If Liu Guiying was full of hope for life, then Wang Xiaofeng was full of despair.
She had acted on impulse and run back to her maternal home, but she was also afraid her sisters-in-law would laugh at her—after all, she had always boasted that in her husband’s family, everyone revolved around her. Even her mother-in-law had to cater to her. If she went back like this in disgrace, wouldn’t it prove she had been lying all along?
Looking at Sun Jianguo following behind her, she thought for a moment—fine, she would just say she came back to stay at her parents’ home for a couple of days. Who would dare drive her away?
Once the old woman calmed down, she would definitely come begging her to go back. By then, she wouldn’t give in so easily—she would demand compensation.
And so, the couple walked in silence all the way back to Shangang Village.
When they arrived at the Wang family home, the family was still eating in the courtyard.
The Wang family had fled famine years ago and settled there. Because they had few people and were not natives of the village, they feared they would have no backup if conflicts arose.
Wang Xiaofeng’s mother, Wu Xiuxiu, had been forced by her own mother-in-law to keep giving birth like a hen laying eggs. She ended up having five sons and three daughters. Because of this, Wu Xiuxiu believed she was the great contributor of the Wang family.
After her mother-in-law died, she rose to power and took control of the family finances, refusing to relinquish authority even after all five sons had married.
As soon as Sun Jianguo and his wife entered the courtyard, they were surrounded by sharp-eyed nieces and nephews.
“Aunt! Uncle-in-law! You’re back again? Did you bring us snacks?”
Sun Jianguo awkwardly responded and shrank aside, completely lacking the boldness he had when yelling at his own mother.
Wu Xiuxiu noticed her daughter and son-in-law returning, and then glanced at the bag in Sun Jianguo’s hand—it clearly wasn’t a gift.
Her eyes flickered. “Why are you back again? What’s the matter?”
She didn’t even ask whether they had eaten.
Wang Xiaofeng thought her mother was showing concern and almost blurted everything out. But seeing her sisters-in-law watching with curiosity, she swallowed it back.
Casually she said, “Mom, there’s something going on at Jianguo’s home. I’ll stay here for a couple of days.”
Wu Xiuxiu didn’t expose her. “Suit yourself. The fifth son and his wife went back to their maternal home, so their room is empty. Let your father and Jianguo stay there. You stay with me.”
After speaking, she got up and cleared the dishes, calling her eldest daughter-in-law to wash them.
Wang Xiaofeng watched her mother begin tidying up, hesitated several times but said nothing. Sun Jianguo didn’t dare speak either.
In the end, the couple didn’t get to eat and went back to their rooms hungry.
..
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Wu Xiuxiu looked at her daughter. “Tell me. What exactly happened?”
Unable to hold it in any longer, Wang Xiaofeng spilled everything—what had happened, including how she and Sun Jianguo had been beaten.
Wu Xiuxiu fell silent.
“Are you stupid? Why did you provoke your mother-in-law? She’s still young and strong and can help you later. What do you gain by offending her now?”
“This family hasn’t even been divided yet, and you’ve already made her angry. If she really kicks you out, what will you do then?”
Wu Xiuxiu scolded her furiously.
“Mom, I got beaten and you’re still scolding me!” Wang Xiaofeng pulled up her clothes to show faint bruises.
Wu Xiuxiu looked away indifferently. “If I were your mother-in-law, I’d beat you eight times a day. You’re hopelessly stupid.”
“Stay here for now. When your mother-in-law comes to pick you up, make her bring 30 jin of grain and 50 yuan for medical expenses.”
She had already decided that Liu Guiying would definitely come. In her mind, this was only a matter of time.
..
Meanwhile, Liu Guiying had no idea she was being schemed against.
That night, she quietly took her tools and left the house, heading out under the cover of darkness, full of excitement and anticipation for money.
After hours of digging in a remote field near a small grave mound, she finally struck something solid.
When she opened the clay jar, her heart nearly stopped—bundles of banknotes, gold bracelets, gold necklaces, gemstone jewelry, and finally, neatly stacked gold bars at the bottom.
Her hands trembled.
“This… this is really a fortune.”
She carefully packed everything, erased the traces by filling the soil back in, even rolling on the ground to make it look natural. After finishing, she threw away parts of the container into a river so no one could trace it.
“Genius… I really am a genius.”
She hurried home, hid everything, and fell asleep with the feeling that she had become rich overnight.
The next day, Sun Jianguo came rushing back with his wife.
“Mom, go tell my uncle to help release Xiao Feng’s younger brother from the city.”
Liu Guiying calmly replied, “What for?”
“Nothing serious, just selling train tickets illegally. Just get him out.”
She immediately understood—it was Wang Xiaoming’s case again. In her previous life, she had spent 600 yuan to solve something that only required a fine and a few days of detention.
Now, she wasn’t going to be fooled.
“Six hundred.”
“What?! That much? That’s enough to buy a TV!”
“Then choose—TV or your brother.”
Her tone was calm, almost indifferent.
Sun Jianguo was furious but helpless. Eventually, they left empty-handed.
Back at the Wang family, chaos broke out over whether to pay. In the end, they scraped together over a hundred yuan and sent it over.
Liu Guiying took the money without hesitation.
Inside her room, she counted everything she had—7,600 yuan in cash, plus gold and jewelry. She was now truly wealthy.
But unlike her past life, she didn’t rush to spend it.
She was planning ahead.
Next to her home, the village would soon sell a plot of land. She intended to buy it, build rental rooms, and turn it into a boarding house for students.
She remembered clearly how profitable it had been in her previous life.
This time, she would do it better.
And as for business herself? She never planned to do it.
She wasn’t reborn to become a master of skills—just to become a landlord.
A quiet, stable, money-making landlord life was enough.