When Ge Jinhua stepped out, she ran into Lin’s mother and Lin Qiao. Seeing her dripping wet, Lin’s mother asked, “In-law, what happened to you?”

Ge Jinhua was about to explain but changed her mind. “It’s nothing. You two should go inside,” she said, secretly wishing the Lin family could also taste the bathwater.

Lin’s mother and Lin Qiao, puzzled, entered the public bathhouse. They approached Lin Ning to begin their second round of persuasion.

Lin Qiao took the lead, immediately urging Lin Ning to return home and stop opposing her parents, claiming they only wanted the best for her.

Lin Ning sneered, “Fine, I’ll go back—if you marry Feng Tianqi instead.”

“I’d never marry that old man!”

“Then why should I?”

Lin Qiao argued, “It’s different for you. You don’t have a job, and working here scrubbing people isn’t respectable. Marrying into the Feng family is already a good match for you.”

Enraged, Lin Ning grabbed a wet towel and lashed it across Lin Qiao. “We’re from the same parents—what makes you so superior? Lin Qiao, I know exactly what you’re thinking! If I marry Feng Tianqi, you’ll get a bigger dowry! Get out!”

Lin Qiao winced in pain, furious. “Fine! Don’t come crawling back to me when you’re destitute!”

Lin Ning chuckled coldly. “How about I show you destitution right now?”

She dragged Lin Qiao under the showerhead, soaking her until she looked like a drowned rat.

Lin Qiao screamed, “Mom, help me!”

Lin’s mother rushed to rescue her, wailing and accusing Lin Ning, “I raised her for 20 years and even found her a great match. But just because she’s unhappy, she runs away from home!”

The bathhouse was filled with older women. After hearing Lin’s mother’s side, many sided with her, urging Lin Ning to return home.

One woman shared her own story. “I married a man 20 years older so my brother could use my dowry to find a wife. After marriage, I kept sending things back to my family. Girl, learn from me. Only when your family prospers can you thrive.”

Before Lin Ning could respond, an elderly woman in the bathhouse slapped the speaker. “You’ve been sending things back to your family? You leech! Always stealing from my son to support your relatives. I’ll have my son divorce you!”

The bathhouse descended into chaos. Taking advantage of the distraction, Lin’s mother grabbed Lin Ning and tried to drag her home.

Lin Ning, fed up, decided it was time to teach her mother a lesson. She hauled Lin’s mother into the inner pool, forcing her to gulp down a stomachful of bathwater. After the ordeal, Lin’s mother gave up and fled with Lin Qiao, wailing all the way.

Back home, the Lin family was distraught. Lin Ning was now like a loose cannon, and no one could control her. What could they do?

Still, Lin Yong was desperate to buy a house, and the family didn’t want to give up on their plan. Since the women had failed, it was time for the men to step in. Lin’s father declared, “I’ll go and bring her back.”

He retrieved a bottle of baijiu and soaked Lin Ning’s towel in it, then set off for the bathhouse.

Once there, he asked Sister Hong to call Lin Ning out, claiming he had something for her. When Lin Ning stepped out, Lin’s father handed her the towel.

“Ning, I brought you a towel,” he said.

Lin Ning frowned. Based on the original host’s memories, Lin’s father had always been silent when she was mistreated in her past life. Now he’d come all this way to deliver a towel? Something felt off.

But the towel was indeed hers. As Lin’s father extended it closer, she reached out cautiously.

In a flash, Lin’s father pressed the towel against her face. The overpowering smell of alcohol hit her, and Lin Ning felt a wave of dizziness.

The original host’s memories flooded back—she had an extreme sensitivity to alcohol!

One New Year’s Eve, she’d merely caught a whiff of baijiu and ended up unconscious for an entire day. A doctor had explained that she had a condition making her intolerant to alcohol—even the smell was enough to incapacitate her.

Lin’s father had soaked the towel in alcohol and deliberately pressed it under her nose to make her faint.

Furious, Lin Ning thought, What kind of father does this to his own daughter?

Mustering her remaining strength, she kicked Lin’s father in the groin. He let out a blood-curdling scream, clutching himself as he collapsed to the ground.

Lin Ning shook her head, fighting the dizziness. She couldn’t afford to pass out—if she did, the Lin family would drag her away.

Sister Hong, alarmed, called the police. When they arrived, Lin’s father accused Lin Ning of attempted patricide and demanded her arrest.

Lin Ning countered, “Officer, my family is trying to sell me off for a dowry to fund my brother’s house. I refused, so they’ve been harassing me and trying to force me home. This is an illegal arranged marriage—practically human trafficking!”

After investigating and questioning witnesses, including bathhouse patrons, the police confirmed Lin Ning’s story. They warned the Lin and Feng families: “This is a new society. Forced marriages are illegal. Everyone has the right to choose their own partner. Cease this harassment immediately.”

With their hopes dashed, the Lin and Feng families reluctantly left.

Back home, the Lin family was in despair. They still didn’t have enough money for the house. What now?

Lin Yong, nursing his bruised head and missing teeth from his earlier encounter with Lin Ning, suggested, “Even if Lin Ning won’t marry Feng Tianqi, we should still make the Feng family compensate us. Her reputation’s already ruined—she can’t marry anyone else now. They owe us for the damage!”

Lin’s parents agreed. They stormed over to the Feng household, demanding compensation.

Ge Jinhua retorted, “Your daughter dunked me in bathwater, and you dare ask for money? You should be paying me!”

The argument escalated, and the two families quarreled fiercely. Finally, under the mediator’s urging, the Feng family reluctantly paid the Lin family 200 yuan.

The mediator pointed out that Ge Jinhua’s public declarations of Lin Ning as their future daughter-in-law had indeed tarnished her reputation, making it difficult for her to find another match.

Pleased with their unexpected windfall, the Lin family left satisfied.

As for Ge Jinhua, she fumed, “This is all Chen Caohua’s fault! If she hadn’t run off with that man, our family wouldn’t have been humiliated like this or lost so much money. If I see her again, I’ll tear her apart!”