Marrying the most powerful boss in the 1970s

Jiang Lixia, a thirty-three-year-old successful urban woman, transmigrates into the body of an eighteen-year-old girl in 1970s China who had attempted suicide to escape an arranged marriage. The original Jiang Lixia belonged to a working-class family, but her mother and sister-in-law viewed her as a commodity to be sold for betrothal money to fund her brother’s factory job. After a month of enduring harassment and unwanted suitors, Jiang Lixia secretly registers for the down-to-the-countryside program, choosing Liaocheng, the northernmost and most distant assignment, to escape her family. She sells antique jade items left by her grandmother, buys essential supplies, and flees her home early one morning, locking herself in her room to avoid her furious family. Her declaration that she is a revolutionary descendant protecting the family’s political standing prevents her mother from physically stopping her, allowing her to board a train with other educated youths.

Upon arriving in Shenjia Village, Jiang Lixia finds herself in a harsh rural environment governed by Captain Shen Aiguo, a corrupt and predatory local leader. She is assigned to live in a communal courtyard with other educated youths, including Liu Jiajia, a rival from her hometown who harbors jealousy toward her. Jiang Lixia quickly realizes that Captain Shen has embezzled the food rations meant for the new arrivals, leaving them with no immediate sustenance. Demonstrating pragmatism and social intelligence, she trades a bolt of cloth with an elderly local woman, Grandma Shen, for grain and establishes a rapport with the village elders. During this time, she learns about Shen Baixuan, the grandson of a former landlord, who lives in poverty and performs hard labor as punishment for his family’s history. Jiang Lixia recognizes him as a character from a novel she read in her previous life, a man destined to suffer despite his resilience, and resolves to stay away from the main plot to survive quietly.

As she adapts to farm work, Jiang Lixia maintains her physical appearance through careful protection and skincare, distinguishing herself from the tanned locals. She encounters Shen Baixuan in the fields and learns from gossip that he was recently abandoned by his fiancée, Fang Xiuli, who married another man after a scandal. Jiang Lixia’s primary goal becomes securing a stable job to leave the countryside as soon as possible. She discovers a posting for a temporary announcer at the county broadcasting station and successfully passes the interview. However, when she returns to the village, she learns that Captain Shen has withheld her acceptance letter. Suspicious, she confronts him at the brigade headquarters, where he attempts to assault her. In a moment of desperation, she stabs him with a small dagger she carries for protection.

Shen Baixuan, who had been passing by, intervenes and saves Jiang Lixia from further harm. He helps her subdue Captain Shen and forces the corrupt leader to sign a confession and process her employment documents. Jiang Lixia also beats Captain Shen’s lackey, Ge Dagen, to send a clear message that she will not be intimidated. After the incident, she reports to the broadcasting station and secures the position, which provides her with grain coupons and a dormitory in town, freeing her from daily field labor. Her success breeds resentment among the other educated youths, particularly Liu Jiajia and Bai Qingya, who spread rumors that she obtained the job through immoral means. Jiang Lixia publicly exposes their lies, turning Liu Jiajia against Bai Qingya and isolating her enemies. Meanwhile, Captain Shen, though defeated, remains a lurking threat, and Jiang Lixia learns that he has redirected his vengeance toward Shen Baixuan by assigning him excessive workload. The story concludes with Jiang Lixia realizing that her actions have drawn her closer to the novel’s central figures, forcing her to navigate a dangerous political landscape while striving to secure her future and escape the village.