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The female lead, Su Poji, was not only stunningly beautiful, surpassing many beauties of her time like Zhao Yazhi, Chen Yulian, and Lin Qingxia, but also possessed exceptional acting and singing skills. She could perform classic songs from decades later, leaving people in awe and establishing herself as a figure of greater status than Mei Yan Fang in the music industry. Moreover, she carried a spatial storage that contained a spiritual spring capable of growing fruits and vegetables, ensuring her skin remained youthful and radiant, aging slowly—truly an ageless goddess.
As a result, many men were enamored with her; there were numerous secret admirers and open suitors. The female lead flirted with several of them but ultimately chose the wealthy and handsome Fictional Male Lead.
Hanno had been deeply troubled by this narrative for quite some time. She despised protagonists who relied on the male god Mali Su to act recklessly and disrespectfully towards relationships. The male god was perfectly fine; why should he be responsible for someone who took advantage of a golden opportunity without regard for feelings? Hanno believed in a one-man-one-woman relationship; her protagonists would never flirt with other men once they had chosen their partner. Those who secretly admired the protagonist would quickly be arranged for a second chance at love. After reading this story, Hanno decided to write her own tale of a female lead's rebirth in Hong Kong to cleanse herself of the contamination from that narrative. However, it was already late, and it was time to sleep.
Thousands of miles away in Harbor City, a certain army officer received a call from home.
"Your wife has been detained by the police; she won't be out for at least ten days or half a month," Liu Zhaoren's mother said on the other end of the line. "Do you know anyone who can help get Yanli released early?"
Liu Zhaoren asked back, "Why was she arrested?"
Liu Mother replied, "She’s accused of stealing a classmate's bracelet and framing another girl. I think something is off here. Yanli started her own business and isn’t short on money; how could she possibly steal? And framing another woman? That’s ridiculous! Yanli is so well-liked; how could she have enemies?"
Liu Zhaoren recalled that today was their high school reunion day. Although he couldn't attend, Ma Yanli was one of the organizers, and he had heard about it from her since they were in the same class.
"Is the girl who was framed named Hanno?" Liu Zhaoren asked.
Liu Mother was surprised. "How do you know that?"
Liu Zhaoren still didn’t answer immediately. After a long pause, he said, "Mom, I want a divorce."
After hanging up the phone, Liu Zhaoren let out a long sigh. This marriage had been a mistake from the start; he had wanted to end it for a long time. However, Ma Yanli was skilled at managing relationships, and his parents held her in good regard. If he had proposed divorce earlier, they would have never agreed. Now that Ma Yanli had landed herself in police custody with such a significant stain on her reputation, he felt it would affect his future too. His mother would no longer oppose his decision to divorce.
Liu Zhaoren opened his wallet and took out a photograph. It was a group photo from their high school graduation. The picture had shrunk significantly over time, making many faces blurry and nearly unrecognizable. Yet Liu Zhaoren could still accurately identify the girl standing on the left side of the second row; he remembered her appearance clearly.
Hanno! His first love. He had been classmates with Hanno for six years through middle and high school, sitting together for three years, and their relationship was quite good. Hanno was beautiful, had excellent grades, and a pleasant personality. Naturally, Liu Zhaoren developed feelings for this wonderful girl. However, Liu Zhaoren's affection remained unspoken; he decided to confess only after they both graduated from high school and got into their desired universities. Unfortunately, his plans were shattered by an unexpected event.
After the college entrance examination, the seniors indulged in carefree revelry, almost oblivious to moderation, including drinking. Under the influence of alcohol, unfortunate incidents often occurred—like what happened to Liu Zhaoren. He got drunk and ended up in a relationship with Ma Yanli, although it was Ma Yanli who took the initiative. From then on, Ma Yanli claimed him as her boyfriend and proudly announced their relationship in front of Hanno. Liu Zhaoren saw disappointment in Hanno's eyes; he regretted his actions, but it was too late to change anything. Thus, he maintained a lukewarm relationship with Ma Yanli, thinking she would eventually break up with him due to the coldness. To his surprise, Ma Yanli resorted to tricks to get him drunk again, leading to another intimate encounter, after which she pressured him into marriage by claiming she was pregnant.
Liu Mother had long been eagerly anticipating a grandchild and wholeheartedly approved of the marriage. Ultimately, Liu Zhaoren married Ma Yanli but spent most of his time stationed at the military camp, rarely returning home even during holidays. Perhaps that child was a calculated move; without recognition from Liu Zhaoren, it ultimately resulted in loss. Afterward, Ma Yanli never became pregnant again. Knowing that Liu Zhaoren had feelings for Hanno only fueled her jealousy, and she attributed all her marital dissatisfaction and resentment over losing the child to Hanno. This is why she sought to trap Hanno during this class reunion.
Liu Zhaoren had endured Ma Yanli for long enough; now he realized that some people were not worth tolerating any longer. Ma Yanli's recent actions crossed his bottom line, and he no longer wanted any ties with her.
The next morning, Hanno woke up earlier than her parents to prepare breakfast. She placed the soaked beans into the soy milk maker; soon enough, fresh soy milk was ready. Meanwhile, she heated a frying pan on the stove, added a little cooking oil, and took out some buns from the freezer to place in the pan before covering it with a lid. Eight minutes later, she opened the lid to reveal fragrant pan-fried buns ready to be served. After counting them, she realized she had made too many. Remembering the Porcelain Jar she had neglected for some time, Hanno carried three extra buns to her room and tossed them into the Porcelain Jar, watching as they disappeared inside.
On the other side, Li Yishu squatted beside the Porcelain Jar waiting for "divine gifts." After more than ten days without seeing any "gifts," today she finally spotted one and jumped up joyfully: "Sister! Sister! The divine being has sent something again!"
Li Zhoule quickly moved into the storage room.
Li Yishu huffed as she picked up a steaming bun and handed it to Li Zhoule: "Sister, it's a bun! It smells so good!"
Li Zhoule hurriedly accepted the bun and took a gentle bite of its crispy skin filled with rich juice and meat flavor: "The divine being hasn't forgotten us."
After more than ten days without anything appearing, they thought the "divine being" had forgotten them. Fortunately, their household had plenty of food so they didn't have to starve. Moreover, they still had over a hundred taels of silver; even if the divine being stopped providing for them in the future, they wouldn't have to worry about their lives.
Li Yishu nodded repeatedly while eating another bun: "The divine being must have been too busy before."
...
Hanno accompanied Han Dad and Mom Han as they set out. Their grandparents' graves were no longer in the cemetery but were instead located in Grandma's hometown where they bought a plot of land for burial. Usually, relatives from Grandma's side took care of it. Therefore, each time they visited their grandparents' graves, besides bringing incense and paper money as essentials, they also needed to bring gifts for Grandma's relatives—always large bundles.
The Han family did not own a car; Hanno called a taxi instead and received a lecture from Mom Han about wasting money. Originally, Han Dad and Mom Han planned to take public transport at ten yuan per person round trip; taking a taxi would cost at least one hundred yuan.
The taxi stopped at the village entrance where Hanno's second cousin greeted them with a smile and casually took the large bundle from Mom Han's hands: "Elder sister! Han Ge! I knew you would come today; my mom sent me to welcome you at the village entrance."
"How is your mother doing?" Mom Han asked.
"She's doing well," Second Cousin replied, nodding repeatedly. "She can eat two bowls of rice in one sitting, and her teeth are strong enough to crunch on peanuts."
Mom Han couldn't help but laugh. "Aunt Yao loves eating peanuts. I bought her a big bag this time, but they're crispy peanuts, so they won't be hard to chew."
"That's good," Second Cousin chuckled. "We wouldn't want her to chip a tooth."
Hanno's grandmother had five siblings; the four older ones were brothers, and she was the youngest sister. Now, all five siblings had passed away, including their spouses, leaving only Younger Uncle's wife still alive. Although Aunt Yao was getting older, she remained healthy and ran a small shop selling daily necessities to support herself. Even though her children sent her living expenses every month, she saved most of it, as the income from her shop was enough for her needs.
Upon arriving in the countryside, the first thing they did was visit Aunt Yao. She was thrilled to see the three members of the Han family and insisted on having them stay for lunch, her warmth making it impossible for them to refuse. Second Cousin went home to grab a hoe and joined the three of them at their grandparents' graves to help with weeding. The graves of the elderly couple were side by side, allowing them to burn paper money in one pile. Hanno squatted beside them, burning paper offerings. Her grandmother had passed away when Hanno was very young, so her memories of her were starting to fade, but she had vivid recollections of her grandfather. He was a man deserving of respect who adored Hanno and never treated her as less important just because she was his granddaughter. He was kind-hearted and rarely lost his temper; he had a good reputation in the community and preferred not to burden his children as he aged. Like Aunt Yao, he ran a small business, although Aunt Yao was in the countryside while he lived in town. Half the people in town recognized him, which spoke volumes about his amiability. Most of Hanno's beautiful clothes from her childhood were gifts from him after trips to big cities like Shanghai; when she learned to ride a bicycle in third grade, it was he who bought her first bike... Hanno sniffled and pushed down the bittersweet emotions rising within her. Her eyes were red—not from tears but from the smoke.
Back at Aunt Yao's house, she was already directing two daughters-in-law in the kitchen. Mom Han rolled up her sleeves to help but was pulled back by Aunt Yao.
"You are our guest; how can you go into the kitchen? Let them handle it!" Aunt Yao insisted, leading Mom Han to sit down in the living room while chatting with her about life.
Meanwhile, Han Dad was engaged in conversation with Second Cousin.
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