Seventies Flash Marriage: My Mother-in-Law Taught Me Husband Taming and It's Thrilling

In the summer of 1975, Beijing resident Ruan Tang finds herself on the brink of a catastrophic life change. Haunted by a vivid nightmare in which she is sent to the countryside for re-education, only to be trapped and abused by predatory villagers, she becomes desperate to avoid the same fate. The nightmare manifests when the neighborhood committee informs her that she must report for rural assignment. With no job of her own and limited options, Ruan Tang seeks to escape this destiny by accelerating her arranged marriage to Su Jincheng, a man she has known since childhood. However, her plans are thwarted by the cold indifference of Su Jincheng and the manipulative interference of his mother, Wu Mengzhi, who holds significant power within the local cotton mill and revolutionary committee.

Ruan Tang’s mother, Wang Yun, had previously relied on Wu Mengzhi to secure the engagement, believing it would benefit both families. Yet, Wu Mengzhi now views Ruan Tang as an obstacle, preferring to keep her son single while she maneuvers to maintain control. Desperate and time-pressed, Ruan Tang encounters Jiang Ye, a notorious local playboy with a reputation for causing trouble. Jiang Ye, who has long harbored secret affection for Ruan Tang, proposes a transactional marriage: if she calls off her engagement to Su Jincheng, he will marry her. This union offers Ruan Tang the immediate protection she needs to remain in the city, and she accepts, unaware of the elaborate scheme Jiang Ye has already set in motion.

Jiang Ye leads Ruan Tang to a dilapidated ancestral temple, claiming they are there to catch adulterers. Inside, they discover Su Jincheng and Cai Xiaolan, a colleague of Ruan Tang’s, engaged in an illicit affair. Cai Xiaolan had orchestrated Ruan Tang’s rural assignment to remove her as a rival, hoping to marry Su Jincheng herself. Jiang Ye, having monitored the couple’s movements, orchestrated the discovery by alerting Granny Li and a group of neighborhood aunties. When the women burst in, Su Jincheng and Cai Xiaolan are exposed in compromising positions. Ruan Tang, initially appearing shocked and innocent, swiftly turns the tables by publicly slapping Su Jincheng and denouncing their behavior, humiliating them before the gathered crowd and authorities.

The incident escalates to the police station, where Jiang Ye’s mother, Yang Wenzhi, the current Neighborhood Committee Director, intervenes. She imposes strict penalties, including public self-criticisms and financial compensation for Ruan Tang. Wu Mengzhi, desperate to protect her son’s career and social standing, is forced to agree to the cancellation of the engagement and pay damages. Jiang Ye further ensures that Su Jincheng and Cai Xiaolan lose their jobs at the cotton mill by leveraging connections with the factory director. With the engagement broken and her immediate crisis averted, Ruan Tang faces the reality of her new arrangement.

Ruan Tang’s family, particularly her mother, remains wary of Jiang Ye due to his lack of employment and troubled reputation. However, Ruan Tang insists that marriage is the only viable path to avoid the countryside. Jiang Ye, though initially viewing the marriage as a means to an end, finds himself genuinely drawn to Ruan Tang’s straightforward and resilient nature. As Jiang Mother eagerly prepares for the wedding, removing Ruan Tang’s name from the rural assignment list, the two families begin to navigate the complexities of their new relationship. The story concludes with Ruan Tang and Jiang Ye formally agreeing to marry, setting the stage for a union built on necessity but potentially evolving into something deeper amidst the social and familial challenges of 1970s Beijing.