Zheng Mother

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Zheng Mother (郑母)
Alias(es)	Mrs. Zheng; Zheng Ye’s mother 2 90
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Zheng Family; Zheng Corporation 1 20
Occupation/Role	Zheng Family matriarch; instrumental contributor to the Zheng Corporation’s early recovery 1 20
Spouse	Zheng Father, whose personal name is Zheng Qi’an 20 24
Children	Zheng Ye 1
Status	Alive in the final chapter 105
First Appearance	Zheng Ye’s engagement banquet 1

Background / History

Zheng Mother married Zheng Father when his family’s business was close to bankruptcy. She helped rebuild its foundation through her work securing connections, resources, and initial capital. Although outsiders credited Zheng Father with the corporation’s recovery, her contribution was essential 20.

Her marriage was built on frank communication and Zheng Father’s promise of lifelong love. She regarded him as dependable and responsible, making the prospect of infidelity especially painful. Her position was clear: a loveless marriage could end in divorce, but cheating was unacceptable 20 24.

After her younger brother and his wife died in a car accident twenty years earlier, she took their daughter, Zheng Xinxin, into her home. Xinxin grew up with the Zheng Family and later attended a prestigious university overseas 36.

Appearance

• Diamond engagement ring: Wears a large diamond ring described as having a stone the size of a pigeon’s egg. The original is stolen and secretly replaced with a replica 1 24.
• Luxury clothing: Selects a yellow Shu Embroidery dress from Bolejia’s one-of-a-kind 2024 ultra-luxury collection for the company banquet. Assistant Wang substitutes a knockoff and wears the genuine dress herself 23.
• Skincare: Values her appearance highly and spends millions on skincare annually 3.

Personality

Zheng Mother is straightforward and authoritative. She can command respect without raising her voice, but refuses to remain discreet merely to protect appearances when someone deliberately humiliates her. Rather than trade veiled insults, she confronts wrongdoing openly 1 24.

She shares Ning Shile’s enthusiasm for gossip, eagerly listening to his predictions and seeking his company when scandals unfold. Their shared interest becomes a source of friendship, extending from social events to online posts and excited video calls 4 27 47 97.

Her generosity and protectiveness coexist with firm boundaries. She becomes deeply fond of Ning Shile and defends him against public criticism. Even after Assistant Wang tries to destroy her marriage, she attempts to prevent Wang’s suicide; learning about Wang’s abuse earns her sympathy, but does not make the deception acceptable 26 60.

Abilities & Skills

Hearing Ning Shile’s Thoughts

Can hear Ning Shile’s unspoken inner commentary, including his recollections of the original novel’s plot 1 4.

• Uses his thoughts to identify concealed relationships, stolen property, forged evidence, and threats to the family 1 8 24.
• Conceals her reactions while listening, allowing her to act without revealing how she obtained the information 1 24.
• Early observations identify Zheng Mother, Zheng Father, and Zheng Ye as the listeners; the supplied context does not establish how the ability originated 4.
• Receives information through whatever Ning happens to think about, leaving her anxious when his warnings are incomplete 20.

Business Resources and Connections

Helped establish the connections, resources, and capital that rescued the Zheng Corporation from near-bankruptcy 20.

• Questions Ning Shile about his family’s struggling project, prompting thoughts that reveal its future commercial value 2.
• Negotiates a paid, one-year contract marriage intended to keep Ning Shile connected to the Zheng Family 3.

Publicity and Social Influence

Uses reporters and public attention to prevent deceptive people from controlling a scandal’s narrative 1 24.

• Admits reporters to the engagement banquet and arranges for them to follow Ning Shile before Su Jin’s affair is exposed 1 2.
• Promotes a livestream through hundreds of promotional accounts and major paparazzi accounts 95.

Relationships

• Zheng Father / Zheng Qi’an — Husband and business partner. She chooses to trust him during Assistant Wang’s accusations, while remaining angry about his poor judgment and boundaries 20 25.
• Zheng Ye — Son. She arranges his engagement while he is incapacitated and later intervenes against the romantic and business disasters predicted for him 1 8.
• Ning Shile — Prospective son-in-law, close companion, and fellow gossip enthusiast. What begins as a practical marriage arrangement develops into genuine familial affection 3 9 37.
• Zheng Xinxin — Niece whom she raised after the deaths of Xinxin’s parents 36.
• Su Jin — Initially welcomed as Zheng Ye’s intended spouse; rejected after his secret relationship and motives are exposed 1 2.
• Assistant Wang — Her husband’s assistant, who steals her ring and attempts to break up her marriage. Zheng Mother holds her accountable while also trying to save her life 24 26.
• Su Jinyu — Viewed as a threat after Ning’s thoughts describe his future exploitation of Zheng Ye. Zheng Mother insists that Ning is the only prospective spouse she will acknowledge for her son 8.
• Bai Family — Identified in Ning’s recollections as the largest force behind her disfigurement and the Zheng Family’s bankruptcy in the original novel 36.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Engagement Scandal and Contract Marriage

At Zheng Ye’s engagement banquet, Zheng Mother first hears Ning Shile’s thoughts. His commentary exposes the theft of her original ring and casts doubt on Su Jin’s devotion. She brings reporters into the event rather than immediately confronting Su Jin 1.

After Su Jin and his lover are caught together, the Zhengs cancel the alliance. Zheng Mother then proposes Ning as a replacement. Hearing that the family is destined for bankruptcy turns her initially casual suggestion into an urgent effort to secure his help 2 3.

Contract term	Arrangement
Duration	One year, followed by divorce when the agreement expires 3
Initial payment	Ten million yuan, provided by Zheng Mother on a bank card 3
Final payment	A further thirty million yuan after the year 3
Legal safeguard	Ning requests a legally binding agreement prepared with a lawyer 3

Ning’s further predictions describe her divorce, disfigurement, the corporation’s collapse, and Zheng Ye’s eventual death. Horrified, she interrupts his visit to Zheng Ye’s room; Zheng Ye awakens during the encounter 3.

Protecting Ning’s Place in the Family

Following Zheng Ye’s recovery, Zheng Mother rewards Ning with another bank card and includes him in the family’s plans. She attends the Cheng Corporation launch after hearing that it will expose a major scandal 4 5.

The Zheng Family’s favorable publicity following Cheng An’s exposure brings a rise in its share price, and the parents give Ning another bonus. Zheng Mother subsequently wants a proper wedding, not an end to the engagement. When Ning’s thoughts predict Su Jinyu’s future betrayal, she immediately calls Zheng Ye home 8 9.

She and Zheng Father also attend Ning Grandfather’s birthday banquet, showing support for Ning amid his relatives’ mistreatment 16.

Assistant Wang’s Scheme

Ning’s warning that the company banquet will trigger the Zheng parents’ divorce unsettles both of them. Zheng Mother recalls their shared history and agrees to trust her husband’s denial of infidelity 19 20.

At the banquet, Assistant Wang wears her genuine dress and stolen ring while encouraging rumors of an affair. Hearing Ning reveal that Wang’s paternity report is forged helps Zheng Mother regain her composure. She drags Wang into the hall and demands a public explanation for the dress, ring, and pregnancy 23 24.

Wang’s hotel footage does not persuade Zheng Mother that an affair occurred. Zheng Ye produces an authenticated report disproving paternity and proposes a police investigation. When Wang flees, Zheng Mother joins the search and urges her not to jump from a bridge 25 26.

After Wang is rescued, Zheng Mother learns that Wang’s parents and ex-boyfriend subjected her to exploitation and sexual violence. She understands Wang’s desperation but rejects it as justification for harming others 26.

Household Life and Public Support

Zheng Mother continues welcoming Ning into the household and exchanging gossip with him. She shows him the anonymous post about Bai Corporation’s exploitation of female employees, setting off his effort to investigate 46 47.

When Ning joins Back to the ’80s, she angrily defends him against accusations that he manufactures scandals. She initially helps oppose Zheng Ye’s plan to leave work for the show, but yields when Ning asks that he attend one episode 60.

The Revisited Engagement and Ning’s Recovery

When the story returns to the engagement banquet, Zheng Mother and Ning apparently meet for the first time yet feel inexplicably close. She nevertheless announces Su Jin as the family’s son-in-law 88.

She later warmly welcomes Ning to the Zheng home, hoping he can reach the withdrawn, physically weakened Zheng Ye. Her relief is immediate when Zheng Ye agrees to eat at Ning’s request. She also persuades Ning to stay overnight and encourages him to spend time with her son 90 92.

During this later sequence, she helps spread publicity for a scandal livestream and tells Ning about Cheng An’s possible imprisonment. She expresses no suspicion that Ning pushed an elderly woman in the childhood incident under investigation 95 97.

Two years after Ning becomes brain-dead, Zheng Mother and Zheng Father help relieve his parents at the hospital. She witnesses his fingers move and rushes to summon doctors when Zheng Ye freezes in shock. In the final chapter, she tries to contact the Ning Family and takes blood-pressure medication while awaiting news of his recovery 104 105.

Notable Quotes

“Before you love someone else, learn to respect yourself.” 2

“I'm catching a thief. What do I have to be embarrassed about?” 24

“Anyone who wants the gossip, look over here!” 24

“Please don't do anything rash! With your abilities, you can succeed somewhere else even if you leave Zheng Corporation!” 26