“Awuu—”
The green-skinned train clattered along the railway tracks.
Five-year-old Lin Ruanruan held a steamed white bun bigger than her face with both hands, nibbling at it bite by bite like a little squirrel.
Her jet-black eyes rolled around curiously. Her rosy cheeks puffed in and out as she chewed, and the two tiny buns of hair on top of her head bounced with every sway of the carriage.
Anyone who saw her would praise her: what a sweet, adorable little child!
In reality, inside that tiny body lived a little koi fish that had spent several hundred years in the Heavenly Court.
She had originally been blowing bubbles in the Jade Pool when, for some reason, some scoundrel kicked her down to the mortal world while she was dozing off.
She ended up reincarnated in her mother’s belly.
Her nominal father worked as a leader on an island, while she and her mother had been living in the countryside.
Not long ago, her mother went to the island to visit him. While catching fish near the shore, she accidentally fell into the sea and drowned.
Because Ruanruan was still young and had no one to take care of her, her father had returned to take her with him.
At this moment, her father Lin Dayong sat beside her like a mountain, shielding her in the window seat.
“Daughter, have another egg.” Lin Dayong pulled a boiled egg out of his army-green satchel. His rough hands skillfully peeled the shell and handed the smooth white egg to his daughter.
Ruanruan instinctively opened her mouth and took a bite, tasting the rich fragrance of the egg.
—This dad actually seems pretty good to her?
But that might not last. After all, the elders in the village always said: once there’s a stepmother, there’s also a stepfather.
Just as she was thinking about it, something was suddenly stuffed into her palm. Looking down, she saw several wrinkled grain coupons and some loose money.
“Hide these well. Your dad earns two hundred yuan a month, plus cloth coupons and grain coupons. I’ll secretly give you half. Keep it safe—no matter who asks, don’t let them know, got it?” Lin Dayong lowered his voice. His bronze-colored face was serious, though he secretly winked at her. “If things aren’t going well after you get there, make a scene. Your stepmother doesn’t dare do anything to you right now.”
Ruanruan blinked as her little brain started spinning rapidly.
According to the storybooks written by the immortals in heaven, shouldn’t stepmothers be vicious and mean, and biological fathers weak and useless?
So why does this seem… different?
Seeing his daughter staring blankly, Lin Dayong thought she was scared and simply picked the little dumpling up and placed her on his lap.
He leaned close to her ear and began sharing his “experience.”
“Remember what Dad says. Once you get there, don’t care about anything—just start causing trouble! If you don’t like the room, cry. If the food tastes bad, throw the bowl. If you don’t like the clothes, tear them up! Got it? The most important thing is that we’re happy!”
The more Ruanruan listened, the wider her eyes became.
She squinted at this simple-looking father and a thoughtful expression flashed across her delicate little face.
“Dad…” The little dumpling raised her hand still covered in bun crumbs and asked in a soft childish voice, “What if my stepmom hits me?”
“She wouldn’t dare!”
Lin Dayong’s eyes widened before he lowered his voice again.
“…Don’t worry. Her father is at a critical point in his promotion right now, so she cares about her image more than anyone. The more trouble you make, the more she’ll have to endure it. She won’t dare do anything to you.”
Ruanruan tilted her head and studied her father.
When the burly soldier mentioned the stepmother, a strange emotion flashed in his eyes—something she couldn’t quite understand. It was the same look the immortal crane under the Supreme Elder Lord gave her when she stole its spirit fruit.
Something’s wrong. Very wrong.
“Dad, are you trying to divorce my stepmom?”
She had often heard her grandparents talk about how deeply her father loved her real mother. After her mother died, he had been depressed for quite a while.
Everyone thought he would never marry again.
Lin Dayong’s expression darkened slightly. “What nonsense are you saying? Your dad just got married and you’re already hoping I’ll divorce? Besides, your stepmother’s father is my superior. I’m about to reach a crucial point in my promotion.”
Then why was he encouraging her to cause trouble?
Lin Dayong gently patted his daughter’s little head, his voice softening.
“When your mom first came to the island with me, she suffered a lot of grievances. Back then I didn’t have the ability to protect her. If it weren’t for… she wouldn’t have died.”
Ruanruan didn’t miss the flash of emotion in his eyes—it looked even fiercer than that immortal crane’s.
She blinked. “Did my stepmom bully my mom?”
Lin Dayong sneered. “I don’t know.”
Which meant she definitely did. And quite a lot, too.
“What’s her name?”
“Su Ting!”
Ruanruan fell silent as her mind spun.
That name sounded familiar…
Fragments of old memories surfaced.
Back then she had been too young to understand much, but she often heard people mention it.
Some said Su Ting had secretly loved her father for many years and thought her mother—a country woman—was unworthy of him.
Others said it was Su Ting who arranged for her mother to visit the island.
Maybe the accident that happened to her mother… was also Su Ting’s doing.
The more Ruanruan thought about it, the more alarmed she became.
Could her mother’s death really have something to do with her?
Was her father’s marriage actually a form of revenge?
Ruanruan suddenly felt her newly grown brain wasn’t enough… She had read so many storybooks from the immortals, yet she hadn’t noticed anything strange!
The train whistle sounded. Lin Dayong rubbed his daughter’s little head.
“We’re almost there. Did you remember what Dad said?”
Ruanruan stuffed the last bite of bun into her mouth and nodded with puffed cheeks.
Whatever. She was the reincarnation of a lucky koi!
If her stepmother really caused her mother’s death…
The little dumpling clenched her chubby fists. She had plenty of strength—and tricks—to deal with it.
…
At the entrance of the military family compound, a group of military wives had gathered to watch the excitement.
In the center stood a young woman dressed fashionably with curled hair, directing a thin little girl to move things around.
“That’s your stepmother, Su Ting. She’s a doctor at the military hospital,” Lin Dayong whispered while holding his daughter’s hand. “The girl beside her is her daughter from her previous marriage, Su Xiaomei. She’s a year older than you.”
Ruanruan looked over curiously.
Her stepmother Su Ting was quite pretty, with thick brows, big eyes, and fair skin. But there was a sharpness in her expression.
She was loudly instructing, “Xiaomei, hang that pink curtain! A girl’s room should feel warm and cozy!”
The military wives watching nearby praised her one after another:
“Doctor Su really cares about her stepdaughter!”
“Exactly. I heard she even took half a day off just to decorate the room!”
“That girl is so lucky to have a stepmother like Doctor Su. Must be good karma from her past life!”
Su Ting proudly lifted her chin.
When she turned her head, she saw Lin Dayong walking over while holding his daughter’s hand.
Her eyes flickered for a moment before she stepped forward with a smile.
“Old Lin, you’re finally back! Oh my, this must be Ruanruan. She looks so well-behaved.”
Ruanruan didn’t miss the trace of disgust in her eyes and narrowed her own slightly.
She knew this stepmother definitely wasn’t as nice as she appeared.
Lin Dayong nudged his daughter forward. His voice carried encouragement—and a hint of secret excitement.
“Go on. Do what Dad taught you!”
Ruanruan gave her father a deep look, took a breath, and suddenly rushed toward Su Ting like a little cannonball.
Under everyone’s shocked gaze, she hugged her stepmother’s leg tightly and looked up with a sweet smile.
“Mom! Are you my stepmom? Wow, you’re so pretty! Ruanruan likes you so much!”
Isn’t this just a contest of who can act better?
She, the little koi, wasn’t afraid at all.