I just saw the long post Ma Rong posted in the middle of the night, saying she has been divorced for almost nine years, both people and money are lost, and now there are only four digits left in her bank card, not even daring to attend parent-teacher meetings for her children. From her posted transfer records, it’s clear she moved from a villa to an old, dilapidated apartment in Xi'an, even having to scrape together enough for delivery orders with discounts. Honestly, it’s a bit sad to see.

Ma Rong admits in the post that she was too young and chose the wrong person back then, and she also mentioned her relationship with Song Zhe—she only saw him once after he was released from prison, and he didn’t want to look back; she also couldn’t go back to Wang Baoqiang. Her self-reflection is quite sincere.

But thinking carefully, Ma Rong’s biggest mistake wasn’t actually that incident itself, but overestimating herself. She was naturally plain-looking and had no fame; it was entirely because of Wang Baoqiang that she gained exposure. Yet she looked down on her rural-born husband, spending his money while looking around. In the end, she got involved with her assistant Song Zhe, truly thinking it was love. Little did she know, Song Zhe just wanted to control the boss’s wife, and Ma Rong never realized she was just riding on Wang Baoqiang’s coattails.

Without Wang Baoqiang, Ma Rong became just an ordinary passerby. Plus, with all those messy affairs, even Song Zhe didn’t want her anymore. In contrast, Wang Baoqiang has long since transformed himself; now he’s active in film, TV, and variety shows. His self-directed movie has grossed over 2.2 billion yuan, and his reputation has turned around, making him a big star. He’s now dating a new girlfriend who graduated from Stanford.

Some netizens’ analysis makes a lot of sense: back then, the woman’s family was too dominant. When her daughter was caught cheating, instead of educating her and making her admit her mistake, they pushed back hard, bullying honest people. The Wang family might have had some room for reconciliation because of the two children, but they were pushed onto an irreversible path—truly a hand that played a good card badly. Ma Rong was at fault, but her mother-in-law isn’t innocent either; many families are destroyed by the mother-in-law.

Life choices are indeed crucial—one wrong step leads to a series of mistakes. Ma Rong’s story is actually quite worth reflecting on.