Chen Caohua and Ge Jinhua arrived at the public bathhouse, quickly locating Lin Ning. The two locked eyes, and sparks flew between them.

In her past life, the original Lin Ning had never met the younger Chen Caohua. After Ge Jinhua passed away, the original Lin Ning was abandoned by the Feng family and left to fend for herself in Dong’an County.

One day, a lavishly dressed elderly woman entered her home and arrogantly announced, “I am Chen Caohua, and I’ve returned. My husband and sons are back with me. But don’t worry—when you die, my son will put up mourning banners, and my grandson will visit your grave. That should be good enough for you.”

The original Lin Ning was so enraged by this that she spat blood. Her depression worsened, and she passed away soon after.

Now, in this life, enemies from two lifetimes stood face to face, their hatred burning fiercely. Both women wanted to tear each other apart.

Chen Caohua looked at Lin Ning with confusion. In her past life, Lin Ning was a quiet woman who stayed home doing chores. How had she ended up working at a bathhouse in this life?

Having endured hardships in her previous life, Chen Caohua had learned one thing: playing the victim wins sympathy. Women who yelled and fought always ended up on the losing side. She couldn’t afford to be confrontational this time; she had to appear weak.

With that in mind, Chen Caohua squeezed her eyes shut, letting tears stream down her face.

“Lin Ning, please don’t take my husband. I have three children—they can’t live without their father…”

Gasps rippled through the bathhouse. Everyone turned to Lin Ning with disdain. Who would’ve thought this seemingly innocent woman would steal another’s husband?

Lin Ning chuckled. Interesting. According to the original Lin Ning’s memories, Chen Caohua was domineering and arrogant. When did she start pretending to be so pitiful?

Chen Caohua had yet to realize that Lin Ning was no longer the pushover from her past life. Mistaking Lin Ning for the same woman, she continued her tearful performance.

“Our 200 yuan—please, I’m begging you, return it to us. We can’t even afford to live.”

Gasps sounded again. 200 yuan was equivalent to an entire year’s wages! This girl was unbelievably greedy.

Lin Ning sneered.

“Oh, you’re Chen Caohua?”

“Yes.”

“Good. I was just looking for you, and here you are.”

Lin Ning stepped forward, her gaze boring into Chen Caohua’s eyes. Intimidated by Lin Ning’s fierce aura, Chen Caohua faltered. Why was this Lin Ning so different from the one she remembered?

“You said I stole your husband?”

“Uh, yes!”

“A man in his thirties, dragging around three sons—no one would want him if he were dumped on the street. And you think I’d steal him? Steal your mother!“

With that, Lin Ning swung her wet towel, slapping Chen Caohua hard across her body.

“You better speak clearly—who exactly stole your husband?”

“Aah—!”

Chen Caohua hadn’t expected Lin Ning to actually hit her and screamed, “I’m a customer here to take a bath! Customers are gods! You can’t treat me like this!”

Lin Ning sneered, “Oh, you’re a god? Well, I’m the heavens!”

She snapped the towel loudly, still not satisfied. Then she wrapped the towel around Chen Caohua’s neck, choking her until her eyes rolled back. “Tell me the truth-did I steal your man? Lie again, and I’ll strangle you!”

Chen Caohua pleaded to Ge Jinhua for help, “Mom! Save me!”

Ge Jinhua, recalling the time Lin Ning had dunked her head in the bathwater, wanted no part of this. She quickly turned to leave.

Chen Caohua was furious seeing her leave and shouted, “Mom, don’t go! Save me!”

Ge Jinhua ran even faster. Lin Ning chuckled coldly. “None of you are getting away!”

She grabbed a basin from the floor and threw it. With a loud “smack,” it hit Ge Jinhua on the head. She wobbled and passed out.

Lin Ning dragged the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law pair together, slapped them awake, and demanded in front of the crowd, “Explain yourselves! Whose man did I supposedly steal?”

The onlookers were stunned. This bathhouse worker was fierce!

Chen Caohua was still resisting.

“Customers are gods! I’m your god! You don’t respect me; I’ll make sure you lose your job! Call your manager-I’m filing a complaint against you!”

Lin Ning froze for a moment. Several of the terms Chen Caohua used weren’t common for this era; they were from a decade or two in the future. Could it be that she had also been reborn?

Sister Hong, hearing the commotion, came in to stop Lin Ning. “Lin Ning, the bathhouse has rules. You can’t treat customers like this.”

Lin Ning had already made up her mind. Even if it meant losing her job, she was going to teach these two a lesson.

“Sister Hong, I apologize for causing trouble. Do what you need to with me afterward, but today, I have to deal with them.”

Understanding Lin Ning’s resolve, Sister Hong didn’t interfere further.

Lin Ning slapped Chen Caohua hard across the face. “Speak clearly! Did I steal your man or not?”

When she raised her hand toward Ge Jinhua, the latter screamed in terror, “I’ll talk! I’ll talk! You didn’t steal her man!”

“What’s the truth, then? Explain everything!”

In front of the crowd, Ge Jinhua confessed the whole story. It turned out their daughter-in-law had run off, and they wanted Lin Ning to marry into their family. Lin Ning had refused, so the match never happened.

The crowd shifted their disdainful gazes to Chen Caohua. “She ran off with another man and still has the nerve to cause trouble here? Shameless!”

Chen Caohua’s face burned with embarrassment. She glared venomously at Lin Ning. This little wench isn’t the same as in the past. She’s no pushover anymore.

Lin Ning continued her interrogation. “Did I take your family’s money?”

“No, no! Your parents asked for it. It had nothing to do with you. You didn’t take a single cent.”

With everything cleared up, Lin Ning declared, “Now get out of here! If you dare cause trouble at the public bathhouse again, I won’t let you off!”

“We won’t come back! Never again!”

Ge Jinhua dragged the humiliated Chen Caohua away, fleeing in disgrace.

Back at home, Ge Jinhua picked up a broom and began beating Chen Caohua.

“You wretched woman! If you hadn’t run off, our family wouldn’t have lost that 200 yuan! It’s all your fault—you’re not even worth 200 yuan if we sold you!”

Chen Caohua opened the door and ran into the street, screaming, “Help! She’s trying to kill me! My mother-in-law is going to kill me!”

“Get back here!” Ge Jinhua roared.

Chen Caohua refused, deliberately disheveling her hair and tearing her clothes to appear pitiful. “She’s going to kill me!”

Neighbors gathered, urging Ge Jinhua to calm down.

“This is the new society—you can’t just beat your daughter-in-law. Put the broom away.”

Ge Jinhua was so furious she nearly spat blood. Her family had lost so much money, yet she couldn’t say or do anything about it now?

From that day forward, every time Ge Jinhua tried to discipline Chen Caohua, the latter would run into the street, crying and creating a spectacle. She would pose as a victim of her wicked mother-in-law.

After several such incidents, neighbors began gossiping, and even the women’s representative from the neighborhood committee warned Ge Jinhua to tone it down. Left with no choice, Ge Jinhua begrudgingly agreed.

Chen Caohua secretly smirked. Playing the victim was so effective—it worked much better than yelling and fighting.

---

Ge Jinhua sent a telegram to Feng Tianqi, complaining about Chen Caohua’s behavior. Believing his mother, Feng Tianqi stopped sending money to Chen Caohua entirely.

Whenever Ge Jinhua received remittance slips, she flaunted them in front of Chen Caohua.

Chen Caohua cursed Feng Tianqi inwardly. If it weren’t for the fact that he would one day make a fortune, she would have left him the moment she returned.

Still, she had her own plans. She decided she would request a visit to the military base to use her “feminine charm” to win him over.