Autumn 1989, a certain military compound in Beijing. A young wife carrying a vegetable basket asked the neighbor walking with her, “Wan Dajie, what are we buying today?”
Upon hearing her, Wan Dajie replied joyfully, “Zhang Yun’an, that Scourge of the Compound who turns her home and the entire compound upside down every day, has finally left. I simply must make a pot of Braised Pig’s Trotters to celebrate.”
Hearing this, the expression on the young wife’s face clearly relaxed as well, though it soon turned solemn again. “But she and Lin Shaoxun haven’t divorced yet. His parents were probably driven to wit’s end by her constant histrionics and only agreed to let her take the child back to her maiden home temporarily. The divorce can’t be finalized until Lin Shaoxun returns. If some complication arises then, Zhang Yun’an might end up coming back to our compound.”
Wan Dajie’s joyous expression also grew heavy. Not only had Lin Shaoxun achieved many military honors at a young age, but if he hadn’t been dragged down by Zhang Yun’an, he likely would have been promoted from Deputy Regimental Commander to Regimental Commander long ago.
His father and second uncle were both high-ranking officials in the political sphere, and his mother held a significant position in the tax bureau. Although they didn’t manage military affairs and didn’t live in the compound, no one wanted to offend them.
Furthermore, he had a grandfather who had achieved great military honors during the revolution. Although he had sacrificed himself back then, his prestige remained.
Back then, as the daughter of a Cotton Mill accountant, Zhang Yun’an’s connection to the illustrious Lin family was said to have started in childhood. When Lin Shaoxun fell into the water, she happened to be passing by with a bamboo pole to poke at a bird’s nest. She used that pole to pull him out, saving his life.
In addition, she had a father who was exceptionally skilled with his abacus. From the moment Zhang Yun’an pulled Lin Shaoxun from the water, her father began calculating how to make his daughter use that life-saving favor to climb into the high branches of the Lin family. Otherwise, two families with such a massive disparity in status would never have crossed paths.
No one expected that after Zhang Yun’an reached adulthood, her father would resort to Leveraging a Favor for Gain, exhausting every scheme to force Lin Shaoxun to marry her, only for her to proactively suggest a divorce now.
Regardless, this was a good thing for Lin Shaoxun, the entire Lin family, and for the neighbors of the military compound.
At this moment, the subject of their discussion, the Scourge of the Compound herself—Zhang Yun’an—was leaning against a utility pole by the roadside. She looked with confusion at a young boy about five or six years old whose features bore some resemblance to her own.
This Zhang Yun’an was no longer the original one. Just moments ago, the original Zhang Yun’an had seen a passing child holding a chicken-leg-shaped bread. She had grown so greedy that she couldn’t resist taking a large bite out of it, frightening the poor child into wailing.
The child’s parent, thinking she was insane, had pushed her in a rage before running off. The original Zhang Yun’an, failing to keep her footing, had slammed into the utility pole and perished.
The current Zhang Yun’an was a young lady from a prestigious family who had transmigrated from the Republican era. She had received both a traditional education and a modern one. However, after the grandparents who had raised her as the family successor passed away and she took charge, her personality—in the eyes of outsiders—had changed drastically. She went from being elegant, dignified, and multi-talented to a spendthrift who could earn money but also spent it like water. She was even “unfilial” enough to strike her own father and several stepmothers at the slightest provocation.
She had even “wasted” her painting talent. Instead of painting landscapes, flowers, birds, or insects, she insisted on blending Western Painting techniques learned from foreigners with Traditional Chinese Painting. She specialized in painting Beauty Portraits—works that were aesthetically pleasing but considered by many to be unfit for the halls of high art.
Her rebellious, fierce, and overbearing style had forced back countless suitors who had originally intended to propose marriage or scheme against her.
However, her Beauty Portraits weren’t disliked by everyone. Even though many critics denounced them as lowbrow, many noble families and elites would still secretly send servants to her door to request a painting, asking her to depict beauties who looked as though they could ascend to immortality by stepping on a cloud.
Zhang Yun’an, who painted these Beauty Portraits while enduring infamy, naturally wouldn’t give them away for free. She would only paint for those who brought sufficiently lavish gifts or who could handle affairs according to her requirements.
Because of this, she was pursued and cursed by artists who valued art more than life itself. They claimed that despite her noble birth, she lacked the character of a refined lady. They accused her of failing to study diligently or care about the country’s precarious state, choosing instead to paint vulgar Beauty Portraits to please selfish elites in exchange for gold and silver for her own pleasure. They called it an insult to her Century-Old Scholarly Family and a disgrace to her talent.
Zhang Yun’an merely laughed off these attacks. Sometimes, she would even send people to buy the works of the artists who cursed her, helping them out of their dire poverty.
As the domestic situation grew increasingly chaotic, Zhang Yun’an sent her incompetent father and stepmothers away. She remained behind to guard the Zhang family’s century-old ancestral home in Jinling City.
The ancestral properties she had seemingly squandered and the money from the Beauty Portraits had actually been moved into the shadows. Through the Zhang family’s business channels and with the help of the elites who sought her paintings, she had converted the wealth into scarce supplies. These were secretly sent to the revolutionaries who were bleeding and dying to save the nation.
Unfortunately, she didn’t live to see the day the country was saved. In the end, like the Zhang family’s ancestral home, she vanished under the enemy’s artillery fire.
Through the original host’s memories, Zhang Yun’an figured out who she was, where she was, and the identity of the child in front of her. The boy was clearly terrified but was trying his best not to cry as he prepared to find someone to help the original host. The young lady, who usually remained calm in the face of any storm, could no longer maintain her composure.
Zhang Yun’an had heard of Soul Transmigration, and she guessed that her current situation was exactly that.
After calming her emotions, it was impossible for Zhang Yun’an to continue being a Marionette, unaware that she was being used as a Cash Cow by her father like the original host was.
In her past life, though her father was incompetent, he would never have sold out his daughter. When her grandparents bypassed their son to make their only granddaughter the head of the Zhang family, he hadn’t opposed it despite the instigation of distant relatives. Even her stepmothers, though they had their own selfish motives and sometimes did things so ridiculous she wanted to hit them, had never thought to harm her.
Zhang Yun’an decided to follow through with the original host’s proposal: she would divorce Lin Shaoxun as soon as he returned.
She believed that, aside from the original host’s maiden family, her husband and child (with whom she had no emotional bond), and even all the relatives, friends, and neighbors of the Lin family would find life much better without her, the “Scourge of the Compound.”
According to the original host’s memories, there was now Peace and Prosperity. It seemed the revolutionaries had succeeded in saving the country. Thus, as someone fortunate enough to come to this new era of Peace and Prosperity, she would take a good look at this world without war on behalf of those who had stayed forever in the fires of battle—including her past self.
After the divorce, she wanted to return to her hometown of Jinling. She wanted to see if the scarred and broken Jinling City she had seen before her death had been restored to its former glory by those saviors and the children of this new era.
At the same time, she wanted to see if she could still find any remnants of the Zhang family’s traces there.
She planned to send the original host’s child back to his grandparents’ house first. She would then use the time before the husband returned to make some money. She knew well that in any era, it was difficult to move an inch without money.
After sorting out the situation and making her decision, Zhang Yun’an crouched down in front of the child, preparing to carry him back on her back.
In the memories of six-year-old Lin Siyi, there was no instance of his mother ever proactively carrying or holding him. He stood there for a moment, unmoving.
It wasn’t until Zhang Yun’an’s legs began to feel numb and she urged him, “I’ll carry you,” that Lin Siyi carefully climbed onto her back. For the first time, he realized that his mother’s back was actually soft and very warm.
Zhang Yun’an stood up with Lin Siyi and bent down to pick up the luggage the original host had brought. Her body subconsciously began walking toward the original host’s maiden home. By the time she realized it, she was almost at the entrance of the alleyway. Zhang Yun’an turned back decisively.
Just as she turned around, she happened to be spotted by several retired old men and women from the Cotton Mill who were chatting at the alley entrance.
One old man named Zhang asked in confusion, “Isn’t that the eldest daughter of Accountant Zhang? She’s almost at the door; why did she turn around and leave with the child on her back?”
Wang Ayi, standing nearby, chimed in, “She must be reluctant to leave the good life at her in-laws’. Besides, her husband has an illustrious family, great ability, and is handsome to boot. How could she really be willing to divorce him?”
Zhao Dama, who was carrying a basket to go grocery shopping, curled her lip. “Well, looks like Accountant Zhang’s Abacus Beads were clicked for nothing.”
Wang Ayi added, “It’s not just Accountant Zhang. There’s also Xu Daming, who’s waiting to take over. I’m afraid he’s going to be happy for nothing.”
Zhao Dama said, “I really don’t know what Accountant Zhang is thinking. Back then, they used Leveraging a Favor for Gain to force Lin Shaoxun to marry their daughter. He wasn’t willing and only wanted to repay the life-saving debt in other ways, so the whole family conspired to drug him. They used that filthy ‘Force a Marriage’ method to get their way. Now, for some reason, they’re instigating their daughter to divorce and take the kid to remarry Xu Daming. No matter how much the bride price from Xu Daming is, he’s a man all alone. How can he compare to the illustrious Lin family? What is Accountant Zhang even after?”
At this point, someone else interrupted, “What else could it be? Money. Although Xu Daming is alone, he’s got a sharp mind and caught a lucky break to make a fortune. Now his business is getting bigger and bigger. Most importantly, he insists on marrying no one but the Zhang family’s eldest daughter. If she divorces and marries Xu Daming, Accountant Zhang’s whole family can Enter the Hall. From then on, Xu Daming’s money will be the Zhang family’s money. It’ll surely be more satisfying than coaxing their daughter to take bits of money and things from her in-laws every day.”
Although Zhang Yun’an didn’t hear their conversation, she had the original host’s memories and naturally knew why her father was urging her to divorce.
However, she was not the original host. To her, everyone related to the original host was a stranger. She wouldn’t even take over the original host’s husband and child, so how could she possibly take over a family as morally corrupt as the Zhangs?
Lin Siyi, lying on Zhang Yun’an’s back, saw her walking back and suddenly asked, “Does your head still hurt?”
Zhang Yun’an: “No.”
“Are we not going anymore?”
Zhang Yun’an replied, “We’re not going.”
The usually silent child became a bit excited upon hearing this and straightened up. Just as he was about to say something, tragedy struck—because his mother accidentally let him fall thump onto the ground.
In her past life, Zhang Yun’an had been raised as the successor of the Zhang family. Besides being skilled in painting Beauty Portraits, she had learned many other talents, but she had never learned how to look after a child.
As for the original host of this life, she was busy every day stirring up trouble at home or moving things to her maiden home; she had no heart for the child. When Lin Siyi was only a few months old, the original host stopped caring for him. Lin Shaoxun, as a soldier, had no time either, so his mother took Lin Siyi back to raise him on formula.
Even when it came to kindergarten, he was picked up and dropped off in turns by his grandmother, the nanny, or other members of the Lin family. The original host only caught glimpses of Lin Siyi when she went to her mother-in-law’s house to ask for money or items.
If it weren’t for the original host’s father telling her that she had to take the child and make Lin Siyi willing to follow her so that after the divorce, she could use the child to manipulate the Lin family for money and favors, she wouldn’t have bothered.
He even told her that when Lin Siyi grew up, he could go back to inherit the Lin family estate. Otherwise, the original host wouldn’t have used the threat of death to force her in-laws to let her take the child back to her maiden home before the divorce. She intended to use this time to coax Lin Siyi so that when the divorce happened, he would choose to follow her.
Now, Lin Siyi’s fall gave Zhang Yun’an a genuine fright. But as she watched Lin Siyi stubbornly scramble up from the ground, she came to a conclusion: children weren’t fragile items; they seemed quite durable.