Chapter 91 The soup noodles were delicious and visually appealing, and the fried noodles...
The soup noodles were a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate. The pan-fried ham was crispy and chewy, the scrambled eggs were fluffy and full of egg flavor, the noodles were very springy, and the soup was sour and spicy. It was also garnished with green leafy vegetables, making it very appetizing.
Yu Jiajia was already hungry, so the noodles tasted even better. "Grandma, the noodles are super delicious!"
Lu Chenzhou also praised the noodles as delicious.
Grandma Yu was still furious about the baby swap, but the two of them praised her so much that she grinned and said, "I just made some simple noodle soup. Next time I'll cook you a whole table of good meat and vegetables." She even asked Lu Chenzhou when he would have time to come over for dinner.
Lu Chenzhou: ...
Yu Jiajia, hahaha.
Cheng Xiuying told everyone to go back to their rooms and sleep, and not to watch Chen Zhou eat, as it would delay his meal. She stayed in the living room to keep the two of them company.
Yu Jiajia picked up a piece of egg and fed it to Cheng Xiuying: "Mom, try this big piece of egg! It's so fragrant! Grandma must have been very generous with the oil when she fried the eggs."
Cheng Xiuying smiled and said, "I've already brushed my teeth, so you should eat. When you and Shen Zhou eat together, your grandma is naturally generous with the oil. When we come back tonight, all we'll have is mushroom soup and steamed buns. Luckily, we have the pig's trotters and prawns you brought us for lunch."
Yu Jiajia: "Mom, you eat, we'll brush our teeth together later."
Cheng Xiuying ate the egg, and it was really delicious! There was definitely a lot of oil in it. This old lady is now treating Sibao like her own precious darling.
She was very happy. She hoped that everyone would love Sibao and let Sibao live in a sweet world forever.
Yu Jiajia continued to feed Cheng Xiuying ham, saying, "This is delicious too! It smells so good when it's pan-fried."
Cheng Xiuying: "You won't have enough to eat later."
Yu Jiajia: "That's enough! My grandma filled it up really big, with lots of eggs and ham." The remaining half went into Cheng Xiuying's stomach.
Lu Chenzhou suspected that Yu Jiajia was already full.
Cheng Xiuying was deeply moved and, fearing that Yu Jiajia wouldn't have enough to eat, prepared to go to the kitchen to fry two more eggs.
Yu Jiajia didn't let Cheng Xiuying go, saying, "I'll go make the malted milk powder."
The malted milk powder was prepared in large quantities, and everyone except Yu Songqing, who was working overtime at the factory, had a cup each.
Grandma Yu was heartbroken. "It's such a waste to give me this good stuff. You should drink it yourself."
Yu Jiajia: "I have one too, let's drink together."
Grandma Yu was deeply moved: "You child, you always think of us."
The torrential rain outside had turned into a light drizzle. Lu Chenzhou borrowed an umbrella to go back, but Cheng Xiuying wouldn't let him walk back like that. She insisted on riding her bike to take him back.
Lu Chenzhou: "Auntie, really, it's not necessary. It's not far."
Cheng Xiuying was adamant that he had to be given the ride, otherwise Lu Chenzhou could ride his own bike.
Yu Jiajia covered her mouth and yawned, "Mom, let Brother Chenzhou go back by himself, it's really not far."
Cheng Xiuying and Yu Jiajia escorted Lu Chenzhou downstairs. Yu Jiajia was so sleepy that she practically clung to Cheng Xiuying, and waved goodbye to Lu Chenzhou.
"Go back to sleep." Lu Chenzhou found it amusing and walked into the rain with his umbrella.
Yu Jiajia: "Mom, let's go back to sleep, I'm so sleepy."
Cheng Xiuying said affectionately, "You must be exhausted. Go to sleep now."
Yu Jiajia brushed her teeth with her eyes almost closed, and then quickly climbed into bed to sleep.
Cheng Xiuying was packing Yu Jiajia's bag when she noticed that the cloth bag was a little wet. "Sibao, I took the things out of your bag. The bag is all wet and there are mud spots on it. We'll wash it later so it won't delay you from carrying it tomorrow."
In the hot summer, the cloth bag can dry overnight.
Yu Jiajia's bag was bulging, indicating that it was packed with things.
Yu Jiajia struggled to open her eyes to watch her mother packing her bag. Because she was so sleepy, her eyelids looked particularly heavy. "You can wash up tomorrow. It's so late. You should go to sleep too."
Cheng Xiuying doesn't sleep much, and she doesn't want to delay Sibao from carrying his schoolbag tomorrow. She rummaged through her bag and found a white dress inside, which was very pretty: "Is this a dress you just bought? I've never seen this style in the county."
When Yu Jiajia saw the new dress, she felt less sleepy and modestly showed it off, saying, "Mom, Lily and the others gave it to me. Isn't it gorgeous?"
Looking at the style of the dress and touching the fabric, Cheng Xiuying exclaimed, "It's beautiful! The material is also very sturdy. This much fabric can make two little dresses."
Yu Jiajia nodded: "Yes!" Then she got up to try on the new dress.
Yu Jiamin chuckled. She was sleepy just now, but seeing the dress made her feel awake. That's how much she loves beauty.
The new dress is indeed very beautiful. Although Cheng Xiuying thinks white is not good-looking, Sibao looks really good in it. If there were a light shining on it, she would look like a fairy.
I'm starting to think that white looks kind of nice.
Cheng Xiuying praised repeatedly, "So beautiful! My darling looks good in any dress! And with those black leather shoes, everyone would say she looks amazing."
Yu Jiamin also thought it looked beautiful, like a little Bodhisattva.
After trying on the clothes, Yu Jiajia was very satisfied. Her sleepiness was completely defeated, and she looked at herself in the mirror again and again, feeling incredibly beautiful. After Yu Jiajia took off the clothes, Cheng Xiuying smiled and said, "Go to sleep now."
Yu Jiajia lay down and fell asleep instantly.
Cheng Xiuying continued taking other things out of the bag and found a stack of receipts! These didn't look like the reward receipts from before. Sibao always kept his receipts at home and wouldn't carry so many with him. Plus, there was a receipt for a watch in there!
"Sibao, my darling, how come you have so many receipts?"
Yu Jiajia was woken up again by Cheng Xiuying, "Lu Chenzhou gave it to me."
Cheng Xiuying looked at the stack of receipts, somewhat bewildered. Were they given by Lu Chenzhou?
Yu Jiamin: "Thank you, Jiajia?"
Cheng Xiuying: "He should be grateful. He's benefited so much from Sibao. Sibao is practically a lucky star for him and He Yuanzheng, always bringing them political achievements and helping them climb the ranks. It's not bad that he knows to give all these good things to Sibao."
Actually, it wasn't just Lu Chenzhou and He Yuanzheng; too many people benefited from Si Bao's influence. She herself became the deputy factory director because of Si Bao. In the past, she wouldn't have even dared to dream of such a position.
She looked at Sibao with affection. It was truly a blessing for the Yu family that Sibao was born into their family.
She placed the receipts on Yu Jiajia's desk and instructed Yu Jiamin, "Don't touch Sibao's receipts." Then, still worried, she put them back in her pocket, planning to give them to Sibao tomorrow and tell her to hide them well.
Yu Jiamin rolled her eyes. "Mom, don't hide less and less for Jiajia."
Cheng Xiuying glared at Yu Jiamin. "I'm not like you. I wouldn't take even a penny of Sibao's things." She put the schoolbag and new dress into a basin and took them to the bathroom to wash. Her Sibao was very clean and wouldn't wear a new dress unless it had been washed once.
She washed the clothes and went back to her room. Yu Hongding was still awake. He said, "Isn't Director Lu being too nice to Sibao?"
Cheng Xiuying: "If I were Director Lu, I could treat Sibao even better. I would treat Sibao like an ancestor."
After thinking about it carefully, Yu Hongding felt that this statement made a lot of sense. Anyone who knew Sibao, unless they were stupid, would not treat Sibao badly.
His parents used to be so biased, they practically wanted to skin him alive to help his older brother's family. Now they've almost forgotten about his older brother's family, and their hearts are all on their fourth son.
If the benefits are big enough, even the most cherished possessions will be replaced.
The next day, Yu Jiajia was woken up by the sound of chopping meat outside. Grandma Yu had gone to the food station that morning to buy a pound of pork to make wontons.
Yu Jiamin was practicing the Five Animal Frolics when she saw Yu Jiajia turn over and called her to get up and practice together.
Yu Jiajia lingered in bed for a few more minutes before getting up to practice with Yu Jiamin. She was rather lazy, but she valued her life even more, and practicing the Five Animal Frolics only brought benefits! In case of danger, she would have a better chance of winning.
Now that the system has started increasing her strength attribute, she's already fantasizing about punching bullies. She won't even need anyone else to lift a finger; she can beat the bad guys senseless with just a few blows.
While practicing the Five Animal Frolics, I also checked in for the day and received 5 tea eggs.
She's already accumulated so many tea eggs in her spatial backpack, when is she going to take them out? It's such a waste to keep them in her spatial backpack.
Yu Jiajia practiced the Five Animal Frolics twice and felt relaxed all over. She happily changed into a new dress, put on black leather shoes, combed her hair into a fishtail braid, and put on two small pink hair clips to hold back any stray hairs.
Grandma Yu: "My goodness, Jiabao is so beautiful!"
Yu Jiajia turned around to show Grandma Yu.
Grandma Yu was absolutely delighted. "Jiabao looks just like a little fairy sitting at the feet of a Bodhisattva in this outfit." She quickly slapped herself on the back after saying that, realizing she shouldn't say such things—it was feudal superstition.
Yu Jiajia thought her grandma was really cute.
After washing up, Yu Jiajia came over to make wontons, but Grandma Yu wouldn't let her, saying, "Don't get your clothes dirty."
Yu Jiajia could only sit happily and watch.
There was a lot of banging and knocking outside. As soon as Cheng Xiuying heard the sound, she couldn't help but wonder if it was that family from yesterday coming to thank Sibao.
She peeked out the window and saw the lively procession had arrived downstairs and was preparing to go upstairs.
Cheng Xiuying quickly tidied herself up, making sure her clothes were neat and her body was clean, and then called on everyone to tidy up as well.
When Old Yu saw his undershirt and shorts, he quickly went back inside to change into a shirt and pants; he couldn't be sloppy.
After I finished tidying up, I heard someone knocking on the door.
Cheng Xiuying smiled and went to open the door, only to see a lot of people standing outside. Some of them looked familiar, but she pretended not to know anything: "Who are you looking for? Did you come to the wrong place? We only moved here a few days ago."
The middle-aged woman at the head of the group said, "Is this the Yu family? We've come to thank Comrade Jiajia for saving my granddaughter, Yueya'er." As she said this, her eyes began to redden.
The middle-aged woman next to her also had tears in her eyes. "Comrade Jiajia is our family's savior."
She didn't even dare to think about what would have happened if she hadn't been discovered.
The two are Zhou Mingming's mother-in-law and mother.
Cheng Xiuying said, "Jiajia helped out easily, so you don't need to make the trip yourself." She then invited everyone inside to talk.
Both Zhou Mingming's in-laws and her own family came, and they even invited members of the neighborhood committee's waist drum team to play. There was definitely not enough room inside, so most people stood at the door and did not come in.
Yu Jiajia also came over. She said modestly, "It's all what I should do. Anyone would ask a question if they encountered such a suspicious person."
When Zhou Mingming's mother saw Yu Jiajia, she was about to kneel down to her, but Cheng Xiuying was right next to her and naturally wouldn't let her kneel.
Zhou's mother choked up, "Yueya'er took sleeping pills, so she won't cry. No one else will notice anything unusual about the basket, and no one will go up to check it."
Besides, it was too late, and there weren't many people on the road.
Old Mrs. Yu couldn't help but curse again: "You wretched thing, may you be struck by lightning! With such a vicious heart, you would have been traitors in the past. You even want to harm your own niece's child." She then advised Zhou's mother: "You were also deceived by her. Fortunately, the truth has come out now."
The child that Zhou Mingming's second aunt conceived was actually her own daughter's. The daughter was unmarried and missed the optimal time for abortion; by the time the pregnancy was discovered, it was already late in the pregnancy, and abortion would be risky. Her daughter was reluctant to have an abortion and planned to give the baby away to another family to raise. That's when Zhou Mingming's second aunt set her sights on the pregnant Zhou Mingming.
Fortunately, both children are daughters.
She also made two identical bibs and dressed Zhou Mingming's daughter in them. This distracted Zhou Mingming's mother and Chen Aiguo. She then staged a tire blowout and, while Zhou Mingming's attention was diverted, secretly switched the babies.
Everything was flawless. As long as Zhou Mingming's second aunt left the hospital, Yueya'er would surely die.
Zhou Mingming's second aunt didn't intend to keep Yueya'er. Her daughter wasn't married, so how could she raise a child? Their family couldn't let others raise a child either; giving her away was risky. This child looked too much like Zhou Mingming, practically a carbon copy. The safest option was to strangle her.
She had always been jealous of Zhou Mingming's mother's good marriage. They were sisters, but one married into the city and enjoyed a life of luxury, while she married into the commune, where her in-laws were unkind and her husband was inconsiderate. She was utterly inferior to her sister. Zhou Mingming also married well, but her daughter had been deceived and became pregnant, wrapping her belly in strips of cloth to hide it from everyone.
Why should I?
She wants her granddaughter to switch places and enjoy a better life.
Everyone sighed with emotion upon hearing this. Cheng Xiuying quickly thought of her children, all of whom resembled Yu Hongding and were all of the Yu family's bloodline. There was no possibility that they had been switched.
Zhou Mingming's family brought a lot of things: two fish, a chicken, a piece of fine pork belly, a net bag of eggs, two bottles of sorghum liquor, as well as pastries, candies, and other items.
The Zhou and Chen families wanted to leave their belongings with the Yu family, but the Yu family refused to accept them.
Cheng Xiuying pushed the things out: "These are for Mingming to eat during her postpartum period to help her recover. New mothers need to nourish their bodies. You must persuade Mingming not to overthink things. Yueya'er has smoothly overcome this ordeal. From now on, her life will be peaceful and smooth, and her days will get better and better."
Zhou's mother and Chen's mother tried to stop Cheng Xiuying, "Xiuying, please accept it quickly. There's still some to help Mingming recover."
Chen Aiguo and the others took the opportunity to forcefully put things on the ground, but Yu Songyan and the others naturally wouldn't let them put them into the house and wouldn't let them let go.
The Zhou and Chen families expressed their sincere gratitude and offered gifts, which the Yu family genuinely refused.
After a lively half-day, neither the Zhou nor the Chen family were able to put their things down.
Cheng Xiuying: "Let's leave the two bottles of grain liquor here, and make sure to take everything else back to Mingming to help her recover. Postpartum recovery is important, so she must eat and drink well."
The whole family was sweating profusely from pushing and shoving each other.
In the end, the Zhou family left behind two bottles of grain liquor and some wedding candy. Cheng Xiuying prepared two packets of brown sugar as a return gift and asked Zhou's mother to make egg tea for Zhou Mingming.
The Zhou and Chen families were deeply moved. The Yu family was truly kind; they did good deeds without expecting anything in return.
The Yu family escorted them downstairs and waited for them to leave before going upstairs themselves.
The neighbors surrounded the Yu family and asked, "Why did Jiajia go to the hospital? Is she feeling unwell? How did Jiajia know?"
Cheng Xiuying smiled and said, "Jiajia is fine. She went to the health center to see someone else." As for how Yu Jiajia figured it out, Yu Jiajia herself would have to explain.
Yu Jiajia: "She was acting suspiciously with that shopping basket; she didn't look like a good person at all. I called out to her, and she tried to run away. There's definitely something fishy going on. I immediately suspected there was something in the basket. I definitely couldn't let her get away."
Factory director's wife, Sun Yuxia, sighed, "I've only ever heard of child abduction before, but this is the first time I've heard of child swapping. It's really frightening. If a child is swapped and raised by another family, even if the original child is lucky enough to survive, who knows where they'll suffer. It's just that Yueya'er is lucky to have met a benefactor who changed her fate."
Wu Xiaoming's wife also sighed, "Yes, there are all kinds of people in the world. Luckily, we met Jiajia. This family is also very honest. They probably had to borrow all their meat coupons to buy so many things to thank Jiajia." At this point, it was time to praise the Yu family: "Your family is generous and does good deeds without expecting anything in return."
So many good things, but they didn't take a single one!
That pork must weigh five pounds! It looks really substantial! And that old hen, it's so fat, its tail is wiggling. The two fish look so tempting too, and there's a whole bag of eggs!
But Cheng Xiuying didn't hesitate at all. She said she wouldn't accept it and she really didn't. She accepted two bottles of sorghum liquor that postpartum women shouldn't drink, but then immediately gave her two bags of brown sugar in return. How straightforward she was in doing things!
Everyone was praising the child, but a dissenting voice rang out from the crowd: "This child couldn't have been stolen earlier or later, but he had to be stolen just when some people were passing by, as if he was deliberately giving credit to certain individuals. Tsk tsk, this isn't a lucky star, this is a jinx; wherever he goes, trouble follows."
"The same thing happened when Xia Jing was assassinated. They didn't use a knife earlier or later, but when someone happened to be passing by, they used a knife."
"I think these things wouldn't exist if it weren't for certain people."
"It's really creepy, I get scared just thinking about it. What if one day I have to give her credit too, and then I have to call her my savior at the end?"
Gu Yazhen and an old lady were chatting away when Gu Yazhen clicked her tongue and said, "If this happened in the past, she would have been tied up and burned at the stake."
Yu Jiajia rested her chin on her hand and thought about it for a moment. She actually found Gu Yazhen's statement quite interesting. Her idea was unique, but if you thought about it in the same way, it made a lot of sense.
Grandma Yu was furious and rolled up her sleeves, ready to fight.
However, Accountant Hu was faster than her. She rushed forward and slapped Gu Yazhen across the face. Gu Yazhen screamed and staggered back. Accountant Hu said coldly, "You keep saying 'evil spirits burn you to death'? Are you promoting feudal superstition? We've already destroyed the Four Olds! Besides, do you think what you're saying makes sense? But you've got the order wrong. It wasn't a problem that suddenly appeared; it was a problem that was bound to happen. Whether Jiajia was there or not, the incident would have occurred. Xu Zhe would have definitely intervened. We were lucky enough to run into Jiajia, which is why Jingjing was saved."
Section Chief Xia: "In Qingshan County, how many people don't die every year? Some drown, some are killed, some are trafficked, and some children may even be switched. They might have died before, and if the children were switched, so be it. But now, Yu Jiajia happened to see it and saved them."
Accountant Hu and Section Chief Xia are both kind-hearted people who rarely resort to violence, but this time they were truly furious.
Some people might believe Gu Yazhen's nonsense, but at this point, who would offend the Yu family? Only the Zhang family, with their short-sightedness, would keep trying to rise to the top.
"She's malicious and can't stand seeing others do well. She'd love for Jiajia to not appear so that something bad would happen to her."
"When Jiajia took the publicity department's assessment, the factory director specially increased the workload for her. Jiajia did well and ranked first overall, while Zhang Tiantian was not selected. They felt that Jiajia was blocking their path."
"Perhaps Vice President Zhang was also eyeing the position of deputy factory director, but he didn't get it, so he hates the Yu family even more now."
Gu Yazhen's face turned ugly. "You're talking nonsense. Don't talk nonsense."
Old Mrs. Yu sneered repeatedly: "Is this nonsense? Isn't this exactly what you're thinking?" She rolled up her sleeves, waiting for Gu Yazhen to say something even more offensive so she could rush up and fight her.
The slap Accountant Hu gave was too light; it wasn't crisp at all. Accountant Hu is a refined person; he wouldn't even hit someone properly.
Gu Yazhen and her mother-in-law couldn't win, so the trap ran away.
The conversation then turned back to the topic of switching children.
Grandma Yu: "I never thought about it this way before. Some people can be really vicious, they're not human. We should all take a closer look at our own children or our relatives' children. If there are any children who don't look alike at all, we should really think about it."
This kind of gossip can go on and on without end.
An old woman said, "A relative of mine had a grandson who didn't look like his parents at birth, and he looks even less like them as he gets older. He has a flat nose and small eyes. Neither family can find anyone as ugly as him. The couple fights all the time, saying that his wife is unfaithful, that she seduced someone else, and had another man's child. Could this child have been switched?"
The old ladies immediately perked up and gathered together to gossip. Old Mrs. Yu said, "They must have switched her. Even if they found someone from outside, they couldn't have picked an ugly girl, could they? How could they possibly work together like that? Look at who this child looks like!"
The old lady said, "Sister, you're right. His wife said that she couldn't breastfeed him with that ugly face on her. She said that the father must have had an extremely ugly ancestor, which is why the child was born so ugly. She did consider the possibility of the baby being switched, but at that time, there were only boys in their family in the hospital, so it was impossible for the baby to be switched."
Another old lady said, "If someone deliberately switched the children, how could they have found out? Guixiang, you should talk to them quickly and tell them not to raise other people's children. Who knows where your own child might be suffering?"
The old lady quickly replied, "I'll go in a bit."
None of them had eaten yet, and they all had to go to work later, so they couldn't keep chatting and gradually went home.
The Yu family has already wrapped the wontons and boiled water in the pot. Once the water boils, they will put the round, plump wontons into the pot, let them boil three times, and then they can be served.
The bowl already contains a hot and sour broth made with sesame oil, chili oil, vinegar, soy sauce, salt, dried shrimp, scallions, and cilantro leaves. Once the large wontons are placed in the bowl, the aroma immediately fills the air.
One large bowl per person.
Yu Jiajia picked up a large wonton, let it cool slightly, and took a small bite. It was filled with fresh pork and scallions—it smelled wonderful! But it was too hot!
I ate the remaining half in one bite. Although it was very hot, it was really delicious.
Yu Jiajia didn't finish the big bowl, so she gave Cheng Xiuying four big wontons and then drank all the sour soup. The sour soup was especially delicious!
Before going to work, Cheng Xiuying handed the receipts she had received the day before to Yu Jiajia, telling her to hide them well and keep them for her own use. She also reminded her not to be too generous and to develop the good habit of saving money and receipts.
Yu Jiajia took a stack of receipts: "Mom, see what you need, spend it as you like."
Cheng Xiuying: "Look at you, I just told you not to be so generous, but you just wouldn't listen."
Yu Jiajia took out the watch receipt. "Mom, let's buy a watch for Dad too."
Yu Hongding happened to hear this and looked excited.
Cheng Xiuying: "Your dad is in the workshop every day, he doesn't need to keep track of time. Let's buy one for Chenzhou. I saw he wasn't wearing a watch yesterday, so I saved up this one and gave it to us too. We can't have it all, can we?"
Yu Hongding looked at his empty wrist: Sigh, his wife really doesn't love him anymore.
Yu Jiajia: "Mom is right. We still have a lot of industrial vouchers here. If we save them up, we can buy Dad a watch! Why don't you buy one for Dad?"
Yu Hongding's heart was practically fluttering with joy. How could his daughter be so wonderful?
Cheng Xiuying also noticed Yu Hongding, who was listening intently beside her. "Mom and Dad can borrow it for now, we'll pay you back later."
Yu Jiajia gave Cheng Xiuying the watch voucher and ten industrial coupons, saying, "Mom, you can reserve the watch for now. We don't know when you'll receive it."
Cheng Xiuying whispered, "Look at your dad, his mouth is practically crooked from smiling."
Yu Jiajia: "No way, my dad is super handsome!" She put the remaining receipts into the box, locked it again, and whispered, "Mom, let's go eat spicy crab for lunch. I didn't get enough yesterday."
Cheng Xiuying also whispered, "Okay, Mom will treat you."
Yu Jiajia: "My treat!"
Cheng Xiuying: "You provide the meat ration coupons, and Mom will provide the money."
Yu Jiajia stopped arguing with her mother.
Yu Hongding whispered, "Sibao, Dad will buy you clothes again next month."
Yu Jiajia smiled broadly, her eyes crinkling: "Okay, okay, thank you, Dad!"
Everyone went to work together. Yu Jiajia was going back to the office to work today because the performing arts troupe was going to perform at another factory.
It feels strange to suddenly have to work a regular office job.
Liu Weidong washed a bunch of grapes for everyone to eat, Zhou Wenbin brought two large pomegranates, Lin Mei contributed fried peanuts, and Yu Jiajia took out some dried squid from her bag. Everyone gathered together to chat, mainly about the matter of switching children.
The major event that happened in the staff quarters this morning is known to the employees' children, but it's all hearsay. They want to hear it again from Yu Jiajia, the person directly involved.
Yu Jiajia: "Aren't we going a bit too far?"
Liu Weidong: "It's alright, the section chief went to a meeting at the county committee, it'll probably take all morning." He pushed the grapes toward Yu Jiajia: "Try them, the grapes are sweeter lately."
Yu Jiajia picked a purple grape; it was sweeter than sour and tasted delicious. She praised it repeatedly, saying, "It's so nice to have a yard where I can grow grapes." Then she told Zhou Mingming's story again.
This led to other questions, and Liu Weidong said, "We're all on the same side, that's why I'm saying this. Just listen for a bit. Do you know He Xiaoyun from our factory?"
Lin Mei exclaimed, "No way? No way? No way?"
Liu Weidong: "How could that not be? The He family didn't even come to the factory; they went to the hospital to check their blood type."
Yu Jiajia asked with a gossipy look, "Who is it?"
Lin Mei's face was filled with confusion: "You don't know He Xiaoyun?"
Yu Jiajia: "Do I need to know her?"
Lin Mei: "She's from the office, quite pretty, and a few people have made her the 'factory flower' of the steel rolling mill. Whenever they see you, they crane their necks, raise their chins, and look very proud."
As soon as she said that, Yu Jiajia knew who it was and suddenly realized, "It's her."
Lin Mei's face was a mess. If He Xiaoyun knew that Yu Jiajia didn't recognize her, she would probably be furious. She had been trying to figure it out for so long, but the other party didn't even recognize her.
Zhou Wenbin: "Our neighbor also went to get a blood test. His parents thought the child was too stupid and felt that they couldn't have given birth to such a stupid child. They suspected that the child was someone else's. But my grandma said that he was just as stupid as his father was when he was a child! My grandma was his father's elementary school teacher."
Yu Jiajia, hahaha.
Everyone chatted all morning, and as it was time to leave work, Yu Jiajia quickly packed her things and left on time. However, she couldn't have lunch with Cheng Xiuying, as Cheng Xiuying had gone to a meeting at the county committee.
Yu Jiajia couldn't very well leave Cheng Xiuying behind to eat spicy crab at a state-run restaurant, as that would affect their mother-daughter relationship! And since it didn't have to be spicy shrimp, she had no choice but to eat at the canteen with Yu Hongding.
Yu Hongding was about to get his first watch. Overwhelmed with fatherly love, he took Yu Jiajia to the second floor for stir-fry, ordered a boiled fish, two bowls of rice, and two bottles of soda.
Yu Jiajia: "Dad, do you have this much hidden money? How about I treat you to a meal?"
Yu Hongding: "...Don't worry, I can easily afford to treat you to a meal!"
Yu Jiajia: "Thank you, Dad!"
Just as a pot of boiled fish was served, Yu Songqing arrived.
Yu Hongding: "Song Qing, are you done with your work?"
Yu Songqing nodded: "I asked several people before I found you. What are we having for dinner today?"
Yu Hongding didn't want his son to bother him, but since his son was already there, he couldn't just send him away, so he said, "...boiled fish, and you can go buy some rice too."
Yu Songqing not only bought rice, but also added Kung Pao Chicken.
The three of them happily ate.
Halfway through the meal, a commotion broke out outside. A girl wearing a blue dress ran up crying, heading straight for Yu Jiajia. When she got there, she overturned the table. Yu Songqing held the table down, and soup spilled all over the table. Yu Jiajia quickly pulled Yu Hongding back, and even then, the oil from the boiled fish splattered onto her dress.
The person who came was He Xiaoyun.
Her eyes were swollen from crying, and her gaze towards Yu Jiajia was filled with hatred. "You're happy now, aren't you? I'm not my parents' biological daughter."
Yu Jiajia was speechless. She never expected that the gossip she ate in the morning would now be her karma. She said, "...What's there to be happy about? Whether you're my biological daughter or not, what does it have to do with me? Anyway, I'm my parents' biological daughter, and I look exactly like my dad! Besides, wasting food is very shameful, and overturning someone else's table is very rude."
Yu Hongding was also displeased. They hadn't even finished their meal, and she'd already gotten Sibao's clothes dirty. Such a pretty new dress, and she'd only worn it for the first day! This girl had no manners and no upbringing! "What do you want from Jiajia? Do you want her to help you find your biological parents? You've come to the wrong person. You should be looking for a police officer."
Yu Songqing frowned, took out a handkerchief to wipe the oil stains off Yu Jiajia's waist, but he couldn't bring himself to do it; his little sister had grown up.
He Xiaoyun knew she was in the wrong, but everything was fine at home. Her parents and brothers loved her. Because of Yu Jiajia, her grandmother insisted that she wasn't a child of the He family, which made her parents take her to the hospital for a blood test. The results showed that her father was blood type A, her mother was blood type O, and she was blood type B.
The doctor said that people with blood type A and blood type O cannot have children with blood type B.
She is not her parents' biological child.
He Xiaoyun felt like the sky had fallen.
With tears streaming down her face, she said, "You're so smug now! It's all your fault, all your fault! I hate you!" She lunged at Yu Jiajia, raising her fist to punch her.
Yu Songqing really wanted to dodge, but he couldn't. Jiajia was behind him. He gritted his teeth and grabbed He Xiaoyun's wrist. "Can't you be rational? We should be solving the problem now. You should find your biological parents and see how the other child is doing. Then you can discuss what to do next. It's ridiculous for you to blame my sister. What does my sister have to do with it? Did my sister switch you? Or did my sister instigate someone else to switch you?"
Yu Songqing's words made perfect sense, but He Xiaoyun completely broke down, kicking, biting, and scratching at Yu Songqing's face.
Yu Songqing really wanted to throw He Xiaoyun to the ground, but he didn't know how to do it when facing a woman, so he could only awkwardly dodge.
Seeing that He Xiaoyun was about to scratch Yu Songqing's face, Yu Jiajia quickly stepped forward to help, grabbed He Xiaoyun's hand, and shouted, "Aunt Zhao, Aunt Zhao, help!"
Yu Hongding quickly stepped forward, keeping a close eye on He Xiaoyun, afraid that she might scratch Sibao.
Yu Jiajia discovered that she was quite strong, and she felt a bit overpowered when dealing with women her age. It felt great!
I hope there will be more strength attributes.
Yu Songqing was on the verge of a breakdown and said to He Xiaoyun, "Can you please stop being so unreasonable?"
Hearing the commotion, Chef Zhao ran out from the kitchen. With Chef Zhao's help, He Xiaoyun was finally subdued.
Yu Songqing broke out in a cold sweat. This was even more exhausting than working overtime all night. He looked at He Xiaoyun with horror. How could a woman be so unreasonable and act so crazy?
Chef Zhao, being strong and also a woman, easily pinned He Xiaoyun down. "Comrade, can you speak properly now?"
He Xiaoyun, her face streaked with tears, said, "Yu Jiajia, it's all your fault, it's all your fault."
Yu Jiajia is usually not too sharp-tongued; her persona is that of a kind, cute, and sunny girl. However, He Xiaoyun's mind is really not clear, so she has to be a little harsh to bring He Xiaoyun to her senses: "Is it my fault for saving Yueya'er? Or is it my fault for preventing you from becoming a cadre's biological daughter? Are your biological parents not well-off? Is the real He Xiaoyun in a bad situation? Were you deliberately switched by your biological parents?"
He Xiaoyun: "Ahhh, are you satisfied now?"
Yu Jiajia: "I've only mentioned the first possibility. There's a second possibility: maybe the babies were switched at birth due to carelessness, maybe your biological parents are better off, or maybe you have a brighter future. But no matter what, it has nothing to do with me. Going crazy at me won't help."
He Xiaoyun's parents and brothers arrived. Seeing He Xiaoyun being held down by Chef Zhao, He Xiaoyun's mother was heartbroken. She rushed over and pushed Chef Zhao away, crying her heart out: "Xiaoyun, are you trying to break my heart? I raised you in my arms. Whether you are my biological daughter or not, I only recognize you as my daughter."
He Xiaoyun cried loudly, "Mom, why am I not your biological child? I only want you as my mother. Why did this happen? I feel so bad, I'm in so much pain, I don't want to live anymore."
He Xiaoyun's mother cried, "Xiaoyun."
He Xiaoyun: "Mom."
The scene of a loving mother and filial daughter before our eyes is a true expression of affection, so profound that even heaven and earth would weep.
He Xiaoyun's father choked up, "Xiaoyun, I only recognize you as my daughter. You have called me Dad for eighteen years. Blood ties are not important, feelings are the most important."
He Xiaoyun's brother also had red eyes. "Xiaoyun, don't be afraid. No one can take away your position in the family."
He Xiaoyun was deeply moved. She cried and said, "The kindness of raising me is greater than the kindness of giving me life. I only recognize my parents and brother. I don't recognize anyone else."
Yu Jiajia remained expressionless. What kind of status is she? Princess status?
He Xiaoyun's brother looked at Yu Jiajia and said, "Comrade Yu, don't think that just because Xiaoyun isn't my biological sister, our family will treat her badly. She will always be our family's darling."
He Xiaoyun's mother cried and said, "Xiaoyun will always be my most obedient daughter. Whether she is my biological daughter or not does not matter. I will always love her the most. No one can surpass her, and no one can destroy our family."
Although He Xiaoyun's father did not speak, he held He Xiaoyun's hand tightly, and his meaning was clear.
Yu Jiajia: "..."
Someone drag these idiots away! My eyes are dirty!
She misses Grandma Yu now; if Grandma Yu were here, dealing with them would be a piece of cake.
Yu Hongding was so angry that his face turned red: "Is there something wrong with your family? What does this have to do with my daughter? Do whatever you want, but don't come near me! My daughter is still our family's precious daughter! What? You want to compare your daughter with mine? I have two daughters! Both of them are excellent, and they are both my own flesh and blood. Your daughter can't compare to them, not even a single finger of yours."
He would only say that if he were extremely angry, which is very inconsistent with his image as someone who is indifferent to fame and fortune.
Yu Songqing also stuck out his neck: "That's right, my two younger sisters are both very smart, very beautiful, and very, very outstanding."
Yu Jiajia smiled. She wanted to tell these words to her third sister, who would surely be very happy to hear them.
He Xiaoyun's mother cried even harder: "Xiaoyun, let's go home."
He Xiaoyun glared at Yu Jiajia, "You've schemed so much, but now it's all for naught. I will always be my parents' most beloved daughter. I will always be the most beautiful girl in the steel mill."
Yu Jiajia clicked her tongue. "Oh, after all that talk, you just want to be the factory's most beautiful girl? Go ahead and be it. No need for such hostility, I don't care."
She is definitely the most beautiful. Why does she have to compare herself to He Xiaoyun? Wouldn't that just elevate He Xiaoyun's status?
She didn't care who 'He Xiaoyun' was, but since He Xiaoyun insisted on doing it this way, she might care about 'He Xiaoyun' a little.
Who is the real He Xiaoyun?
If the child was simply switched at birth and is growing up healthy and well, then it doesn't matter whether they are switched back or not. But what if the child was deliberately switched at birth?
There are too many dramas about real and fake heiresses, and very few children who are deliberately switched at birth have a smooth experience.
This time, she was determined to get to the bottom of it.
As He Xiaoyun and her family were about to leave, Chef Zhao said, "Wait! Others almost had their tables overturned while they were eating half their meal, and most of the food was spilled. Are you just going to leave like this?"
He Xiaoyun's father threw down five yuan, a pound of grain coupons, and a pound of meat coupons, and sneered, "You're eating quite well, no wonder you're the deputy factory director's family member."
Yu Hongding: "Unlike your family, you can flip the table just like that, even with such good food."
As for the compensation from the He family, Yu Hongding accepted it, but not so much. He only accepted the cost of the food and had He Xiaoyun's father write a note.
Yu Jiajia's clothes were splattered with oil, but she could only let it go.
Chef Zhao helped reheat the food, and the Yu family continued eating. Yu Hongding was so angry that he lost his appetite, and Yu Songqing was also angry with a stern face. Yu Jiajia coaxed, "Why are we arguing with an idiot? Isn't this a waste of our emotions? Let's eat quickly, and then we'll go to the police station to see what's going on."
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Author's Note: [Owl emoji][Owl emoji]
I'd like to recommend my friend's new book, "Daily Life in Bianjing".
Text: It is said that the ancients were feudal, and women could only be faithful to one man, never leaving their homes, and would commit suicide if their arms were seen by others.
After Lu Runrun traveled back to the Northern Song Dynasty, she realized that these were all stereotypes.
In the Northern Song Dynasty, it was common for widows to remarry. High-ranking officials and prime ministers would pursue wealthy widows, and some even married more than one empress. In the bustling capital of Bianjing, women often worked, and it was fashionable for wealthy families to hire cooks.
Coincidentally, her mother was a widow and a highly skilled cook who served meals for wealthy families and earned a considerable income.
Her father, who died young, left behind a large mansion next to the Zhouqiao Bridge in Bianjing, which could be described as a courtyard house in the city center of modern times.
Lu Runrun followed her mother in and out of the wealthy mansion, serving as a helper and occasionally eating the best-looking cherry pancakes at the banquet while listening to the maids gossip.
She plans to inherit her mother's culinary skills someday, where she can work as a cook or rent out a few rooms—a comfortable life, though dealing with relatives who frequently come to freeload is a bit of a nuisance.
However, one day, her mother pulled her aside for a heart-to-heart talk with a somber expression.
"I'm going to remarry."
Yes, it's my mother's freedom, Lu Runrun said, but she has to see what kind of person she is.
"He was a scribe in the Privy Council, a ninth-rank official. Although he was poor and loved to eat, he was still an official."
"You know, I got married to find you a father."
Lu Runrun was confused. How did she get dragged into this again?
But her mother was decisive and efficient. Not only did she get married quickly, but she also took advantage of her father's official position to find a husband for her, tricking a young scholar from another place into marrying her.
Although the young Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) passed the palace examination and became a student of the emperor, he was neither a top-ranking scholar nor able to be sent to a post outside the capital to amass wealth. He couldn't even afford a small house near the city wall of Bianjing.
Lu Runrun was reluctant to participate in the meeting. She had always seen arrogant and disdainful officials, and she had no intention of suffering for them.
Until we met...
The young and handsome scholar blushed upon seeing her. He, who could usually answer the emperor fluently in front of the court, stammered and bowed, unsure how to speak softly so as not to disturb her.
At first glance, Lu Runrun was tall and handsome, and judging from his appearance, it wouldn't be a bad idea for him to stay at her house...
*
Although Lu Runrun sometimes gets easily swayed by Li Jin, she remains the backbone of the family. She loves to boss Li Jin around and is known for her fierce and domineering nature.
Like Li Jin and his friends attending a banquet, during which they played drinking games and drew bamboo sticks.
Li Jin drew a bamboo stick with the inscription: "One cup for a wife, three cups for a husband."
Everyone laughed, saying that the bamboo sticks seemed to have a spirit, picking the person at the table who was most afraid of his wife!
Li Jin made no attempt to hide it, calmly downed a cup of wine, and said with a smile, "I am afraid of my wife, and I am very proud of it."
A clever, intelligent, and petty female lead × A promising, calm, and eloquent male lead
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