Traveling Through Those Years Of Farming (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 24

Actually, every book had character settings that could justify themselves.

Take the era-rebirth novel where Lin Rui was the female lead. The collapse of her marriage in the previous life was not entirely the fault of her “mama’s-boy, sister’s-boy” husband, her biased mother-in-law and great-grandmother-in-law, or the spoiled young sister-in-law. 

Lin Rui herself had many problems too.

Restricted by the times, the general environment of that era was built around large extended families. Older brothers and sisters were expected to help raise younger siblings; before the family split, most of everyone’s wages went to the mother-in-law who ran the household… all of this was normal for that period.

But Lin Rui was more like a woman from a new era. She valued her own small family, believed that after marriage a husband could reasonably support his parents and siblings, but in her mind, the first priority must be herself and the child. Elders should gracefully withdraw from their children’s lives after marriage.

Because of this, the male lead Ou Shuqing naturally had traits she admired—independent and self-reliant, not the kind to change his thoughts because of his parents’ opinions. He liked and accepted Lin Rui despite her flaws, and his level of devotion was exactly what Lin Rui longed for.

A male lead whose personality matched Lin Rui’s would not let a few white-lotus or green-tea types shake their relationship.

Thus, when rejecting Jiang Mingmiao’s advances, Ou Shuqing showed no mercy.

“Who are you?”

Just that one question made Jiang Mingmiao’s face turn stiff and dark.

Lin Rui was in her second year of college. That summer, the normal university arranged for trainee teachers to go to grassroots schools. Every student would be assigned to a school near their registered hometown.

Lin Rui happened to be placed in the same government nursery where Jiang Mingmiao worked. 

Jiang Mingmiao only learned that the man she and her uncle fancied already had a girlfriend when she saw Ou Shuqing delivering food to Lin Rui at the nursery.

But Jiang Mingmiao was not the type to give up just because the target had a girlfriend. 

After she found out through colleagues that Lin Rui came from the countryside, her parents were farmers, and she had a lot of siblings, she became even more confident. She did not believe she would repeatedly lose to those countryside girls.

These days, Jiang Mingmiao often appeared whenever Ou Shuqing came to bring meals. On the first day, she even slipped into the crowd of nursery teachers to greet him.

She thought her gentle beauty and subtle hints would make him notice her. Yet when she openly expressed admiration, his first reaction was actually to ask who she was!

“Whether you can’t bear letting your boyfriend bring you food is your business. I feel sorry that my girlfriend can’t get used to the cafeteria food, so I want to bring her meals every day—that’s my business. Maybe you’re just useless, since you can’t even find a man who cares about you.”

Ou Shuqing was raised to enter politics. For him to speak with such blunt ruthlessness showed just how poor an impression he had of Jiang Mingmiao.

“I don’t have a boyfriend yet.” Jiang Mingmiao’s mouth twitched as she forced a polite smile. “Lin Rui is really smart. She can ‘train’ a man as excellent as you into treating her like the center of his world. It’s a pity I’m too stupid—I’m this old and still haven’t dated anyone.”

This wasn’t praising Lin Rui—she was clearly implying Lin Rui was manipulative, clever from experience with many men, while she herself was pure and innocent.

“Some things don’t need training. I do them willingly. As for why you have no boyfriend at your age—maybe it’s not because you’re stupid, but because you’re ugly.”

After speaking, Ou Shuqing walked past Jiang Mingmiao and headed toward Lin Rui.

“You hungry? My mom made stuffed tofu.” Looking at his girlfriend, Ou Shuqing’s eyes were full of tenderness.

“Mm.”

Lin Rui smiled brightly, regretting her brief moment of doubt.

“That female comrade—does she live by the sea?”

As the two walked toward the office, Jiang Mingmiao could still faintly hear their conversation.

“She’s quite interested in other people’s business. I think she shouldn’t be a nursery teacher; she should join the Women’s Mediation Committee.”

The “Women’s Mediation Committee” he mentioned was a semi-official group made mostly of old ladies in their fifties and sixties. Bored after retirement, they liked to mediate family disputes, though the committee had barely resolved anything. Instead, because some members loved stirring drama, they often fanned flames between husbands and wives, or mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law, nearly breaking up several families.

Because the group was founded by the wives of high-ranking officials, it was never disbanded despite its terrible reputation.

In the eyes of outsiders, joining it meant being labeled a gossiping busybody.

Jiang Mingmiao trembled with fury. 

First Huo Jun, then Ou Shuqing—were all men blind and sharp-tongued now? Why couldn’t they appreciate her kindness and gentleness?

She thought this setback was temporary, but three days later she truly received a transfer order.

From a reputable government nursery teacher, she became a clerk at the notorious Women’s Mediation Committee. On her first day, she faced the fury of a mother-in-law who, after being provoked by others, was about to be driven out by her daughter-in-law.

As the youngest and least experienced, Jiang Mingmiao was pushed to the front by the committee’s old ladies. Her clothes were torn, her face was scratched, and she stumbled home in a daze. 

That night she cried and screamed, refusing to keep the job.

At the Huo household, Huo Jun talked about what he had gone through over the past half-year.

It turned out that he and the classmate expelled alongside him had gone south. Both born into military-political families, they sensed changes in the nation earlier than ordinary people.

When the state announced the Reform and Opening-Up, they felt the country was about to undergo a huge transformation. Southern cities chosen as pilot zones were full of opportunities waiting for risk-takers.

The reason they occasionally sneaked out of the military academy at night had been related to this, though at that time they hadn’t decided whether to go against their parents’ expectations.

What happened had not been intentional, but the incident forced them to make a decisive break—there was no turning back.

The South indeed brimmed with opportunities, but inexperienced newcomers like them suffered many setbacks.

During the hardest period, they survived by doing odd jobs in small private workshops. Both young men endured it silently, determined to achieve something before returning home. Only then could they show their parents that the path they chose was not wrong—even if it was not the path their elders expected.

“This is the compensation you paid for me before. And this—this is your son’s filial gift.”

Huo Jun pulled out two thick bundles of cash from the big pocket of his denim coat. There were at least two to three thousand yuan.

Yu Nan and Huo Xiongying were upright soldiers who had never pursued material wealth. As long as they lived, they had the state-provided small Western-style house. Their daily life was supplied by quotas—meals with meat, rice, steamed buns. They wore military uniforms all year. Their personal expenses were minimal.

Aside from their normal allowances, they never took a single extra penny from the state and never used their positions to receive bribes. 

Over the years, they had helped many fallen or disabled soldiers and their families. Their savings were limited, and half the compensation for that earlier incident had nearly emptied their accounts.

Combined, their monthly allowances were barely three hundred yuan. Outsiders would hardly believe that the money Huo Jun just handed them would take them more than ten years to save.

“You didn’t do anything illegal?”

Huo Xiongying’s greatest fear was that his relatives might use his position to engage in harmful or corrupt activities.

“No. We used connections in Hong Kong to open a factory. The paperwork is proper, legal, and complies with the new policies in Shenzhen.” Huo Jun answered firmly. 

He would never take the speculative-trade route—it was fast money, but short-sighted, and it violated state rules. He also feared attracting scrutiny and causing trouble for his father.

But whether those who bought goods from him handled their own paperwork properly or resold goods in their hometowns for profit—that was beyond his control.

There were too many speculators in that era. Huo Jun himself didn’t think their actions were too wrong, but he knew his old-fashioned father wouldn’t approve.

So he simply didn’t mention it. His words weren’t technically lies.

“Mm.” Huo Xiongying opened his mouth but only let out a low hum.

During their son’s absence, he and his wife had reflected on their own behavior over the years. Perhaps they really hadn’t been qualified parents.

Since their son had something he wanted to pursue, as long as it wasn’t illegal or harmful, they would let him go.

“I also brought you a bunch of good stuff.” After finishing his meal, Huo Jun hurried to the living room and opened the bags he brought.

Inside were new Southern goods—electronic watches, lipstick, creams, and various clothes.

He sorted them: one bag for each parent, and one bag prepared especially for Baobao.

“The newest boxing gloves from Hong Kong.”

Baobao hadn’t expected him to prepare a gift for her as well—especially with Aunt Nan and Uncle Huo still present.

She cautiously glanced at the two elders.

“What’s this? All flashy. Can you even wear this?”

“And this lipstick—what kind of color is this? No, no, I can’t use this. Isn’t this practically expired blood plasma?”

Suddenly, the couple began speaking loudly, criticizing the gifts.

“You really don’t understand what you young people are thinking. Yu Nan, come with me upstairs. Help me try these clothes on—just once, where no one else will see. If anyone heard about this, they’d laugh at us.”

Huo Xiongying deliberately raised his voice—clearly speaking for Baobao to hear.

“Mm, you help me look too. Why is this skirt so short? I haven’t worn a skirt in more than twenty years. I’ll definitely look terrible.”

Speaking, the two of them casually headed upstairs.

Their son had brought home gifts clearly meant for all three of them. His attitude was already obvious.

Huo Xiongying and Yu Nan liked Baobao to begin with. Now that their son did not want to stay in the military, having a soldier as a daughter-in-law also fulfilled their wish.

As for differences in background—they had never cared about such things. They were even more eager than Huo Jun, wishing Baobao could become their daughter-in-law immediately.

Or… well, maybe it was fine if things happened slower.

Baobao had just begun shining in the army. Her future was long; she couldn’t be delayed by a man or a child—even if that man was their son. 

Yu Nan had already thought it through: if the two really got together, she would warn her son not to have children yet. First, Baobao was still young—doctors said early childbirth was unhealthy for both mother and child. Second, Baobao’s career mattered. If he dared fool around, she would break his legs.

“Hey, doing this will make Aunt Nan misunderstand.” Baobao still maintained some girlish shyness. With the young man’s attitude so obvious, she would be blind not to notice.

“Misunderstand what?” Huo Jun acted innocent. “These are professional-grade gloves. The foreign ones are better than ours. I’m just worried about the army’s punching bags. With these gloves, you’ll help the state save training funds.”

His expression was so pure—like a loyal young man devoted to the country.

“Seems I misunderstood.” Baobao put on the gloves and punched lightly, gritting her teeth a little.

“Ha ha ha, I was teasing you.” Huo Jun laughed. “Do you remember, the first time we met, you also tricked me?”

That was the first time he had misjudged someone—mistaking a tigress for a lamb.

“My parents… aren’t misunderstanding…” Huo Jun leaned forward. The table separated them, but their noses were only a few centimeters apart.

Baobao’s mind exploded—This brat was really handsome! And also… really tacky!

That night, Baobao had a dream. The dream told the story of this world—without her.

It was a rebirth-era farming novel, telling how Lin Rui, whose marriage collapsed in her previous life, was reborn, met her destined male lead, and lived a brazenly blissful life.

In that story, the Zhen family was a villainous group. 

Because of the female lead’s “magnanimity,” they didn’t receive too much detailed description—but in the reborn-life extra, they were mentioned more often.

In the extra, after Lin Rui and her daughter died, Zhen Baoli suffered a huge blow. Formerly just simple-minded, he later became truly foolish. He spent his days staring blankly at the toys he carved for his daughter, unable to pick up his carving knife again.

With the main source of income gone, Xu Panhao and the old grandmother barely managed to support four people through farming.

The original Baobao had a weak body and sensitive mind, and she believed her sister-in-law’s and niece’s deaths were tied to her. She died of illness from depression. 

Her death awakened Baoli’s sense of responsibility, and he took his mother and grandmother away from that place full of painful memories.

The story framed their fates as “retribution,” making readers applaud.

After Lin Rui’s rebirth, she didn’t take revenge on the Zhen family. But her reconstruction of her own family indirectly altered the Zhen family’s original path.

Lin Lei also had talent in woodcarving, and with Lin Rui’s guidance, Old Carpenter Niu liked this apprentice. Because of age and dwindling energy, he dissolved the apprentice class the next year and focused on teaching Lin Lei alone.

Meanwhile, Zhen Baoli—slow to comprehend and still struggling with basic skills—could only practice on his own after the class ended.

He was talented, but because he learned for too short a time, in this life he became only an ordinary carpenter who made simple furniture for villagers—far less skilled than in the previous life.

The Zhen family lived a simple, poor life. With limited nourishment, the original Baobao’s body never improved, and she died at about the same age as before.

When Baobao woke, her pillow was soaked. Though it was only a dream, she could clearly feel the overwhelming grief of the family at the original body’s deaths.

She gasped for breath repeatedly and only calmed down after a long time.

This was her second dream. The first was in her first world, when she dreamed of the story centered on her transmigrated cousin.

Baobao began to consider whether these dreams were connected to her repeated transmigrations, and whether there was a common thread or difference she could grasp.

She felt the dreams might be a kind of warning. In the previous world, because she deduced the female lead’s identity and restored the story’s outline, the dreams stopped appearing.

In her first world, she only guessed her cousin was a transmigrator. And in this world, she had not sensed anything unusual at all.

If her deduction was correct, it was actually good for her. The dreams allowed her to learn the background of the world so she wouldn’t be a clueless fool.

Baobao sat up, turned on the lamp, and pulled out a notebook and pen.

These three worlds had one major similarity: they were all set against the backdrop of a “story world,” and all were similar types—farming domestic dramas focused on family life.

Also, her identity had a common thread: the people whose bodies she entered all had relatives who were… not very decent.

Saying “not very decent” was Baobao being kind. In farming novels, they were basically hated troublemakers.

Baobao quickly scribbled over her earlier notes. 

That realization made her uncomfortable—she was too protective of “her” people.

And another coincidence: every person she possessed died young—many as children.

Was there a necessary connection between that and why she entered their bodies?

Baobao couldn’t figure it out.

Since she couldn’t understand it, she skipped the question for now.

Actually, the story changes across these three worlds all aligned with their protagonists’ personalities.

Her cousin was originally the strong female lead of a farming novel—her will, intelligence, and independence were the highest among the three. Her relationship with the male lead had not been smooth; she reached her happy ending only after overcoming hardships. Thus, once she chose a different path, the original “fated marriage” with the male lead broke, because she was the protagonist and held the initiative.

In the second story, the relationship depended on the male lead retiring and returning home. The female lead liked not him, but the successful future him. Since he never retired and stayed in the army he loved, their fate broke.

In the third story, the core was a simple sweet-pet romance—about how the male lead pampered the female lead. The female lead loved men who treated her as the center of their world. As long as the male lead’s personality didn’t change, nothing would waver.

Baobao barely remembered Lin Rui. If the dream hadn’t mentioned the grievances between the Zhen family and Lin Rui, she might not have recalled her at all.

And then she found something unexpected.

Little Jiang Xiaolian—who once “competed” with Baobao—was actually the tea-lotus supporting character in the original novel. 

The novel said Jiang Xiaolian had early on set her eyes on Ou Shuqing, whose whole family had been rehabilitated, and tried to stir up misunderstandings between the leads.

But in a fluffy sweet romance, misunderstandings were not allowed, so she was shut down quickly, and her uncle and aunt gained nothing.

The only lucky one in the Jiang family was Jiang Mingt­ing, who never got involved in her parents’ and cousin’s schemes. 

After the Jiang family fell, she signed up for an education-support program to teach in remote regions and left the place full of unhappy memories.

Coincidentally, in the novel, Baobao’s grandmother and mother died early from grief and exhaustion after losing their granddaughter and daughter.

Zhen Baoli only had basic woodworking skills. Alone, he took their ashes and left his hometown.

Rumors among villagers said he seemed to have gone to the borderlands.

Perhaps, in parts the story never recorded, Silly Brother and Sister-in-law had their own belated fate.

Baobao looked at the dense notes in her notebook, then tore out several pages, shredded them, and flushed them down the hallway bathroom’s drain.

Some things were safest kept only in one’s mind.