Time-Travel: The Tragic Cannon Fodder Female Supporting Character Makes a Comeback
CHAPTER 34: The 1970s Naive Supporting Girl (34)
The next morning, Song Susu was still half asleep when her younger brother called out and woke her up.
“Sis, Uncle Fugui came by just now. He said he’ll take us to the station.”
“Alright, I’m getting up.”
Yawning, Song Susu stretched lazily. She had eaten a little too much at dinner last night, and the clanging noises in the middle of the night had ruined her sleep.
Song Yuanchao had woken up early. Not only was he already fully dressed, he had even gone downstairs beforehand to fetch washing water for his sister.
After splashing water on her face, Song Susu redid her braid neatly. The clothes she slept in were wrinkled after a night’s rest, so she changed into a fresh set from her bundle.
Once everything was packed, the siblings headed downstairs together.
The moment Wang Fugui saw them, his eyes lit up. He quickly handed over an oil paper parcel he had been holding.
“Song Zhiqing, there’s a state run shop nearby selling pan fried buns this morning. No ration tickets needed, vegetable filling too, and pretty affordable. I bought two each for you and your brother. Don’t mind it, have a bite to fill your stomach.”
Song Susu was not particularly hungry, but seeing his eager, shining expression, she could not bring herself to refuse. She accepted it with a smile.
“Thank you, Uncle Fugui.”
“No need to thank me, no need at all. I already benefited plenty from you, eating proper meals and drinking at the restaurant, even staying comfortably at the guesthouse. These buns don’t compare at all.”
Chatting and laughing, the three of them headed toward the entrance. Song Yuanchao glanced back at the rooms behind them.
“I wonder if Brother Lu and the others have already left.”
Wang Fugui immediately picked up on that. “Oh? You two know them? The two young fellows staying next to my room?”
Song Yuanchao nodded. “Yeah, Brother Lu and the others.”
Wang Fugui looked around at the busy crowd passing by, then beckoned the siblings closer toward the doorway, lowering his voice to whisper.
“Late last night, it looked like someone got arrested. All that clanging noise woke me up,” Wang Fugui said quietly. “I peeked through the crack in the door and saw those two young men from next door escorting someone out. The guy had a black hood over his head. No idea what he did, but his hands were cuffed behind his back with shiny handcuffs. There even seemed to be a vehicle waiting outside for them.”
Song Yuanchao covered his mouth in surprise, then whispered, “Brother Lu and the others must’ve been carrying out a mission.”
“Exactly. Those two look like soldiers at first glance. The one they caught was definitely some kind of spy or criminal,” Wang Fugui muttered eagerly, unable to hide his curiosity.
Song Susu quickly cut them off. “Alright, alright. Don’t discuss this kind of thing in public. It has nothing to do with us. Let’s head to the station.”
“Right, right. Let’s go now. Wouldn’t want to miss the train later…”
——
After a full day and night on the train, Song Susu and her younger brother finally returned to the city the next morning.
Li Yanlong had calculated their arrival time and came to wait nearly an hour in advance.
The moment Song Yuanchao stepped out and spotted Uncle Li, he rushed forward excitedly. “Uncle Li! I missed you so much!”
Song Susu walked over as well. Seeing him personally waiting for them at the station caught her by surprise, and a quiet warmth rose in her chest.
She greeted him gently, “Uncle Li.”
Li Yanlong looked at the siblings with clear emotion in his eyes. Holding one in each hand, he smiled and said, “You two didn’t get tanned or lose weight this trip. Not bad at all. Your aunt prepared a whole table of good food at home to welcome you back. Come on, let’s go home.”
“Okay, okay!”
Once they arrived at the Li residence, the siblings enjoyed a proper, refreshing bath before the whole family gathered around the table for a meal.
The food was delicious, and faced with everyone’s concern and care, smiles never left their faces.
After the meal, Song Susu took out the approval letter issued by the Xingling Village brigade for her return to the city, along with the household registration transfer documents. After reading them, the weight that had been sitting on Li Yanlong’s heart finally lifted.
“Good, good. You’re finally back. I still regret not stopping you back then, girl.”
“It won’t happen again, Uncle Li. I won’t be as reckless as before.”
After saying that, Song Susu felt a trace of emotion stir within her. The original Song Susu had always believed blood relatives were closer than outsiders, which was why she used to keep her distance from Uncle Li’s family.
Back when Song Susu was bullied by the Song family, even her being sent down to the countryside had never been mentioned to the Li family from beginning to end. Later on, after going to the countryside, she gradually distanced herself from them, never replying to the letters the Li family sent. That silence eventually led to a chain of irreversible misunderstandings.
When the original Song Susu married in the countryside, Li Yanlong knew nothing about it. By the time news of her death finally reached him, half a year had already passed.
Furious, he thoroughly investigated the truth and personally went to the Heihegou brigade to confront the abusive husband. Unfortunately, the man stubbornly denied everything. With six months already gone, evidence was difficult to gather. On top of that, Song Susu and the man had been legally married, making it hard to define the situation as anything beyond a domestic dispute.
Li Yanlong refused to give up. After persistent investigation, he finally obtained crucial information from the abuser’s two children. Even so, the man was ultimately sentenced to only fifteen years in prison.
Later, Li Yanlong vented his anger on the Song family and dragged them all down from their positions. The constant running around delayed his work, and he was eventually reported by political rivals and demoted. His wife and children grew resentful toward Song Susu because of it, and arguments would always break out whenever the matter was mentioned.
With setbacks at work and the weight of guilt pressing on him, the latter half of Li Yanlong’s life steadily declined.
“You’ve really grown up, girl. Your parents can finally rest easy watching from above. Now that you’re back, whether you want to work or continue studying is up to you. I’ve already kept your position open at the unit, and I found some study materials for you too. Whatever happens, you’ve got Uncle Li here, so don’t stand on ceremony.”
Li Yanlong spoke with a warm smile, his whole demeanor relaxed at last. He could finally give his old friend an answer.
Song Susu quietly engraved this kindness in her heart and replied sincerely, “Alright. Thank you, Uncle Li.”
“What are you thanking me for? You just spent so long on the train. Go rest after eating. Take a couple of days to recover before worrying about anything else.”
After improving her physique, Song Susu felt full of energy and wasn’t actually tired from the train ride. Still, she obediently went back to take an afternoon nap.
According to Auntie Wang, the housing unit arranged by her parents’ workplace had already finished renovations. However, since the walls had just been painted, it needed a couple more days to air out before they could move in.
Song Susu wasn’t in a hurry. She first took her documents to the neighborhood office to finalize her household registration, then transferred her younger brother’s temporary registration back from the local district as well.
After that, she went to the Housing Bureau to check out any commercial shops for sale.
Compared to buying a traditional courtyard house, Song Susu was leaning more toward a shop.
Once she finished the college entrance exam, she would definitely be going to university, so running a business herself wasn’t realistic. Buying a courtyard house and letting it sit there for the land value to increase would be a long wait with nothing in between.
But a prime shop was different. Buying one now meant she could immediately start collecting rent. At the same time, it could cover her and her brother’s daily expenses, and in the future, the land value would rise just the same.
The staff at the Housing Bureau recognized Song Susu, especially since the leadership had personally received her.
Xiao Wang perked up the moment he heard she wanted to buy property. Buyers were rare these days, so this was exciting news.
He immediately hopped on his bike and led her out to see some shops.
“Comrade Song, you came to the right person. These few shops are in prime locations, right near the department store. Buying them and renting them out would be perfect.”
The first shop Xiao Wang showed her was a small street-facing unit at the corner next to the department store.
The shop was a bit old, just one large room, with an old man sitting outside.
He was the owner. Eyeing Song Susu up and down, he frowned. He thought the Housing Bureau must be joking. Who in their right mind brings a half-grown child to look at property?
“Sir, your asking price of 3,000 today isn’t honest at all. Yesterday you said 1,000 would do, and now I bring someone to look, so give us a fair price,” Xiao Wang said.
The old man snorted. “This is already the lowest I can go. People have been looking at shops around the department store these past two days. They’re selling for 10,000, and mine is only 100 meters away. This price is already too cheap.”
Xiao Wang could only laugh in exasperation. “Oh come on, you can’t just raise the price like that. You can’t compare your shop to those in the department store. The foot traffic isn’t even in the same league. Besides, your place is small, the walls are cracking. You really can’t compare.”
“Take it or leave it. Go away.”
The old man didn’t even glance at the buyer. A young girl wasn’t someone who could make a serious deal, so he didn’t bother saying more.
Xiao Wang was momentarily speechless and shot an apologetic glance at Song Susu.
Song Susu waved him off, signaling to move along. There was no rush—this was just the first place.
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