Reborn in the 90s, I traded my ex-husband for eight apartments.

Money only counts when it's in your own hands.

In his previous life, Pei Xiangyang also promised to give 200 yuan a month in child support.

However, he only paid the money three times, and then he started making excuses to pay less, and eventually he didn't pay a single cent at all.

Every time he called, he would complain about being poor and how difficult things were for him, saying that he had so many workers to support and asking her to understand.

He also said how much he missed her and their son, saying that home was better and the pressure outside was too great, but he never went home again.

Liu Qiang and others who worked for him in the village all made money and went home one after another to get married and build houses.

They knew perfectly well that Pei Xiangyang was doing very well outside, living a life of luxury, but when they returned to the village, they all told the same thing to deceive her, coaxing her into willingly supporting Pei Xiangyang's elderly parents and younger siblings.

She was truly deceived and suffered greatly.

Pei Xiangyang did the calculation:

"Ten years of child support is 24,000, plus 20,000 in divorce settlement, that's 44,000. I'll give it to you now?"

Forty-four thousand is no small sum.

Bai Zhenzhu's eyes were red:

“From now on, I will be a divorced woman. I am uneducated and have no ability to earn money. I don’t want to remarry in this life, and I still have to raise my son. Xiangyang, I just want to have some savings so that I can feel more at ease.”

Pei Xiangyang: "..."

His face looked rather pale.

"I don't have that much money on hand right now. I'll give it to you when I get home."

But Bai Zhenzhu insisted:

"No, I need it now, otherwise I won't sign."

The women also chimed in:

"You're not just making empty promises to deceive us, are you? Don't say one thing to our faces and another behind our backs, and then not pay us a single penny."

Pei Xiangyang: "..." That was really his plan.

Bai Zhenzhu is easily swayed and devoted to him. Now that he's coaxed her into a divorce, she'll be completely subservient to him when she goes back.

Bai Zhenzhu covered her face and sobbed twice:

"Xiangyang, can we not get a divorce? Shuoshuo can't live without his father..."

Upon hearing this, Pei Xiangyang's heart tightened.

Just then, a "beep beep" sound came from outside, and Xia Lili, who was getting impatient, honked the horn to urge them on.

Pei Xiangyang watched Bai Zhenzhu cry so sadly and thought to himself that this woman was really in love with him. She was probably deliberately making things difficult for him because she didn't want to divorce him. Anyway, the money would still end up in his hands in the future, so he might as well give it to her.

He gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, I agree."

The two staff members at the marriage registration office exchanged a glance. This divorce would net them 44,000 yuan…

The woman thought of her chauvinistic and incompetent husband. If she were given 44,000 yuan, only a fool wouldn't divorce him.

So he quickly helped Bai Zhenzhu and Pei Xiangyang write out a divorce agreement by hand and had them sign it.

Her movements seemed even more hurried than Bai Zhenzhu's, as if she was afraid Pei Xiangyang would change his mind, and she urged him on:

"Hurry up and prepare the money. I'll go to the supervisor for approval right away. Aren't you busy? I'll try my best to get it done for you today."

Hearing that Bai Zhenzhu was to be given 44,000, Xia Lili frowned, thinking to herself that this woman was truly insatiable.

It's only a few hundred thousand yuan, nothing to her; getting Pei Xiangyang to divorce is the most important thing.

Seeing her sullen face, Pei Xiangyang assumed she thought he had given too much, so he quickly reassured her and made promises:

"Don't worry, that woman is stupid. I'll just ask her for it back later."

Xia Lili urged him unhappily:

"Go get the money quickly, and once we have the divorce certificate, we'll leave and stay in the county town tonight."

She glanced around and realized that the town didn't even have a decent guesthouse; what a run-down place.

As a result, Pei Xiangyang also had trouble withdrawing the money, as there was only a credit union and no bank in the town.

He then discussed it with Xia Lili:

“I’m going home for a bit. Didn’t you give my mom 50,000? I’ll borrow 44,000 from her first.”

He then became dissatisfied with Bai Zhenzhu, saying that this whole thing was unnecessary, that the useless woman had too many problems, and that she was wasting his time.

Xia Lili was already impatient; she was pregnant and felt uncomfortable being cooped up in the car all the time.

The matter was about to be completed, but unexpectedly, it got stuck on money.

She couldn't help but throw a tantrum, acting like a spoiled princess:

"It's so annoying. That woman is both poor and greedy. I gave her all of the 100,000."

"What? You gave me all 100,000?"

Pei Xiangyang was shocked. No wonder Xia Lili gave his mother two thousand back then. At the time, he thought Xia Lili was really filial to his mother, giving her fifty thousand and then two thousand more before leaving.

That's 100,000! He never dared to ask Xia Lili for that much money. How could Bai Zhenzhu, a rural woman, dare to ask for 100,000?

Xia Lili snorted:

“She absolutely refuses to get a divorce, what can I do? My belly is getting bigger and bigger, I don’t care, you have to get a divorce today, I won’t wait even one more day.”

Pei Xiangyang quickly tried to appease him:

"I'll definitely divorce her. Does that woman think she can stop me from getting a divorce? I've been disgusted with her for a long time. She's greedy and vicious. I don't want to see her for even a second longer. Here's what we'll do: we'll go to the county to get the money and take you back to your hotel in the county town to rest."

He then grabbed Xia Lili's hand and kissed it:

"Lily, it's really kind of you to come with me on this trip."

Xia Lili was overjoyed by his flattery. They had stayed in the county town last night, so they would go back and not come to this awful place again.

At this time of year, the road conditions are poor. It takes more than an hour to drive from Xiaxi Town to the county seat, so a round trip would take at least three hours.

Pei Xiangyang told Bai Zhenzhu that he was going to the county to get the money, and then drove away.

After he left, Bai Zhenzhu also left the marriage registration office.

She bought two pig hind legs, a ten-pound piece of pork belly, and a rack of spare ribs in town.

I went to the supply and marketing cooperative and bought three catties of crispy candy and peanut nougat, four cans of malted milk powder, six catties of brown sugar, three catties of loose biscuits, and three catties of glutinous rice strips.

He ordered two more bottles of liquor and three packs of Wuniu cigarettes, filling the snakeskin bag to the brim.

Then she rode her bicycle straight to her mother's hometown, Jinfeng Village.

Jinfeng Village is very close to the town; it only takes about ten minutes by bike.

Li Xiufen, who was gathering firewood behind the house to prepare lunch, was so happy to see her daughter return that she dropped the firewood and rushed to greet her.

"Pearl, why are you back? Where's Shuo Shuo? Didn't you bring him?"

Bai Zhenzhu, fighting back tears and the urge to rush forward and hug the other person, smiled playfully:

"I miss you and Dad. Shuo Shuo is at home. I'll bring him back next time."

"You silly girl." Rural people are simple and honest, and they feel embarrassed when they hear such emotional words.

Bai Zhenzhu didn't care about any of that. From now on, she would only be good to those who loved her.

She was the youngest child in her family and the only daughter, with three older brothers who were all married.

The Bai family parents were quite open-minded; they allowed each of their children to move out and live independently after marriage, letting them run their own little families.

As his older brothers got married one after another, more and more houses were built in the family, and the courtyard gradually took on the shape of the Chinese character "冂".

Although the whole family lived in the same courtyard, the mother-in-law, daughter-in-law, and sisters-in-law never quarreled, unlike some families where there are all sorts of disputes because the parents can't treat each other equally.

At this hour, the men are still working in the fields, leaving only the women and children at home.

Upon seeing Bai Zhenzhu return, her nephew, who was playing in the courtyard, started calling out:

"Auntie is back, Auntie, Auntie."

The three boys swarmed around them.

"Hey!"

Bai Zhenzhu smiled and responded, then opened the snakeskin bag on her bicycle and began to sort the items.