“You!”
Feng Chunlan trembled with rage, her lips quivering, her previously yellowish face now pale.
“Su Xingnuo, how dare you speak to me like this…”
“I’m giving you half a month to move out of this house. In two weeks, I’ll come to reclaim it, and everything inside will be cleared out.”
With that, Su Xingnuo turned and went upstairs.
Feng Chunlan cursed for half an hour downstairs, then, perhaps exhausted, fell silent.
Su Xingnuo looked at her empty walk-in closet. Three years of marriage, she hadn’t accumulated much; leaving meant there wasn’t much to take with her.
Forty minutes later, outside the Liu family villa.
Dozens of bodyguards and servants stood in a line, showing utmost respect for their guest.
Su Xingnuo’s car slowly stopped at the gate.
Liu Yancheng stepped forward to open her door. Su Xingnuo got out, lowering the wide brim of her hat.
Liu Dingyuan and Jiang Lan were also present. Su Xingnuo said,
“Uncle, Auntie, sorry for coming so late.”
She handed several paternity test reports to Jiang Lan, who tossed them to Liu Dingyuan.
The tests had been repeated hundreds of times—100% confirmation that this was her long-lost daughter.
Jiang Lan held Su Xingnuo’s hand, tears welling.
“Nuonuo… what have you been through? It’s mama who should apologize to you…”
Liu Dingyuan’s eyes glistened.
“It’s good you’re back. I’ve had the servants prepare your room. If anything isn’t to your liking, tell Yancheng, and he’ll fix it until you’re satisfied.”
Liu Yancheng’s face was stern, but his eyes shone with joy.
“Nuonuo, since you’re home, there’s no need for ‘uncle’ or ‘auntie’ anymore.”
Su Xingnuo lowered her voice.
“Dad, Mom, Brother.”
Liu Dingyuan and Jiang Lan quickly echoed, “Ah.”
Liu Yancheng cleared his throat.
“It’s cold outside. Come back inside quickly, little sister.”
Su Xingnuo allowed Jiang Lan to link arms with her and walk into the villa.
She had only planned to stay a few days, but her parents had prepared three rooms, worried she wouldn’t be used to living there.
Seeing Su Xingnuo’s scant luggage, Jiang Lan felt a pang of sympathy.
“Tomorrow, we’ll go shopping and fill all three rooms.”
“Okay,” Su Xingnuo replied.
After Jiang Lan left, Su Xingnuo opened her phone. A message caught her eye:
[Your account has been credited with ¥90,000,000. Current balance: ¥1,000,900…]
Then a message from Liu Yancheng:
[Little sister, today’s meeting was rushed, and I didn’t have a proper gift for you. Please accept this pocket money. I’ll prepare a proper gift for you tomorrow.]
Su Xingnuo’s door was knocked on. A servant delivered a Bentley car key.
“Miss, this is from the master. If you don’t like the color, he’ll send another red one. You can drive this for now.”
Su Xingnuo accepted the key, her eyes glistening.
Since she returned, the Liu family hadn’t asked about the past years but were determined she wouldn’t suffer here.
She knew they already understood.
They were just pretending not to know.
If she didn’t bring it up, they would act as if they didn’t know.
She closed the door and called Jiang Lan.
A simple “thank you” stuck in her throat.
Jiang Lan’s voice was anxious.
“What’s wrong, Nuonuo? I’m talking with your father about your birthday next week. We want to host a birthday recognition banquet and were going to ask your opinion… but it’s late now.”
Su Xingnuo’s gaze was firm.
“Next week doesn’t work. I also need to attend the birthday banquet Xie Ran arranged for me.”
“That’s fine, we can postpone. No rush. As long as you’re happy, we’ll do anything. Do you want me to go with you?”
Jiang Lan wiped her eyes. Nuonuo had suffered so much.
Now that Nuonuo was her daughter, she would never let her be wronged.
She was sure Xie Ran had coerced her. She needed to support her.
“Mom, I can manage myself. I just returned to the Liu house. Before officially announcing my identity, I’d rather stay low-profile to avoid unnecessary trouble.”
Su Xingnuo knew what Jiang Lan was thinking, and she didn’t want to cause trouble for the Liu family.
One Xie Ran? She could handle him.
Jiang Lan nodded while holding her phone.
“Okay, we’ll follow your wishes. But that day, I’ll arrange for Yancheng to go too. If he’s not with you, he can still look out for you. Don’t be fooled by his usual stern face—he used to fight over holding you when you were little.”
“Okay, thanks Mom.”
“Don’t thank me. We’re family.”
After hanging up, Su Xingnuo turned off her 5 a.m. alarm.
For the first time in three years, she lay in bed without worrying about chores for tomorrow.
She found a comfortable position and quickly fell asleep.
The next day, Su Xingnuo woke naturally.
Jiang Lan waited for her to come downstairs and asked the servants to warm breakfast.
After eating, she went shopping with Jiang Lan.
They entered a high-end custom women’s clothing store. Jiang Lan picked several dresses.
“Nuonuo, do you like these?”
Su Xingnuo took the dresses.
“I’ll try them on.”
She had just taken two steps when a voice called out.
“Oh? Who’s this?”
A woman adorned in brand names approached Su Xingnuo. Shen Qingya stood beside her—they clearly came together.
Su Xingnuo told Jiang Lan,
“Mom, wait in the lounge. I’ll be there soon.”
The woman seemed hostile, and with Shen Qingya beside her, Su Xingnuo didn’t want Jiang Lan to witness her confrontational side.
Jiang Lan glanced at the woman but chose to obey, heading to the lounge.
Before leaving, she quietly instructed the sales staff to call her if anything happened.
The entire mall belonged to the Liu family; the staff nodded repeatedly.
The woman sized Su Xingnuo up, noting she wasn’t wearing a single designer brand. She laughed.
“So you’re the one who stole Qingya’s boyfriend? What a country bumpkin. You must be from the countryside. Do you even know where this is?”
Su Xingnuo glanced at the woman’s limited-edition bag, speaking coldly,
“Miss, you’re not exactly cheap yourself.”
The woman crossed her arms proudly.
“Hmph, at least you recognize quality.”
“Too bad, even thousands spent on a dress can’t hide your shallow heart.”
“You! How dare you call me shallow!”
“You just called me a country bumpkin. I’m complimenting you, can’t you tell?”
The woman nearly jumped. Shen Qingya reached out, stopping her, whispering,
“Du Qian, leave it. Let bygones be bygones.”
“Ha, Miss Shen, you’re beautiful and elegant even in speech. Are you here to buy maternity clothes?” Su Xingnuo smiled.
Shen Qingya’s face immediately changed. She bit her lip, aggrieved.
“Miss Su, must you…”
Du Qian and Shen Qingya were from similar wealthy backgrounds, lifelong best friends—they couldn’t stand anyone speaking ill of Shen Qingya.
“You’re wrong. Qingya has such a good figure. How could she buy maternity clothes?”
Su Xingnuo sneered. Du Qian clearly didn’t know Shen Qingya was pregnant.
Indeed, an unmarried heiress pregnant would be laughed at if revealed.
Du Qian wanted to argue further, but Shen Qingya pulled her back.
“Qianqian, we’re here to shop, not fight.”
Du Qian swallowed her anger.
“You’re just too kind, Qingya.”
Su Xingnuo raised her brow, preparing to try on the dresses she picked.
“Stop.”
Du Qian called out, pointing at the dresses. She told the salesperson,
“I’ll take all the ones she picked.”