Back to the 1980s: Grandma Liu Beats Her Ungrateful Children

Liu Meiling, a level-two worker at a textile factory in 1980s China, endures decades of exploitation by her husband Li Mingliang and her five children. For over ten years, Li Mingliang withholds his entire salary, forcing Liu Meiling to work odd jobs and scavenge market scraps to feed the family. Her eldest son Li Baoguo, whom she dotes on, demands an exorbitant 888-yuan bride price for his engagement to Zhan Hongmei. When her youngest daughter Baomei is assaulted by Zhan Hongmei's brother, Liu Meiling publicly exposes her husband's financial betrayal at the steel mill, where workers discover Li Mingliang has given nothing to his family for a decade. During this confrontation, Li Mingliang beats Liu Meiling, causing her to cough blood and collapse.

Upon waking, Liu Meiling realizes she has been reborn to 1983, the day before Baomei's disappearance and the day Li Mingliang forced her to give her job to his rural cousin Qin Xiangru. In her previous life, this sequence of events led to Baomei's death, her eldest son's betrayal, and her own lonely death on a wooden bed at age seventy-five, called a freeloader by the children she raised. This time, Liu Meiling slaps her eldest son, reveals Li Mingliang's secret affair with Qin Xiangru, and throws him out of the house. She rescues Baomei from the alley where Zhan Dazhuang attacks her, then confronts the Zhan family, refusing the bride price and ensuring both Zhan boys face legal consequences for assault.

When Qin Xiangru returns to the Li household, Liu Meiling recognizes the pattern: Qin Xiangru's arrival coincides with family chaos, a tactic to create an alibi. Liu Meiling recalls that in her past life, Qin Xiangru received her job through manipulation while Baomei went missing. Determined to break the cycle, Liu Meiling discovers a hidden stash of 3,900 yuan in her home, money Li Mingliang had concealed from her. She also learns that a system called 0928 Good Deeds Report has bound to her soul, rewarding acts of kindness with gifts and information. Using this system, she identifies Qian Feng, a boy beaten by his mother Qin Xiangru, as her biological son, confirmed by a paternity test report.

Liu Meiling takes Qian Feng and his sister Mianmian to the hospital, paying their medical fees. She then confronts Li Mingliang at the steel mill, where workers witness her public accusation. Li Mingliang, fearing loss of his reputation, agrees to pay. Liu Meiling demands 7,000 yuan in back wages, calculating his decade of withheld income. She retrieves the hidden money from her home and purchases a courtyard in Yangcheng, knowing it will be demolished for profit within two years. She also buys meat and eats it herself, refusing to deprive herself as she did in her past life.

Her children return and demand she share the food. Liu Meiling announces she will no longer support their education or expenses, telling her eldest son his job belongs to her and demanding half his salary. She plans to sell her textile factory position for 1,800 yuan, giving her over 5,700 yuan total. With this capital, she intends to open a business, divorce Li Mingliang, and raise only her biological children Qian Feng and Baomei. She refuses to let her second son repeat his past-life failures and cuts off all financial support for the ungrateful eldest, third, and fourth children. The story follows Liu Meiling's transformation from a self-sacrificing mother to a woman who prioritizes her own survival and the well-being of her true children, using her knowledge of the future and the mysterious system to secure her independence."