Yang Mei stared at the closed bedroom door, recalling all the ways Li Zhiqiang had mistreated her over the years. A mix of grievance and resentment welled up in her heart.
She was a traditional woman. Back then, she had married Li Zhiqiang because he had a stable job at a state-owned enterprise.
Being a local, his parents were retired state employees with extensive connections, pensions, and several properties from demolition resettlement. His family conditions were excellent, and her own parents had been very satisfied.
But after marriage, she realized Li Zhiqiang obeyed his parents in everything, spending his days eating, drinking, and having fun—fishing and playing cards whenever he had time.
Years into their marriage, she often slept alone in an empty bed, never even conceiving a child.
Half a year had passed. She must have endured countless injections—unless the man was simply incapable. And without clean water for washing, all kinds of bacteria and germs lurked. If the male lead had any sense, he would at least consider the risk of infection before recklessly accepting her. At the very least, he should observe her for a while.
The longer they lived together, the more she realized Li Zhiqiang was a classic bully at home.
Outside, he hardly dared to raise his voice, but at home, he acted high and mighty, flaunting his male chauvinism.
It was as if the only place he could assert his manhood was over her.
During the six months of the Great Flood, this side of him had only grown worse.
When the heavy rains first started, others rushed to stock up on food—but Li Zhiqiang refused to go, forcing her instead.
A month later, as the Flood spread, some families ventured out to seek help, while others began banding together with neighbors.
But Li Zhiqiang did nothing but play video games and watch anime, expecting meals and laundry to be handed to him while mocking those who had bought lower-floor apartments.
As the Flood worsened, trapping everyone indoors, the lower floors submerged, and neighbors grew restless. Morality crumbled.
Yet Li Zhiqiang cowered like a turtle, hiding at home and taking out his frustrations on her.
By the time their food supplies were nearly exhausted, with no way to hold out any longer, Li Zhiqiang forced her to go across the hall and borrow food from Lin Dong.
The first time, she returned with a bag of rice—only for Li Zhiqiang to snatch it away and hoard it in the master bedroom.
The last of their snacks and other supplies were also confiscated by him.
Every time she cooked, Li Zhiqiang would measure out a handful of rice into a small bowl before handing it to her.
That meager portion yielded only a thin layer of cooked rice, most of which Li Zhiqiang devoured, leaving her with nothing but a little scorched crust.
She had to boil water to soften the crust into gruel.
Even then, Li Zhiqiang would sometimes snatch it from her.
Now, their home was truly out of food.
Li Zhiqiang, driven mad by hunger, was forcing her to borrow from Lin Dong again.
The first and second times, Lin Dong had refused.
Realizing empty pleas wouldn't work, Li Zhiqiang now demanded she dress provocatively before going.
Humiliated, she felt nothing but utter disappointment in him.
But this time, Li Zhiqiang had gone further—threatening to hand her over to Liu Erlong and his gang.
Terror and despair seized her.
Outside, the night was pitch black, the relentless downpour drumming against the windows.
Yang Mei sat on the sofa, wiping away silent tears.
After a long while, the scent of food drifted from the master bedroom.
Yang Mei's stomach suddenly growled loudly. She turned her head toward the master bedroom, swallowed hard, then got up and walked to the bedroom door.
She knocked lightly and said, "Zhiqiang, what... what are you eating? Can I have a little? I'm so hungry..."
"Fuck off! Eat, eat, eat—is that all you ever think about? Are you good for anything else?"
Li Zhiqiang cursed incoherently, followed immediately by loud slurping sounds coming from the bedroom.
Yang Mei felt saliva pooling in her mouth, her stomach burning with hunger. She recognized the smell—instant noodles.
She hadn't expected that in a household that should have run out of food long ago, Li Zhiqiang had secretly stashed away a pack of instant noodles. And now he was eating it all by himself.
"Zhiqiang, please, I'm really starving. Just give me one bite, or even let me drink some of the broth..."
Li Zhiqiang ignored her, instead speeding up his slurping of the noodle broth. No matter how much Yang Mei begged, he refused to open the door.
Finally, after ten minutes, the door opened.
Li Zhiqiang licked his lips and handed the empty noodle cup to Yang Mei, saying flatly, "Still think I have no conscience?"
Yang Mei's face lit up with hope as she quickly took the cup, but when she looked inside, her expression immediately darkened.
The cup was completely empty—not a single noodle remained. All that was left was a bowl of hot water with a thin layer of oil floating on top, mixed with a few scattered bits of dried vegetable flakes.
"You... you didn't leave any for me at all?"
Li Zhiqiang frowned and snapped, "What are you talking about? Are you drinking it or not? If not, give it back!"
As he spoke, he reached out to snatch the cup back. "There's still so much oil in here—are you blind? You call this nothing? If you're not drinking it, I'll save it for a midnight snack."
"I'll drink it... I'll drink it..."
Yang Mei, her stomach aching from hunger, hurriedly tried to take it back.
But it was too late. Li Zhiqiang had already grabbed the cup and shoved her away.
Weak from starvation, Yang Mei stumbled and fell to the floor. Her ample chest—her "Big Pomelos"—jiggled noticeably as she landed.
Li Zhiqiang glared at her chest and sneered, "Even after starving for so long, those things haven't gotten any smaller. You must be hiding food somewhere, huh?"
Yang Mei was too weak to argue. Her face flushed with anger, but she didn't dare say anything.
Li Zhiqiang smacked his lips. He was just talking nonsense—he knew perfectly well whether there was any hidden food in the house.
"Listen, you need to learn how to use your assets, Yang Mei. Things aren't like they were six months ago. A single bite of food can save a life now."
"Stop clinging to your outdated morals and figure out a way to get us some food."
"That Lin guy has had his eye on you for a while. Back when we used to go to work together, I saw him sneaking glances at you in the elevator all the time."
"Go freshen up, put on a sweet act, and beg him nicely. That idiot might take pity on you and give you some food. He lent us some last time, didn't he?"
"Where there's a first time, there's a second. You need to learn how to use your advantages. What are you saving those stockings for? Put on that Black Silk Stockings set and try again."
Li Zhiqiang kept giving her suggestions.
Yang Mei felt nothing but humiliation. Her own man was telling her to seduce someone for food!
A wave of grief and indignation washed over her, but there was nothing she could do.
She knew all too well—if Li Zhiqiang was willing to make her seduce someone for food, he wouldn't hesitate to hand her over to Liu Erlong and his gang if it came to that.
She lowered her head and began to cry. Li Zhiqiang set down the noodle bowl and said, "This is your only bowl of noodle soup today. If we still can't borrow any food, there won't even be soup tomorrow. I'm warning you now—it's up to you."
With that, he snorted coldly and turned to go back to the bedroom.
Yang Mei cried for a while, but she was too weak from hunger to continue. She could only pick up the noodle soup and sip it slowly.
The warmth in her stomach finally made her feel a little better.
She leaned on the chair to stand up, glanced at the tightly shut bedroom door, and resentfully walked over to knock.
Li Zhiqiang's impatient voice came from inside: "What do you want?"
"I... I need the stockings..."
Immediately, Li Zhiqiang rushed to open the door, his face lit up with excitement. "You've come around?"
Yang Mei kept her head down and said nothing.
But Li Zhiqiang grinned and pulled her inside. "Quick, take your pick. The stockings you bought are too conservative. I bought some figurines before and got a bunch of sexy outfits to go with them. Here, choose one."
"This one—Shiny Black Silk Stockings—and this one, White Lace Trimmed Stockings..."
Yang Mei stared blankly at Li Zhiqiang. The disappointment in her eyes turned to despair, and then, eventually, to indifference...
This man only cared about one thing.