Chapter 7: Lately, My Mood Is La-la-la Qian Qing remembered clearly: it was on the morning of Wan Zhenzhen's return visit to her natal home that she found one thousand yuan by the riverside! Instantly, Qian Qing's heart leapt into her throat. One thousand yuan was no small sum. In her dream, Wan Zhenzhen had relied precisely on that money to quickly establish herself in her husband's family and gain a voice in household affairs. After getting hold of the cash, she first bought a heap of gifts to take back to her parents' home, making a grand show of it that completely overshadowed Qian Qing, who was also returning to her natal family that day. Then she took two hundred yuan from the remainder and gave it to Wang Hua, claiming it was her private savings meant to compensate him and thereby offset the original betrothal gifts. Speaking in gentle, soothing tones, she added that since she had married Wang Hua, he would naturally be her top priority; her private savings mattered little—what mattered was that giving it to Wang Hua meant giving it to their little family.

This whole maneuver instantly tipped the scales in Wang Hua's heart toward her. Even after Mother Wang returned and made things difficult for Wan Zhenzhen, Wang Hua diligently mediated between his wife and his mother, so Wan Zhenzhen never really suffered any losses under Mother Wang's hand. Reflecting on this, Qian Qing couldn't help but sigh: Wan Zhenzhen's life wisdom seemed to have been invested entirely in family strife. Now that Qian Qing had prevented her from getting that money, life next door was surely not going to remain peaceful. Yet about that one thousand yuan… a doubt lingered in Qian Qing's mind. If the money had been granted to Wan Zhenzhen by that thing called her "System,"

then fine. Since Wan Zhenzhen hadn't succeeded in trapping her this time, the thousand yuan probably wouldn't appear again. But if the System had merely helped Wan Zhenzhen discover the money… did that mean those windfalls Wan Zhenzhen had "happened upon"

in her dream originally belonged to someone else? Early the next morning, Qian Qing got up. She quickly washed and brushed her teeth, then took out the lipstick Zhou Hao had asked someone to buy for her and dabbed it on her lips. Gazing at her radiant reflection in the mirror, she indulged in a moment of self-admiration like a little peacock. When the time felt right, she slung a white canvas bag over her shoulder and headed out; on the bag was a little cat drawn by Zhou Hao himself. Zhou Hao's allocated apartment was on the third floor. Qian Qing took the staircase on the right, and before she even reached the landing, she heard the creak of a door opening on the right-side neighbor's apartment. A round-faced girl she didn't recognize was stepping out with a lunch box in hand. She wore a dress; beneath its short sleeves were fair arms, and on her feet were plastic sandals.

The two met face to face and exchanged stiff greetings. Recalling what Zhou Hao had told her, Qian Qing remembered he'd said the left-side unit belonged to Wang Hua's family, requiring no introduction, while the right-side unit had been assigned to a new records clerk at the factory.

"Hello, my name is Chen Xinran," the girl said.

Qian Qing promptly replied, "I'm Qian Qing; I've just moved into our compound after getting married."

Though not much older, Chen Xinran spoke with notable frankness: "I've seen your husband—he's very handsome. And you're very beautiful too."

Qian Qing's eyes immediately widened, delighted: "You're very beautiful as well."

This wasn't flattery. Chen Xinran had a round face, but her skin was fair, and her almond-shaped eyes made her look endearing—the kind of pleasing appearance that older folks in the compound would readily appreciate. It's always easy for girls to become acquainted. Chen Xinran was heading to the canteen for breakfast, so the two parted ways downstairs. Qian Qing breathed a sigh of relief. Her family lived right in the middle; with the troublesome couple Wan Zhenzhen and Wang Hua already on the left, life would have been unbearable if the neighbors on the right had been equally difficult. Buoyed by this good mood, Qian Qing stepped lightly out of the No. 2 Factory gate. Ever since its discovery in the 1960s, the Northern Oilfield has consistently ranked second nationwide in oil reserves. Its land area is vast: Y City alone contains six oil and gas fields of varying sizes, extending further into two more in the neighboring H Province.

The oilfields across both provinces form a single oil-and-gas field cluster, all under the administration of the Northern Oilfield authority.After the restructuring, the units under the Northern Oilfield were divided into three oil production plants, along with the Petrochemical General Plant, the Management Office, the Exploration and Development Research Institute, the Oil Production Engineering Technology Research Institute, the Power Supply Management Office, the Logistics Department, the Fire Brigade, and others. One could say this place was like a small city. Buses shuttled back and forth between the various plants and departments; tuning the radio would pick up the Northern Oilfield's own station; the supply and marketing cooperatives stocked everything; and the canteens served all three meals to crowds daily. Children walked or skipped to school on their own, never more than twenty minutes away, keys hanging around their necks, while everyone in the compound knew every family's business inside out.

Life here was stable and uneventful. Qian Qing found it somewhat bewildering. Her natal family lived in a matchstick factory housing estate on the outskirts of Y City. Life there was also stable, yet people still encountered more outside affairs. Nowadays in Y City, many had already started setting up small stalls to do business; by nightfall, the commercial street was lined with vendors selling all sorts of goods. In contrast, here at the oilfield, apart from those selling popsicles, everyone still habitually shopped at the cooperatives. But this was understandable: with such stable lives, naturally no one entertained thoughts of becoming individual entrepreneurs. Moreover, the Northern Oilfield belonged to the central-western region; only last year had documents been issued allowing household contract responsibility systems, and surrounding farmers had just begun seeing improved living conditions this year. Under such circumstances, it was perfectly normal for changes at the oilfield to arrive later than elsewhere.

Yet Qian Qing dared not relax. Although her dreams obscured some era-specific factors, the general direction was crystal clear. Times were changing; across the nation, reforms had already begun, earlier or later. Amidst the rising and falling waves, this time she too wanted to board the train of opportunity. With her heart surging, Qian Qing walked to a small river not far from the compound. Few people were around; a row of small shrubs not far from the riverside blocked people's view. Qian Qing circled the area but did not spot the blue cloth bundle wrapped around a thick stack of "Great Unity"

banknotes from her dream. She had no watch and could only estimate by feeling: Wan Zhenzhen probably found the money in the dream around 7:30 in the morning? Just as she pondered this, she caught a figure rushing toward her out of the corner of her eye. Instinctively, Qian Qing hid behind a large tree and quietly observed the newcomer. For some reason, the girl with shoulder-length loose hair wearing a plaid dress looked strangely familiar. Her doe-like eyes seemed ready to speak yet held back, giving her a delicate, non-threatening prettiness—the kind of fragile "little white flower"

appearance that evokes pity. The other party had a clear purpose, heading straight for this very tree, making Qian Qing's heart nearly leap out of her chest. Fortunately, the "little white flower"

didn't notice her. Upon reaching the tree, she glanced around cautiously, and seeing no one, half-knelt down. In no time, she dug a small hole beneath the tree, revealing unmistakably a blue cloth bundle inside. Qian Qing: !!! The other party was obviously extremely satisfied, clutching the cloth bundle in her hand, brimming with joy. She even muttered aloud, "Luckily I'm so clever, hahaha, this thousand yuan is mine! What heroine's destiny? All bullshit!"

"Damn, the original host was too brainless; why didn't she put it in a box? All the money got wet."

"I've been feeling la-la-la~ lately…"

… Qian Qing: …