Back in 1984, Chen Zheng woke to find Su Wan fastening her clothes, her ears red.
Tomorrow morning, he was supposed to leave for Harbin with a friend. In his previous life, he left, and when he returned years later, he learned that she had jumped into the river that very year.
This time, he wasn't leaving.
But saying he wouldn't go wasn't enough to win the girl's trust. He didn't even have forty cents in his pocket for cigarettes, yet in front of his future father-in-law, he promised her a new house, the three big items and a bicycle, watch, and sewing machine, and a proper wedding.
The villagers just shook their heads. Him?
Chen Zheng slung an old basket over his back and headed into the mountains.
Wild greens, river delicacies, seasonal mountain produce... Others saw only a few coins' worth of goods in front of them. He saw buyers beyond the mountains and one path to riches after another.
Once he brought the money home, some people wanted to work with him, while others grew jealous. Some even dared to use his name to make money.
He had to expand the business and deal with anyone who tried to walk all over him. The girl who was still willing to shed tears for him was someone he was determined to marry with all the honor and fanfare she deserved in this life.
