“Tumbleweed” 风滚草 by 喜酌 Xi Zhuo

In 2016, in response to the national policy encouraging second children, Cheng Simin’s middle-aged parents welcomed a new baby into the family during the winter of that year. 

From then on, at the age of nineteen, Cheng Simin embarked on a seven-year battle against her family to claim her share of personal assets. 

Working part-time while studying, migrating to Beijing for work, rejecting arranged blind dates, and eventually purchasing an apartment with a single loan—every life decision she made was a deliberate act of defiance against the outdated family system. 

But when the economy declined and competition became unbearable, Cheng Simin found herself unable to keep up with her mortgage payments. Bankrupt and exhausted, the young woman had no choice but to return to her hometown, cutting her losses and embracing a more passive lifestyle. 

On the day she moved into public housing in Banshan City, she sneezed as she walked her dog past a jar of pickles emitting a pungent odor in the hallway. Just then, the door across from hers opened slightly. 

Cheng Simin took a closer look and immediately felt a spark of delight: “Oh! Isn’t that Shi Ying, my childhood rival?” 

It seemed there was justice in the world after all—even the rich could fall from grace!