TEDWR: Chapter 40

 Glossary

· Liang Zheng (梁征): Liang Yingying's nephew from her hometown.

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

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

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

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

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

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Chapter 40

Zhang Yansheng said to Zhang Heling, "Nothing for you to do here. Go swim."

Zhang Heling went, "Oh," glanced at Liang Zheng, flapped her towel a couple of times, and left.

Zhang Yansheng acted as if Liang Zheng wasn't even there and turned to go upstairs as well.

Liang Zheng was trembling with rage!

Zhang Yansheng's contempt for him was practically naked, not hidden in the slightest.

But Liang Zheng was the kind of person who grew arrogant when others treated him politely, yet felt deeply insecure when others openly looked down on him.

Besides, he was simply no match for Zhang Yansheng physically. Even his natural advantages of height and strength were useless!

Fuming so hard he felt like vomiting blood, he thought about it and decided he couldn't just swallow this. He ran up to the third floor and started banging on Liang Yingying's door.

The noise woke Liang Yingying, who was furious. "What time is it! What's your problem! It's not time to go see the apartments yet!"

"Aunt! Zhang Yansheng went too far!" Liang Zheng said indignantly. "She smashed my phone! I don't even have a phone now, how am I supposed to go see apartments?"

Liang Yingying had been yawning, but hearing Zhang Yansheng's name instantly woke her up. "What did Zhang Yansheng do now?"

Liang Zheng tattled: "That brat is utterly lawless! She threw my phone in the pool. I managed to fish it out, and she snatched it from me and smashed it on the ground! I told her she had to pay for it. And guess what? She immediately pulled out a brand-new phone all high and mighty! Fine, if she gave me the new phone, I might have swallowed my anger! But her! She damn well smashed the new phone too! Said each of us lost a phone, so we're even! Rich, huh? So what if you're rich! Does being rich mean you can just insult people however you want? Screw that!"

But Liang Yingying wasn't stupid. She asked first: "Why did she smash your phone? What did you do?"

Hah, she knew her nephew pretty well.

And she knew Zhang Yansheng pretty well too. That girl was annoying, but she really wasn't the type to pick a fight first.

Liang Zheng choked, annoyed. "Whatever the reason, destroying someone else's property is wrong!"

Hearing Liang Zheng's evasive tone, Liang Yingying knew he must have done something to provoke Zhang Yansheng first.

Liang Yingying pressed him a couple more times, but Liang Zheng just hemmed and hawed without giving a clear explanation.

Liang Yingying understood then that Liang Zheng was definitely in the wrong.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

She had originally thought that if Zhang Yansheng was being unreasonable, she could complain to Zhang Huan about it. After all, Zhang Yansheng was their common enemy. But from Liang Zheng's tone now, who knew who would come out worse if she actually went to complain.

Irritated, she said, "You better have some damn sense! Stop provoking her all the time. No matter what, she's your uncle's own daughter. She'll always be closer to him than you are. If you really cause trouble, who do you think your uncle will side with, you or her?"

Even an idiot would know a biological daughter is closer than a nephew. Liang Zheng was depressed, not wanting to face this fact.

"That motherless baggage!" he cursed.

Liang Yingying deeply felt the same.

"Alright, alright, I'll give you a phone. I have a spare too."

Before Liang Zheng could even be comforted by the prospect of a "new phone," she followed up with words that made him even more upset: "Let's hurry up and go see those apartments. Sign the lease today. You should move tomorrow, taking advantage of Sunday."

Driving her three-million-plus Ferrari, she took Liang Zheng to see the apartments.

The real estate agent's eyes nearly popped out of his head at the sight of the car, praising it repeatedly. Looking at Liang Yingying's clothes, accessories, and handbag, it was obvious she was a wealthy woman, and he showered her with compliments.

But the look he gave Liang Zheng was quite meaningful.

The Liang family was tall and good-looking. Liang Zheng might be sleazy, but he was decent-looking. And he looked just a bit younger than Liang Yingying.

Liang Zheng didn't understand what that look from the agent meant at first. But later, after he called Liang Yingying "Aunt," the agent's gaze changed, and Liang Zheng suddenly realized!

Damn it… did he think he was some young gigolo being kept by a rich woman earlier?

Ugh!

Liang Yingying had already been through the wringer and suffered hardships before meeting Zhang Huan. Looking at the apartments the agent showed them, she thought they were all okay. Any of them was better than the basement she had lived in back in the day.

Liang Zheng, however, was very unhappy.

Coming from a mansion with a swimming pool to these old, dilapidated places… the one-bedroom apartments were less than forty square meters, probably not even as big as his cousins' bedrooms. It was no wonder he was unhappy.

When the agent asked for his opinion, he just grumbled, never giving a clear answer.

The agent met all kinds of people every day. He could tell at a glance that Liang Zheng looked down on these places. His eyes shifted between the two, realizing the one paying and making the decisions was this young aunt.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

"Otherwise, shall I find you a couple of places in better condition?" the agent said, rubbing his hands. "These old apartments are usually rented by young people coming to K City to work hard. The conditions, of course, aren't that high-end."

A client who arrived in a Ferrari like Liang Zheng clearly didn't belong to the target demographic for this kind of housing.

These words hit the spot for Liang Zheng. He kept glancing at Liang Yingying, even whining, "Auntie…"

Liang Yingying rubbed the goosebumps off her arm and said irritably, "Just pick one from these three. If you don't pick, forget it. Find your own place from now on, and I won't pay your rent either."

Defeated, Liang Zheng finally chose the one with slightly better interior upkeep and maintenance. Dejectedly, he signed the contract with the agent.

On the way back, Liang Yingying couldn't stand Liang Zheng's sour face and scolded him, "Don't give me that look. Like someone died. I'm even paying your rent, what more do you want!"

Liang Zheng said listlessly, "Why can't family just live together?"

Liang Yingying was also speechless. "Who are you 'family' with?"

Liang Zheng said, "We both have the surname Liang."

Liang Yingying said, "Obviously! But I'm married now. I'm Mrs. Zhang. The Zhang family are not your family. Go back and start packing!"

Returning to the Zhang residence, Liang Zheng had no desire to pack at all. He was just fed up.

Holding the new phone Liang Yingying gave him, he lay on his bed complaining to a few buddies: "My aunt's place is great in every way, except that baggage from the ex-wife is really annoying."

A friend asked, "What happened now?"

Liang Zheng actually found it hard to explain.

He couldn't exactly tell his friends that Zhang Yansheng had poisoned her rich father's mind against him, getting him kicked out to find his own place, could he? Nor did he want to say he got caught secretly taking pictures of the girl today, not only had his phone destroyed, was completely overpowered physically, and had a newer, better phone smashed in front of him to prove a point.

He could only say: "Anyway, annoying! She's not even my aunt's own child, always being weird and sarcastic. Looking at her makes me want to hit her. If only she weren't a girl, hmph!"

People who could be called friends were usually birds of a feather. A creep's friends were undoubtedly other creeps.

The friend immediately said, "You have no way to deal with a little girl? You're too weak. Don't you live together? Take a few pictures of her changing clothes, up her skirt, post them online! That'll piss her off!"

"That's too mean, she's still family after all…" Liang Zheng wasn't considering any familial bond. He felt Zhang Yansheng wasn't someone to mess with, and her father was so rich. If things came to light… he was afraid it would be hard to handle.

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

Zhang Huan was out all morning. Returning home in the afternoon, he saw the aunties keeping watch by the pool while his two little treasures were playing happily in the water.

He smiled and went upstairs. To his surprise, Liang Yingying was actually home. "Didn't go out to play?"

"I don't go out to play all the time," Liang Yingying said coquettishly. "I went with Xiao Zheng to see apartments today, found him a one-bedroom, signed the contract. He'll move tomorrow. See how efficient I am?"

A wife who listened was something that pleased a man greatly. Zhang Huan immediately praised her: "Not bad!"

Watching him take off his clothes, Liang Yingying asked, "What are you doing?"

In a good mood, Zhang Huan said, "I'm going down to play with the kids for a bit."

Liang Yingying also knew her two children were playing in the pool downstairs.

Seeing Zhang Huan had already taken off his shirt and was taking off his pants, her eyes sparkled. She went over, wrapped her arms around his waist, and said in a sugary voice, "I want to play too~"

Zhang Huan understood.

The two tumbled into the bedsheets.

By the time Zhang Huan came downstairs looking thoroughly satisfied, the two younger ones were already out of the pool.

An aunty helped Zhang Shuocheng bathe, so he was quicker and was already downstairs eating ice cream.

Zhang Huan sat down next to him, smiling as he ruffled his son's hair. An aunty brought him a fruit plate. As he ate, he chatted with Zhang Shuocheng: "Where's your sister?"

"Upstairs."

Just as he finished speaking, Zhang Heling, having finished her bath, also came downstairs.

The little girl bathed herself, dried her own hair. Her long hair was dark and smooth, her face tender and flushed pink from the steam, her eyes dark and bright.

Looking at her, Zhang Huan felt his heart melt.

"Come here, come here," he beckoned.

Seeing Zhang Huan, Zhang Heling trotted over: "Dad, you're back."

That look of pleasant surprise upon seeing her father home made his heart feel even softer.

Zhang Huan asked with a smile, "What did you do today?"

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

Zhang Heling didn't answer. Instead, she went straight over and hugged Zhang Huan's arm: "Dad, let me tell you something!" As she said this, she pulled at Zhang Huan, clearly not wanting to talk in front of Zhang Shuocheng and the aunty.

His little treasure wanted to tell him a secret!

Delighted, Zhang Huan followed Zhang Heling to the small living room.

"What is it, so mysterious? Tell me, tell me," he said cheerfully.

Zhang Heling whispered in his ear: "This morning, my sister threw my cousin's phone into the swimming pool!"

Zhang Huan: "..."

Zhang Heling continued: "Then cousin jumped in to get it. My sister threw it to the other side of the pool and smashed it! Cousin was really mad and told my sister to pay for it right away. My sister took out one of her spare phones to show him. Cousin said this one could be compensation. But then, my sister smashed this one too, said they were even."

"..." Zhang Huan scratched his ear. "Why did your sister do that?"

"I don't know either," the little girl expressed her confusion. "Maybe because cousin was taking pictures everywhere? When I came down, my sister was swimming. I said a couple of things to cousin, and then my sister came up and asked cousin for his phone. Cousin wouldn't give it, so my sister just threw it right into the pool."

Zhang Huan didn't know Liang Zheng had been secretly photographing Zhang Yansheng. He only thought Liang Zheng had been taking pictures all over the house, annoying Zhang Yansheng.

He was also really sick of Liang Zheng taking pictures everywhere. Who knows, he might even send them to a bunch of people. This was, after all, his own home, a private place. Zhang Huan wasn't happy about others peeking into his family's privacy either.

Hearing that his eldest daughter had taught that kid a lesson, Zhang Huan felt quite pleased inside.

"That's the way. If you can't stand the sight of something, take action when you should," Zhang Huan said. "People in our family shouldn't swallow their anger."

Zhang Heling seemed to understand somewhat, saying, "They almost got into a fight too."

"Oh?"

"Like, my cousin went over and tried to grab my sister's shoulder. My sister stuck out her foot and tripped him, and cousin fell on the ground. Before he could even get up, my sister twisted his arm and pinned him down, and he couldn't get up. After my sister let him go, he must have realized he couldn't beat her, so he didn't dare try anything else." The little girl's eyes sparkled. "Dad, my sister is super amazing!"

Zhang Huan was an elder. Even if he disliked Liang Zheng, he couldn't really do anything about it, or he'd seem petty. Now, imagining the scene of his eldest daughter teaching Liang Zheng a lesson—something he couldn't conveniently do himself but his daughter did—gave him a secret thrill!

Looking at his younger daughter again, she was adorable, but her personality seemed a bit soft?

(read @cherrybombbertranslations.blogspot)

Zhang Huan rubbed his chin and asked, "Heling, do you want to learn sanda or something like your sister?"

(End of Chapter)

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