WBSGVS Chapter 82 V1

Qīng Lí left the hospital and immediately went to rent a place.

She was a woman of action and also skilled in medicine. She understood Sòng Dōngyún’s situation—she’d be discharged in about seven days, so the sooner it was taken care of, the more relieved Sòng Dōngyún would feel.

However, she didn’t expect things to escalate to the point of divorce.

But this also confirmed that the whole situation was caused by Dà Bǎo and Èr Bǎo.

In her past life, the original owner didn’t divorce because she was bitter and, like most women of that time, had been brainwashed to believe that divorce wasn’t an option when marriage went wrong.

But in this era, renting a place was still a challenge.

Many people were reluctant to rent, and the ones who did had poor conditions.

On the first day, Qīng Lí didn’t succeed.

It took two more attempts before she managed to get it done.

She went all out, hired someone to clean, and furnished the place with the essentials. Afterward, she handed over the rental contract and keys to Sòng Dōngyún. She even tried to leave her some money, but Sòng Dōngyún refused.

After that, Qīng Lí didn’t follow up anymore. She had done what she could.

But Xiù Hóng, the local aunt, didn’t stop gossiping.

Perhaps because Qīng Lí only listened and didn’t speak, Xiù Hóng enjoyed sharing gossip with her, knowing she wouldn’t tell anyone else.

“That couple’s divorcing. Oh my, these modern girls are something. Back in our day, if we made a fuss at home, and if the man had a bad temper, he’d just hit us. Who would dare make a scene?” Xiù Hóng said with a touch of envy.

Qīng Lí smiled and replied, “That’s a good thing. Women have to give birth, cook, do chores, and even work in the fields, while men only need to work in the fields. And they still have to deal with being oppressed. It’s too miserable.”

“Right, right!” Xiù Hóng nodded repeatedly, then added, “But I’m afraid the divorce won’t happen. I heard the Sòng family has been over there a few times. Their family doesn’t treat their daughter like a daughter. If it weren’t for that, she wouldn’t have foolishly married a man with children from a previous marriage!”

“Not necessarily,” Qīng Lí smiled.

Sòng Dōngyún wasn’t the original version of herself. She didn’t have much affection for the Sòng family.

She was a bit love-struck and had a natural fondness for children, but when it came to adults, it was different. If she could regain her rationality to divorce, she wouldn’t give up just because of external pressures.

Qīng Lí liked this female lead—kind, but not overly so.

As expected, half a month later, they were officially divorced.

The Sòng family scolded her and called her shameful, refusing to let her return home. But Sòng Dōngyún didn’t care; she had her place and didn’t pay attention to them, leaving many people who thought she would compromise shocked.

It was said that during that half-month, the screams of the children could be heard from the Xiàng family every day. The two older children were beaten daily and had completely become obedient.

This time, Xiàng Lìfēng was ruthless.

But what was the use?

It was too late.

They were already gone.

Xiǎo Yǔ came back and told Qīng Lí, “Xiàng Lián and her brother have changed a lot. I heard they killed an unborn child and caused their stepmother to be hospitalized for a long time. Their father is so angry that he beats them every day.”

“In the past, they would always fight with others at school, but now they’re quiet and always walk with their heads down.”

“…”

There was more, but Qīng Lí didn’t feel much. If they had been dealt with harshly the first time they made a major mistake, they wouldn’t have dared to do it again.

But they waited until things turned into a disaster before acting.

The house Qīng Lí rented for Sòng Dōngyún was for three months. In the third month, Sòng Dōngyún came to return the money.

She had gone to Shenzhen, unlike Hè Dān who had a tough time. Sòng Dōngyún, with her protagonist’s aura, managed everything smoothly without any issues and brought back a haul of valuable items like watches and radios.

The goods weren’t many, but she made a good profit from the back-and-forth.

Without the burden of a family and knowing the general direction of things, the female lead had many opportunities.

When returning the rent money, Sòng Dōngyún also brought some gifts to thank Qīng Lí, and then said, “I plan to move to Shenzhen. It’s a great time to start there. If you’re interested in making money, you could try starting a business. We could even cooperate.”

Having successfully divorced, Sòng Dōngyún had also made quite a bit of money. She gave herself a full makeover, looking even more beautiful and captivating, with an added sharpness that made her even more confident.

Qīng Lí gratefully accepted her kindness and, keeping her investment mindset, invested a large sum of money in her: “Do your best!”

As the female lead, she was sure to multiply this investment many times over!

Sòng Dōngyún was confused by Qīng Lí’s trust but was also greatly encouraged.

Being a stepmother had been a mistake when she first came to this world, but that was now corrected. She was going to seize the opportunities in this era and move forward.

While Sòng Dōngyún was busy, Qīng Lí wasn’t idle.

At first, she didn’t develop a business because the situation hadn’t fully changed, and she wanted to focus on taking care of Xiǎo Yǔ.

Three years later, when the situation had completely transformed, Qīng Lí started her business.

She entered the food industry, which she was best at.

In the 1980s, with the country in a rebuilding phase, it was a time when businesses could rapidly grow, and Qīng Lí took advantage of this trend, earning a lot in her first year.

She left the small village, moved away from the town, and established a food court in the city center—somewhere people would immediately think of when they wanted to eat.

Sòng Jìn had already agreed with her that he would handle the household duties, and Qīng Lí would focus on work.

They worked together harmoniously, with Xiǎo Yǔ being well-behaved. Everything was thriving. Within a few years, Qīng Lí received a contract from Sòng Dōngyún, who had created her clothing brand and gave Qīng Lí 30% of the shares as a return for her initial investment.

Qīng Lí didn’t hesitate. She signed the contract, sent it back, and their collaboration was officially established.

Twelve years later

Xiàng Lián chased a boy into an alley, but she was slower than him. In the blink of an eye, with the alley’s many twists and turns, he had disappeared.

Frustrated, she stomped her foot and stood in the alley, yelling loudly like the women who cursed on the streets in her village: “Xiàng Yì! Come out here!”

The only response was the empty echo of her voice.

Xiàng Lián wasn’t willing to let it go, so she continued cursing: “You had the guts to steal my money, so have the guts to face me! Always accusing people, making your brother get beaten by dad. When you come back, I’ll beat you to death!”

Far away, two alleys over, the boy, Xiàng Yì—the third son of Xiàng Lìfēng—leaned casually against the wall, unfazed. Beside him, another boy nervously asked, “Hey, did you steal your sister’s money?”

“Don’t worry, my dad still thinks it was my brother. He doesn’t know!” Xiàng Yì waved his hand dismissively, speaking calmly.

The other boy scratched his head, feeling uneasy about it. He thought it was wrong, but seeing Xiàng Yì’s nonchalant attitude, he kept quiet, though in his heart, he shook his head. They were still young, and whenever money was involved, they should have spoken to their parents, especially since it was their sister’s money.

Xiàng Lián cursed for a while, but since Xiàng Yì refused to admit it, she gave up and stormed off in frustration.

Twelve years had passed, and the family had moved from their village to the town.

But it was still just the four of them.

Xiàng Lìfēng, Xiàng Lián, and their two sons—Èr Bǎo, Xiàng Héng, and Sān Bǎo, Xiàng Yì, the same boy she had just been chasing.

The reason Xiàng Lián was so angry was that her money had gone missing yesterday, and she had caused a scene at home. Then Xiàng Yì suddenly mentioned seeing Xiàng Héng eating an ice cream.