Chapter 1

“Woo…Woo…”

The whistle blew long and the water mist rolled.

After running for three days, the steam train finally pulled into the Shanghai Railway Station in the evening when the setting sun was about to fall.

As soon as the train came to a standstill, the closed doors of the carriages were opened one by one amid pushing and clashing.

Wearing two big braids that reached her waist and looking rather dishevelled, Ruting was full of energy and squeezed out of the bus carrying her bag along with the surging crowd.

The platform was crowded and not much more spacious than the carriage. She didn't dare to stand there and cause trouble, so she squeezed out with difficulty.

Only after leaving the crowd did I put down my bag, and like the passengers around me, I put my hands into my sleeves and sat down on the bag. I stared blankly at the passengers climbing onto the train from the window, and my thoughts gradually drifted away.

I can’t figure it out!

Even though a day had passed, Ruiting still couldn't figure it out.

Why did everything change after just a nap?

She is no longer the high school English teacher Ruiting in 2023, but the newlywed runaway wife Ruiting living in 1967.

Well... Strictly speaking, she is still a runaway wife who ran away with the money.

Thinking about the story behind this, I felt my head swelling and couldn't help but sigh again...

"Comrade? This lesbian? Are you okay? Do you need some hot water?"

A clear and crisp female voice broke through the surrounding noise and reached Li Ting's ears. She came back to her senses, raised her eyes and met a gentle smiling face.

When he looked down and saw the large kettle in the other person's hand, he immediately ignored everything else and quickly responded, "Yes, yes."

As she spoke, she had already taken out a teacup from her bag, stood up, and filled it with water. She said warmly, "Thank you, comrade."

It was only after personal experience that I realized that trains of this era did not have enough water storage and it was even more difficult to use water, so every time we arrived at a station, staff would carry kettles to distribute boiling water.

Seeing that the female comrade was in better spirits, the staff member did not ask any more questions. He poured her some water, said "serve the people", and then walked towards the next traveler who had already handed over a teacup.

Seeing this, Li Ting sat back on his bag, held the teacup in both hands and started drinking from it in small sips.

Li Ting is afraid of cold, so the moment the warm water went into her throat, she couldn't help but close her eyes comfortably, and even the fatigue in her body seemed to be relieved a little.

She actually wanted to take this opportunity to rest for a while as her bones were aching from sitting so hard for several days.

But she was more aware that it was getting dark and she had not found a place to stay yet, so it was not the time to relax.

So after drinking the water, he picked up his bag and walked out.

Late sixties.

Shanghai already has the 'Turtle Taxi', and although it is only a three-wheeled electric taxi, it has saved the people.

The starting fee was 20 cents, and it cost 70 cents when I arrived at the guesthouse closest to the train station.

In these difficult times when every penny has to be spent carefully, most people would rather walk than take a taxi.

But Ting was so tired that she even staggered when she walked.

Rather than feeling sorry for the few cents, she felt more sorry for herself who had to suffer all this for no reason.

However, her arrogance did not last for a few seconds. When the receptionist told her that there were single rooms, double rooms and quadruple rooms, and after clarifying that the double rooms only accommodated lesbians, she wisely chose a double room which was half the price.

The receptionist's attitude was lukewarm, but the waitress, Ms. Liu, who took her to the room, was enthusiastic.

After entering the room, Sister Liu, with a round smile on her face, spoke Mandarin with a Shanghai accent and briefly introduced the interior layout and the location of the water room. She then said with a smile, "If no other female comrades come to stay here tonight, you can stay in the same room as a single room."

Ting Ting thought the same thing. She smiled and said, "Thank you, Sister Liu."

"Why are you being polite? It's not easy for a woman like you to go out. I saw on your introduction letter that you were going to visit relatives in the army. Are you going to see someone?"

Accustomed to the social distance of later generations, although she was not quite used to the other party's enthusiasm, she still smiled and replied: "Yes, my husband is a soldier."

"That's amazing! Soldiers are all heroes... By the way, if you want to take a shower, go next door. There's a bathhouse next to the guesthouse. It's 10 cents with a ticket and 20 cents without a ticket." Citizens have a natural respect for soldiers, and the already enthusiastic waitress became even more enthusiastic.

After expressing his gratitude, she asked, "Excuse me, is there a place to make a phone call nearby?"

"Yes, turn right after you go out the gate and walk straight for more than 100 meters and you will find a public telephone booth. It was not so convenient a few years ago and you had to go to the post office. Later, the government had good policies and now there are more than 3,000 telephone booths in our city..." After proudly explaining the science, Sister Liu raised her wrist and looked at her watch: "It's too late today. My uncle has gone off work. You should go tomorrow morning. There will be people there at 7 o'clock in the morning."

Thinking that she could only go to the post office to send a telegram, she felt relieved. Now she has a phone...

In the end, Ruiting didn't go to the next room to take a shower.

It’s not that I’m reluctant to spend the money, but it’s inconvenient to carry around a huge amount of less than a thousand dollars.

Even for dinner, we just went to a nearby state-owned hotel to buy some steamed buns and drank some water.

After filling his belly with food, he endured the low temperature, wiped himself with a towel, and then crawled into bed.

Even if you have a lot of troubles, you have to wake up first.

Well...she is really too tired.

When I woke up again, it was already nine o'clock in the morning of the next day.

After sleeping for more than ten hours straight, all my fatigue was gone, but I was extremely hungry.

But I was worried about something and missed breakfast again.

So after washing up, Ruiting just ate a few dry biscuits to fill his stomach, packed his documents and money and went out.

Sister Liu was right. There was indeed a public telephone not far from the guesthouse.

There weren't many people answering/making calls, and in less than 5 minutes, it was my turn.

She put the receiver to her ear and waited for the call to be connected. Although she was a calm person, she couldn't help but feel nervous.

She had to be nervous, after all, it was she who occupied this body.

Therefore, she also has to bear the consequences for the mistakes made by her original self.

I just don't know where the original body went? Could it be that he and her exchanged bodies?

Thinking of this, Ruiting moved his feet a little impatiently and turned to face the old-fashioned street.

To be honest, the original body is somewhat similar to me in some aspects.

Born in the countryside, loved by his family, and good at studying.

Even if you are not rich, your life can be considered smooth sailing.

However, Tingting later studied for a master's degree and worked as an English teacher in a high school after graduation.

The original body, with excellent grades, was admitted to the Provincial Normal University at the age of 18 in 1975.

This was an era of material scarcity, and the value of college students was extremely high.

In the eyes of the world, the original body was the golden phoenix that flew out of the mountain ravine.

Everyone is convinced that this girl will have a bright future.

But unfortunately, starting from June 1967, the original body's smooth life encountered twists and turns.

A revolution not only suspended university classes, but also implicated many university students and professors.

Although she was born in the countryside, she was not affected.

But for a proud and happy girl, there is nothing to be happy about even if she escapes unscathed.

Since she did not have a college diploma, her job search after returning home was no different from that of high school students.

That's not right.

Strictly speaking, if a person from a rural family goes to a county town to look for a job in a factory or school, even if he or she is talented enough, he or she still cannot compete with those who have "connections" and "backers".

After studying for more than ten years, she had always been the pride of her parents and fellow villagers, but in the end she had to return home to farm.

In addition, my boyfriend at the university married the daughter of the director of the Revolutionary Committee and went to Tibet to support the border areas because of his class background.

The repeated blows made the proud girl lose her temper.

After working on the farm for several months, I gradually took the words of the village ladies to heart and felt that no matter how capable a woman is, she still has to get married, and marrying into a wealthy family is also a promising future!

But how easy is it to find a good partner? Especially when you have a college ex-boyfriend to compare with.

After several months of careful selection, they finally picked Huo Xiao, a military officer from the neighboring village who had lost his wife and was raising a child.

Huo Xiao is a handsome man. Although he is married for the second time and has two children, his partner is already a deputy regiment commander.

The educated girl naturally understood what being a deputy group leader in her twenties meant.

So even on the day of the wedding, Huo Xiao had to return to the army halfway due to a mission and was unable to attend the wedding banquet, the original body just got angry for a while and then calmed down and focused on living a good life.

But things did not go as planned.

After only one month of peaceful and stable life, the news of Huo Xiao's sacrifice reached the village.

The original person didn't even have time to feel sad or anything else, because the letter that came with it, in which her ex-boyfriend talked freely about "revolution" and life, touched her heartstrings.

So, after only two or three letters, three months after Huo Xiao's death, the girl, whose life was a mess after leaving school, began to have obsessions.

She is going to Tibet!

And he is obsessed with the idea that as long as he sees his former lover, everything will return to the way it was before.

Once obsession arises, it feels like a pain in the heart and liver.

So the matter lasted for another half a month, and then the original person stole a few blank introduction letters with stamps on them, took the money from home, picked up a few clothes, and ran away at night.

Not a single word of information was left.

By the time the whole village was mobilized to search for her, she had already boarded the train from Shanghai to Tibet.

I don't know why, but after I slept for a while, the inside of me changed into that of the 21st century.

Frankly speaking, if the original person had filed for a divorce, I would have been able to understand it.

But running away with the money is a bit too much.

Besides, going to look for your ex-partner is definitely because you've read too much and become stupid.

Although it is a bit unkind to say this when occupying someone's body, Li Ting still couldn't help but think so.

Not to mention that doing this would make her feel sorry for so many people who love her.

In the 1960s and 1970s alone, it was a fantasy for a single, beautiful young girl to go to Tibet alone.

Not to mention the most common altitude sickness in Tibet, even the endless withered yellow grasslands and snow-capped mountains in deep winter can be fatal.

There are no oxygen tanks, and no direct bus.

If you don't find a hitchhiker along the way, it's possible that you'll have to hike for a month.

So, what should we eat and drink during the journey? Where should we stay and rest?

Just thinking about it makes me suffocate.

Since Li Ting didn't want to die, it was impossible for her to go to Tibet, let alone find a married man with bad intentions.

But... I can't go back to the village right now.

After all, if she really couldn't go back to the afterlife, she would never want to live with the curse.

So after some consideration, Lu Ting made up a slightly more plausible reason for the original body to run away with the money.

She used a blank letter of introduction and filled in the address to Huo Xiao's army.

He said that he did not believe that Huo Xiao had sacrificed himself and wanted to go to the army to get the truth. If the information was accurate, he would also take back the other party's relics.

Although this reason doesn't make sense if you think about it.

But this is all we can do for now.

The only thing to be thankful for was that Huo Xiao's military unit was in Chengdu, so considering the route, it was reasonable to start from Shanghai.

Just thinking about not being able to see her parents again, although she had told herself countless times to just make the best of things, she still felt extremely aggrieved.

Just as she was moving her feet impatiently and changing direction again, the third call to Huojiazhuang Commune was finally answered.

Ruting's heart tightened, and she pursed her lips for a moment, then quickly let out a breath without leaving a trace, and spoke in a low voice: "Hello, comrade, I am..."