Interstellar to 80s: A Scientist's Farming Mission

An Ning was frighteningly calm.

Her hand on the handlebars tensed, while her other hand supported the bicycle’s seat.

The people inside and outside the co-op only saw a brand-new, shiny bicycle fly in a circle over a girl’s head.

The large metal bucket from the back of the bike was as docile as a little lamb, landing over An Ning’s head without a single wobble.

And the girl, while hoisting the bicycle, still had the strength to stick out a foot.

”BANG—”

The madwoman holding a glass bottle, about to splash its contents, was kicked to the ground. Half the liquid splattered on the ground in front of An Ning, and the other half spilled onto the woman herself.

”AHHH—I’m going to kill you!”

The madwoman on the ground spat frantically. A foul stench of urine rose from the ground and her clothes.

”Ugh, it stinks.”

”Let’s back away.”

The surrounding crowd covered their noses and took a few steps back. It was better to watch the drama from a clean, safe distance.

Just then, An Ning emerged from under the metal bucket. She propped up her bicycle with crisp, clean movements and, radiating a chilling aura, walked toward the madwoman on the ground.

Without asking for a reason, she walked up and planted a kick square in the madwoman’s chest.

Only after kicking her did An Ning feel inclined to speak. ”Who are you?”

”Who am I? You have the nerve to ask me who I am!”

The madwoman, completely unfazed by An Ning’s intimidating presence, scrambled to her feet, puffing with rage. She pushed her hair away from her face so An Ning could get a clear look.

An Ning recognized her, but she said, ”I don’t know you.”

”Isn’t that the sales clerk from before?”

”Yeah, yeah, I remember now! The passive-aggressive one.”

”What’s she doing here?”

”Who knows.”

The crowd identified the woman.

She was indeed the sales clerk from when An Ning had come shopping a few days ago—the one Zhu JianShe had fired and sent to the warehouse.

Now that her identity had been revealed, the woman showed no embarrassment at all, as if she had completely given up on herself.

”If you hadn’t complained about me, would I have been transferred to the warehouse?!”

”What does the warehouse fire have to do with me? Why should I have to pay for it?” The woman’s eyes were bloodshot as she stared at An Ning.

”It’s all your fault! It’s all your fault!”

The woman grew agitated and charged recklessly at An Ning. An Ning just shook her head, speechless, and calmly lifted her foot again.

With a THUD, the woman landed squarely in the puddle of urine she had spilled on the ground.

”I’d advise you not to get physical. You can’t beat me.”

An Ning’s advice was remarkably candid. The onlookers wanted to laugh.

’Whose kid is this, speaking such blunt truths?’

”First of all, I didn’t complain about you. You’re not important enough for me to waste time complaining about. Second, the person who transferred you to the warehouse was your boss. The person who made you pay for damages was also your boss. You don’t go looking for him, yet you come looking for me. Is it because you think I’m an easy target?”

As she said this, an unhappy expression crossed An Ning’s face.

She turned and immediately spotted Zhu JianShe—the manager who had helped her today and the other day.

An Ning strode over, grabbed Zhu JianShe by the collar, and yanked him out of the crowd.

”I’ll ask you, when did I ever complain to you about this lunatic?”

”You complained when you were shopping.”

Zhu JianShe refused to admit the truth. Who knew what that crazy woman was capable of.

An Ning was getting impatient. This was supposed to be a happy shopping trip, and these two had ruined it.

”Call the police.” An Ning pointed at the madwoman sitting on the ground. ”You tried to harm me. We’re calling the police.”

Then she pointed at Zhu JianShe next to her. ”You falsely accused me. We’re calling the police.”

As soon as An Ning said this, the sentiment of the crowd began to shift.

In this era, the common perception was that anyone who dared to call the police must be in the right.

But Zhu JianShe didn’t want to involve the police. For a co-op manager like him, having the police called on him would be a huge loss of face, even if nothing came of it.

”Let go of me first. Let me think.”

Zhu JianShe struggled out of An Ning’s grasp. He glanced at the woman on the ground, then at the righteous and imposing An Ning, and then at the pile of goods An Ning had bought.

”Ah—I remember now! You’re right, you didn’t say anything. It wasn’t you who complained, it was someone else. I misremembered, I misremembered.”

Zhu JianShe’s backtracking didn’t make An Ning happy. Her eyes were fixed on him, unblinking.

Zhu JianShe felt his head spin, a powerful urge to speak bubbling up inside him.

He suddenly whipped around, glared at the woman on the ground, and screamed at the top of his lungs, ”So what if I fired you?!”

”Let me tell you, I’ve had it with you for a long time! You’re just some cheap whore who got this job by sleeping her way in! Who the hell do you think you are, strutting around here all high and mighty every day?!”

”So what if no one complained? I wanted to get rid of you anyway!”

”You shameless hussy, who are you trying to scare?”

Zhu JianShe’s tirade left the crowd with their jaws hanging open. Even the madwoman on the ground seemed less mad than before.

”You’re lying! I didn’t! I found this job on my own.”

The madwoman scrambled up from the ground. She couldn’t admit to it. Her lover had a tigress at home; she didn’t dare.

She hadn’t actually intended to cause trouble for An Ning. She just saw how much stuff An Ning was buying and decided to try her luck, hoping she might squeeze some money out of her.

But now, not only had she failed to get any money, her own dirty laundry was about to be aired.

”You two are in this together! You’re the ones who are in it together!”

The woman shouted this, then angrily turned and fled, not daring to stay a moment longer.

As An Ning retracted her spiritual power, she sent one last pulse at the fleeing woman. There was a cry of ”Ah!” as the woman fell flat on her face, spitting out a few teeth.

Meanwhile, An Ning punched Zhu JianShe in the stomach.

”This one’s for your lies.”

”POW!”

”This one’s for falsely accusing me.”

”POW!”

”And this one is just because I don’t like you.”

After three punches, An Ning gave her bicycle a hard shove forward, using the momentum to swing herself onto the seat and head home.

As for the farce she left behind, it had nothing to do with her.

Riding her heavy-duty 28-inch roadster, An Ning flew like the wind, arriving back at the village in no time.

”Is that An Ning? Where’d she get a bicycle!”

”I bought it.”

An Ning’s simple declaration, ”I bought it,” caused an uproar.

By the time she neared her house, a crowd was following her, mostly made up of children.

”An Ning bought a bike!”

”An Ning bought a bike!”

The children shouted and chased after her, seeming even more excited than An Ning herself.

With all the noise, and it being lunchtime, everyone in the An family home heard the commotion.

An Guoqing ran out with his rice bowl still in hand and immediately saw An Ning on her bicycle.

”Big Bro, I’m back!”

An Ning swung one leg back, dismounting smoothly. She patted the bike seat, grinning at An Guoqing.

An Guoqing was so thrilled he was tongue-tied, sputtering excitedly for a moment before finally managing to get his words out.

”Little Sis, is this... for our family?”

”That’s right. For our family.”