In the car, Li Wanqing had lost all her earlier composure. A grimace twisted her delicate features.
Furious, she kicked the seat in front of her several tis.
The driver, who seed accustod to such scenes, showed no reaction.
Once she had cald down, Li Wanqing said to the driver, "Don’t say a word about this when we get back."
"Understood, Madam."
Only then did Li Wanqing begin to carefully mull over what Zheng Guofeng had just said.
’Could it be that Li Wan Yi didn’t die when she fell into the river? Not only did she survive, but she also had a daughter?’
’Did she not miscarry the child she was carrying? But after falling from such a height, even into a river, how could the baby possibly have survived?’
She was lost in quiet contemplation when she suddenly recalled what Shumin had said when she ca ho for the New Year.
"Mom, you have no idea. In the village where I was sent to the countryside, there’s a girl who looks so much like . She also looks a bit like you when you were young—just like that photo of you we have on the cabinet. She really resembles the you in that picture."
Why did she say she resembled a younger Li Wanqing? Because the Li Wanqing of today was so different from her forr self. Her face was always adorned with exquisite makeup, leaving no trace of the person she once was.
Li Wanqing hadn’t thought much of it at the ti, but thinking about it now... Zheng Guofeng had co here all by himself. How else could he have learned that Li Wan Yi had a daughter?
She suddenly blurted out, "Go back."
The driver paused for a mont. "Madam, are we turning back?"
"Yes, go back."
Wang Shumin stared blankly as the car drove away. But before long, it returned.
She was utterly astonished, but her surprise quickly turned to joy. ’Mom must have rembered I’m still here,’ she thought.
Li Wanqing got out of the car and eagerly gripped Wang Shumin’s arms.
"Shumin, I rember you once said there’s a girl in this village who looks a lot like you. Can you take to see her?"
Wang Shumin didn’t know what had co over her mother. Why was she suddenly asking about this? Still, a pang of disappointnt hit her.
It had always been this way, ever since she was little. Her mother’s attention was reserved for her older brother and, of course, Uncle Zheng.
As for her and her father, it seed her mother didn’t care, and yet... that didn’t feel quite right either.
Seeing Wang Shumin in a daze, Li Wanqing seed to rember sothing. She took fifty yuan from her purse and stuffed it into Wang Shumin’s hand.
"I was in such a rush to get here that I didn’t have ti to buy you anything. Take this money and buy yourself sothing nice to eat."
Wang Shumin’s feelings were a complicated mix. ’See, this is just how it is,’ she thought. After a mont of coldness, her mother would always give her money and say sothing kind.
"Shumin, hurry up and take to find that girl you ntioned," Li Wanqing said, her patience wearing thin.
Wang Shumin nodded.
Xue Yue had just returned from outside, pushing Ruanruan in her stroller, when she heard a knock on the door.
Ruanruan had already fallen asleep in the stroller. Xue Yue lifted her onto the kang bed and went to open the door.
The mont the door opened, Li Wanqing saw Xue Yue’s face and staggered back a step in fright.
’The resemblance is uncanny.’
Her expression was a mixture of astonishnt and horror.
Xue Yue looked at them. She recognized Wang Shumin.
"Wang Zhiqing, can I help you?"
Wang Shumin turned to look at her mother. Li Wanqing’s hands were trembling slightly. She didn’t speak, only scrutinized Xue Yue from head to toe.
Xue Yue frowned. She had no idea what these two were up to. They’d knocked on her door, but now they just stood there staring at her without a word.
Wang Shumin felt awkward as well; she didn’t understand what her mother was doing either.
"Um... Xue Yue, this is my mother. She ca to visit , and when she heard that we look alike, she got curious and wanted to co see for herself." Wang Shumin was mortified as soon as the words left her mouth. ’What a ridiculous excuse.’
"Your surna is Xue? What is Li Wan Yi to you?" Li Wanqing suddenly asked.
A flicker of emotion crossed Xue Yue’s eyes. She looked at the woman. Zheng Guofeng had asked her the exact sa question. Now, soone else was asking it.
’What’s with these people? Are they more of my mother’s old friends?’
When she didn’t answer, Li Wanqing’s eyes narrowed slightly, and her expression softened. "It’s like this. My na is Li Wanqing, and Li Wan Yi is my older sister. Do you know her? Or, what is your relationship with her?"
Both Xue Yue and Wang Shumin were stunned by her words.
This was the first ti Xue Yue had ever heard that her mother had a younger sister.
Wang Shumin was also incredibly surprised. How could she not know her mother had an older sister? She glanced from her mother to Xue Yue and back again.
After a mont of silence, Xue Yue said softly, "Li Wan Yi was my mother. But you’re too late. She passed away many years ago."
Hearing Xue Yue say that Li Wan Yi was not only gone but had been dead for many years, Li Wanqing instantly breathed a sigh of relief. Zheng Guofeng had actually told her the sa thing, but she hadn’t believed him. ’It seems it’s true after all,’ she thought.
Xue Yue watched her, a hint of confusion in her eyes.
Li Wanqing t Xue Yue’s gaze and suddenly realized her reaction might have been too obvious. She imdiately put on a sorrowful expression and said to Xue Yue, "Child, I’m your aunt! I’ve finally found you. Didn’t your mother ever ntion ?"
"No."
Li Wanqing spoke with deep emotion, but other than astonishnt, Xue Yue felt nothing else.
After the first ti she’d heard about her mother from Zheng Guofeng, she had been in turmoil for a long ti before gradually calming down.
Growing up, her mother had never once spoken of her relatives, let alone her past.
And now that her mother was long gone, what was the point of this old acquaintance and a sister suddenly appearing?
Besides, if her mother was really from Beijing City, why would she have run all the way out here with her father? Who would believe there wasn’t so hidden trouble she was fleeing?
Li Wanqing probably hadn’t expected this reaction from Xue Yue. She figured the girl must just be overwheld with joy. After all, for a country girl like her, suddenly gaining an aunt like Li Wanqing was a stroke of incredible luck.
In fact, that thought had never even crossed Xue Yue’s mind. And even if it had, she wouldn’t have cared.
She took two steps forward, grabbed Xue Yue’s hand, and said joyfully, "Your na is Xue Yue, right? How old are you? Who’s your father?"
Bombarded with so many questions right away, Xue Yue didn’t know which one to answer first.
"You say you’re my mother’s younger sister. What proof do you have?" Xue Yue asked coolly.
Li Wanqing smiled and said, "The proof is in Beijing City. I have photos of your mother and . Child, I really am your aunt. Just look at the resemblance between you and Shumin. You two look so much alike."
Xue Yue glanced at Wang Shumin, their eyes eting. Both of them felt a complex mix of emotions.
Li Wanqing glanced into the courtyard and said to Xue Yue, "Is this your ho? May I co in and have a look?"
Xue Yue couldn’t bring herself to refuse, so she stepped aside and let them in.
Li Wanqing ca in and looked around, noting that the courtyard was well-built—much better than the other houses in the village.
"How old are you? You look so young. Are you married already?"
"Yes, I’m nineteen."
Li Wanqing’s head snapped toward her. "You said you’re only nineteen?"
Xue Yue nodded.
In that instant, a multitude of thoughts sprouted in Li Wanqing’s mind.
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