Once Lu Hongjun finished handling his work, he headed to Guangming Road.
Seeing him, Jiaxin said with biting sarcasm, “Oh, come to back up your precious daughter? Wrong address then, if she dares show her face here again, I’ll beat her until she can’t take care of herself.”
Lu Hongjun said, “Xinxin, Zhao Siyi is only my foster daughter, you’re my real, biological daughter. If I’m backing anyone up, it’ll only ever be you.”
Easy words to say, much harder to mean. All these years the original owner had suffered so much injustice at home, and he’d acted blind to all of it. Now he wanted to play the good father, too late for that.
Jiaxin scoffed. “If you really loved me, you’d throw Ding Jing and Zhao Siyi out. But could you bear to do that?”
Lu Hongjun sighed. “Xinxin, your Auntie Ding and I are husband and wife, how could I leave her out on the streets? If I did something like that, the Women’s Federation would be knocking on my door for a talk in no time.”
Jiaxin nearly laughed out of sheer frustration, and said without mercy, “Dad, you can’t have it both ways in this world. Since you’ve already chosen that venomous mother and daughter, don’t come looking for me again. As for me, I’ll just consider myself an orphan from now on.”
Lu Hongjun’s face darkened, but he assumed Jiaxin was just speaking recklessly out of resentment. “I know you’ve suffered, but you need to think of your father’s situation too. I’m not young anymore, and my health isn’t great, if I divorced your Auntie Ding, who would take care of me?”
From memory, Lu Hongjun had always used his patriarchal authority to keep the original owner in line. Jiaxin had assumed her last remark would have made him storm off angrily, but instead he’d offered this calm explanation. It didn’t take her long to understand why. Lu Hongjun wanted both the tender comforts of a pampered wife and the security of knowing his daughter would still support him should he lose his money and power and she left him. If that day ever came, he’d need to rely on his daughter for his old age. What a calculated little scheme.
Having figured this out, Jiaxin adjusted her approach. “I’m too hot to sleep every night right now. When are you sending over those two electric fans?”
In fact, what she really wanted was an air conditioner, but those were currently a scarce item, hard to come by and terrifyingly power-hungry besides.
Lu Hongjun said he’d deliver them within the next couple of days.
Jiaxin then asked when the bicycles would arrive, specifying she needed two this time, one each for her and Xue Mao.
Lu Hongjun said he’d deliver them by the end of the week, though he thought two was excessive. “You and Xue Mao can just share one bicycle.”
The more agreeable he became, the more contempt she felt for him, though when it came to extracting benefits, she wasn’t going to soften. “Find me a spoken-English tutor, preferably someone who’s studied abroad, with standard pronunciation.”
Lu Hongjun felt a headache coming on, such an outrageous request. “Child, experts and scholars who’ve returned from studying abroad are exactly the kind of talent this country desperately needs, why would someone like that come tutor you?”
Talent like that, he simply couldn’t procure.
Jiaxin said nothing, just kept looking at him.
In the end, Lu Hongjun caved and said he’d try his best to find someone. He couldn’t get someone who’d studied abroad, but a student from a foreign language institute wouldn’t be a problem.
Jiaxin then brought up the housewarming feast. “Fifth Brother says we should at least set up two tables. Dad, how many dishes should each table have for a housewarming feast? And what else do we need to prepare?”
A housewarming was a major event, and Lu Hongjun waved his hand grandly. “I’ll talk to your Fifth Brother about this, let him and your Fifth Sister-in-law handle it, no need for you to worry about it.”
With her goal achieved, Jiaxin’s mood improved somewhat.
Seeing her expression soften, Lu Hongjun figured she really was still just a child at heart, and said earnestly, “Xinxin, a boy like Fan Yinuo, sure, his family’s well-off and he’s good-looking, but he’s indecisive and morally corrupt. Marrying someone like that would never bring happiness.”
He wasn’t wrong, but Jiaxin had no patience for his lecturing and deliberately threw his own words back at him. “When Ding Jing lived at her old place, plenty of people said she’d seduced men and had a taste for chasing after them. What did you say at the time? You said those were just malicious gossips slandering her, that Ding Jing kept herself pure as a white lotus.”
“If she really kept herself pure, could Zhao Siyi have knowingly gone after my fiancé while fully aware he was mine? Like father, like son, well, in this case, like mother, like daughter. Zhao Siyi’s shamelessness is a lesson learned straight from Ding Jing.”
Lu Hongjun said sternly, “Xinxin, however things stand, your Auntie Ding is still your elder, how can you speak this way about her?”
Jiaxin wasn’t afraid of a falling out with him. “If you don’t want to hear it, then don’t come. I lived just fine in the ancient capital for over a month without a cent to my name. If you don’t give me money, I can support myself just as well.”
Lu Hongjun had been somewhat angry, but hearing his daughter casually mention cutting off contact filled him with unease instead. “Xinxin, if you don’t want to hear it, then I won’t say it anymore.”
In the past, his daughter would argue with him and make him angry, but she’d still respected and cherished him as her father. But since coming back this time, not only had that filial devotion vanished, she’d grown impatient with him too. Clearly, past events had left her resentful toward him as well, if he kept favoring Ding Jing’s daughter, she really might sever the father-daughter relationship entirely.
Jiaxin let his words pass without taking them to heart. She was only playing along with him because he still had his uses, once she’d built up her own success, she wouldn’t have the patience for this kind of nonsense with him anymore.
That evening, Lu Jiajie delivered the two electric fans and bicycles, and asked curiously, “Jiaxin, how did you manage to change Third Uncle’s mind so quickly on the fans and bikes?”
“Zhao Siyi came by today.”
Lu Jiajie’s face darkened immediately. “She nearly cost you your life, and we haven’t even settled the score with her yet, and she still has the nerve to come find you. Jiaxin, what did she do? If she gave you trouble, I’ll get even for you.”
That last line sounded less like something a father of two would say and more like a street tough.
Jiaxin said with a smile, “I gave her a good beating. You wouldn’t believe it, she was screaming so loud the whole alley heard her.”
Although she hadn’t hit any vital points, the girl would probably be laid up for ten days to half a month at least. She’d hit that hard partly to vent her anger, and partly to make sure everyone in the alley knew not to mess with her.
Lu Jiajie gave her a thumbs up in praise. “Little sister, you beat up Zhao Siyi, and not only did Third Uncle not blame you, he even went ahead and bought you fans and bicycles on his own initiative, that’s impressive.”
He’d always known Jiaxin was smart, she wouldn’t have ranked in the top five of her school otherwise. But before, she’d been a bundle of childish impulses, now she carried herself like an adult, sharp enough to even have Third Uncle wrapped around her finger. As long as Third Uncle didn’t play favorites, Ding Jing and Zhao Siyi weren’t worth worrying about.
Jiaxin smiled and changed the subject. “I bought a calendar today and checked it, this Sunday is a good day for moving into a new home. Fifth Brother, let’s set the housewarming feast for Sunday.”
“Sunday it is. I’ll call Big Brother tomorrow.”
Jiaxin felt she should handle this herself. “Fifth Brother, I’ll call Big Brother myself. As for Fifth Sister-in-law, please pass the message on.”
Lu Jiajie agreed, then said, “Jiaxin, your sister-in-law told me Xiaofeng suddenly came down with diarrhea this afternoon, I need to head home tonight.”
Jiaxin asked with concern, “Is it serious? Has she been taken to the hospital?”
Lu Jiajie said it wasn’t clear yet, he’d only gotten a call from Ma Lili’s mother. Since Ma Lili had taken time off to go home, he wasn’t rushing back in a panic.
Jiaxin went inside and came back out with a bag, and seeing Lu Jiajie hesitate to take it, said, “Fifth Brother, there are apples in here. Steamed apple can help ease diarrhea symptoms. Fifth Brother, didn’t you say we’re family? No need for formalities, just take it.”
Lu Jiajie brought the apples home.
Ma Lili was somewhat surprised to see him. “Didn’t you say you’d be staying at Guangming Road tonight? Why are you back?”
Lu Jiajie asked after his daughter first, and learning the child had taken her medicine and was asleep, set the bag on the table. “Since she’s not feeling well, of course I’d come home. Jiaxin says steamed apples help with diarrhea. Let’s steam a couple later, one each for Aqiang and Xiaofeng.”
“Better steam three, or Little Chubby will start crying and making a fuss.”
Lu Jiajie said nothing.
Seeing him unhappy, Ma Lili stiffly changed the subject. “How does Jiaxin know steamed apples help with diarrhea?”
As she said this, she got up to take out three apples, planning to put the rest away in a drawer. But looking at the bulging bag, something seemed off.
“No idea. She’s read so many books, if she says it works, it must work.”
“Oh…!”
Ma Lili pulled two sets of clothes out of the bag, one army green outfit, and one pink little dress. She said, startled, “She actually bought clothes for the kids?”
Lu Jiajie usually bought the children snacks, but never clothes or shoes.
Looking at the outfits, Lu Jiajie said with a smile, “I didn’t buy these, I was in such a rush to get back, I forgot to even check what was in the bag.”
Ma Lili appreciated Jiaxin’s thoughtfulness, but felt she still needed to say something. “Jiajie, find a chance to remind Jiaxin to be more careful with her spending going forward. Things aren’t like they used to be, she can’t keep throwing money around so freely.”
Lu Jiajie shot his wife a look and said, “Why should she be careful? If she runs out of money, she can just ask Third Uncle for more. If he won’t give it, Big Brother can step in and say something.”
In the past, Jiaxin had been far too frugal, and it had all ended up benefiting that venomous mother and daughter instead. Now that his sister had gotten smarter, not only knowing to demand money, but knowing how to demand things too.
Ma Lili said, frowning, “What do you know about it? Once you get used to spending freely, it’s hard to change back. We shouldn’t ruin Jiaxin’s future just to compete with that woman for the upper hand.”
Lu Jiajie had no interest in advising against it. “Jiaxin managed to support herself and Xue Mao running a food stall even while suffering from amnesia, and in just over a month she’d saved enough to buy tickets home. Don’t waste your worry on her.”
He believed his sister would do perfectly well even without Third Uncle’s support. If anything, it was Third Uncle he wondered about, once he stepped down in a couple of years, whether Ding Jing would still tend to him so devotedly remained to be seen.
Ma Lili asked, curious, “Is running a food stall really that profitable?”
Lu Jiajie said with a small “mm,” “Jiaxin said her best day she made over forty yuan, and even her worst day was over ten, far better than our salaries.”
Just saying it made his own heart itch, though he still didn’t dare try it himself.
Ma Lili didn’t expect it to be that profitable, but even so, it didn’t tempt her in the least. Running a food stall meant braving wind and rain, exhausting work, and most importantly, it wasn’t respectable.