Chapter 1: February 18, 1979

"Beep, beep, beep, beep~~~ The final chime just now was Beijing time, seven o'clock sharp. Now it is time for the 'News and Newspaper Summary' program..."

"Good morning, listeners. Today is Sunday, February 18, 1979, the twenty-second day of the first lunar month..."

His eyelids felt like they were filled with lead; no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't open them. His head felt heavy and muddled, as if he were dreaming, hearing the sound of an old-fashioned transistor radio.

Mixed in with the sound of the radio was a woman's anxious call: "Weidong~ Weidong?"

"Weidong what? Why does my head hurt so much?"

No sooner had these thoughts flashed through his mind than a massive amount of chaotic and unfamiliar memories surged into his brain.

After a brief moment of bewilderment, he finally realized: he had actually transmigrated!

Reaching middle age, he never expected that upon waking from a nap, he would have returned to Beijing more than forty years ago.

He is now called Ning Weidong, born in 1958, twenty-one years old this year, living near Fuchengmen in Beijing.

He had followed the chaos for a while during junior high, then went to Liaoning Province in '73 to join the production teams, staying for over four years.

It wasn't until the year before last that he was transferred back to the city, assigned to the Security Division of the Red Star Steel Factory to guard the gate, with a salary of 17.5 yuan a month...

In just a few short seconds, his brain operated at high speed, absorbing the extra memories.

He didn't know if it was an illusion, but Ning Weidong even felt his forehead burning, and his skull was buzzing.

As the memories of the two people merged, he gradually became clear-headed.

He finally opened his eyes and saw a very beautiful woman standing in front of him, about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, wearing a blue floral cotton-padded jacket, her hair in a bun held up by a bamboo chopstick, revealing her snow-white neck.

Looking down, Ning Weidong raised an eyebrow.

This woman was not only beautiful, but her figure was even more alluring, especially those two big...

The woman was looking at him with an anxious expression; seeing him open his eyes, she let out a long sigh of relief and asked hurriedly, "Weidong, are you okay?"

Ning Weidong's temples throbbed as he searched the memories in his mind.

He found the answer quickly, but frowned.

The woman's name is Bai Fengyu, a neighbor living in the same Dazayuan as him, but she is already a married woman.

At this moment, Ning Weidong was not only in the same room with her but was sitting openly on her kang—what kind of situation was this? Ning Weidong instantly had a bad feeling.

The original owner didn't understand, but Ning Weidong was an experienced person.

A married woman and a hot-blooded young man.

Ning Weidong tried hard to recall the relationship between the original owner and Bai Fengyu.

Was it a case of Pan Jinlian and West Gate Qing, or was this woman playing a fool?

Seeing Ning Weidong dazed, Bai Fengyu called out "Weidong" again and reached out to push him lightly.

Ning Weidong let out an "uh."

In these last few seconds, he had already sorted out the relationship between the original owner and Bai Fengyu.

The original owner had been completely devoted to this woman, yet hadn't even touched her little hand.

Especially this time, he had practically drained himself to help her, only to get a "thank you" in return.

Everyone is an adult; shouldn't one be a bit sensible? Don't you know in your heart what a young man is after when he risks his life to help you? If he weren't craving your body, would he bother? Who the hell are you fooling with a "thank you"? Bai Fengyu didn't know that the "foolish boy" in front of her had been replaced, and Ning Weidong's state just now had also given her a scare.

If something were to happen to him in her room, she wouldn't be able to clear her name no matter how much she explained.

Seeing Ning Weidong return to normal, she finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Weidong~ you scared me to death just now. This money..." As she spoke, she reached out, picked up an envelope from the kang table beside her, and shoved it over: "You should take this money back. Two hundred yuan is not a small amount; I can't drag you down any further."

Ning Weidong raised an eyebrow, thinking to himself that this woman really had the original owner wrapped around her finger; not only did she want to keep the money, but she also wanted to maintain her persona.

If it were the original owner's personality, he wouldn't just refuse to take it back, he would beg her to keep it.

Unfortunately, this time it was Ning Weidong, who had a different core.

He took the envelope and squeezed it with his hand; it was thick inside. The original owner was really something—earning only 17.5 yuan a month, he couldn't save two hundred in a year even if he didn't eat or drink, yet he gave it away just like that.

"Alright then~" Ning Weidong casually tucked the envelope into his pocket, then looked up to see Bai Fengyu's expression of disbelief.

Discovering Ning Weidong looking at her, she hurriedly gave a dry laugh, wanting to make up for it with words: "That~ Weidong, that's not what I meant, you..."

Ning Weidong took her hand quite naturally and patted the back of it with his other hand.

From years of needlework, Bai Fengyu's fingertips were a bit rough, but the skin on the back of her hand was very smooth, and her palm was soft too.

Ning Weidong pursed his lips and said solemnly, "Sister, you don't need to say anything more, I understand. When I get back, I'll pay off the money to the 'Black Signature Society,' and as for your matter... we'll think of another way."

Bai Fengyu choked, not knowing what to say.

Mainly because Ning Weidong had changed too quickly, leaving her no time to react.

Ning Weidong didn't give her time to think, stood up, and said, "Sister, I'll head back first then."

Bai Fengyu only just reacted, but before she could pull her hand away, Ning Weidong had already let go and stood up to walk toward the door.

Bai Fengyu let out an "hey," wanting to salvage the situation.

Ning Weidong turned a deaf ear and pushed the door open to leave as if fleeing.

Bai Fengyu's red lips were parted, her expression stunned; she didn't understand why Ning Weidong had left so suddenly. Leaving was one thing, but why did he take the money with him? That was her life-saving money!

As soon as Ning Weidong stepped out of the room, a cold wind hit his face, causing him to shiver, and his mind became even clearer.

The air was filled with the smell of coal smoke, typical of northern winters.

He looked around.

This was a common Dazayuan in Beijing; in his memories, the original owner had been here since birth.

The courtyard was in Xicheng, north of Fuchengmen Inner Street. It was originally a large residence with four courtyards and an East Cross Courtyard. After liberation, the third courtyard and the rear building became the dormitory for the Material Bureau, leaving only the first two courtyards and an East Cross Courtyard.

The Ning Family lived in the East Cross Courtyard, occupying two of the three large North Rooms.

There were three siblings in the Ning Family; Ning Weidong was the youngest, with an older brother and an older sister above him.

Their parents had passed away years ago. The second sister had gone to Sichuan Province to build the Third Front, and the original old house, totaling two North Rooms, was occupied by the eldest brother and his wife, who had built an earthquake shelter against the eaves outside in '76.

After Ning Weidong was transferred back, he was temporarily squeezed into the earthquake shelter with his nephew, Ning Lei.

While recalling these things, Ning Weidong subconsciously looked for a cigarette to smoke.

He did not have a strong addiction to smoking, but the original owner was a heavy smoker; however, after searching through his jacket and pants pockets, apart from the envelope he had just taken back from Bai Fengyu, he only found a hand-rolled cigarette made from the edge of a newspaper, a shriveled matchbox, and twelve cents.

Ning Weidong stared at the things in his hand, not knowing what to say.

After the original owner started working, he had saved over one hundred yuan, yet he had filled all of it into Bai Fengyu; fortunately, this last two hundred yuan was a timely stop-loss.

Ning Weidong frowned, stuffed the envelope and the twelve cents back, and cursed in his heart, "A simp deserves no good end."

Fiddling with the hand-rolled cigarette in his hand, he continued to sort through the original owner's memories, habitually putting the cigarette in his mouth and lighting it.

The next moment, his expression stiffened, he began to cough violently, and the cigarette dropped to the ground.

Ning Weidong hunched over, nearly coughing his lungs out.

It took him a long time to recover, and he cursed his mother in his heart.

He picked up the cigarette that had fallen on the ground, tore open the cigarette paper, and took a close look.

What was rolled inside was no dry tobacco, but a pinch of roasted, dried grass leaves! Ning Weidong had black lines on his face, and the corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably.

The original owner was truly a ruthless person, and also damn poor to the point of madness; to actually dare to smoke this thing as a cigarette—if he had only been willing to spend nine cents to buy a pack of economy cigarettes, he wouldn't have had to roll this kind of "biochemical weapon."

(End of this chapter)