TEDWR: Chapter 20

Glossary

· Zhang Yansheng (张雁声): The female protagonist, the reborn eldest daughter.

· Zhang Huan (张寰): Zhang Yansheng's father.

· Liang Yingying (梁莹莹): Zhang Yansheng's stepmother.

· Zhang Shuocheng (张硕成): Zhang Yansheng's seven-year-old half-brother.

· Zhang Heling (张鹤翎): Zhang Yansheng's nine-year-old half-sister.

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Chapter 20

Zhang Yansheng finished her training session and did not go shopping. She returned home earlier than Zhang Huan that day.

Zhang Huan's car had just entered the driveway when Liang Yingying, who had not dared to leave the house all day, hurried down from the third floor to greet him. She wore a fawning smile, but Zhang Huan did not return a pleasant expression.

"You, you really..." He had just begun, pointing a finger at Liang Yingying, when a glance from the corner of his eye caught Zhang Heling peeking from behind the railing at the stair landing. He stopped short.

Some topics were simply not appropriate to discuss in front of the children.

"Follow me upstairs!" he snapped irritably at Liang Yingying.

Liang Yingying, looking thoroughly chastised, trailed after him up the stairs.

Zhang Heling called out obediently, "Dad," and added, "You're home."

Zhang Huan grunted in acknowledgment and even patted Zhang Heling's head. "Where's your sister?"

"In her room, "Zhang Heling replied dutifully. "My sister studies in her room every day."

Hearing this, Zhang Huan felt a wave of relief. "You need to study hard too," he said.

Zhang Heling nodded."I will."

In truth, she applied herself to her homework diligently every day. She simply did not know how to perform for adults to win their favor. Liang Yingying was perpetually exasperated by this seemingly slow daughter. As she walked past, she jabbed Zhang Heling's head sharply with her finger, resentful that the girl was so dim and couldn't even act sweet.

Zhang Huan caught the motion from the corner of his eye and barked, "What are you doing? Don't touch her!"

Liang Yingying instantly put on an apologetic smile. "Just giving her a reminder! She needs to understand the importance of studying."

Zhang Huan merely snorted and let it go, continuing upstairs. Liang Yingying scurried after him, but not before shooting Zhang Heling a venomous glare and mouthing the words, "You utter idiot!" blaming her for the scolding.

Zhang Heling bit her lip and hung her head.

Zhang Yansheng studied for a while longer that evening. Feeling fatigued, she closed her books and decided to go downstairs. The moment she stepped out of her room, she saw Zhang Heling walking toward her own room with her head down, making a swift motion to wipe her eyes...

She was definitely wiping away tears!

Zhang Yansheng paused, then strode over and blocked her path. "What's the matter? Did Zhang Shuocheng bully you again?"

Her sudden appearance made Zhang Heling jump.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

"No,"Zhang Heling said, embarrassed to be caught wiping her eyes, and quickly lowered her head again. "Shuoshuo is playing in the garden."

"Then why are you crying?" Zhang Yansheng pressed.

"I wasn't crying..." Zhang Heling's voice was faint, completely lacking in conviction.

This younger sister, Zhang Yansheng thought, is both naive and fragile. No wonder she grew into that timid, withdrawn personality later on.

Zhang Yansheng pinched the girl's round chin, tilting her face up for inspection, and scoffed. "Who are you trying to fool? Your eyes are red. You were crying."

She released her grip. Zhang Heling, abashed, began tracing circles on the floor with the tip of her shoe.

"Explain," Zhang Yansheng demanded. "My patience is thin. If something is wrong, spit it out."

Zhang Heling mumbled, "My mother poked my head earlier."

The moment Liang Yingying was mentioned, Zhang Yansheng's temper ignited. "Why did she poke you?"

Zhang Heling looked equally perplexed. "I... I don't know..."

Zhang Yansheng stared at her for a second, then resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"Come with me," she said brusquely and turned towards her own room.

Zhang Heling followed her inside without a word.

Zhang Yansheng rummaged in a drawer, pulled out a bag of potato chips, tore it open, and thrust it into Zhang Heling's hands, directing her to sit on the sofa. "Talk. What exactly happened? What did you say or do that warranted a poke on the head?"

Zhang Heling nibbled on a couple of chips, the simple treat soothing her bruised feelings. She then recounted the entire encounter on the stairs, including the conversation.

Zhang Yansheng understood instantly.

"Your mother is angry because you didn't make her look good." she stated bluntly.

Zhang Heling clutched the chip bag tightly and stared at the floor.

She looked pitiful.

Zhang Yansheng felt a pang of reluctant sympathy and offered stiff consolation. "Forget it. Just study harder next semester and get better grades. That should shut her up."

Zhang Heling kept her head down and muttered something under her breath.

"What?" Zhang Yansheng's impatience flared. "Speak up. I'm telling you, if you talk like a mosquito, no one will notice you or care what you have to say. If you want to be heard, say it loudly."

What my sister says always makes sense, Zhang Heling thought. It was true that in this house, hardly anyone noticed her, let alone cared about her.

Mustering her courage, Zhang Heling raised her voice and told Zhang Yansheng, "I... I am first in my class. Second in my grade."

Zhang Yansheng blinked.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

"Excuse me?" Zhang Yansheng's voice lifted in disbelief. "What did you say?"

Zhang Heling flinched slightly,but facing her sister gave her more courage than facing anyone else. She repeated, "I am first in my class and second in my grade level."

Zhang Yansheng continued to stare.

How did she remember this sister having... very average grades? She seemed ordinary in every way. Zhang Yansheng had never heard anyone in this family praise her for anything.

Seeing the disbelief in her sister's eyes, Zhang Heling hurriedly insisted, "It's true."

"Then why would your mother think your grades are bad?" Zhang Yansheng asked, puzzled.

"She doesn't know..." Zhang Heling's shoulders slumped again in dejection.

A mother who doesn't know her child's academic standing?Zhang Yansheng raised an eyebrow.

"She didn't attend my parent-teacher conference. My conference and Shuoshuo's were on the same day. She only went to his and didn't even stop by my classroom," Zhang Heling explained.

"You're not that naive, are you?" Zhang Yansheng said. "If she didn't go, why didn't you tell her yourself?"

"I did tell her..." Zhang Heling bit her lip, crumpling the chip bag in her hands. "She was doing her makeup and said I was bothering her... She just said, 'I know.'"

But she clearly hadn't known. She probably hadn't even registered what her younger daughter was saying beside her, too focused on finishing her makeup to go out.

"Did you tell Dad?" Zhang Yansheng asked.

"I tried..." Zhang Heling said. "Dad was just answering a phone call and told me, 'We'll talk later.' But after his call, he went out."

Her sister fell silent for a long moment.

Zhang Heling had so much she wanted to say, but no one in this house was ever willing to listen patiently.

Seizing this chance to finally talk to someone, she continued, "I also received a 'Star Student' award. That certificate is only given to the top three in the class. And I got 'Most Diligent' and 'Most Helpful' awards too. Those are for..."

Zhang Yansheng listened as her younger sister opened up, words flowing out in a torrent. Her eyes, usually dull, were shining with a light Zhang Yansheng rarely saw.

She couldn't help but ask, "Where are these awards of yours?"

"They're in my room," Zhang Heling said.

Zhang Yansheng stood up. "Let's go. Show me."

Zhang Heling's eyes lit up, sparkling like stars in the night sky.

They were the eyes of a child starved for attention and care. There must have been a time, Zhang Yansheng thought, when my own eyes held that same light. Later, that light was extinguished by disappointment.

In Zhang Heling's room, the young girl carefully brought out a cardboard box filled with the awards and certificates she treasured.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

Zhang Yansheng looked through the thick stack of commendations, examined her report cards, flipped through her homework notebooks, and finally had to admit her memory was faulty. Zhang Heling was not "ordinary" in the least. She was an exceptionally bright and diligent girl.

How did such an outstanding girl later become that mediocre, timid, and withdrawn person?

Holding one of the certificates, Zhang Yansheng was lost in thought. She looked up and met Zhang Heling's gaze—eyes full of a desperate need to be seen, to be cared for, to be praised.

Suddenly, Zhang Yansheng remembered another version of those eyes.

Sis... was my mom really a mistress?

The younger sister had asked that question once, standing in the shadow of the hallway wall.

That day, Zhang Yansheng had returned home and had another fierce argument with Liang Yingying. When two women fought, their words were naturally far from pleasant. Neither of them had cared what Zhang Heling, standing nearby, might have felt.

After fetching some things from her room, ready to leave again, Zhang Yansheng had found her younger sister waiting for her in the corridor to ask that very question.

Zhang Yansheng had sneered coldly at the time. A mistress? Calling her a mistress is giving her too much credit.

Her words had been like knives, slicing open the truth of Liang Yingying's life before becoming "Mrs. Zhang."

She had said: If she hadn't given birth to you two, she'd just have been a kept woman... one of many. To be honest, the only reason she got into this house is because of you and Zhang Shuocheng. Especially you.

She knew this because she had occasionally overheard the nannies gossiping.

Auntie Wang, who had entered the Zhang household with Liang Yingying, couldn't resist telling the others: Do you know how she got pregnant with Hehe? Let me tell you, I once overheard her bragging on the phone. She said she poked holes in the condoms, got pregnant with Hehe, and trapped her sugar daddy. With a child, even if the man got tired of her later, he wouldn't abandon his own child. He'd always give her money.

Once she had one child, Zhang Huan didn't mind having another, which led to Zhang Shuocheng.

Usually, a man wouldn't divorce his legal wife for a mistress; it wasn't some late-in-life passion. Keeping multiple mistresses was the ideal for many men. Liang Yingying was simply lucky that Zhang Yansheng's mother passed away.

So, for the sake of Zhang Heling and Zhang Shuocheng, Zhang Huan eventually allowed this woman into his home.

A kept woman was promoted to the status of Mrs. Zhang.

That day, after saying all that to Zhang Heling, Zhang Yansheng had turned and left. At the top of the stairs, she had glanced back.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

Her younger sister was still standing in the shadow of the wall, her head bowed.

As Zhang Yansheng walked downstairs, she had felt a dark sense of satisfaction.

Liang Yingying herself would never feel shame for her past. Fine, then let her daughter feel that shame for her.

During those years, Zhang Yansheng had grown up, turned rebellious, and become bold in word and deed. The war between her and Liang Yingying had poisoned the atmosphere of the entire house, filling it with unpleasantness.

Now, at this point in time, Zhang Yansheng gazed at the little sister before her who could still show a lovely smile, and she began to understand, deep down, why this girl had later developed such an unimpressive, withdrawn character.

In a family environment like this, even the best seedling could not thrive.

This time, her sister's silence lasted even longer.

Zhang Heling's emotions shifted from hope to disappointment, from disappointment to anxiety. She began to feel uneasy.

Then, she suddenly heard Zhang Yansheng ask, "Do you have any clear tape?"

Zhang Heling quickly replied, "Yes."

"Scissors?"

"Yes."

"Bring them here."

Zhang Heling fetched the requested items. Instead of using them, Zhang Yansheng began sifting through the stack of certificates, picking out all the academic awards Zhang Heling had earned since starting school.

"Come with me," she said.

(End of Chapter)

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