Landlady who likes to hoard land

The moon was high in the sky, and Wang Chenghua lay in bed, still tossing and turning, unable to sleep, while An'an slept soundly beside him. Her soft breathing was incredibly comforting.

Unable to sleep, she got up and sat on the edge of the bed, looking out the window at the dappled shadows of the trees under the moonlight.

The dappled shadows of the trees were like her life at this moment—rough, uneven, and fragmented.

Wang Chenghua was the youngest in her family, eight years younger than Wang Chenggong, six years younger than Wang Chengyu, and four years younger than Wang Chengqing. She lived a carefree life at her parents' home, doted on by her older brother, pampered by her older sister, and loved by her parents.

Her smooth life ended when she was twenty-one, when she fell in love.

That year, despite her parents' strong opposition, she resolutely ended her studies and even said many hurtful things, determined to marry Zhuge Peng. In her youth, she always thought that as long as there was love, the future would be bright.

They enjoyed a blissful period after getting married, and she once thought she had found true love.

She remained single until she gave birth to her eldest son, Zhuge Ming. Her in-laws and Zhuge Peng believed that having a child meant she was completely bound to the marriage, and their attitude towards her began to change, gradually becoming worse and worse.

At that time, her family was also struggling, and she couldn't bear to let her parents worry about her, while also feeling somewhat resentful.

She had insisted on marrying the man against her parents' wishes and even at their expense, only to find him so unbearable after marriage. She vowed to walk this path even on her knees.

She firmly believed that she and Zhuge Peng had feelings for each other, but they had simply grown tired of each other after spending so much time together.

For the sake of her child, she endured all the humiliation. Later, she was bewitched by Zhuge Peng and gave birth to her youngest son, Zhuge An. From then on, she faced the darkest moment of her life.

After giving birth to An'an, Zhuge Peng resigned and started his own business. He first sold his old house and went to the south to start a business. He disappeared for a year and returned after being swindled out of all his money.

She advised him to find a job so that the family could live a peaceful and stable life together.

He had been drinking and started hitting her. She wasn't one to back down either; she whipped him with a broom, leaving him covered in bruises.

That was the first time she had the thought of divorce. After he sobered up, he knelt down before her, made vows, and showed great concern for her and the children for a while.

Thinking that he could repent, remembering that there were still feelings between them, and hoping that their child could have a complete family, she chose to forgive him.

In the years that followed, Zhuge Peng's several business ventures failed, and she finally proved the saying that domestic violence either happens zero times or countless times, thanks to the bruises that covered her body year after year.

The bond between the two gradually crumbled as they fought each other repeatedly.

When the family's savings were all gone, he tricked her into mortgaging their only house and then started a new business.

Until Zhuge Peng was unable to repay the loan, was sued and pursued for debt, her WeChat payment function was blocked, and even his parents' savings were frozen by the bank.

She then learned that he had not only mortgaged their house, but also owed hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans.

She filed for divorce, and Zhuge Peng threatened her, saying that if she dared to divorce him, he would make her mother's life miserable.

Unless she voluntarily assumes all the debts, divorce is out of the question.

Wang Chenghua felt as if his lifeline had been seized, and he didn't know what to do.

After his scheme was exposed, Zhuge Peng spent his days in hiding, drinking and sleeping, and generally giving up. When he was in a bad mood, he would beat up Wang Chenghua.

Although she would fight back, a woman's strength was ultimately no match for a drunken man. After being injured repeatedly, she began to harbor the idea of ​​dying together with Zhuge Peng.

Wang Chenghua has two children, and An'an is so young. Her parents-in-law don't care about them at all, so she can't go out to work.

She doesn't even have 500 yuan to her name right now.

The 10,000 yuan that the three sisters negotiated to pay for their mother's surgery was borrowed from her classmates.

Those days were unbearable to recall, and that's when she finally hardened her heart and decided to get a divorce.

Just then, her mother fell ill with cancer, and in order not to worry her mother, she had to keep quiet again.

She wanted to tell her eldest brother, Wang Chenggong, that he was just starting out in his business and was already struggling to make ends meet. Logically, she should be closest to her second sister, Wang Chengqing, who was closest to her in age, but it seemed there was a generation gap between them, and she was actually closer to her eldest sister, Wang Chengyu.

She wanted to tell Wang Chengyu, but unexpectedly learned from her mother that her eldest sister had quarreled with her husband's older sister and was called a poor sow.

She chose to keep quiet again; it seemed like everyone was having a hard time.

She didn't know who to talk to, and the matter festered in her heart, causing her to suffer from insomnia night after night.

At just 29 years old, she often experiences chest pain from holding her breath, and two-thirds of her hair has already turned white, requiring her to frequently dye it to avoid being noticed.

Her mother's illness also brought her convenience. At least living with her mother, she no longer had to live in fear, no longer had to worry about sudden beatings, and no longer had to see Zhuge Peng's disgusting face.

Even when she returned to her own home, Zhuge Peng, worried that if she came to take care of Wang's mother, people would find out that he had beaten his wife, never hit her again.

Especially after taking the vitamins her older sister gave her, she has been feeling much better lately. Sometimes she can sleep through the night, and the frequency of breast pain has also decreased.

She desperately wanted these days of living in fear to end soon. Even if it meant being poorer and more exhausted, as long as she could get rid of Zhuge Peng, that would be enough.

She knew that a beast would always be a beast, and that the day her mother was fully recovered and discharged from the hospital might be the day her nightmare began again.

Wang Chenghua desperately wanted a divorce. As her mother's condition stabilized and she gradually recovered, she became anxious and depressed again, and even developed tinnitus.

Today, my older sister said she's making a lot of money and wants me to start working with her next year. She even went to great lengths to get Director Zhu to introduce her to a traditional Chinese medicine doctor. Tomorrow morning, my older sister will take her to see the doctor. It's like a ray of light has shone into her rotten life.

Should she try again? Tonight, she asked herself countless times whether she should muster the courage to choose again.

Even if it means taking on debt, she wants to leave that scumbag Zhuge Peng. Her only worry is what to do if Zhuge Peng really comes to her parents' house to cause trouble.

She had witnessed her older sister's transformation; now her sister was confident and resolute, and she longed to lean on her for a moment.

She secretly made a bet: if the old Chinese medicine doctor could successfully diagnose her and prescribe a medicine tomorrow, she would tell her older sister and ask her for advice.

If the old Chinese medicine doctor is unwilling to prescribe a medicine for her, it means that even God has given up on her. She can just endure until the day she runs out of energy and then fight Zhuge Peng to the death.

As I pondered, it was already five in the morning, and another sleepless night had passed.

The streetlights outside had been turned off sometime earlier. The deep blue sky was dotted with stars, and the hazy moonlight gently shone down on the world. She wondered who was sharing this view of the stars and moon with her, and how many other people in the world had stayed up all night like her.

Wang Chenghua heard rustling sounds coming from the living room. It was Wang Chengyu getting up. Wang Chengyu had slept in the living room last night.

The noise soon grew louder, the spotlights were turned on, and a faint light shone through the gap at the bottom of the door.