Chapter 1 The Gloomy Little Darling of the 1970s

"Zhou Huai, you're so old and you can't even do a little work properly. All you know how to do is stay at home and eat for free!"

No wonder your shameless mother ran away after giving birth to you!

The woman holding the child cursed and yelled at a teenager in the mud-walled courtyard. The teenager was carrying a carrying pole with a wooden bucket filled with water hanging from each end of the pole.

Zhou Huai had just returned from fetching water when he was met with a barrage of insults. He didn't say anything, silently put down the bucket, but his fists clenched tighter and tighter.

His still-youthful face concealed resentment and forbearance.

"Host, this is Zhou Huai, the villain who needs to be redeemed this time."

The system's voice sounded, and Shen Ci looked at the young but quick-working child in the picture. At only fifteen or sixteen years old, his eyes already revealed a heroic spirit, like an uncarved tree in the wilderness.

She opened the information sent by the system.

Zhou Huai, a sinister villain who commits murder and arson.

Losing his mother at a young age, he was subjected to psychological manipulation by his grandparents. His mother ran away with someone else because she thought he was poor and didn't want him at all. He grew up in a world of lack of love, poverty, and ridicule.

He became extremely gloomy and taciturn, but his heart was filled with a great distrust of the world, especially of women.

With his ruthlessness and intelligence, Zhou Huai became the first college student in the village, which marked the beginning of his escape and revenge.

After entering the city, he used every means to climb the social ladder, became extremely materialistic, and believed that money was the only power and guarantee.

He became ruthless and heartless. After achieving success, he returned to his hometown not to repay kindness, but to take revenge on everyone who had bullied him in the past, including his elderly grandparents. He burned his entire family's house to the ground, not only his own but also the houses of other people in the village.

He didn't let anyone who had bullied him get away with it.

Ultimately, Zhou Huai became a ruthless, heartless, and cunning villain who made countless enemies in the business world.

His paranoia and lack of principles led to his alienation from everyone, and he was eventually imprisoned for huge economic crimes, and ultimately sentenced to death.

He remained trapped in the cold, mud-brick house where his mother had abandoned him as a child until his death, never receiving or believing in love.

The villain who set fire to the village and burned down hundreds of people, regardless of age or gender, was now being humiliated by his stepmother.

Shen Ci put away the documents. A few days ago, after failing to win the inheritance, she was bound to this Godly Redemption System, which required her to save those twisted and wicked villains.

The method involves altering their life trajectories before they become completely corrupted, helping future villains become good young people and good teenagers. Each villain saved will be rewarded with a huge amount of money, and they will eventually be brought back to her world to become her possessions.

"I've finished watching, let's load it into the world."

Shen Ci put away the documents. Since she was already there, she might as well make the best of it. She was ready to be a mother.

"Okay, loading the world, initial amount received: fifty."

...

When Shen Ci opened her eyes, she was not in Zhoujia Village, but in a bustling city. The surrounding noise gradually solidified into reality, with people coming and going, and a bright blue sky.

She looked down and saw that she was wearing a camel-colored wool coat and black leather shoes.

It's already autumn, and the weather is starting to get cooler.

Shen Ci tightened her clothes. The big boy she had just seen in the picture was wearing a thin shirt even in such cold weather.

The initial funding provided by the system was only fifty dollars, but in 1975, this was a huge sum of money, equivalent to a month's salary for a senior worker.

Shen Ci randomly pulled over a passerby and asked.

"Excuse me, sir/madam, how do I get to the department store?"

People these days are so kind-hearted. Looking at her outfit, I thought, "Wow, she's so fashionable!"

"It's just ahead, turn the corner and you'll be there."

Shen Ci grabbed the woman's hand and said, "Thank you so much, comrade. Without you, I definitely wouldn't have been able to find my way!"

"Could you take me to the department store? I've always had a terrible sense of direction. Here, I'll pay for the directions!"

Shen Ci took out a ten-yuan note from his bag. The new note smelled of copper.

The young woman who was being pulled by her widened her eyes immediately! Her hands were waving like wings.

"No, no, no, no need."

"It's just showing you the way. I'm going to buy something anyway, I'll take you there."

She stared at the large ten-yuan note, utterly shocked. My God! Who is this person? They can just casually throw out a large ten-yuan note! How wealthy must this family be!

If someone gives her a penny or two, or a dime or two, she can accept it without a care in the world. But if someone offers her 10 yuan, she wouldn't dare to accept it!

"No, you must keep it!"

This is a special thank you gift. Don't worry, I have plenty of money!

Shen Ci used the same energy he had when receiving red envelopes during Chinese New Year to persuade the girl in front of him to give her ten yuan. He kept urging and stuffing money into her mouth, making the girl blush. The two of them arrived at the entrance of the department store.

"Okay, thank you."

The kind-hearted girl had just accepted the guide fee when a notification popped up in the system.

"Congratulations, host, on your first purchase! You have triggered your first 100x bonus!"

The cash reward of 1,000 yuan has been credited to your account! A brand new Phoenix bicycle is also included as a bonus!

She took a gamble and turned a bicycle into a motorcycle. If she hadn't been offered 50 yuan, the person definitely wouldn't have dared to accept it, but she spent it all.

According to the system's rules, giving money directly to someone will not earn you a rebate, but if she asks someone to guide her and pays for that service, it will be considered a normal transaction.

With an extra 1,000 yuan in her bag, Shen Ci stepped into the department store and headed straight for the prominent clothing section. Along the way, she saw that there were quite a few people in the mall, but most of them were looking around rather than buying anything.

Some sales clerks were knitting, some were eating sunflower seeds, and some were chatting. No one paid any attention to the customers who wanted to buy things. This is the service these days.

Thinking of her son Zhou Huai, whom she hadn't even met yet, dressed so thinly, Shen Ci decided that to warm someone's heart, she had to warm their body first.

"Comrade, take that sweater down and let me see it."

Shen Ci said politely, and the sales clerk put down the sweater in her hand with some impatience.

"Just look at it like this. It doesn't matter where you look at it. Why do you have to hold it in your hand? What if you get it dirty?"

This sweater is pure cotton and costs 10 yuan.

The saleswoman glanced at Shen Ci, then continued knitting her sweater without a care. She was dressed quite neatly, but how many people who are willing to come to a department store to buy things are dressed in a disheveled manner?

...

These days, money can't buy service. Coming from a place where money is spent like water, it's really hard to get used to everything.

Shen Ci's voice was neither loud nor soft, but it carried a clear chill.

She tapped the glass counter with her fingertip and repeated.

"Comrade, please take down that cotton sweater hanging there so I can take a look."

The bright red banner at the entrance, proclaiming "Serve the People," was almost blinding, but the saleswoman behind the counter seemed to be blind, her eyelids drooping as she twirled her knitting needles, her disdainful smirk almost reaching her ears.

"Smack!"

With a crisp sound, the salesperson finally reacted.

She slammed her knitting work on the table, stood up abruptly, tore off the gray sweater, and threw it onto the counter in front of Shen Ci.

With so much force, aren't you afraid of breaking things and having to pay for the damages?

"Look if you want! What are you yelling about? Are you trying to kill me?!"

"Why are you touching things you can't afford? If you break them, can you afford to pay for them?"

The shrill mutterings were undisguised, filled with deep contempt.

Shen Ci ignored the jarring noise; her attention was entirely on the sweater.

The touch from her fingertips was fine and soft, made of solid, high-quality cotton thread with even stitches. She imagined how warm the clothes would look on that thin child.

The next moment, she raised her eyes, her gaze calmly sweeping across the shelves, her finger lightly tapping.

"This sweater."

And that Zhongshan suit, yes, the dark blue one.

"Over there, the row of gray trousers, the army green jacket, this sailor shirt, and those white Warrior sneakers… yes, that stack you're holding, all the ones that fit, wrap them all up."

The saleswoman's impatience froze instantly. She stared blankly at her, wondering if she had misheard.

Shen Ci slightly raised her chin and uttered three words clearly and slowly.

"I want them all."