Although her opponent was cunning, feigning helplessness to garner sympathy, Xiao Wenqiang was no pushover. In the span of a breath, large teardrops rolled down her cheeks, and she said with a trembling voice, "Please don't blame yourself. It is I who have wronged you. Without me, you would still be a complete and happy family."
Seizing the opportunity to turn towards Xie Qiao, she pushed Mao Wenjing aside and continued, "You are... Mother! I'm sorry, Mother... I'll call you Auntie. Auntie, please don't be sad. Seeing you upset makes me sad too... Actually, on the way here, I had already decided that I would live at school when classes start, and I wouldn't trouble you and Uncle for too long..."
As an actress, who hadn't played a few "green tea" supporting roles before gaining fame? Xiao Wenqiang felt her acting skills in this regard were superior to Mao Wenjing's.
Upon hearing this, Xie Qiao quickly said, "Why call us Uncle and Auntie? Call us Mom and Dad, just like Wenjing. We are your birth parents. Don't say such things about troubling us anymore..."
And so, Xiao Wenqiang officially moved into the Mao family's home during the holiday. During this time, the original female lead, Mao Wenjing, unwilling to have her family's attention stolen, made several "tea-flavored" remarks, but Xiao Wenqiang easily countered them either by "tea against tea" or by direct confrontation.
Now, as they met at the turn of the stairs on the second floor, Mao Wenjing whispered a threat to Xiao Wenqiang: "How can you come to the second floor? The first floor is where you belong. Don't you have any self-awareness? So what if you're related by blood? In this family, I'm the child Mom and Dad raised for over ten years. Our years of affection are something you, as an interloper, cannot understand or break into. Therefore, I advise you to mind your own business and don't have any unrealistic thoughts of replacing me."
Just as Xiao Wenqiang was about to retort, telling this fake impostor to keep her tail between her legs, a flicker of movement in the dimness of the doorway caught her eye. She immediately shifted to a tearful, wronged tone: "I'm sorry, Wenjing. Dad asked me to get some documents for him from the study, that's why I came up. I never thought of replacing you, so please don't misunderstand..."
While Mao Wenjing heard Xiao Wenqiang's words of grievance, her eyes saw a completely provocative expression on her face. This enraged her to the point that she couldn't control her voice and shouted, "Stop pretending, you poor excuse for a person..."
"Wenjing, didn't you have plans to go shopping with your friends? Why aren't you leaving yet?" The more offensive words were interrupted by Xie Qiao, who emerged from the shadows, pretending not to have heard their conversation.
Mao Wenjing was indeed startled, but seeing her mother's expression, it seemed she hadn't been fully discovered. She quickly nodded in agreement. Without even a perfunctory greeting to Xiao Wenqiang, she hurried downstairs.
When Xie Qiao looked over, Xiao Wenqiang also feigned a look of being startled, murmuring with her head down, "Mom, I came to get documents for Dad."
Xie Qiao handed her the documents she was holding. "Your dad called me too. Asking you to do such a small thing, he's really something!" Her tone carried a hint of polite distance.
"It's no trouble! Mom, shall I take them to Dad then?" Xiao Wenqiang took the documents and waited for her assent.
"Mhm, go ahead!" Xie Qiao waved her hand.
After nodding goodbye, Xiao Wenqiang turned to go downstairs, only to hear Xie Qiao's voice again: "Yanyan, Wenjing is just having a hard time accepting this right now. She's not a bad child at heart. If she says something unpleasant, please be more understanding, okay?"
Nodding in agreement with her back to Xie Qiao, Xiao Wenqiang's lips curled into a mocking smile. Xie Qiao, the birth mother of the original owner, seemed to be favoring the female lead quite a bit. Why wasn't she telling Mao Wenjing to improve her attitude?
A few days later, the four of them were gathered around a large dining table for breakfast. Xie Qiao suddenly remembered something and asked, "By the way, Genhong, do you know about the Zheng family?"
"Zheng Dajun? What happened to his family?" Mao Genhong thought that he had been busy dealing with company matters and the follow-up arrangements for his biological daughter. It had indeed been a long time since he last played golf with Old Zheng.
Xie Qiao took a sip of her porridge and said slowly, "I heard about it from a friend when I was shopping a while ago. It's that Zheng Dajun. He has another son outside, behind Wu Yueli's back, and this son is even a few months older than Zheng Xiao."
"What!!!" Mao Genhong exclaimed, putting down his chopsticks in surprise.
"I also heard that this 'other woman' is actually Zheng Dajun's first love. They were secretly together back then, but due to the business marriage between the Zheng and Wu families, Zheng Dajun broke up with her and married Wu Yueli. Unexpectedly, this woman was already pregnant and secretly gave birth to the child abroad," Xie Qiao said, elegantly dabbing her lips with a napkin. "Now that the Wu family has declined, Zheng Dajun brought the 'other woman' and their son to be with him recently. He even arranged a villa for them in the Wanfeng District. He's now pressuring Wu Yueli to include the 'other woman's' son in the family registry."
"How could Wu Yueli agree to that!"
"She wouldn't agree, so there's a big fuss right now! For Zheng Dajun to be at his age, what is he thinking? Isn't he afraid of becoming a laughingstock?" Xie Qiao expressed her incomprehension and then suddenly looked up at her husband, "Mao Genhong, you wouldn't happen to have a son or daughter hidden from me, would you?"
"What are you thinking? Is our relationship comparable to some arranged business marriage? I only have one daughter with you... No, now I have two. We are living a peaceful and happy life as a family of four!"
Xie Qiao smiled with satisfaction at his words. Xiao Wenqiang smiled silently, but Mao Wenjing looked a little unhappy.
After breakfast, Mao Genhong announced another matter. "Yanyan, the case is being judged this afternoon. Would you like to come along?"
Xiao Wenqiang feigned a moment of daze before realizing, "Okay, Dad, I'd like to go. After all, they raised me..."
Mao Genhong nodded and then looked at his wife and Mao Wenjing. "Xiao Qiao, Wenjing, do you two want to come?"
Xie Qiao looked at Mao Wenjing inquiringly. Seeing that she remained silent, she took the initiative to say, "Wenjing, why don't we all go too? After all, they are also your..." She didn't finish the sentence, but everyone understood.
Xiao Wenqiang knew that Mao Wenjing had been angered by her several times recently and had secretly smashed things in her room to vent. Hearing Xie Qiao's words today, she knew the timing was right. She subtly turned her body and looked at Mao Wenjing with a hint of mockery.
As expected, seeing Xiao Wenqiang's gaze, the teenage girl Mao Wenjing couldn't help but erupt, pointing at Xiao Wenqiang and shouting, "They are not my birth parents! What is my status, Mao Wenjing? They and this woman are just like that, poor and insignificant, not even worthy of carrying my shoes!"
The air froze for a moment, and everyone stood stunned. Xiao Wenqiang inwardly cheered, "Well done, girl!"
Mao Genhong slammed the table, breaking the brief suffocating atmosphere. "Mao Wenjing, what kind of attitude is that? Where did you learn your etiquette and upbringing?"
Mao Wenjing flinched fearfully at first. Then, realizing something, she suddenly burst into tears and ran out of the dining room with a loud wail.
Xie Qiao glanced at Mao Genhong and Xiao Wenqiang, hesitated to speak, and finally sighed before chasing after her.
When Mao Genhong and the others left the house, they encountered Xie Yinuo, who had rushed over upon hearing the news. Zheng Xiao, whom they had met before, was also with him. Thus, the four of them decided to drive to the court together.
Xiao Wenqiang sat in the front passenger seat and secretly observed Zheng Xiao a few times through the side mirror. The young man had handsome features, though his eyes held a hint of melancholy. Nevertheless, he was still very polite.
Remembering what she had heard Xie Qiao say at the table, she knew he must be troubled by family matters lately. Recalling his tragic end in the original book, she thought about whether she could remind him not to drive that car at that particular time, hoping to change his fate.
However, it was too early to dwell on such matters. The most important thing now was to see the verdict for Zhang Ju and the others.