After the first semester of the university entrance exams was restored, things settled down for the first three months.

The group of intellectual youths who had received their admission letters within the past two months gradually returned to the city, preparing for the new semester.

Arden Forster was no exception. After having a final meal with the group of intellectual youths, she too made her way back to the capital.

Among the intellectual youth, her results were some of the best. Out of seven who had taken the exams, four had passed, while the other three were not far behind and could easily retake the exams the next year with high chances of success.

Arden boarded the train, spending a full day and night traveling, until she finally arrived at the capital.

As she squeezed her way out of the crowded train station, she immediately spotted her parents and her older brother, Adrian Forster, waiting for her outside.

The three of them waved enthusiastically when they saw her, their faces lighting up with happiness.

"Arden, Arden, over here!" her mother called out.

Seeing her daughter with two large suitcases, her mother quickly nudged Adrian.

"Go help your sister with her bags."

Adrian Forster, wearing a military uniform, stood tall and handsome. His long legs made him stand out among the crowd, and as he walked toward the group, several girls sneaked glances at him.

Adrian moved quickly, his long strides covering the distance in a few steps, and soon he was by Arden's side. He took the two suitcases from her with ease, giving her a gentle smile.

"Long trip? I took leave to come pick you up. Don’t overdo it, you’ve been tough on your own, haven’t you?"

Before Arden could answer, he looked her over from head to toe, sighing in concern.

"You’re so thin, so tan. You've had it rough, haven’t you?"

His younger sister, who had always been fair-skinned and delicate since childhood, didn’t look the same anymore, especially after spending so much time in the countryside. Adrian couldn’t help but feel guilty for not stopping her from going in the first place.

As they were talking, Arden's parents rushed over. Her father shot a glance at Adrian and scolded, "You rascal, do you even know how to talk? Of course our daughter is smart, but no matter what, she’ll always be beautiful in my eyes!"

Meanwhile, her mother, deeply concerned, pulled Arden into an embrace. "My precious girl, why are you so thin? Didn’t you eat well there? When we get home, I'll cook something delicious for you every day, and I’ll make sure you gain some weight."

Arden didn’t interrupt. She wasn’t surprised anymore about the way her family treated her. With how much they spoiled her, it was no wonder she grew up with the mentality of a princess—protected and cherished, afraid to fall.

If she had stayed at home as a little princess, it would have been fine, but once she stepped outside, no one was going to spoil her like that. After all, she was eighteen, not eight.

So, when she reflected on the way the original Arden had ended up, it was partly because her family had spoiled her too much.

It wasn’t that she hadn’t been loved, but the way they loved her without teaching her the proper life skills, and treating her like a princess who could get whatever she wanted, contributed to her obsession with Ethan. This obsession was the root of the family's eventual tragedy.

Of course, now that Arden was the one experiencing it, she loved all the attention from her family. It was only natural that she continued to act sweet around them, enjoying their affection.

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Grandfather and grandmother Forster were also at home waiting for their precious granddaughter. If it weren’t for Arden’s father being an influential figure, who had to gather a team just for an outing, they would have gone themselves to pick her up.

It had been more than a year since they had seen her, and they missed their little granddaughter terribly.

Unlike many families that favored sons over daughters, the Forster family, from top to bottom, had always adored their daughter. It helped that there were plenty of sons in the family. From the grandfather down, there had only been one girl—Arden.

Since the time of Arden’s grandfather, the Forster family had never had a daughter. Arden’s grandmother had three sons, and after they all grew up and started families, they each had several children, but they were all sons.

A grandson was rare enough, but after several generations, with five or six boys, no one in the family expected anything else.

The mischievous little boys were nothing compared to a sweet, soft, and adorable little girl, right?

That's why the daughters-in-law of the Forster family worked so hard to have a daughter, but no one succeeded. Instead, the number of boys kept growing.

When Arden was born, she broke the family tradition of three generations without a daughter. That's why she was so spoiled by everyone in the family; it was no surprise.

"Oh my, my dear granddaughter, you're back! I've missed you so much, I couldn’t even eat or sleep properly. I wanted to go pick you up, but no one would let me," Arden's grandmother exclaimed with a warm embrace as Arden entered the main house. Seeing her appearance, the old woman’s heart ached. She scolded Arden's father for not bringing her home sooner, then immediately began to shower her with all the delicious food in the house.

"Look, look! Arden has lost so much weight. She must have suffered a lot. I told them we should've brought her home sooner..." she continued, lamenting.

Arden felt deeply moved by her grandmother's love. This was the warmth of the family, and she could feel every bit of it.

In reality, Arden wasn’t as pitiful as others thought—she wasn’t as dark and thin as people said. Living in the countryside had made her even healthier, and because she wasn't picky with food, she didn’t just stay healthy, she had gained a little weight.

But there was a certain kind of thinness—one that the elders saw and worried about.

After a few days at home, being pampered like a pig, Arden slowly transformed. Initially, she was a little dark-skinned, but after being spoiled, she became fair and delicate. Soon, it was time for school to begin.

Before she left, her grandmother was still worried, "Can’t you change your major? It's fine for you to study Education, why do you want to study weapons? It's dangerous! Your brother is tough and can handle that, let them deal with it. You, Arden, just stay home, eat well, and look beautiful..."

Her grandfather couldn't hold back his frustration and retorted, "It's good for children to have ambition. Stop holding her back." He quickly softened his tone and lovingly said to Arden, "Arden, studying theory is enough, don’t get involved in dirty and exhausting experiments. Be careful, okay?"

Arden repeatedly assured them she wouldn't put herself in danger, and with that, they were reassured.

After another tearful farewell, Arden finally boarded the bus to her university.

It would have seemed like she was going abroad, but in reality, she was in the capital city, not even staying in a dormitory. She would go home every evening.

After registering, school began.

Arden was fortunate to experience the most unusual school year ever, with classmates of all ages. Some were already married with children, and there were even parents attending university with their young children. This strange sight could only happen in this era.

As Arden’s university life settled into a rhythm, Sylvia Green left the village.

Due to her failure in the moral evaluation, Sylvia wasn’t accepted into university despite her good exam results. She faced ridicule and gossip in the village and couldn’t stand it anymore, so she decided to leave and make her own way in the world.

In these two years, there were few university graduates, and being a graduate was like having a golden ticket. But by the 1980s, those golden tickets lost their value, and money became the ultimate determining factor. Many people left their jobs and ventured into business, hoping to strike it rich during the economic boom.

It was now 1977, meaning in about two years, the first special economic zones would be established. What Sylvia needed to do now was to save up, preparing to take a risk in the special zones when the time came.

She believed that, with her visionary perspective that transcended the times, even if she didn’t become the richest person, she would at least become a millionaire.

After sharing her plans with Ethan, though he didn’t give her much attention, he still supported her and handed over all his savings.

Sylvia was deeply touched. To find a man willing to give her everything in this era was truly lucky.

However, what she didn’t know was that Ethan had also been affected by his own moral evaluation issues, resulting in disciplinary action. Although he hadn’t been expelled due to his previous good performance, he still faced consequences.

Sylvia quietly packed up her money and left the village without telling anyone, not even her parents.

Her first stop was Silverbrook, which at the time was still under capitalist control. The economy was booming, and it was like night and day compared to the interior. Sylvia planned to begin her journey to success here.