Strangely enough.
After returning to the Zhao family, Xiao Yu also began studying junior and senior high school textbooks, expressing her intention to take the college entrance exam the following year. Seeing that the child had potential, her husband took her to the library to read some university-level books. However, the child couldn’t concentrate and couldn’t sit still. Moreover, the higher the level of the books she read, the worse her grades became. In the end, she only managed to get into a vocational college in the college entrance exam.
She comforted Xiao Yu, saying, “It’s okay. At your age, other children are still in junior high. You took the college entrance exam and got into a vocational college—that’s already better than many kids.”
Xiao Yu glared at her angrily, “No matter how you put it, you still think I’m not as good as Sheng Qianyu. You care more about her!”
No matter how Qin Fang tried to explain, Xiao Yu refused to listen. In the end, she sulked and locked herself in her room, leaving Qin Fang extremely worried.
Although she was happy that her adopted daughter was the top scorer in the provincial exam, she suppressed her joy again and again, fearing that Xiao Yu would notice and start protesting at home.
When Xiao Yu went on a trip, Daxiong suggested bringing the adopted daughter home to stay for a few days. Qin Fang readily agreed.
She missed her adopted daughter too.
Only after the adopted daughter arrived did she realize the gap between Xiao Yu and her.
The adopted daughter had always been a fast learner. It wasn’t that she was boasting, but based on her understanding of the adopted daughter, as long as she was willing to learn, it was only a matter of time before she achieved success in any field.
Daxiong often whispered to her that the adopted daughter’s consecutive grade-skipping had already caught the attention of major research institutes, and they were waiting to see what she would accomplish in university. Her future achievements would not be lower than his.
As for Xiao Yu…
When it came to studying, Qin Fang couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
Xiao Yu wasn’t a strong learner. Before being recognized by the Zhao family, her school grades were average. How could she make such a big leap in just one year?
She had advised Xiao Yu to repeat a year and retake the college entrance exam, believing her results would be better then. Even Daxiong said the same, but Xiao Yu insisted that in their hearts, she would never be as good as the adopted daughter.
The couple had tried their best to persuade her, but seeing her stubbornness, they had no choice but to drop the idea of repeating the year.
Sheng Qianyu’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts.
“It’s nothing, just some pent-up frustration. Tomorrow, I’ll prescribe some medicine for you, Mom. You’ll feel better after taking it for a few days.”
Qin Fang looked at her affectionately and nodded, “Alright.”
“You sit and rest on the living room sofa. I’ll go to the kitchen. Don’t worry, I can handle it alone. It’ll be a good chance for Dad to taste my cooking too.”
“Then your dad and I are in for a treat today?”
Sheng Qianyu smiled faintly.
Qin Fang sat on the sofa and drifted into thought again.
Qianyu had always been reserved since she was young, but she was exceptionally sensible and never gave the couple any trouble. Qin Fang had even complained to Daxiong occasionally that their daughter always made her own decisions without consulting the family.
Then Xiao Yu was recognized. Xiao Yu fulfilled all her expectations of a daughter, but now, she found herself missing the adopted daughter’s thoughtfulness.
Qin Fang sighed. If only they had kept both back then.
By the time Sheng Qianyu finished cooking, Zhao Daxiong had returned. Smelling the aroma of the food, he paused for a moment before looking at Qin Fang on the living room sofa. “Who’s busy in the kitchen?”
Qin Fang smiled and said, “Who else could it be? It’s Qianyu.”
Sheng Qianyu brought the last dish to the table, met Zhao Daxiong’s gaze, and gave a faint smile. “Dad, you’re back? Wash your hands and let’s eat.”
A few minutes later.
Zhao Daxiong looked at the dishes on the table with a complicated expression.He held a high position and received special supplies daily. Besides the leftover dishes from lunch, Sheng Qianyu prepared light dishes for dinner: shredded pork with green peppers and scrambled eggs with chives.
These two simple additions were surprisingly delightful upon the first bite, making it hard to stop eating.
In Qin Fang’s view, these two dishes surpassed the cooking skills of their previous housekeeper. In Zhao Daxiong’s opinion, they were even better than the dishes prepared by the chefs at the state-run restaurant—who were once imperial chefs from the old era!
As for the leftovers, almost no one touched them. It was Sheng Qianyu who felt it was inappropriate and took a couple of bites. Just as she was about to take a third bite, Qin Fang stopped her: “Child, why are you eating leftovers? Hurry up and eat the fresh food. I’ll save this… well, for tomorrow!”
In those days, wasting leftovers was considered a luxury.
But compared to what her adopted daughter had made, Qin Fang felt her own cooking was almost inedible.
Sheng Qianyu thought for a moment and nodded. “Then we can heat it up tomorrow and use it as a topping, so we won’t need to cook another dish.”
“Good!” Qin Fang’s heart melted.
Her adopted daughter was so considerate.
Once again, she couldn’t help but wish she could raise both daughters under her own roof.
In the afternoon, Sheng Qianyu sat on the sofa in the living room, chatting intimately with Qin Fang.
To bond with her adopted daughter, Qin Fang had taken half a day off work. She had thought their mother-daughter relationship had returned to how it used to be, but after washing the dishes together and heading upstairs, she suddenly remembered something. Turning around, she saw her adopted daughter opening the door to her old room…
“Wait, Qianyu…”
“…”
Sheng Qianyu stared silently at the room, now filled with her daughter’s belongings.
Qin Fang was so embarrassed she could have dug a hole with her toes. She stammered for a long time but couldn’t find the words to explain.
It was Sheng Qianyu who spoke first: “Recently, Xiao Yu hasn’t been back to the Sheng family. With my eldest and second brothers squeezed into a small room, they couldn’t move around comfortably. Mom decided to clear out Xiao Yu’s room for my eldest brother to use. I was just thinking about how to tell you.”
That wasn’t the whole story.
If Xiao Yu hadn’t noticed that her room in the Sheng family had been given to Sheng Jiandang, the matter could have been swept under the rug. Why would this child bring it up herself?
Wasn’t she just giving her a way out?
With no room left for her in the house, she had to make do with the guest room. Yet, she didn’t cry or complain. Instead, she came up with an excuse to comfort her…
This child was too considerate, always thinking of her.
That night, Qin Fang tossed and turned, unable to sleep. When Zhao Daxiong turned on the bedside lamp and asked what was wrong, she told him everything. At the end, she said sadly, “Haven’t we not seen Qianyu for a long time? Xiao Yu happened to be away, and she won’t be back for at least ten days or half a month. You also agreed to let her stay, so I got so excited I forgot to clean up that room. Qianyu saw that her old room was now filled with Xiao Yu’s things.
I was worried she’d be upset, but she was so understanding she even comforted me. Daxiong, why didn’t we keep Qianyu back then? If we had just spoken up, she wouldn’t have left…”
“What are you thinking? If we kept Qianyu, what would happen to Xiao Yu? Even without Qianyu in the Zhao family, Xiao Yu causes enough trouble. If they lived under the same roof, wouldn’t there be daily squabbles?” Zhao Daxiong patted her shoulder to comfort her. “Alright, go to sleep. I think the Sheng family treats Qianyu quite well. Don’t worry about things that aren’t your concern.”
Early the next morning, Sheng Qianyu repurposed the leftovers from the previous day, turning them into a topping. She then kneaded white flour mixed with coarse grain flour to prepare noodles for a savory noodle dish.The dough needs time to proof, so Sheng Qianyu got up before dawn.
“Qianyu? Why are you up so early?”
Sheng Qianyu turned around and said, “I was worried the leftovers from yesterday might spoil, and since the dough needs time to proof, I got up early.”