Rebirth in the 1980s: The Spicy Wife

Chapter 1: I'm a ?

Xia Xiaolan was awakened by sobs.

She remembered leading her team to complete a challenging merger and acquisition case, then attending the celebration party. Under the constant urging of her subordinates, Xia Xiaolan drank more than she should have.

However, she was still somewhat coherent on her way home, when she overheard her new assistant talking on the phone with her boyfriend, "I'm sending Boss Xia back home. She lives alone, yes, she's not married... You say, what's the point of a woman like Boss Xia earning so much money if she hasn't managed to marry herself off?" Xia Xiaolan, half-drunk and half-awake, didn't confront her assistant on the spot.

No matter how successful her career, a successful woman without the trappings of marriage is always subject to gossip. Xia Xiaolan was known for her assertive demeanor and ordinary looks. Some in the company joked that she was plain, old, and had high standards — it would be a miracle if she ever got married. Xia Xiaolan didn't care about people talking about her personal life, but her new assistant was loose-lipped and foolish, thinking she could discuss her superior's rumors right in front of her because she was drunk.

She decided to transfer the assistant to a different position in a couple of days.

At home, the nanny she hired, Auntie Zhang, kept nagging her to drink less and take better care of herself.

Xia Xiaolan threw herself onto the soft, large bed and fell asleep.

She had a strange dream where she became someone else, set in the 1980s. Bad things happened in the dream, and in a fit of anger, she ran into a pillar. Xia Xiaolan found it funny; she wasn't the type to commit suicide. Compared to the challenges she had faced in her years of hard work, the things in her dream were nothing.

But the dream was so vivid.

Xia Xiaolan could hear a woman crying softly, her head throbbing with pain.

The blanket was inexplicably damp and uncomfortable, and Xia Xiaolan felt soaked in sweat. When she finally managed to open her eyes, she was startled by a sallow, black face!

"Xiaolan, you're awake? You scared me to death, daughter... Oh, Xiaolan, does your head still hurt?" The woman had a sallow face and a frail body that seemed like it could be blown away by a breeze.

Xia Xiaolan thought, why hasn't this dream ended yet?!

Tears streamed down the woman's face. "Xiaolan, promise Mom, no more silly talk, okay?"

Xia Xiaolan nodded vaguely, and the woman wiped away her tears with her sleeve, a hint of a smile appearing on her careworn face.

"Mom will get you something to eat, wait here!" She closed the door, and Xia Xiaolan, fighting a headache, took in her surroundings. The bed was made of dark, creaky wood, and the straw beneath the mat rustled with every movement. The yellowing mosquito net was rolled up on either side of the bedpost with iron hooks. The faded blanket had four patches, and a thin string next to the bed was connected to a dim light bulb.

Xia Xiaolan tugged on the string, and the light came on, though it was still dim.

She got out of bed, her head throbbing. The only decent piece of furniture in the room was a dressing table by the window. The glass mirror reflected a delicate face with a pointed chin, large eyes, and a straight, delicate nose — it was strikingly beautiful. A white gauze bandage wrapped around her head, adding to her vulnerable appearance... Xia Xiaolan gasped; this was the kind of face people often referred to as enchantingly beautiful!

Of course, this wasn't her face!

If Xia Xiaolan had looked even a third as good as this, she wouldn't have been the subject of office gossip.

Xia Xiaolan smiled, and the person in the mirror smiled back, her eyes twinkling captivatingly. Xia Xiaolan made funny faces, but even then, the reflection in the mirror didn't look unattractive. It was quite unfair, she thought, remembering her own appearance. Calling herself plain was generous; without a significant amount of money spent on presentation, she was actually rather unattractive.

The world wasn't all about looks; the higher the level, the more emphasis on strength.

But coming from a humble background with no external support, her early struggles were genuinely difficult. While she worked tirelessly, attractive female colleagues with no professional expertise could secure orders with a bat of their eyelashes. She stayed up nights studying, but couldn't even get a meeting with a decision-maker... If she had been slightly more attractive, she might not have had to work for nearly 20 years to taste success.

The house, the car, the savings, and the position — she hadn't had the chance to enjoy the fruits of her labor for long. After just one night's sleep, she had somehow become another "Xia Xiaolan" with the same name. Living in 1983, just turned 18, with a stunningly beautiful face that could cause the downfall of nations, she couldn't understand why this "Xia Xiaolan" would want to commit suicide by running into a pillar.

The original "Xia Xiaolan" had died, for reasons unknown, and 30 years later, Xia Xiaolan awoke in this body, her dreams filled with jumbled memories that felt all too real.

Creak.

The door opened, and a woman with a sallow, black face and emaciated body entered, carrying a chipped enamel bowl:

"Xiaolan, I've steamed an egg for you, hurry up and eat it while it's hot."

The woman was careful, almost servile, she was Xia Xiaolan's mother, Liu Fen.

Xia Xiaolan opened her mouth, but the word "Mom" still didn't come out.

She wasn't sure what attitude to take towards Liu Fen. The memories of "Xia Xiaolan" showed a terrible attitude towards her. Should she continue being an unfilial daughter, or take the opportunity to say she had damaged her brain and start anew as a good daughter?

Xia Xiaolan was still hesitating when the half-closed door was roughly pushed open.

Several people barged into the room, led by Xia Xiaolan's grandmother, with Liu Fen's two sisters-in-law and several grandchildren and granddaughters, all looking menacing.

Grandma Xia, with her high cheekbones, was practically spitting fire. She snatched the enamel bowl from Liu Fen's hands and pushed her to the ground.

"You gave birth to a whore who's ruining our family's reputation, and you dare to steal eggs from the house to feed her? You fake your suicide attempt after being scolded, do you think I'm easily fooled?! If you want to die, then die, if hitting your head doesn't work, you can always jump into a river!"

The venom in her voice was not that of a loving grandmother, but rather like that of Xia Xiaolan's enemy.

Liu Fen crawled to Grandma Xia's feet, clinging to her skirt and refusing to let go:

"Mother, the child has just woken up, please leave her a way to live..."