Xie Changning had read her fair share of novels, but she never imagined that possessing a personal space would actually happen to her.
Once inside, Xie Changning began to survey the space.
In short, it consisted of untilled land, a locked Spiritual Spring, and a laboratory that required her to complete mechanical tasks to fully unlock.
Xie Changning wasn't particularly interested in the rest of it. The one thing that caught her eye was that the laboratory could be upgraded!
After figuring out the basics of the space, Xie Changning started to figure out how to get inside it.
She doubted her bedroom door was the trigger. 'There has to be something else...'
Xie Changning tried to recall what she had just been thinking.
Then she remembered. As she was walking upstairs, she had been silently cursing Mr. and Mrs. Xie—'I'm your daddy!'
"..."
'How embarrassing. To get into my own space, I have to claim them as my sons.'
To test her theory, Xie Changning first silently thought the word "out," and the scene before her changed to the original owner's drab and dusty bedroom.
Compared to the luxurious, European-style rooms of others in the house, hers looked like a servant's quarters.
Xie Changning took a step back toward the door. Just before pushing it open, she silently thought, 'I'm your daddy,' and the scene instantly shifted back to the space.
Her repeated comings and goings eventually attracted the attention of Mr. and Mrs. Xie.
They came upstairs. "What do you think you're doing?"
Mrs. Xie had no patience for Xie Changning and immediately snapped at her.
"I'm just seeing if 'Open Sesame' will turn my room into a grand, European-style one like everyone else's." Xie Changning smiled, pointing to the room next door where her darling brother lived.
"Sometimes I wonder if I was found on the street. How is it that we're both members of this family, but everything I get feels like a handout?"
As she spoke, her gaze was like a torch, seemingly able to pierce right through to a person's soul.
Mr. and Mrs. Xie grew flustered under her gaze. "You child, what nonsense are you spouting!"
But the words lacked any real conviction.
Xie Changning narrowed her eyes. 'A suspicion began to form. Did I just stumble upon the truth by accident?'
"What are you looking at? Everything in this house is ours! If you want to stay, then stay. If not, then get out!"
Mrs. Xie, feeling unnerved by Changning's stare, raised her voice to chase her off.
Xie Changning knew her mother despised her. She turned to Mr. Xie. "Do you feel the same way?"
"Your mother speaks harshly. Don't take it to heart," Mr. Xie said, trying to change the subject.
Xie Changning nodded. "Alright. I'm heading to the neighborhood office later. Want to come with?"
Since they showed her no kindness, she felt no obligation to be dutiful.
The color drained from Mr. Xie's face. He hurriedly pulled a few large bills from his pocket. "Since you're going out, buy yourself something to eat. Look how thin you've gotten." He was trying to win her over with a small token of kindness.
"I'm planning to join my husband at his military post. I won't be staying with you."
As he offered the money, Xie Changning made it clear she had no intention of depending on them.
Hearing this, Mrs. Xie secretly breathed a sigh of relief. She just snorted, then turned and went downstairs.
Mr. Xie left as well.
A dark glint flashed in Xie Changning's eyes as she watched their retreating backs.
She turned and grabbed her military family relocation notice, then headed to the neighborhood office to get the certificate she needed to buy a train ticket to Chuncheng.
On her way out, Xie Changning's curiosity got the better of her. She picked up a notebook from the table and silently thought, 'Store.' The notebook vanished without a trace.
Xie Changning raised an eyebrow slightly, then walked out the door.
At the neighborhood office, the official looked at Xie Changning with disdain for her status as a "capitalist's daughter." However, constrained by her status as a military family member, they reluctantly issued her the certificate.
Xie Changning glanced over the certificate, confirmed everything was in order, and left.
She paid no mind to the sound of the official spitting on the ground in contempt behind her.
With the certificate in hand, Xie Changning went to the train station to buy her ticket.
"It's for the train tomorrow night."
The ticket seller took her letter of introduction and military relocation notice, then handed her a ticket for the next evening's train to Chuncheng.
Xie Changning took the ticket and tucked it into her pocket.
The Xie residence was quiet when she returned; no one was home.
Xie Changning found the storeroom and took out some basic tools, along with some broken wooden handles and the like, placing them into her space.
After that, she entered the space.
Carrying the tools, Xie Changning went to the laboratory door and read the words inscribed on it: "Repair 1x hoe and 1x shovel to gain access to the laboratory."
Xie Changning looked at the shovel head and the hoe in her hands. Working from memory, she attached the wooden handles.
The moment the assembly was complete, the laboratory door swung open, revealing the scene inside.
The laboratory was still quite rudimentary, containing only a wooden workbench and some simple blueprints.
She saw they were structural diagrams for diesel engines and other machinery currently in use in the country. After tidying up the blueprints, she read the next task: "Repair 1x diesel engine to gain access to the Spiritual Spring."
The task itself was simple. The complication was that she was leaving Shanghai for Chuncheng the next day.
She'd have to wait until she got there to work on it.
Besides, she had no urgent need for the Spiritual Spring, so she wasn't in a rush. Feeling tired, she decided to get some rest instead.
Xie Changning slept soundly and didn't wake until the next morning.
Perhaps because she was about to leave Shanghai, Mr. and Mrs. Xie weren't too harsh with her, and breakfast passed peacefully.
After breakfast, she began to pack her belongings.
She placed all of the original owner's books and collections into her space, packing her clothes into a newly purchased suitcase. By the time she was done, it was already past noon.
In the spirit of not mistreating herself, Xie Changning went out for lunch.
After lunch, Xie Changning returned to the Xie residence. She stood at the door to Mr. Xie's study and smiled faintly.
'Now that I'm full and rested,' she thought, 'it's time to enrich my space!'
'Operation: Empty the House is a go!'