Time-Traveled to the 1970s and Hustled the Brigade Leader for 100 Yuan

He Shiyi, a twenty-first-century woman, transmigrates into the body of her namesake in 1975 rural China. The original He Shiyi was a selfless, obedient village girl exploited by her parasitic family and promised in marriage to Wu Fengshou, a local loafer. Upon waking in a cornfield, He Shiyi discovers she has been knocked unconscious by her cousin, He Cuihua, who plotted with Wu Fengshou to ruin He Shiyi’s reputation by framing her for an illicit encounter with a mentally disabled man named Fool Egg. A useless system briefly appears and vanishes, leaving He Shiyi to rely on her own wits. Using roasted peanuts from her pocket, she distracts Fool Egg and escapes the immediate threat. When villagers arrive, she turns the tables by manipulating Fool Egg into confessing that He Cuihua bribed him with food to frame her. The truth is revealed, exposing He Cuihua’s scheme and Wu Fengshou’s complicity. Wu Fengshou attempts to break off the engagement, but He Shiyi publicly humiliates him and refuses to marry him.

After the incident, He Shiyi confronts her abusive fiancé, Wu Fengshou, who tries to assault her. She fights back fiercely and is rescued by Luo Lingfeng, the brigade leader of Nanfeng Village and a retired soldier. Luo Lingfeng, who had a close childhood bond with the original He Shiyi, notices her drastic personality change. Instead of punishing her, he is intrigued by her boldness. He Shiyi, realizing Luo Lingfeng holds significant power over work points and rations, decides to ally with him. She demands compensation for her trauma, negotiating a one-year exemption from field labor in exchange for her silence regarding her subversive thoughts. Luo Lingfeng agrees, and they begin to rebuild their childhood rapport. That night, they bathe in the river together, sharing a moment of playful intimacy that hints at deeper feelings beneath Luo Lingfeng’s stoic exterior.

He Shiyi returns home to find her family, including her greedy grandmother, father, mother, and sister-in-law, plotting to kill her new companion, a black dog named Hunhun who also transmigrated with her. She defends the dog and exposes her family’s history of selling her into marriage for profit and exploiting her labor. Realizing the He family is a trap designed to drain her life, she packs her meager belongings, steals some money from her father, and declares she will live independently. Her family attempts to stop her, but she threatens them with a shovel and walks away. Luo Lingfeng intervenes, dismissing her family’s complaints and allowing her to split from the household. He Shiyi chooses to live near Luo Lingfeng’s home, seeking protection and a strategic alliance. As she settles into her new life in the 1970s, she plans to avoid hard labor, accumulate wealth, and navigate the complex social dynamics of the commune while maintaining her independence from the patriarchal expectations of the era.