Chapter 1: Immigration Certificate

Chapter 1: Immigration Certificate

Rapid footsteps echoed at the entrance, and Shen Qing hastened her pace to disinfect the inflamed wound on her chest with alcohol before wrapping it with a bandage. Only then did she weakly lie down on the narrow maid's bed.

Hong Kong was subtropical, and despite it being only March, the air was already humid and stifling, causing Shen Qing's forehead to be covered in sweat.

The hurried footsteps halted at the door, which then creaked open from the outside.

Shen Qing lifted her head to see the Filipino maid, with her curly hair, sneak in as if she were a thief. She placed water and medication in front of Shen Qing and whispered, "Quickly drink this secretly. It wouldn't be good if Madam or Miss saw you."

"Thank you," Shen Qing replied swiftly, taking the water and medicine before swallowing them in one go.

The Filipino maid turned around and locked the door, fearing that Madam or Miss might catch sight and retaliate!

"I remember your arm is also infected. You should take some antibiotics too," Shen Qing offered the remaining medication and water.

"This was bought with your money, so I can't take it," the maid shook her head.

Unlike Shen Qing's gunshot wound from saving someone, the maid's injuries were inflicted by boiling water from Madam and Miss. In this villa, the maids were accustomed to daily abuse and scolding from their employers.

Shen Qing administered the antibiotic pills into her mouth, "If you don't take these, an infection from the wound could be fatal." The original owner had met such an end!

Faced with Shen Qing's kindness, the Filipina maid was moved to tears, this was the first time in Hong Kong that someone had shown concern for her, treated her like a human being!

It was the second day since Shen Qing transmigrated. She had become a cannon fodder character in the novel "Hong Kong Stepmother in the 70s". The original owner shared the same name and appearance as her.

The original owner was 16 years old. At birth, her mother had died in childbirth, and her father, believing she was a curse, abandoned her at their hometown and ran away to Hong Kong with a local woman for a better life.

Over the years, the original owner had never met her biological father. Yet, due to his status as an illegal immigrant, she was implicated during the harsh social climate of the 70s in mainland China and sent to a farm for reeducation through labor.

Despite the hardships and poverty on the farm, the original owner remained beautiful. Her natural charm almost led to her being bullied to death.

In order to survive, the original owner managed to smuggle herself to Hong Kong to search for her family.

Unfortunately, Hong Kong in the 70s was chaotic. After the original owner barely survived as an illegal immigrant and found her biological father, Shen Yimin, she discovered that he had already married the local woman, and their daughter was even older than her by a few months.

Her father viewed her as a burden and, using the excuse of his factory needing to entertain important foreign clients, left the original owner in the care of her stepmother and stepsister for over half a month without returning home.

The stepmother and stepsister saw her as a thorn in their side. Though they were supposed to be family, they constantly abused and bullied the original owner. Even when her wounds became infected, causing a high fever, they didn't send her to the hospital. The original owner ultimately succumbed to her illness on the Filipina maid's bed.

The door to the servant's quarters burst open, and Shen Hainan, her head held high, stood in the entrance. "Ah Zhong, drag that money-stealing Mainlander and the Filipino maid out here!"

Shen Qing gazed intently at Ah Zhong as he strode in with a menacing aura. Seeing the Filipino maid quivering in fear at the sight of the bodyguard, Shen Qing bravely pulled the maid behind her.

"Hide behind me."

Spotting a large bottle of alcohol on the table, Shen Qing quickly formulated a plan.

She twisted open the cap, poured the alcohol over Ah Zhong, and then lit a lighter, causing the frightened Filipino maid to cry out, "Young Miss!"

"Don't worry, if anyone dies, it'll be them first," Shen Qing said calmly, lifting the lighter. Ah Zhong, drenched in alcohol, stepped back in fear.

Alcohol would ignite upon contact with an open flame. If he got too close, he might be burned alive.

"You think just because you have a lighter, I should be afraid of you, a Mainlander? !" Shen Hainan raged from the doorway. "Ah Zhong, finish off this b*tch for me!"

Smash!

The bottle of alcohol in Shen Qing's other hand smashed into Shen Hainan, making her gasp in pain.

The Filipina maid felt a glimmer of satisfaction seeing the usually submissive Miss Shen Qing reprimand her accomplice. However, she quickly sensed something amiss. Shen Qing, the daughter of the original wife, was typically bullied without daring to retaliate. Why had she suddenly become so fierce?

The glass bottle filled with alcohol shattered on the floor after hitting Shen Qing, slicing Shen Hainan's foot. Enraged, Shen Hainan shrieked, "Mainland girl, you dared to throw a glass bottle at me?" She was so angry that she started crying.

Shen Hainan was a few months older than Shen Qing and had been pampered by Shen Yimin and his Hong Kong wife since birth. At home, she would vent her frustrations by hitting others, especially the original owner of the body who dared not speak up against her. How could this seemingly dying person from yesterday be so lively today and even dare to fight back?

Did this mainland girl think that with Daddy coming back today, someone would have her back?

"I'll throw you, this mainland girl, into the sea and make you crawl back to the mainland…" Shen Hainan rushed in, furious but unafraid since she hadn't been doused with alcohol.

Shen Qing, familiar with the plot, knew that the hypocritical stepmother would come out to mediate.

Sure enough, the next moment, the voice of the stepmother, Yu Feifei, sounded from the entrance, "Henna, stop!"

'Henna' was Shen Hainan's English name. In the 1970s, before Hong Kong's return to China, Hong Kong, under British colonization, was a bilingual city where almost everyone had an English name.

Hearing her mother's voice, Shen Hainan instantly turned around, her face filled with grievance. "Mommy, the Mainlander girl is bullying me."

Yu Feifei stood right by the door to the servants' quarters. Upon seeing her daughter's bleeding ankle, a fleeting hint of distress flashed in her eyes, followed by a streak of animosity directed at Shen Qing. However, it was quickly concealed deep within her gaze.

She had warned her daughter that Shen Yimin would be returning today and not to overtly bully Shen Qing.

"Ah Zhong, take Miss to the hospital," Yu Feifei instructed, sending Shen Hainan off with Ah Zhong before turning to glare at Shen Qing.

Not treating her wound for half a month or giving her any medicine, the Mainlander had run a high fever for three consecutive nights and yet still managed to survive?

As Yu Feifei observed Shen Qing, who was still clad in the dirty clothes she wore when she sneaked into Hong Kong, she couldn't help but turn away in disdain.

Conditions were poor in the mainland, and Shen Qing, who had been dragged down by her biological father to labor on a farm, could barely afford decent clothing. Her outfit was patched up with numerous layers of fabric, and there were even dried bloodstains...

Standing amidst this luxurious villa in Hong Kong, facing her well-off stepmother and stepsister, Shen Qing appeared destitute and pitiful!

Recalling Shen Yimin, who was about to return, Yu Feifei felt a twinge of guilt. "Don't blame your sister. She has always been the apple of our eye in this family, doted on by both me and her father since birth. It must have been hard for her to see you sneak over from the mainland to find your family..."

As a stepmother, Yu Feifei was a more seasoned player, an adept white lotus. "She wasn't intentionally targeting you; she feels like you've taken over her home."

Shen Qing scoffed coldly, "Auntie, clarify yourself – who exactly snatched whose home?"

With her fair and delicate features, Shen Qing spoke with the gentle demeanor of a Southern belle. Yu Feifei had always assumed she could manipulate Shen Qing effortlessly, but to her surprise, the usually meek girl dared to taunt her by addressing her as Auntie.

Anger surged within Yu Feifei. "Of course, it was you who stole our home. I am lawfully married to your father, and your sister is his legitimate child. Our family of three was living blissfully in Hong Kong. Your sudden appearance to claim kinship has hurt us deeply, causing us great distress..."

As Yu Feifei spoke, she was already plotting in her mind. She couldn't let Shen Qing die from illness; instead, she would find a way to send her back to the mainland.

Rumor had it that the mainland was now cracking down harshly on those who had fled to Hong Kong. Before being sent back, Shen Qing would likely be sent to a labor farm for reform. This time, upon her return, she would surely face execution!

Shen Qing stared at her stepmother, Yu Feifei, with a cold sneer. In the original storyline, this woman was not only responsible for the death of the original protagonist but also the root cause of her tragic life.

Back then, when Yu Feifei returned to the mainland to visit relatives, she took an instant liking to the handsome Shen Yimin.

Armed with the pride of coming from prosperous Hong Kong, she actively seduced Shen Yimin, sowing discord between him and his wife.

During the birth of the original protagonist's mother, Yu Feifei deliberately appeared before her with her premature daughter, Shen Hainan, triggering the mother's fatal hemorrhage due to the stress.

After the original protagonist came to Hong Kong searching for family, Yu Feifei orchestrated a scheme by bringing in a few Caucasian foreigners to pose as major clients, discussing business with Shen Yimin. These foreigners kept Shen Yimin occupied, preventing him from returning home, while Yu Feifei called him daily, denouncing the mainland-born girl as dirty and uncivilized.

In the comfort of her home, Yu Feifei vilified Shen Yimin for abandoning his wife and child, further estranging the already non-existent familial bond between Shen Yimin and the original owner. Her actions only fueled Shen Yimin's resentment towards her.

She had even meticulously orchestrated the original owner's death on the bed of their Filipino maid!

"What's with that look?" The setting sun filtered through the glass window, casting its glow on Yu Feifei's meticulously maintained face. She averted her eyes from the light as if it were a plague. "I'm saying all this for your own good. Your father despises troublemakers and bringers of bad luck; otherwise, he wouldn't have sent you to the countryside in the first place. If you behave, I'll persuade your father to let you stay in Hong Kong..."

Yu Feifei continued, "It's all for your own good!"

A murderer claiming to have the victim's best interests at heart?

Shen Qing sarcastically asked, "For my own good? You mean letting me die in bed?" Her gaze was sharp as she fixated on Yu Feifei's features. "I know everything about how you seduced my father back then!"

Yu Feifei's composure wavered. She hadn't expected this lowly mainland girl, Shen Qing, to be so knowledgeable.

"You have no conscience. If not for me, would your father acknowledge you?" Yu Feifei was skilled in spinning lies with a straight face. "You're such an ungrateful wretch. I was only trying to help by letting your father keep you in Hong Kong, yet you still hate me? Without immigration papers, the police would've deported you back to the mainland once you entered the hospital. Even if you made it there, doctors wouldn't dare treat you. Otherwise, why would the hospital inform the immigration department to take you away when you were caught in the crossfire of a gang fight?"

Each time the original owner begged her stepmother to take her to the hospital, Yu Feifei had deceived her with such lies.

Shen Qing didn't believe a word her stepmother said. While illegal immigrants might be deported, she could legally stay if she went to the police station and obtained a residence permit as Shen Yimin's daughter.

Poor original host, lacking education and exposure, was constantly subjected to her stepmother's emotional manipulation, fearing execution if she returned to the mainland, and never realizing that her stepsister's illnesses were treated by private doctors summoned to their home.

Yu Feifei and Shen Hainan, the step-sisters who benefited from the wealth earned by the original host's biological father, lived luxurious lives as wives and heiresses in Hong Kong while plotting against the child born of the first marriage!

Influenced by the residual emotions of the original host, Shen Qing was seething with anger and frustration.

Looking at the fake affectionate expression on her stepmother's face, she suddenly chuckled softly, "Since you're so kind to me, I'll definitely repay you."

Satisfied, Yu Feifei instructed the Filipina maid to find clothes that Shen Hainan no longer wore for Shen Qing to change into, continuing her manipulation, "Dress up beautifully, and when your father comes back, let him see how well-behaved his darling daughter is."

Fixating on Shen Qing's face that resembled her biological mother, a hint of disgust flickered in Yu Feifei's eyes.

Shen Qing's existence served as a constant reminder of how, as a Hong Kong woman, Yu Feifei had seduced the married mainland man, Shen Yimin. Those shameful past actions were what Yu Feifei desperately wanted to keep hidden.

With this thought, Yu Feifei instructed the maid again, "Mr. prefers heavily made-up girls. Bring me the purple eyeshadow and lipstick from my room for her to apply."

Tsk, forcing her to wear discarded clothes and making her look like a ghost – Shen Qing saw right through Yu Feifei's sinister intentions...

Noticing the pile of shopping bags belonging to her stepsister Shen Hainan on the sofa, Shen Qing picked up the one containing new clothes and declared, "Just like my mother, I don't like secondhand items!"

Yu Feifei was furious to the point of spitting blood.

With the assistance of her Filipino maid, Shen Qing enjoyed a soothing hot bath. Dressed in new clothes, she emerged from the bathroom just as Yu Feifei, weeping, was telling the freshly arrived Shen Yimin that she hated him for leaving her to suffer in the mainland and for being kind to Shen Hainan. She was envious of Shen Hainan and wanted to burn her alive with alcohol.

"Did I treat her like my own child only for her to hate us and vow to avenge her mother by setting us on fire?"

Yu Feifei added, "Feng shui master Zhong Shi also predicted that she would bring us harm."

People in Hong Kong were deeply superstitious and held feng shui experts in high regard.

Upon hearing this, Shen Yimin's face darkened. "This calamity cannot remain in Hong Kong. I'll send her back to the mainland today."

Shen Qing sneered. So, they were resorting to fortune-telling, huh?

She knew the plot inside out. If anyone could pretend to be a mystical soothsayer, it would be her!

Shen Yimin dreamed of sending her back to the mainland to be executed! Not in her wildest dreams!