Chapter 1: Return to 1999

In the filthy pigsty, Qin Hongfei opened her eyes to a nauseating stench. She was lying next to the pigs’ sour swill, the waves of foul odor making her stomach turn. Yet, she did not retch. The familiarity of her surroundings struck her like a bolt of lightning.

She was back—unbelievably, she had returned to the year 1999.

On New Year's Eve of 1999, she had stormed out after being accused of stealing money from her family. Of course, she knew herself well enough to realize she hadn’t truly run away—she had merely sulked in the pigsty, fuming. And then, she had been transported to a future age of advanced technology, where it had taken her twenty-five years of relentless effort to climb to the pinnacle of success—only to meet her end from exhaustion and awaken here, in her original era.

“What a curse,” someone raged nearby, their voice shrill with anger. “They do nothing but bully our family because we’re easygoing. First they dodged the water and electricity bills, and now they’ve started stealing money. Dad, Mom, everyone, you be the judge—is this how people should act?”

“This is no way to live…”

“Qin Fei, you’re not a child anymore. Go talk some sense into your mother—tell her to stop scheming against me. I’m begging you two, just let it go, for my sake,” the youngest daughter-in-law pleaded, her voice ripe with self-pity.

Qin Hongfei narrowed her eyes, climbed out of the pigsty, and walked into the house. The Qin family was large; every New Year’s Eve, they all gathered for dinner. At this moment, the youngest daughter-in-law was in the midst of a tirade, furious because one hundred yuan had gone missing. She suspected Qin Hongfei and her older sister Qin Fei’s mother had stolen it and chose the reunion dinner to make her accusation.

Qin Hongfei watched as her sister’s face flushed with embarrassment, wishing she could disappear into the floor. Qin Hongfei stepped forward, pulled her sister behind her, and retorted with a mocking laugh, “So if you say my mother took it, then it must be true? Well, I say your son took it and spent it himself.”

“Don’t be ridiculous!” The young aunt had only intended to vent her frustration, but she hadn’t expected this girl to be so insolent. “My son would never steal from his own family! Ever since your father disappeared, your mother’s been unhinged—everyone knows that. If she didn’t take it, who did? If she didn’t, call her out here to face me. I’ve kept quiet all this time, but your mother has gone too far.”

“Don’t make yourself sound so noble,” Qin Hongfei shot back. “Let me ask you—when exactly did the money go missing?”

“A couple of days ago.”

“So if it went missing two days ago, why didn’t you ask us then? Why wait until New Year’s Eve, when everyone’s gathered, to make a scene? Isn’t it just to ruin everyone’s meal and make us all miserable? For two days, you saw us all the time, but you waited until tonight, when our mother went home first, to target us sisters. Isn’t it just because you’re upset and want to pick on someone weaker?”

“I was just trying to save your mother’s dignity. I thought you two would be more sensible than that lunatic mother of yours!” the young aunt declared, her tone dripping with superiority. “Now I see—a mother like that raises daughters like you. Sure, a hundred yuan isn’t much to us, but to you, it’s a fortune. No wonder you won’t admit it.”

At that moment, Grandpa Lan, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. “Qin Fei, Hongfei, if your mother did take it, have her return it to your aunt…”

Qin Fei’s face changed.

Qin Hongfei grabbed her arm, looked directly at her grandfather, and took a deep breath. “Grandpa, I’ll say this—I admit my mother is a bit unhinged, but you know why. Let me ask all of you elders and uncles: in all the decades my mother has been married into this family, raising us on her own, has she ever once taken a dishonest penny from the Qin family?”

The answer was clear—she never had.

Every single person in the family knew this in their hearts.