Chapter 95
◎Is Youxin Not Our Biological Daughter?◎
The incandescent lights in the corridor in front of the operating room were blindingly bright, and the smell of disinfectant was so thick it couldn’t be dispersed. The iron door at the end of the corridor would occasionally be slammed by the wind with a clang, carrying a cold, hard echo that reverberated in the empty long corridor.
Sheng Ruiru stared motionlessly at the three words “In Surgery,” her heart feeling as if it were being fried in a pot of oil.
Lu Junshan draped a coat over his wife and comforted her, “Youxin will be fine.”
Tangtang was sitting on an old wooden chair, her hands, which were resting on her knees, were pale. Zhou Shunian held her cold hands in his palm and said with concern, “Were you scared?”
Tangtang shook her head with a pale face. She had been facing away from Lu Youxin at that time and didn’t know what had happened. When she came back to her senses, she saw Lu Youxin rolling down to the ground like a winter melon with a thud thud thud. Her forehead was broken, and she was bleeding a lot.
At that time, on the stairs, there were only her and Lu Youxin.
Although she didn’t like Lu Youxin, she had never had any intention of harming her.
A nurse came out of the operating room. “Are Lu Youxin’s family members here?”
Hearing this, Sheng Ruiru stood up abruptly, her voice trembling. “Yes, I’m Lu Youxin’s mother!”
Lu Junshan also stood up. “I’m Lu Youxin’s father.”
The nurse looked down at the information in her hand. “The patient’s head was hit, and she has lost too much blood. She urgently needs AB-type platelets. The blood bank’s reserves are not enough. Who among you is AB-type? It’s best if it’s a direct relative, as the matching success rate will be higher.”
“I’m A-type.” Sheng Ruiru was taken aback and subconsciously looked at her husband.
Before Lu Junshan could answer, another doctor in a white coat came over, holding a newly filled form in his hand. His tone was a little calmer. “We just contacted the central blood station. They have urgently transferred a batch of AB-type platelets over. They are already on their way and will be here in ten minutes. There’s no need for family members to donate blood for now. You can just wait outside.”
Sheng Ruiru’s tense body suddenly relaxed, and she almost couldn’t stand. Lu Junshan quickly supported his wife.
The two looked at each other and saw the confusion in each other’s eyes.
She was A-type, and Lu Junshan was also A-type. How could the two of them have an AB-type child?
Sheng Ruiru still asked again, unwilling to give up. “Nurse, you just said… Lu Youxin is AB-type?”
“Yes.”
…
“Uncle Lu, Teacher Sheng.” Tangtang got up from the wooden chair. The two of them had already heard the nurse’s words just now, but Tangtang was A-type, and Zhou Shunian was O-type. The two of them couldn’t donate platelets to Lu Youxin either.
“Uncle Lu, Teacher Sheng,” Zhou Shunian said.
“It’s getting late. You two should go back first. Your Uncle Lu and I will stay here.”
“Teacher Sheng, I…” Tangtang wanted to explain what had happened on the stairs, but as soon as she opened her mouth, her throat felt as if it were stuffed with cotton, and she didn’t know how to explain it to them.
“Tangtang.” Sheng Ruiru took the initiative to hold Tangtang’s cold and pale hands and affectionately tucked the stray hair by her ear behind it. “I know what you want to say. You don’t have to explain. Your Uncle Lu and I both believe in your character. You are a rare child with a good character. Youxin will be fine. You should go back to school and have a good sleep. The next day, you should go to class, and eat when you should. Do you understand?”
Sheng Ruiru’s words were like a gentle, clear wind blowing across her heart. Tangtang’s eyes felt a little sore. She nodded.
Tangtang walked out of the hospital gate, and a light drizzle began to fall. Zhou Shunian opened the umbrella to shield her from the wind and rain from the outside world.
The thudding sound was still echoing in her ears, as well as the clanging of the iron door at the end of the operating room corridor.
“Tangtang, I’m here,” Zhou Shunian’s gentle voice sounded by her side.
Tangtang’s restrained tears could no longer be held back and streamed down. She threw herself into Zhou Shunian’s arms, as if trying to embed him into her life.
…
The light in the operating room went out. A nurse pushed Lu Youxin out of the operating room. The doctor took off his mask and said with relief, “The suturing surgery was very successful. The patient can be transferred to a regular ward after a period of observation.”
Hearing this, Lu Junshan and his wife breathed a sigh of relief. Their suspended hearts could finally be put down.
In the private ward, Sheng Ruiru sat by the bed. Lu Youxin was still in a coma. The ward was extremely quiet. Just now, they had applied for a blood type test. The test result was on the enamel plate on the bedside table. The thin piece of paper was illuminated white by the light. The three words “AB-type” on it were like a red-hot branding iron, so hot that she didn’t dare to reach out and touch it.
Sheng Ruiru looked at Lu Youxin’s face, which was so close, and felt that she had never felt so unfamiliar.
So close, yet so unfamiliar.
She and her husband were both rare talents. Her husband was over 1.8 meters tall, with sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes. She herself also had a high-bridged nose and snow-white skin. When she was young, she could be said to be the most outstanding in their department, with countless suitors. Her eldest son, Lu Mingbai, had also inherited the good looks of her and her husband, with delicate and elegant features. But her only daughter had a plain appearance, with protruding cheekbones, and her features were all squeezed together, with triangular eyes and a flat nose.
When they were out, many people would be taken aback for a moment when they heard her introduce Youxin with the words “this is my daughter.”
But despite this, Lu Junshan and Sheng Ruiru had never suspected that Youxin was not their biological daughter. It didn’t matter if she didn’t look like her parents. After all, she was their own flesh and blood. They only had this one daughter, and from the moment she was born, they had decided to give her the best of everything. If she wanted to learn ballet, fine, they would arrange for the best teacher to teach her. If she wanted to learn piano, they would spend a lot of money to have the best piano custom-made for her.
When Youxin was a child, she was a picky eater and didn’t like to eat green vegetables. Sheng Ruiru would find ways to chop the vegetables and mix them with minced meat to coax her to eat.
Youxin loved beauty. Her wardrobe was full of the most fashionable clothes, shoes, and jewelry in the capital at that time.
Lu Junshan’s palm rested on his wife’s shoulder, patting it comfortingly.
After a while, Lu Mingbai came over from home. He told his parents to go home and rest for a while no matter what. If it were a normal day, Lu Junshan and his wife would definitely have chosen to stay in the hospital room. But now, their minds were in a mess, and they felt as if they were about to go crazy. The couple had no strength to stay any longer and chose to escape from the hospital.
…
Sheng Ruiru was in a state of panic and at a loss. After locking the bedroom door, large tears began to fall. Her voice was both urgent and choked. “How is that possible? I still clearly remember the feeling of being pregnant. The baby was moving in my belly. Every one of her heartbeats was connected to my heart. The sourness of morning sickness, the pain of childbirth… I can’t be wrong. I really gave birth to a daughter. How could this be? How could Youxin not be our daughter?”
“Junshan, do you still remember when our daughter was still in my belly, you loved to lie on my belly and listen to the fetal movements? I always laughed at you for being like a child, with your ear pressed against my belly for half an hour. When the baby was five months old, you decided to name her ‘Youxin,’ hoping that when she grew up, she would treat others with a friendly heart and establish herself with a fragrant character. I remember all of these things clearly. How could the child not be ours?”
“I remember that year you were stationed near Xiangyang City. I received a telegram saying you were injured. My heart was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. I was thinking of going to the army to see you, but I had an accident on the way and the baby was born prematurely. I was sent to a local commune hospital. It was chaotic with the cries of new mothers and babies.” Sheng Ruiru’s voice was faint, and her whole body was cold, unable to feel a single bit of warmth. “I fainted after giving birth to Youxin. When I woke up, a nurse brought the baby to me and said, ‘It’s a girl, and her cry is loud.’ I was so tired at that time that I didn’t even have the strength to open my eyes…”
“When I woke up, I saw a red birthmark on our baby’s arm. Youxin has always had that red birthmark. How could it be, how could it be…” Sheng Ruiru’s whole body went limp, and she muttered to herself.
“If Youxin is not our daughter, then who is she? And where did our daughter go?”
Lu Junshan stood by the window with his back to his wife. He was not by her side when his wife gave birth back then. Now, hearing his wife’s words, a bold guess appeared in his mind. “I suspect that our daughter was either switched at birth, or she was swapped by someone when you were unconscious.”
“Swapped?” Sheng Ruiru struggled to squeeze out these two words from her throat. Her eyes widened, and her whole body trembled.
He helped his wife to the side of the bed and sat her down. “I’ll go and investigate now. This is a serious matter. We must get to the bottom of it and find our daughter!”
Sheng Ruiru thought of the place where she had given birth, and her heart sank into a cold lake. “The place where you were stationed back then was a poor and backward rural area. If our daughter was really left there, I can’t imagine how much hardship she must have endured in these twenty years, how much she has suffered. What if, what if she has already gotten married and had children…”
Sheng Ruiru covered her ears, unable to imagine.
Her voice was as hoarse as a broken gong. “Junshan, you must find our daughter.”
Lu Junshan nodded heavily. As he was about to turn and leave, he still couldn’t help but remind his wife, “Before this matter is settled, don’t let Youxin know. She’s still sick now and can’t take it.”
…
Su Juesheng had been busy with his schoolwork recently and hadn’t been to Capital University for a while.
Today was Sunday. Tangtang had specially taken the time to dress up. She had bought a blue and green plaid half-skirt at the department store last time and hadn’t had a chance to wear it. It was just right to wear it today. She paired it with a cream-colored Peter Pan collar chiffon top, combed her hair into a simple and neat bun, and went out of the dormitory with her yellow schoolbag on her back.
She had arranged to meet Zhou Shunian yesterday. They would first go to the City God Temple and then to the state-run canteen for eel noodles.
Just as she walked out of the school gate, Tangtang ran into Su Juesheng, who was carrying a net bag of apples.
“Brother…?” Tangtang hadn’t expected her third brother to suddenly come to Capital University to find her.
“Brother Shunian, Tangtang, what a coincidence. I didn’t expect to run into you here?! What are you two up to?” Su Juesheng sized them up.
“Uh… Brother Shunian and I, we just happened to run into each other. We’re not going to the same place. He’s going to the bookstore, and I’m going to the department store to buy something!” she explained, racking her brains. “Brother Juesheng, didn’t you say you have a lot of classes recently? Why did you suddenly come over?”
Su Juesheng patted her head. “No matter how busy I am, I can’t neglect my little sister. I’ve been reflecting on myself these past two days. I’ve been paying too little attention to you recently. Brother promises you that I’ll come to Capital University to see you once a week in the future! And since today is the Dragon Boat Festival, we two siblings can spend some time together to celebrate.”
“Huh?” She widened her eyes. She and Zhou Shunian only had half a day a week to spend together.
Zhou Shunian couldn’t help but cough twice.
“Tangtang, Brother Shunian, it’s almost noon. Let’s go and have a meal together.” Su Juesheng squeezed in between them, holding Tangtang with one hand and Zhou Shunian with the other.
Since the restrictions on the individual economy were lifted, many small restaurants had opened in the streets and alleys of the capital. The traffic at the state-run canteens had gradually been diverted. The three of them sat in a small restaurant and ordered a farmer’s stir-fry, braised winter melon, sweet and sour pork ribs, and kelp soup.
A large pot of zongzi was also cooking at the entrance of the small restaurant, bubbling with boiling foam. The white steam, wrapped in the unique fragrance of zongzi leaves, filled the air. The dark green zongzi leaves swirled in the water, cooked until they were shiny. Some of these zongzi were tied with red cotton thread, and some with green hemp string, making the triangular zongzi’s edges and corners stand out.
Tangtang looked at the zongzi in the large pot, a little melancholy. “I miss our parents…”
Every Dragon Boat Festival, Yu Juanfang would make zongzi with several kinds of fillings, such as jujube, red bean paste, and red dates. After they were wrapped, they would be thrown into a large iron pot and cooked for two or three hours. The zongzi would then be cooked. When the zongzi were cooking, the house would be filled with the fragrance of zongzi leaves.
In addition, her mother would also weave a five-colored string for her and her brothers and tie it to their wrists. After the Dragon Boat Festival, they would throw it into the river with the first rain and let it float away with the water.
In the capital, she couldn’t eat the zongzi her mother made, nor did she have the five-colored string her mother wove.
Su Juesheng sighed. “Me too.”
“I wonder what our parents are doing now…”
“Dad is definitely at work at the commune. Mom… maybe she’s selling tea rice on the commune’s street. Dad and Mom are doing well. Let’s not think about it. Let’s eat first,” Su Juesheng comforted her.
Soon, the food they had ordered was served. When Su Juesheng was serving the soup, he accidentally knocked over his chopsticks. He bent down to pick them up and saw their hands holding each other under the table.
Su Juesheng felt as if he had discovered a huge secret, and he couldn’t help but widen his eyes.
Only then did Tangtang notice Su Juesheng bending down to pick up his chopsticks. She reacted with a delayed realization and quickly threw off Zhou Shunian’s hand.
“Brother Shunian, Tangtang… you two?!”
“I’m going to tell Dad and Mom…”
Tangtang had already anticipated his reaction and quickly got up and covered his mouth, her eyebrows knitted together. “Don’t say it.”
“Brother Juesheng, I’m letting go of my hand now, but you have to promise me to be quiet.”
“Mmm, mmm,” Su Juesheng nodded.
“Alright, you can ask whatever you want to ask.” Tangtang let go of her hand and sat back down, resigned to her fate.
Su Juesheng’s mood was so complicated, so melancholy. Although his reason told him that Brother Shunian was a good person and was his big brother’s good friend, and the two families knew each other’s background, he still couldn’t accept the fact that his sister was in a relationship so quickly.
It was like eating a delicious dumpling, but the dumpling was stuck in his throat, neither up nor down.
Tangtang thought for a moment. “How about this, let’s make a deal. Brother, when you find a girlfriend in the future, I’ll also keep it a secret for you. I won’t tell Dad and Mom either.”
Zhou Shunian said, “Juesheng, I know your concerns, but Tangtang and I are serious. The reason why we haven’t told our families is that we just want to wait until we’ve settled down after graduation before we formally inform our elders.”
Su Juesheng sighed for a long time before he finally pulled himself together and looked at the person in front of him. “Brother Shunian, Tangtang, are you two serious?”
Tangtang looked at Zhou Shunian and nodded seriously. “Brother Juesheng, I’m serious.”
“Tangtang will be my only wife in the future,” Zhou Shunian also said.
Tangtang hadn’t expected him to make such a solemn promise. She felt her heart tremble and also said seriously, “We will always, always be together and never be apart.”
Su Juesheng finally felt the awkwardness stuck in his throat loosen a little. He put on a stern face. “Brother Shunian, although you’ve always been a person I greatly admire, I’ll also say this first. You’re not allowed to bully my sister. Otherwise, I, as her brother, will be the first to disagree.”
…
Lu Youxin had ten stitches on her forehead. Although she was fine, a scar was inevitably left on her forehead.
The scar was like an ugly centipede coiled on her forehead. After Lu Youxin woke up, she couldn’t help but smash all the mirrors in the hospital room in anger.
The hospital room was filled with flowers and fruit from the visiting guests. After she woke up, she had originally wanted to insist that it was Tangtang who had pushed her down the stairs. But Old Mr. Lu’s sharp eyes stared at her, as if he would expose her the next second if she lied. Helpless, Lu Youxin had to guiltily change her story and say that she had accidentally fallen.
A plate of washed strawberries was on the bedside table, each one fresh, sweet, and juicy. Lu Youxin held the plate and ate the strawberries. After taking a bite of the tip of the strawberry, she would spit out the white stem part onto a handkerchief.
Lu Mingbai watched for a long time and couldn’t help but say, “Lu Youxin, can you not be so wasteful? Although the bottom of the strawberry is not as sweet as the top, it’s still edible.”
“I just like to eat the tip of the strawberry. If you think it’s a waste, you can just eat the bottom part that I don’t eat! I only spat it on a handkerchief. I didn’t throw it in the trash can.” Lu Youxin had always had a spoiled personality. Now that her forehead was injured, she was even more delicate and couldn’t be scolded or reprimanded.
“You…” Lu Mingbai was so angry at her words that he was speechless.
“Wuwu… Mom, look, brother is scolding me. He hasn’t even gotten a wife yet, and he’s already scolding me, his sister. If he gets a sister-in-law in the future, won’t he just kick me, his sister, out of the house?” Lu Youxin pretended to cry with a wronged expression, all thunder and no rain.
Sheng Ruiru was peeling an apple by the bed. When Lu Youxin threw herself at her, she happened to bump into the hand that was holding the fruit knife. The knife slipped, and scarlet blood gushed out.
Seeing this, Lu Mingbai quickly used a handkerchief to stop the bleeding. “Mom, are you okay?!”
“Lu Youxin, look what you’ve done!”
“What does it have to do with me? It’s because you were talking about me that I accidentally bumped into Mom’s hand.” Lu Youxin cried with a wronged expression, with no intention of caring about Sheng Ruiru’s wound. “You’re a loving mother and a filial son. So I’m the only one who was picked up from the outside, floated in on a big flood, and not Mom’s biological child!”
If it were a normal day, Sheng Ruiru would definitely have started to coax Lu Youxin. But today, she didn’t react at all.
“Mom, what’s wrong with you? You’re so restless,” Lu Mingbai asked with concern.
“It’s nothing.” Sheng Ruiru shook her head, her gaze falling on the pile of white strawberry bottoms. She was thinking, had her daughter who was living outside ever had a single bite of strawberry?