Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 2510 You're finally back (First update, please subscribe)
How many hardships will a person experience in their lifetime?

No one knew that for twenty-year-old Yasin, the hardships she had endured over the past few years far exceeded her imagination.

Three years ago, she was a high school student in Phnom Penh. At only seventeen years old, she was full of dreams about life—about love, about university.

She would dream that she was the heroine in a movie, strolling through the streets of Chang'an and dancing with her lover in the park.

At that time, she always thought that life had countless possibilities, but suddenly, one day, everything changed.

Since being expelled from Phnom Penh, Yassin has never dreamed, because the reality she has experienced over the past three years is more absurd and incomprehensible than any dream.

Even now, she still remembers the night before she and her family were evicted, when she had a terrifying dream while sleeping on the concrete floor of that warehouse.

In her dream, she vaguely entered a deep, damp, and dark cave, groping her way forward in an attempt to find a way out, but the cave became narrower and narrower until she could no longer go any further.

She wanted to retreat, but couldn't find her way back. Trapped in the narrow passage, she was caught in a dilemma, and suddenly realized she was trapped in a coffin. She felt terrified, wanting to scream, but no sound came out. She kept...
struggle……

Suddenly she felt as if she had woken up, but it was still pitch black around her, and she felt as if she was still dreaming. She felt sweating profusely, as if she were soaking in water, and her clothes were completely wet.

The next morning, she told her father about her dream. He remained silent, his worries unresolved. Neither of them knew what the dream meant.

But he had a vague feeling that their future, like the nightmares his daughter had foreshadowed, might be the family's last journey, a one-way street with no end in sight.
Even now, Yasin feels that some things are omens.

Just like that dream, but actually, it was different from the dream, because after her brother and father died, they weren't even laid in coffins; they were just buried casually.

That day, before the sun had fully risen above the horizon, a loud banging on a tin bucket woke everyone in the concentration camp from their sleep. The village official used a tin megaphone to loudly announce that everyone in the camp should immediately assemble in the square at the concentration camp for a meeting to hear their reports.

There was no auditorium or seating; the event was held outdoors, something Yassin and the people at the meeting point were already used to.

Unlike the others standing in the square, a dark-skinned village chief stood on a wooden platform, looking down at the "ruled" people gathered in small groups under the bridge, seemingly feeling somewhat smug.

Once everyone had arrived, the village chief on the stage, displaying the demeanor of someone accustomed to giving a report, slowly took a sip of water, cleared his throat, coughed, and then began to speak.

"I've noticed that everyone's enthusiasm for pioneering work has been low lately, which is absolutely wrong. I must emphasize again that we are not speaking on equal footing, and you shouldn't expect us to be on equal footing with you. We are the victors, and you are the vanquished. The vanquished must bow down to the victors and learn from them. To put it bluntly, you are our prisoners, and you must obey us unconditionally."

At this point, he gave the audience a stern look before continuing:

The "victor" on the bridge, regardless of the feelings of the people below, continued to speak triumphantly:
"Listen up, everyone, now is the time for you to undergo reform. In this new society, who is a hero, who is a good man, who has real skills, will no longer be determined by your education, diplomas, or titles. To hell with PhDs and Masters! From now on, it will be based on this..."

He slammed the hoe down in his hand and continued talking animatedly, but the people below the stage didn't pay any attention to what he was saying, because they were in meetings every day.

As the meeting began, the audience listened to the speaker on stage. They seemed to suddenly understand the great function of the hoe, and were filled with awe as if they had just realized its significance. Then they applauded and cheered.

“That large grassland in the southwest of the village is where you will be reborn! You will go to reclaim and cultivate the land. First, you must weed the weeds on that land, and then turn the soil and cultivate it. Everyone must participate in the labor. Those who do not work will not eat.”

In fact, people have long been numb to all of this, because for the past three years, they have heard township government officials banging on tin buckets to go to and from work every day, and heard them emphasizing that they need to reform the defeated.

They worked collectively, with the group leader leading everyone to clear weeds and reclaim wasteland in designated areas. However, at the beginning, they were unaware that there were landmines in the fields.

The village chief never explained to the villagers that the wasteland behind the village was a dangerous minefield, nor did he warn them to be careful.

So when the first landmine exploded beneath their feet, people realized that working in this desolate field was tantamount to gambling with their lives for a game with no prize.

But they have no right to say "no" at all, because they have seen too much in the past three years and have long been numb to it.

More importantly, only those who participated in labor received food each day.

Even so, food was scarce. At first, there was a jar of rice and condensed milk, but after a few months, the food ration was officially reduced. After that, sometimes each person was given a jar of rice and condensed milk every two days, and sometimes it was only given once every three days. To survive, everyone had to forage for wild vegetables. A large pot of wild vegetables was cooked with a little white rice into a thin porridge. Due to the lack of food, people's physical strength declined rapidly. The decline in physical strength weakened their resistance, making them more susceptible to disease. This vicious cycle made the whole village lifeless, and everyone lost hope.

The people living here feel like death row inmates, living only to await their execution. This despair for survival causes refugees to completely abandon any desire to struggle for life when they contract the disease, passively waiting for death to arrive.

In fact, at the beginning, people were full of hope. When they first came out of Phnom Penh, some people had transistor radios and could listen to some foreign broadcasts. These broadcasts became their only connection with the outside world, so that they did not feel completely isolated from the world. Some news obtained from the broadcasts circulated secretly in the alleys, bringing some hope to people.

Regardless of their veracity, people are eager to hear and spread these messages. Some "good news" can even circulate among refugees for many days until new good news takes its place. Some of these messages are indeed encouraging.

What protests in the US?

So, various countries are going to Greece to pick up their citizens...

Of course, the most exciting thing is that the former government forces have been reorganized and have gained international support…

Every piece of news, whether true or false, would cause a burst of excitement among people suffering, stirring up a little hope, but it would quickly subside.

As time went by, people lost more and more faith, and eventually they simply ignored these messages.

Because such news does not help their current situation or future circumstances.

In this situation, a sense of despair quickly spread among the desperate crowd. As the daily rice rations gradually decreased, everyone's attention shifted entirely to the practical problems of hunger and disease caused by the reduced food supply.

That day, Yasin worked in the fields as usual, but in reality, he was just slacking off. Because they weren't getting enough to eat, everyone tried to minimize physical activity to avoid expending their energy. Despite the village chief's desperate appeals for everyone to work hard, no one paid any attention, and they all resorted to passive resistance.

When working, they were also slow and dawdling. As soon as the village chief and the others left, everyone would sit down and chat. Throughout the day, the time people spent resting was much longer than the time they spent working. Many people, after arriving in the fields, would just search around to see if they could find anything in the wild to fill their stomachs.

Three years have passed, and the wild land next to the village remains the same wild land. Even if it is cleared, it will turn back into wasteland in a very short time.

Like everyone else, after the village chief and the others left, Yaxin went to a bamboo forest in the rainforest. She was lucky today and caught a bamboo rat. Although the people here were very thin, the bamboo rats were very fat. Looking at the big, fat bamboo rat, her mouth watered.

"I'm finally able to have a proper meal today..."

Just as Yaxin neatly put the bamboo rat into the bamboo cage and was about to leave, she heard footsteps. As she subconsciously turned around, she was suddenly tackled to the ground. Before she could scream, her mouth was covered by a hand.

The next moment, all that remained in her mind, despite her frail figure, was despair. But through her tears, she saw clearly that the other person was not wearing a black coat or a towel, but rather... she had seen this kind of hat before.

It's a steel helmet!
Only government soldiers wear helmets!

"Don't be afraid, girl, we are the Zhenla government army..."

The soldier covering her mouth stared at her and said:
"If you don't call out, I'll let go."

Yasin nodded vigorously, and when her hand was released, she burst into tears. The next moment, her mouth was covered, and she shook her head and struggled.

"Don't cry!"

She nodded vigorously, and finally, when her hand was released again, she could see clearly that a group of soldiers in camouflage uniforms and helmets had appeared in front of her.

They even had the flag of Zhenla on their sleeves. Years ago, when Lonno declared himself Marshal and established the so-called republic, she, like many others, was full of hostility. But now, for the first time, she felt a strange sense of familiarity with that flag.

"You, you've finally arrived..."

Yasin cried again. The dozen or so soldiers looked at the thin, small child, nodded, and said:
"Yes, we've arrived..."

(End of this chapter)