Chapter 1
Zhou Jiani comes to the city to shop at the department store several times a year because the clothes in the clothing processing area are cheap, good-looking, and all branded.
The older sisters laughed at her, saying that she became more and more particular as she got older.
Zhou Jiani thought, the old bastard at home finally died, and my son and his family don’t come back often, so I can finally have a few days of comfort. Isn’t it okay to spend a little money to be nice?
With his rough, dry hands, he rummaged through the shelves for a few times. When he found a piece of clothing that caught his eye, he took it down and put it on his arm. He continued rummaging, and as he did so, he negotiated with the cashier: "Little girl, give me a discount at the end."
The young and pretty cashier smiled politely: "Auntie, we don't bargain on clearance items."
Zhou Jiani didn't take it seriously. She always said the same thing, but as long as she polished it well, she could always get rid of a few more pieces. She smiled and said, "I'll pick a few more..."
The alarm on her cell phone rang, interrupting her.
Zhou Jiani put on the reading glasses hanging around her neck, opened WeChat and clicked on the 'Daily Welfare Group Buying Group'.
The group buying group sells goods on time at 10 o'clock every morning. In order to mobilize the enthusiasm of group members, the group owner will send a red envelope before the group starts.
Zhou Jiani set the alarm for 9:59.
Her eyes were slightly narrowed behind her reading glasses, staring at the screen without blinking. When the time came, a big red envelope popped out. She pressed it steadily with her finger and successfully deposited nine cents.
Nine cents is still money. Zhou Jiani found an emoticon of "Thank you boss for the red envelope" and sent it out, then turned off her phone and continued to browse the shelves.
In the aisle next to her, the sound of high heels hitting the ground was rapid and crisp, coming from far away and getting closer, and the voices were also going straight into Zhou Jiani's ears.
"...One must not be too greedy. I'll only make this one concession. Three million, leave my son alone, or don't blame me for being rude!"
Zhou Jiani smacked her lips, wondering what kind of deal was this? She subconsciously glanced over there, and unfortunately, the other person also glanced over here, and the two of them looked at each other, slightly startled.
The woman that caught Zhou Jiani's eyes looked twenty years younger than her. She had delicate makeup and outstanding temperament, and her slightly upturned eyes showed her shrewdness and competence.
But Zhou Jiani knew that she was three months older than her.
"Zhou Jiani?" The other party was surprised for a moment and then hung up the phone. He walked over with a scrutinizing look in his eyes, bringing with him a pleasant fragrance.
Beauty lies in the bones, not in the skin. Zhou Jiani is such a beauty. Although she is less than 60 years old, she looks like she is 70 or 80. Even so, her facial features can still show the stunning beauty of her youth.
Liu Ailing felt mixed emotions, and couldn't tell whether she was more jealous or envious, or perhaps a bit of both.
But then she smiled knowingly. The beauty had long been in the past. Wasn't the beauty of the past just an old rural lady now?
As her eyes swept over the cheap clothes draped over her arms, Liu Ailing sighed even more, her eyes filled with sympathy and pity.
Zhou Jiani didn't expect to meet Liu Ailing in such an occasion. She tried to straighten her back, but the embarrassment inadvertently revealed in her eyes still made her look shorter.
Thoughts were like a flood that had been opened, rushing and boiling in my mind.
In the past, both of them were children of employees of the Provincial Second Textile Factory and lived in the same tube-shaped building, but their growth backgrounds were very different.
Liu Ailing had many siblings, and their struggles for the few resources they had created a chaotic family. However, this upbringing also shaped her, making her more observant than her peers and more adept at seizing every opportunity to show off and seek benefits for herself.
Zhou Jiani was the only child in the family before she was twelve years old. She was spoiled and brought up. Even after she had twin brothers, it did not affect her status in the family.
At that time, going to the countryside to work was the hottest topic. She was not very interested at first, and her family was reluctant to let her suffer, so they were trying to let her stay in the city. But Liu Ailing talked about it with such enthusiasm that she got excited and secretly went with Liu Ailing to sign up.
At this point, I had no choice but to go to the countryside.
She regretted it as soon as she got on the train and wanted to go back, but would the policy allow her to do so?
When we arrived in the countryside, we saw the hardships there and made trouble several times, which left a bad impression on the people in the team.
She has a bad attitude and is not good at work, but because she is pretty, there are always young men approaching her and trying to help her with work, which makes her despised by many.
On the other hand, Liu Ailing, because of her positive thinking and hard work, not only did she get along well with the local villagers, but also the distance between them and her also grew wider.
Later, Liu Ailing was recommended to return to the city and married the son of the director of a machinery factory.
She was taken advantage of by Wang Bin, an uneducated young man from the next village. Under great fear and pressure, she married Wang Bin and lived a miserable life.
Now that the old bastard Wang Bin had finally drunk himself to death, she was able to lead a leisurely life and often came to the city for a stroll, feeling very satisfied.
But this satisfaction completely collapsed at this moment!
They grew up together and went to the countryside together, but their situations now are very different.
Her thoughts gradually calmed down. Zhou Jiani thought, "Even if I lose, I won't lose the battle." She tried to look straight ahead, curling her lips into a generous smile and greeting him, "It's Comrade Liu Ailing. Long time no see!"
In the end, this self-esteem that she had forced herself to hold was shattered by a single sweeping look from the other person.
"Jia Ni, how great would it have been if you hadn't done that back then? We two are truly the same people, but with different fates!"
It was hard to tell whether the sigh was one of regret or mockery, and it was extremely harsh, piercing Zhou Jiani's mind. But then the other person added another stab. Seeing her wave over to the teller, he pointed at Zhou Jiani and said with a kind gesture of charity, "I'll give this lady a free bill later."
The teller said respectfully, "Okay, Chairman!"
Zhou Jiani felt the blood rushing up all over her body, and the breath hit her heart. She fell into endless darkness and fell into a world full of words.
[Commenting on "The Return of the Educated Youth in the 1970s" with *****6: Congratulations to my wife on the completion of the story. Spread the flowers!]
[Meow Meow's review of "The Return of the Educated Youth in the 1970s": Congratulations on the finale. I'm relieved to know that the female supporting character isn't having a good time.]
Feng Shijinchui's review of "The Return of the Educated Youth of the 1970s": I hate Zhou Jiani, she's both pretentious and shameless, and she dragged the heroine down in the early stages. Luckily, my sister Ling stood up for herself and stayed away from the pretentiousness, and things really started to go smoothly.
【Comment with *****2...】
After an unknown amount of time, the text disappeared, but a young voice, sometimes near and sometimes far, entered her ears: "Jia Ni, if you really can't stand it anymore, tell the uncle driving the car, let's stop and rest."
Zhou Jiani opened her eyelids with a twitching sound, and there was a look of shock and understanding in her eyes - it turned out that she was just a supporting character in a book, a control group created to contrast with the heroine Liu Ailing.
But what is the situation now?
Zhou Jiani turned her head and what caught her eye was Liu Ailing, who had the same life but a different fate as her, but was a younger version of Liu Ailing.
At this time, Liu Ailing was wearing a long-sleeved plaid shirt, army green pants, and two pigtails. Her skin was slightly dark. She had no high curled eyelashes and upturned eyeliner, no finely drawn red lips, and no smell of high-end perfume. Only the smell of sweat hit her face.
She was sitting on an ox cart, her nose filled with the dry smell mixed with dust, and a complaint was forming on the corner of her mouth, but she wanted to spit it out but couldn't, so she quickly pursed her lips and swallowed the words back.
Looking around, I remembered the scene.
Today is the first day they arrived in Bin County. They are on their way to the Qianjin Brigade under Xihe Commune in Bin County, where they go to the countryside.
At this critical juncture...
Zhou Jiani sighed at the old man driving the cart ahead of her. It felt like she had already offended someone. Putting aside the commotion on the train, her dislike for the oxcart was palpable from the moment she saw it. She complained about the dirtiness, the shakiness, and the dust on the road, spouting unpleasant remarks without repeating.
If the trajectory remains unchanged, when they reach the steep slope ahead and Uncle Zhang, the driver, asks everyone to get off and walk on their own, she will rebel again.
It's so stupid.
Fortunately, after all the setbacks she had experienced, she had learned her lesson. It was also thanks to her timely reaction that she didn't say anything stupid like asking others to stop and take a break.
Why did we need to take a break? Because we were shaking her.
Zhou Jiani closed her eyes and took a deep breath, suppressing those foolish memories. She briefly recounted what had happened before and laughed loudly to make amends: "I didn't lose it. I was ignorant before and said some things I shouldn't have said. I really shouldn't have said that. I'd like to apologize to my uncle first. I'm really sorry for making him laugh."
Uncle Zhang had been irritated by her several times before, and now he didn't even bother to pay attention to her.
Zhou Jiani smiled awkwardly and continued to try to make amends, this time saying to Liu Ailing, "They dropped their work and came to pick us up. They've already wasted half a day. How can we cause them any more trouble?"
Uncle Zhang didn't want to argue with a child anymore, so he turned around and said sternly, "It's okay, it's all over!"
Liu Ailing's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise, but she quickly changed her tone with a smile. However, the gratified tone made Zhou Jiani feel an inexplicable discomfort. She said, "Comrade Jiani, you've made rapid progress. I'm relieved now."
No matter how uncomfortable she felt, she couldn't complain at this moment. It was her fault for being so stupid that she made a fool of herself all the way.
Laughter came from the back: "With comrades like Liu Ailing leading the way, how can we not make progress?"
Zhou Jiani looked over and was met with a vigorous face. The girl's dark eyes flashed quickly, and she put aside her slight disdain and smiled at her.
Sun Ping, the daughter of an employee of the provincial steel plant, later married a male educated youth who was part of the previous batch of people who went to the countryside.
There were six female educated youth including her. Except for Liu Ailing, the others' names were recognized at a glance: Sun Ping, Zhou Hongbing, Meng Jiandi and Yu Wanxia.
There were seven male educated youth in the carriage at the back.
Liu Ailing and Sun Ping smiled and said, "Jiani and I grew up together and have a special relationship. Of course, we have to help her improve!" Then they turned around and asked Zhou Jiani, "Right, Jiani?"
Zhou Jiani was the one making a fuss along the way, while Liu Ailing was the one trying to comfort and persuade her. Everyone saw it, and it seemed to be an indisputable fact.
But Liu Ailing wanted recognition.
Zhou Jiani instinctively tried to stop herself from blurting out words of affirmation, but she pursed her lips and pinched them, smilingly saying, "It's about helping each other and making progress together, Ai Ling. Just now, when you said you wanted the uncle to stop and rest, you fell a little behind. So, Comrade Ai Ling, you must continue to improve as well."
Liu Ailing didn't expect Zhou Jiani to react like this, and she choked.
Sun Ping and others also looked over in surprise.
Without waiting for anyone to say anything, Zhou Jiani shook Liu Ailing's hand again, comforting her with a grateful look on her face, and said sincerely, "I've been upset several times along the way because I wasn't feeling well, and it was you who really helped me. Thank you, Comrade Ailing. Don't worry, I'm much better now. Let's make progress together in the future."
You can't deny what happened in the past, so try to make up for it if you can.
However, Zhou Jiani became more cautious and decided to keep some distance from Liu Ailing in this life. She felt that she always acted stupidly when she was around the heroine.
Sun Ping and the others were confused and bewildered. Zhou Hongbing, who had a shaggy haircut, even asked, "What's wrong with you?"
Zhou Jiani winked at her with an expression that was difficult to explain, and whispered, "Maybe it's coming soon."
Zhou Hongbing suddenly realized: "Oh, no wonder."
No wonder she was so noisy along the way, always unhappy and sullen, complaining about this and that, making everyone seem to owe her something.
Liu Ailing didn't seem to be comforted, her expression was still a little stiff, she forced a smile and said, "Okay, okay, let's make progress together!" Then she turned back.
The saying "same man, different fate" is still ringing in my ears. Now "three million" and "nine cents" are sitting on the same ox cart.
A gust of wind blew up the dust, and Zhou Jiani straightened her back again in the yellow earth. She let go of the humiliation that could be nailed into the dust at a glance. In this life, she also wanted to fight for her life.
But, I’ve been reborn and returned to the age of seventeen or eighteen, so why am I still suffering from presbyopia?
Zhou Jiani narrowed her eyes and stared at the red envelope that appeared out of thin air in front of her, and the DNA engraved in her bones jumped wildly.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
