Chapter 209: Chapter 209

Xi Simiao clasped his hand, their fingers intertwining.

"Seriously, seeing you get a bit emotional today actually made me happy," she said. "You used to be so stoic, like someone without emotions. I often had to consciously control my anger around you, not daring to lose my temper. But suppressing it made me miserable."

Su Junxian hugged her a bit tighter.

"I do have a temper; I just don’t show it towards my family and loved ones," Su Junxian said after some thought. "Junhui and I have been investigating our sister’s case, and we’ve found that Fu Bing is very likely our biological sister."

Xi Simiao suddenly sat bolt upright. "Bing? How... how is that possible?"

She remembered Bing having her own family.

"We’ve looked into Fu Bing’s background. She has no blood relation to Fu Ya."

Xi Simiao blinked, forcing herself to calm down. "Does Bing know about this?"

"No, and we don’t want her to know for the time being. Right now, only Junhui, Second Uncle, and I are aware. I think Dad may have guessed. Grandma... she..." Su Junxian trailed off.

She must have known for a long time, he thought, but didn’t finish his sentence.

Xi Simiao was silent for a long while before saying, "If I were Bing, and I knew my family had always been in a lofty position while she endured so much hardship, yet they never helped her... even the most forgiving person would be disappointed."

"That’s why we must keep this secret until we’ve resolved the family’s troubles."

A weight lifted from Xi Simiao’s heart. He considers me family, telling me this before everything is clear.

Xi Simiao hugged Su Junxian again. "I haven’t officially married into the family yet, so it’s not appropriate for me to get involved. All I can do is be here to talk when you’re feeling down."

"That’s enough," Su Junxian said, gazing out the window. "When it’s light, I’ll go home and discuss the betrothal gifts with Uncle Xi. We’ll plan the wedding properly and choose an auspicious day to get married."

"Grandma is still sick. It doesn’t seem right to talk about this now," Xi Simiao said hesitantly.

"Planning a wedding we’re both happy with won’t be quick; it will take at least three months."

If Madam Su doesn’t make it through this, we’d have to postpone it for another year, Su Junxian considered. Simiao is thirty this year. If she wants children after marriage, she’ll need to prepare for pregnancy. The earliest she could have a child would be at thirty-one or thirty-two. The older a mother is for her first child, the greater the risk.

He didn’t want her to take that risk.

Xi Simiao did not refuse. They had been in love for ten years, and both families strongly approved of their marriage. She also hoped to marry him soon.

「Outside the operating room.」

Su Junhui brought Su Jiang a cup of hot water.

Su Jiang took a sip. "How much do you know?"

Su Junhui sat beside his father. "You all love playing those corporate war games, never speaking plainly. I’ve mostly had to guess, so I might not be accurate. What I am sure of is that Fu Bing is my sister. I still don’t know when you and Grandma found out. I’m even less clear about why you knew she was our sister but stood by and did nothing."

Anger laced Su Junhui’s voice. What could be so important that you’d watch your own daughter, your own granddaughter, suffer without helping?

"Fu Ya and your Third Uncle were lovers," Su Jiang began. "I once thought Fu Bing was his child. Before he died, your Third Uncle conspired with the Qin Family to bring down our family’s enterprise. Grandma hated him and Fu Ya; she believed Fu Ya led your Third Uncle astray."

He continued, "Your Third Uncle eventually died after Grandma cut off his medication; no medicine could be found for him in all of Jiangcheng. When he died, Fu Ya and Fu Bing were with him. They ultimately buried him in the public cemetery."

"I’m not sure if Fu Ya told Fu Bing anything, nor do I know how much Bing might remember. I can’t be sure she doesn’t hate the Su Family, that she doesn’t hate us. I certainly can’t guarantee she isn’t here for revenge."

Su Jiang’s eyes reddened as he looked at Su Junhui. "If you were in my position, what would you do? Fu Bing is a good person, but to us, she’s like a ticking time bomb. We constantly have to guess her intentions. I can’t bring myself to love her as I love you children; she wouldn’t receive pure paternal or maternal love from us."

"We can’t offer her anything she doesn’t already have. Tell me, what can the high and mighty Su Family possibly give Fu Bing?" Su Jiang yelled, his voice hoarse.

All his life, he had been in a position of authority, but he was never carefree and at ease. It was only when Fu Ya died that he saw the DNA reports for her and Fu Bing, only then did he realize they weren’t mother and child. At that time, Fu Bing had already been in prison for more than two years. With some things, if you miss one step, you’ll make mistakes at every subsequent step. The mess Su Chu left him after his death took seven years to completely clean up. He was already showing great mercy by not completely annihilating Fu Ya and her daughter. Who could have imagined that Fu Bing would be his daughter?

Su Junhui, with the detachment and objectivity of a lawyer, asked, "Why did Third Uncle want to plot against the Su Family?"

"Back then, your grandmother didn’t approve of his relationship with Fu Ya," Su Jiang explained. "She even humiliated and suppressed Fu Ya. Your Third Uncle tried many times, but your grandmother always rejected him. He was very determined; he cut off relations with the Su Family and lived with Fu Ya despite his illness. But your grandmother wasn’t satisfied. She led people to smash and destroy their home and, in front of your Third Uncle, humiliated Fu Ya again. Your Third Uncle was completely enraged and threatened to bankrupt the Su Family."

"At the time, we all thought he was joking. But not long after, problems kept cropping up in the company and various shops. Your grandmother, in her anger, ordered all hospitals in Jiangcheng to stop selling medicine to your Third Uncle. He died in agony."

Su Junhui fell silent. His grandmother was a very stubborn person. Once she set her mind on something, that was it. If she disliked someone, she would never change her opinion.

"Is this why, even though Fu Bing looked familiar, you never thought she could be my sister? Because she might have been Third Uncle’s daughter?" Su Junhui asked.

"Her age didn’t line up either," Su Jiang said. "The first time I saw her, she was tiny. Your sister would have been over five years old by then, but Fu Bing looked like she was only a little over three. Your sister went missing when she was just over two. For her to look like a three-year-old after being missing for three years... how could I possibly have thought in that direction?"

Su Jiang didn’t dare to dwell on what Fu Bing might have endured during those three years.

Su Junhui didn’t dare to think about it either. What could make a child not grow physically for three years?

Suddenly, Su Junhui found he couldn’t ask any more questions.

Fu Bing was the most innocent, and she had suffered the most. Acknowledging her as family would be simple. The aftermath, however, would be the most difficult part. How could they ever hope to dispel the hatred and pain in her heart? And how much did she even remember about what happened back then?

At that moment, the operating room door opened, and Dr. Li and Li Rui emerged.

"The surgery was very successful," Li Rui announced. "She’ll be under observation in the ICU first. After the critical period, she’ll be transferred to a regular ward."

Su Jiang composed himself. "You’ve all worked so hard, especially during the New Year."

"It’s our duty," Li Rui replied. "I still have things to attend to, so I’ll get going."

Dr. Li and Li Rui returned to their office, where Mrs. Li and Li Shen were already waiting.

Mrs. Li looked at her husband with concern. "It’s good that you’re done. I just heated up some dumplings."

Dr. Li hugged Mrs. Li. "I can spend the next ten days with you now. Where would you like to go on vacation?"

"You should rest properly. We’re not going anywhere," Mrs. Li said.

"Once I’m well-rested, I’ll plan our trip," he insisted.

Mrs. Li gave him a playful glare, unable to bring herself to say anything harsh.

Li Rui leaned close to Li Shen and whispered, "It’s the New Year. Why aren’t you celebrating with your brother-in-law and his family?"

"My brother-in-law has a lot of family matters to deal with," Li Shen explained. "He didn’t want me to worry, so he told me to come home for the New Year while he went to the Lian Family estate."

"Are they still fighting over Lian Yingya?" Li Rui asked.

"It’s Lian Yingya who’s causing all the trouble," Li Shen sighed.