Stealing My Stepsister's Fiancée - Chapter 29
Chapter 29: Su Yu’s Background
Only three hours had passed since she and Su Yu parted, but Ni Hezhi had already walked back and forth from her room to the front door several times. She felt as if a century had gone by, yet when she checked her watch, the hand had only moved halfway.
This level of anxiety even perplexed her. She thought it might be because she was still in her heat cycle and was particularly attached to pheromones. But then she reconsidered—Su Yu couldn’t differentiate, so why would she be attached to her?
The entire day, she was like an addict, and everything she did reminded her of Su Yu. She thought of her flustered little expressions when she was teased, her face that easily turned red, her soft and slightly cool lips, the feeling of being held in her embrace… As she thought about it, she regretted not getting to take more advantage of her before letting her go.
The yearning became so unbearable that Ni Hezhi secretly snuck into Su Yu’s room and rummaged through her clothes in the two old five-drawer dressers, holding them in her hands and sniffing frantically.
Unfortunately, besides a faint soap scent, there was no other smell.
That was so strange…
She had clearly smelled a woody scent coming from her.
Ni Hezhi’s thoughts ran wild uncontrollably until she heard the sound of a “thud-thud-thud” from a cane hitting the ground outside. She snapped back to reality, quickly stuffing Su Yu’s clothes back into the dresser. When she looked up, she found herself face to face with the grandmother’s smiling eyes.
The old woman stood at the door with a woven basket in her arms. Ni Hezhi didn’t know how long she had been watching.
Ni Hezhi’s face flushed. Her eyes darted around as she said in a revealing tone, “I, I came to borrow… borrow a book from Su Yu, um… she’s not here…”
The old woman saw it all and was happy in her heart. The wrinkles at the corners of her eyes curved up like chrysanthemums: “The luffa gourds in the backyard are ripe. I had Shu Hui pick a few. Since the sun is out, we’ll scoop out the seeds to dry. In three or five days, we can fry them up for you to snack on.”
Ni Hezhi went along with the suggestion, supporting the old woman’s arm and thanking her profusely. Her words were as sweet as honey, making the old woman smile broadly: “I knew it, Grandma dotes on me the most. Will you teach me how to scoop out the seeds later?”
It was rare for Ni Hezhi to be willing to spend time with her, so the old woman was naturally delighted: “Of course.”
As they spoke, Ni Hezhi’s gaze once again glanced toward the door. The old woman understood and had her bring two low stools to sit under the pomegranate tree by the door. They started working and chatting, waiting for Su Yu to return home.
Ni Hezhi rolled up her sleeves to help the grandmother with the seeds. The old woman’s eyesight was poor, so she couldn’t pick them cleanly. Ni Hezhi would turn them over and check the pile for any withered seeds.
The grandmother grew fonder of her as she watched. “Zhizhi, you must be bored spending all day with an old woman like me, right?”
Ni Hezhi leaned affectionately against the old woman’s leg, her smiling eyes curved. “Not at all. Grandma has taught me how to knit sweaters, wrap zongzi, and cut paper cuttings… all of these things are so interesting. How could I be bored?”
Su Yu’s face involuntarily appeared in Ni Hezhi’s mind, and the corners of her lips unconsciously lifted. “If you want to talk about boring, no one is more boring than Su Yu.”
She was complaining, but her tone was sweet and held a hint of doting affection.
The grandmother could, of course, hear the contradiction in her words. She smiled and looked up: “That child has been like this since she was little. She looks tough and cold like a rock, but her heart is the most meticulous. She’s so considerate. Sometimes she worries more than I do. When she goes out, she’ll ramble on for a long time, and it gives me a headache.”
Ni Hezhi couldn’t help but imagine a rigid female teacher and secretly smiled to herself. A few seconds later, her mood suddenly changed, and the smile on her face gradually faded.
The grandmother noticed her strange expression and asked, “Is something wrong?”
“No, I was just thinking…” A question had been lingering in Ni Hezhi’s mind, and she didn’t know how to ask it. She mumbled, trying to find the right words: “Grandma, I… I have a question for you…”
Seeing her hesitant expression, the grandmother joked, “What question could be so difficult for our Zhizhi?”
Ni Hezhi hesitated for a long time before carefully asking, “Grandma, the two portraits on the cabinet in the main room, are they Su Yu’s mom and dad?”
Mentioning her deceased son and daughter-in-law, the old woman’s hands stopped moving. Her eyes quietly reddened: “They are. They passed away many years ago.”
Ni Hezhi looked at her intently: “The portraits have names and birth dates written on them. Su Yu’s father is Fang, and her mother is Nian. Why is her last name Su?”
The old woman raised her head, but she didn’t meet Ni Hezhi’s gaze. Instead, she stared blankly at the ground, her voice tinged with grief.
She said, “A’Yu isn’t a child of our Fang family.”
The information was so overwhelming that Ni Hezhi couldn’t react. Her expression became unbalanced, with shock written all over her face. She was speechless for a long time.
The old woman’s memories brought a piercing pain to her heart. She closed her eyes tightly and then opened them again, her tearful gaze slowly focusing: “I’ve had a tough life. I lost my mother at ten and was widowed at thirty. I worked hard to raise A’Yu’s father, and thankfully, he was a good student. He was the first university student from our village.”
“That child, Huaizhou, was filial since he was young. He had a great future at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, but he applied to come back and be a teacher. I knew he did it to take care of me, but I couldn’t let him ruin his future. I threatened to die if he came back. Later, I saw that he genuinely loved children and teaching, so I let him have his way.”
“Two years later, Huaizhou was promoted to vice-principal and was sent on an official trip to the capital. When he came back, he brought a girl with him. That girl was so beautiful and diligent, but she didn’t smile much, as if she had something on her mind. However, I couldn’t care less about her past. But since Huaizhou brought her back so informally, I had to ask.”
The old woman stopped there. Ni Hezhi couldn’t wait to ask, “That girl was Su Yu’s mother?”
“That’s right.” The old woman’s voice was very low, and her deeply wrinkled eyelids were moist. “Huaizhou told me the girl was pregnant with his child and he was bringing her back to get married.”
“I was furious. I had taught him to be responsible since he was a child, and now he had gotten a girl pregnant before marriage. I hit him with a wooden stick, and the girl rushed forward and knelt in front of me, saying it was her fault and she was the one who had wronged Huaizhou.”
“At the time, I didn’t think too much about it. Seeing the young couple protecting each other so desperately, I actually felt a sense of relief and was moved. Since they were so in love and the girl was pregnant, it was a joyous occasion to add a new member to the family. I couldn’t stay angry and immediately arranged their wedding.”
“Not long after, A’Yu was born. I never thought I would become a grandmother in this lifetime. I was so happy I didn’t sleep for several nights… Zhiwei had a poor appetite during her confinement month. Worried she would get hungry, I got up in the middle of the night to make her a late-night snack. When I brought it to her room, I saw Huaizhou sleeping on the floor. I thought perhaps Zhiwei was worried the child would disturb his rest, and I was even more satisfied with this daughter-in-law.”
“But who knew that after the child’s first birthday, they were still sleeping in separate beds? I couldn’t help but question Huaizhou. He explained that he was studying for a teaching and research exam and had to work late every day. He was afraid of waking up the mother and daughter, so he slept on the floor. Seeing his normal expression, I believed him.”
The round sun gradually set in the west. The mountains in the distance changed from yellow to red. The old woman remained sitting, half her face hidden in the light, her heavy sorrow thick and impossible to dissolve.
“The days went on like that. In the blink of an eye, A’Yu was five years old. It was her birthday. I went to the town early in the morning to buy a cake and new clothes for the mother and daughter. When I happily returned home, I saw Zhiwei packing her bags, her eyes swollen like walnuts from crying. My heart sank. My first thought was that Huaizhou had done something to betray Zhiwei. Without thinking, I grabbed a rattan cane and started hitting him.”
“Zhiwei desperately grabbed my hand, crying and saying that Huaizhou hadn’t betrayed her and that she was the one who wanted to leave. I asked her why, but she refused to say…”
Tears gushed from the old woman’s eyes, winding down her wrinkles. Her voice trembled as she spoke: “A’Yu is my lifeblood. I raised her from such a small child… How could I bear to part with her… I begged Zhiwei not to leave… If Huaizhou had really done something wrong, I would rather lose my son than let the mother and daughter suffer… But she was determined to leave. I couldn’t stop her. I only begged her to leave A’Yu with me.”
“She said she would take A’Yu away unless she walked over my body. Cornered, Zhiwei… finally said it…”
“She said… A’Yu was not Huaizhou’s flesh and bl00d at all… She and Huaizhou were only a nominal couple and had never slept in the same bed… They had lied to me for five whole years…”
After saying that, the old woman seemed to have exhausted all her strength. Those long-sealed memories had torn open a wound, and the old scar was still bloody and painful to the touch.
The old woman’s tears couldn’t be stopped. Ni Hezhi was terrified. She quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears: “I’m sorry, Grandma… I shouldn’t have asked these questions to make you sad… Please don’t be sad. I won’t ask anymore…”
The old woman held Ni Hezhi’s hand and gently shook her head, indicating that she didn’t blame her.
“A’Yu didn’t want to leave. She held onto my leg and cried her heart out. My heart was broken too… After raising her for so long, even though we had no bl00d relation, our feelings were stronger than bl00d. I couldn’t bear to let her go…”
“Zhiwei still left with the child. After she left, Huaizhou completely fell apart. He was dazed all day like a walking corpse. He stopped going to school and would lock himself in his room, staring blankly at Zhiwei’s photo.”
The old woman sniffled, her voice full of sorrow for her son: “I thought he would live the rest of his life like that. But who knew that half a year later, Zhiwei came back with A’Yu. Huaizhou was happier than anything… On Chinese New Year’s Eve that year, they both knelt in front of me and said they wanted to be a real couple…”
The grandmother smiled through her tears: “Not long after, Shu Hui was born. That period was the happiest time of my life.”
Ni Hezhi’s smile became rigid, and a dull ache spread through her heart. A sourness rushed to her eyelids, reddening the corners of her eyes.
It hurt so much…
So, the little goofball’s background was this pitiful.
She heard herself sniffling and asked, “Grandma, does Su Yu know about her background?”
“She knows. She’s known since she was a child.” The old woman straightened her back slightly and let out a deep breath: “It’s because of her last name… I told Zhiwei that I see A’Yu as my own granddaughter and don’t care about bl00d ties. I said to let the child take Huaizhou’s last name, or even her last name, Nian. If the child’s last name is different from ours, people will point and gossip and bully her…”
“Zhiwei’s attitude was firm. She absolutely refused to change A’Yu’s last name. That girl was always strong-willed. Once she made up her mind, no one could persuade her. Huaizhou always listened to her, so he naturally wouldn’t force the issue.”
“Fortunately, A’Yu has a calm personality. What others said, she took as the wind blowing past her ears. She also didn’t like to play with other children. She preferred to stay in her room and read. She grew up like this, until Huaizhou fell ill and collapsed on the podium…”
“During the years Huaizhou was in university, he would only eat one meal a day to save money… He was diagnosed with advanced stomach cancer. After Huaizhou died, Zhiwei took on the burden of supporting the family. She worked five or six jobs a day, and her body eventually broke down too…”
The old woman wiped away a tear: “Before Zhiwei died, she gave A’Yu a locked iron box. Inside were her biological father’s address and a memento from him.”
Ni Hezhi tried to hold back the waves of heartache surging in her chest. She asked with a choked voice, “And then? Did Su Yu go to find her biological father?”
The grandmother shook her head: “That child has been sentimental since she was young. She said she only has one family and only one father, Fang Huaizhou… But I can tell she’s deliberately avoiding it. When Zhiwei took her away back then, A’Yu was over five years old, old enough to remember things. I don’t know what happened in between, but when Zhiwei came back, she was so emaciated. She only slowly recovered under Huaizhou’s meticulous care.”
“These years, that child, A’Yu, has truly suffered. I’m an old woman. My own life is a problem. How could I have the ability to raise her and Shu Hui? If A’Yu hadn’t taken on the burden, I would have been in the grave long ago, and Shu Hui would probably be wandering somewhere.”
The old woman’s voice carried a hint of sorrowful resignation: “In the end, we were a burden to her…”
The old woman calmed her emotions, ready to continue, but her gaze was caught by a pair of wet eyes.
She saw that Ni Hezhi’s eyes were slowly seeping with red lines, then wrapped in a film of tears. The immense heartache in her eyes turned into tears and fell without warning.
The old woman’s heart trembled slightly, mixed with an unspeakable sense of being moved.
Who said her A’Yu was an unloved, unwanted little bastard?
There was another person in this world who could feel as much heartache for A’Yu as she did. Even if the King of Hell came to take her now, she would have no regrets.
The gloom in the grandmother’s heart suddenly vanished. She stroked Ni Hezhi’s cheek, her palm warm and moist: “It’s alright, it’s alright. Grandma won’t talk about these sad things anymore and make our Zhizhi unhappy.”
Ni Hezhi’s nose felt acidic the whole time. Listening to Su Yu’s bizarre and convoluted background story, her heart ached with every beat.
She didn’t understand why Su Yu’s mother insisted on her having the last name Su. It was clearly telling everyone that Su Yu was an illegitimate child. She was so young, a child who should have been loved and protected by her parents, but she was subjected to strange looks and gossip for no reason. This was truly too cruel for a child whose mind was not yet mature.
It was true that the adult Su Yu was excellent. Teachers, classmates, neighbors… everyone had nothing but praise for her. She was a prime example of “the child from another family.”
But her excellence wasn’t cultivated in various study camps or private tutoring classes. It was forced and polished out of her by those hardships…
What was there to be happy or proud about that?
Ni Hezhi truly ached for Su Yu. She even wanted to go back in time, to hug the five-year-old Su Yu who was forced to be separated from her family, and to hug Su Yu the first time she carried a heavy load, when her shoulders were rubbed raw and bled.
The grandmother rubbed the red corners of Ni Hezhi’s eyes and forced a smile: “It’s all in the past. Let’s not talk about it anymore… Once the hard days are over, it will all be sweet from now on. And now that Zhizhi is here, life will be even sweeter.”
Ni Hezhi obediently said “mm”: “Grandma, once my mom wakes up, I’ll bring you to Bincheng. Granny Hua will be so happy to see you. If you don’t feel comfortable with so many people in the old house, you can move to an apartment outside. It’s also close to the sanatorium, so it’ll be convenient for you to get check-ups.”
The old woman’s eyes became a little red, but they held a fiery eagerness.
She never imagined that she would have a place in this child’s future plans.
In her life, she had never fantasized about living such a good life. As she grew older, she took each day as it came, only hoping to be buried soon so she wouldn’t be a burden to the children.
The old woman gently stroked her cheek, her emotions swelling in her eyes: “Grandma is old and useless. I can’t help with anything. I’ll only add to your burden.”
“That’s not true…” Ni Hezhi held the old woman’s hand, pressing it against her palm: “You taught Zhizhi how to knit sweaters, make clothes, and wrap zongzi… you know so many things. Zhizhi also wants to learn how to brew rice wine from you. When we get back to Bincheng, I’ll brew it for Granny Hua to drink.”
In her twilight years, the old woman liked to call herself “useless,” which was really her feeling of not being needed. Ni Hezhi’s words made her feel needed, a sensation she felt for the first time in a long while.
The old woman’s heart felt warm. She looked down at Ni Hezhi, smiling as she teased her: “You’re only taking Grandma with you. What about A’Yu?”
Without thinking, Ni Hezhi blurted out, “Of course she’ll come too. And Shu Hui. Our whole family will be together…”
Midway through her sentence, she met the old woman’s half-smiling gaze and realized her slip of the tongue. Ni Hezhi’s mind buzzed, and a warmth spread to her ears.
“I… I mean, Su Yu wants to attend a university in Bincheng. If it’s too far from home, she won’t be able to take care of you and Shu Hui. How could she study in peace then? So… the whole family should go to Bincheng together…”
The grandmother looked at her for a long time: “Zhizhi, if your mother comes to take you away, will you still come back?”
Would she come back?
Ni Hezhi had actually asked herself this question before.
As the question popped into her head, the thought of being separated from Su Yu, of leaving this dilapidated little home, made her heart uncontrollably ache.
It was a deep pain!
The kind of pain you couldn’t even touch.
Her trembling heart had already given her the answer.
“Of course I’ll come back.” Ni Hezhi lowered her head, affectionately resting it on the grandmother’s lap. “Grandma, I’ll come back to take you all with me.”