"Lǐ Píng has always admired her. In fact, Zhou Xue's family is only slightly better off than her own, with most classmates in the class being from the same town. Despite her insecurities, Zhou Xue remains actively engaged in her studies.
In truth, it's not that Lǐ Píng doesn't work hard; it's just that being a female student in the science stream with a not-so-quick-witted mind makes achieving high grades incredibly challenging. As Lǐ Píng snapped back to reality, she wore her usual silly smile and waved it off, saying, 'It's nothing, I was just thinking about the physics problem the teacher discussed in class.' 'You're always so absent-minded. Come on, I'll help you when we get back. Let's go grab dinner.'
That night, after finishing her homework quickly, Lǐ Píng noticed her roommates were already asleep. She took out some sheets of paper and began to use her writing skills to narrate the time-traveling stories from her memory. The reason behind this was primarily Lǐ Píng's desire to keep things to herself. She feared that if her secret got out, people would talk, and even if Zhou Xue found out, she would probably advise her to focus on studying and not entertain wild thoughts. Let alone others, who might criticize her as an eccentric person. All these thoughts were perfectly normal, as Lǐ Píng acknowledged she would have likely felt the same way if she were not the one who had experienced it.
Still maintaining her invisible status, Lǐ Píng decided to return home over the upcoming weekend. Yes, home – a term that Lǐ Píng, in her days as Qíng Wén, never dared to fantasize about. She had always avoided such thoughts because she was afraid. Afraid that in her dreams, she would witness her aged parents weeping inconsolably due to the unexpected loss of their daughter. Afraid to see the sun-worn, dark faces of her parents adding more wrinkles. Afraid to remember her elderly parents, slightly hunched with white hair, still toiling in the fields.
She had considered the possibility of returning to the past after her death, but she dared not. Using the unexpected life granted in this world as a gamble was something she couldn't afford. She was grateful for the opportunity to travel through time. In modern society, she had died in a car accident but was reborn, and she had lived a happy life. It was indeed a stroke of luck.
Watching the passing vehicles on the road, the present scene overlapped with the images from her memories. Lǐ Píng felt the vicissitudes of life.
Throughout the journey, Lǐ Píng contemplated what she would say to her parents upon seeing them. She had no intention of sharing her experiences because she knew that once a secret was known to a second person, it ceased to be a secret. Moreover, she was aware that her father, though affectionate, was somewhat patriarchal. He loved boasting and maintaining face. Her mother, like many traditional rural women, had her flaws.
Lǐ Píng felt that for ordinary peasants living in poverty in the countryside, their happiness and hope rested on their children. Working tirelessly, they always hoped that their children would shine through education and become a source of pride for the family. Growing up, her father would often tell her to study hard, comparing her to a villager's child who earned a certain amount every month, and how the entire family had moved to the city in the end... In the past, Lǐ Píng always thought that her parents wanted her to study well so they could use her achievements to show off.
After experiencing so much, she realized that every set of parents hoped for their children's success, and their expectations were always the most straightforward and pure. In the past, even though she had entered a prestigious high school, her poor performance in the college entrance examination not only failed to bring comfort to her parents but also subjected them to ridicule from their fellow villagers.
This time, Lǐ Píng vowed not to let history repeat itself. With her ability to memorize things instantly as a cultivator, scoring well in the college entrance examination was relatively simple for her.
Arriving at her destination, Lǐ Píng struggled to suppress her pounding heart and sprinted towards her home. Along the way, she encountered familiar faces making the usual jests about 'the university student finally willing to come back.' Lǐ Píng paid no mind to these comments, as she had heard worse after her poor performance in the college entrance examination.
In the evening, with the smoke rising from the kitchen, Lǐ Píng, filled with joyous anticipation, knocked on the front door."