After Dying Miserably from Foolish Filial Piety, I Severed Ties with My Family and Rose to Become Wealthy - Chapter 1:

Chapter 1: Reborn After Dying Miserably from Foolish Filial Piety.

In the courtyard of a farmhouse in Xiaohe Village, Qingzhu Town.

A man lay on the bed with his eyes tightly shut, cold sweat streaming down his forehead. His face was twisted in pain. Suddenly, he jolted upright and opened his eyes.

His bloodshot gaze swept across the room. Newspapers were pasted over the mottled walls. When he saw the date printed on them clearly, his breathing stopped for a moment.

He… wasn’t he dead?

He had died in his forties. For his parents, for his younger brother and sisters, he had given everything, just to fulfill his duty as the eldest son and win their approval. Then one car accident crippled his leg. Once they saw him as useless, they threw him into the cowshed.

Forget taking care of him. For three long years, he endured their cold mockery and harsh ridicule until he finally died alone.

He never expected that after his death, his wandering soul would see his ex-wife collecting his body. Even less did he expect that after arranging his burial, she would throw herself into a well. The thought made Jiang Heng panic.

Hearing cries and curses from outside, he could no longer sit still. He flipped off the bed and ran out, not even noticing that one of his shoes had fallen off.

In the courtyard, Si Nian held a child in her arms, kneeling in front of the main house door and crying in despair. She kept pleading, “Mom, just give me 5 yuan. Nuonuo has a fever and needs to go to the hospital.”

Inside the room, Wang Xiuying sat unmoved. Her sharp, mean face showed no trace of sympathy. Her voice was flat and indifferent, “She’s just a girl. Why go to the hospital? Don’t waste money.”

“If she has a fever, wipe her down more and it’ll go down. Who didn’t grow up like that? You’re the only one making a fuss.”

“No, Mom, that’s not it. Nuonuo has had a fever for a whole day. It won’t go down no matter what I do. I really have no other choice.”

Si Nian knocked on the door as tears fell in drops. Seeing her daughter’s face flushed red from the heat, fear grew stronger in her heart.

“Mom, please open the door. Just give me 5 yuan… no, even 2 yuan is fine. I’m begging you. Nuonuo is your own granddaughter. Please save her, alright?”

With a creak, the door beside them opened.

Hearing the sound, Si Nian’s crying suddenly stopped. Through her tear-blurred eyes, she looked over and saw the tall, indistinct figure of a man.

Her body trembled unconsciously. In a humble voice, she said, “I… I didn’t mean to spend money. It’s just that Nuonuo…”

Jiang Heng’s greedy gaze fell on her. A living, breathing wife who could cry, not the withered, aged woman he had seen before he died. His heart twisted painfully.

When he saw the little girl in her arms, he took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. The most important thing now was solving the problem. The child’s illness could not be delayed.

He reached out and pulled her up, speaking in a low voice, “It’s alright. I’ll get the money and take the child to the town hospital. It’s cold. Stand aside, wife.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he raised his hand and knocked on the door. His eyes were filled with blood-red hatred, and his voice was icy cold. “Mom, give me the 20 yuan I earned last month from selling wild chickens and rabbits.”

“My child’s fever can’t be delayed. What if it burns her brain? Mom, did you hear me?”

Seeing that the person inside pretended not to hear, the violence in Jiang Heng’s heart surged.

He took a deep breath and said softly, “Wife, carry the child and stand farther away. Mom is old and hard of hearing. If she can’t hear me, I’ll just kick the door. Then she’ll hear.”

Si Nian stared at him in shock.

As soon as he finished speaking, the door opened from inside. Wang Xiuying pulled a long face, clearly displeased. “Eldest, what are you trying to do? If you dare kick the door, wait until your father comes back and beats you.”

“It’s just a fever. Tell your wife to wipe her down. It’ll go down. Don’t follow her in making a fuss.”

Jiang Heng’s body trembled as he clenched his fists tightly, his eyes red. “The 20 yuan I gave you last month. Give it back to me now.”

“Right now. Immediately.”

When she stayed silent, he pushed past her and went inside. He skillfully found a box and was about to take the money when a figure rushed over to snatch it.

Jiang Heng was 1.85 meters tall and had developed solid muscles from years of hunting. He only needed to lift his arm slightly, and the old woman couldn’t grab it. She could only watch helplessly as the 20 yuan was taken away.

“Mom, I’m only taking the 20 yuan I earned myself. The money I handed over to the family belongs to you. I won’t touch that. We’ll still eat together as usual.”

What he did not say was that in the future, household chores would be divided. Why should his wife do everything alone? But now was not the time. Saving the child came first.

He stuffed the box back into her arms, walked out quickly, took the child, and said, “Wife, pack up. We’re going to the hospital to treat the child.”

Si Nian looked at the money in his hand, her mind blank. She nodded numbly, hurried to pack up, locked the door, and followed him.

As they walked out of the courtyard, they could still hear curses from behind.

Jiang Heng went to the village head’s house to borrow a bicycle and rushed toward town with his wife and child. Fortunately, Xiaohe Village was not far from town. They arrived at the town hospital in half an hour.

Sitting on a bench in the hospital corridor, he clasped his hands tightly in nervousness. In his previous life, he had only known that the child had a fever for one day. On the second day, it became worse. On the third day, she was beyond saving.

This time, they had come earlier. But until he heard the doctor say she would be fine, he was still terrified something would happen to his little daughter.

Si Nian secretly studied the man beside her. Sensing his nervousness and fear, the doubt in her eyes deepened. Before, he had always disliked her for giving birth to a daughter.

In his words and actions, he never looked at the child properly, not even once holding her. Why had he suddenly become so concerned? Had he hit his head yesterday and somehow come to his senses?

No. She could not place hope in him again. The pain of repeated disappointment was something she no longer wanted to endure.

Her nose felt sour, and her eyes were swollen red. In a hoarse voice, she said, “You… you took Mom’s money by force. When Dad comes back from work, he’ll probably hit you. When that happens, just say it was my fault.”

“Dad wouldn’t hit a daughter-in-law. I’m fine. Thank you… for saving Nuonuo this time.”

Her polite, distant tone made Jiang Heng’s eyes sting.

He knew she still resented him. Thinking of the things he had done in his previous life, he wished he could slap himself. How could he have been so foolish and hurt his wife so deeply?

He said in a low voice, “I’m the child’s father. Bringing her to the hospital when she’s sick is my duty. You don’t need to thank me. As for Dad trying to hit me, that depends on whether he can beat me.”

Si Nian fell silent, her expression strange.

He was tall and strong, capable in work, but toward his parents he had always been extremely submissive. Not only did he never resist, he once knelt on the ground and let his father whip him with a rattan stick.

Better not say anything, she thought. What if he got angry?

Jiang Heng noticed her eyes rolling thoughtfully but did not immediately realize what was wrong. He forced a small smile.

Si Nian glanced at him and quickly lowered her head.

With a creak, the door opened. The doctor came out, his face stern as he scolded, “What kind of father are you? The child already has pneumonia and you only brought her now. If you had come any later, she wouldn’t have made it.”

“Doctor… is she alright now?”

Jiang Heng’s face turned pale. His body trembled uncontrollably as he looked at the doctor anxiously.

Seeing that he was not pretending, the doctor’s expression softened slightly. He nodded and kindly advised, “Comrade, I know that in the countryside people favor sons over daughters, but she’s still your own child. A life is a life.”