Chapter Five: The Golden Touch Arrives Just in Time

Sadness is only temporary; humans are, in fact, creatures who adapt easily to their circumstances. At least, that is the case for Xie Yunshu (from now on, there will be no quotation marks; there is only one Xie Yunshu).

In her modern life, she possessed exactly this kind of temperament: indolent, content to just get by, and quick to adapt to whatever environment she found herself in. However, the pressures of life meant she could never truly "lie flat," leading to her sudden death right at her workstation. She had no idea if this counted as a workplace injury or if the company would offer compensation to her parents. A book she was currently writing remained unfinished, left hanging in the air the moment she kicked the bucket. She imagined her readers would surely curse her to high heaven.

Distracted by these wandering thoughts, Yunshu felt a faint sense of guilt, but upon considering her current situation, she quickly began to worry for herself. In her modern life, she had been a code monkey, though not a particularly talented one. The books she wrote had never sold their copyrights, and her income was just enough to get by, allowing her to occasionally buy small trinkets to reward herself. However, thanks to the frequent subsidies from her parents, combined with her own salary, she had generally been free from the worries of food and clothing.

But this also meant that, having relied on her parents and food delivery apps for meals, on online shopping for clothes, and on ride-sharing or public transport for getting around, she was effectively a useless little good-for-nothing in this era that valued hard work and self-reliance. She was not the original Xie Yunshu; she had a long road of struggle ahead if she wanted to adapt to this place.

The "cheat code" arrived right as Yunshu was engaged in a heated confrontation with Yang Yue—a standard growth system, binding itself to an ordinary host like her. When the system’s distinct electronic chime first sounded in her mind, Yunshu was so excited she nearly jumped, but fortunately, she remembered the occasion; nothing was more important than winning the argument. If she didn't settle the score after being bullied by such a vile person, Yunshu figured she wouldn't even be able to sleep at night.

Consequently, she had to suppress her excitement. To the onlookers, Yunshu appeared to be trembling from being bullied by Yang Yue, which only made the original heroine, Lin Jingshu, feel even more protective and affectionate toward her. Having temporarily completed the binding with the system and claimed the starter gift pack, Yunshu pushed the system to the back of her mind. That was not the right time for a deep dive into the system’s functions; the vicious supporting character, Yang Yue, was already acting like an octopus, waving her claws in restless agitation.

Thus, Yunshu had to "unleash her ultimate" while simultaneously absorbing useful information from her surroundings. As the conflict deepened and Yang Yue fled in defeat, and as the group sat down to converse and eventually gathered before the team leader who had come to meet them at the station, the details about everyone finally emerged in Yunshu’s mind. This was one of the items in the gift pack she had just claimed: a "God’s-eye view" that allowed her to see a person’s background as well as their favorability or malice toward her. It was quite practical.

As for Yunshu herself, it went without saying that her family had deliberately used certain external trappings to signal her status, hoping to ward off those with ill intentions. Even if their daughter had a soft nature, their family background was anything but soft! For instance, on the train, the military-green satchel she carried and the luggage at her feet clearly signaled her status as the daughter of a military family. Coupled with the useful information her parents had let slip while seeing her off, everyone in the group understood that this young girl came from a prominent background.

This approach was not without effect; many of the male educated youth were indeed cautioned by it. Even those who liked to manipulate young girls, hoping to play the "phoenix man" by living off a woman, had not yet figured out all of Yunshu’s details or her true character, so they had not yet made any firm decisions. But Yunshu’s parents had truly not expected that there would be someone like Yang Yue in this world—someone so unable to contain her impatience, trying to test their daughter’s depth while they were still on the train. Since she wasn't a man and there was no need to worry about any romantic entanglements, and because she was someone who spoke in high-sounding platitudes and rarely let herself suffer a loss, it was easy to see why the jealous Yang Yue had targeted Yunshu.

The background of the heroine, Lin Jingshu, who stood beside Yunshu, was not as bright as her current appearance suggested. Lin Jingshu was the standard template for a heroine in a "vengeful" period drama: orphaned, both parents dead, her house occupied by greedy relatives, her inheritance seized by biased grandparents. Even the jobs her parents had left behind were "decided" by her grandparents to be given to her cousins, and she, a helpless little girl, was arranged to be sent to the countryside to fill the mandatory village quota.

However, Lin Jingshu’s character was one of swift retribution. She did not concede to this predicament. Armed with her parents’ death certificates and her household registration, she turned around and sold those two jobs at the office. Not only did she obtain a massive sum of 1,400 yuan and some compensation, but she also returned the house assigned to her by the unit. Furthermore, just before leaving for the countryside, she signed up all the eligible cousins from her second uncle’s family for the village transfer as well. In short, she made sure her grandparents and her second uncle’s family wouldn't gain a single cent from her.

After handling everything, she took advantage of the moment when the officials from the Educated Youth Office arrived to deliver the news, while her grandparents and second uncle’s family were busy bickering with them, to sneak into her second uncle’s house. She ransacked every bit of money and food coupons hidden behind brick walls, under floor tiles, in cellars, and above the rafters. Finally, she moved some of the old lady’s hidden gold and silver jewelry into the second aunt’s room, creating the illusion of the second aunt stealing from her own family, before contentedly setting off for the countryside with her newly awakened "Pinduoduo" cheat system. Since her second aunt was a notorious "brother-worshipper" who had done plenty of such things over the years, Lin Jingshu felt no guilt about framing her. That was the original heroine.

As for the hero, Jiang Xiucheng, his background was naturally that of a standard period drama protagonist: the son of a high-ranking official, a typical second-generation elite. Because his family was involved in politics and the current situation was volatile, he had to keep a low profile to survive, so he headed to the countryside, accompanied by his childhood friend, Chen Ming, who shared a similar plight. But a lean camel is still bigger than a horse; since he was the hero, he would naturally not stay at the bottom forever. That was how the original plot went: he and the heroine would gradually fall in love while living together, and after the storm passed, his family would rise again. He himself possessed outstanding ability, and he and the heroine would get into the same university. After graduation, his political career would be smooth, and he would spend his life in loving harmony with the heroine.

As for the supporting character, Yang Yue—to put it simply: her heart was higher than the heavens, but her life was as thin as paper. She came from a humble background, and while she was quite attractive and undeniably hardworking, her jealousy was extraordinarily intense. She could have lived a good life in the countryside by relying on her own abilities, but she insisted on envying this person and that person. She was jealous that the heroine could afford to buy a wardrobe and furniture to decorate her little room; she was jealous that the heroine cooked for herself and often ate meat; she was even more jealous that the heroine hired children with sugar to cut pig grass. Most importantly, she was jealous that the heroine could be with the hero, as she also harbored romantic feelings for him.

Jealousy drives people to madness; it is always difficult for someone to accept that they are not doing as well as others, or that the person doing the best is not themselves. Consequently, she engaged in countless acts of sabotage behind people’s backs, countless schemes and traps, and countless attempts to sow discord and seduce the hero. This ultimately resulted in her losing her purity and her reputation being completely ruined, leaving her with no choice but to settle for a local ruffian, only to die in the countryside due to complications during childbirth.

Particularly tragic was the fact that not long after her death, news arrived that the college entrance examinations had been reinstated and that educated youth could return to the city. By then, Yang Yue had already alienated everyone at the youth hostel with her constant troublemaking, so no one felt sorry that she had missed the opportunity. Only a few soft-hearted girls, upon seeing the ruffian’s family carrying Yang Yue’s body away for a hasty burial, sighed, "So young—what a pity."