My Wife Pretends To Be Poor Every Day Ch.1

The skyscrapers in the heart of Xuanyang City stand in orderly rows, with well-dressed white-collar workers bustling through the streets day and night. Luxurious and fashionable items are everywhere, and even the restrooms in shopping malls seem to exude the fragrance of money.

But unlike the city center, behind this prosperity lies a different scene—low-rise buildings with chaotic and crowded housing, where residents can almost shake hands with their neighbors across the street. The alleys are dark, damp, and devoid of sunlight.

This is what’s commonly known as—the urban village.

Most of the residents here are dreamers who came to Xuanyang City to chase their aspirations but haven’t yet found their footing, so they’ve chosen this place as a temporary haven.

At noon on this sweltering day, a dark red Maserati pulled up at the entrance of an alley. Passersby couldn’t help but turn their heads, gazing enviously for a while.

Then, the car door opened, and a young, beautiful girl stepped out. She frowned as she looked at the dirty, messy alley.

The onlookers fell silent, a scene that would make men speechless and women weep.

The girl walked to the other side of the car, opened the door, and asked in disbelief, “Yu Siling, are you sure you want to live in a place like this?”

“Of course,” came a voice as refreshing as a spring breeze, carrying a hint of laughter.

The passersby couldn’t help but raise their chins, looking toward the car.

First, a large backpack was handed out, followed by a pair of legs stepping out of the car. Moments later, everyone held their breath, afraid to disturb the beauty who had appeared in this slum.

The girl was around twenty years old, at that age between innocence and maturity.

She wore her hair in a loose bun, with light makeup, a pair of gray jeans, and a loose white shirt. Though her outfit was simple, it didn’t look ordinary.

It had to be admitted that with a good figure and face, even a burlap sack could be worn on a runway.

Especially the girl’s smile—it was just right, her eyes curved as she looked down the alley.

The midday sun fell on her oval face, her long, thick eyelashes fluttering slightly. Her crescent-shaped eyes were lively and bright, her nose high and straight, her lips thin and alluring. When she smiled, a pair of dimples appeared.

Several boys exchanged glances, each seeing the same awe in the other’s eyes, but none dared to approach her.

They knew full well that these wealthy, beautiful women would never be fish in their ponds.

But this girl didn’t seem distant, making people want to get closer just to see her smile a little longer.

While the boys hesitated, someone had already stepped forward to greet her.

“Miss, are you here to look at a place?” asked the landlady with permed hair, fanning herself with a palm-leaf fan.

“No, we’ve already found a place,” Yu Siling smiled at her and turned to her childhood friend Tao Shuqin.

Tao Shuqin opened the trunk.

Yu Siling stepped forward, and the two of them lifted out a bulging burlap sack.

The onlookers: “???”

What’s going on?

Yu Siling glanced around and spotted a cargo tricycle parked nearby. She ran over, exchanged a few words with the driver, and the man happily walked over, hoisted the sack onto the tricycle, and asked, “Miss, where are you headed?”

Yu Siling quickly pulled Tao Shuqin along, “I’ll show you the way.”

The crowd was bewildered.

“What’s this rich girl here for?”

“Experiencing life?”

“Rural poverty alleviation?”

“Can’t figure it out, rich people sure know how to have fun.”

The alley led straight to the first intersection, and the first building on the left was where Yu Siling had rented a place. To be precise, it was the apartment she shared with her girlfriend, Li Yueyun.

The apartment was on the fourth floor, with no elevator, but the lighting was decent.

The driver dropped off the sack, collected his payment, and left.

“How much is the rent here?” Tao Shuqin looked around the room, taking exactly 15 seconds to walk from the door to the bathroom.

The tour was over.

The walls had a few patches missing, the bed was made of old wooden planks, and the entire room exuded a sense of… well, poverty.

“Eight hundred, isn’t that cheap?” Yu Siling opened the window, then closed it again. There was no fresh air or free breeze here—the scene of pretending to be cool had abruptly ended.

“It’s quite cheap, just about the cost of one meal at your house,” Tao Shuqin suddenly laughed. “What expression would Uncle Yu, the real estate tycoon, have if he knew you were living in such a place behind his back?”

“Please don’t tell him!” Yu Siling repeatedly urged. “Remember, I’m a genuine poor person now!”

“Got it,” Tao Shuqin assured her, definitely not planning to report this to her father, but still finding the situation hard to believe.

Her childhood friend had suddenly started a relationship half a year ago, keeping it hidden and refusing to let her meet the person. Then, just last weekend, she suddenly announced she was moving in with her girlfriend and asked Tao to help with the move.

“By the way, will I really get to meet your girlfriend today? No more hiding her away?” Tao Shuqin pressed. If it weren’t for the chance to meet this legendary woman, she wouldn’t have skipped class to play chauffeur.

“Yes, she specifically mentioned that since you helped me move, she’s treating you to dinner tonight,” Yu Siling said, her face lighting up with a goofy smile at the mention of her girlfriend.

“Dinner’s fine, as long as you don’t start exuding a sour stench during the meal. Be nice to me, okay?”

“Don’t worry, we never flaunt our affection,” Yu Siling said, though her smile was already reaching for the stars.

“Really? I don’t believe you,” Tao Shuqin chuckled. “So, what now? Packing?”

“Yep,” Yu Siling snapped her fingers. “Let’s get to it.”

Opening the burlap bag, Tao Shuqin saw the contents and almost threw them straight to the recycling station.

A two-dollar toothbrush cup, five-dollar slippers, five-dollar towel, one-dollar comb, two-dollar plastic-framed mirror…

The basin was even metal, white with a large red stamp on the bottom symbolizing double happiness, good luck and happy marriage.

“My goodness, where did you dig up these antiques?” Tao Shuqin was dumbfounded as she pulled out each item. “Am I going to pull out a chamber pot next?”

“Oh, I forgot about that!” Yu Siling had an epiphany. “We’ll hit up the ten-dollar store later for more treasures.”

“……” Tao Shuqin was speechless. The trendsetter who had always been at the forefront of luxury brands with her since childhood had suddenly changed her ways and was now conquering the two-dollar and ten-dollar stores?

What was the reason for this?

Oh, for love.

Yu Siling had once said that her girlfriend was a poor but striving young woman who despised lazy rich kids, and this had deeply resonated with Yu Siling.

So she worked hard to craft a persona of being equally poor and striving, with a hatred for the wealthy.

But who would have thought that the two of them would fall in love!

And now, the persona was so firmly established that she had to keep it up.

“By the way, what’s your girlfriend’s name again? I always forget,” Tao Shuqin asked as she helped organize the household items.

Yu Siling: “Li Yueyun. The dawn breaks, and the moon is hidden in the night, temporarily setting.”

“When is she coming back? Moving into a new place, and she’s leaving you to do all the packing?” Tao Shuqin said.

“She’s at work, she’s really busy,” Yu Siling replied, just as Tao Shuqin was struggling to open a package. “Give it to me.”

Tao Shuqin handed it over.

Yu Siling grabbed the bag with both hands and tore it open with brute force.

Tao Shuqin watched in horror, shrinking back in a corner, trembling: “What has life done to you! Are you still the weakling Yu Siling I know?”

“People have to grow up,” Yu Siling said proudly. “Actually, it’s my wife who taught me. She’s taught me so many life skills, I feel like I could survive in the wilderness now.”

“You’re making me more and more curious about what kind of person your girlfriend is.”

“A worker,” Yu Siling said with immense pride. “With her hardworking hands, she shoulders the responsibility of the nation’s revival, working day and night on the front lines of urban construction, witnessing the grand rise of skyscrapers in Xuanyang City. Even if ashes fall on her shoulders, she just brushes them off, leaving a solid and reliable silhouette for the city.”

Tao Shuqin was stunned for a few seconds: “So she’s…?”

Yu Siling: “A bricklayer.”

Tao Shuqin: “……”

Tao Shuqin: “That’s it?!”

“Of course not! She’s skilled in all eighteen martial arts!” Yu Siling added, “She probably knows how to mix cement, tie rebar, and lay tiles too?”

Tao Shuqin: “………….”

Tao Shuqin now really wanted to call Uncle Yu and report this!

Yu Siling continued mopping the floor, then remembered she hadn’t messaged Li Yueyun yet, so she quickly took out her phone and sent a WeChat message.

【Not 0】: I’ve moved in. How was work today?

There was no reply; when she was busy with work, it was like there was a time difference. But she understood, as her girlfriend’s job was indeed very demanding.

After tidying up a bit more, her phone vibrated twice—it was a reply from Li Yueyun.

【Wife】: You’ve worked hard. I’m still pushing through work. The bricks are a bit hot today, but I’ll try to get off by six.

【Not 0】: You better be full of energy today, damn it.jpg

“She should be here by six-thirty, we can take our time packing.”

After cleaning the room and organizing everything, Yu Siling took her to a small shop downstairs to hunt for bargains.

The shop was so narrow that the two of them could barely turn around, so Tao Shuqin waited outside, watching her pampered childhood friend now maneuvering in such a place, feeling a pang of heartache.

And to think that the person she loved so much was a bricklayer.

It wasn’t that she looked down on bricklayers, but as her best friend, she at least hoped that her partner could offer her a good future.

She will wait until she meets Li Yueyun tonight. If she seemed unreliable, then she would have to persuade Yu Siling to go back home.

As the sun gradually set, Yu Siling took the purchased items upstairs and checked the time—it was almost six-thirty. Worried that Li Yueyun might not find the place on her first visit, she took Tao Shuqin to the village entrance to wait.

As they walked along the road, Yu Siling suddenly touched her head and said, “I almost forgot! I hurriedly put on a hairpin this morning.”

With that, she took off a Tiffany hairpin and handed it to Tao Shuqin. “Here, it’s yours.”

Tao Shuqin: “……”

The two waited at the intersection for a while. Tao Shuqin checked the time—6:29—and asked, “Do you think she’ll be late?”

“No,” Yu Siling replied, clasping her hands behind her back and gazing ahead with a bright smile. “Even though she’s super busy, she’s never late for our meetups.”

“Really?” It was already just one minute away.

Just as Tao Shuqin lowered her head to check her phone, Yu Siling excitedly patted her hand and exclaimed, “She’s here, she’s here!”

Tao Shuqin looked up and saw a crowd of office workers heading home on both sides of the road.

“Which one is she?”

“The one on the bike, the really pretty one!” Yu Siling pointed at a distant figure.

“I’ll believe it when I see it. I can’t even make out a ghost from here.”

“Who are you calling a ghost?” Yu Siling asked coolly.

Tao Shuqin mimed zipping her lips.

At that moment, Yu Siling ran forward and intercepted a bicycle halfway.

Tao Shuqin slowly followed and saw the rider immediately dismount, pat Yu Siling’s head, and stand a few inches taller than her—no wonder she was a brick carrier.

As Tao Shuqin approached, she heard Yu Siling’s giggle, followed by her turning back and saying, “Oh, by the way, Ah Li, this is my childhood friend, Tao Shuqin.”

Tao Shuqin stepped forward and saw the person who had been facing away turn around, giving her a gentle smile. “Hello, Taozi. Lingling has mentioned you often. It’s nice to finally meet you properly.”

Tao Shuqin: “!!!”

So breathtakingly beautiful—where’s my oxygen tank?!

With such high-end looks, why is she carrying bricks? Is it for her dreams? For love?!

Right now, she’s a walking encyclopedia of “Why?!”

“Hello, hello! I’ve heard so much about you. I can’t believe she even told you my nickname—how embarrassing,” Tao Shuqin said with a laugh, taking another look at her.

Li Yueyun was wearing a denim jumpsuit, the sleeves rolled up to reveal slender, pale forearms. The belt accentuated her slim waist, but her shoulders were straight, the kind of enviable square shoulders people dream of.

Her hair was tied in a low ponytail, with loose strands naturally framing her face. There was no trace of makeup, her high nose bridge accentuating her deep facial features. Her phoenix eyes slanted upward, flirtatious when she smiled, commanding when she was serious.

If it weren’t for the nylon bag tied to the back of her bike, Tao Shuqin would have thought her looks and aura were fit for the entertainment industry, ready to compete with Yu Siling for future roles.

“Did you bring all your luggage?” Yu Siling patted the nylon bag.

“Yes, I didn’t bring much. We can buy whatever else we need later,” Li Yueyun replied.

The two chatted and laughed as they headed home, seemingly forgetting about the single dog trailing behind them.

After parking the bike downstairs, Li Yueyun took the nylon bag off and hoisted it onto her shoulder in one go.

“See, that’s my woman,” Yu Siling whispered to Tao Shuqin, lagging two steps behind. “Isn’t she cool?”

Tao Shuqin managed to squeeze out one word: “Cool.”

“Lingling, you two go ahead.”

Yu Siling said, “I’ll stay behind and help you carry the bag.”

“No need, it’s all light stuff,” Li Yueyun stepped aside, and Yu Siling, not wanting to delay further, pulled Tao Shuqin forward.

After just two steps, a loud bang echoed through the stairwell, startling everyone.

Tao Shuqin yelped and turned around, only to be stunned.

Li Yueyun was standing there, the nylon bag on her shoulder, one foot crushing a discarded plastic water bottle.

Tao Shuqin: “……?”

As Li Yueyun looked down, Yu Siling hurried back, picked up the flattened bottle, and gave her a thumbs-up.

Yu Siling: “Green and eco-friendly.”

Li Yueyun: “Frugal and thrifty.”

The two exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with mutual admiration and affection.

Tao Shuqin: “…………”

WTF???

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With drums and gongs, we joyfully welcome the start of this story! Leading the way is our first comedic contender, Yu Siling, who firmly believes in “my wife is the best” and strides proudly at the front of the pack. Beside her is the equally formidable second contender, Li Yueyun, who excels at everything but loves her wife the most. Who will take home the title of Best Wife in this story? Let’s wait and see!

【A hilarious sweet story—don’t overthink the logic】

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Translator: Glariosa
Editor: Ruu

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