With three superpowers at his fingertips, he could dominate the 1970s.

Jiang Zhiyu sat in the courtyard, her fingertips unconsciously rubbing the hem of her clothes. The Revolutionary Committee's reach extended to Kaoshantun; it was highly likely they were connected to Shanghai. She needed to contact Song Yanzhou as soon as possible and have him investigate who was watching the Jiang family.

The only telephone in the village is at the village committee office. She locked the gate and walked towards the village committee office, the setting sun casting a long shadow over her.

Upon arriving at the village committee office, accountant Liu Quan was hunched over the table calculating accounts, the abacus clattering loudly. Seeing Jiang Zhiyu enter, he looked up, adjusted his reading glasses, and asked, "Young Jiang, what's up?"

"Uncle Liu, I'd like to make a phone call to Shanghai."

Liu Quan clicked his tongue and put down his abacus: "Calling to Shanghai? Seventy cents a minute, even if you say thirty seconds, it'll still be a minute. Are you sure you want to call?" That price is enough to buy two pounds of pork. This young educated youth, Jiang, is really generous.

"I'm sure, it's urgent," Jiang Zhiyu confirmed.

Liu Quan glanced at his watch without saying anything more, then got up and walked towards the door: "I'm going out for a walk. Call me when you're done." He knew the other person had something to do and it wasn't appropriate for him to listen any further.

Jiang Zhiyu walked to the telephone. It was an old-fashioned rotary dial phone, rusted and with several layers of tape wrapped around the handset cord. She took out the slip of paper Song Yanzhou had given her from her spatial storage and slowly dialed the number.

"Beep—beep—"

After three rings, a clear male voice came from the other end, carrying the crispness characteristic of a soldier: "Naval Forces Stationed in Shanghai, who is this?"

"Hello comrade, I'm looking for Song Yanzhou," Jiang Zhiyu said in a low voice. "Please tell him that my surname is Jiang and I need to speak with him. I'll call back in ten minutes." Without waiting for a response, she hung up the phone.

She stepped out of the house, where Liu Quan was squatting on the steps smoking a pipe, the embers in the bowl flickering. "Uncle Liu, we'll have to wait a bit."

"No rush." ​​Liu Quan took a drag of his cigarette, the smoke rings dissipating in the twilight. "Little Jiang, you're from Shanghai?"

"Um."

"That place is great, a big city." Liu Quan sighed. "My youngest daughter always says that she wants to go to Shanghai to see the Bund in the future." He has three sons and one daughter. All three sons have married in the village, but his youngest daughter is only sixteen years old. She is wild and always wants to run away.

Jiang Zhiyu smiled and said, "Shanghai is a great city. I'll take her there sometime."

The two chatted casually until the tobacco in Liu Quan's pipe burned out, at which point she stood up and said, "Uncle Liu, I'm going inside to make a phone call."

Pick up the receiver again and dial?

The call was answered quickly this time, and Song Yanzhou's familiar voice came through, tinged with a barely perceptible urgency: "Comrade Jiang? Is that you?"

"It's me," Jiang Zhiyu said bluntly.

Song Yanzhou paused, "What happened?" He could hear the seriousness in her tone.

"I'm fine." Jiang Zhiyu gave an address. "This is my family's old house in Shanghai. Can you check if anyone has been asking about it recently? Also, the Revolutionary Committee of Kaoshantun suddenly started causing trouble for my parents. This matter is probably related to Shanghai." She didn't go into details about her parents' situation, afraid that Song Yanzhou would worry too much.

Song Yanzhou was silent for a moment, then his tone turned serious: "I understand. Don't act rashly over there, wait for my news." He paused, then added, "I'm going to An County on a mission in a couple of days. If I can find the time, I'll come to see you in person. If not, I'll have my comrades in An County contact you."

"Okay," Jiang Zhiyu replied. "That's all, I'm hanging up now."

"Wait a minute," Song Yanzhou suddenly said, "Be careful."

"Um."

After hanging up the phone, Liu Quan walked in, glanced at his watch, and said, "Seven minutes and twenty seconds, let's call it eight minutes, that's five yuan and sixty cents."

Jiang Zhiyu took out five yuan and sixty cents from her pocket, put it on the table, and then turned and left.

Back in the courtyard, Jiang Zhiyu threw herself into a chair. Having contacted Song Yanzhou, half the weight was lifted from her heart, but the matter with the Revolutionary Committee was still unresolved. She decided to enter her spatial dimension and sit at the foot of the newly appeared hill to cultivate—her wood-type abilities, nourished by spiritual energy, were operating more and more smoothly; even the weeds grew exceptionally lush wherever her fingertips touched.

She didn't leave the space until it was completely dark. She took out braised pork, crab roe buns, and three pineapple buns, and stuffed them all into her mouth. The satisfaction from the carbohydrates and fats relaxed her tense nerves considerably.

Seeing that it was almost time, she picked up the food box she had prepared for her parents and headed towards the cowshed. Just as she passed the grove of trees at the foot of the mountain, she heard rustling sounds coming from inside, like someone speaking in hushed tones. She vaguely heard her own name.

Jiang Zhiyu paused, then quietly hid behind a tree.

"Brother Black Bear, you must remember this: that female educated youth lives in a small courtyard at the east end of the village, all alone, and she's very beautiful!" It was Jiang Wenwen's voice, with a hint of deliberate flattery.

"Don't worry, I've got you covered for this, don't you?" a rough male voice rang out. "But are you sure you're right? Is that female educated youth really that beautiful?"

"She's even prettier than a fairy in a painting!" Jiang Wenwen's voice rose slightly, then she quickly lowered it again. "And she's rich; she bought a bicycle as soon as she arrived. She's definitely a capitalist's daughter! Brother Black Bear, if you succeed in getting her..."

The rest of the sentence was left unsaid, but the malice in the tone made even the black bear shudder.

Jiang Zhiyu almost laughed out of anger—this Jiang Wenwen, to harm her, actually hired a thug? She took out a small paper packet from her spatial storage; inside was powder made from a post-apocalyptic mutated epimedium, colorless and odorless, yet capable of instantly causing unbearable heat. With a flick of her finger, the powder drifted away on the wind, landing squarely on the two of them.

"Damn, why is it suddenly so hot?" Black Bear smacked his lips and began to unbutton his collar.

Jiang Wenwen also felt her body burning up, her face instantly turning bright red. She suddenly realized what had happened and pointed at the black bear, yelling, "You drugged me?! I kindly introduced you to some good opportunities, and you actually schemed against me?!"

"I didn't drug her!" Black Bear panicked, but the heat surging within him grew stronger. His gaze towards Jiang Wenwen changed. "Little wench, since you've come to my doorstep, don't blame me for being impolite!"

"You peasant! You toad lusting after a swan! You should take a good look at yourself in the mirror. You poor country bumpkins, how dare you even dream of having your eyes on me!" Jiang Wenwen screamed and tried to dodge, but Black Bear covered her mouth and dragged her deeper into the grove.

Jiang Zhiyu, too lazy to look any further, turned and walked towards the cowshed. Let them fight like dogs; Jiang Wenwen dared to let a wolf into the house. If that black bear succeeded the first time, he'll do it countless times in the future. She wondered if Jiang Wenwen had the ability to bear the consequences. As for that black bear… she could deal with him after she finished dealing with the Revolutionary Committee matters.

Upon reaching the vicinity of the cowshed, she first sprinkled some sleeping potion into the room of the neighboring family—this potion was made from calming herbs from her spatial dimension, which would only make people sleep more soundly without harming their bodies. That family had also been implicated by the Revolutionary Committee today and had been frightened; it would be good for them to get a peaceful night's sleep.

After doing all this, she took out the food she had prepared from her spatial storage and knocked on her parents' bedroom door.

"Who?" Jiang's father asked warily.

"Dad, it's me."

The door creaked open, and Jiang's father, seeing the food box in her hand, quickly pulled her inside and closed the door behind him. Jiang's mother was sitting on the edge of the bed mending clothes; seeing her daughter, her eyes immediately reddened: "Zhiyu, what brings you here?"

"I brought you some food." Jiang Zhiyu placed the food box on the table and opened the lid—inside was steaming hot chicken stew with hazel mushrooms, braised rabbit meat, and four large white steamed buns on the side.

"Eat quickly, it's still warm." She handed the chopsticks to her parents. "Whatever it is, we can talk after you finish eating."

The elderly couple were indeed starving. The afternoon's fright had left them with no appetite for cooking. The aroma of meat made their stomachs rumble, and without a second thought, they grabbed steamed buns and began eating with the meat. As Jiang's mother ate, tears streamed down her face, dripping into her bowl: "Our Zhiyu, she used to not even know how to start a fire, and now she can cook such delicious food… It's all our fault for making you suffer…"

"Mom, don't talk about this." Jiang Zhiyu patted her back. "Eat quickly, it won't taste good if it gets cold."

After the two had eaten and drunk their fill, leaving not a drop of soup, Jiang Zhiyu finally asked, "What exactly did the Revolutionary Committee come for today?"

Father Jiang sighed, "This is the second time. The day we arrived in the village, they came once, dragged the four of us to the village committee for a public denunciation, and even searched our luggage. But that time, they just went through the motions with the other family; they only searched our luggage very thoroughly."

"What are they looking for?" Jiang Zhiyu frowned.

"I don't know." Mother Jiang shook her head. "The family's treasures haven't been opened for over a decade. If we're talking about anything of value, the only thing that's worth anything is my dowry." She paused, "Could it be for that prescription? But that prescription is completely incomplete."

Jiang Zhiyu remained silent, her fingertips tapping lightly on the table. It wasn't treasure, it wasn't a prescription, so what was the other party looking for? Could it be related to the real reason her parents were sent to the countryside?

"Don't overthink it. Just be careful these days." She stood up. "I'm going back now. I'll come see you again in a couple of days."

Mr. Jiang saw her to the door and said in a low voice, "When the Revolutionary Committee came today, I saw you hiding in the tree. Zhiyu, don't be impulsive, taking care of yourself is the most important thing."

"I know." Jiang Zhiyu nodded, then turned and disappeared into the night.

Back in the courtyard, she sat by the window. "0047, locate the town's Revolutionary Committee in a bit." She had to go and see if she could find any clues.