let out a weary sigh. “Sigh… fine. At this point, there’s no better option. When do we leave?”

Seeing him finally agree, Zhu Qingyuan smiled. “Tomorrow night. The sooner we leave, the safer we’ll be. My older brother has arranged someone to meet us once we arrive.”

Xiang Jinghua nodded. “Alright, let’s start packing. Bring all your valuable jewelry. I’ll take the gold bars. Leave the bulky stuff behind.”

“Antiques in times of peace, gold in times of chaos”—that saying never gets old.

“Oh right, let Nuannuan know. Have her pack too.”

Upon hearing that, a flicker of guilt flashed in Zhu Qingyuan’s eyes. But she quickly masked it with a look of helplessness and said softly, “Jinghua… we might not be able to bring Nuannuan with us.”

Xiang Jinghua turned to her, confused. “Why not?”

“You know we’re leaving secretly, and it’s already difficult to get new IDs over there. My brother pulled a lot of strings and spent a lot of money to secure just three spots for us. It’s simply not possible to get more.”

“Then what are we supposed to do? We can’t just leave Nuannuan here alone!”

Though he always valued his son more, Nuannuan was still his daughter—twenty years of father-daughter relationship wasn’t fake.

Zhu Qingyuan smiled gently and took his arm. “Since I married you, I’ve treated Nuannuan like my own. Of course I hate leaving her behind. But this is a special situation. Don’t worry—once we settle in Hong Kong, I’ll ask my brother to help bring her over too. Then we’ll all be together again.”

Seeing his frown deepen, she added, “You know I haven’t seen my brother in years. We’re not exactly close, and he’s not the patient type. He’s already done a lot for us. We can’t push our luck, or we risk losing everything.”

Xiang Jinghua rubbed his head in frustration. “We gave up all our family assets thinking we could finally live in peace. Now even our path to escape is so narrow. I can’t feel at ease leaving Nuannuan here alone.”

Zhu Qingyuan gently patted his shoulder and comforted him, “We have no other choice. Nuannuan’s already grown up—she’ll understand.”

“Sigh… let’s just pack.”

“Alright.”

Outside the door, Xiang Nuannuan had quietly heard everything. A cold, sarcastic smile curled on her lips as she turned and walked back to her room.

Moments ago, she had been staying up late reviewing product info for her next livestream, then accidentally fell asleep. When she opened her eyes, she found herself inside a retro novel she’d randomly skimmed through days ago.

According to the original host’s memories, it was now 1968—the beginning of a very turbulent decade. The Xiang family had been in business for generations, and by the time of Xiang Jinghua, they were among the top ten wealthiest in Beijing. A true capitalist household. Though they’d donated all their assets over the past few years, it wasn’t enough to erase their background. With political winds shifting, their family was now a glaring target.

Several families had already been raided. They could be next. So her stepmother Zhu Qingyuan planned to flee to Hong Kong with her husband and son. As for the unwanted stepdaughter? Naturally, she wasn’t part of the plan.

In the novel, the original Xiang Nuannuan was indeed abandoned. Left to survive alone, she was sent to the countryside for re-education. Later, she fell in love with the male lead and clashed with the female lead. Because of her frail health and spoiled nature, she couldn’t work properly, was disliked by everyone, and became a target of scorn.

Her father had promised to send for her. She waited a year. No one came. She eventually died sick and heartbroken.

In short, she was a cannon-fodder character designed to make the main couple look better.

Thinking about all the hardships ahead gave the modern Xiang Nuannuan a massive headache—this was way worse than livestreaming!

Fortunately, her portable space system had traveled with her. She wasn’t worried about survival.

In her previous life, she was a top-tier livestream host for a major e-commerce company with millions of followers. After six years in the business, every item she’d ever sold had been duplicated into her space. Clothes, food, daily necessities—she had everything she could ever need. Her company also did annual agricultural support campaigns, so her space was filled to the brim with farm produce. Enough to last a lifetime.

And her space didn’t just store items—it also allowed interdimensional trade with other system users. She could buy or barter as needed.

“Looks like Heaven prepared all this just so I could survive in this novel,” Nuannuan muttered as she began planning her escape route.

Given the Xiang family’s current status, she definitely couldn’t stay in Beijing. The original path—volunteering for re-education in the countryside—was actually a smart one. It would show her political compliance and help her lay low. Plus, the village she was sent to had someone she could rely on.

The woman had once worked as a maid for the Xiang family and had taken great care of her. She returned to her hometown five years ago due to her mother’s illness and was now married to the local village leader.

Nuannuan wasn’t completely inexperienced with rural life. She grew up helping with farm work, even if university and city life had softened her skills. She’d manage.

As for the novel’s male and female leads—who cares about a man? She wasn’t interested. Survival came first.

With her next steps clear, Nuannuan planned to register at the youth relocation office the next day. But before leaving, she needed to publicly cut ties with the Xiang family—to avoid any future entanglements.

The next morning, after breakfast, Zhu Qingyuan went out under the pretense of confirming their departure time. Xiang Jinghua sat watching his now-grown daughter, a trace of guilt tugging at his heart.

“Nuannuan,” he began, “Dad needs to talk to you about something important.”

Nuannuan leaned back on the sofa, playing the sweet and innocent girl. “Yes, Dad?”

After a moment’s silence, he spoke. “You know how things are outside… our family background puts us in danger. Your aunt’s brother pulled some strings to get us IDs in Hong Kong. So… your aunt and I have decided to move there.”

Nuannuan’s eyes lit up in delight. “That’s great! When do we leave? I’ll go pack!”

Xiang Jinghua cleared his throat awkwardly. “Well… you might not be able to come.”

“Why not? Dad, are you abandoning me?”

Nuannuan stood up abruptly, looking heartbroken.