Chapter 4: Eighteen Tricks Up Her Sleeve
The atmosphere was heavy.
Zhou Zhiru’s expression was stern, his brow furrowed into sharp angles. He glanced at the torn piece of paper in his hand, then at Zhou Wanfeng standing opposite him. Her expression was unchanged, her eyes showing not a trace of fear as she stood there, staring coldly at him.
As if provoked, a surge of anger rose within him. Smack. His palm slammed down hard on the desk.
Zhou Zhiru narrowed his eyes, his gaze profound. He clenched his fists, the veins on the back of his hands popping. His deep voice carried a clear warning. “Zhou Wanfeng, this is not a place for you to do as you please. I don’t care what rotten habits you picked up in Xuxu Village, you will put them away here. This is not your home, and the people here owe you nothing. Whatever your real purpose for coming here is, I’m telling you, don’t get greedy, and don’t covet things that don’t belong to you.”
The moment he finished speaking, Zhou Wanfeng actually grinned, her shoulders shaking as if she had heard the funniest joke in the world. “Greedy? Covet? What are you referring to? Your money? Or that ethereal, non-existent fatherly love of yours? You think I want those things? Don’t be ridiculous. I’m here to collect a debt. Other people don’t owe me, but you do. You got a woman pregnant and let her give birth to your child. You didn’t strangle me at birth, so that’s your debt. You’re my biological father. To give birth but not raise is the act of a beast. To only give money is the act of a bastard.
“All of you want me to stay quietly in Dongshan, but I refuse to do as you wish. You find me an eyesore? Then I’ll be the thorn in your side. One that you can’t pull out, can’t remove. Your discomfort is my comfort. Why should you all be here enjoying life while I have to sleep in someone else’s damp, moldy storage room? By virtue of my surname, Zhou, you have to raise me well until I’m eighteen. What others have, I must have too.”
After speaking, Zhou Wanfeng bent down to pick up the book she had just thrown, looked at Zhou Zhiru with a defiant gaze, and with a smirk, slammed it down again right in front of him.
Thud. The sound was particularly jarring in the quiet night.
Zhou Zhiru’s jaw tightened, his eyes filled with rage, his hands trembling with anger.
Zhou Wanfeng simply smiled. “You’re the one who made me live here. You can abide by this family’s rules if you like. I have my own rules. I’m hungry now and I want to eat, and I won’t wait until tomorrow morning.”
With that, Zhou Wanfeng completely ignored Zhou Zhiru’s darkened face and turned to find the kitchen.
Zhou Zhiru threw his head back and took a deep breath, his brows knitted in anger, his lips pressed tightly together as he watched Zhou Wanfeng’s proud, striding back. He was suddenly reminded of the phone call from the police station that afternoon.
“…Mr. Zhou Wanfeng’s father, since you can’t come, I’ll be brief over the phone. You can’t let a child travel so far by train alone. Public safety is better than it used to be, but with the crowds at the train station, you can’t guarantee there aren’t some unsavory characters around. As parents, you need to be more careful. If something really happens, it’ll be too late for regrets. Also, I hope you as parents can discipline your child more. In today’s incident, the child was alert and didn’t panic, which is a good thing. But for her to still act so boldly when she knew who the other party was and that they were carrying knockout drugs and sharp knives… youthful fearlessness isn’t necessarily a good thing…”
Thinking back to their conversation just now—his stern face, his scolding, his slamming the table in warning—she had shown not a shred of fear or awe. Her sarcastic gaze was nothing like that of a twelve-year-old.
His stepdaughter, Yun Jingya, was also twelve, but she was a completely different story.
Zhou Wanfeng found the kitchen in the left wing of the first floor. It was indeed spotlessly clean; even the trash can had been emptied.
The items in the refrigerator were neatly arranged. She first took out two eggs, then rummaged through the cabinets for cookware to boil them.
Just as she was figuring out how to use the stove, Granny Zhang came in, wrapped in a coat. Upon seeing the mess in the kitchen, her drooping eyelids shot up for a second, and the next, her eyes were blazing with anger.
She strode forward and grabbed Zhou Wanfeng’s arm, suppressing her anger as she hissed, “What are you doing in the kitchen so late? The old mistress is a light sleeper. What if you wake her up?”
Seeing the culprit who had left her to starve, Zhou Wanfeng deftly twisted her arm free. “What else would I be doing in a kitchen? Eating, of course.”
“Have you looked at the time?” Granny Zhang saw Zhou Wanfeng light the stove in a few quick motions and reached out to turn it off with a click.
Zhou Wanfeng turned it on again.
Click. It was turned off again.
Zhou Wanfeng’s eyes narrowed slightly, her expression icy. “Either you turn it on for me, or I go wake up your ‘light-sleeping’ old mistress and have her turn it on for me. You choose.”
Granny Zhang gritted her teeth, her lips pressed into a thin line. From the bottom of her heart, she detested and was annoyed by the girl in front of her.
Seeing the woman wasn’t moving, Zhou Wanfeng’s face grew cold and she turned to leave. “The old mistress lives on the first floor, right? It’s my fault for not paying my respects on the first day. Fortunately, today isn’t over yet, so it’s not too late.”
Seeing her storming out, Granny Zhang’s courage instantly faltered. She had known the girl was sleeping and had deliberately not called her for dinner. She immediately chased after her and pulled her back.
“What is it with you, child? Look at the time. Just skip one meal and eat a little more tomorrow morning. Why must you make such a fuss in the middle of the night?” Granny Zhang’s imposing manner weakened.
Zhou Wanfeng said, “I got up at five this morning to catch the train. I haven’t eaten all day. I’m so hungry I’m seeing stars. I can’t last until tomorrow.”
Frustrated, Granny Zhang turned on the stove. She didn’t leave, but stood by, watching coldly, mainly to prevent Zhou Wanfeng from rummaging through things.
Zhou Wanfeng got up and poured herself a glass of cooled boiled water, gulping it down. After eating, she cleaned up, washing the cookware and cup and putting them back where they belonged.
The kitchen was restored to its original state.
Unable to find any fault, Granny Zhang’s mouth opened and closed a couple of times before she muttered, “Hurry back. And be quiet on the stairs.”
Zhou Wanfeng didn’t even acknowledge her.
Back in the attic, lying on the bed, she couldn’t help but sigh. It was only the first day, and she could already feel the dislike and rejection from those around her.
What about the sixteen-year-old Zhou Wanfeng? In this environment, her low self-esteem and sensitivity, her unventable pressure would have turned into irritability and anger. At the same time, she would have felt jealousy and hatred.
She could roughly guess how the original Zhou Wanfeng had gone astray. At only sixteen, she probably couldn’t have handled it at all.
It was a pity. Some people make a wrong turn at a critical point in their lives and can never go back.
In a daze, she seemed to see her sixteen-year-old self, curled up in a pool of blood. Her father’s head had a large gash, blood pouring out.
Her hands trembled with fear, her whole body was cold with fear, but the woman who had said she would go get help never came back. Only then did she realize she had been abandoned.
She didn’t regret that blow. If that scum hadn’t died, he would have continued to harm good people. It was just that the blow was too hard; it had shattered her own life.
The next morning, Zhou Wanfeng was woken up by someone calling her. It was probably not even five o’clock. There was only a sliver of white in the eastern sky. Granny Zhang, neatly dressed, stood at the door with a bag in her hand, her face full of displeasure.
“This bag has toiletries. Seeing as you only brought a flat bag yesterday, you probably don’t have a change of clothes. The old mistress said we have to wait for the Madam to return from abroad to take you shopping, so for now, we’ve found some of Miss Jingya’s old clothes for you to wear.” After saying this, she took out the clothes as if showing them off.
“You’ve probably never even seen fabric like this in the countryside. The hem of this skirt alone is made of several different materials. And this plaid skirt, look at the workmanship. Hurry up and throw away what you’re wearing and change into these. You’re having breakfast with the old mistress in a bit.”
Zhou Wanfeng glanced at them. The clothes were probably for a ten-year-old girl; she estimated she couldn’t fit into them at all. And they looked like something one would wear for a festival or a special event.
This Granny Zhang thought that because she was from the countryside, she wouldn’t know any better, and was trying to fool her with a few gaudy outfits. If she were truly that shallow and tried to squeeze into these poofy, sparkly princess dresses, who knows how she would be ridiculed behind her back.
Granny Zhang praised the clothes for a few more sentences, mentioning how beautiful and expensive they were. Before leaving, she urged, “Hurry up and wash. Breakfast is being made in the kitchen. The old mistress is already up and out for her walk.”
Taking the toiletries to the third-floor washroom, she changed into the school uniform she had brought. She herself disliked the pea-green color. She took off her dirty clothes and washed them right there in the washroom. On the other side of the attic was a terrace with a clothesline.
When she was done, she went downstairs. As she passed the third and second floors, she saw people cleaning. The two of them were surprised to see her coming down from the attic and watched her all the way down.
On the first floor, in the left wing, the dining table was already set with a wide variety of breakfast items, at least seven or eight different dishes. Yang Yijun was sitting there, eating elegantly, with a cold-faced Granny Zhang standing beside her.
When Zhou Wanfeng approached, Granny Zhang’s gaze shot towards her like daggers.
There was another set of tableware on the redwood dining table, which must have been for her. She walked over, pulled out the chair, and greeted them naturally. “Good morning. There’s no clock in my room, so I wasn’t sure of the time. I’m late this time; I’ll be earlier next time.”
Yang Yijun put down her chopsticks, indicating she was finished. She motioned for the family’s maid to clear her dishes and delicately wiped her hands with a napkin. Only then did she look at Zhou Wanfeng, her expression gentle. “The attic isn’t really a place to live, but the home’s decoration and furnishings were all handled by your… your Auntie Yun. We called her yesterday. She knows you’re here and has even moved up her return date. She should be back this afternoon. Your father, too… when your grandmother passed away, I said we were in-laws after all and should have paid our respects. Your father didn’t agree, and we had some family matters at the time, and your Auntie Yun wasn’t feeling well, so we didn’t go.”
Zhou Wanfeng ate with her head down. The old mistress before her was said to be in her sixties, but she felt that was an overstatement. She was exquisite and elegant from head to toe, looking more like someone in her forties or fifties.
Her voice was very gentle, the kind that made you feel sleepy just listening to it.
Zhou Wanfeng swallowed the food in her mouth, her eyes crinkling into a smile. “Last night, my father told me to make sure to greet people when I saw them. Calling you Grandma feels like I’m aging you. The attic is quite large and livable, it just needs a good tidying up. The window needs a screen; little bugs fly in at night when the light is on.”
This unexpected “Grandma” stunned both of them.
“By the way, Grandma, did my father tell you that I’m staying in Yunhai City for school?”
“No, but staying in Yunhai City is the right choice. The quality of education here is good, and your father is here too. We should have had him bring you over earlier, but he said you couldn’t bear to leave your grandmother. Now that your grandmother has passed, it’s time for you to come here for school. Besides, you and Jingya are the same age, so you can keep each other company. You haven’t met Chengbin yet, have you? He’s your younger brother, a chubby little boy who just started first grade. You’ll see him this afternoon. He’ll be so happy to have another older sister to dote on him.” The look in Yang Yijun’s eyes would surely make anyone think she was a gentle and kind person, just like the words she spoke.
That face, that voice, were too deceptive.
Zhou Wanfeng decided not to look at her. “Now that you mention it, I’m quite looking forward to it, suddenly having a younger sister and brother.”
Granny Zhang couldn’t stand Zhou Wanfeng’s shameless and disrespectful attitude. She hadn’t been able to get a word in, but now she finally found her chance. “What ‘younger sister’? By birth date, Miss Jingya is three months older than you. You should call her ‘older sister’.”
Zhou Wanfeng put down her chopsticks and tilted her head to look at Granny Zhang. “I was born later, but my mental age is older. Whether I’m the older or younger sister, what I mean to say is that I will get along well with her.”
“What ‘mental age is older’…” Granny Zhang couldn’t stand Zhou Wanfeng’s nonsense and wanted to correct her.
But seeing Yang Yijun frown slightly, she quickly shut her mouth.
Instead, it was Yang Yijun who, upon seeing Zhou Wanfeng’s green school uniform, asked with a hint of doubt, “Didn’t Jingya’s clothes fit? Why aren’t you wearing them?”
“I tried them on, but they were too small. I’ll make do with this school uniform for one more day. I probably won’t be able to wear it after this,” Zhou Wanfeng said, grinning as she saw Granny Zhang’s face darken.
“That’s fine. When Yun Lan gets back, she can take you shopping. There’s a South Lake nearby with beautiful scenery. People from out of town all go to see it. If you have nothing to do at home, you can go for a walk. Once school starts and the homework piles up, you won’t have time to play.”
“Thank you for the reminder. I’ll go for a walk.”
After a polite exchange, Yang Yijun got up and went to the Go room.
In the Go room, Granny Zhang carefully lit the incense in the corner, muttering, “The Madam is coming back early just for her? Didn’t the young master have a special performance to watch?”
“I asked her to come back early. It’s better that Chengbin doesn’t see it. His mother made him miss his performance for a stranger. He’ll only be angry at that stranger,” Yang Yijun began to set up the Go pieces.
Thinking about their casual conversation at the dining table, she couldn’t help but glance at Granny Zhang. “You, don’t treat her like some country bumpkin who knows nothing. Those clothes you took her, she didn’t like them.”
“How could that be? I picked out Miss Jingya’s performance outfits and birthday party dresses. The size is a bit small, but she can wear them.” But she’d look like she was wrapped up like a rice dumpling. Granny Zhang felt that Zhou Wanfeng was just from the countryside, with a face full of ambition. She was an eyesore no matter how she looked at her.
“Just now at breakfast, she ate like she’d never seen the world. She ate as much as was served. In the countryside, she probably just eats flatbread and pickles every day. Where would she have seen so many different dishes? If you weren’t there, she probably would have gobbled it down and eaten with her hands.”
Yang Yijun shook her head. “You don’t understand her. Her eyes are clear. She knows what you’re up to. If she were only staying for a few days, I would quite like her. But if she’s staying in Yunhai City for a long time, both Yun Lan and Jingya will probably feel uncomfortable. And I can’t truly like someone who makes my children uncomfortable.”
“Did you hear the noise last night?” She was thinking of the two thuds that came from the second-floor study last night.
Granny Zhang nodded. It was because she had heard it that she had gotten up to check.
“You’ve known my son-in-law for so many years. Have you ever seen him smash things? In this house, no matter how displeased he is, the most he’ll do is frown.” Yang Yijun took out a Go manual and began to lay out the pieces.
“It was a book. I saw it in the trash can on the second floor this morning. The book was dented, and the pages inside were torn.” Granny Zhang had specifically picked it up to look.
“To come to Yunhai City all by herself? To dare to smash things at her only relative? There aren’t many children who don’t avert their gaze when they meet me for the first time. Oh, what a headache. I wonder if the two gentle-natured children at home will be affected.” Yang Yijun said casually, but her hand paused.
Her gaze instantly turned cold. She turned to look at Granny Zhang, her voice becoming lighter. “Tell me, do you think Zhou Zhiru has other intentions for sending her here?”