Chapter 1 She’s not dead??? Then what has she been doing all these years?

Shanshi City.

 Friday.

The weather is hot and humid, the air pressure is so low that it’s hard to breathe, like you’re about to faint at any moment. He Wanqing, who had just returned home from the hospital with her report, wiped the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief and hurried home.  To avoid getting caught in the rain, she, who had always been reluctant to spend money on herself, rarely took a taxi home today.  She paid the driver and held the report in one hand, while reaching into her bag for her keys with the other.  As she reached the door, she realized that the front door was open. Before she could enter, a conversation reached her ears.

“Mom, my dad and my mom have been married for so many years. Now my dad is the factory director of the steel mill, and he has a private company with a considerable size, he’s a big boss. When are we going to kick out that bitch He Wanqing? I don’t want to call her mom anymore.”

“Mom, I agree. And now she’s sick. If we don’t kick her out, she’ll take all the family’s money to see a doctor. Are you willing to let that happen? This is all our money, it’s a waste to spend it on her medical treatment.  It’s better to use that money for you and grandpa to go on a trip.  Most importantly, my mom can’t hide from the world forever! And my dad can’t pretend to be dead forever!” The woman’s last sentence was particularly loud.  What? Xu Weijun, who sacrificed himself to protect the materials of the machinery factory, didn’t die? And the two children she raised weren’t from relatives’ families, but were Xu Weijun’s children with another woman?  Didn’t Xu Weijun get injured and become incapable?

“Mom, Xiaojun and the others are right.  There’s no use keeping that bitch He Wanqing. Now the third brother has everything he needs, he doesn’t need to rely on his father’s old connections to climb the ladder anymore.  And we have all the money we need, it would be even better if we could get what’s in her hands.  I fully support this, I don’t want to give my money to that bitch.”

“Mom, yes, yes, you should kick her out!  We kept her after her father died, just to use his comrades’ connections and her family’s money. Now we have all of that, why keep her?  And the third sister-in-law has been so good to us all these years, she deserves a legitimate position.  She can’t be left out when Xiaojun gets married in the future!  If that happens, the third sister-in-law won’t be happy! Don’t forget, the third sister-in-law is now a famous entrepreneur.  She’s much better than that bitch He Wanqing who runs a restaurant, don’t lose the watermelon for a sesame seed.”

“Yeah, Mom, the third brother’s wife’s body has just recovered, don’t make her angry.  After all, He Wanqing is sick now.  It’s not appropriate to think about giving her kidney to the third brother’s wife.  If she has another problem, it will be difficult to find a kidney.”

“Mom, what my sister said is right. We should have done it two years ago, and then we could have saved the money she spent on medical treatment.  It’s all our money, I feel heartbroken every time she spends a penny.”

“I know, haven’t we been trying to find a way?  Let’s do this, when she comes back, you get her money and the property certificate first, then I’ll kick her out.  She never got a marriage certificate, it’s not right for her to stay in our house.”

“…Mom, my sister’s words are also right.  We should have listened to her back then and just taken both of her kidneys for the third sister-in-law.  Then there wouldn’t be any problems in the future, and we could also hide the fact that I have her uterus.  But you didn’t listen back then, now she’s sick, and we have to pay for her treatment, what a bad luck.”

“Mom, my little sister is right, we should have done it last year, maybe we could have saved the money she spent on medical treatment.  It’s all our money, I feel heartbroken every time she spends a penny.”

“I know.  Haven’t we been trying to find a way?  Let’s do this, when she comes back, you get her money and the property certificate first, then I’ll kick her out.  She never got a marriage certificate, it’s not right for her to stay in our house.”

…The more He Wanqing listened, the more shocked she became. She looked at the ‘children’ she had raised since they were young.  And the father-in-law and mother-in-law who ate and drank her money, the sister-in-law who used her uterus, and the elder brother and younger brother who borrowed her money.  At this moment, she finally realized that she had never truly understood them in their decades of interaction.  She thought about how they were still discussing how to take her money, and how smug they had been all these years.  She closed her eyes silently, swallowing her tears.  Opening her eyes again, she looked deeply at the room, turned around without disturbing them, and walked away with her keys.

The weather outside seemed to know her mood. The moment she stepped out, the rain poured down, accompanied by thunder and lightning.  The coolness added to the already humid weather, turning the bright sky into darkness in an instant.  He Wanqing walked on, ignoring the strange looks from people around her.  As she walked, she slapped herself with her hand.  “You’re so stupid!  You were so blinded by love back then, now you know?  You’re just their old cow, and you’re even the kind that pays to be exploited.”  The events of the past few years flashed through her mind, until they engulfed her completely. 

“Ah~ah~ah…He Wanqing, how could you be so stupid?

  You wasted your youth for such a scumbag, and even lost your life.”  Her hysterical screams were swallowed up by the thunder and lightning.  People walking on the street with umbrellas looked at her like she was crazy.  Her hysterical screams caused her brain to suddenly lack oxygen, and she collapsed to the ground.  She looked up at the rain hitting her face, her eyes devoid of any life.  She didn’t know how long she sat there, lost in her memories, He Wanqing laughed foolishly.  She laughed at Xu’s family’s calculations, she laughed at her own misery, and she laughed at her grandfather’s blindness back then.  Thinking about how Xu’s family had eaten and drunk her money all these years, and how they were living in her house now, she got up unsteadily.  Her bloodthirsty eyes looked towards her home, and a thought came to her mind. 

Since she was already going to die, she wouldn’t leave any money or house for these scumbags.  As for that man who had been pretending to be dead for more than a decade, since you’re dead, then how can you rise to power and wealth?  You should go back to the mud you came from.  She glanced at her home again, walked to the trash can, threw the medical report in her hand into it, and then walked in the opposite direction.

 In Shanshi City, besides Xu’s family, only her elder grandfather’s cousin was here.  Her other cousins were too far away, it would be too late to ask them for help and discuss this.  She could only go to her cousin.  The rain above seemed to know her sadness.  The rain, which had just subsided, became heavy again, and the thunder that had disappeared roared again, illuminating the dark sky with a flash of fire.