The Delicate Beauty Goes to Join the Army and Stuns the Military Compound with a Single Punch

Xie Li transmigrates into a novel as the cannon-fodder female supporting character, trapped in a loveless marriage with the male lead, Pei Shuchen, who is secretly involved with her foster sister, Xie Silin. The original Xie Li died of rage after catching her husband and sister in bed. Upon waking, Xie Li immediately retaliates, beating Pei Shuchen into the ICU and physically assaulting his mother, Qi Yuehua, who had been plotting to ruin Xie Li's reputation to clear the way for the affair. Xie Li demands and receives thirty thousand yuan as a divorce settlement, a massive sum in 1960s Shanghai, and simultaneously leaks explicit photos of Pei Shuchen and Xie Silin across the city, destroying their reputations before they can frame her.

Returning to her biological family, the wealthy Xie household, Xie Li faces coldness from her parents, Xie Qingsong and Wu Fengrao, who favor the fake heiress Xie Silin. The family patriarch, Xie Boyou, recognizes Xie Li's changed demeanor and, sensing the impending political turmoil, reveals a secret. Before dying, he bequeaths a gold bracelet to Xie Li, which contains a spatial dimension holding the family's generational wealth, while the jade bracelet Xie Silin steals is a decoy. Xie Li secures her future by accepting a marriage arrangement with Shen Huainian, a soldier from the Liaoning Military District, as a protective shield against the coming political purges targeting capitalists.

Xie Silin, also a transmigrator with knowledge of the original plot, attempts to steal the space by binding the jade bracelet with her blood, unaware that only the gold bracelet is the true key. She undergoes a painful forty-nine-day ritual of self-harm to activate the fake bracelet, weakening her health significantly. Meanwhile, Pei Shuchen, humiliated by the public scandal and his own insecurities, schemes with his family to drug Xie Li and ruin her further. Xie Silin participates in this plot, administering an aphrodisiac to a cup of milk intended for Xie Li. However, Xie Li anticipates the betrayal, swaps the cups, and forces Xie Silin to drink the drugged milk instead.

The plan backfires catastrophically. Xie Silin, under the influence of the drug, becomes uncontrollable and is discovered by Pei Shuchen's nephews, who intended to assault Xie Li. The police arrive, arresting the nephews and exposing the scandal. Xie Li manipulates the situation to ensure the Pei and Xie families are publicly disgraced and legally entangled. The conflict escalates into a physical brawl between the two families, with Pei Shuchen and Xie Silin turning on each other due to mutual blame and resentment. Xie Li watches from the sidelines, having secured her divorce, her inheritance, and her escape route, while her enemies destroy themselves through greed and incompetence.

As the political movement intensifies, the Xie and Pei families attempt to flee to Hong Kong, planning to leave Xie Li behind as a scapegoat. Xie Li, however, is prepared to depart for Liaoning to marry Shen Huainian. She maintains a facade of weakness and epilepsy to lower her enemies' guards while systematically dismantling their plans. The story concludes with Xie Li poised to leave Shanghai, having reclaimed her agency and secured her safety through the military marriage arranged by her grandfather, while the scumbags face the consequences of their own malicious schemes.