Li Xiulan

Biodata

Background / History

Childhood and escape to the city

Li Xiulan grew up in a poor rural household with eight siblings. Her parents favored boys, beat her without considering who was at fault, and expected her to work from childhood. She learned to grow vegetables, raise chickens, feed pigs, and perform household chores 31 59.

She remained in school through fifth grade only because village officials opposed keeping her out of school and her teacher repeatedly pleaded on her behalf. At thirteen, her family tried to marry her to a bachelor in his forties who had beaten four wives to death. She escaped to the city, where a restaurant owner took pity on her and employed her washing dishes 282 283.

Marriage and entry into the Jiang family

Li Xiulan and Jiang Guoqiang earned their living through a small restaurant. She managed its accounts, including purchases, wages and operating expenses, banking, and stock records. At its busiest, the restaurant took in more than ten thousand yuan a day 85.

Jiang Guoqiang was acknowledged by the Jiang family roughly a year before Song Yutang’s marriage. Despite becoming the richest man’s daughter-in-law, Li Xiulan struggled to fit into the family’s social circle. While the other women attended exhibitions, auctions, and tea parties, she occupied herself with housework, television, and gardening 27 31.

Her apparent wealth also concealed financial strain. She and her husband gave most of their savings to Song Yutang while reserving money for Jiang Boyan’s schooling. Her birth relatives had repeatedly borrowed or extracted money from her, further depleting the family’s savings 21 282.

Welcoming Song Yutang

When Song Yutang married the unconscious Jiang Muyan, Li Xiulan tearfully admitted that the wedding had been arranged to counter bad luck. She felt guilty that a young woman’s future might be sacrificed when doctors could not say whether her son would recover 3.

She quickly treated Song Yutang with affection rather than demanding obedience. When Yutang slept late, Li Xiulan brought breakfast, arranged a medical examination, excused her from serving tea, and defended her against Wu Caixia’s criticism. She also replaced Western food with Chinese dishes after learning Yutang was unfamiliar with it 10 11.

For Yutang’s first return visit to the Song family, Li Xiulan gave her a valuable jade jewelry set and accompanied her with Jiang Guoqiang to prevent her from being bullied. At the Song residence, she angrily challenged Father Song’s treatment of his daughter 16 17.

Li Xiulan later offered to support a divorce if Yutang wanted one. She and her husband would accept her as their goddaughter and provide a dowry rather than insist that she remain married to their incapacitated son 27.

Taking charge of the household

Song Yutang proposed that Li Xiulan replace Wu Caixia as household manager. When Wu mocked her limited schooling, Li Xiulan defended her competence by describing the detailed accounts she had maintained for the family restaurant 85.

With Yutang’s encouragement, she began enforcing household rules. She barred Chen Ruyin, Wu Caixia, and Jiang Shiya from formal Jiang family occasions, revoked their communal dressing-room access, and demanded the return of borrowed items and keys. She justified these restrictions by pointing to their conduct and the reputational damage they could cause 98 99.

Her confidence developed unevenly. She exposed Chen Ruyin’s fake fainting by jabbing her with a needle, and later copied Yutang’s confrontational style by smashing a teacup, rebuking Chen and Wu, slapping Wu when she attempted to strike first, and docking both women’s allowances for three months. However, she briefly faltered when they tried to drag her before Jiang Dingkun 83 179.

By the time Jiang Zhixia returned home, the household staff associated with the second branch had been removed. The current team leaders had been promoted personally by Song Yutang and received tripled salaries 169. Yutang subsequently invited Li Xiulan to join the Jiang Charity Foundation’s board 225.

Supporting her children

Li Xiulan was devastated to learn that Jiang Boyan had endured bullying without effective family support. Boyan explained that she had been caring for Jiang Guoqiang day and night after his kidney donation; she nevertheless blamed herself for failing to care for her younger son properly 52.

She firmly supported Jiang Zhixia’s divorce from Ji Chengyu after learning about his violence and infidelity. Worried about supporting Zhixia and Tuantuan, she proposed raising more poultry, growing additional vegetables, and making pickles to reduce restaurant costs. She also offered her jewelry to Song Yutang in gratitude for helping them 132.

Her support was complicated by memories of divorced daughters being mistreated in their parental homes. She initially feared that Yutang might resent Zhixia’s return, but accepted Yutang’s reassurance that Zhixia had an unconditional right to live with her own family 132 133.

The “Little Gu” misunderstanding

Believing Jiang Muyan remained unconscious, Li Xiulan interpreted Song Yutang’s interactions with “Little Gu” as a new romance. She recognized Yutang’s pink diamond necklace from the auction and assumed Little Gu had bought it for her 263.

Rather than condemn her, Li Xiulan encouraged Yutang to consider her own future. She reiterated the offer of adoption and a dowry and volunteered to cover for dates. After she and Jiang Boyan caught Yutang kissing Little Gu, she defended Yutang’s right to pursue a relationship instead of remaining bound to an arranged marriage 264 270.

Neither initially realized that Little Gu was Jiang Muyan in disguise, though Li Xiulan noticed the resemblance around his eyes 271.

Confronting the Li family

Li Xiulan’s mother, two elder brothers, and their wives disrupted the restaurant and demanded ten million yuan. They claimed the money was needed for her mother’s cancer treatment and support, despite Li Xiulan having already provided more than a million yuan over the preceding year and more than two million in total 282 283.

Instead of yielding, Li Xiulan moved the confrontation away from diners, produced transfer records, and challenged their claims. She refused to pay her brother’s gambling debts or her nephew’s online loans. When they threatened suicide and public exposure, she countered with their history of mistreatment and threatened legal recovery of the money they owed 282 283.

She also identified their financial vulnerabilities, including homes and business projects funded with her money. After they left, she instructed security to call the police if they returned to cause trouble. Song Yutang praised her for handling the confrontation independently; Li Xiulan credited what she had learned from watching Yutang 283 284.

Bereavement and kidnapping

When her mother later died by suicide, Li Xiulan grieved and wondered whether giving her more money might have prevented it. She decided to attend the funeral but first asked Butler Wang to verify the death, fearing another attempt to trap her and demand payment. Villagers confirmed the death and sent footage of the mourning hall 312.

Li Xiulan, Jiang Guoqiang, Song Yutang, and Jiang Boyan were subsequently kidnapped by armed men and taken to an abandoned guesthouse 313. During their rescue, Song Yutang freed Li Xiulan, and Jiang Muyan reunited with his family. Once his concealed recovery was revealed, Li Xiulan focused on her relief that her son had awakened rather than the ordeal she had just survived 316.

Appearance

Li Xiulan has an aging face with prominent smile lines around her eyes. Her everyday clothing is inexpensive and practical, although she enjoys conspicuous jewelry when dressing for important occasions 16 21 31.

• Everyday wear: Simple clothing, including street-stall garments costing slightly more than ten yuan for work in the vegetable patch 21.
• Return-visit outfit: A bright red cheongsam embroidered with gold thread and a mink shawl 16.
• Jewelry: Three gold chains, an egg-sized jade Buddha pendant, and five or six stacked gold and jade bangles during the Song family visit 16.
• Makeup: Song Yutang applies rose-bean lipstick for her before the visit, noticeably brightening her complexion 16.

Personality

Li Xiulan is initially honest, shy, and easily embarrassed. She struggles with arguments and often becomes flustered when others belittle her background or education. Her instinctive way of showing affection is through food, gifts, and practical care 11 16 21.

Her frugality comes from genuine hardship rather than miserliness. She and Jiang Guoqiang feel secure with money earned through their own work, even after joining the wealthy Jiang family. She is generous toward her children and daughter-in-law but uncomfortable spending large sums on herself 21 132.

Her loyalty is not limited to protecting her biological children. She repeatedly places Song Yutang’s happiness above preserving her marriage to Jiang Muyan, rejecting the idea that Yutang should sacrifice her future for the family 27 264 270.

Under Yutang’s influence, Li Xiulan becomes more assertive and learns to recognize manipulation. Her confrontation with her birth relatives demonstrates that she can identify an opponent’s weak points and act without waiting for Yutang to intervene. This growth does not erase her vulnerability: she remains frightened by Jiang Dingkun’s violent temper and deeply affected by her mother’s death 209 283 284 312.

Abilities & Skills

Bookkeeping and business management

• Maintained detailed restaurant accounts covering ingredients, rent, utilities, gas, equipment wear, beverages, and banking 85.
• Draws on decades of business experience despite having only a fifth-grade education 282 284.
• Uses bank-transfer records to challenge her relatives’ financial claims 282.

Agriculture and animal husbandry

• Restored the Jiang estate’s neglected vegetable plots 31.
• Grows numerous vegetables and advocates farmyard manure and reduced pesticide use 31.
• Raises chickens, ducks, and geese and keeps fish; discusses supplying these products to the household at organic-food prices 107.
• Expands vegetable plots and livestock production as the family restaurant becomes more successful 284.

Household administration

• Enforces restrictions on formal-event attendance, shared clothing facilities, borrowed property, and allowances 98 179.
• Explains the suitability of gifts prepared for Old Madam Han’s birthday despite Chen Ruyin and Wu Caixia’s attempts to discredit her 178.
• Learns to counter emotional blackmail through evidence, legal threats, and targeted pressure, though she initially struggles when confrontations develop beyond situations she has seen Yutang handle 179 282 283 284.

Possessions

• Bridal jade set: A necklace, earrings, ring, and bangle given to her by the Jiang patriarch when she married into the family. She later gifts the complete set to Song Yutang 16.
• Gold and jade jewelry: Includes gold earrings, rings, chains, bangles, and a jade pendant. She offers several pieces to Yutang for helping Jiang Zhixia and Tuantuan 16 132.
• Five homes and five shops: Jiang Dingkun agrees to give these to Li Xiulan after Song Yutang presses him to compensate their branch of the family 115.

Relationships

• Jiang Guoqiang — Husband and longtime business partner. They share a commitment to earning an honest living and supporting their children; he also stands between her and Jiang Dingkun during a confrontation 85 132 201.
• Song Yutang — Daughter-in-law, whom Li Xiulan regards as a daughter. Yutang defends her dignity and teaches her to resist exploitation 11 264 284.
• Jiang Muyan — Eldest son. His prolonged unconsciousness causes her considerable grief, and his recovery brings overwhelming relief 3 316.
• Jiang Zhixia and Tuantuan — Daughter and granddaughter. Li Xiulan confronts their mistreatment and supports their return home after Zhixia’s divorce 22 23 132 133.
• Jiang Boyan — Younger son. She regrets failing to recognize the severity of his school bullying; they later jointly support what they believe is Yutang’s relationship with Little Gu 52 270.
• Jiang Dingkun — Father-in-law. His favoritism disadvantages her family, and she becomes increasingly willing to challenge him, though his anger still frightens her 62 201 209.
• Jiang Baozhu — Sister-in-law and the first Jiang relative to accept their family. She visits Jiang Guoqiang in hospital, provides gifts and money, and defends her support against Wu Caixia’s criticism 181.
• Chen Ruyin and Wu Caixia — Household rivals who mock her rural origins and limited education. Li Xiulan eventually challenges their conduct and imposes disciplinary measures 85 98 179.
• Old Madam Li and her elder brothers — Birth relatives who repeatedly exploit her financially. She eventually refuses further demands, although her mother’s subsequent death still leaves her grieving 282 283 312.

Notable Quotes

“Better to rely on our own two hands than on heaven or earth. Your dad and I have spent our whole lives earning an honest living. We only feel secure with money we’ve earned ourselves.” 132

“Relationships go both ways. They don’t even treat me like a person, so I don’t need to treat them like family.” 284

“All that mattered was that you woke up, all that mattered was that you woke up...” 316