Chapter 45: Chapter 45

In this lifetime, An Ning once again only lived to her seventies, firmly closing her eyes the day after Comrade Gu passed away.

It wasn't due to some so-called deep affection. As she aged, her five senses gradually deteriorated. Even though Zhiheng searched high and low for delicious foods for her, her taste buds could hardly distinguish flavors by then. Moreover, despite having Spirit Spring Water to sustain her, minor ailments inevitably crept in with age.

For someone accustomed to luxury like An Ning, this was utterly intolerable.

Yet the next moment, feeling the hard, slightly damp bedding beneath her, her noticeably smaller and thinner hands, and the antiquated, earthy room before her, An Ning fell into an eerie silence.

During this dazed moment, a rough, yellowish hand reached over from the small wooden bed to feel her forehead.

Seeing her daughter's fever had mostly subsided, Little Chen visibly relaxed. After glancing around furtively, she secretly slipped a still-warm boiled egg under the covers.

Along with it came her mother's thief-like whisper: "Oh you silly girl, what are you spacing out for? Quickly eat this before anyone sees. I specially saved it for you this morning. Don't let anyone in the family catch you, especially your aunts."

Little Chen even peeked outside like a criminal.

Well, a simple boiled egg was being treated like a spy's secret exchange.

Seeing her daughter hadn't been addled by fever, Little Chen grew more at ease. She then produced a small bag of soybeans from some hidden corner, grumbling while packing:

"You foolish girl, how many times have I told you not to wander by the river? If not for Second Ya finding you, you might've been washed away by now."

"Remember how the silly boy from next door Tun'er died the same way last time? You never learn."

Apparently these soybeans were meant for Second Ya next door, the original host's cousin.

Recalling the memories she'd inherited, An Ning's eyes darkened momentarily before welling up with tears:

"Mom, Second Ya pushed me! She pushed me into the river!"

Hearing this, Little Chen abruptly stopped packing the soybeans and sprang up from the floor:

"What did you say, child?"

Between sobs, An Ning recounted what happened by the river, emphasizing how Second Ya had pushed her from behind. True to form, the doting mother immediately dropped the bag, grabbed a rolling pin from the kitchen, and charged toward the second branch of the family.

As for her daughter lying? Impossible.

Fourth Ya was only six—how could she possibly make up such things?

Soon, Little Chen's rhythmic cursing echoed outside:

"Xia Zhaodi you murderous wretch! Normally so quiet, but all along you've been brewing evil, haven't you? Teaching your daughter to harm her own cousin! No wonder you can't bear a son!"

"Listen here second sister-in-law, if anything happens to my daughter, you'll answer to me!"

"Third sister-in-law..." came a timid voice shortly after.

"Third Aunt, wuwuwu... I didn't, I really didn't push anyone..."

But the enraged Little Chen wouldn't listen, brandishing a fire poker with terrifying force.

Amidst the cacophony of crashing sounds and a girl's wailing outside, An Ning's anger somewhat subsided. Glancing at her patched clothes, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes to organize the memories.

Clearly, this was a non-existent historical dynasty called Great Zhou.

The original host, Xie Siya (also called Xie Anning), was a genuine country girl from Xie Village.

If she had any distinguishing feature, it might be her extraordinary bad luck!

The Xie family had four branches. Apart from the fourth uncle being unmarried, the other three already had children. The whole extended family crowded into one small house, leading to constant friction. The original host belonged to the third branch and had a brother under five.

That Second Ya earlier was her cousin from the second uncle's family.

According to memories, the afternoon after drowning—today—the county embroidery workshop would come recruiting apprentices.

For a farm girl in ancient times, learning a skilled trade was invaluable. Embroidery especially could earn good money if mastered. The original host had clever hands since childhood, even making remarkably lifelike grasshoppers from straw. She could memorize needlework techniques just by watching her mother once.

This recruitment should have been her golden opportunity.

Yet cruelly, just before this day, the original host "accidentally" fell into the river. Burning with fever, she naturally missed her chance.

Meanwhile, the ordinarily unremarkable cousin Second Ya got selected instead, subsequently becoming the family's most successful girl.

Later, against all advice, she married Liu Wencai from Widow Lu's household—a failed scholar who at eighteen still hadn't passed the county exams and had nearly bankrupted his family.

Only because his late father had been a scholar and he'd passed the preliminary exams did they retain some village respect.

But in those days, education—let alone imperial exams—was a money pit most farming families couldn't afford. So despite Liu Wencai's refined looks, few village girls would marry him.

As for town girls? They'd never consider a mere preliminary graduate. Everyone thought Second Ya was insane.

Yet shockingly, the year after marriage, the repeatedly failing Liu Wencai miraculously passed the provincial exams.

Because of this, even the usually critical Widow Lu began treating Second Ya as a lucky charm.

Eventually she became an official's wife.

Unlike the unfortunate original host, who missed her chance, remained a peasant girl, married a farmer, and toiled her life away in the fields.

Originally this shouldn't have concerned the original host—having a successful relative should have benefited everyone.

But for some reason, while Second Ya treated others decently, she particularly disliked the original host. Even the usually bullying cousins from the first branch occasionally received acknowledgement, but the original host only met with coldness whenever she approached.

They'd actually been close as children.

Once, when her in-laws forced the original host to visit, she accidentally bumped into brother-in-law Liu Wencai—without any actual contact. As a high-ranking official, he'd never look twice at an overworked, prematurely aged woman.

Yet inexplicably, Second Ya's gaze turned icier thereafter, eventually barring her from visiting altogether.

Nearly spelling out her hatred.

The powerful needn't lift a finger—a look suffices.

Thus the original host returned home to face in-law contempt, later enduring children's complaints about her uselessness in failing to leverage influential relatives.

Under such physical and psychological strain, she died before forty from overwork. Even in death, her daughter-in-law with a newborn called her presence unlucky.

The poor girl died bewildered—why had their childhood closeness turned to this? Before the embroidery incident, she'd even shared hard-won peanuts with Second Ya.

"Reborn woman? Transmigrated book character?"

Poking the system in her mindscape, An Ning spoke with near certainty.

Falling in the river just before the recruitment—too coincidental. The original host never suspected only because the workshop's visit was sudden, unannounced beforehand.

But those two scenarios changed everything.

The system stayed silent, this time carefully controlling even its gaze to prevent its host from reading anything.

An Ning clicked her tongue: "What about last round's settlement?"

Mentioning points immediately energized the system: "Host is amazing, another perfect score!"

It had worried the original soul might resent how cleanly the host had "humanely eliminated" her father. Instead, she'd been delighted.

Most impressively, its host had been merciless—from Factory Director Jiang and the stepfamily down to every Huaishi Village resident who'd wronged the original host, none were spared. At minimum condemned to lifelong poverty.

Yet reviewing events, apart from efficiently disposing of the scum father, provoking the stepsister a bit, and selling the male lead's job, the host seemed to have... mostly enjoyed herself? Even deprived it of the classic "fighting nasty relatives" drama...

The system couldn't quite understand, but that didn't matter.

Suddenly perking up as if remembering something: "Host, great news! Because of back-to-back five-star completions, the bureau is offering a special reward!"

"Ta-da! Guess what I grabbed?"

It proudly produced a fingernail-sized pill from its pocket.

"What's this?" An Ning showed rare interest.

"Hehe, this is the legendary, ultra-rare Intelligence-Enhancing Pill—boosts IQ by 100%! Costs fifty points in the mall!"

"Intelligence pill? Any side effects or strange reactions?" Examining the pill surprisingly amiably.

The system puffed its chest proudly: "None whatsoever!"

No risk of detection if secretly administered—imagining its host's plans, it chuckled: "With this, this mission will be a breeze!"

"Whether host wants to become an official's wife or sister, just give this to the future husband or original host's little brother. Worst case he'll still become a provincial graduate."

How could they not live happily ever after, surpassing that cousin? Feeling exceedingly clever, it started giggling—until...

The system snapped back to reality just in time to see its troublesome host pop the pill into her own mouth.