On the train.
Lin rau finally managed to squeeze her way inside, clutching her braid with one hand to block the smell and holding her ticket with the other as she searched for her seat.
What a sin!
She—descendant of an ancient family of healers—had been struck by a speeding car and inexplicably transported back to the 1970s, all because she had tried to save a little girl.
Fortunately, her space bracelet had traveled with her. Inside were fertile fields and a spring of spiritual water—perhaps a reward from the heavens for her selfless act.
But after lin rau absorbed the memories of the body's original owner, a thousand curses rushed through her mind.
The original owner had been married for three years… yet the husband she married was none other than her own sister's former fiancé.
In March of 1971, han yao —newly promoted to battalion commander—took leave to return home for his engagement.
That night, when he arrived at the lin household to finalize the marriage discussions, he was plied with alcohol. Drunk and defenseless, he was left to stay the night by the lin parents.
The next morning, scandal erupted. The original owner was discovered in the same bed as her future brother-in-law.
Though han yao knew he had done nothing wrong, the uproar left him with no choice. For the sake of reputation, he was forced to marry her.
On the wedding day itself, barely after he had brought her home, an urgent military summons arrived. Han yao departed at once—vanishing into the army camp.
And from that day forward, he never returned. Three long years passed, and the marriage remained nothing more than an empty shell.
Her own parents had disowned her for the scandal of "sleeping with her brother-in-law." From then on, her mother-in-law never stopped hurling accusations—claiming she had ruined their son's marriage, and urging her to divorce and remarry as quickly as possible.
From the very first day she entered the han family, life had been nothing short of torment. Every burden of the household, from farming to chores, was shoved onto her shoulders. She labored harder than anyone else, yet when it came time to eat, she was given nothing more than thin vegetable soup.
Desperate, she had written letter after letter to han yao, begging him to either take her into the army camp or at least send back some living expenses. But in the past three years, over a dozen letters had vanished into silence.
Not a single reply.
Not a single coin.
The relentless toil and unending torment had stripped her of all softness. Once a delicate young woman, she had become so frail and thin she looked as though a single gust of wind could scatter her away.
Yesterday, her suffering finally reached its end—pushed to her death by her own sister-in-law.
And at that very moment, lin rau crossed through time.
After inheriting the memories of the original owner's short and bitter life, lin rau made up her mind: she would join the army and file for divorce from her husband, who had been absent for three years. What use was a man who neglected his wife, never sent home a single coin, and allowed her to be bullied to death? She was capable. She had foresight. She could carve out her own future. Why chain herself to a widowed marriage?
So, at dawn, armed with her marriage certificate and letter of introduction, lin rau purchased a 10:00 a.m. ticket and boarded the train bound for Jicheng.
The journey would take a day and a night, and with only a hard-seat ticket in hand, she thought perhaps she could ask the conductor for a sleeper berth later.
The carriage was crammed to the brim. Luggage was piled high in the aisles. People sat or lay sprawled on their bags, even under the seats and across the luggage racks above. Lin rau carefully picked her way through the crowd, and by the time she reached her spot, sweat clung to her back. Relief came when she saw her seat was by the window—until she noticed it was already occupied.
She checked her ticket, then glanced at the carriage number. There was no mistake. That seat was hers.
"Comrade, please move aside. You're sitting in my seat," she said politely.
The woman in the seat was in her twenties, wearing a floral blouse and gray trousers, with two braids hanging neatly over her chest. Her skin was dark and sunburnt. Beside her sat a woman in her fifties, gray-haired, with sharp, slanted eyes and high cheekbones. With their wide noses and thick lips, their resemblance was unmistakable—mother and daughter.
The older woman waved dismissively, her tone sharp. "Why bother changing? You've got a seat, don't you? It doesn't matter where you sit. Stop being difficult." She patted her daughter's arm soothingly, then deliberately spread herself further, her broad hips spilling over half the empty space.
"If you want to sit, then sit outside," the daughter sneered, her lips curled in disdain. "What if people bump into me while passing by?"
Her eyes narrowed as she sized Xia Bailu up, and her voice dripped with mockery. "You look so poor. How did you even afford a ticket? Don't tell me—you snuck on without one, did you?"
Lin rau temper flared instantly, her sharp tongue firing back without hesitation.
"Your mouth reeks—did you eat shit this morning? You think you can sit in someone else's seat and still act high and mighty? Why shouldn't I take the seat I paid for?"
The surrounding passengers stirred at her words, some smothering laughs, others widening their eyes. Clearly, they hadn't expected this thin, frail-looking woman to have such a venomous tongue.
The older woman's face twisted in fury. Accustomed to bullying others without resistance, she couldn't stand having her authority challenged. With a snarl, she raised her hand and struck out.
"How dare you talk back, you little bitch? I'll teach you a lesson on behalf of your parents!"
But before her palm could land, lin rau hand shot up like lightning, seizing the woman's wrist in an iron grip.
In the same motion, her other hand pressed firmly against the woman's shoulder blade. A calculated push, not too heavy—but precise enough to strike the right joint.
Thud!
The old woman's body lurched, and a sharp, cracking sound followed. Her scream pierced the carriage.
Ahhh
The passengers in the carriage were startled by the sudden scream, their heads craning to see what had happened.
The old lady's left arm dangled uselessly at her side, her face twisted in pain and slick with sweat.
"Mom, what's wrong with you?" The younger woman jumped up from the seat in alarm, rushing to support her mother.
"What did you do to my mother? You—" Her words faltered as she met lin rau cold, razor-sharp gaze. The curse died on her lips.
"Nothing," han rau said evenly, her tone like ice. "Just a lesson. Don't think age gives you the right to bully and take advantage of others whenever you like."
The old lady gritted her teeth, clutching her arm as she hissed through the pain. "Lanhua… my arm… she broke it. Go call the conductor! I'll sue her!"
The commotion had already drawn the conductor over, pushing through the crowd. Before he could speak, the old lady seized her chance to turn the tables.
"Comrade conductor, you must uphold justice for me!" she wailed, pointing with her good hand at lin rau . "She didn't even have a ticket, and she attacked me! She claimed my daughter's seat was hers, and then she broke my arm. Comrade, my son is a soldier—she dares to assault a soldier's family!"
Niu Lanhua's eyes blazed as she added fuel to the fire. "Yes, comrade! My brother fights bravely on the frontlines to protect our country, yet here we, his family, are humiliated and bullied like this. You must make this right!"
Her words dripped with arrogance. After all, her brother was a battalion commander—surely that title alone would cow the conductor.
The conductor, however, didn't rush to judgment. He turned his eyes on lin rau , his expression stern. "Comrade, is what she said true?"
Lin rau calmly pulled out her ticket, her back straight and her gaze unwavering. "Comrade, this is my ticket. I'm traveling to Jicheng to find my husband in the army."
She handed it over, then briefly and clearly recounted what had happened—how she had found the woman occupying her assigned seat, how insults had flown, and how the older woman had tried to strike her first.
The carriage went quiet, passengers whispering as they began to compare what they had seen.
?
The old woman tried to use her soldier son's name as a weapon, but lin rau wasn't about to back down. If they wanted to play status, she could play too.
Who doesn't have connections?
"Her arm isn't broken—just dislocated," lin rau said evenly, her cold voice carrying across the carriage. "Push it back, and it'll be fine. Lucky for her, I'm an expert at fixing dislocations."
The train attendants exchanged looks. They'd been running trains for years and had seen every type of passenger, but this young woman was tough. Not only did she refuse to be cowed, she had even turned the tables.
Serves her right, one of them thought.
"Auntie, you're the one at fault here," an attendant said aloud. "The girl has her ticket, so of course she has the right to her seat. Since we're all military families, let's make concessions instead of fighting. Auntie, apologize to the comrade, and she'll set your arm. Otherwise, you'll be in agony all the way to Jicheng—there's no doctor on this train to help you."
The old lady's face twisted as pain shot through her shoulder again. The thought of enduring a full day and night of torment finally broke her pride.
Grinding her teeth, she forced out an apology. "Girl… I was wrong. Please… put it back."
Lin rau lips curved faintly. "Auntie, you'd better be glad it's me. I'm easy to get along with. If it had been someone else, they might have broken your arm for real."
With practiced precision, she pressed down. Click!
"Ahhhh!" The old woman howled again as the joint popped back into place.
She rotated her arm gingerly, finding it usable again, though still sore. With a stiff face and lingering resentment, she tugged her daughter back into their seats, glaring at lin rau with undisguised hatred.
Unbothered, lin rau sat gracefully by the window, braid in hand, blocking out the foul stench of the crowded carriage.
A voice came from not far away, filled with rough admiration. "Brother han yao look at that. She looks thin, but who'd have thought she'd have the skill to reset bones like that?"
"Fast, accurate, and ruthless," another added approvingly.
It was han yao and zhao shi sitting a few rows away, watching the entire spectacle unfold.
The shrill whistle sounded, and the green train shuddered forward, gradually picking up speed as the scenery outside the windows blurred into motion.
For the next half hour, the rhythmic clanging of the wheels on the tracks filled the carriage. Everything seemed to settle.
Until lin rau rose to head to the toilet.
When she returned, chaos had broken out.
At the far end of the carriage, the door banged open, and a group of men barged in, rough shouts mingling with terrified screams. The peaceful journey instantly dissolved into disorder.
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