The twenty-something thousand… it might have fallen on the ground, and Lu Ting wouldn’t bother to bend down and pick it up.
For families like theirs, driving a car worth only twenty-something thousand yuan was actually embarrassing.
“Gu Xingmo is spending money on her, and she doesn’t even pick a better car? So petty.” Although he said this, his heart felt a pang of discomfort.
Because one’s perspective is influenced by their environment, growing up in such a family naturally cultivated a sense of poverty.
If the two children hadn’t been switched at birth, her perspective and personality would be completely different now.
But thinking to this point, Lu Ting refused to dwell on it further. Because if the two children hadn’t been switched at birth, then Leyao would have been the one to suffer for over twenty years.
And he, instinctively, did not want Leyao to suffer.
Although Jiaobai had his blood, Leyao was the one he had raised. Twenty years of daily companionship, so many happy times, could they be erased by a mere drop of blood?
To him, Leyao was always his daughter. As for Jiaobai… she was a more distant child.
Like a child of a relative.
There was a blood relation, but not a close one.
If she could behave herself, not cause trouble, he would give her enough wealth to last a lifetime.
He was willing to treat her well, but this goodness had preconditions.
“If she were half as sensible as Leyao, I wouldn’t be this angry today.” Lu Ting was still angry about her disrespectful attitude today. “You didn’t hear what she said. Leyao would never say such things in her life.”
With Lu Leyao being praised left and right, Wu Yichun understood that in his heart, not only was Jiaobai, his biological daughter, inferior to Leyao, but even she, his wife, was probably no match.
However, up to this point, both she and Lu Leyao had been sensible, maintaining a respectful distance, and had never had a direct conflict.
If a conflict or disagreement were to arise one day, and he had to choose between them, she truly didn’t have the confidence to guarantee that he would definitely choose her.
Thinking this, Wu Yichun naturally set up a line of defense in her heart.
“Leyao has her strengths, and Jiaobai has hers. You think Leyao is learned and virtuous; I think Jiaobai is innocent and cute. Forget it, we have different paths and don’t need to say too much.” There was no need to argue. Arguing too much would only damage their marital relationship.
After leaving Lu Ting’s study, Wu Yichun returned to her room. She took out her phone and directly initiated a WeChat video call with Su Jiaobai. But after thinking about it, she changed it to a WeChat voice call. She was afraid that Su Jiaobai might be in a disheveled state at the moment and didn’t want outsiders to see it.
At this moment, Su Jiaobai was sitting alone on the sofa in her bedroom, lost in thought. The curtains were drawn, and the room was dark.
The sudden ringing of her phone pulled her thoughts back from the distant sky. Seeing that it was her stepmother, Wu Yichun, calling, she immediately answered.
Before she could even say “Aunt Wu,” Wu Yichun’s voice came through the phone first: “Jiaobai, I’ve arrived home safely, don’t worry.” After a slight pause, she continued, “The incident with the video reached your father, and I only just found out. No matter what, Aunt Wu definitely believes you.”
“Also, let this matter pass. Don’t take it too much to heart. I will try to persuade your father again.”
“No need, Aunt Wu. I know you mean well, but you don’t need to trouble yourself speaking well of me to him anymore.” It was unnecessary.
Whether the video was true or false, Lu Ting’s first reaction upon seeing it was to believe it was true, which was a denial and distrust of her.
Imagine, if the video had been Lu Leyao saying those words to Gu Xingmo, would he have believed it immediately?
Certainly not.
Therefore, what kind of person she was in his heart, and what status she held, was already very clear.
After her previous awakening, she didn’t want to fight with Lu Leyao anymore, thinking that if they could all get along peacefully, it would be good. But now, she didn’t even want to get along peacefully.
She was completely disappointed in Lu Ting, her father.
Perhaps there was a grand hand of fate manipulating the direction of events, but he was a flesh-and-blood person with his own thoughts; he was not a puppet.
No matter how much he was manipulated, all his reactions and choices would inevitably follow his own heart.
Su Jiaobai had also thought about it while she was alone. Her role in that novel was to target Lu Leyao, ultimately leading to a situation where both sides suffered losses. So, if she were to avoid Lu Leyao in the future, or even avoid Lu Ting, and have no further interaction with them as father and daughter… if she didn’t follow the plotline, she didn’t believe she couldn’t avoid the final outcome.
She had also thought seriously just now that the situation was not entirely bleak.
Although there was a grand hand of fate manipulating things from behind the scenes, since she could glimpse the secrets of heaven, she had a golden finger.
So, who would win or lose in the end was still uncertain.
She couldn’t be pessimistic; she had to pull herself together and seek advantages while avoiding disadvantages.
She might as well take this opportunity to completely sever ties with the Lu family.
Wu Yichun was still trying to persuade her, “There are no grudges that last overnight between father and daughter. I spoke to your father today. Although he’s being stubborn, from what I know of him, he’s actually a little shaken.”
Wu Yichun went to persuade him, and he was only a little shaken…
Su Jiaobai: “Aunt Wu, I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, and I accept your kindness. But really, don’t worry about our father-daughter matters anymore. From now on, he’ll live his life, and I’ll live mine. We’ll just mind our own business.”
“Jiaobai!”
“Aunt Wu, please don’t say any more.” Whether it was for emotional reasons or rational ones, Su Jiaobai now felt that cutting off contact with them was the best option.
She no longer hoped for peaceful coexistence, nor did she expect to get a single cent from them.
In fact, as long as she wasn’t too greedy, she could live very well on the monthly allowance Gu Xingmo gave her.
Gu Xingmo… although his final outcome seemed not good, that was something for later.
The main text of the novel didn’t mention it, and it was briefly mentioned in the epilogue that he died young.
But the reason for his early death wasn’t written. It was unclear if it was man-made or a natural disaster.
But no matter what, from now on, she and Gu Xingmo were completely tied together, sharing glory and suffering.
Earlier, she had thought about divorcing him after she had money and financial freedom. Now, this idea was gradually fading, and she was more inclined to live a peaceful life with Gu Xingmo.
She wanted to firmly hold onto this powerful backer. If she could help him avoid disaster in the end, that would be best. And if not, she could inherit the generous legacy of the Gu Corporation with her son.
The book stated that after discovering her first love’s betrayal, she drove drunk and ultimately died in a car accident.
As for the future, as long as she didn’t betray her marriage, didn’t get close to her first love, and didn’t drink and drive… she didn’t believe she couldn’t rewrite her own destiny.
After thinking all this through, Su Jiaobai immediately went to the bathroom to run a bath.
After her bath, she went downstairs. Sister Zhou had already brought Jun Zai back. Gu Xingmo had already finished dinner and was spending quality time with his son.
Seeing her come down, Gu Xingmo shifted his attention from his son to her.
“How is it? Feeling any better?” He didn’t ignore her and still showed concern as before.
And Su Jiaobai, who had decided to tightly cling to Gu Xingmo’s powerful leg from now on, was also more dedicated to maintaining their relationship.
“Mmm, much better. Thank you for your concern.” Even subconsciously, she would consider how to cultivate their marital relationship.
They had gotten married because of the pregnancy, and neither of them had any romantic feelings for the other.
Moreover, from Qi Mingxuan’s words today, she learned that before marrying her, Gu Xingmo had a woman he was going to marry.
She didn’t know how far their relationship had progressed, but since Qi Mingxuan knew about the existence of such a relationship, it was probably at the stage of discussing marriage.
The couple’s relationship was just one step away from becoming husband and wife, and at the crucial moment, she had gotten there first.
She didn’t know what their current attitudes were towards each other.
But it didn’t matter; those things had nothing to do with her.
She just needed to manage her marital relationship with Gu Xingmo well. As long as the family of three lived well, she could turn a blind eye to other things.
Therefore, even knowing about that relationship of his, she didn’t mention it or ask about it.
“Do you have time later?” she asked proactively.
Seeing the man cast a slightly confused gaze at her, she smiled and said, “I was thinking, Jun Zai has grown so big, and we, as parents, have never taken him out to play together. It’s really pitiful. If you don’t have other plans tonight, let’s take him to the nearby mall.”
“Sister Zhou said that children at this age are full of curiosity about the world and shouldn’t be confined to the house all the time. Usually, you’re busy, and Sister Zhou takes him around the neighborhood. I was thinking, in the future, as long as it doesn’t affect our work, we should try to free up more time to accompany him. There are only a few years in a child’s growth that require parental companionship. Once missed, it’s missed forever.”