September 23, 1970. High noon, the sun blazing overhead.

The aunties in the residential compound were busy cooking when they noticed a crowd of women gathered at Political Commissar Fang’s door, led by none other than He Chunhua. They immediately dropped what they were doing and rushed over to see what the fuss was about.

Inside the house, Zhou Ling had barely registered the commotion when He Chunhua’s shrill voice pierced her eardrums.

“Come and judge for yourselves, everyone! Sister He Qiu graduated high school, but just because she’s set to marry Han Zhongguo, Director Zhou is abusing her power to ruin He Qiu’s job prospects.

Our Haishi Military District Junior High School has only been established a few years and is struggling to find teachers. Even if Director Zhou is the Women’s Federation head, she has no right to let her troublemaking niece prevent our school from hiring qualified teachers. Am I right?

Let’s be blunt—Han Zhongguo chose He Qiu because He Qiu is worth it. What does Director Zhou’s niece have to offer? She’s lazy to the bone, can’t even tell one vegetable from another. Back in the day, someone like her would’ve been nothing but a capitalist’s spoiled daughter!”

Inside the room, Shen Tang’s ears throbbed from the shrill yelling.

She sat dazed on the bed, staring at the cracked, yellowing ceiling, the rustic old-fashioned cabinet adorned with garish floral patterns, and the uncomfortably hard wooden bed. Even after all this time, she still couldn’t wrap her head around it.

She was an orphan who had finally managed to rent a decent apartment thanks to her writing skills, only to wake up in this era of scarcity and deprivation.

What god-awful luck.

The timid, overwhelmed Shen Tang wanted nothing more than to burst into tears and avoid facing reality.

Aunt Zhou Ling couldn’t stand hearing that vile woman badmouth her niece. She turned to Shen Tang in the room and instructed, “Stay inside. I’ll deal with her. That shameless He Chunhua—her niece stole your blind date, and now that she failed the junior high teacher exam herself, she has the nerve to come slander my reputation. Today, I’m going to give her a piece of my mind.”

Watching her aunt storm out, Shen Tang felt her mind drifting.

It was quite a coincidence—the original owner of this body was also named Shen Tang, and she was a reincarnator.

In her previous life, the original Shen Tang had fallen head over heels for Han Zhongguo, a divorced man in his thirties with three children. For this older man, she had given up everything, even using her own money to support him his whole life, only to die of exhaustion shortly after turning fifty.

Unable to accept this fate, she reincarnated, hoping to rekindle their relationship, only to have her so-called best friend He Qiu—also a reincarnator—dose her with laxatives and take her place at the blind date.

The very next day, He Qiu and Han Zhongguo filed their marriage application.

The original Shen Tang, much like her current self, was socially anxious and even more timid. He Qiu had been her only friend.

Betrayed by her best friend, she mustered all her courage and dignity to waylay Han Zhongguo daily in the residential compound corridors, trying to explain their past-life connection and expose He Qiu’s scheme.

In doing so, she earned herself a reputation as a homewrecker trying to seduce another woman’s fiancé.

After days of persistence, Han Zhongguo finally agreed to meet her alone.

But the moment she uttered a single word, he cut her off with intense disgust, making it clear he would never be interested in her in this lifetime.

Heartbroken and despairing, the original Shen Tang wasted away, making way for her to take over.

Now, the situation was this: He Qiu had lied about being a top student but failed the junior high math teacher exam. To save face, she falsely accused Shen Tang’s aunt of interference and sent her distant relative, He Chunhua, to stir up trouble in the residential compound.

That said, Shen Tang’s aunt wasn’t entirely innocent in this matter.

She had indeed gone to the school to inquire and only backed off after learning He Qiu hadn’t passed the exam.

Had He Qiu actually succeeded, there was no telling whether her aunt might have pulled some strings behind the scenes.

Shen Tang thought it over and decided to go out and see what was happening.

The original owner had been as tight-lipped as a sealed jar, swallowing all her grievances in silence.

Even though she didn’t know if she could ever return to her own time, she had enjoyed the meat broth her aunt made for her that morning. She couldn’t just stand by and watch her aunt be publicly humiliated.

At the entrance of the courtyard.

A crowd had gathered, munching on sunflower seeds, too engrossed in the drama to care about the meals cooking in their homes.

Zhou Ling, as the director of the Women’s Federation in the residential compound, had managed the families here for years.

While some respected her, others resented her authority. This was the first time someone had openly challenged her like this-who wouldn’t want to watch the spectacle?

But Zhou Ling was no pushover. She planted her hands on her hips and retorted, “He Chunhua, watch your mouth! When my niece’s elders were fighting devils on the battlefield, you were still eating dirt in the fields! How dare you slander a military family? When your husband Da Zhu gets back, I’ll have a word with him about how he’s been managing you!”

He Chunhua flinched at the mention of her husband. But when she saw He Qiu’s tearful, aggrieved expression, she stiffened her neck and shot back, “Director Zhou, don’t change the subject! He Qiu is a wonderful person, and just because you pulled strings behind the scenes, she lost her chance to be a junior high teacher. She’s cried her eyes out!

Han Zhongguo wasn’t interested in your niece, and you took your frustration out on my cousin behind her back. Do you really think this residential compound is your personal fiefdom?

As for your precious Shen Tang, throwing herself at men-I’ve never seen anything so shameless in all my eight lifetimes! A toad lusting after swan meat-she’s utterly without shame!”

Zhou Ling: “Keep insulting people, and tomorrow you’ll be assigned to clean the toilets!

As the Women’s Federation director, I’ve served this compound diligently and impartially-everyone here can attest to that. He Qiu didn’t pass the teacher’s exam simply because she wasn’t qualified.

Are you shouting nonsense because you suspect the principal and teachers at our military district’s junior high are corrupt and bending the rules?”

He Chunhua choked back her words. She had two children in seventh grade. If she publicly accused the principal and teachers of corruption, and they took it out on her kids, she’d have nowhere to turn for help.

Heck, her husband might even get reprimanded because of her.

He Qiu wiped her tears. She wasn’t particularly beautiful, just somewhat plain, but her reddened eyes made her look pitiful.

“Aunt Zhou, I’m the one who wronged Tangtang. But I really didn’t steal her blind date. Zhongguo and I fell in love at first sight. If I had known Tangtang liked him too, I would never have competed with her.”

“How pathetic. Battalion Commander Han clearly prefers He Qiu. How could Shen Tang have the nerve to compete? Could she even win him over? Battalion Commander Han doesn’t want her anyway.”

“Exactly. And she’s Director Zhou’s niece, from the capital, no less. Are there no good men in the capital? Are our military men that much better?”

“Who knows? All I know is my husband is so jealous of Battalion Commander Han. Divorced with three kids, and yet he still has unmarried girls from the capital fighting over him.”

The crowd murmured among themselves, their words music to He Qiu’s ears.

In her previous life, Shen Tang had been so high and mighty-her family’s name was cleared, her husband became the mayor of Haishi, her children were all successful, and even her daughter became a famous star.

And what about He Qiu? After her divorce, she fell for a gigolo who swindled her out of all her money. When she tried to borrow money from Shen Tang to pay off her gambling debts, Shen Tang gave her a pittance!

She even cut off all ties, leaving He Qiu to starve to death in a freezing, dilapidated house!

Fortunately, heaven had taken pity on her and allowed her to be reborn.

The first thing she did was steal Shen Tang’s husband from her previous life!

That bitch Shen Tang deserved to be trampled underfoot in this lifetime!