80s: The Black-hearted Darling is Pampered by the Factory Director Until She Goes Weak in the Knees

Tao Yu, a woman from the modern era, transmigrates into the body of a teenage girl with the same name in a 1980s-style Chinese city. The original host had attempted suicide multiple times due to severe depression and family trauma, most recently after her father, Tao Lijun, sold their home and abandoned them. Tao Yu wakes up on a rooftop, having survived the latest attempt, and resolves to live a new life with resilience and pragmatism. She is cared for by her devoted but impoverished mother, Li Juan, who works multiple odd jobs to support them. The family lives in a dilapidated courtyard, struggling to survive after losing their home and financial stability.

Tao Yu quickly adapts to her new reality, using her modern knowledge and business acumen to improve their situation. She observes that her mother’s vegetable-selling business is exhausting and low-profit, so she devises a plan to start a clothing business. Tao Yu collects discarded fashion design books and teaches her mother, who has natural tailoring skills, to create fashionable ready-made garments. They source fabric through a backdoor arrangement at a textile factory, purchasing high-quality materials at low cost. Their first batch of clothes, featuring bold patterns and unique designs, is a resounding success at a local market, earning them a significant profit that transforms their financial outlook.

Simultaneously, Tao Yu seeks stable employment and secures a position as a food server in the cafeteria of the Ling Tian Machinery Factory, a newly reopened industrial plant. The factory is led by Song Hecheng, a wealthy, foreign-educated director who lives in an exclusive, guarded compound nearby. Tao Yu’s path crosses with Song Hecheng multiple times. Initially, he is involved in a minor traffic incident where his driver nearly hits her, leading to a compensation payment. Later, she encounters him in the cafeteria, where she maintains a professional distance despite his status. Their interactions are marked by mutual curiosity and unspoken tension, with Tao Yu recognizing the opportunity his position represents for her family’s housing needs.

As Tao Yu’s clothing business grows, she faces hostility from neighbors, particularly an aggressive woman named Granny Mao, who attempts to extort money and damages their borrowed sewing machine. Tao Yu confronts the bully with a knife, displaying a fierce protectiveness that shocks her mother and neighbors. This incident highlights the dangers of their environment and reinforces Tao Yu’s determination to escape their current living conditions. She learns that a vacant house belonging to the Song family is available for rent near the guarded compound, offering both safety and proximity to her workplace.

Tao Yu strategically uses her role delivering meals to the director’s office to gather information and subtly signal her interest in the rental property. She engages with Song Hecheng’s driver and secretary, navigating the social hierarchy with calculated politeness. Her efforts pay off when she learns the house is indeed available. The story follows her dual life as a factory worker and an aspiring entrepreneur, as she balances her growing business with her interactions with the powerful Song family. Her relationship with Song Hecheng evolves from chance encounters to a more deliberate connection, driven by her need for housing and his quiet observation of her competence and beauty. Tao Yu’s journey is one of survival and upward mobility, as she leverages her wits to secure a better future for herself and her mother in a restrictive social environment.