Chapter 93: Step-Sister

Chapter 93: Step-Sister

After two years of maturation, Tang Xiang appeared much more mature on the surface, but she felt increasingly smug inside.

Her predictions for Song Huazhang came true one by one, each time leaving him deeply impressed.

On January 8, 1976, the beloved Premier passed away, plunging the nation into mourning. The capital also saw a crackdown movement.

Song Huazhang rose to the challenge, speaking out for the revered Premier and organizing memorial activities, quickly becoming a leading figure among the young people in the capital.

He had been arrested and interrogated but was soon released, his reputation soaring as he gained popularity among the youth and the favor of some leaders.

Under his efforts, Old Mr. Qin was rehabilitated and returned to Beijing, and his children gradually returned to work in the capital. Qin Xuan naturally returned to her family home in the capital.

Song Huazhang also arranged for his work in the capital, no longer needing to return to the Forward Brigade.

His procedures were approved by Tang Yuan, with Tang Bingde and Secretary Liu transferring the educated youth's records to the farm system, entrusting her with the responsibility of receiving them, recommending them for admission to the Workers, Peasants and Soldiers University, and approving their return to the city.

At that time, Tang Xiang came to handle Song Huazhang's procedures, as he could not return to the Forward Brigade in person.

Tang Xiang feared that Tang Yuan might be jealous and deliberately obstruct her, so she said some provocative words. However, Tang Yuan did not ask many questions or show any intention of blocking her, and readily stamped the documents.

Seeing how easily Tang Yuan complied, Tang Xiang felt somewhat uncomfortable and couldn't help but say, "We're going to the city, and from now on, we'll be people from two different worlds."

Tang Yuan found it amusing at the time—Song Huazhang was returning to the city, not her. What was there to be smug about?

Didn't she fear that Song Huazhang would have too many choices after returning to the city and might dump her?

Of course, she didn't say this aloud, remembering that Tang Xiang was the original heroine of the book. If she, the villainous supporting character, spoke sourly, wouldn't she be slapped in the face?

But since Tang Yuan showed no sign of jealousy, Tang Xiang felt uncomfortable again. She wanted to tell Tang Yuan that she was confident Song Huazhang wouldn't betray her because she had a golden finger, but she thought it inappropriate to reveal that she relied on something else to control Song Huazhang. Instead, she believed Song Huazhang loved her wholeheartedly.

Love should be pure.

However, Tang Yuan didn't take her and Song Huazhang seriously at all and didn't give them a second thought. At the time, she only said, "Sorry, I'm busy. Please go ahead," and then left with Feng Chen in a jeep that looked like a chicken.

This infuriated Tang Xiang, who always felt a sense of frustration, like wearing fine clothes at night.

She didn't know why she cared so much about Tang Yuan's opinion, always wanting to see envy, jealousy, and hatred in Tang Yuan's eyes.

She didn't understand the reason, but she couldn't resist it.

Now that the college entrance examination had been reinstated, she could finally go to the capital through the exam!

The joke from her previous life had finally come true—whether it was better to attend University Jin or University Hua?

She wasn't in engineering; she wanted to study liberal arts, so naturally, she chose University Jin!

Even though Tang Yuan and Feng Chen ran a factory, they lacked a university degree and were just illiterate rural entrepreneurs.

Compared to a talented woman from University Jin, the weight of a rural entrepreneur was obvious.

She smirked, took the stamped letter of introduction from Tang Yuan, and said, "I'm going to register at the commune. For universities, I only have my heart set on University Jin and University Hua!"

Tang Yuan, seeing her like a proud peacock, wasn't angry. After all, Tang Xiang was the original heroine, the author's own daughter, and had the right to be proud.

Anyway, the heroine didn't need to study hard like ordinary students to pass the exam; the author just needed to write who passed and who didn't.

However, in the book, she and Song Huazhang took the exam and returned to the city together, but in reality, Song Huazhang returned to the city first, leaving Tang Xiang alone in the countryside.

Tang Xiang claimed that Song Huazhang asked her to move to the city, but she didn't want to, preferring to enter the city on her own merit without owing anyone anything.

For this, Tang Yuan actually admired her.

Tang Yuan smiled and said, "Then I wish you success in the exams!"

Tang Xiang gazed at her with a complicated expression, growing more certain that Tang Yuan was not a time traveler, but merely someone with a bit of wit and the knack for seizing opportunities.

A native is a native; a summer insect cannot be told about ice.

Holding the letter of introduction, Tang Xiang gave Tang Yuan a deep look, knowing that from now on, they would be separated by the divide between the city and the countryside.

She was going to the capital to study, make money, and buy a courtyard house, while Tang Yuan could only raise pigs with Feng Chen in the countryside!

Feeling very pleased with herself, Tang Xiang turned and walked away, her feet tapping on the black leather shoes with thin heels that Song Huazhang had sent her, humming a tune as she went.

Tang Yuan secretly mocked her, thinking that Song Huazhang would dump her once he returned to the city.

Hmph, afraid of Song Huazhang's betrayal? It was Song Huazhang who should be afraid of being dumped by her.

When the winds of the era blew, she could ride them to the top, and Song Huazhang, accustomed to her predictions, couldn't do without her, often asking her about the future.

Could someone who relied on a crutch ever truly leave it behind?

So even when Old Mr. Qin wanted to marry his granddaughter to Song Huazhang after he returned to the city, Song Huazhang firmly refused, clearly stating that he was already engaged.

"Ah—" As she walked, she stepped on a small pebble, twisted her ankle, and fell to one side.

She screamed, flailing her arms, and finally landed heavily on the ground, hitting her head.

Someone passing by saw her fall and immediately ran over. "Isn't that the younger cousin of Director Tang? Oh, how are you?"

Tang Xiang fainted, unresponsive, with blood seeping from the back of her head.

The passerby was terrified and immediately shouted for help.

Soon, several people carried Tang Xiang to the brigade medical room for Tang Zhonghe to examine.

Just as they arrived at the infirmary, Tang Xiang regained consciousness.

By the time Tang Zhonghe had finished treating her wounds, she was fully awake and insisted that she was fine, just a bit dizzy.

Tang Zhonghe looked at her with concern, "Xiang'er, are you really okay? A head injury can be serious. You should lie down and observe for a while."

Tang Xiang slowly shook her head, her voice equally slow, "I'm... fine."

Still, Tang Zhonghe examined her to check if her vision was blurry, if she felt dizzy, or if she had any nausea.

Although Tang Xiang experienced all these symptoms, she did not acknowledge them, for she had never imagined that she would actually find herself in a time travel scenario!

No, no, she was originally a穿越 (穿越) individual, and now she had crossed over once more.

Wait, wait, she had first crossed over during high school, and now she had crossed over after working for a few years.

She felt dizzy and nauseous, and it took her a long time to fully understand what was happening.

She had crossed over, into a novel she had written herself.

To be precise, it seemed that she had awakened her memories from her previous life?

In her past life, she was a web novelist who secretly wrote stories on Lüjiang.com to vent her stress during high school.

She wrote a 1970s Mary Sue novel based on herself as the protagonist, and she even included her half-sister from the same father but different mother. She didn't intentionally tarnish the sister's image because, from her interactions, Tang Yuan was indeed capricious, selfish, and unreasonable.

Her father treated her well, and her mother wanted to take care of her. They both wanted her to live with them, but she rudely refused.

Her mother even privately begged her, saying that for the sake of their shared surname, she should be more tolerant of her father.

Her mother and father fell in love freely; they were not involved in an affair. They deserved her blessing, not her hostility.

But Tang Yuan bluntly told her mother, "When my father was born, the family was poor. My biological grandfather wanted to freeze him to death, but my grandparents were kind and saved him, gave him a surname, and raised him. He was like a foster son in our old Tang family.

He grew up with my mother, started a business together, got married, and had a daughter. But after my mother passed away, he remarried within a year.

Even if you two weren't involved in an affair, would I forgive him?

Now he has acknowledged his cold-blooded biological parents and could easily change back to his original surname instead of following ours.

He doesn't change his surname and even makes his daughter bear the Tang name. I'm not stupid; I know what you're up to.

Don't dream about it. My grandparents have me; we don't need a son to carry on the family name."

Because of Tang Yuan's words, her mother was deeply hurt, feeling that Tang Yuan had a twisted view of people and lacked human warmth, finding her father pitiful.

Unloved by his biological parents, unloved by his adoptive parents, and even treated like a thief by his own daughter.

Influenced by her mother, Tang Xiang thought Tang Yuan was very bad.

Indeed, Tang Yuan proved to be very bad, lacking any sense of humanity.

She suddenly fainted in the hospital, and her father and mother rushed to take care of her. However, her workplace presented a public letter she had written, clearly stating that in the event of an accident, all medical decisions were to be made by the unit. She also had a notarized will, stipulating that if she died unexpectedly, all her assets would be donated to a poverty alleviation fund.

She didn't leave a single cent to her biological father, showing no intention of supporting him at all!

Yet, her father had been paying her child support every month!

Initially, it was 200 yuan per month, then 500, and by the time she went to university, it was over 800.

When she got accepted into university, her father even gave her a 10,000 yuan red envelope!

Yet, she treated her biological father so heartlessly!

Tang Xiang was truly angry, even secretly gloating, thinking that the old Tang family was now extinct.

She couldn't resist starting to write a new book, this time portraying Tang Yuan as an ungrateful and heartless woman, a brainless side character who only screamed in dangerous situations.

She would also take away Tang Yuan's man, making Feng Chen in the new book particularly dislike this vicious side character!

But after staying up all night writing, she was so excited that she... crossed over?

After sorting out her thoughts, Tang Xiang felt completely whole.

No wonder she always felt light and insubstantial before; it must have been because her soul was incomplete. Although she was set to cross over, she didn't fully understand where she came from.

Once she understood the current situation, she realized a significant problem.

The Tang Yuan in this world had a major issue!

Although in the original plot, she had set Tang Xiang's parents as the original couple without a step-sister Tang Yuan, and she didn't know about her relationship with Tang Yuan from her previous life, the two still had a natural animosity, envying and competing with each other uncontrollably.

This was mainly due to Tang Yuan's jealousy of her.

But the current development was completely different from the original plot.

Although the book was written when she was young, she remembered the main content, especially Tang Yuan's outrageous actions and tragic ending.

Her relationship with Song Huazhang was roughly the same, with some changes. For example, she foolishly revealed her secret to Song Huazhang, telling him she could predict the future and helping him rise to power, even having him protect Qin Xuan. Was her high school self really that naive and innocent?

But it made sense; being provoked by Tang Yuan, she might have acted irrationally.

And since Song Huazhang benefited from her insider knowledge, he would become dependent on her and couldn't do without her. There was nothing wrong with giving him hints.

She still needed to take the college entrance exam to start her journey to the top.

But something was off with Tang Yuan.

In the original plot, Tang Yuan was stupid and reckless, causing chaos everywhere. How could she possibly be a factory manager or run a food factory?

The most crucial point is that Feng Chen was the invisible secret admirer she had deliberately set for herself. Feng Chen and Song Huazhang were two different types of handsome men—deeply devoted, aloof, and reserved. Though he never received her attention, he silently watched over her and loved her, always standing on the hilltop gazing in the direction she left the mountain village.

These two people are different now; they have deviated from the plot, which is not right.

And Tang Bingde, Ji Hongyue, and others are all different as well.

Didn't Ji Hongyue die young?

Tang Xiang held her head for a long time, finally concluding that Feng Chen was off, and then he helped Tang Yuan?

No, no, she warned herself not to be too arrogant; Tang Yuan was also off.

She had to admit that this world's Tang Yuan was excellent, so excellent that it proved something was wrong.

Could it be... that Tang Yuan had also traveled through time?

Was it the previous life's Tang Yuan who came through or was someone else possessing her body?

The fact that Tang Yuan showed no hatred towards her... could it mean someone else possessed her body?

Tracing back, she remembered the day of Jingzhe in 1973 when Tang Yuan was kicked into the river by the book's version of herself, then ran a high fever, rambled, went mad, and demanded a family split.

From there, things started to change.

As she followed the trail, she became increasingly convinced that Tang Yuan was off, like a time traveler.

Rice planting, biogas pools...

In her past life, wasn't Tang Yuan a technical cadre?

Tang Xiang jumped out of bed, everything made sense!

Her first reaction was to rush and confront Tang Yuan, but she quickly restrained herself.

This world's Tang Yuan was frighteningly calm; she faced her without any hatred or anger, which was abnormal.

Perhaps she was up to no good.

Tang Xiang calmed down; she needed to stay composed and focus on reviewing for the college entrance exam.

Then she realized another problem—when writing the book, she was in high school, and the knowledge points were fresh in her mind, making it easy to take the exam at that time. But now, after working for a few years, things were different. She only got into a third-tier university back then, tired of studying, and never repeated a year. After graduating, she immediately started working and never thought about studying again.

If she took the exam with her current level, she... was doomed.

She found that her brain was different from before the fall, as if she had become... not stupid, but her IQ had returned to average?

Her previous self was set to be smart and good at studies, but her current self, influenced by actual performance, was not as... excellent.

Tang Xiang let out a cry and rushed out, determined to find a way to review.

Tang Zhonghe looked at her retreating figure with confusion, wondering if she was really okay?

He sent his apprentice Liu Jinhui to inform Tang Yuan.

Liu Jinhui didn't want to be the brigade accountant, thinking it had no future. No matter how much he studied, he wouldn't surpass Xia Xiaoguang, so he preferred to follow Tang Zhonghe as a barefoot doctor.

Now that Forward Brigade, Xiangyang Brigade, and Leapforward Brigade had merged, the population would increase, and its importance would grow.

The brigade medical room would be upgraded to a health center.

When that happened, Tang Zhonghe would be the director, and he might even get a deputy director or department head position.

Tang Yuan was eating in the factory office.

Both she and Feng Chen were busy, and so were Dad Tang and Mother Tang. They usually didn't cook and paid to eat at the cannery canteen.

The chef at the cannery canteen, a small landlord, had improved his skills, and commune officials often found excuses to stay in Forward Brigade.

Every mealtime, if Feng Chen was at the factory, he would ride home to pick up Grandma Feng for dinner, then take her back to the village labor room to chat with the elderly.

Seeing Liu Jinhui come to deliver a message, Tang Yuan invited him to join them for dinner.

Liu Jinhui smiled, "Sis Yuan, my master asked me to tell you, I still need to go back and assist him. We'll eat later."

Tang Yuan didn't insist, and after he left, she pondered, feeling something was off with Tang Xiang.

Feng Chen, sensitive to her thoughts, picked up a piece of sweet and sour pork for her, "What are you thinking about? You're not even eating your pork."

Tang Yuan picked up the piece and stuffed it into her mouth, her cheeks puffing up.

Feng Chen laughed and gently tapped her cheek, "Eat."

Grandma Feng glanced at them and coughed, "There's still half a plate left, don't rush her. She's thinking about something important."

Grandma Feng was now closer to Tang Yuan than the old man who had passed away, let alone Feng Chen and Feng Yi, and Uncle Feng was even further behind.

Tang Yuan chewed, finding a crisp bone, and crunched it up before swallowing. She then said, "Grandma, Brother Zhonghe said Tang Xiang seems abnormal. When you go around the village, try to get more information from my grandma."

Grandma Feng accepted the task happily, "Sure thing, I'll make sure to get all the details for you."

After finishing their meal, Grandma Feng listened to some storytelling, recently enjoying "The Legend of Yue Fei," never missing an episode whenever it was broadcast.

Feng Chen held Tang Yuan's hand and took a walk downstairs, casually picking a couple of naturally ripe persimmons from a tree for her to enjoy.

They were bright red and soft, fully ripe, perfect for sucking on, cool and sweet.

Tang Yuan exclaimed, "Oh, I've noticed you're getting more mischievous. You know I'm greedy and still give me these, I'll end up with a dirty face."

Feng Chen laughed and pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket, ready to wipe her mouth.

Tang Yuan started to slurp without any reserve, saying, "Tang Xiang has a secret; she’s acting a bit strange."

Someone who was originally basking in the glory of success suddenly acting like they’ve seen a ghost—there must be something wrong.

Feng Chen nodded slightly, "It's said that she can predict the future."

He overheard it by chance, not intentionally eavesdropping. As his cultivation advanced over time, his hearing improved.

A few times when he passed by the educated youth commune, he accidentally heard Tang Xiang and Song Huazhang whispering by the river about things that would happen in the future, and those things were indeed verified one by one.

Feng Chen, being a穿越者 from the post-apocalyptic era with numerous secrets, did not find himself particularly unique or special. It was only natural that others might also have their own secrets.

Besides, his wife also had a significant secret, and he didn’t insist on uncovering it, so naturally, he wouldn’t bother with Tang Xiang.

As long as the other party doesn’t provoke me, I won’t provoke them either.

Tang Yuan glanced at him, feigning anger, "When did you find out? And you didn’t even tell me!"

The corners of Feng Chen’s lips curled up. If she weren’t slurping her persimmon, her pretend anger might have been a bit more convincing.

He chuckled softly, "I have secrets too. Do you want to hear them?"

Tang Yuan responded with an indirect "Oh," "I know."

Of course, a big shot must have some secrets; otherwise, how could they become a big shot?

Feng Chen’s dark eyes seemed to hold deep vortices, "Are you sure?"

Tang Yuan nodded but then felt uncertain, "A little unsure, so why don’t you tell me?" She blinked her large, innocent eyes, looking pure and guileless.

She was quite good at playing the innocent.

Feng Chen felt a tickle in his heart and whispered, "I’ll tell you on our wedding night."

Tang Yuan: "..."

Feng Chen was getting more cunning, playing mind games with her.

Although they had reached the legal marriage age, Tang Yuan always felt they were too young, especially since birth control methods in this era were unreliable. She didn’t want to have children at a young age.

She didn’t even want children at all.

Actually, her stepmother was right; she was just selfish and domineering.

In her previous life, she and her grandparents relied on each other, not wanting anyone else to share their affection, insisting that they only dote on her.

If she got married and had children, her grandparents would definitely love them too, and she didn’t want that.

In this life, she had changed a lot and wasn’t as strongly opposed to the idea, especially since she had her parents, Feng Nai, and Feng Chen to dote on her.

If Feng Chen wanted children, she thought having one would be fine, but personally, she didn’t want children.

They didn’t need to pass on a throne to their children, and she didn’t know how to raise them.

The thought of someone calling her "Mom" made her feel a bit anxious.

She enjoyed the feeling of being in love with Feng Chen, sweet, warm, secure, and safe. He was truly an excellent partner, fulfilling all her fantasies about love.

Of course, she was human, not a clay figure without desires, seeking only Platonic love.

She still loved kissing, hugging, and being lifted high by Feng Chen.

Feng Chen looked down at her face, which was slowly turning red from the juice, knowing that the little girl was lost in her fantasies.

He had long noticed that she was particularly good at seduction!

As long as they weren’t sleeping at home, whether in the mountains, a guesthouse, or a factory dormitory, she would run to his room to sleep together, insisting that she slept better in his arms.

Well, actually, she just liked taking advantage of him.

She loved kissing, hugging, and touching him, but she couldn’t control herself and was afraid of getting pregnant, so she always relied on him to maintain his boundaries.

He... found it very difficult to hold back.

Several times when she was aroused, he also lost control, but thinking about how she would regret and blame him for not being firm after regaining her senses, he managed to endure.

He didn’t want her to be hurt, physically or mentally, and he didn’t want her to feel guilty or regretful after a moment of pleasure.

He wanted her to be fully prepared and to trust him completely.

He wanted a lifelong commitment, to grow old together.

Of course, if he waited for her to be ready and say, "Let’s get married officially," he would have a long wait, so he occasionally reminded her to think more about their relationship.

Once they were officially married, they could do things openly and freely.

Moreover, if she didn’t want children, he wouldn’t force it.

But he didn’t want to tell her in advance that he could live without children. He wanted her to choose to marry him voluntarily, knowing what would happen after marriage, including having children, rather than adding any conditions.

Tang Yuan’s face turned yellow with thought, and she mischievously said, "Shall we sleep in the dorm tonight? Then we can discuss our marriage."

Feng Chen looked at her speechlessly, "Are you sure you can still discuss such serious matters about marriage then?"

At that time, her mind would be full of inappropriate thoughts, and she would even come up with scenarios for him to act out.

Whether it was a queen abducting a husband or a woman disguised as a man marrying a tall princess dressed as a woman.

Even with his thick skin, he sometimes couldn’t handle it.

Tang Yuan cleared her throat, "Well, how about you write an application and I'll approve it?"

Feng Chen's eyes gleamed, "Are you sure you want me to write it? If I do, this winter will be full of good days."

Tang Yuan hesitated for a moment, "Then... shall I write it and you approve it?"

She really loved the feeling of dating Feng Chen. Just thinking about going out to meetings or doing anything with him, when people asked about their relationship, she could smile sweetly while holding his arm and say, "This is my boyfriend," instead of saying, "This is my husband."

Oh, she thought the word 'husband' sounded so old-fashioned.

She didn't want a husband at all.

She always felt that a husband was someone who could be set aside anytime, like a toy one might get tired of, unlike a boyfriend who brought a bit of romance, allowing them to sneak into a small grove for a quick kiss, thrilling and sweet.

Cough, actually, she was quite well-behaved, not wild at all.

She didn't like roughing it in the wild like Tong Xue and Tang Wu did.

She just enjoyed those little moments of romance.

Feng Chen gently wiped the persimmon juice from the corner of her mouth and nose with a handkerchief, his expression serious and his voice formal, "Alright, write it and let me see."

Tang Yuan made a face at him, and Feng Chen quickly leaned down to kiss her lips, tasting the sweet flavor of persimmons.

As he lifted his head, he saw Feng Nai hiding behind a persimmon tree.

The old lady pretended to look up at the sky, as if she hadn't seen anything, "Oh, there's a white bird and a black bird in the sky... Oh... they flew over there, I'll go check it out."

She wanted to return to the village but didn't see her grandson sending her off, so she decided to go back on her own. Who knew she would catch the young couple whispering sweet nothings.

Oh, young love was truly beautiful; she wanted to watch a bit longer but was caught by her grandson.

What a disobedient grandson.

The old lady was quite efficient and reported back to Tang Yuan within three days.

"I heard from Old Lady Tang that Tang Xiang has been possessed. She sits there with a dark expression, her eyes different, as if she's become someone else. Especially when she looks at Tang Wu, Tong Xue, and their son, her eyes seem ready to devour them. She mumbles something about Dabao not being supposed to exist. What does that mean? Old Lady Tang is secretly asking around to find out whose talisman is effective, wanting to invite one."

Tang Yuan thought for a moment. To prevent Tang Xiang from causing trouble at home, she made a decision immediately.

"Have everyone who wants to take the college entrance exam gather in the primary school classroom to review for a month. Those who pass can go to university, and those who don't can come back to work."

This was the advantage of having a pool of trained workers. No matter who had issues, the factory wouldn't lack manpower.

When this rule was announced, the candidates were deeply moved.

Other brigades not only didn't allow time off for review but also forbade taking leave, requiring them to work during the day and only study under kerosene lamps at night.

Director Tang and Director Feng were truly great people!

Tang Yuan's original intention was to help the candidates focus on their studies and to keep Tang Xiang from causing trouble under the watchful eyes of other candidates. However, damn Tang Wu started causing trouble again.

Tong Xue also wanted to take the exam, but Tang Wu feared she would leave him and their child if she passed, so he refused to let her go.

He, a grown man, even threatened suicide at home, trying to pressure the brigade to forbid Tong Xue from taking the exam.