Ch 30: After My Mother Returned to the Rich Family

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Unlike Ruan Cha’s troubles, Ren Qingqing was simply ecstatic. Her eyes sparkled as she stared at the system panel and murmured to herself, “2 points of beauty, 2 points of intelligence.”

If she truly obtained them, she could finally outshine Ruan Cha.

However, after multiple failures, Ren Qingqing’s head had cleared somewhat. Calmly, she asked, “If I fail, will the punishment involve deducting beauty or intelligence points?” Just losing one point of beauty had already been unbearable—losing another would make her completely unpresentable at Second High.

[According to the program, if the host scores 10+ points lower than the associated target for the third time, there is an 80% probability of receiving negative backlash. This will result in the deduction of 2 beauty points or 2 intelligence points. Negative backlash effects are typically equal to half of what the associated target gains.]

The system internally felt it was being generous. If the host completed the task, she could gain 4 beauty or intelligence points. On the other hand, failure would only result in a deduction of 2 points and 1 credit—a fantastic deal. If the associated target knew about this arrangement, they might curse the system’s entire ancestry.

[Would the host like to spend 11 credits to abandon the B task and switch to an A task?]

Relaxed, Ren Qingqing lounged on her bed, glancing at her desk where only a few lines of homework had been written. “Do I look stupid? Last time, Ruan Cha scored the lowest in chemistry across all subjects. And from what I heard from Class 10, she couldn’t even handle a pipette during her one and only lab session this semester. Could she possibly get in my way again?”

[…]

Moments later, in the system’s program, a flashing red light generated several lines of new code, which were quickly transmitted elsewhere, their destination unknown.

Ren Qingqing’s mood was as clear as the sky after a storm, while Ruan Cha, thinking about her slipping grasp on a carefree slacker life, grew visibly gloomy. Even while celebrating Ruan Zhengfei’s birthday at noon, her face wore a smile, but both her parents immediately noticed the worry hidden beneath it.

Wei Jiao, smearing a bit of cake onto Ruan Cha’s cheek and turning her into a little “flower cat,” teased, “Cha Cha, what’s on your mind?”

Hearing this, Liang Senior and Liang Cunjin also turned to look at Ruan Cha. The two had been preoccupied marveling at how Wei Jiao’s “boiled cabbage” dish rivaled the quality of Seven Star’s premium version.

Liang Senior suddenly remembered why the cabbage Wei Jiao had brought back from her town tasted so familiar—it was the same as the one he’d eaten at Seven Star. However, Seven Star had recently stopped selling its premium boiled cabbage, offering only the regular version. Rumor had it the main person responsible for the premium cabbage had retired…

Ruan Cha glanced at Song Mengyu, seated across from her, and refrained from mentioning the upcoming chemistry test. Since it was labeled “temporary,” her knowledge of it in advance would be suspicious.

After a moment’s thought, Ruan Cha nodded and said, “I was reviewing chemistry last night. There are a few experiments I’ve never done in high school before, and I’m struggling to understand them. Plus, we have chemistry class on Monday, and I’m worried I’ll mess up the lab work again.”

Ruan Zhengfei & Wei Jiao: “…”

Oh no, what’s happening at school? For her to worry about academics to the point of losing her appetite?

Unlike her parents’ concerns, Liang Senior felt deeply comforted. He had been resigned to the idea that his granddaughter might follow in her parents’ footsteps, content to laze around and earn money from home. Now, seeing her so goal-oriented, he felt truly gratified!

“Chemistry class on Monday, huh?” Old Master Liang pondered for a moment, then smiled. “Your grandfather has an old friend who’s done some work in chemistry. Since his granddaughter enjoys doing small chemistry experiments, he set up a mini chemistry lab at home. It may not have the most advanced equipment, but it does have the basics and some commonly used tools. Let me ask if we can borrow it.”

Ruan Cha’s eyes lit up like stars, her little “flower cat” face full of excitement as she eagerly fixed her gaze on her grandfather. “Grandpa! Really? Can I borrow it tomorrow—or even this afternoon?”

With a task looming over her, Ruan Cha couldn’t relax as a slacker. She only had a day and a half left and couldn’t afford to waste a single moment.

Hearing this, Ruan Zhengfei and Wei Jiao exchanged glances, their hearts sinking. Oh no, something’s really up with our daughter.

Even Old Master Liang was surprised by Ruan Cha’s enthusiasm. After a brief pause, he nodded. “It should be fine. I believe he doesn’t have any critical research projects that need to remain confidential until next month. After lunch, I’ll give him a call.”

“Thank you, Grandpa!” Ruan Cha exclaimed, then enthusiastically served Old Master Liang some cabbage with the communal chopsticks and ladled a bowl of corn and pork rib soup for him. Her attentiveness was over the top, her smile as sweet as sugar. “Grandpa, take your time eating.”

Old Master Liang, experiencing this kind of care at the table for the first time, beamed with a broad smile. “Oh, thank you, my precious Cha Cha. You eat, too. Stop worrying about the experiment.”

“Okay, okay!”

The entire exchange was closely observed by the four others at the table. Ruan Zhengfei and Wei Jiao were worried, thinking their daughter was in some sort of trouble. Liang Cunjin felt relieved, proud that his sister seemed so dedicated to her studies. As for Song Mengyu, she was deeply frustrated.

Her family had been unable to secure investment from the Yangs despite repeated attempts, and her grandfather had never even suggested reaching out to his connections in the Yang family. Two years ago, when she wanted to learn piano but couldn’t get into her desired teacher’s class, her grandfather hadn’t asked her aunt to pull any strings. So why was he making exception after exception for Ruan Cha?

She only lived outside for a decade or so, and by the looks of it, she didn’t even suffer!

Throughout the meal, Song Mengyu kept her head down, afraid her gaze might betray her feelings if Ruan Cha or Liang Cunjin caught her expression. She tightly gripped her fork, suppressing the jealousy and resentment that churned within her.

At the same time, Song Mengyu couldn’t help but think Ruan Cha’s efforts were futile. Does she think she can build a “hardworking student” persona with the cameras rolling and later become the nation’s favorite “daughter”?

But everyone left the house—who’s going to see whether you’re studying or not?

Though she quietly mocked Ruan Cha in her mind, she didn’t voice her thoughts like she once would have. After all, Old Master Liang was present, and Ruan Cha’s unpredictable way of thinking made her hard to counter in a verbal sparring match.

Liang Cunjin, pleased by Ruan Cha’s excitement, also felt cheerful. Remembering what she had said the previous afternoon, he raised his head to look at Ruan Zhengfei across the table. “Uncle, you mentioned going out to ‘work’ yesterday—was that… rent collection?”

Hearing this, Old Master Liang also turned to look at Ruan Zhengfei and Wei Jiao, his voice tinged with a faint trace of delight. “You’ve been collecting rent?”

To Old Master Liang, investing in real estate was a reasonable choice for those who didn’t excel in financial management. If his daughter’s family had rental income, their life may not have been as ideal as she always claimed, but it probably wasn’t as tough as he had feared.

As Old Master Liang looked at Ruan Zhengfei again, his gaze softened. His son-in-law was actually quite remarkable—just look at how well he had raised both his daughter and granddaughter, leaving them both radiant and lovely.

But wait.

If his daughter had been farming vegetables, how did she maintain such flawless skin?

A flicker of confusion crossed Old Master Liang’s mind.

Under the sudden intensity of his father-in-law’s gaze, Ruan Zhengfei felt a little nervous. Scratching his head, he laughed sheepishly. “Yes, I’ve been collecting rent since I was a kid.”

After a brief pause, as if something had occurred to him, he added, “Dad, actually, when you came to find the three of us, we were living in a house we used to rent out. Next time, we’ll take you to see the town where Jiao Jiao and I grew up. It’s beautiful—like a paradise.”

Liang Cunjin immediately zeroed in on the key detail. “You’ve been collecting rent since you were a kid?”

“Yes,” Ruan Zhengfei replied, his tone casual, though his brows furrowed slightly at the thought. “My dad—Cha Cha’s grandpa—bought some houses a while back. Since there weren’t many of us, we rented them out and collected rent.”

As he spoke, his expression grew a bit weary. Collecting rent wasn’t as easy as it sounded; he often had to inspect properties to ensure tenants weren’t damaging them. If his father ever came back, he’d have to have a serious chat about future investments—why not just buy houses all in one town? Scattering them across the country only added travel expenses on top of the hassle of inspections.

Hearing this, Old Master Liang was momentarily stunned, his face reflecting his surprise. “You and Jiao Jiao didn’t meet in the orphanage?”

At the mention of the orphanage, Old Master Liang’s feelings grew complex. The mix-up at the hospital back then had made Liang Yue an unwitting victim, even though she had long passed away. But Fu Chen—

Old Master Liang thought of the document in his study concerning shares in Fu Family enterprises. The document not only outlined the assets currently under Fu Chen’s name but also listed those that would be transferred to him in the future.

He vividly recalled the conversation at the teahouse that day, where Fu Chen stated clearly that, though his mother had been innocent, she had benefited from forty years of living as the Liang family’s daughter, which ultimately connected her to Fu’s father. Some things couldn’t simply end with the phrase “the person is gone.”

Liang Yue may no longer be here, but her bloodline remained, didn’t it?

If that were the case, it wouldn’t be right to assume that everything was now resolved just because Ruan Cha and her parents appeared happy and well-adjusted. The events of the past couldn’t simply be erased.

After hearing Fu Chen’s negotiation with his father, Old Master Liang realized he needed to reevaluate the young man. They had all been blinded by his youth.

As he observed the harmonious scene of Wei Jiao’s family at the dining table, Old Master Liang thought to himself that he needed to have a serious talk with Jiao Jiao and her husband.

While he didn’t believe Fu Chen needed to go to such lengths, the choice to accept or decline should ultimately be left to Jiao Jiao’s family. At the same time, he hoped to persuade them to accept his own compensatory offering.

After all, if there was fault to be found, it lay with the Liang family. It had taken over forty years to uncover the truth and an arduous process to reunite with his biological daughter.

The Liang family had let Jiao Jiao endure hardships she never should have. Without Zhengfei, she might have suffered even more.

Now, the only thing Old Master Liang could do was make up for it materially. As for emotionally, it wasn’t he who was giving but rather Jiao Jiao and her family who were generously allowing him to enjoy the joy of family bonds.

Hearing Old Master Liang’s question, both Ruan Zhengfei and Wei Jiao felt a bit shy. They bumped elbows playfully, exchanging glances.

Finally, with a reddened face, Ruan Zhengfei fidgeted before awkwardly confessing, “Well, when I was a kid, I went to the orphanage with my dad to donate school supplies. That’s when I first saw Jiao Jiao, and I fell for her right away. But Jiao Jiao didn’t pay me any attention, so I secretly moved into the orphanage to live there.”

He paused for effect, his face full of pride. “I stayed there with her all the way until we graduated high school. That’s how I finally won her over and managed to marry her—and we even have a lovely daughter who’s just as adorable as her mom was at that age.”

As he finished, Ruan Zhengfei turned to look at Wei Jiao. The two exchanged a tender, affectionate gaze, their expressions so sweet and sticky that the pink bubbles of love around them practically eclipsed the cake on the table.

The others: …

That’s a huge bowl of PDA dog food you’re serving!

Ruan Cha: …

You get used to it. After all, I wake up every day to the cold slap of PDA dog food.