Transmigrating with a Shopping Mall: Getting Rich Starting from Selling Instant Noodles

Lin Yutang was a twenty-something office worker in modern China who endured exploitative labor conditions, including mandatory overtime and unfair dress codes, while dreaming of financial freedom and attending concerts. After a long shift, she purchased discounted food and a soda from a supermarket. While leaving, she tripped over a step and fell, losing consciousness. Her body vanished in a pool of moonlight, leaving only the spilled drink behind. She awoke in an ancient Chinese village, inhabiting the body of a fourteen-year-old girl with the same name who had suffered from a mental impairment since birth. The original owner had fallen and injured her head on her fourteenth birthday, which coincided with a prophecy that she would recover if she survived the calamity.

Lin Yutang discovered she was not alone in this new existence; she possessed a magical golden locket that granted her access to a spatial dimension containing a fully stocked modern department store. This space included food, beverages, daily necessities, and clothing, all of which automatically restocked and preserved freshness. Her only companion was her older sister, Lin Zhi, a sixteen-year-old who had raised her after their parents died. The sisters lived in extreme poverty in Qingfeng Village, surviving on wild vegetable porridge and manual labor. Lin Yutang resolved to use her spatial abilities to improve their lives and protect her sister from their abusive relatives.

The primary conflict arose from Lin Yutang’s predatory aunt and uncle, Liu Shi and Wang Dazhu, who had stolen the sisters' parental inheritance and sought to exploit them further. After Lin Yutang recovered her intelligence, the aunt demanded money and threatened violence. Lin Yutang devised a plan to scare the couple into leaving them alone. She used cosmetics and costumes from her space to disguise herself as a vengeful ghost, appearing in the couple's home at night. The terror caused the aunt and uncle to soil themselves and flee, eventually leading them to formally sever all familial ties with the sisters at the county magistrate's office and return the stolen assets.

With their relatives removed, Lin Yutang and Lin Zhi started a street food business in the nearby town. Lin Yutang introduced instant noodles, braised eggs, and meatballs, which were revolutionary in a region where food was typically bland. The stall became an immediate sensation, selling out daily and generating significant profit. Their success attracted the attention of Zhou Xiangbei, a scholarly young man who had been present when Lin Yutang performed the Heimlich maneuver to save a choking child. Impressed by her medical knowledge, Zhou Xiangbei sought her out to thank her and eventually brought his classmates to her stall, boosting her business further.

Lin Yutang also shared her knowledge of first aid with a local medical hall, refusing payment but gaining the respect of the community's physicians. She continued to modernize her sister's life by providing sanitary products, skincare, and comfortable clothing from her space. The sisters established a stable routine, balancing their noodle stall with their growing reputation. As their business expanded, Lin Yutang planned to introduce new menu items like cold noodles and barbecue, aiming to achieve financial security while maintaining a peaceful life with her sister in this ancient era.