Chapter 1 — My Mother-in-Law Tore Up My Application

On the eve of my civil service examination, my mother-in-law deliberately tore open my official dossier. As I stood trembling on the brink of absolute despair, she casually slumped onto the floor and wailed, “I am just an illiterate old woman who understands nothing! How was I supposed to know I wasn’t allowed to tear it?”

My husband and brother-in-law rushed to lift her up, turning their fury entirely upon me instead. “My mother only wanted to look out of the goodness of her heart to help you check it. If you failed the exam, stop blaming an old woman.”

Consequently, I lost my job placement, endured two years of their ceaseless mockery, and ultimately wasted away, dying of illness alone in a damp rented room.

When I opened my eyes once more, I had returned to the exact day before her destructive interference. This time, however, I placed my brother-in-law’s confidential dossier squarely inside the cabinet. I wanted to see if she would still plead ignorance and find it so easy to understand when the disaster struck her own beloved son.

Hua Qinghe, the sun is already shining on your backside and you still refuse to wake up? Aren’t you supposed to go pick up that document bag today?

My mother-in-law, Qian Yufen, battered the door from the outside. With every single loud thump came another sharp reprimand. After testing back and forth for years, you still haven't managed to amount to anything. If you actually end up entering a government office, will this mother-in-law of yours have to wash your feet and fetch water for you in the future?

I opened my eyes and stared straight at the old alarm clock sitting on the bedside table. Seven-twenty. I had truly returned. I was back to the exact day before my sealed dossier was slashed open. In my past life, it was precisely on this day that I received the supplementary documents required for the background investigation. The staff member had repeated over and over again that the opening of the envelope must remain intact and it had to be submitted on schedule. Upon returning home, I placed the bag directly into the bedroom drawer and deliberately instructed Qian Yufen, Mother, this must not be opened. It is extremely important.

She had smiled with a veneer of absolute gentleness. I know, I am not a fool. Rest assured, I will watch over it for you, and nobody else will dare to touch it.

By the time I came home from work the following afternoon and stepped through the front door, I found various official papers scattered all over the coffee table. The red security seal had been sheared straight down the middle, and the cross-stamped official seals were neatly severed. Qian Yufen was wearing her reading glasses, holding my family background information form in her hands while muttering under her breath, You are only testing for a job, yet they even need to investigate your husband's family? Did you go outside and speak ill of our Zhu family behind our backs?

I lunged forward to snatch it back, but she instantly dropped to the floor, weeping far more miserably than I did. I am just an old woman with barely any education, how was I supposed to know I couldn't look at this? Now that you have a bright future ahead, you immediately turn around and bully me like this!

Zhu Yan stood by the doorway, and his very first words were not to ask if there was still any way to save the situation, but rather, Hua Qinghe, can you stop trying to scare my mother? She didn’t do it on purpose.

Acting like a madwoman, I dialed frantic phone calls and rushed all the way to the government office to beg for a replacement certificate. But the deadline had already passed. The position was immediately handed over to the runner-up candidate. My name vanished entirely before the public roster was ever posted. Afterward, Qian Yufen told everyone she met, Qinghe simply lacks the fortune to eat state-provided food. And yet she still blames me—how could I possibly have known?

Zhu Yan also grew increasingly impatient with me. What’s done is done, why do you keep obsessing over my mother?

Later on, I moved out of the Zhu household and fell gravely ill in a cheap rental apartment. Before I drew my final breath, my phone still held an unread text message sent by Zhu Yan: My mother is getting old, yet you have bickered and held a grudge against her all this time. It is truly meaningless.

Waking up once more, Qian Yufen was still hammering violently against the bedroom door. Hua Qinghe, did you hear me? I cooked congee for you! Don't you dare go around saying this mother-in-law doesn't care about you!

I sat upright in bed, unable to suppress a cold laugh. She had always been precisely like this—her mouth overflowed with concern, while her hands pried deeper than anyone else's. If I bought a new set of clothes, she insisted on tearing off the price tag to inspect it; if I received my paycheck, she demanded every intricate detail. Even when I underwent my personnel interview, she deliberately craned her neck directly behind my back to watch. And Zhu Yan’s response would forever remain the exact same phrase: My mother hasn't had an easy life, you should just yield to her a little.

In this lifetime, I would yield no longer.

After washing my face, I stepped out into the living room. Qian Yufen was standing there holding a ceramic bowl, her eyes continuously darting toward my handbag. Whatever you brought back today, just leave it at home. Let me help you inspect it to see if anything is missing.

I bent down to change my shoes. There is no need.

Her expression darkened instantly. You ungrateful child, your mother is only doing this for your own good, and yet you still guard yourself against me like a thief?

Zhu Yan emerged from the bedroom, frowning deeply. Qinghe, it's early in the morning, stop putting on a bad attitude toward my mother.

I raised my eyes to look at him. In my past life, I had heard this exact sentence far too many times. I heard it until the very end, until I lost my entire life to it. I pulled the front door open. Rest assured, nobody will be touching it today.

Qian Yufen sneered coldly behind my back. You haven't even passed yet and you're already starting with this attitude. If you actually manage to get in, will this household even have room left for me?

I stood inside the elevator and pressed the button for the ground floor. This time, the Zhu family truly would no longer have any room for me.

After retrieving the official dossier bag, I did not return home immediately. People hurried past in the busy plaza outside, and the warm sunlight beat down upon the kraft paper envelope, making the red security seal flat and entirely pristine. In my past life, I had treated this very envelope as my ultimate hope, cradling it carefully as I brought it back to the Zhu house. The result was that my hope was severed by Qian Yufen with a single snip of her scissors.

This time, I stood beside the stone steps, taking multiple photographs of the sealed opening, the front face of the envelope, and the timestamp. Then, I hailed a taxi straight to the courier station.

The clerk at the counter glanced up and asked, Are these important documents?

I nodded. Extremely important. Please send them via express delivery as fast as possible.

She skillfully secured the envelope, pasted the waybill, and scanned the barcode. I kept my phone recording video throughout the entire procedure. The moment the tracking number was generated, I immediately forwarded it to my contact person. The other party replied swiftly: Received. It will be registered as soon as it arrives in the mail.

As I gazed at those few reassuring words, the tension finally drained from my shoulders bit by bit.

Just as I stepped out of the courier station, Zhu Yan’s call came through. His tone carried a familiar edge of impatience. Since you’ve already picked it up, hurry back. My mother said she stewed soup for you; stop acting like you never know how to appreciate kindness.

I nearly laughed aloud. In my past life, Qian Yufen’s soup was always served while she simultaneously probed about the contents written inside my envelope. She had never cared whether I passed the examination or not. What she truly feared was that I would succeed. The moment she learned I had advanced to the interview stage, she began making veiled insinuations: It’s fine for a woman to have a stable job, but too much stability makes people's hearts wander. Will she end up looking down on our little Yan in the future?

Zhu Yan hadn't been pleased either. If you actually manage to enter the city administration and earn a higher salary than me in the future, will you start feeling that I’m not good enough for you?

Back then, I had actually coaxed and comforted him. Of course not, we are family.

How utterly foolish that seemed now.

Upon leaving the post service, I stopped by a store to purchase a compact home security camera. When I finally returned to the Zhu residence, the moment Qian Yufen saw my hands were completely empty, her expression shifted drastically. Where is the bag?

I already mailed it.

Her voice skyrocketed in pitch. Mailed it? Why didn't you bring it back for me to look at?

I hung my handbag up on the rack. It was never meant to be looked at in the first place.

Qian Yufen slammed her soup ladle down into the pot with a deafening crash. What do you mean by that? I am your mother-in-law, and I can’t even take a single glance? Is there something written inside that dirty laundry of yours that cannot be let known to our Zhu family?

Zhu Yan sat sprawled on the sofa playing with his phone, without even bothering to lift his head. Hua Qinghe, can’t you speak properly to my mother? She didn't receive an education and doesn't understand all these pretentious rules of yours.

Here it came again. In my past life, whenever Qian Yufen’s hands grew itchy, Zhu Yan would immediately use her lack of education as an excuse to cover for her. I had argued, wept, and tried to reason with them, only to realize later how entirely useless it was. Qian Yufen was not someone who couldn't understand; she simply knew that Zhu Yan would always back her up, while I would simply swallow every grievance alone.

I stopped replying and walked straight into the bedroom to install the security camera.

That evening, my brother-in-law, Zhu Jiashu, gave me a call. Sister-in-law, I have a package arriving at the house tomorrow, make sure to sign for it on my behalf. I'm away on business and won't be back until late tonight.

Listening to his taken-for-granted tone, the corners of my lips curled upward bit by bit. It was finally here. In my past life, Zhu Jiashu’s official employment dossier and my own had been placed inside the cabinet together. Qian Yufen had slashed open my envelope while leaving his completely untouched. After the disaster befell me, he had even sat comfortably at the dining table laughing, Sister-in-law, you shouldn’t blame my mother too much. Anyone with true ability wouldn't let a simple document bag block their path.

In this lifetime, those exact words deserved to be returned to him.

The following afternoon, the express delivery arrived. The recipient listed on the label was me, while the sender was Zhu Jiashu. After signing for the parcel, I deliberately refrained from informing Qian Yufen that the package belonged to her younger son. I ripped open the outer shipping bag, revealing a kraft paper dossier envelope almost identical to the one I had carried in my past life. The opening was sealed with a red strip and stamped with official cross-seals. I faced the front of the envelope downward and laid it neatly inside the living room cabinet.

Qian Yufen was in the middle of mopping the floor; her movements ground to an immediate halt. What is that?

I closed the cabinet door deliberately and slowly. Important matters.

She sidled closer, her voice laced with suspicion. Weren’t your own documents already mailed away?

As expected, Qian Yufen’s interference in my past life had been entirely intentional. A cold smile surfaced in my heart. I pretended nothing was amiss as I closed the cabinet door completely, looking at her with a solemn expression. These are vital documents inside. Absolutely no one is allowed to open them.

The flesh on Qian Yufen’s face twitched violently. Of all things, she detested my using that tone of voice to address her the most. In our past life, the more I pleaded with her, the greater her sense of control became. In this lifetime, the more I refused to let her touch it, the more convinced she would become that I was hiding a scandalous secret she had every right to uncover.

Sure enough, she propped the mop against the wall and sneered. Hua Qinghe, you’re acting mighty important these days. Aren't I even allowed to store things in the household cabinet anymore? I am your mother-in-law, is it a crime for me to even ask a single question?

Zhu Yan strolled out from the kitchen, chiming in to support his mother. Qinghe, stop trying to act so mysterious all the time. My mother is only worried that you might misplace things.

I cast a sideways glance at Qian Yufen, my voice flat and detached. It won’t get lost, provided nobody has itchy fingers.

Qian Yufen flew into an instant rage. Who are you accusing of having itchy fingers?!

Too lazy to bicker with her, I turned around and shut the bedroom door firmly behind me, leaving her outside to hurl curses into the hallway.

By evening, Zhu Jiashu returned as well. Pushing the door open, he tossed his keys onto the shoe cabinet. Sister-in-law, did my express package arrive yet?

Before I could even open my mouth, Qian Yufen intercepted sharply, You have a package coming too?

Zhu Jiashu replied casually, Yeah, just some paperwork sent back to the house.

I picked up my water glass, offering no reminders. Qian Yufen stared at him, then shifted her gaze toward the cabinet, her eyes rolling craftily. What kind of paperwork?

Zhu Jiashu waved a hand impatiently. Mother, don't worry about it. In any case, you aren't allowed to touch it randomly.

Qian Yufen pouted in dissatisfaction. Everyone in this house tells me not to touch this and not to touch that. Am I not even allowed to open a cabinet in my own home anymore?

Zhu Yan chuckled good-naturedly to smooth things over. Mother, these young people just have a lot of official business.

Zhu Jiashu laughed as well. My sister-in-law's things must be even more precious, right? Now that she's about to land a government position, nobody is even allowed to graze against it.

I set my water glass down on the table and looked straight at him.