Commander, Your Daughter-in-Law Went and Beat Someone Up Again!

Set in rural China during the summer of 1975, the story follows Su Fu, a sixteen-year-old high school graduate living with her oppressive extended family in Kaoshan Village. Orphaned at a young age after her mother died in childbirth and her father, Su Yi, perished in an accident, Su Fu was raised by a man who taught her that life is worthless and self-interest is paramount. To survive the exploitation of her grandmother Wang Xiaojiao and her numerous aunts and uncles, who view her as a burden and a source of labor, Su Fu adopts a persona of calculated madness and fearlessness. She is known for her violent outbursts, such as shaving her uncle’s hair while he slept and threatening to slaughter the family’s egg-laying hens, which keeps her relatives at bay through terror rather than respect.

The central conflict arises when the Su family, desperate to rid themselves of Su Fu and covet her room, conspire to marry her off to a man in the impoverished Shangou village. Su Meimei, Su Fu’s venomous aunt, orchestrates the scheme, hiring a matchmaker to deceive Su Fu into believing the prospective groom is handsome, clean, and wealthy. The plan involves drugging Su Fu’s food and staging a scenario where she would be forced into marriage through scandal. Unaware of the plot initially, Su Fu sets her own high standards for a husband—requiring him to be tall, handsome, hygienic, and skilled in domestic chores—which frustrates her family, as no local man meets these criteria. She suspects the deception when the matchmaker’s descriptions seem exaggerated and decides to confront the suitor directly in town.

Before the blind date, Su Fu forms an alliance with Li Mingyu, an educated youth from the city who has been bullied by a fellow student spreading rumors about their relationship. Li Mingyu, from a privileged family with revolutionary credentials, hires Su Fu for two hundred yuan to help her break off an arranged childhood engagement to a sickly, lazy young man in Shanghai. Su Fu agrees, seeing an opportunity to escape the village and earn significant money. She uses her knowledge of local politics and her godfather’s connections in the public security compound to secure travel documents for both of them, framing her departure as a quest to find her own long-lost fiancé.

The turning point occurs during the blind date with the Shangou suitor. Su Fu exposes his ugliness and lecherous behavior, terrifying him into fleeing by smashing a brick with her bare hands. Simultaneously, she discovers her family’s plot to drug her and neutralizes the threat by shaving Su Meimei’s head while she sleeps, sending a clear message of her dominance. With the marriage scheme foiled and her family subdued by fear, Su Fu departs for Shanghai with Li Mingyu. The journey is arduous, involving long bus rides and a cramped train trip, during which Su Fu carries all their luggage, showcasing her physical strength and practical nature.

Upon arriving in Shanghai, Su Fu is awestruck by the wealth and comfort of Li Mingyu’s home, noting the air conditioning, television, and spacious rooms as things she has only read about. She maintains her professional demeanor, treating the job as a business transaction rather than a favor, which earns Li Mingyu’s respect. The story concludes with Su Fu preparing to confront Li Mingyu’s arranged fiancé, aiming to dismantle the engagement through psychological pressure rather than violence, while Li Mingyu’s family begins to appreciate Su Fu’s competence and loyalty. Su Fu’s ultimate goal remains securing a stable, comfortable life, whether through marriage to a suitable partner or a coveted city job, as she navigates the stark contrasts between rural hardship and urban opportunity.