Rebirth in the '70s: The Capitalist's Daughter Only Wants a Divorce

Shu Yue dies in despair after discovering that the daughter she raised for eighteen years is not her biological child, but the result of a birth swap orchestrated by her husband’s brother and sister-in-law. Her own son drowned in childhood, and the ungrateful girl reveals she poisoned Shu Yue’s entire family before killing her. As Shu Yue breathes her last, she vows revenge in the underworld. However, she does not pass on. Instead, she awakens in excruciating pain, realizing she has been reborn on September 10, 1975, the very day she gave birth. She finds herself in the delivery room, witnessing Huang Fang and her mother attempting to swap the babies. Shu Yue, now fully conscious and armed with the memories of her tragic past, slaps both women, exposing their plot to starve her, induce premature labor, and exchange her son for Huang Fang’s daughter.

Shu Yue’s previous life was marked by suffering. Sent down to the countryside as an educated youth due to her family’s “capitalist” background, she was isolated and bullied. After nearly drowning and being rescued by Cheng Jingchuan, she forced him into marriage to secure her safety. In the Cheng household, she was despised by her in-laws for her background and for giving birth to a girl, while her sister-in-law Huang Fang was favored for bearing sons. Shu Yue lived in silence, enduring neglect and abuse, only to have her life destroyed by the child she raised. Now, with a second chance, she refuses to be a victim. She demands a household division, separating from the Cheng family to live with the only relative who ever showed her kindness, Old Madam Cheng, in their dilapidated ancestral home.

The household division is contentious. The Cheng family, particularly Shu Yue’s father-in-law and mother, attempt to deprive her of her rightful share of grain and resources, believing she will starve without them. However, the village chief and party secretary intervene, ensuring Shu Yue receives her earned work points and rations. Shu Yue takes only what she brought into the marriage and her own earnings, leaving the Chengs with nothing but their greed. She moves into the old house with Old Madam Cheng and her divorced, childless sister-in-law, Cheng Xiaoying, forming a fragile but supportive unit.

Shortly after moving in, Shu Yue discovers a magical space within a jade pendant her grandfather gave her. The space contains a fully furnished apartment, a storeroom filled with gold, jewelry, and antiques, and a garden with a spiritual spring. The spring water accelerates her postpartum recovery and increases her milk supply, allowing her to breastfeed her son, Cheng Hui, whom she had lost in her previous life. With this secret advantage, Shu Yue is no longer bound by the scarcity of the era. She plans to raise her son well, protect her new family, and seek justice for the wrongs done to her.

Shu Yue’s transformation is immediate and striking. When village gossips accuse her of seducing men, she does not remain silent as she did before. Instead, she slaps the accusers and confronts them with logic and political terminology, turning their rumors against them. Her assertiveness shocks the village, which is accustomed to her meekness. Meanwhile, the Cheng family continues to scheme; Cheng Jing’an seeks money for a promotion, and Huang Fang faces her mother’s wrath for the failed baby swap. Shu Yue, however, focuses on her son and her new life, determined to ensure he never suffers the fate of her previous child. She begins to lay the groundwork for her future, using the resources from her pendant space to secure her family’s well-being while navigating the complex and hostile social environment of the rural village.