Li Xiangwan

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Li Xiangwan (李向晚)
Alias(es)	Female lead; transmigrator 5
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Kindwater Village Educated Youths 8 12
Occupation/Role	Nurse; later assigned to raise pigs for six work points per day 5 42
First Appearance	Chapter 5

Background / History

Li Xiangwan is a transmigrator who entered the body of an overworked young woman from a worker’s family. Before the transmigration, the original owner had been made to handle the household’s chores and was chronically undernourished, leaving Xiangwan physically weak despite later recuperation 15.

She travels to the countryside as an Educated Youth alongside Li Xiangbei, Zhang Yanqiu, and Lin Yuzhu. Although she and Li Xiangbei share similar names, they are unrelated by blood; their association is a source of teasing in the original novel 5. The group is assigned to Kindwater Village, where Xiangwan joins Team One for farm work 12.

At the Educated Youth Dormitory, Xiangwan helps establish privacy for the female residents by providing homespun cloth to partition the shared kang. She initially seeks companionship and useful connections among fellow Educated Youths, influenced by her father’s belief in the importance of bonds formed during hardship 9 11.

Unable to tolerate the communal meals after Wang Xiaomei makes an excessively spicy stew, Xiangwan chooses to eat separately with Li Xiangbei and Lin Yuzhu. She later builds her own house near Lin Yuzhu’s, with Li Xiangbei assisting in construction and providing game for their meals 15 17.

Appearance

Li Xiangwan is notably beautiful, retaining a fair and delicate appearance despite rural labor. Her soft, gentle voice carries a slight Beijing-style erhua accent 5 31.

• Palm-sized oval face and fair, luminous skin 31
• Clear peach-blossom eyes, delicate nose, and cherry lips 31
• New bedding and well-prepared supplies distinguish her from several fellow Educated Youths upon arrival 9
• Her appearance becomes a repeated target of envy and malicious “fox spirit” rumors among villagers 35 42

Personality

Xiangwan is cautious, practical, and conscious of personal boundaries. She arrives prepared with supplies but avoids becoming known as overly generous, having learned that visible wealth can invite entitlement 9. She also values privacy and safety, choosing the middle kang position and helping install cloth partitions around the sleeping area 9.

She prefers measured distance over forced intimacy. She deliberately withdraws from Zhang Yanqiu after noticing her feelings toward Li Xiangbei, and later decides to avoid Wang Xiaomei after hearing her disparage people from big cities 6 12 21. Her relationship with Lin Yuzhu remains cooperative but limited; each is willing to help with minor matters without relying on the other for anything major 19.

When directly attacked, Xiangwan is forceful and unwilling to tolerate slander. She publicly confronts Zhang Yanqiu for spreading rumors about her and Wang Yang, then slaps her rather than accept damage to her reputation 36. She also reports Zhao Jianshe for molestation despite the village chief’s initial disbelief and the ensuing village gossip 42.

Abilities & Skills

Storage Space

Xiangwan possesses a personal storage space containing abundant supplies, though it cannot grow crops 6.

• Stores modern items and prepared provisions that cannot easily be used openly in the countryside 6
• Conceals the Little Yellow Fish recovered from a hidden compartment in an old table 50
• Gives her access to emergency equipment, including pepper spray 10 50

Self-Defense and Improvisation

Xiangwan prepares for danger and reacts quickly when threatened.

• Brought watermelon-cutting machetes and pepper spray as part of her emergency supplies 10
• Blinds Skinny Monkey with pepper spray when he attempts to seize her at the Educated Youth Dormitory 50
• Uses a washboard as an improvised weapon against the approaching Brother Niu 50
• Keeps calm long enough to assess escape options when confronted by two men 50

Hidden-Compartment Knowledge

Xiangwan recognizes and opens the concealed compartment in the broken table after noticing its unusual construction 50.

• Learned some mechanisms from her biological father, who had once been interested in such devices 50
• Finds the compartment’s cache of Little Yellow Fish and restores it afterward 50

Cooking

Despite her resources, Xiangwan has limited cooking ability.

• Can make soup, but previously relied on ingredients prepared by others 17
• Lin Yuzhu takes over most cooking while the group shares meals, partly in return for Li Xiangbei’s game 17

Equipment / Items

• Homespun cloth, nails, and rope used to divide the shared kang into private sections 9
• Extra cotton gloves, one pair of which she provides to Lin Yuzhu 12
• Watermelon-cutting machetes and pepper spray 10
• A lock lent to Lin Yuzhu for her new house 18
• Personal storage space containing supplies and recovered Little Yellow Fish 6 50

Relationships

• Li Xiangbei — Romantic partner and fellow Educated Youth; they are not blood relatives despite their names. He regularly assists her with labor, construction, food, and protection, including beating Zhao Jianshe after the molestation incident. Their relationship becomes strained after Xiangwan distances herself following the scandal 5 17 41 48.
• Lin Yuzhu — Fellow transmigrator and practical collaborator. They share housing arrangements, cooking, house construction, and occasional support, but maintain a consciously limited friendship 9 17 19.
• Zhang Yanqiu — Initially a travel companion, later an antagonist driven by jealousy. Xiangwan distances herself after noticing Zhang’s feelings for Li Xiangbei and ultimately slaps her for spreading false rumors 6 12 36.
• Zhao Xianglan — A half-fellow townswoman and casual acquaintance. Their apparent closeness is largely superficial, and Zhao later encourages gossip against Xiangwan 9 19 35.
• Wang Yang — Li Xiangbei’s childhood friend and a member of their meal-sharing group. Rumors falsely accuse Xiangwan of being involved with him 17 36.
• Zhao Jianshe — Village scorekeeper who molests Xiangwan while she collects grain; she denounces him publicly 42.
• Brother Niu and Skinny Monkey — Criminal adversaries who track stolen valuables to the Educated Youth Dormitory and attempt to seize Xiangwan 50.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Arrival at Kindwater Village

Xiangwan travels to Kindwater Village as a new Educated Youth, endures the difficult journey, and begins adapting to dormitory life and farm work. She provides materials for the girls’ kang partitions and joins Team One alongside Li Xiangbei 7 9 12.

Separate Meals and Independent Housing

After the communal food becomes inedibly spicy, Xiangwan stops sharing meals with the dormitory. She builds a separate house near Lin Yuzhu’s and forms a meal-sharing arrangement with Lin Yuzhu, Li Xiangbei, and Wang Yang 15 17.

Rumors and Retaliation

Zhang Yanqiu, Zhao Xianglan, and Dong Mimi spread rumors that Xiangwan is involved with Wang Yang. Xiangwan confronts the accusation directly and slaps Zhang Yanqiu, refusing to let her reputation be destroyed 35 36.

Molestation Accusation

While collecting grain, Xiangwan accuses scorekeeper Zhao Jianshe of molesting her. Though Li Xiangbei testifies and attacks Zhao, the village chief initially sides with his nephew and villagers spread defamatory rumors. Xiangwan subsequently receives the pig-raising position, worth six fixed work points daily 41 42.

Hidden Gold and the Dormitory Attack

Xiangwan discovers Little Yellow Fish hidden inside a broken table’s concealed compartment and stores them in her space. Brother Niu and Skinny Monkey later arrive searching for the valuables; Xiangwan blinds Skinny Monkey with pepper spray and attacks Brother Niu with a washboard 50.

Notable Quotes

“This slap is to tell you that I'm not someone you can bully, and I won't tolerate you making things up about me behind my back.” 36

“You know how important a girl's reputation is, don't you?” 36