TEDWR: Chapter 21

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

· Luo Yi (罗姨): The family nanny who has cared for Zhang Yansheng since birth. Referred to as Auntie Luo.

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Chapter 21

Besides the main living room for receiving guests, the Zhang family's first floor had a smaller, more casual family sitting area.

Holding the scissors and tape, her face a picture of confusion, Zhang Heling followed Zhang Yansheng downstairs all the way to this smaller room.

Zhang Yansheng scanned the room and chose a wall. That particular wall section was situated between two entryways—one leading deeper into the house, the other to the courtyard. A narrow console table stood against it, holding a small sculpture, with a painting hanging above.

Zhang Yansheng sized it up, walked over, and took the painting down, setting it aside.

"Cut me four small pieces of tape," she instructed.

The child obediently followed the order. She cut a small piece and handed it over. She lowered her head to cut a second piece, but when she looked up to hand it to her sister, she froze.

Her big sister had pressed Zhang Heling's "Star Student" award certificate against the wall and had already used one piece of tape to secure a corner of it there.

Seeing Zhang Heling frozen, Zhang Yansheng took the next piece of tape from her hand herself and scolded, "Stop daydreaming! Keep cutting!"

She used the second piece to secure another corner of the certificate. Now her own hands were freed. Seeing Zhang Heling was momentarily useless, she simply took the scissors and the roll of tape and got to work herself.

"Is this... allowed?" Zhang Heling asked hesitantly.

"Why wouldn't it be? "Zhang Yansheng retorted. "Aren't award certificates meant to be displayed for others to see? What's the point of hiding them secretly in a box?"

"That's not..." Zhang Heling said weakly. "I meant, sticking them here... Is it okay? Won't Dad and Mom be unhappy?"

Zhang Yansheng, cutting the tape, told her calmly, "This wall was originally for putting up awards. Don't you remember?"

"Huh?" Zhang Heling looked somewhat lost.

"Forget it, you were too young then. It's impressive you even remember me shoving you that one time," Zhang Yansheng said as she affixed the certificate. "This wall used to be for my awards. Back then, I had a lot of certificates and competition awards. When you first came to this house, this wall was almost covered. This painting was hung up later."

Then, later... why did they stop putting them up? Zhang Heling wondered.

Liang Yingying always complained that Zhang Heling was "slow," but Zhang Heling simply didn't know how to flatter Zhang Huan the way her mother wanted. A child who could rank first in her class was certainly no fool.

Zhang Heling had a vague feeling that if she asked her sister, the events of "later" were probably things she didn't want to hear. Moreover, she faintly sensed it was likely connected to the arrival of her, her brother, and their mother.

Zhang Heling bit her lip, too timid to press further.

Zhang Yansheng finished putting up the "Star Student" award, took a few steps back, crossed her arms, and looked from side to side. "Is it straight? It's not crooked, is it?"

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

Zhang Heling also peered at it and said, "It's very straight!" Zhang Yansheng nodded, tore off more tape, picked up the scissors, and started on the second one.

Pressing her fingers against the wall, she gently smoothed down the tape. Zhang Yansheng never imagined a day would come when she would be doing this task herself.

In the past, her father didn't handle household matters. Whenever she got an award or certificate, she would take it straight to her mother. Her mother would personally stick them on this wall. By the time her mother passed away, this wall had been completely covered.

Later... later, there was no one to put them up for her.

She also stopped participating in those various competitions that didn't hold much real meaning. Her academic performance gradually became average, and she stopped receiving awards from school.

The awards on the wall grew old, even torn.

One day when she came home, all those awards were gone. A painting bought by Liang Yingying hung in their place.

Zhang Yansheng had argued fiercely with Liang Yingying, demanding, "What right did you have to tear down my awards!"

Liang Yingying had said, "They've been hanging there so long, they're all old! One was even torn. Isn't it ugly? Look at this house, everything is beautiful. That wall was just a shabby mess. It didn't look right."

Zhang Huan had smoothed things over at the time, saying, "They really were old and not nice to look at. It's fine, let's just hang the painting for now. Whenever Yanyan gets a new award, we'll put it up. Simple as that!"

But Zhang Yansheng knew this matter was not simple at all!

This was that woman, Liang Yingying, bit by bit, eroding her home.

The only pity was that she was young back then. She could feel it but didn't know how to express it, could only scream and argue loudly.

Powerless to change anything, merely making herself disliked.

"Hey, putting up awards?"

Zhang Huan's voice suddenly sounded from the corridor.

The two girls turned to look.

Zhang Huan had just finished lecturing his wife and was full of dissatisfaction. He was also hungry, and seeing that it was almost dinner time, he had wandered downstairs.

Dinner wasn't ready yet, so he habitually went to the small sitting room first. Just as he reached the entrance, he saw his two daughters working on something there.

He loved seeing his two daughters from different mothers getting along so harmoniously. This peaceful scene had only appeared in the last few days, and it lifted his spirits.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

He walked over, looked at the awards on the wall, and said with feeling, "Haven't seen awards on this wall for a long time. I remember when you were little, it was covered. Later, they were gone... We always said we'd put up new ones when we got them. I waited a long time. Let Dad see, what award did Yanyan get this time? Huh? Huh? This is... Hehe's?"

Zhang Huan looked embarrassed.

Zhang Yansheng, however, was nonchalant. Please, only elementary school kids care about things like award certificates. What middle schooler still cares about this stuff? Besides, I'm practically an adult.

"Hehe's from last semester," she said, then paused and added, "From third grade."

Because she somewhat suspected Zhang Huan might not even be clear on what grade Zhang Heling was in.

She didn't notice it herself, but Zhang Heling's eyes lit up.

Her sister had called her "Hehe"!

This was the first time she could remember!

Zhang Huan, however, did notice. After all, Liang Yingying had complained in his ear endlessly about how Zhang Yansheng refused to call her "Mom," not even "Aunt Liang," and called her siblings by their full names. His ears were almost calloused from hearing it.

Feeling pleased, the earlier annoyance caused by Liang Yingying dissipated. He said cheerfully, "It's our Hehe! So impressive. Let Dad see, what awards are these? 'Star Student'? What's this? Is it for praising academic performance?"

Zhang Heling told him, "The top three in the class are 'Star Students.'"

Zhang Huan said with surprise, "Our Hehe can rank in the top three of her class? Amazing!"

Zhang Heling hesitated for a moment, then said, "I'm first in my class. Second in my grade level."

"..." Zhang Huan was speechless. "Huh?"

Zhang Yansheng: "Heh."

Zhang Yansheng's "Heh" was thick with sarcasm. Zhang Huan felt somewhat embarrassed and hurriedly tried to cover for himself. "Look at your dad, so busy with work, I didn't even know when our Hehe's grades got so good!"

Zhang Heling said helplessly, "It's been that way since first grade. I've even been first in the grade before."

Zhang Huan: "..."

Zhang Yansheng: "Heh!"

Zhang Huan gave an awkward laugh. "Your mother never told me. Good! Good! Our Hehe is truly outstanding!"

As he spoke, he even started clapping and giving a thumbs-up.

Was he treating her like a little kid?

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

But Zhang Heling indeed was still a child. In all her years, this was the first time Zhang Huan had paid her such attention and praised her like this. She was flustered and overwhelmed with favor. Her little face flushed with excitement.

Zhang Huan had always known his younger daughter was quite cute. After all, both parents were good-looking; all three children in the family were good-looking.

But right now, he genuinely found Zhang Heling adorable!

Wasn't this exactly the time for a father like him to make a grand appearance—when the child wasn't crying, causing trouble, or making a fuss, but had instead earned honors—to praise them lavishly, then give rewards, listen to the children's happy cheers, and admire their joyful smiles and the light in their eyes?

As for the crying, the tantrums, and all those trivial, tedious parts of the growing-up process that required so much energy and care—well, that's what their mother was for.

A father's job was to earn money to support them and then enjoy these good times.

It was just a pity that ever since his first wife passed away, he, as a father, hadn't enjoyed such good times in a long while.

Ever since bringing Liang Yingying into the household, the house had been constantly noisy and quarrelsome.

Zhang Huan had once regretted not listening to his elder brother's advice, not heeding his mother's objections, only thinking the children needed a mother to take care of them, and letting Liang Yingying enter the household.

In truth, what his brother and mother had meant back then was to bring the children in and use money to send the kept woman away. His old mother had even suggested she could raise the two children born out of wedlock. But Zhang Huan, momentarily bewitched, hadn't listened.

Regret. The person involved would say he had felt nothing but regret these past few years.

"Come, Hehe, tell Dad, what do you want?" Zhang Huan asked with a smile.

He suddenly felt like he hadn't said this sentence in years.

Zhang Yansheng hadn't heard this sentence in years either. In the past, whenever this man saw an award, he would always smile and ask, "What does Yanyan want?"

This was practically his moment to shine.

He would never ask what effort Zhang Yansheng had put in to earn those awards, or what care and effort her mother had expended.

He would only make grand promises and casually take out his money.

Later, in the future where Zhang Yansheng died, he had long given up on his hopeless daughter, merely using money to keep her away, out of sight, out of mind.

Zhang Heling was just about to say, "I don't want anything," when Zhang Yansheng slapped the scissors down onto the console table with a smack, startling the father and daughter in the midst of their touching "loving father and filial daughter" scene.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

"Hehe needs a new piano teacher," Zhang Yansheng stated. "Her current teacher is no good, completely unprofessional. The lessons are just a waste of time, a scam to collect money."

Only now did Zhang Huan learn of this situation. He asked Zhang Heling, "Hehe, is that true?"

Zhang Heling nodded. "She doesn't really instruct me. She just lets me play on my own."

Zhang Huan cursed, "Taking my money and not doing the job! Fire her!"

Zhang Yansheng said, "I've stopped my piano lessons. I won't be taking them anymore. My teacher was found by my mother. She taught me for many years and is very good. Let her teach Hehe from now on."

Zhang Huan said, "Sure, that works. Since she's your teacher, you can just..." give her a call and arrange it.

However, before he could finish, Zhang Yansheng, having already finished tapping on her phone, looked up and interrupted him. "I've sent you the teacher's contact number. You get in touch with her."

"Get in touch with her... huh?" Zhang Huan was taken aback.

"After all, you are the parent. After all, our Hehe does have a father," Zhang Yansheng said with a mocking smile. "You can't possibly expect a child like me to handle it. Managing my own affairs is unavoidable—I have no father or mother to rely on. But I certainly can't manage my sister's affairs too."

"Oh, and do it quickly. My teacher is very popular. Her schedule is always tight. I'm afraid if it's too late, she'll book the slot with someone else, and we won't be able to get her."

Auntie Luo appeared at the corridor entrance just then and called to them, "Dinner is ready."

Zhang Yansheng went straight over.

Zhang Huan, leading Zhang Heling towards the dining room, suddenly realized something and asked Zhang Heling, "Why did your sister stop her piano lessons?"

"My sister said she never liked playing the piano, "Zhang Heling said.

Didn't like it?

He distinctly remembered her practicing very diligently when she was little, taking the graded exams one level at a time. Her mother had been so happy every time she passed a level.

So had that child only been doing it to make her mother happy?

Zhang Huan couldn't help but sigh.

He also thought, Yanyan really has a sharp tongue.

What does she mean, 'no father or mother'?

Honestly, I'm still alive and well.

(End of Chapter)

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