Back to the 80s: The Pushover Old Couple Pummel Their Whole Family

Shen Xiuzhen and her husband Song Shulin lived a life of relentless sacrifice for their extended Song family. Despite being the youngest branch in a household of over twenty people, they worked as beasts of burden to support their elder brothers, their mother, and their seven nieces and nephews. They sold their land, took on debt, and forced their own children to give up education, health, and even their lives to secure futures for the cousins. Their eldest son died in a coal mine collapse, their second son died after donating a kidney to a nephew, their daughter was beaten to death by a violent husband arranged by the family, and their youngest daughter was killed while trying to pay medical bills. In their final days, the couple was imprisoned in a basement by the very relatives they had sustained, forced to accept a meager settlement for the drunk driver who killed their youngest child. As they died in despair, they vowed to change their fate if given another chance.

Shen Xiuzhen opened her eyes to find herself reborn thirty years into the past, on August 23, 1983. She realized she was back at the exact moment her eldest daughter’s tragedy began: the day the family planned to force her fifteen-year-old daughter, Dani, into a marriage exchange. Her third nephew, Song Weimin, intended to marry a city girl but needed a rural bride to marry his lame, abusive older brother in return. In her previous life, Shen Xiuzhen had agreed to this arrangement, leading to her daughter’s brutal death. This time, she refused. Simultaneously, her husband Song Shulin also revealed that he had been reborn. Having witnessed the destruction his compliance caused, he was determined to protect his family. The couple decided that if the Song family would not let them live in peace, they would leave. They demanded a divorce and the division of the household, threatening suicide if forced to stay.

The threat of suicide and public scandal shocked the Song family. Old Mrs. Wang, the matriarch, and the elder brothers tried to manipulate them using guilt and moral blackmail, citing the eldest brother’s lame leg and the second brother’s illness as debts owed by Song Shulin. However, Song Shulin countered these arguments by threatening to break his own leg to “repay” the debt, while their son Song Sihai cleverly turned the villagers’ gossip against the family. The couple’s newfound ruthlessness confused and frightened the relatives, who relied on their silence and obedience. When Old Mrs. Wang attempted to whip the children, Song Shulin and Shen Xiuzhen intervened, locking the doors and refusing to cook or work until the family was divided.

With the household in chaos and no one willing to do the labor, Shen Xiuzhen and Song Shulin rode Song Weimin’s bicycle to the coal mine where their eldest son, Dajiang, worked. They convinced him to quit his job, citing safety concerns and a dream about a collapse, effectively saving him from his destined death. Back home, the family faced starvation as the third branch refused to prepare meals. The conflict escalated as the Song relatives realized they had lost their source of free labor. Shen Xiuzhen and Song Shulin stood firm, declaring that they would no longer sacrifice their children for the benefit of the cousins. The story follows their struggle to break free from the toxic family structure, protect their remaining children from further exploitation, and build a new life for themselves, while the Song family faces the consequences of their greed and entitlement.