1 Transmigration

May 1970, the summer harvest.

The weather forecast predicted rain within the next two days. Taking advantage of the bright moonlight, the folks at Yaowang Village worked through the night and finally finished harvesting the wheat. After a quick break to gnaw on some steamed buns and wash them down with water, they were back at it by daybreak, threshing and winnowing. The entire threshing floor was a flurry of activity. The essence of a "rush harvest" lies in the word "rush."

By noon, in the midst of the frantic labor, the sky suddenly darkened. Yao’s fifth daughter carried a basket to deliver lunch to her parents and sisters at the threshing floor. At eighteen, she was the undisputed beauty of the commune. With skin as white as snow, features like a celestial being, long legs, and a slender waist, she stood out effortlessly even in the shapeless, coarse cloth clothes she wore.

Half a month ago, a restless scoundrel had finally acted on his wicked intentions. To escape his groping hands, she had jumped straight into the river, hiding in the reed beds until the beast left before crawling ashore to go home. In her panic, her limbs were slashed by the reeds; she lost a lot of blood, soaked in the water for hours, and suffered from several leeches clinging to her legs, which led to a severe infection and a high fever. The poor girl didn't make it, and when Yao Ruzhen transmigrated into her, the original body had just breathed its last. She took over the girl's life and became Yao Zhizhi.

After a week on antibiotics, she had used her iron will to break the fever. The first thing she did upon waking was ask if the scoundrel had been caught. Learning he was already behind bars gave her a sense of catharsis—truly, heaven had eyes, even if it was a pity she couldn't beat him up herself. Regardless, it was better to live a mediocre life than to die, and she cherished this second chance.

Unfortunately, this body was a wreck. Even after the fever broke, she remained lethargic and listless; it was clear she would need a long recovery. Her parents, seeing her sluggishness at work and inability to earn many work points, found her an eyesore and simply told her to stay home to wash clothes and cook.

As a former warlord of the apocalypse who had clawed her way out of piles of interstellar zombies, she was used to a life where her word was law and she was doted upon by others. She was truly ill-suited for these trivial, messy chores. As for the laundry… well, it got wet, and then it dried. As for the cooking… well, it got cooked, and then it was consumed. Besides, food was scarce in these times, and there wasn't much variety to be had, so she just threw together whatever she could to fill their stomachs.

Today, she had cooked the usual slop—a mixture of greens, highland barley flour, and a tiny bit of sorghum and corn grits, stirred together without a drop of oil. Once boiled, she went into the yard, picked a half-green, half-yellow cucumber, diced it, and sprinkled it over the porridge. That was today's lunch.

Just as she reached the threshing floor, the sky turned black.

"It's going to rain! Quick, Zhizhi, push the floral tarpaulin on the cart over here!" fifty-something Yao Erdan shouted from the other side of the floor, a leaf-wrapped cigarette hanging from his lips.

Yao Zhizhi kicked the half-man-high roll of tarpaulin. It was huge and heavy; kicking it took some effort. If this were her own body, a mere puff of air would have moved it. What a pity! Yet, her childhood friend Li Erhu, who was standing nearby, stared in stunned silence. She had always been so delicate before.

Yao Zhizhi rolled her eyes. "What are you looking at? Go cover it!"

Li Erhu stammered an "oh" and hurried over. He didn't know why, but ever since Yao Zhizhi’s incident at the river, her temper had grown. She used to call him "Brother Hu" timidly, but now, she acted as if he were her enemy, speaking in a harsh, aggressive tone. Heaven knows he hadn't done anything wrong. Giving up, he chased after the roll, grabbed one end, and signaled to another childhood friend to help him stretch the tarp, racing from one side of the threshing floor to the other. Just as the raindrops began to patter down, the tarp was securely in place.

Once covered, Li Erhu helped Yao Zhizhi lift the food. "Go back and rest. I'll take this to my uncle."

Yao Zhizhi was indeed feeling drained, so she didn't stand on ceremony. She let go and turned to leave. Summer thunderstorms come and go quickly; by the time she reached home, the rain had stopped. Assuming her parents and sisters would have to return to work after eating, she mustered her strength and took out some mung beans the system had given her. The portion was small, and since it was hot, grinding them into powder to boil soup was the best way to beat the heat. She went to the utility room next to the kitchen, found a stone pestle and mortar, and ground the handful of beans. Wiping her hands on her apron, she started the fire.

In this era, cooking in the countryside was truly a trial. They used earth stoves, burning stalks and straw. The straw was prickly, the stalks were sharp, and the smoke was suffocating. She sighed and checked her "Gossip System." With it being the busy farming season, there were few idle people in the village, and thus, no gossip to harvest.

Without gossip, there were no rewards, only the daily check-in gift package. The interface was bright red, featuring the month's calendar; the day of the check-in would light up in gold. Beside the calendar, an orange-and-white beckoning cat blinked at her, looking round, silly, and endearing.

Yao Zhizhi poked the cat's belly, and the interface popped up ten random gift packages, arranged in two rows like a card-pulling game. It was a game of luck. For the past half month, every time she opened one, it resulted in white or green fireworks, corresponding to the quality of the package. White was the worst, giving only snacks like fruit candies or sunflower seeds, one to ten portions. Green was better, providing grains—any type of cereal, ranging from an ounce to a pound. That was how she had gotten the mung beans. They were so stingy. With so many people in the house, even a pound wouldn't last a day. Still, better than nothing.

She clicked the one in the middle of the first row. Today was a pleasant surprise; the fireworks were blue. She looked closely—it was a meat coupon for half a catty! Yao Zhizhi was dumbfounded. Life was so meager, and her mouth was so bland that her eyes lit up at the mere mention of meat. It was no wonder the ancients could "quench thirst by thinking of plums"—her mouth was watering, and she was truly craving it.

Today was the fifteenth day of consecutive check-ins. On every multiple of five, as well as Saturdays and Sundays, the system offered extra surprises. She opened her system mail.

[Congratulations to the host for checking in for fifteen consecutive days. Here is a surprise gift package * 1, Quality: Purple.]

Purple! That was better than blue. Yao Zhizhi clicked it open immediately. Purple fireworks flashed, and a sewing machine ticket appeared in her hand, along with three "Great Unity" banknotes.

!!!

Yao Zhizhi almost fainted from happiness. A sewing machine ticket! And they didn't have a sewing machine at home! Oh, how wonderful. She would never complain about her stingy system again. Happily putting the items away, she continued to boil the mung bean soup.

When she poured the soup into an aluminum pot and prepared to head back to the threshing floor, a flashing exclamation mark on the system finally caught her attention.

[Warning: The host has not consumed any gossip for seven days. Please complete the task as soon as possible, or today's gift package will be revoked.]

Hmph, so it was a stingy system after all. Giving something and then wanting it back—how was that any different from a deadbeat boyfriend settling scores after a breakup? Trash!

Yao Zhizhi pouted and carried the soup pot to the threshing floor. As soon as she arrived, she saw her fourth sister, Yao Mengmeng, running over in tears. Yao Mengmeng was a classic, gentle beauty with sparkling eyes and a willow-like waist; she moved with a grace that was sweet and charming. Looking closer, she had a gardenia flower tucked in her hair. People in the countryside were superstitious and considered white flowers unlucky, so she had likely been scolded by Old Yao. Yao Zhizhi didn't ask. The sisters brushed past each other.

Avoiding the dust from the winnowing, Yao Zhizhi circled around and handed the pot to Old Yao. "Drink."

Yao Erdan sighed, wiped his hands, and took the porcelain bowl filled with mung bean soup. After finishing, he wiped his mouth with the sweat towel on his shoulder. "Zhizhi, there's something Dad wants to discuss with you."

Yao Zhizhi took the empty bowl and crouched down to fill another. Old Yao was one of the two main laborers in the family, but like his wife, he couldn't bear for their only son to do manual labor, so he had pulled strings and spent money on cigarettes and alcohol to get his precious boy a job as a salesman at the commune’s supply and marketing cooperative. But with so many mouths to feed, Old Yao had to work twice as hard. One bowl of soup wasn't enough; he naturally needed another.

Yao Zhizhi handed over the second bowl. "Speak."

Yao Erdan frowned with dissatisfaction. "...Why have you been so blunt lately?"

"Huh?" Yao Zhizhi had always spoken like this. She didn't care to please anyone and had no intention of changing. Whatever.

Yao Erdan sighed. "Fine. After what happened, Dad doesn't blame you for being resentful."

Yao Zhizhi didn't speak. She filled another bowl and sent it to Wang Fang behind her. That was the original body's mother, as biased as Yao Erdan. Yao Zhizhi couldn't even be bothered to call them Mom and Dad.

When she returned to fill the next bowl, a sigh came from above: "Zhizhi, you know, there's a story behind my name. When your grandparents didn't have children, they traded two loads of rice for a child. That was me. That family had too many mouths to feed; I had two older sisters, and we were all given away."

Yao Zhizhi remained silent, taking the empty bowl and tilting the pot, scraping it with the ladle—there wasn't much left. Maybe enough for one more person.

Seeing she wouldn't engage, Yao Erdan crouched down and continued to himself: "Zhizhi, nowadays, my eldest brother over there is doing well; he’s an official in the city. Unfortunately, he has no children. He sent word that he intends to adopt one. Your mother and I plan to send your brother, Genbao, over. But if that happens, there will be no male heir to carry on our family line. How about you or one of your four sisters choose to take in a matrilocal husband?"

Yao Zhizhi still didn't speak. The bias had reached this level; what was there to discuss? Daughters weren't considered people; only the son deserved to enjoy life in the city, tsk.

She waited until the last bowl was finished and walked away.

Yao Erdan hurriedly called out: "Zhizhi, you child, at least say something! Are you willing to take in a husband?"

"No!" Yao Zhizhi carried the empty pot and bowl, striding forward without looking back.

Halfway there, she noticed her fourth sister following a young man, tugging and pulling toward the small river at the edge of the village.

The Gossip System suddenly grew excited: "Gossip source detected! Go harvest it!"

Gossip about her own sister? Fine. The meat coupon and the sewing machine ticket were too precious. Yao Zhizhi hurried to follow. She had done this often, though she usually tracked zombies to the lair of a zombie king, where she could harvest plenty of crystal cores. And this time...

Yao Zhizhi parted the reed beds and crouched down carefully. Five meters away by the riverbank, Yao Mengmeng’s weeping could be heard: "Dad wants me to take in a husband. I was afraid you wouldn't like it, so I refused, and he called me an ungrateful wolf. He even said... he even said..."

"Said what?" The man was cold, his voice devoid of emotion.

Yao Mengmeng buried herself in his chest, sobbing uncontrollably. "He said if I didn't agree, he’d trade me for a bride price to marry that old widower, Zhang, at the commune. I must have had the worst luck in eight lifetimes. That old widower might have a good job, but he looks terrifying, and his yellow teeth make me sick. I’d rather die than marry him!"

The man was silent for a moment before comforting her: "Don't worry, I'll go talk to your dad. You're not the only daughter in the family."

"But my sisters don't want to either. You can't find a good man who's willing to be a live-in son-in-law; nobody's stupid. Hesheng, I’ve been with you for so long... why don't you talk to your parents? Your family has plenty of brothers, and we're in the same village; being a live-in husband isn't that bad, is it?" Yao Mengmeng cried pitifully.

Who would pass up a young, handsome man for a forty-year-old widower? No amount of money was worth that.

The man was silent for a long time before finally offering a perfunctory, "I'll try to talk to them."

"Don't just talk! You have to convince them!" Yao Mengmeng grew anxious. Seeing the man turn to leave, she grabbed his waist from behind. "Hesheng! I can't live without you."

Zhao Hesheng pried Yao Mengmeng’s hands away. "I know, let me think of a way."

"Hesheng!" Yao Mengmeng grabbed his hand again and placed it on her still-flat abdomen. "Our child and I are both waiting for your good news."

Zhao Hesheng: ???

Yao Zhizhi: What the...?

System: "Congratulations to the host for harvesting a 'premarital pregnancy' gossip. Reward: Gossip package * 3, Quality: Blue. Please collect! If you wish to interfere with the gossip subject's subsequent choices, an advanced gossip reward will be triggered, to be settled after the interference is successful. Interference may fail; please choose carefully."

Yao Zhizhi casually accepted the package without looking closely. She was only concerned with how Yao Mengmeng planned to handle this. If she showed up pregnant at the groom's house, she would be looked down upon. Holding her breath, she strained her ears to listen.

Strange, why was there a hissing sound? Yao Zhizhi subconsciously looked up and realized a water snake was slithering across the water behind Yao Mengmeng and Zhao Hesheng. *Phew*, just a non-venomous colubrid. Nothing to fear. She lowered her head to remain hidden, then heard Yao Mengmeng shriek: "Snake! A snake!"

Before Zhao Hesheng could react, Yao Mengmeng dragged him, and he slipped into the river mud. Subconsciously grabbing her arm to steady himself, he lost his balance, and with a splash, they both became a pair of lovebirds falling into the water.

Yao Zhizhi: ...

These two useless things—in the apocalypse, wouldn't they be a pre-meal snack for zombies within seconds? Yao Zhizhi rubbed her forehead. Considering Yao Mengmeng might actually be pregnant, she went to save them.

Yao Mengmeng was left pale with fright, vomiting river water after reaching the shore until her lips lost all color; she looked truly pitiful. But Zhao Hesheng was a coward; terrified that Yao Zhizhi would hold him accountable, he greased his feet and ran.

Yao Zhizhi looked at the disappointed Yao Mengmeng and said without hesitation: "Get rid of the baby. You can't keep this dog of a man."

"Ding! The host has chosen to interfere. Upon success, you will receive Gossip package * 10, Quality: Purple. Keep it up!"