Chapter 1: The Ex-Wife of the Richest Man
Chapter 1: The Ex-Wife of the Richest Man
The sun was setting, casting shadows that split the courtyard in two. Smoke curled from the chimney, creating a half-lit, half-shadowed scene.
Zhou's mother was chopping vegetable leaves in the shade, turning the green, fresh leaves into thin, emerald strips. After chopping a pile, she scattered a handful on the ground.
An old hen led a group of fluffy yellow chicks, peeping and scrambling to peck at the scattered vegetable strips.
"Mom, I’m taking Jiang Xia to the clinic," a man’s deep voice broke the courtyard’s tranquility.
Zhou's mother nearly cut her finger!
She put down the knife and frowned. "What’s wrong now? She’s awake, isn’t she?"
She had just heard them talking earlier.
"Fevers, she’s a bit delirious. I’m taking her to the clinic to check on her," Zhou Chenglei added silently: he suspected the fever had affected her mind.
She was talking nonsense and even acting out, asking him his name and babbling about something like "becoming the ex-wife of the richest man."
...
What a mess, he couldn’t make any sense of it.
And he couldn’t bear to listen any longer.
Zhou's mother frowned. "Can’t you just give her a fever reducer?"
Zhou Chenglei shook his head.
Zhou's mother felt a wave of annoyance. "Then go ahead!"
"What? The clinic again? A fever won’t kill anyone. Are you trying to spend all our money, or do you think we have a mountain of gold and silver that hasn’t been mined yet?"
Tian Caihua emerged from the kitchen, holding a pair of tongs that still smoked, her mouth firing off words like a machine gun. "She tried to drown herself yesterday and is already out of the hospital. Now she’s going back? What did she do today? Did she jump in the sea again or hang herself? Did she crash into a wall or cut her wrists?"
"Fourth Brother, do you know I can’t even leave the house now? Every time I go out, people ask me, ‘Did your Jiang Xia run off with a man and get caught by Zhou Chenglei, forcing her to jump into the sea?’ ‘Is it true that your fourth son’s new, beautiful, and educated city bride ran away with someone else?’"
"You know how long she’s been married? She’s been crying, making a scene, threatening to hang herself, running away, jumping into the sea, and crashing into walls. What’s she trying to do? She’s disgraced our Zhou family! You two don’t care, but I do. My four sons still have to go to school! Even the teachers are curious."
Zhou's mother was thoroughly annoyed and snapped, "Enough, stop talking."
She was also very dissatisfied with her new daughter-in-law, but her son had already brought this trouble home, and she felt suffocated by the situation.
It was all her fault for not investigating thoroughly. She had thought the son’s superior officer respected him and was willing to marry his daughter to him.
If she had known what Jiang Xia was like, she would have found an excuse to refuse the marriage.
She had only thought her son was capable. He hadn’t even finished junior high school before joining the military, where he earned a university degree, fought in battles, and won numerous honors, even becoming a battalion commander. Now, even though he was retired due to injuries, he was still eligible to marry the daughter of a factory manager.
But he ended up with someone who thought herself too good for them, looking down on them for being from the countryside, mere fish sellers!
Tian Caihua was even more upset. "If she can act out, why can’t I speak my mind? Who acts like that? If she didn’t want to marry, she shouldn’t have! Now she’s making a scene, and Fourth Brother can’t even enter his own room. What kind of marriage is this? Does she think she’s a princess?"
"Fourth Brother, give me a straight answer. When will your wife stop causing trouble? Can we even live like this?"
Zhou Chenglei paused for a moment. "Big Sister, I'll take her to the clinic first. We can talk about it when we get back."
Tian Caihua finally seemed satisfied but couldn't resist adding, "Why go to the clinic for a fever? It’s not like they treat you for free! A packet of fever medicine, and even a dead man would jump up and dance! She acts like a princess, running to the hospital every few days, spending tens of yuan each time."
Zhou's mother forcefully slammed the cleaver into the wooden cutting board.
Tian Caihua immediately shut her mouth.
Zhou's mother looked at Zhou Chenglei. "Take her to the clinic and make sure she's treated. Once she's better, send her back to her family."
Zhou's mother wanted to get rid of her as quickly as possible.
They couldn't afford to keep this troublesome woman in their family!
Zhou Chenglei didn't say anything, turning to go back into the house.
Tian Caihua couldn't help but chime in again, "Mom, remember to get the dowry and medical expenses back when you divorce her. We can't take a loss!"
Zhou's mother gave her a cold glance and pulled out the cleaver.
Tian Caihua hurried back to the kitchen, muttering under her breath, "I didn't say anything wrong. She married in, and Fourth Brother hasn't even touched her. If we don't get the dowry back, wouldn't that be a loss?"
Two thousand yuan, that's almost enough to buy a wooden boat.
Zhou's mother ignored her and continued chopping the vegetables.
~
In the newly decorated bridal chamber, Jiang Xia had heard every word of the conversation outside.
She examined the room, which was filled with items that seemed to belong to another era: a Huana sewing machine, a wooden window with carved glass, a light bulb, a red-flowered old-fashioned kettle, and a porcelain cup.
The conversation was too vivid, the scene too real.
It took her several minutes to realize she wasn’t dreaming but had indeed been transported into a book.
And not just any book, but a novel called "Reborn in the 1980s, My Billionaire Husband Loves Me Every Night." She had become the male lead's discarded ex-wife.
The original Jiang Xia, as the author had portrayed her, was a foolish and brainless character who had squandered a golden opportunity and ended up as a side character.
The original Jiang Xia came from a good family. Her father was a retired military officer working in the government, and her mother was the factory manager of a clothing plant, providing a comfortable lifestyle.
Her marriage to the male lead was arranged by her parents. At the time, he was a young but promising captain in the military, and she was very satisfied with the match.
However, he was severely injured on a mission, losing his hearing in one ear and was forced to retire. Even so, he retired as a colonel and could have secured a prestigious position, at least a department-level official in the city or a secretary in the town, both highly respectable roles.
Everyone around her envied her, and she was quite proud of it.
But after they got married and she moved into the Zhou family, she discovered that the male lead had given up his job opportunity to his second brother. He was a restless man who disliked working in the government and preferred a more adventurous life. He wanted to go into business.
And by "business," he meant fishing.
He was going to be a fisherman?
The original Jiang Xia couldn't accept it. She couldn't bear the thought of being a fisherman's wife or living in the countryside. On their wedding night, she started causing trouble, refusing to share a bed with the male lead and demanding a divorce.
Later, she was swayed by a smooth-talking but abusive man and ran away with him. They didn't even make it out of the village before the male lead caught them. The man, seeing the male lead, panicked and pushed her into the sea, which is how Jiang Xia ended up in this world.
Jiang Xia looked at the man who had just entered the room, his presence commanding and powerful.
He stood tall and immovable, like an unshakable mountain, his demeanor cold and imposing.
No wonder he was the male lead! Absolutely amazing!
(End of Chapter)
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