Time-Travel: The Tragic Cannon Fodder Female Supporting Character Makes a Comeback

CHAPTER 37: The 1970s Naive Supporting Girl (37)

　　Song Susu stayed at the Li family’s house for a few days. To thank Uncle Li and his family, she dissolved three recovery pills in water and let the three of them drink it. In these times, having a strong body mattered more than anything else.

　　During those days, Li Huihui studied high school textbooks together with her.

　　To her surprise, whenever she ran into questions she couldn’t solve, Song Susu actually knew the answers.

　　After all, Song Susu had only graduated from junior high, while Li Huihui had already learned high school material before.

　　The old Song Susu had been sensitive and insecure. When she spoke, she barely even lifted her head. Li Huihui herself wasn’t very good at getting along with people, so the two of them hadn’t interacted much before.

　　But now that they had spent more time together at home, she realized that Song Susu was far more outstanding than she had imagined. It almost felt as if she had become a completely different person.

　　Sometimes, without even noticing it, Li Huihui would find herself drawn to her. When Song Susu carried herself with confidence, she had a kind of charm that was hard to ignore.

　　Eventually, she couldn’t hold back her curiosity and quietly asked why a person could change so much.

　　Song Susu fell into deep thought for a long time before answering her.

　　“As long as you truly want to change, you can. Don’t worry about whether your abilities are enough. Don’t be afraid of walking alone. And don’t let anyone or anything hold back your steps. You only get one life. When you learn to love yourself, everything else will naturally fall into place.”

　　Those were also the words she wished she could say to the original Song Susu.

　　After her parents passed away, Song Susu had grown up lacking any sense of security. She kept trying to find relatives she could rely on, but all she received in return was bullying and exploitation.

　　Later, when she went to the countryside, Jiang Xiaoli once lent her a helping hand. She placed her hopes and reliance on the Jiang family after that, yet what she received was still the same bullying and exploitation.

　　Even when she was later married off to an abusive man, she simply resigned herself to it and never fought back. In a way, it was like giving up entirely once the situation had already fallen apart.

　　Ye Susu pitied the original Song Susu’s misfortune, yet at the same time felt frustrated by her unwillingness to fight back. In the end, the only thing she could do was enter this mission and help turn her life around.

　　At the same time, it served as a warning for women like her.

　　A woman should never rely completely on anyone else. Mountains can collapse, and rivers can change their course. In the end, the only truly reliable person is yourself. Love yourself more, and stop foolishly giving everything just to please others.

　　After that conversation, Li Huihui clearly grew closer to Song Susu.

　　The two of them often squeezed into the same room to review their lessons together.

　　Seeing this, Li Yanlong and his wife felt deeply gratified. In the past, the two girls had never been particularly close. Now that they had grown so friendly, they could look out for each other in the future.

　　As time passed, the Li family even tried to stop them from leaving. In the end, it was only after Song Yuanchao’s school enrollment procedures were completed that things changed. His school was much closer to the old Song family house.

　　Only then did Song Susu move with her younger brother into the home their parents had left behind.

　　Renovations in those days were quite simple. The walls were coated with fresh white putty, the doors and windows were refurbished, and the furniture was mostly the old pieces that had been there before. The house had been aired out for several days, so there was no lingering smell.

　　The siblings each had their own room, and the place felt wonderfully spacious. They bought some new daily necessities, and even the bedsheets and quilts were brand new.

　　Song Susu also picked up a few pots of green plants and bought a few feet of checkered cloth, giving the house a simple but cozy touch.

　　With only the two of them living there, everything felt clean, bright, and refreshing. Sunlight streamed through the glass windows, filling the rooms with warmth.

　　The nearby neighbors were quite caring toward the two children who had lost their parents. Whenever they met, people would greet them warmly. Some of the neighborhood aunties would even bring food over from time to time.

　　Of course, there were also those who liked to pull Song Susu aside to gossip, talking about what had happened to the Song family. In their eyes, it was simply a case of evil deeds bringing their own punishment. Not a single member of that family had ended up well.

　　“Song Jiabao was sentenced to twenty years for secretly harboring a capitalist’s daughter. Song Jianjun’s wife divorced him and went back to her parents’ home with the child. Song Lili was sent to the countryside for labor reform in a harsh place. The old couple suffered strokes, and even the hospital didn’t want to keep them for long. As for Song Zhiqiang, no one is looking after him. I heard not long ago that he was sent to an orphanage…”

　　Over the past two days, Ye Susu had pieced together the Song family’s situation from all sorts of scattered gossip.

　　All she could say was that they had it coming. If they had treated the two children even a little better, things would not have ended up this miserable.

　　Song Yuanchao had originally been studying in another district with Song Zhiqiang. At the Song household, he had never been welcomed in the first place. It was easy to imagine how a skinny, undersized boy like him would be excluded, isolated, or even bullied. His experience at that school had been anything but pleasant.

　　At first, he had even grown resistant to going to school.

　　But after Uncle Li and Song Susu took turns talking with him, he finally agreed to attend the new school.

　　Most of the students there lived around the same neighborhood, and they welcomed the clean, good-looking Song Yuanchao quite warmly.

　　Every day, Song Susu carefully picked out his clothes, making sure he looked neat and handsome. On top of that, he always had snacks in his pockets. Whenever he saw someone picking on a girl, he would step forward without hesitation to stand up for her.

　　In just a few short days, he quickly became a sort of little leader among the kids in the area. On the way to and from school, he even had a group of younger kids trailing behind him like little followers. Every day, he came home in high spirits.

　　As for Song Susu, she had already started busying herself with the shop renovations. Aside from supervising the work, she also made sure to squeeze in time to review her high school textbooks, since there was only a little over a month left before the college entrance exams.

　　Recently, Li Yanlong had heard some inside news that there was an eighty or ninety percent chance the college entrance exams would be reinstated. Overjoyed, he prepared two whole boxes of books for the children at home.

　　One was eighteen, the other nineteen. If they truly managed to get into university, they would become part of the very first batch of college students after the exams returned. Their future prospects would surely be bright.

　　Li Huihui and Song Susu each received a box filled with textbooks and study materials.

　　Song Susu also wrote a letter to Liu Yingzi. She selected several practical books for the college entrance exams and bought some local specialties as well, sending everything by post to the Heihegou Brigade.

　　A few days before the college entrance exams, Song Susu received a letter from the Heihegou Brigade.

　　In the letter, Liu Yingzi first expressed her heartfelt thanks for the books Song Susu had sent. They had arrived just in time, like rain after a long drought. She wrote that she would do her best to prepare for the exams.

　　She explained that the reason the letter came so late was because the village had recently been going through major changes. The road at the village entrance was being repaired, and the postman had not come by for several days.

　　The newly appointed village cadres were all quite decent. The village had even renovated the old, rundown primary school and recruited two educated youths to serve as teachers there.

　　Liu Yingzi happened to be one of them.

　　She wrote that she felt very happy now. Teaching the children how to read and write gave her a strong sense of accomplishment.

　　Some of the other educated youths had also joined a village literacy program, helping teach the adults. Recently, the entire village seemed to be filled with a fresh new atmosphere.

　　As for the Tian family, they kept their heads down and hardly dared to show their faces anymore. Tian Shiwu’s two children had been left with no one to care for them.

　　The children were innocent, after all. They had even reported their own father’s wrongdoing. In the end, the production team took them in. After hearing about the situation, the township leaders approved a small subsidy and promised to support them until they turned eighteen.

　　The letter ran a full six pages, every page packed tightly with neat lines of writing.

　　Song Susu read through it carefully from beginning to end.

　　By the time she finished, a faint smile had already curled at the corner of her lips.

　　——

　　On the day the college entrance exams were officially reinstated, the entire nation was filled with celebration. Soon after came the first gaokao in ten years.

　　Students of all ages from across the country stepped into the examination halls.

　　Li Yanlong and his wife personally escorted the two girls there. Song Yuanchao’s school had given them a break as well, so he came along to cheer for his sister. In his hand he waved a little flag he had made himself, with the words “Victory Is Certain” written on it.

　　Wang Yanli wore a bright, festive outfit that day, hoping it would bring good luck and help the children achieve great results.

　　Li Huihui and Song Susu entered the examination hall together.

　　The exams lasted a full two days. After finishing them, Song Susu packed up all her books and tied them into a bundle without even sparing them another glance. She threw herself fully into the final inspection work for the shop renovations.

　　She had poured a great deal of effort into those shops. After a full month of renovations, they were finally completed.

　　When the finished results were revealed, the elegant and upscale design immediately drew plenty of attention. Even the department store’s manager came over to take a look and learn from it.

　　Unlike the usual plain and single style of interior design, Song Susu had added rounded archways and specially colored walls. She had mixed several shades of paint herself, and under the lights, the colors looked especially beautiful and eye catching.

　　Some sections of the walls were also built with recessed designs, making better use of the space. The two floors looked open, spacious, and brightly lit.

　　Green plants placed on the various display platforms added an extra touch of elegance. Even though there was hardly any furniture, the place still looked remarkably high-end.

　　Compared to it, the nearby shops that had finished their renovations earlier looked completely overshadowed.

　　Seizing the moment, Song Susu put up a notice that read “For Rent.”

　　People with interest quickly gathered to ask about the rent, and before long the place became quite sought after.

　　The shops inside the department store were usually quite shrewd with their pricing. Some tenants had to pay rent based on a percentage of their sales, along with additional costs like maintenance of the shared areas and various other fees. Altogether, it could get quite expensive.

　　When people learned that Song Susu’s shops were privately owned, interest grew even stronger. Some even offered high prices on the spot, hoping to buy them outright.

    

Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter