Chapter 10

When Lucy got home, she immediately downloaded a scanning software on her phone. She scanned the first two volumes of the book, totaling 450 thousand words. She posted 50 thousand words the first time and another 50 thousand words after her contract was approved. She didn't bother with the rest for now; she planned to post 10,000 words daily in the future. Once she finished scanning, she tore up the book and threw it in the trash. She wasn't sure if there would be any royalties, but she figured she would find out next month. If the book became popular, she would ask Hans to get her the next volume, and she would have him find more books to give her in the future. The technology in both worlds seemed similar. Since they had smartphones here, Hans probably had one, too, right? Lucy also sold some ordinary jewelry on eBay, ranging from a thousand to ten thousand dollars. Some pieces, while tagged with a few hundred dollars, had attractive designs, which helped her sell quickly. By the time she checked, many had already been purchased. She hurried to the village's courier service to ship the items. This resulted in a nice sum of money being deposited into her account, bringing her balance to 50 thousand dollars in just a few days. She had never had this much in her bank account before. She felt happy, imagining a future of wealth—provided Hans didn't starve in his post-apocalyptic world. She checked her pocket space; everything remained untouched, probably because it was nighttime in Hans' dimension. Her phone buzzed with a reminder. "We still need to rehearse at home this afternoon." Then she remembered that Viviana was getting married the day after tomorrow. Quickly changing into a new outfit, she went to Viviana's house. It was just a ten-minute walk from the east end of the village. While walking, she scrolled through the novel app on her phone, checking on the novel she had posted. She had published 50 thousand words on the first day after signing the contract, out of 100 thousand words she had prepared. The remaining chapters were scanned and ready to be released but hadn't gone live yet. With just those initial 50 thousand words, her novel had already climbed to the top three on the new releases chart. Many readers were already urging her to update more frequently. It looked like the story was on track to go viral. Lucy couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement as she wondered how much royalties she would receive at the end of the month. She watched as the comments section buzzed with activity, readers leaving reviews, and some even gifting coins to support the story. "Lucy?" a voice called out, tinged with disbelief. "Wow, it's really you! I almost didn't recognize you just now!" Viviana exclaimed, clearly surprised at the sight of Lucy. She remembered Lucy as someone with dark circles under her eyes, tanned skin, and large, thick black-framed glasses. Besides having a pleasant voice, she hadn't found Lucy particularly striking—which was exactly why Viviana had asked her to be a bridesmaid. But the woman standing before her now looked completely different. Without glasses, Lucy's bright eyes and clear, dark pupils stood out, and her complexion had become noticeably fairer. This wasn't what Viviana had expected at all. Since she didn't have very fair skin, she wanted someone more tanned to make her look better by comparison. Since Lucy had rarely returned home when she was studying at university, their last meeting had likely been during the previous New Year. Back then, Lucy had taken a regular overnight train because she couldn't bring herself to spend extra on a plane or high-speed rail ticket. "Congratulations, Viviana!" Lucy said cheerfully, still riding the high of learning that her novel had taken off. Viviana's expression stiffened slightly momentarily, though she quickly covered it up. "Come on in. Another bridesmaid is coming soon. It's Clarissa Miller. You remember her, right?" Clarissa? Lucy vaguely remembered her as a chubby woman from the village. With the wedding set for tomorrow morning, the house was already fully decorated, and family and neighbors had gathered to help. "Oh, it's you, Lucy! Do you have a boyfriend yet?" "I heard city jobs pay well! You must make thousands, maybe even over ten thousand a month!" "Lucy, you're 22 now, right? If you don't have a boyfriend, I can introduce someone to you." A group of women, chatting and munching on snacks, chimed in one after another. "She should just settle down and get married early—it's the best for a woman. Look at Viviana, who's marrying well! She has a house in town and a husband with a stable government job!" "That's right. Women need to find good husbands!" "Lucy, if you don't have someone yet, we can help you find one." Returning to the village meant facing endless questions about her job, relationship status, and her plans for marriage. Even after getting married, they would ask when she planned to have kids—then a second and even a third. "Lucy, you look so much prettier than you did half a year ago!" "Right? I almost didn't recognize you." Viviana's expression soured upon hearing their compliments. She feared that Lucy, as the bridesmaid, would overshadow her on her wedding day. She regretted her decision and thought it might be better to pay someone else instead. Pulling Lucy aside, she hesitated before saying, "You don't need to be the bridesmaid anymore. We have enough people." Lucy was pleasantly surprised. Although she didn't really want to be a bridesmaid, this arrangement worked out well for her. "Sure," she replied. Nearby, a conversation about sweet potatoes caught Lucy's attention. "I can't sell the sweet potatoes from my fields! Last year, they sold for a good price, but no one's buying this year." "Did you plant sweet potatoes too? I planted some as well, and they'll be ready to harvest in a few days." "The price is too low in town, so we can only try selling them in the city. But getting them there means paying for fuel and transport, so we probably won't make much money this year." Hearing this, Lucy's eyes lit up. She thought of Hans's dimension, where food was scarce. Sweet potatoes were filling and nutritious—perfect for solving their problem! Since the price was low, she could buy them all and send them to him. "Ma'am, how many sweet potatoes did you plant?" Lucy asked. "We planted close to half an acre!" the woman replied. "Last year, they sold well, so we planted a lot more this time." Lucy recalled how sweet potato chips had become popular last year, which was why they sold at a good price back then. But demand had dropped this year. "Ma'am, how much are the sweet potatoes being sold for?" "Last year, it was 60 cents per pound, but this year, it's down to 30 cents per pound," the woman, Maya White, replied. She was clearly worried. "I'll buy all your sweet potatoes," Lucy exclaimed. "When you harvest them, weigh them, and I'll take them all." "What?" Maya thought she must have misheard. That was nearly half an acre of sweet potatoes, likely weighing several thousand pounds. "Lucy, don't joke with me. We're all neighbors here—this is a big deal." "Let's exchange contacts. I'll transfer you 500 dollars as a deposit. You can keep it if I can't collect the sweet potatoes later." The woman was stunned. If she sold the 2,000 pounds of sweet potatoes at 30 cents per pound, that would only be 600 dollars. Yet, Lucy was offering a 500 dollar deposit upfront! "My family also planted about a third of an acre of potatoes. Would you be interested in buying those, too?" Maya asked, smiling. "We planted sweet potatoes too, Lucy. Would you be willing to buy ours too? I can even give you a discount." Kobe Ball, who was standing nearby, quickly chimed in. "We planted a variety called jewel yams," someone else chimed in. "I'll sell them to you for 40 cents per pound!"