Listening to her daughter’s heart-wrenching sobs, Li Qiuhua shuddered.  

She was still counting on Miaomiao to graduate from college, earn money, and support her in the future. There was no way she could let her marry a disabled soldier.  

“Only a hundred, not a cent more!”  

Gritting her teeth against the pain of parting with the money, Li Qiuhua held up a single finger. “If you try to extort more, then tonight, all four of us will drink a bottle of pesticide each and accompany you to the underworld!”  

A triumphant smirk curled at the corners of Ruan Qingzhi’s lips. She turned and clasped the woman’s finger, sealing the deal. “Done! As long as the money’s in my hands, I’ll be on the train to join the army first thing tomorrow morning.”  

Li Qiuhua ground her teeth. “Fine!”  

Ruan Qingzhi smiled.  

Her goal was to take Miaomiao’s place in the marriage!  

Because in this era of rapid economic development in the 1980s, only by leaving could she seize more opportunities. After all, besides being a special agent, she also had a dream of becoming the richest person in the country!  

As for Shen Zhanwu…  

Li Qiuhua had already pulled strings to get their marriage certificate issued at the local brigade office and sent to Shengyang City. She couldn’t back out halfway.  

She’d have to wait until she reached Shengyang to explain the situation and then get a divorce.  

Ruan Qingzhi yawned, rolled over into the quilt, and lazily mumbled with her eyes closed, “Call me when dinner’s ready. Taking care of a legless man is hard work—I need to rest up…”  

Li Qiuhua said nothing, only bending down to gently tuck the covers around her stepdaughter.  

No one noticed the sinister glint in her narrowed eyes. Ruan Qingzhi, oh Ruan Qingzhi… enjoy this rare, peaceful sleep tonight while you can.

I hope you’ll still be able to sleep as soundly as you do today.

Because tomorrow, that train to Shengyang… 

will be the beginning of your suffering.

After tucking in the covers, Li Qiuhua turned and said softly, “Let Xiao Zhi rest well. We’ll go out first.”  

She and her husband returned to the west room.  

As soon as the door closed, she asked, “About giving Xiao Zhi a hundred yuan as dowry—I made the decision without discussing it with you. You’re not angry, are you?”  

Ruan Zhiguo shook his head. “No, you did it for her own good.”  

Li Qiuhua wrapped her arms around her husband’s waist and said in a gentle voice, “Zhiguo, marrying you is the happiest thing in my life.”  

Ruan Zhiguo was soothed by her words, though he felt a little embarrassed. “But I’m useless—I can’t even scrape together a hundred…”  

With five mouths to feed in the family, Qiuhua often suffered from heart pains and couldn’t do heavy labor.  

Miaomiao was in school, and Qingshan was still young.  

As for that wretched girl Xiao Zhi, she always used dizziness as an excuse to slack off. He’d beaten her several times, but it did nothing to change her lazy nature.  

Life was getting harder and poorer.  

Just when the family was struggling to make ends meet, Qiuhua had brought home the betrothal gifts from the Shen family…  

She had always been a good wife.  

Ruan Zhiguo knew that.  

Li Qiuhua lifted her head from the man’s chest. “I’ll go to my elder brother’s place and borrow some money.”  

Ruan Zhiguo hesitated. “But…”  

Li Qiuhua pushed her husband toward the door. “Alright, don’t worry about it. You handle dinner today. Xiao Zhi isn’t feeling well—let her rest.”  

Ruan Zhiguo grumbled, “Only you think she’s ‘not feeling well.’”  

Li Qiuhua didn’t argue, only saying, “Stop complaining!”  

Resigned, Ruan Zhiguo headed to the kitchen.  

She changed her clothes, then rode her bicycle to her elder brother’s house to borrow money.  

…

Ruan Qingzhi slept exceptionally well.  

When she woke up, it was just in time for dinner at the Ruan household.  

She plopped herself down in the seat reserved for the head of the family and shot a sidelong glance at the boy next to her, commanding, “Serve me rice.”  

Ruan Qingshan looked as if he had just heard the most absurd thing in the world. His face darkened instantly, and he slammed his chopsticks down with a loud clatter. “Ruan Qingzhi, you fucking dare—”  

Ruan Qingzhi cursed back faster than he could. “You fucking dare!”  

And she didn’t just curse—she struck, too.  

In one swift motion, she swung her leg up and kicked the boy hard in the side. At the same time, she grabbed the porcelain bowl in front of her and smashed it against his head.  

Crack!

The bowl shattered instantly, shards flying everywhere.  

The girl curled her lips into a cold smirk, taunting mockingly, “That thick skull of yours isn’t just for show—look how well it smashed the bowl! Impressive!”  

Ruan Qingshan: “…”  

The hell kind of “smashing” was this?!  

Clutching his head, he scrambled to his feet and kicked over the stool in a rage, roaring, “You fucking bitch! You dare hit me?! You think you’re hot shit just because you’re marrying some stinking soldier?!”  

“Even if he is a soldier, so what?! He’s a cripple now! A fucking legless, impotent cripple! But hey, that works out just fine—a bitch like you deserves a cripple! You can push him around on the streets begging for scraps! Hahahaha!”  

Ruan Qingshan seemed to revel in his own insults, licking his lips and giggling like a madman.  

His eyes burned with malice, his face twisting into something ugly. “Ruan Qingzhi! Let me make this clear—from now on, I’m the one who runs this house! A married daughter is like spilled water—you’re no longer part of the Ruan family! You don’t deserve to eat our food! When that cripple beats you until you’re crying! Screaming! Crawling on your knees begging to come back—don’t expect me to lift a finger for you! I hope he fucking tortures you to dea—mmph!!”  

Li Qiuhua walked in just in time to hear this and immediately clamped a hand over his mouth.  

Oh, my little ancestor!

If she backs out of the marriage because of your big mouth, all our efforts these past few days will have been for nothing!  

Ruan Qingshan thrashed, still trying to spew more venom, but Li Qiuhua dragged her youngest son into the west room. A second later, his furious roar echoed out:  

“Mom!! That bitch hit me! Make her leave! Get her out of here!!”  

Whatever the woman said to him, the room fell silent afterward.  

Ruan Qingzhi wasn’t interested in what went on behind closed doors. She grabbed another bowl, filled it with rice, and sat down to eat with single-minded focus.  

Ruan Zhiguo watched her coldly for a long moment.  

Finally, he lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and asked in a low, ominous voice, “You’re getting married soon. Must you stir up trouble and turn this house upside down before you leave?”  

His wife had borrowed money earlier that afternoon.  

But that just meant the family was deeper in debt now. This ungrateful wretch—raised for so many years, and even now, on the verge of marriage, she still had to squeeze the family dry.  

“Then I won’t marry.”  

“Let my sister marry that cripple instead! This marriage was hers to begin with—I won’t steal it from her. What do you think, Dad?”  

Ruan Qingzhi lifted her gaze to the man, arching a brow in challenge.  

Ruan Zhiguo choked. “…”  

Let Miaomiao marry Shen Zhanwu?  

Impossible!  

He was counting on his stepdaughter to land a good job after graduation, support him in his old age, and save up for Qingshan’s bride price!  

Just then, Li Qiuhua walked out, holding an old coat and wearing a bright smile.  

She wrapped an arm around the girl affectionately and cooed, “Xiao Zhi, your brother’s still young and doesn’t know any better. As his elder sister, you should be more forgiving. Besides, I already gave him a good beating for you just now…”  

As she spoke, she flipped open a hidden inner pocket sewn into the coat.  

Then she pressed it into Ruan Qingzhi’s hand.  

Patting the stitched seam, the woman said earnestly, “Xiao Zhi, I sewed the hundred yuan in here. Wear this tomorrow on the train—no pickpocket will ever find it.”  

Ruan Qingzhi pinched the hidden pocket between her fingers, her thin face expressionless. But inside, a cold laugh rose in her chest.  

Because—  

What was inside didn’t feel like money at all.

Just a few scraps of paper!