"Tiantian, why did you come here today? Is something the matter, or did you come specially to see me?"
Shen Niantang looked at Su Jia, her posture poised and elegant.
"Auntie, it's been so long since we last saw each other, of course I came to see you. Only I forgot to bring anything this time; you won't blame me, will you, Auntie?"
"Silly child, what nonsense are you talking about? Come if you want, why bring anything?"
A bright, radiant smile bloomed on Shen Niantang's face, and she felt a deep warmth in her heart. Traveling into this world and having someone who cared for her so much truly made her feel fortunate.
At that moment, He Yanjing also put down the newspaper in his hand, stood up, and quietly poured a cup of tea for Shen Niantang. Just then, a cheerful voice rang out from outside the door.
"Mom, Brother, I'm back~"
Shen Niantang turned her head toward the doorway. A young girl around her own age walked in, her high ponytail swaying back and forth. Although she wore a simple white dress, she looked bright and full of energy.
"Ranran is back! Come, come quickly. You've returned at just the right time—this is your older cousin, Shen Niantang. Tiantian, this is your younger cousin, He Miaoran; you can just call her Ranran."
The moment she stepped through the door, He Miaoran caught sight of Shen Niantang sitting on the sofa. With just a single glance, He Miaoran saw the very embodiment of breathtaking beauty.
"Hello, Sister Tangtang~ Wow, you're so pretty, I like you!"
He Miaoran was a true visual-first person who couldn't take her eyes off anything good-looking. Her direct words at that moment made Shen Niantang laugh.
"Hello there, Ranran~"
The usually bouncy and unrestrained He Miaoran now sat quietly beside Shen Niantang, gazing shyly at the unfamiliar yet stunning older cousin before her.
Shen Niantang had not forgotten the main purpose of her visit, so she quickly got down to business.
"Auntie, I just happened to have a question I wanted to ask you today. I heard that our family has an arranged marriage with Gu Tingchuan of the Gu Family. Is that true?"
Su Jia nodded slightly, her tone measured:
"Yes. Back then, after giving birth to you, your mother made an arranged marriage with her close best friend. Your mother's friend was named Zhou Shulan, and at the time, your mother and Zhou Shulan even exchanged token keepsakes."
"It's just that your mother passed away early. Before she left, she entrusted the keepsake to me."
For a moment, Shen Niantang couldn't believe her ears.
She was the one originally supposed to marry Gu Tingchuan—so why was it Shen Rou who married him in her past life?
"So that's how it is. Auntie, now that I've grown up, I want to know what kind of person Gu Tingchuan is. Besides, that was all from when we were kids. I was thinking that if the two of us aren't a good match, we should resolve this matter and return the keepsake."
Su Jia nodded thoughtfully. Shen Niantang was right; keeping this arranged marriage hanging over her head indefinitely was no solution.
"As far as I know, Gu Tingchuan should be a battalion commander by now. He has always been exceptionally capable, and he must be around twenty-five now. I've heard that the young man looks decent enough."
"Gu Tingchuan is currently working over in Qingyang District, though the living and working conditions there aren't very good."
Su Jia had met Gu Tingchuan before and had a quite favorable impression of him. If Shen Niantang were to marry him, it could be considered a good outcome—far better than staying in that suffocating household.
Of course, Shen Niantang was all grown up now, and young people had minds of their own. If Tiantian didn't like Gu Tingchuan, she would certainly find Shen Niantang a fine man excelling in every way in the future.
Sitting right beside them, He Yanjing had veins bulging on the back of his hand, his brow furrowed in a frown whose timing he himself didn't know. His voice was cold as he spoke:
"If Tangtang doesn't like Gu Tingchuan, let's just call off the arranged marriage. From what we've heard, that Gu Tingchuan is already twenty-five—basically an old man at that age! And the military is full of rough-and-tumble men. What if that old man has a bad temper and Tangtang ends up wronged?"
He Yanjing couldn't bear to watch his own beautiful and gentle cousin get married off to some crude brute so soon. It would be letting that guy get off too easily; after all, men weren't any good.
Shen Niantang looked up at He Yanjing, surprised that her cousin could be so warm-hearted and feeling quite flattered for a moment.
Aunt Su Jia expressed her full agreement and hurriedly asked for Shen Niantang's opinion.
Shen Niantang now had a fair understanding of Gu Tingchuan; what she lacked right now was an introduction letter addressed to the Qingyang Military Region.
"Auntie, I feel I'm still young and don't want to get into a relationship just yet. Right now, I want to find a job."
Aunt Su Jia was very surprised, followed immediately by a pang of heartache. Shen Niantang had lost her mother at a young age and ended up with that spineless father of hers, so her life couldn't possibly have been easy. To be starting to look for a job at just nineteen years old made people's hearts ache for her.
"Tiantang, is money tight for you? You're only nineteen; Auntie doesn't want you working so hard. Auntie has money—from now on, I'll take care of you."
Hearing that her older cousin had no money, He Miaoran, who sat beside Shen Niantang, immediately protested.
"Cousin, I have money too! I'll give it all to you."
He Yanjing lowered his gaze, his brow knitting together once more.
Shen Niantang quickly waved her hands and explained with great patience:
"No, that's not it. The reason I want to find a job is because I've graduated now, and I don't want to stay cooped up at home all the time. I need to go out and see the world—I want to find a passion of my own."
This was the 1970s, before the reinstatement of the college entrance examination. Shen Niantang had been clever and sharp since childhood, skipping grades and finishing high school by the age of nineteen.
After hearing what Shen Niantang had to say, Su Jia grew even more fond of her, wondering if she could help introduce her to a job.
"Tiantang, what kind of work are you looking for? Let me see if I have any good suggestions for you."
"I want to work as a military civilian staff member in the military unit over in Qingyang District, specifically as a translator. The working environment in the military is very good, and I really like English."
In China during the 1970s, some diplomatic liaisons and military technological research within the armed forces required English speakers. However, very few people could speak English back then, let alone those proficient in English translation within the military, who were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.
"You want to work as an English translator in the military?"
A booming voice echoed from the doorway as Shen Niantang's uncle, He Shaobai, returned from outside.
"Hello, Uncle."
He Shaobai took off his coat, which Aunt Wang promptly stepped forward to take.
"Tangtang, did you just say you want to work as a civilian staff member in the military? I remember you should have just graduated from high school."
"As far as I know, the standards for professional English talent in the military are very high."
Shen Niantang nodded slightly, her eyes soft, the corners of her lips curving upward into a gentle smile as she spoke at a steady pace:
"I did indeed just finish high school. Although the teaching standards at the school weren't high, as early as last year I was already deep-diving into foreign academic journals. After all, to become a professional English translation specialist for the military, one must hold oneself to strict standards."
Shen Niantang was thoroughly confident on this front. After all, in her real society, her university majors had included business English and translation studies, and she had even obtained advanced foreign language interpretation certificates and CATTI. Crossing into a book like this, finding a job was simply child's play...