Meng Youyou woke up to the sight of a grayish-white lime wall. Some parts had already begun to yellow slightly, and in the corners, there were even fine cracks.

 

A simple white bulb hung from the ceiling, casting a dim, yellowish glow.

 

She lay on a wooden single bed. The bedboard was stiff and uncomfortably hard, pressing against her body. The army-green bedding brushed against her delicate arms, its texture rough against her skin.

 

Beside the bed stood a wooden nightstand. On it sat an enamel mug of the same army-green color, along with a red-covered memoir titled A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire.

 

Meng Youyou could hardly believe her eyes. She rubbed them again, but the scene before her remained unchanged.

 

She slipped on the black cloth shoes placed beside the bed and stepped onto the hard concrete floor, walking toward the window.

 

What came into view was a wide training ground. In one corner, several worn-out tires were piled up.

 

Not far away, rows of barracks stood neatly arranged, their outer walls a dull gray. Some windows were lit, and through the faint yellow light, silhouettes could be seen moving inside.

 

Further in the distance, at the edge of the camp, she spotted a sentry post. Bright lights illuminated it, and the guard stood tall and straight.

 

At that moment, Meng Youyou’s last bit of hope completely collapsed.

 

This wasn’t a dream.

 

She was… inside a military camp.

 

And the most absurd part was—this didn’t even look like a modern military camp.

 

“What the heck…?”

 

In just a few minutes, Meng Youyou felt like her brain had completely overheated. No matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t figure out what was going on.

 

Then, an especially absurd thought emerged in her mind.

 

“Oh my god…
Don’t tell me… I transmigrated into a book?!”

 

Thinking of this, she subconsciously looked at her reflection in the window. She raised her hand and gently touched her cheek. The real sensation beneath her fingertips only made her more confused.

 

She examined the reflection carefully. Aside from the panic on her face, wasn’t that… still her?

 

Just as she stood there in confusion, a faint crackling sound like static suddenly rang in her mind. At the same time, a translucent screen seemed to appear before her eyes, glowing faintly with a soft blue light around its edges.

 

Then, a mechanical voice echoed as if from a distant tunnel:

 

[Welcome to the Mengda System. Host Meng Youyou, you have begun a wondrous journey. You are now located in a border defense military camp in the 1980s… beep—beep—]

 

A burst of chaotic static followed. The screen flickered erratically before finally settling on a single bold line:

 

[Mengda System is currently upgrading. Please wait patiently.]

 

“…Seriously? So I really did transmigrate?”

 

“And what’s worse—on my very first day, the system crashes before giving me any useful information?! Are you kidding me?”

 

“Who am I? Where am I? What am I supposed to do next?”

 

Just then, hurried footsteps echoed from deep within the corridor, growing closer.

 

Moments later, someone knocked on the door.

 

Still completely lost like a headless fly, Meng Youyou froze for a second before snapping back to her senses and rushing to open it.

 

Standing outside was a young female communications soldier, her face full of urgency.

 

“Translator Meng! The border checkpoint has reported an emergency. They need you there immediately for translation and negotiation,” she said quickly.

 

Affected by the other woman’s urgency, Meng Youyou closed the door and followed her out without thinking.

 

Along the way, she subtly gathered information about her current identity:

 

Meng Youyou. Female. 21 years old. A returned overseas student. Fluent in three languages. A specially recruited translator for the military.

 

She had originally worked in a central department, but due to recent changes, she had been temporarily transferred to the 624 Border Defense Unit, responsible for foreign negotiations and language teaching. She had only just arrived that afternoon after a long journey.

 

“Not bad… this broken system at least gave me a job that matches my major. My niche language skills finally have some use.”

 

“There are transport personnel from Mang Country delivering goods to the checkpoint,” the communications soldier explained clearly. “We need to inspect the cargo, but they refuse to cooperate. There’s a language barrier, so communication has broken down. We urgently need your help.”

 

The two of them crossed the wide training ground, their shadows stretched long under the moonlight.

 

Although Meng Youyou still hadn’t fully accepted the fact that she had transmigrated, and was still in shock…

 

Well, they had already come looking for her. Could she refuse? Probably not.

 

“Alright… I’ll just go and see what’s going on first.”

 

After getting off the vehicle, she headed straight to the negotiation site.

 

---

 

*

 

The night was as dark as ink. Sparse starlight scattered across the vast and slightly desolate land surrounding the border checkpoint.

 

Rolling mountain silhouettes stretched endlessly into the distance, appearing hazy under the faint moonlight.

 

At the checkpoint, vehicles from Mang Country lined up one after another. Their dim headlights mixed with the searchlights, casting overlapping shadows.

 

The transport workers stood or sat nearby, their faces filled with dissatisfaction. Occasional murmurs and impatient complaints broke the tense silence.

 

Opposite them stood the border soldiers—like an unbreakable wall.

 

Dressed in dark green uniforms, holding Type 56 semi-automatic rifles, their eyes were sharp and unwavering.

 

Under the searchlights, their straight silhouettes formed perfectly aligned rows—solemn and imposing. Every movement reflected strict discipline and professionalism.

 

At this tense moment, Meng Youyou stepped forward, forcing herself to appear calm.

 

In reality, she was panicking.

 

She had never seen a scene like this before—not even on TV. The shows she watched were all modern crime dramas, okay?!

 

A captain noticed her approaching and immediately showed a look of recognition. He raised his hand in a standard salute.

 

“Hello. You must be Comrade Meng Youyou, the new translator. I am Zhang Yong, Company Commander of First Company, Second Battalion, 624 Border Defense Unit, in charge of tonight’s inspection.”

 

“Welcome. With your assistance, I hope we can resolve this situation.”

 

Meng Youyou awkwardly returned a not-so-standard salute.

 

“No need to be polite, Captain. Let’s get straight to the point.”

 

Guided by Zhang Yong, she approached the leader of the other party. She took a quiet breath and spoke:

 

“Hello. I am a translator from the Chinese border defense forces.”

 

“According to our laws, all goods entering our territory must undergo inspection. Please cooperate with our procedures.”

 

She delivered the lines smoothly in Mang language, just as she had practiced in the vehicle.

 

Seeing that she could speak their language, the other party’s expression softened slightly.

 

“Our goods are fragile glass products. We’ve spent a lot of effort on protective packaging.”

 

“If your soldiers inspect them, the protective layers and cushioning will have to be removed, which will inevitably cause losses.”

 

“It will also take a great deal of time and effort to repack everything. And if the goods are damaged during inspection, how will you handle that?”

 

Meng Youyou translated their words exactly to Zhang Yong.

 

After a brief moment of thought, Zhang Yong replied:

 

“In practice, we often adopt flexible inspection methods, such as random sampling.”

 

“We will do our utmost to handle the goods carefully to avoid damage. After inspection, our soldiers will restore the items as much as possible. Any unavoidable losses will be compensated accordingly.”

 

He nodded slightly. “Please relay my words.”

 

After some negotiation, the other party reluctantly agreed.

 

Once both sides reached an agreement, the soldiers immediately began their work

 

Zhang Yong personally stepped forward to direct the operation. His sharp gaze swept across each parked truck. At his command, the soldiers quickly divided into three groups, working in pairs as they moved toward different vehicles with practiced coordination.

 

One person in each pair agilely climbed onto the truck bed, carefully checking the securing straps and support structures to ensure everything was stable before selecting boxes for inspection.

 

The ropes tied around the wooden crates were skillfully untied in their hands, while the soldier on the ground prepared tools and a record book, watching closely and ready to assist at any moment.

 

The crates were slowly opened, revealing rows of neatly arranged glass products inside.

 

The routine inspection at the border checkpoint proceeded in an orderly manner.

 

---

 

Meanwhile, along another stretch of the border…

 

Under the cover of night, Huo Qingshan led a border patrol team on their usual route.

 

The pale moonlight illuminated the firm lines of his face, and the sound of their footsteps echoed clearly in the stillness of the night.

 

Suddenly, something glinting faintly on the ground caught his attention.

 

He quickly stepped forward, crouched down, and carefully picked it up.

 

It was an empty shell casing.

 

His expression immediately grew serious. Based on experience, the caliber, size, and primer of this bullet casing did not match the standard issue used by domestic military or police forces.

 

Years of guarding the border had sharpened his instincts to an almost intuitive level.

 

This unusual bullet was undoubtedly a signal of danger.

 

Huo Qingshan stood and scanned his surroundings. Soon after, he noticed tire tracks nearby.

 

They were chaotic and overlapping, making it difficult for an ordinary person to determine how many vehicles had passed through.

 

He crouched again, studying the depth, patterns, and spacing of each track. Gradually, he pieced together the result—

 

Five trucks had passed through this area, all within roughly the same time frame.

 

Most likely, it was a convoy transporting goods from outside the border.

 

But something was off.

 

If they were part of the same batch, the cargo weight of each truck should be similar. So why was one vehicle significantly heavier than the others?

 

Among the five overlapping tire tracks, one was noticeably deeper than the rest.

 

Various possibilities flashed through Huo Qingshan’s mind, but they all pointed to one conclusion—

 

Beneath the seemingly calm border, something dangerous was stirring.

 

He immediately reported the discovery through his radio in a low, urgent voice, while ordering the patrol team to heighten their vigilance and intensify surveillance of the surrounding area.

 

The team members moved quickly, and the atmosphere instantly grew tense.

 

---

 

Back at the checkpoint…

 

The random inspection was already halfway complete when Zhang Yong suddenly stepped aside to answer a call on his radio.

 

With nothing to do, Meng Youyou thought she might as well help the soldiers and contribute something.

 

She glanced at the five trucks in front of her and randomly chose one to approach.

 

As she walked closer, she suddenly felt the gazes of the Mang Country merchants drifting toward her—subtle, but unmistakable.

 

A faint sense of unease rose in her heart.

 

“I’ll help you out. The more hands, the better,” she said with a smile.

 

The two young soldiers immediately panicked.

 

“No, no, Translator Meng, you’re a highly educated comrade—and a lady at that. How could you do this kind of dirty, heavy work? Just stand aside. This is our responsibility.”

 

Meng Youyou raised an eyebrow.

 

“What’s that supposed to mean? Why can’t women work? Being highly educated doesn’t make me any less part of the people. The army protects the people, and naturally, the people support the army.”

 

“Really, it’s not necessary,” one soldier insisted. “These may look light, but they’re actually quite heavy. We’re used to it, but if you’re not familiar with it and accidentally damage something, that would be a problem.”

 

“Comrade Meng, please just rest for now. We’ll finish soon.”

 

Meng Youyou thought about it for two seconds.

 

They had a point.

 

With her thin arms and legs, she might not be able to help much—and might even make things worse.

 

So she listened and stepped aside.

 

But after that strange moment earlier, she couldn’t help but pay closer attention to the Mang Country merchants.

 

There were five trucks in total, with two people assigned to each vehicle. Each pair stayed near their respective truck.

 

That was normal.

 

But…

 

After quietly observing for a while, Meng Youyou noticed something odd.

 

Although everyone stayed near their own vehicles, they would occasionally glance—seemingly unintentionally—toward the last truck.

 

Something was definitely off.

 

She turned and walked back toward the truck she had chosen earlier.

 

The two soldiers were startled again.

 

“Translator Meng, why are you back? We really don’t need help—we’re almost done here!”

 

“How many boxes have you checked in this truck?”

 

“Three. Commander Zhang ordered three random checks per vehicle.”

 

Hearing this, Meng Youyou scanned the interior of the truck.

 

Her gaze moved slowly back and forth. Then she looked at the other trucks, comparing them carefully.

 

A strange sense of inconsistency crept into her mind.

 

This truck was the same size as the others, yet the number of boxes inside was noticeably fewer—about one-eighth less.

 

She narrowed her eyes and examined the interior structure more closely, stepping forward as her gaze shifted toward the front section of the truck bed.

 

Walking around the vehicle, she became even more certain of her suspicion.

 

Just as she was about to knock on the front panel—

 

Zhang Yong returned and stopped her in time.

 

“Comrade Meng, we just received word from the camp. The chief has returned from a meeting and is looking for you. After hearing that you had just arrived and were brought here immediately, he ordered us to send you back as soon as the task is complete.”

 

As he spoke, he even pulled her back a few steps.

 

Then he turned to his soldiers.

 

“Are you done? If everything’s fine, load the goods back and let them go.”

 

“Yes, sir!”

 

The soldiers responded in unison, quickening their movements. Before long, the trucks were ready to depart.

 

Meng Youyou stood there, stunned by the sudden interruption.

 

She figured their experience far exceeded her own. Maybe she had just been overthinking things.

 

So she didn’t insist further.

 

Until—

 

The Mang Country merchants began boarding their trucks.

 

As she casually lowered her gaze, her eyes landed on the tires.

 

Something was wrong.

 

The tires of the last truck were noticeably more flattened than the others.

 

Combined with what she had observed earlier—fewer boxes, yet heavier weight—

 

In that instant, she was almost certain.

 

There was definitely something wrong with that truck.

 

Without hesitation, she rushed forward and knocked on the front section of the truck bed.

 

“Thud—thud—”

 

The sound was unnaturally dull.