Xie Mingzhu was an educated youth sent to the countryside, who married a villager named Qin Haoyu. She had thought she would live happily, but little did she know he had long been in a relationship with his adopted sister Qin Qing—marrying her was merely a ploy to get a job in the city.
Later, when she was seven months pregnant, Qin Qing bumped into her, causing a miscarriage.
As she lay in the hospital bed, they plotted how to divide her property. In despair, she grabbed a dagger and stabbed them, then jumped from the ward window.
She had been determined to die, but instead, she was reborn—on the very day she married that scumbag in 1978!
“Here comes the bride!”
Amidst the crackle of firecrackers and the roar of a tractor, the crowd erupted in excitement.
Listening to the noisy chatter around her, Xie Mingzhu’s eyes flew open in an instant.
What was happening? She had stabbed those three scoundrels and jumped from such a high building—even if she hadn’t died, she should have been paralyzed. Why was she now unharmed?
Her gaze swept across her surroundings, and familiarity soon dawned. This was… Tuanjie Production Brigade? It still looked exactly as it had back then?
But she quickly noticed something strange: everyone here looked just as they had in the past!
Glancing down at herself, she was wearing a bright red coat—precisely what she had worn on her wedding day!
She had returned to May 1978, the day of her marriage? Had the heavens felt her life in the previous incarnation had been too unjust, and given her a second chance?
As she pondered this, Qin Haoyu and Zhang Zenglan walked out of a brick house with beaming faces.
Qin Haoyu was handsome, and Zhang Zenglan had a kind, gentle expression. From their looks alone, who would have guessed they were so vicious? Behind those smiling faces, they had slowly murdered her family!
At the sight of them, Xie Mingzhu’s hands clenched into tight fists, hatred burning fiercely in her eyes. Her miserable life in her past life had all been their doing! Today, she would ruin their reputations, so they could never hold their heads high again.
Watching the two of them looking so pleased with themselves, Xie Mingzhu remained calm and stood up to get off the tractor.
Qin Haoyu instinctively reached out to help her.
Xie Mingzhu glanced down at his hand, then looked up at him with an expressionless face.
Qin Haoyu stared into her calm, unwavering eyes and felt a jolt of shock, a flash of guilt quickly crossing his own.
Seeing his reaction, Xie Mingzhu sneered inwardly—it was as if he was admitting he had just done something to betray her.
Ignoring his outstretched hand, she stepped directly off the tractor.
Qin Haoyu looked back at Zhang Zenglan, flustered and at a loss. Zhang Zenglan gave him a meaningful look, and he reluctantly followed after Xie Mingzhu, his mouth twisted in displeasure.
Xie Mingzhu noticed every one of their movements.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, Qin Qing’s sweet, coquettish voice rang out: “My dear sister-in-law, you’re finally here! My brother has been waiting so long!”
Qin Qing had always been very beautiful—an oval face, almond eyes, red lips and white teeth, tall and graceful. The only flaw was her slightly dark skin; otherwise, she was perfect. Even Xie Mingzhu, a girl from the city, had to admit she was inferior.
At that moment, Qin Qing looked at Xie Mingzhu with a triumphant smile, as if genuinely happy to welcome her new sister-in-law. But the flash of malice in her eyes did not escape Xie Mingzhu’s notice.
Xie Mingzhu paid her no attention, walking straight past without even glancing at her.
Qin Qing was confused. In the past, Xie Mingzhu had always fawned over her—why had she suddenly changed? Did she think she didn’t need to curry favor anymore now that she was about to marry into the family?
The thought that Xie Mingzhu would soon become the wife of the man she loved filled her with anger. Quietly, she stuck out one foot, placing it in Xie Mingzhu’s path.
Xie Mingzhu’s eyes dropped slightly, catching sight of the outstretched foot. In her past life, this exact scene had played out: she had been busy talking to others and hadn’t noticed, tripping and falling face-first into the dirt. Her forehead had hit the corner of a stool, bleeding heavily and leaving a noticeable scar.
Xie Mingzhu let out a soft snort, pretending not to see, and stepped down hard on the foot! She put all her strength into it—even if it didn’t break, it would hurt for days!
Qin Qing let out a shrill scream, so loud it drowned out the firecrackers, startling everyone in the courtyard.
Soon, they saw Qin Qing screaming, with Xie Mingzhu’s foot still on hers.
Xie Mingzhu acted as if she had just realized she was stepping on someone, looking surprised as she asked: “Xiao Qing, why is your foot in my way? Were you trying to trip me?”
She said the last part with a smile, as if joking—but there was no warmth in her eyes.
The crowd quickly realized: who would casually stretch their foot that far? It was obvious the girl was trying to give her new sister-in-law a hard time! If the bride had fallen on her wedding day, it would have been a joke for the whole village to talk about.
No one had expected this quiet, gentle-looking girl to be so scheming!
The crowd’s expressions toward Qin Qing immediately changed.
Qin Qing was furious, but she couldn’t lose her temper in front of everyone—she had to maintain her image. So she explained softly: “Sister-in-law, you’ve misunderstood me. It was an accident.”
Inside the main room, Zhang Zenglan had been lighting incense, preparing for the couple to pay their respects to the ancestors. Hearing the commotion outside, she rushed out.
After learning what had happened, she first gave Qin Haoyu a look, then turned to Qin Qing and scolded loudly: “You naughty girl! Today your sister-in-law is moving in—what kind of trick are you playing? Hurry up and apologize to her!”
As she spoke, she slapped at Qin Qing, looking furious. It was her son’s wedding day—she couldn’t let outsiders laugh at them. Besides, her son still needed to rely on this woman in the future; he couldn’t afford to offend her.
Qin Haoyu stood by, trying to calm things down—clearly, one was playing the “bad cop” and the other the “good cop.”
Qin Qing blocked her mother’s slaps, her heart filled with grievance. But in front of everyone, she had no choice but to apologize: “Sister-in-law, I’m sorry! It was my fault! I really didn’t do it on purpose!”
When the crowd saw she had apologized, they quickly urged Zhang Zenglan to stop: “Sister Lan, she’s apologized—stop hitting her, don’t delay the ceremony!”
Hearing their words, Zhang Zenglan reluctantly stopped. “Mingzhu is your sister-in-law now—your elder. You can’t play such unruly jokes on her!”
Xie Mingzhu sneered inwardly. A single “joke” and the matter was dismissed. After all, in her past life, Qin Qing had pretended to be innocent in front of her for over ten years—she knew she was not someone to be underestimated.
But today’s main event was not here, so Xie Mingzhu did not press the issue. She just shook her head with a smile: “Xiao Qing is still young, and she’s always been close to her brother. It’s only natural she’d feel a little upset about her new sister-in-law moving in. I’m fine.”
Her words had a double meaning. Some people began to put two and two together, their eyes darting back and forth between Qin Haoyu and Qin Qing.
Before Zhang Zenglan could say anything to fix the situation, Xie Mingzhu continued: “Aren’t we supposed to pay respects to the ancestors? Let’s go inside quickly.”
She didn’t give them a chance to argue, turning and walking toward the main room.
Zhang Zenglan, Qin Haoyu, and Qin Qing were left feeling as if they had swallowed a fly. Qin Qing in particular had lost on all counts: she had tried to trip Xie Mingzhu, but ended up with a hurt foot, a scolding, and a damaged reputation.