Chapter 111: The Family’s Little Sunshine

Chapter 111: Chapter 111: The Family’s Little Sunshine

"Grandma Yang, I’m sorry! I was wrong! I shouldn’t have been spouting nonsense!"

"Pah! Who cares about your apology? Get lost, and don’t let me see your face again!"

The old woman tapped her tobacco pipe on the ground.

Just as she turned to wipe her tears and leave, she added between sobs.

"It was Shen Shuangshuang who started the gossip... I believed her, and—and I just blurted it out..."

The truth was, she was just feeling resentful.

’How could a country bumpkin be as beautiful as a girl from a painting?’

Then, when she heard Shen Shuangshuang muttering those things behind her back, a flame of anger shot up inside her, and the words just came tumbling out.

Who would have thought that Cheng Muhua would happen to be passing by, his ears as sharp as a dog’s, and hear everything?

But here was the strange part: in the past, when Shen Shuangshuang had slapped her right in the face, Cheng Muhua hadn’t even glared.

So why was he like a lit firecracker today, exploding at the slightest touch?

She squatted by the wall, puzzling over it all the way, but couldn’t figure it out.

But she didn’t have time to dwell on what she couldn’t understand.

The moment she stepped out of the Shen family’s courtyard, her mother grabbed her by the ear.

"Are you tired of living?!"

"Don’t you know what you should and shouldn’t say? Did you grow that mouth of yours just to eat chaff?!"

"How is your father supposed to hold his head up in front of the neighbors now?!"

At this, her mother’s voice suddenly cracked, and she started crying.

"It’s over, it’s all over! Who will dare to eat or drink with our family now? Who will dare to associate with us?!"

Sobbing, she snatched a nearby broom and swung it at Li Juanjuan’s legs.

"This is all your fault! All your fault! Why don’t you go bang your head against a wall?! Where is your brain?!"

Li Juanjuan covered her head and cowered in the corner, shrinking away.

"I didn’t make it up! Shen Shuangshuang said it herself! I didn’t add a single word!"

Her mother, her eyes red with fury, lunged forward and viciously kicked her in the calf.

"You believe everything she says? If she said the sun rises in the west, would you crane your neck to watch for it?!"

"Is your brain filled with paste?! Or stuffed with rotten cotton?!"

"Can’t you tell what can be repeated and what should rot in your gut?! Can’t you figure out who’s being genuine with you and who’s just using you as a mouthpiece?!"

"Is she your biological sister? And you’re acting as her loudspeaker?! She says one thing, and you open your mouth and spill it all out faster than you can take a piss?!"

As she continued to curse, she collapsed to the ground, slapping her thigh with one hand and wiping her face with the other.

"Why is my life so bitter!"

The two were dragged away, crying and cursing all the while.

Inside the courtyard, the main gate slammed shut with a CLANG, but the house was far from quiet.

Yang Wanqing’s chest heaved violently as she roared at her son.

"Open your eyes and look! That ’good daughter’ you raised in the palm of your hand is slinging mud everywhere, and it’s all aimed at Song Yao’s head! Does she even know who Song Yao is? Has she ever so much as touched a single finger of Song Yao’s?!"

As she spoke, she gave Shen Zhenwu a hard shove on the shoulder.

"Whose father are you, anyway?! Who do you claim as your daughter?!"

"Song Yao was taken when she was only a month old! Where were you when she was out there drinking cold water and eating stale bread? Now that she’s back, she has to endure people cursing her behind her back?"

When Shen Zhenwu heard that it had all come from Shen Shuangshuang, he looked as if his bones had been removed, and his face turned deathly pale.

Shen Songyao immediately stepped between her grandmother and her father, her voice soft and gentle.

"Grandma, please, calm down. Perhaps someone misremembered, or the words got twisted in the telling? Maybe they missed half a sentence, and the meaning changed completely."

"We shouldn’t just listen to what outsiders say; we also need to hear what our own family thinks. We have to give people a chance to speak, right?"

As soon as Song Yao finished speaking, several relatives nearby hurriedly nodded in agreement.

"Yes, yes, it was probably just a mix-up!"

"They must have misheard!"

"That girl, Shen Shuangshuang, has always been prone to exaggeration when she talks!"

Shen Songyao immediately stood on her tiptoes and peered toward the door.

"Oh, why don’t we wait for Mom and Sister Shuangshuang to get here and ask them? I’m sure it’s just some misunderstanding!"

She turned her head and asked Shen Rongdan.

"Second Brother, when are Mom and Sister Shuangshuang arriving?"

"I even have their presents all wrapped!"

She smiled, her eyes curving, but Shen Rongdan’s gaze flickered away, and he immediately lowered his head.

By now, many of the guests had started to sense that something was off.

This was Song Yao’s welcome banquet, yet her own biological mother was nowhere to be seen.

The Shen family members all knew the truth: Yao Yuzhen had no intention of coming.

But no one had dared to breathe a word of it to Song Yao beforehand.

’How could they bring it up?’

’Their biological daughter comes home, they hold a banquet to welcome her, and her own mother doesn’t show up...’

’Saying that would be like stabbing the girl right in the heart, wouldn’t it?’

So, everyone had simply kept their mouths shut and hadn’t mentioned a single word.

But now, her question made Shen Zhenwu’s chest feel tight, as if it were being squeezed, and he felt suffocated.

’His daughter was lost for twenty years. They finally found her and were holding a proper welcome ceremony, but her own mother just washed her hands of the whole affair?’

’And the child had even naively picked out a gift for her...’

His already cold heart now froze solid.

"She’s not coming."

With just those three words, the entire hall fell so silent you could hear the soft clink of a teacup bottom against the edge of a table.

’The girl was just found, the banquet hasn’t even started, and her own mother is already bailing on her?’

Everyone was shaking their heads inwardly.

There was no need for any harsh words; the situation itself spoke volumes.

’That Yao Yuzhen, she’s really not all there.’

’She was practically grinding her own family’s face into the dirt and inviting passersby to watch the spectacle.’

When Shen Songyao heard she wasn’t coming, the corners of her mouth turned down, and her eyes reddened slightly.

"Is it because... Mom thinks I’m stupid and unsophisticated? That I’m not good enough for her?"

She looked down, twisting the corner of her clothes, her voice growing smaller and smaller.

"I didn’t finish middle school, and I can’t play the piano or dance... Unlike Sister Shuangshuang, who graduated from a famous university and sounds so scholarly when she speaks... It’s only normal that Mom dotes on her alone."

After saying this, she kept her head down and slowly shuffled toward the main hall.

Seeing her granddaughter’s pitiful expression, Yang Wanqing’s anger flared up again, and she grabbed her by the wrist.

"Song Yao, stop!"

"If your mother wants to put on airs, let her! We don’t need her!"

"You are the true blood of our Shen family. Whether she comes or not, you are my one and only legitimate granddaughter!"

"Who is she trying to scare?! Even if she doesn’t come, this banquet will go on! This family reunion will still happen!"

Shen Songyao quickly turned to support her grandmother’s arm, her face lifted, her eyes serene.

"Grandma, don’t let your anger harm your health! I actually understand. Mom isn’t coming, but you, Grandpa, Second Brother, and Third Uncle are all here. That’s enough for me! I know you all truly see me as one of your own."

The moment she finished speaking, she burrowed into Yang Wanqing’s embrace.

The dark clouds on Yang Wanqing’s face instantly cleared, and she wrapped her arms tightly around her.

"Oh, my dear Song Yao, you’ve always been the most lovable child! Grandma’s sweetheart, the whole family’s little ray of sunshine!"

Her aunts, Shen Jiajia and Shen Jiayue, immediately chimed in.

They all spoke, one after another.

"There’s only room for Song Yao in our hearts!"

Even Guo Shushu couldn’t help but interject.

"Song Yao is thoughtful, sweet-tongued, and diligent. Who wouldn’t like her? It’s not just Grandma and the aunts who dote on her. As her sister-in-law, I hope every day that she’ll come over for a visit."

This statement was a clear and public show of support for Song Yao.

Song Yao was well-behaved and sensible. The implication was that everyone now had a scale in their hearts to weigh who wasn’t so well-behaved and sensible.

The unpleasantness from a moment ago was turned over like a new page in the blink of an eye.