Qiao Qingqing could be said to have died full of resentment and suffocation.
She once had a happy family. Her father was a highly educated intellectual, her mother came from a prominent background, and her two older brothers were respectively an architect and a university student.
But due to jealousy and false accusations, her entire family was sent down to the most brutal region of the North Wilderness.
Before leaving, her parents only managed to rush her into marriage.
No dowry. No wedding. Because of their political status, she didn’t even dare bring extra clothes. Just like that, she moved into the Lin household and became Lin Chaohai’s wife.
After that day, she never saw her family again. One by one, they all died in the place of exile.
Her husband, Lin Chaohai, was a soldier. His family background was spotless—three generations of poor peasants. In the army, he also had a stable and respectable career.
To outsiders, he was the perfect husband and father. A “good man” admired by everyone.
People often said she was lucky: she escaped her family’s downfall and married such a capable, hardworking man with a stable job.
But only Qiao Qingqing knew the truth.
In daily life, Lin Chaohai truly acted like a model husband—never drinking, never gambling, coming home on time, helping with housework, speaking gently, never arguing.
Yet he had a terrifying secret.
Whenever he drank alcohol, he would turn into a violent monster.
Sometimes he would step through the door and immediately kick her to the ground. He would stomp on her with his shoes, beating her mercilessly.
A former soldier, he knew exactly how to control his strength—beating her until she screamed in agony, yet leaving almost no visible injuries.
He would even target unspeakable areas of her body, kicking and trampling her repeatedly, causing unbearable pain while leaving no proof.
The next day, he would wake up completely “amnesiac.”
No matter how she confronted him, he insisted he remembered nothing.
She tried to seek help—from neighborhood committees, from women’s federations—but no one believed her.
Because his public image was perfect, and she had no visible wounds.
When he apologized, he looked sincere, even pitiful:
“If I really did that, how could you have no injuries?”
Her attempts to record evidence also failed—he never spoke during the beatings. The recordings only captured her screams.
To outsiders, it looked like she was acting or fabricating everything.
The worst injuries were always in hidden places, impossible to show.
She wanted divorce, but everyone thought she was ungrateful—throwing away such a “good husband” and “good life.”
People suspected she was mentally ill.
Her mother-in-law even accused her of lying and demanded she leave with nothing.
Even her adopted son, whom she had raised since childhood, begged her not to leave.
Her husband repeatedly swore he was innocent, claiming he truly remembered nothing.
And slowly, Qiao Qingqing began to doubt herself.
Was the world crazy—or was she?
Under long-term gaslighting and depression, she gradually broke down.
Until, on her deathbed, she finally learned the truth.
It was all intentional.
Back then, Lin Chaohai had a village sweetheart named Xu Peiling.
But due to poverty and family obligations, their marriage collapsed. Xu Peiling, pregnant with his child, eventually drowned herself.
After that, Lin Chaohai changed.
Guilt twisted into resentment. He felt that the woman who loved him had died miserably, while Qiao Qingqing—his lawful wife—lived in comfort instead.
So he chose not to divorce her.
Instead, whenever he drank, he used it as an excuse to release his inner imbalance and violence.
Lying weakly on her hospital bed, Qiao Qingqing listened as her mother-in-law revealed everything with a fake sigh.
“Since it’s come to this, I’ll tell you so you can die with understanding. Our Lin family doesn’t owe you anything.”
“You’re just too sensitive. Which husband doesn’t hit his wife? Everyone lives like this.”
“That’s just a woman’s fate.”
“Who divorces just because of being beaten? That’s ridiculous.”
“My son didn’t even divorce you. We never even blamed you for not having a son. We took your family’s gold, but we didn’t mistreat you.”
Qiao Qingqing felt a chill run through her entire body.
Over the years, she had suspected something—but she never imagined the truth.
Her parents had given 30 gold bars as dowry when entrusting her to the Lin family.
And Lin Chaohai… had never told her a single word about it.