Chapter 34: My Secret Stash, Here I Come Again

Intelligent parrots can generally recognize people. But when Grandpa Wang returned from his walk that day, night had already fallen. The parrot hadn’t seen clearly who it was at all. The words it spoke were entirely taught by Tiao Tiao. The previous evening, before Lin Xiaodou left, she had deliberately told Tiao Tiao to jump onto the parrot and follow it home. Tiao Tiao, having gained spiritual intelligence, could command ordinary animals, and after spending a night together, the two little creatures became well acquainted. The parrot would repeat whatever Tiao Tiao told it to say.

Professor Wang was always a filial son, and he adored the parrot his father had left behind. He would never doubt his own parrot. That, too, was part of Lin Xiaodou’s plan. The parrot had seen her the previous day, and since it hadn’t identified her on the spot, it proved she wasn’t the culprit. With that, she could not be forced to take the blame. If she rashly tried to explain, it might only backfire and arouse Professor Wang’s suspicions.

A long-awaited plan had fallen through, and none of them could accept it. Wu Ya was so agitated that she kept shouting at Lin Xiaodou to return the house to her. “We’re going to transfer the deed at the Housing Authority first thing tomorrow, do you hear me?”

Lin Xiaodou shrugged with a roguish air, “Sorry, but once something’s in my pocket, I never give it back.”

“How dare you!” Wu Ya glared at her, “If you don’t return the house, then get out of the Lin family! Let’s see how a disfigured good-for-nothing like you survives!”

Lin Xiaodou laughed, “If you kick me out, I’ll go wail outside the neighborhood office—let’s see who ends up embarrassed.”

“You! You!” Wu Ya was so angry she could barely breathe.

“Enough!” Lin Zhengmin said sternly, looking at Lin Xiaodou, “If you keep being so disobedient, don’t blame me for getting tough with you. I have plenty of ways to deal with you!”

Now that this daughter couldn’t take the blame, she was useless. Raising a troublesome and useless daughter was pointless—it was better to send her away. For instance, by enrolling her in a rural work program.

“Are you trying to threaten me?” Lin Xiaodou sneered. “Fine, then I’ll go right now to Professor Wang’s house and tell him a few things.”

Threats? She knew how to play that game, too.

Lin Zhengmin’s face darkened, and he growled through gritted teeth, “You unfilial daughter…”

If he’d known, he’d never have told her about this. Now it had become a bargaining chip against him.

“You two figure it out yourselves. I won’t be joining you.” Lin Xiaodou got up and left.

“Dad, what do we do? Please help me think of something…” Lin Xuefei was almost in tears from worry. Now that it was clear the parrot could recognize people, there was no way to find someone to impersonate her—soon enough, the blame would fall on her!

“Crying, crying, crying! Is that all you ever do?” Wu Ya snapped impatiently. She’d made a deal with her husband that after this was settled, her family would get a share of precious medicinal herbs. But now, not only had things failed, they’d even lost an ancestral house. A whole hundred thousand! It was like tearing her heart out.

“If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have so many messes in this family. You’re killing me with anger!”

“Mom, I didn’t mean for any of this to happen—it’s not like I ran that person down on purpose.” Lin Xuefei sobbed in misery, a flash of resentment in her eyes. Before her true origins were revealed, her mother had doted on her constantly. Now that things weren’t going her way, all she did was yell at her. Deep down, she’d never really loved her; all that affection before was just a façade! If she hadn’t managed to land a good fiancé, she’d probably end up treated like Lin Xiaodou too.

Lin Zhengmin said, “Enough, both of you, stop arguing. Let me think of another way.”

Lin Xuefei bit her lip. “Dad, maybe I should just confess the truth to Tianjun. Maybe he’ll have a solution.”

“No!” Lin Zhengmin refused outright. “Tianjun’s father is Professor Wang’s close friend. If he finds out, there’s no way he’ll keep it secret.”

“Then what am I supposed to do…” Lin Xuefei looked utterly hopeless.

Wu Ya said, “If there’s really no other way, then just go confess to Professor Wang yourself. If we keep hiding this, it’ll only end up hurting us even more!”

“Fine! I’ll go! I’m not your real daughter anyway—you never cared about me!” Lin Xuefei stamped her foot in anger and ran out.

“Xuefei…” Lin Zhengmin started to chase after her, but Wu Ya stopped him. “Let her go. If she confesses, you won’t have to worry about this anymore, and I’ll get my house back too.”

Without the threat hanging over them, the house would naturally return to them.

Lin Zhengmin was already frustrated, and at these words, his temper erupted. “The house, the house, all you care about is your precious house! You’re nothing but a selfish, cold-hearted woman!”

“You’re yelling at me? Yelling at me again?” Wu Ya’s eyes reddened and she shouted, “Lin Zhengmin, after all I’ve done for you all these years, you still care more about a foster daughter with no blood ties than about me. I’ve had enough of you!”

With that, she swept all the dishes off the table. Plates and bowls shattered across the floor, food and oil splattering everywhere.

“You’re impossible—I don’t have the patience to argue with you!” Lin Zhengmin flung his sleeves and stormed out, leaving Wu Ya slumped on the floor, sobbing in despair.

In the servant’s quarters on the first floor, Lin Xiaodou listened impassively to the sounds of weeping outside. They were all selfish, self-serving people—nothing about them deserved pity. They’d brought this on themselves. The veil of a happy, harmonious family had been torn away. And this was only the beginning. The real drama was yet to come.

Half an hour after she stormed out, Lin Xuefei returned. She didn’t have the courage to confess; her words had just been said in anger. After Lin Zhengmin soothed her, she choked down her resentment and apologized to Wu Ya. For Lin Zhengmin’s sake, the two women shook hands and made a show of reconciliation. Outwardly, they acted cordial, but beneath the surface, resentment simmered and the atmosphere grew more tense than ever.

The next night, Lin Xiaodou was sleeping soundly in her hidden space when suddenly, the device she’d set up to monitor the male lead’s movements started beeping in alarm. She had specifically configured it so that if the male lead strayed far from his residence or went to multiple locations in a row, it would alert her.

Lin Xiaodou immediately rolled out of bed and checked the device, memorizing the coordinates before quickly donning black clothes and slipping out. Passing through an alley, she entered her space and changed her appearance.

Soon after, a bearded middle-aged man appeared. Guided by the coordinates from her monitoring device, Lin Xiaodou quickly located the male lead. It was midnight on the outskirts of the city, where a group of people stood holding torches. The male lead, Zhang Tianjun, was directing several large trucks as they loaded supplies—goods from recent black market deals as well as from other warehouses. To avoid any mishaps, he planned to personally drive the cargo to Jinsi for shipment overseas.

Lin Xiaodou arrived just as the last items were being loaded. Seeing all those trucks filled with goods, her eyes sparkled with excitement.

Heh, little treasure trove, here I come again!