Before Lu Ting, Gu Xingmo showed no fear.
Although he was seventeen or eighteen years younger than his father-in-law, Lu Ting, and came from humble beginnings with no connections in Shanghai, years of experience in the workplace and navigating the ups and downs of the business world had made him composed and able to handle any situation with ease.
Lu Ting, too, was quite fond of his son-in-law, Gu Xingmo.
His stern expression, which had been present moments before, immediately softened upon seeing Gu Xingmo.
However, the conversation between the father-in-law and son-in-law was limited to polite greetings, as it was not an occasion for business discussions. After a few brief exchanges, Gu Xingmo signaled Su Jiaobai to turn the phone camera towards herself and stop filming him.
Thus, Su Jiaobai turned the phone to Junzai and said, “Junzai, say hello to Grandpa.”
Junzai, in his dazed state, let out a babble towards the phone.
He seemed more alert than other children his age, with his dark, grape-like eyes shining with intelligence.
At this moment, the power of kinship began to show.
Looking at his chubby grandson, Lu Ting’s mood and expression changed.
While not beaming with joy, his demeanor was certainly pleasant.
“Junzai,” Lu Ting called out from the other side of the phone, his voice full of affection.
Junzai understood that he was being addressed and began to wriggle his limbs enthusiastically, reaching for the phone.
To Lu Ting, it seemed as if Junzai was reaching out to him, which delighted him even further.
Seeing how adorable Junzai was, even Wu Yichun couldn’t resist appearing on camera.
“Junzai,” she called out with a smile.
Upon seeing Wu Yichun, Su Jiaobai greeted her, “Aunt Wu.”
Wu Yichun then said, “We haven’t seen Junzai in so long. Jiaobai, Xingmo, if you’re not too busy lately, bring Junzai over to visit.”
Lu Ting remained silent, but he was also looking forward to it.
Perhaps he didn’t have much affection for his daughter, but Junzai was his first grandchild.
Seeing Lu Ting’s silence, Wu Yichun continued, “If you’re busy, just come back for a meal. If you’re not too busy, you can stay for a few days. After school starts in September, you’ll have even less time.”
Su Jiaobai had been planning to visit anyway, so she took the opportunity and agreed, “Okay, Aunt Wu.”
Su Jiaobai’s relationship with the Lu family had been strained. Apart from a few calls from Wu Yichun inquiring about the situation, there had been no further contact.
As a result, Lu Ting had only seen his grandson, Junzai, who was now seven or eight months old, a handful of times.
Seeing her agree to return, Lu Ting’s anger had subsided significantly, and he proactively said, “Your room at home has always been kept for you. Your Aunt Wu has the maids clean it every day, so you can stay whenever you come back.”
“Okay.”
After the video call ended, Su Jiaobai asked Gu Xingmo when he would be free. Gu Xingmo said he would go by her schedule. Su Jiaobai thought that it would be best to secure the money as soon as possible, so she suggested tomorrow.
Gu Xingmo agreed, and Su Jiaobai immediately sent a voice message to Wu Yichun.
Upon receiving the voice message, Wu Yichun happily took it to Lu Ting.
“Listen, Jiaobai says she’ll be back tomorrow.” Wu Yichun was genuinely happy, as she didn’t want her husband and stepdaughter’s relationship to remain strained.
“Jiaobai is actually a good child. You should treat her better in the future,” Wu Yichun said.
Lu Ting remarked, “It’s strange, why the sudden change in her attitude? Yichun tried to mediate before, but she never appreciated it.”
This was one of the reasons he had been so angry. Not only did she talk back to him, but she also disrespected her Aunt Wu.
Wu Yichun, however, said, “Even if a father and daughter are estranged, they are still connected by blood. You’re just stubborn, insisting on clashing with your child. Look at Jiaobai, after enduring so much hardship, she’s the one who reached out first.”
Lu Ting nodded, admitting his fault to his wife, “It was my fault.”
However, thinking of her other stepdaughter, Le Yao, Wu Yichun still felt the situation was a bit tricky.
“Regarding Le Yao, you’ll have to be the one to talk to her.”
Both she and Lu Ting were remarried, and she had brought her son with her when she married Lu Ting.
Therefore, in the beginning, not only did the elders of the Lu family object, but Lu Leyao also strongly opposed it.
Although everyone else’s objections were in vain, and Lu Ting eventually married her and brought Shi’an to live in the villa, her relationship with Lu Leyao had always been delicate.
Lu Leyao was a business elite, acting decisively like Lu Ting.
Wu Yichun was genuinely intimidated by such a powerful and commanding young lady.
Instinctively, she kept her distance. When unavoidable contact occurred, she would brace herself and politely exchange pleasantries.
In this household, she wasn’t afraid of Lu Ting, but she was somewhat afraid of Lu Leyao.
As the eldest daughter of the Lu family, showered with affection, she indeed had the confidence and capital to back it up.
However, things became complicated when Su Jiaobai was suddenly brought back to the Lu family.
Lu Ting had no sons, so Lu Leyao, as the eldest daughter, was to be the heir to his company. Lu Leyao had been groomed as the heir to Lu’s Group since childhood.
But then, suddenly, the daughter the Lu family had nurtured for many years was not biologically theirs.
The Lu family naturally erupted.
Although Lu’s Group bore the name “Lu,” it was not solely controlled by the Lu family. Besides Lu Ting, there were other shareholders.
Any stir within the Lu family would prompt other shareholders to cause trouble.
Therefore, Lu Leyao’s identity as the heir could not be compromised.
But Lu Leyao was not Lu Ting’s biological daughter. Although Lu Ting had always protected her, her own belief system had collapsed, leading to constant insecurity.
She could understand her feelings; after being the “Miss Lu” for over twenty years, being told she wasn’t biologically related would undoubtedly be a huge blow.
However, people have their selfish interests. At this time, Wu Yichun was more concerned that with Lu Leyao no longer having the Lu family bloodline, her capital to act arrogantly in front of her stepmother would diminish.
Without the targeting and difficulties, her and Shi’an’s lives in this house would be much easier.
Lu Ting understood his wife’s situation and nodded, “I’ll go talk to her.”
Lu Ting was now semi-retired, gradually handing over company matters to Lu Leyao.
Therefore, usually, unless it was a critical juncture, Lu Ting was not busy, while Lu Leyao was very busy.
For example, at this moment, after dinner, Lu Ting could leisurely sit downstairs and drink tea, while Lu Leyao had already gone to her study upstairs to work.
Lu Leyao’s room was on the third floor. After Lu Ting went up, he directly knocked on her study door.
Meanwhile, Lu Leyao, hiding in her study, was not actually working but sitting alone in the dimly lit room, lost in thought.
The sudden knocks on the door pulled her thoughts back from the distant sky to reality.
Guessing it was her father, she wasn’t surprised when she opened the door and saw the handsome and elegant man standing outside.
“Dad.”
Lu Ting said, “Your sister is coming back tomorrow. Please arrange your work so that you can come back for lunch at noon at the latest.”
Lu Leyao was still wearing her custom-made Armani professional suit, with exquisite business makeup on her face… She had a great aura and was a stunning beauty.
If it weren’t for the sudden revelation that she lacked the Lu family bloodline, she would be the unattainable eldest daughter of Shanghai.
The news of not being Lu’s biological daughter had hit her hard. Although her father, Lu Ting, had protected her and she remained “Miss Lu,” something was different compared to the past.
Overnight, she had transformed from her former spirited self to her current state of insecurity.
She didn’t want to see Su Jiaobai, but she knew that under the circumstances, she couldn’t avoid it.
Therefore, Lu Leyao agreed, “I understand, Dad. I’ll come back for lunch tomorrow.”
Lu Ting had his reasons for liking this daughter. She was obedient and sensible, diligent and studious since childhood, always setting an example.
She only helped him solve problems and rarely caused him trouble or distress.
When he divorced Feng Siyu back then, she, who was in junior high school, gave up the opportunity to study abroad with her mother and stayed in China.
After that, apart from a year of studying abroad as an exchange student, she stayed in China and stayed by his side.
He had always regarded her as his successor.
Under these circumstances, he couldn’t possibly abandon this daughter solely based on blood relations.
In fact, if he had to choose between his two daughters, he would not hesitate to choose Le Yao.
***
Su Jiaobai slept soundly through the night.
She even had a dream about money falling from the sky.
The next morning, she was woken up by money falling from the sky.
Upon waking and remembering Gu Xingmo’s promise to give her money yesterday, her mood improved even further.
Thinking about going to the Lu family to collect the money today, Su Jiaobai didn’t linger in bed for a second and rushed into the bathroom to wash up.
Her usual routine was simple, taking only a few minutes. But today, she specifically washed her hair, which took more than ten minutes, including drying it.
She had wanted to choose a nice outfit from her wardrobe, but she had very few clothes, mostly from her student days.
After being recognized by the Lu family, her stepmother Wu Yichun had thoughtfully picked out many clothes for her, but she had refused to acknowledge her stepmother and never wore them.
Later, after sleeping with Gu Xingmo at the welcome banquet, she quickly moved out of the Lu family. She left the Lu family with almost nothing, so she naturally didn’t take those clothes.
Afterward, she gained weight and her belly grew, so she didn’t bother tidying herself up.
When Junzai was born, she breastfed him for a few months. Later, when her milk supply dwindled, she decided to stop breastfeeding, thinking about returning to work.
For such a long time, she hadn’t considered tidying herself up.
Suddenly, Lu Leyao’s radiant face and her designer clothes and jewelry flashed through her mind… Su Jiaobai felt that she couldn’t continue living in such a state of aimlessness.
Lu Leyao had stolen over twenty years of her life and had a head start. But she was still young, and her life was her own. Within her means, she could also live a refined life.
Just as Su Jiaobai was contemplating whether to go to a nearby mall to buy an outfit before heading to the Lu family, Liu Ma’s voice sounded from outside her bedroom door.
“Teacher Su, are you awake? The master asked me to bring you some clothes.”