True Daughter - Chapter 1
The heavy rain was still falling and the soil on the ground being washed up by the rain turned the rainwater muddy, while it flowed downhill.
Ah Yang sat on a small stool at the doorway, lost in thought. The rainwater was splattering on her legs, but she didn't seem to notice.
It had been almost a month since she entered this body. The fractured bones healed too slowly, resulting in her limping when she walked, while her hands still being weak, hung by her sides.
Someone came in the rain, holding an umbrella.
A’Yang squinted and looked over. Zhou Yang floated to her side and explained who that person was.
Oh, it was her "san shu"1.
.
"Why are you sitting at the door? The rain is heavy, and you might catch a cold." Zhou San Shu said as he walked to the eaves, and put away his umbrella, leaning it aside before trying to pull her inside.
A’Yang followed along with his strength and walked inside with him.
"A’Yang, listen to your third uncle's advice. Your parents are gone, and we are all sad. You're all grown up now; you don't need to go to college. Find a job and support yourself."
A'Yang didn't say anything.
One of Zhou Yang's wishes was to go to college, and since she had accepted Zhou Yang's gift, she was determined to fulfill her wish.
"You're a good kid, and you know it's not easy for our family to have a college student, we don't have money. The tuition is too expensive, and we can't afford it." Seeing A'Yang silent, Zhou San Shu became a little anxious.
She looked outside again; someone else was coming.
Zhou San Shu's expression changed slightly when he saw the person.
Oh, the second uncle (Er Shu) was here too.
"Second brother," Zhou San Shu expressed his disapproval while glancing at the person behind him, and pulling Zhou Er Shu aside, he whispered, "Didn't we agree to discuss this matter? Why did you bring that person over so quickly?"
Their voices were low, but it didn't stop A’Yang from hearing them clearly.
The person Zhou Er Shu brought over was looking at A'Yang boldly, as if appraising an item.
When his gaze fell on A'Yang's hands and legs, he slightly frowned.
"You didn't say there were problems with her hands and legs? This won't do; the price should be lower."
"Oh dear, the child is naughty, just a minor injury, it'll be fine in a few days," said Zhou Er Shu.
A'Yang remained silent while waiting. It was raining, and the roads were difficult to traverse; those people should arrive later.
Zhou Er Shu was engrossed in conversing with the person, while Zhou San Shu glanced at A'Yang but ultimately didn't say anything.
Finally, Zhou Er Shu reached an agreement with the person. Just as they were about to take A'Yang away, the police arrived.
The person exclaimed, "You! Zhou Youcai, you dare to double-cross me and damn, you even called the police!"
"I-I didn't." Zhou Er Shu's legs trembled in fear upon seeing the police.
Zhou San Shu stood on the side, seemingly not faring any better.
Indeed, it was A'Yang who had called the police.
Originally, she wanted to directly kill those people, but somehow, the more she thought about it, the more she realised that she was too powerless to harm them even a bit, just like when she encountered Zhou Yang's body.
She couldn't send Zhou Yang's soul back into her own broken body.
Unexpectedly, her soul and Zhou Yang's body seemed to fit together and thus her soul was drawn into this body.
So, Zhou Yang gave her the physical body.
As her soul entered Zhou Yang's body, she agreed to two conditions set by Zhou Yang.
The first condition was that she must go to school in the big city.
The second was that she wanted to meet her biological parents and also wanted to see the girl who had changed her entire life.
Zhou Yang was mistakenly taken as the wealthy daughter of another family.
However, this mistake was intentional.
The couple from the Zhou family had been married for many years and had no children. They went to the big city to work and earn money while also seeking medical advice about their health.
Finally, the eldest son's wife became pregnant.
To be safe, they stayed in the big city, planning to return to their hometown after the child was born. They even introduced their job to Zhou Er Shu's wife, who was also working in the big city.
Coincidentally, when Zhou Family's eldest daughter-in-law was about to give birth, the Xue family's daughter-in-law also went into labor. Both women gave birth at the same hospital, but their living conditions were vastly different. The Xue family's daughter-in-law stayed in a high-class ward, where even the meals were specially arranged. On the other hand, due to their average financial situation, the Zhou Family had to squeeze a bed in a corridor and lived very frugally.
The stark contrast made Zhao Lanfang, Zhou Family's eldest daughter-in-law, feel heartbroken for her own daughter. The other family's daughter was adorned with a pair of silver bracelets from the moment she was born, while her own daughter had nothing.
After the two children were born, Zhou Lanfang's second sister-in-law, Li Guifen, cleverly switched their clothes. This way, the life paths of the two children were exchanged by Zhou Yang's second aunt.
Her reason for swapping the children was simple; she believed that by giving this child a life of wealth and privilege, the child would undoubtedly repay her in the future, and at that time, money would certainly not be scarce.
Zhao Lanfang admitted that she was tempted. Considering their abilities, it would take several lifetimes to accumulate such wealth in their family.
Li Guifen promised that she would take good care of this child and, when the child grew up, she would reveal her true identity. However, just a few years later, Li Guifen was dismissed from the main family due to her unclean practices.
Her reputation was ruined within that social circle, and no one dared to hire her as a maid. She ended up returning to her hometown in disappointment. But she firmly kept this secret in her heart, determined to obtain wealth and privilege from that child.
However, when Zhou Yang received an acceptance letter to attend university in the big city, it made both Li Guifen and Zhao Lanfang fall into complete panic.
Zhou Yang's appearance was strikingly similar to the other family. If she went to the big city and was recognized by them, wouldn't her dream of wealth and privilege shatter?
Meanwhile, Zhao Lanfang was even more afraid of her secret being exposed, which could result in her own daughter being kicked out by the other family.
So, they discussed and urged Zhou Yang's father and Zhou Er Shu to persuade Zhou Yang not to attend university. Instead, they wanted her to marry someone locally and spend her entire life there.
The other members of the family naturally refused as they couldn't understand why the family should not have an educated child. Having a university student in their family was a matter of pride and honor; they couldn't just let things go their way.
Second Aunt Zhou, Li Guifen, gritted her teeth and explained the whole situation, tugging at Zhou Er Shu's sleeve, she said, "Your niece is living a good life in the big city; this one is an impostor."
Zhao Lanfang also revealed the truth, "She is not our daughter; our daughter is in the big city. We can't let her ruin our daughter's future."
Outside the door, Zhou Yang heard everything clearly, and she finally understood why her mother had always been so distant towards her. No matter how well she did, she would always be scolded.
Everyone inside saw Zhou Yang standing outside.
Li Guifen continued unabashedly, "Big brother, I did it for the good of our old Zhou family. With our background, it would take several lifetimes to accumulate the wealth they have. That girl has been living a good life since birth."
"Why didn't you give away your own daughter?" Zhou Yang's Father, Zhou Youquan seemed to have just accepted this truth and stuttered before finally speaking.
He cherished this daughter, whom they had
finally obtained after so much difficulty, and treated her as his own precious pearl.
"I wanted to, but my two girls were not capable enough. One was born too early, and the other too late. Otherwise, would I have let someone else enjoy this extraordinary wealth and privilege."
Seeing Zhou Yang standing there in a daze, Li Guifen became even more assertive. "A'Yang, this is your destiny. You are destined not to enjoy the princess's fortune. Otherwise, after eighteen years, how come your biological parents haven't found you yet? Just accept your fate and be a maid."
Zhao Lanfang chimed in, "Yes, all these years we have treated you well, A'Yang. You shouldn't go to university; just consider it as a way to repay us for raising you all these years."
However, Zhou Yang looked towards her father, the one who had always loved her the most. Both of them couldn't accept this truth.
The celebratory banquet for her university admission, which was previously planned by Zhou Yang's Father, was never held. The whole family fell into silence.
They were afraid that A'Yang would run away, so they took her acceptance letter and everything that could prove her identity.
The old house in the countryside had poor sound insulation, and Zhou Yang overheard her parents saying that they wanted to go see their biological daughter, even if they couldn't acknowledge her. They would just take a distant glance and then return, never disturbing her again.
To the outside world, Zhou Yang was still their daughter.
Then, the news came that they had a car
accident and both of them died.
After losing her parents, Zhou Yang was exposed to the world. The Zhou family didn't want to keep her as an outsider, nor did they want her to find her biological parents and ruin their wealthy life. Eventually, Zhou Er Shu sought someone to sell her as a wife, far away from the big city.
A'Yang attempted to harm them several times but found her powers had disappeared. Finally, she resorted to a different approach and called the police.
Zhou San Shu had never encountered such a situation before and confessed everything on the spot. Zhou Er Shu and his wife, who had spent some time in the big city, pretended to be pitiful and spoke well.
The person Zhou Er Shu brought along was experienced too. The policewoman taking care of A'Yang was trembling with anger . How could there be such heartless people? If what they said was true, this child's situation was beyond miserable.
However, the actual culprits didn't confess, and without evidence, they couldn't be convicted. It had been so many years; where could they find evidence now?
"I checked the records. Li Guifen did go to the big city before. The deceased Zhou Youquan and his wife also went there. What Zhou Youliang said is likely true; this child was intentionally swapped," the police captain explained.
"This is truly despicable. How could they do this? They ruined the lives of two children," the policewoman exclaimed.
"If it's true, two families have been ruined."
As for Zhou Youquan and his wife, nobody sympathized with them, besides they had already
paid the ultimate price for their actions.
However, the most tragic one was Zhou Yang, whose biological parents were unaware that she had been swapped, loving someone else's daughter all this time. After eighteen years, returning to that family and being treated like a stranger might not make much of a difference to her miserable situation.
Sadly, they didn't know that the real Zhou Yang had also lost her life due to someone else's evil deeds.
The policewoman turned to look at A'Yang sitting there, looking exhausted and resting with her eyes closed. She couldn't bear to think about A'Yang's condition and the reason that led her to this state, "These monsters."
To force a young girl not to recognize her biological parents, they even caused her to slip and fall down the hill.
Earlier, the policewoman took the young girl for an examination. There were fractures in her hand and leg bones, but after taking X- rays, the doctors were astonished. It seemed as if someone had miraculously reconnected those fractured bones, and they were slowly healing. Unable to find an explanation, they could only attribute it to the girl's young age and her ability to heal on her own.
Unseen by anyone, something flew out of A'Yang's body, and suddenly the individuals who had been trying to hide their secrets found themselves unable to control their mouths. All the concealed truths were revealed, even leaving the questioning police astonished.
Now, the evidence was right in front of them, and they couldn't deny it anymore. Of course, even if they wanted to deny it, they couldn't.
A'Yang opened her eyes and looked up at the
translucent and almost ethereal little girl, who seemed concerned, "Are you okay?"
A’Yang shook her head slightly and looked down at her hands with self-derision, "I said I wouldn't use it, but I ended up using it again."
Indeed, she was the most untrustworthy demon. She was a demon that the immortal clan feared and wanted to exterminate. Why should she abide by her own oath? Who would believe her oath?
Of course, she would do anything to make her life better. Yes, that was the nature of a demon.
A'Yang watched as Zhou Er Shu and his wife were taken away. They were desperately trying to explain, but the more they explained, the more truths were revealed.
A smile appeared on A'Yang's lips as she looked at the little girl and said, "Next, we should go find your parents."