Chapter 1: Get it done in one go, break off the engagement!

“…It hurts.”
Xue Qingdai’s throat felt as if a blade were lodged in it. She forced out a word, swallowed, and tried to move, but found her stiffened fingers wouldn’t budge.

Her unfocused gaze fell upon a black-and-white TV set resting on a wooden cabinet, a simple wooden bed, a plain writing desk — all completely barren — and a large red thermos sitting at the foot of the bed, its surface adorned with a vibrant peony motif. A wisp of steam slowly rose from its opening. Her pupils suddenly dilated. This scene was something she had only ever come across in a retro museum.

Her body was weak, chilled — and by her medical knowledge, there was no way it should be ill. Xue Qingdai laboriously raised her arm, causing her jade bangle to bump against the side of the wooden frame. The moment she stirred, a group of people waiting outside rushed in — with Yang Xiaomin, a mother who cared more for her than for her own life, darting forward faster than anyone else.

“Xiaobao! You’re finally awake! Without you, Mama couldn’t go on…” Yang Xiaomin pressed her treasured daughter close, tears falling quietly from her weary eyes. “That educated youth can leave if he wants… If you really don’t like your much older fiancé, your three brothers can find you a new son-in-law. Mama just wants you to be alive.”

“And anyway… after six years without a phone call or a letter, it’s clear he’s probably not honoring that engagement. We shouldn’t care either.”
The swelling in her throat kept Xue Qingdai from speaking. The rush of memories from another’s body made her briefly lose focus. She had crossed over into a period novel written by a shameless author — as the male lead’s wicked ex-wife. The book was called One Birth, Eight Babies — The Sweet Wife of the 80s.

Xue Qingdai came from a renowned family of traditional Chinese medicine — the nineteenth generation in a longstanding dynasty — yet there was only a single descendent left: her. The vast knowledge in their ancient medical texts and the immense family fortune were now without heirs. Determined to carry forward that tradition, she had studied hard… only for the author to portray her as a stupid, vicious side character — a tool used to destroy the main couple’s happiness.

Her grandfather was a war-hero general with extensive military connections. Her father was the well-respected Party secretary of Pengyang’s Xiaoyu Village. Her eldest brother was the team leader who spearheaded agricultural reform for the community. Her second brother used his grandfather’s connections to rise smoothly through the army’s ranks. Her third brother, a sharp entrepreneur, successfully opened the first business in Pengyang following the policy of reform. Her mother, Yang Xiaomin, was the most educated woman in the community — a role model for all. The family’s greatest weakness was their delicate, sheltered, and much-doted-upon Xue Qingdai. This overprotectiveness fostered in her a willfulness and a tendency to do whatever it took to achieve her goals.

Relying on her father’s popularity and her brother’s power, the original Xue Qingdai had gotten away with acting high-handedly, bullying and intimidating people in the community. This time, following her cousin’s ill-fated advice — to retain the young intellectual Xie Wei — she washed herself in icy water in the dead of winter. The freezing bath nearly cost her her life, kept her bedridden for two weeks, and left her weak afterwards.

But instead of gaining the man’s affection, it turned him further away. Xie Wei fell in love with her gentle, well-educated cousin Zhao Meiqin. The two successfully entered the university in Beijing together. Xie Wei openly displayed his contempt for the overbearing Xue Qingdai — a view shared by many — while frequently defending Zhao Meiqin. This rejection gnawed at the original’s resentment.

In a moment of impulsiveness, the original used an excuse — that she was looking for her fiancé — to follow him to Beijing, only to discover that Xie Yan, a wounded, infertile army officer, was his uncle. Out of spite, and under pressure from her family, Xue Qingdai forced a marriage with Xie Yan instead.

Because the two were ill-matched and unhappy, their marriage fell into chaos. The army’s residential community turned against her; the army wives grew hostile toward someone who couldn’t appreciate their kindness or conformity. The original made a mess of everything, openly challenging anyone who crossed her. This disrupted the peace and drew criticism from her supervisors. During a mass criticism meeting, with her husband already gone to the battlefield, the army handed down a divorce certificate — making her the first army wife to be divorced.

The confused and defeated woman eventually stumbled back to her hometown, where tragedy struck in a cascade of misfortune. The family’s mainstays fell one by one. Her grandfather’s war injuries relapsed; her father fell ill from overwork and stress; her eldest brother was forced out by ill-wishers and broke his leg; her second brother fell victim to layoffs during a major army cutback; and her third brother’s electronic components business was falsely accused of tax evasion, requiring him to pay a huge fine and nearly sending him to jail. The villagers gossiped openly, noting that their downfall was all due to the infamous “bad luck” stemming from their troublemaking daughter.

The novel’s heroine fell into deep depression. Her already weak body, battling lingering effects of a previous chill, grew increasingly fragile until, just before the new year, she fell gravely ill and passed away. Her mother, Yang Xiaomin, held her icy body for days, weeping until her own sight was gone. The new year was a barren, silent one — without a single moment of happiness in their home.

Having come to know the fate that was meant for her, Xue Qingdai calmed herself, pressed a few acupuncture needles into her own body to ease her congestion, and began her new life with a clear mind.

If only Xue Qingdai had known that the unscrupulous colleague was so envious of her, she would have turned in the forged practice certificates, suing them into bankruptcy! But that was all in the past. Now, having crossed back into the 1980s — a time filled with both crisis and opportunity — she couldn’t let this warm, thriving family suffer the fate that the novel had dealt them.

Her father and big brother would protect their home, while her second and third brothers went out to make money. All she needed to do was lie flat, rest, and use her medical skills — and the herbs hidden in her bangle — to keep everyone healthy. She’d be a useless but comfortable freeloader.

As for the engagement destined for divorce — it should be called off as soon as possible. It had been six years, yet there hadn’t been a single word from the army officer in the capital — not a letter, a phone call, or a telegram. Clearly, the man had no intention of honoring the marriage agreement. According to the novel, the male lead, Xie Yan, was infertile — a claim that seemed suspicious in Xue Qingdai’s view. There’s no disease that traditional Chinese medicine cannot treat. Infertility was just a convenient excuse to avoid marriage. She had successfully treated hundreds of cases of infertility. How difficult could it be?

The engagement needed to be called off cleanly — to the satisfaction of both families — without leaving any future complications. From the story, there seemed to be a hidden hand fueling the crises faced by her Second Brother and Third Brother, and Xue Qingdai was determined to uncover the truth. As for the male lead, Xie Yan — whether he remained infertile or not — it was none of her concern. She, the “vicious ex-wife”, would be gone gracefully. A comfortable, sheltered, restful life was waiting just ahead.

But at that moment, her body was still weak and chilled by the lingering effects of the icy bath. Xue Qingdai trembled in her mother’s warm embrace and used the last bit of her strength to wipe away her tears. “Don’t cry…”
Her throat was too painful for more words.
Yang Xiaomin tightened her grip on her daughter’s hand. “I’m not crying — I just got some sand in my eyes.”

“Xiaobao, when your grandfather comes in, remember to be a little pitiful. If he agrees, calling off the engagement will be a piece of cake.”