When Jiang Wanting’s head was shoved underwater for the third time, she finally realized—this was meant to kill her!  

Just moments ago, she had frozen to death in a snowy cemetery at night, and now she was experiencing the terror of suffocation.  

In her past life, she had only learned the truth before her death—she had been swindled out of her family’s fortune. For twenty years, she had endured a hollow marriage, foolishly believing in the illusion of “marital bliss.” Her husband had claimed to be too busy with work, rarely sending letters or calls, and hadn’t even touched her once in two decades. Yet, Jiang Wanting still convinced herself to support his career, to be the silent, self-sacrificing woman behind him.  

Until the day she accidentally discovered that, in another part of the same city, her husband had another home.  

In that home was her husband’s true partner—a burly, bearded man.  

At first, Jiang Wanting thought her eyes were deceiving her. She couldn’t believe it was real. She spent months secretly following them, until she could no longer lie to herself.  

The day she confronted her husband, she saw the depths of human cruelty. The real reason he had married her? Her family’s status, connections, and wealth.  

Her entire world collapsed.  

With a bottle of liquor in hand, she stumbled to a gravestone and poured out her regrets to the person buried beneath it. If she could live again, she swore she would never let herself suffer like this—never waste her life on a scumbag who never cared for her, never live another day trapped in lies.  

No, there had been one person who truly cared for her—the one resting under that gravestone.  

Jiang Wanting poured the liquor onto the tomb, mourning the life she had squandered—the life this young man had fought to give her. The extra years she had lived were only because of him. Over a decade ago, on a dark night, she had nearly died at the hands of a gang of thugs. By chance, a young soldier on leave had intervened. Though outnumbered, he fought to save her, dying brutally under their knives.  

For over a decade, his grave had been her only solace. But now, she had lost the will to live. She couldn’t bear the guilt—her worthless life didn’t deserve his sacrifice. If time could rewind, she wished he had never saved her. If it could rewind even further, she wished she had never met her husband.  

The entire bottle of strong liquor burned down her throat as she leaned against the tombstone, slowly losing consciousness in the freezing winter night.  

Then—a heart-wrenching scream pierced her ears.  

Jiang Wanting thrashed in terror.  

The first time her head was forced underwater, she realized she had been reborn.  

The second time, she understood someone was trying to kill her.  

By the third time, she knew one thing for certain—this time, she had to survive! 

Gasping for air as she was yanked up, Jiang Wanting desperately begged for mercy, her voice weak but determined: “Spare me! I’ll give you anything—money, whatever you want—just let me live!” 

She had no idea what was happening, but survival came first. Promises now, details later.  

The man paused, leaning in with a sneer. His foul breath made her instinctively hold hers. “Your worthless life isn’t even worth selling!” he spat. “Your Jiang family scammed me out of a hundred yuan, and now they’re paying me back with trash like you. Even if I drown you today, at least I’ll get my revenge!”

Just as he moved to shove her under again, a figure rushed over, shoving him aside and clutching Jiang Wanting tightly. “I’ll sell myself instead!” the woman sobbed. “Please, spare my daughter! I’ll go to town and earn the money back—I swear I’ll repay you! Do whatever you want to me, just let her go!”

The man rubbed his lower back, baring his teeth. “Like hell I believe that! Your old hag already sold this girl to me. Her life is mine now. If I drown her for fun, that’s my right!”

Seeing him raise his hand again, Jiang Wanting blurted out: “You’ve already lost a hundred yuan. Drowning me means losing two hundred! Money doesn’t grow on trees—spare me, and I swear I’ll repay you double by the deadline. If I fail, drown me then. I won’t run. But if I succeed, you get two hundred back—no loss either way!”

The man hesitated, clearly tempted. “And why should I trust you? What if you flee? Who’ll pay me then?”

The woman beside her immediately dropped to her knees. “I—I’ll write you an IOU! If I don’t repay you, report me to the village chief, lock me in the cowshed, call the police—do whatever you want to me!”

The man yanked Jiang Wanting up. “Fine. The temple can run, but the monk can’t hide. I’ll get that IOU from your family later. If you dare flee, my father will seize your land!”

With that, he tossed her aside and strode off.

After a long while, Jiang Wanting finally regained enough strength to look at the woman beside her. She rubbed her eyes hard, and the blurry image before her gradually sharpened. The woman was disheveled, emaciated, her forehead smeared with blood and dirt—clearly from repeatedly kowtowing in desperation.  

“Mom?” Jiang Wanting tentatively called out.  

“Tingting!” The woman, Chen Meiling, wiped the grime from Jiang Wanting’s face with her rough hands. “Now that Niu Zi’s gone, you have to run. Get as far away from Jiang Village as you can. I’ll stay here—if they come looking, I’ll take the blame.”  

Jiang Wanting was certain she had never met Chen Meiling in her past life, yet she looked strangely familiar—almost like a younger version of herself. Though lost and confused in this new world, she couldn’t bring herself to coldly abandon a woman who’d risked everything for her. “If I leave, what’ll happen to you?”  

“My life’s already ruined. As long as you survive, it doesn’t matter if I die here. Listen to me—just go. Find somewhere with food, just live. If you stay, Niu Zi won’t let you go, and neither will your grandmother. How could we ever scrape together two hundred yuan? I still have to work the fields…” Chen Meiling urged frantically, trying to push her away. “I’ll cover for you—go now, before anyone sees!”  

“I won’t go! If we leave, we leave together. If I have food, you won’t starve!” Jiang Wanting couldn’t bear to watch this frail woman throw herself into danger just for her sake.  

Right now, she still didn’t fully grasp the situation. With no memories of this life, fleeing blindly might lead to even greater peril.  

As Chen Meiling kept insisting, Jiang Wanting suddenly feigned dizziness, vomiting, and weakness. Worried it was a side effect of nearly drowning, Chen Meiling had no choice but to support her as they slowly made their way back to the Jiang house.  

For Jiang Wanting, the Jiang household was anything but safe—but it was their only option now. This time, she swore she’d protect her daughter and not let that old hag Jiang take advantage again.  

On the way, despite her exhaustion, Jiang Wanting managed to piece together the story through careful questions.  

Turns out, the Jiang family had produced a college student. To fund his education, Old Lady Jiang borrowed a hundred yuan from the village chief. But to her, repaying it was unthinkable—she’d rather die than part with money. So she planned to default.  

Jiang Wanting, whose reputation had been ruined by vicious rumors, was seen as a liability to the family’s rising scholar. To kill two birds with one stone—keeping the money and dumping the “family disgrace”—Old Lady Jiang sold her off to the chief’s son, Niu Zi, to settle the debt.  

Niu Zi, though only twenty-five, had already buried two wives.  

“Once we’re back, stay in the room no matter what,” Chen Meiling instructed. “Don’t come out, even if you hear noise. If Niu Zi comes for the IOU, hide. I’ll handle the rest.”  

Jiang Wanting already had her own plans but didn’t argue with this gaunt rural woman.  

She couldn’t help comparing her to her mother from her past life. That mother had never beaten or scolded her, yet there was always a distance. She never dared to act spoiled in front of her and unconsciously strived to meet every expectation.  

This woman before her was a stranger, yet Jiang Wanting felt an inexplicable warmth. It was as if she’d finally met the mother she’d always imagined—one who’d shield her from danger without hesitation. The love she’d yearned for all her past life, she now felt in Chen Meiling’s simple words.  

Back in the drafty, ramshackle shed they called home, Chen Meiling helped Jiang Wanting onto a wooden plank bed. “Rest well. I’ll get you some sugar water.”  

Jiang Wanting thought she was still alert, but the moment she lay on the hard boards, she fell asleep.  

A commotion in the yard jolted her awake. Opening her eyes, she realized Chen Meiling hadn’t returned—there was no water. She thought of fetching some herself but remembered the warning: Don’t come out, no matter what.

Quietly, she poked a hole in the window paper to peek outside.  

What she saw made her blood run cold.  

In the yard, a vicious old hag—spittle flying, face twisted—was dragging Chen Meiling by the hair, beating her to the ground. Chen Meiling clutched an enamel mug tightly, even as half its contents spilled.  

“Useless trash! No wonder you skipped work today—sneaking back to steal from the house! Sugar today, eggs tomorrow, huh? I’ll beat you dead! Freeloading off this family! No work, no food!”  

Chen Meiling shielded the mug desperately, enduring the blows just to protect that bit of sugar water. “Mother, please—just let me give Tingting this water. After she drinks, I’ll go work! Please, she nearly drowned today—”  

The old hag wasn’t listening. She slapped Chen Meiling’s head hard. “Jiang family sugar water is for anyone—except you two! Bastard spawn aren’t worthy of it!”  

Seeing Chen Meiling abused like this, Jiang Wanting couldn’t stay put. She burst out and shoved the old woman away.  

“Get the hell away, you old witch! Hit my mom again, and I’ll kill you!”