Jiang Chan made herself at home. “Then I’ll gladly accept, Grandma. I was wondering whether I should stay at a hotel for the New Year. You’ve saved me a great deal of money.”
The principal scolded her with a laugh. “You crafty little girl. It’s the twenty-eighth of the twelfth lunar month today. We’ll have plenty to do over the next few days, so just do as you please.”
Jiang Chan settled into the principal’s home. In just one day, she had won over both him and his wife. Mrs. Tang was amazed by Jiang Chan’s cooking, while the principal thought highly of her after playing a game with her.
In his words, someone who played Go well must have depth and vision. Just looking at Jiang Chan’s approach to the game, the principal could not stop praising her.
The principal loved calligraphy. When he happened to see Jiang Chan’s handwriting, he was utterly astonished. How wonderful it would be if Jiang Chan were his granddaughter!
Of the four arts of music, Go, calligraphy, and painting, only painting remained to be shown. Jiang Chan could truly be called a gifted young woman. How blind were the Lian family to have cast such a treasure out?
The principal’s household was full of harmony and joy, and Jiang Chan felt completely at ease there. The principal had plainly begun treating her like a younger member of his own family, taking her around the residential complex to show her off every day.
As a result, many people in the complex learned that a prized pupil had come to stay with Old Tang. Just look how proud he was! Old Tang here meant the principal. Although his son was jokingly called Old Tang at school, before the genuine Old Tang, Little Tang still had to step aside.
In the blink of an eye, Lunar New Year’s Eve arrived. That evening, Wu Xiuzhen and Lian Shuguo bustled around the kitchen preparing the reunion dinner.
Lian Yanbin lounged on the living room sofa, lazily playing on his phone. “What’s Auntie making? It smells so good.”
Wu Jin hugged a cushion from the sofa. “Who knows? Shall I go look?”
In the kitchen, Lian Shuguo deftly cleaned a fish while Wu Xiuzhen fried meatballs. Without thinking, she called, “Lian Qiao, pass me the wire skimmer!”
The kitchen immediately fell silent. Realizing her slip, Wu Xiuzhen said nothing. Lian Shuguo silently handed her the skimmer. “I wonder how that girl is getting on out there.”
Wu Xiuzhen’s voice was muffled. “How could she be doing? I think she’s been itching to fly the nest ever since she thought she could stand on her own!”
Wu Xiuzhen was gentle with everyone else. Only when Lian Qiao came up did she become somewhat hysterical. Perhaps in Wu Xiuzhen’s mind, only before Lian Qiao could she truly be herself.
She could not raise her voice at Wu Jin, because Lian Shuguo would protect her. She could not lose her temper with Lian Yanbin either, because she cared even more about what others thought and feared being called a vicious stepmother.
Only Lian Qiao was different. However much she wronged Lian Qiao, it did not matter, because Lian Qiao was her daughter with Lian Shuguo. If she hit or scolded her, neither of the Lian men would say anything, and outsiders would not call her cruel.
So over time, Lian Qiao had become a target for both her and Lian Shuguo to vent their anger on. Whenever something displeased them, it was almost always Lian Qiao who bore their wrath.
“I think that wretched girl has decided never to come back. Fine. I’ll pretend I never gave birth to her. Let her fend for herself out there!”
Wu Xiuzhen angrily took the skimmer and lifted out the meatballs once they had set. Lian Shuguo frowned. “She’s still young. If she doesn’t understand something, we can teach her. Why get so angry?”
“What’s her phone number?” The moment Lian Shuguo asked, he knew he had said the wrong thing. He suddenly remembered Jiang Chan’s accusations in the office.
“Wu Jin uses the latest iPhone, but I don’t even have a phone. What a fine stepfather and biological mother you make, mistreating your own daughter to satisfy her daughter.”
For some reason, recalling those words made Lian Shuguo’s face burn. He searched his conscience. Had he truly been wrong all these years? Had his and Wu Xiuzhen’s years of favoritism left Lian Qiao so completely disillusioned with this family that she would not even come back for the New Year?
She was a young girl, alone in this city without relatives to turn to. Where could she go?
“Have we really been wrong all these years?” Lian Shuguo murmured. Wu Xiuzhen did not catch it at first, so he repeated himself.
Wu Xiuzhen turned off the stove. “Have you lost your mind? When we married, we agreed to treat each other’s children well. Surely you haven’t forgotten?”
“Of course I haven’t!” Lian Shuguo growled. His voice stopped Wu Jin in her tracks as she came to peek into the kitchen. She stood by the door, listening to the two of them argue.
“When we married, I had Yanbin, and you had Ah Jin. We were both afraid those two children would be wronged, so we agreed to treat each other’s child even better, as though they were our own!”
Lian Shuguo washed the fishy smell off his hands as he recalled the past.
“All these years, you’ve truly done that. You’ve treated Yanbin even better than I have. You’ve looked after his food, clothing, and boarding at school.”
Wu Xiuzhen sighed. “You’ve done it all these years too. You treat Ah Jin even better than her biological father did. Back then, I kept worrying that she wouldn’t adjust. Now listen to her calling you Dad all the time. Anyone who didn’t know would think she was your own daughter.”
“Exactly. Lian Qiao was right. Anyone who didn’t know would think Ah Jin was my biological daughter. Compared with her, Lian Qiao seems more like our stepdaughter.”
Lian Shuguo sighed. “I’m wondering whether we’ve been wrong all these years. Lian Qiao’s accusations last time weren’t wrong. We wanted to be good stepparents, but we didn’t need to mistreat our biological daughter to satisfy them.”
Wu Xiuzhen opened her mouth, wanting to say something. She wanted to say that was not true, that she had not mistreated Lian Qiao. But when the words reached her lips, she could say nothing.
“Were we really wrong?” she murmured. Outside, Wu Jin could listen no longer. She pushed the door open. “Mom, Dad, if you really miss Lian Qiao, bring her home. Stop arguing in here.”
“Ah Jin, how long have you been outside?” Startled, Wu Xiuzhen instinctively glanced at Lian Shuguo.
“Since you said your first sentence.” Wu Jin forced a smile. “Find Lian Qiao and bring her back. She’s a young girl all alone out there. How could it be as warm as home?”
“Why find her? I’ll pretend I never gave birth to her. All she does is make me angry!”
Wu Xiuzhen instinctively turned her face aside, hiding her discomposure from Wu Jin. Hearing the argument in the kitchen, Lian Yanbin came over and casually asked, “Bring who back? Is someone in our family missing? Dad, Auntie, me, and my sister. Isn’t everyone here?”
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