Time-Travel: The Tragic Cannon Fodder Female Supporting Character Makes a Comeback
CHAPTER 19: The 1970s Naive Supporting Girl (19)
The jeep moved far faster than the ox cart.
It quickly overtook the slower vehicle, kicking up a cloud of dust along the dirt road.
The people on the ox cart coughed violently, choking on the flying dirt.
“Showing off, huh? Just riding in a fancy jeep. If she didn’t have that vixen face, I bet no one would give her a lift…”
The curses from behind drifted away with the wind. Song Yuanchao pressed against the window, feeling a rush of satisfaction.
Serves them right. With mouths that filthy, they deserved to eat some dust.
What would have taken over an hour on foot or by ox cart was covered in just twenty minutes.
At the village entrance, a few women sitting under the big tree peeked curiously at them.
Song Susu thanked the driver and then remembered the medical expenses he had covered last time. She asked, “By the way, Comrade Lu, I haven’t paid you back for the medical fees yet. How much was it?”
“No need, it wasn’t much,” Lu Tingxiao replied, glancing at the siblings. “Are you visiting family or here as a sent-down youth?”
“I’m here as a sent-down youth, but I’ll be heading back to the City soon. There are some things I need to take care of,” Song Susu explained.
Lu Tingxiao looked at her slender frame and felt a bit of respect. It wasn’t easy for a young girl to manage on her own.
She carried only a small bag the entire way, and her little brother was so thin it was pitiful.
He casually picked up two cans of beef from the side of the jeep and handed them over.
“This area doesn’t have much to buy. Take this for your little brother.”
Song Susu chuckled, took the cans, and casually tossed the money in her hand to him as well, “Please keep the medical expenses, and I'll also thank Comrade Lu on behalf of my brother.”
Courtesy always calls for reciprocation. She accepted it today, and next time it would be her turn to return the favor. The more they interacted like this, the more familiar she’d become with a future big shot.
Song Yuanchao scratched his ear. He wanted to say he didn’t need it, but since his sister had already taken it, he didn’t argue further.
Lu Tingxiao glanced at the money in his hand, then at her bright smile. He didn’t refuse and gave a small smile. “Alright then. I guess we’re fated to meet.”
He liked dealing with straightforward, decisive people. This girl always seemed to show a different side of herself, and her personality was genuinely likable.
Hearing the two of them chat back and forth, He Jun, who was driving, let out a silent, long sigh to the sky.
No wonder Commander Lu didn’t want him getting ideas. Looks like he liked her for real.
Oh well. With Lu Tingxiao’s looks and background, any tiny flame of hope he had was completely snuffed out.
Lu Tingxiao didn’t linger either. After watching the siblings leave, he tilted his head and caught He Jun craning his neck, looking utterly heartbroken.
“What are you doing? Drive.”
He Jun cleared his throat, quickly hiding his inner thoughts, and immediately replied “Yes!”
……
At this point,
Song Susu was still wearing the outfit Aunt Wang Yanli had bought for her.
A white chiffon blouse with a round collar, paired with deep blue straight-leg pants and a pair of little strapped shoes.
Her twin braids were now styled into a single loose braid, her pale skin like fresh snow, and her eyes deep black and striking.
She carried herself with a straight posture, walking with elegance and grace.
Beside her, Song Yuanchao wore brown overalls with a blue shirt. His small, slender frame made him look especially neat and obedient.
As the siblings entered the village, none of the aunts dared to recognize Song Susu at first.
One by one, smiling warmly, they asked in gentle tones, “Young lady, who are you looking for?”
Song Susu brushed her tidy bangs aside and, her beautiful eyes sparkling, smiled and said, “Aunt Lan, it’s me, Song Susu.”
The aunts immediately gasped, lowering whatever they were holding and crowding around her.
“My goodness, you came back home and became so beautiful.”
“Really, I never realized Song ¹Zhiqing was so pretty before. That haircut suits her so well.”
“Look at those brows and eyes, even prettier than the actresses on stage. Skin like a peeled egg, so much nicer than Jiang Jian’e’s daughter.”
Hearing Jiang Jian’e’s name, Song Susu immediately blinked and chimed in, “By the way, Aunties, is Aunt Jian’e feeling any better?”
The aunts were momentarily stunned and muttered in confusion, “We haven’t heard of her being sick. Maybe you’re mistaken.”
Song Susu frowned. “That’s not right. Xiaoli took over a hundred yuan from me. Aunt Jian’e’s legs always hurt, and her two sisters-in-law are trying for sons. They’re looking for some miracle doctor’s fertility medicine, spending quite a bit.”
“Over a hundred yuan!”
The aunts gasped and exchanged glances.
Goodness, could the Jiang family really be cheating Song Zhiqing out of her money?
They looked so strong—how could they be sick?
And to have the nerve to borrow a hundred yuan like that.
Since it was all within the village, they couldn’t say much, so they could only hint gently, “Song Zhiqing, you’re quite generous, lending over a hundred like that. You don’t need that much money just for someone in the village to see a doctor.”
Song Susu looked helpless. “Xiaoli is my friend. Once she asked, I couldn’t just say no. Her whole family is unwell, and I used to help out all the time—washing, cooking, doing chores. Aunt Jian’e’s underwear? I washed those myself.”
Ugh!
Indeed, the original owner remembered such a thing, and Ye Susu felt nauseous just thinking about it.
The others were shocked. Borrowing that much money was one thing, but having someone wash your underwear?
Jiang Jian’e really was shameless.
The aunts couldn’t help but scold her a little, offering advice one after another.
“Song Zhiqing, you can’t be so naive next time. People in the countryside are strong. Even if their legs hurt, they can still do laundry. They just think they can take advantage of a young girl like you.”
“Exactly. And before you came, their family was fine. Now they’re all sick? You need to watch out.”
Song Yuanchao had figured out what happened and clenched his fists in anger. “Sister, if they dare bully you, we have to go demand an explanation!”
Song Susu pretended to look surprised and tugged her brother along. “Ah, Xiaoli shouldn’t have tricked me like that.”
Seeing this, the aunts finally understood why the Jiang family could manipulate her. She looked far too innocent.
“Song Zhiqing, listen to your brother. Go get your money back first. Earning it isn’t easy, don’t let them take advantage of you.”
“Exactly. The Jiang family should have some shame. Don’t be afraid, be firm.”
Song Susu lowered her gaze and smiled, then looked up at them gratefully. “Thank you all, aunts. If you hadn’t said anything, I would have stayed in the dark. That money was given to me by my uncles. It was my savings for going down to the countryside. I’ll go to the Jiang family and get it back.”
The aunts, seeing that she took their advice seriously, felt even more sorry for the girl.
“All right, go ahead. If the Jiang family dares to deny it, I’ll take you two to the team leader. And if that doesn’t work, the village head will handle it. You’ll definitely get your money back.”
“Okay, thank you so much, aunts,” Song Susu said, her tone full of gratitude.
Song Yuanchao touched his nose but didn’t say anything. He seemed to realize that his sister was putting on a show.
And she really was. These aunts were the village’s biggest gossips. By this afternoon, the whole village would know the Jiang family’s true colors.
Just getting the money back wouldn’t be enough. Their reputation was gone, and there was no fixing that. This family could forget pretending to be perfect people like before.
Want to bring glory to your family? Dream on.
Song Susu didn’t go to the educated youth work center or report to the team. She headed straight to the Jiang family with her brother in tow.
Why the Jiang family? Because Jiang Xiaoli’s father was a live-in son-in-law, and the whole household took her mother's surname.
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Glossary: (Fix on: Thu, Feb 5 2026)
¹“Zhiqing” (知青) literally means “educated youth” in Chinese. It’s a historical term for young people who were sent from cities to rural areas during the Cultural Revolution in China to work and “learn from the peasants.”
So when someone is called Song Zhiqing, it’s not a personal name—it’s more like saying “Song, the educated youth” or “Song, the city youth sent down to work in the countryside.” In translations, it’s sometimes kept as Zhiqing to preserve that historical and cultural context, though you could also translate it as “Song, the educated youth”.
In this story, using Song Zhiqing feels natural in dialogue or narration because villagers would likely address her that way instead of just using her personal name.
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