Chapter 143: Chapter 143

Bai Ruxue followed her grandaunt the entire way, while Bai Daliang pushed her bicycle. It took them about half an hour to reach the grandaunt’s house.

It was a large courtyard where more than ten households lived. As soon as they entered, it was bustling with noise — people washing clothes, cooking, children playing in groups — particularly chaotic. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ N()velFire.net

Upon seeing them enter, some curious old ladies spoke up.

"Xianglan! Is this your relative? Is she from Brother Zhong’s side?"

"Sister Lin, this is my nephew and grandniece!" The grandaunt, Bai Xianglan, seemed quite friendly with the lady and smiled as she replied.

Since her family never visited, everyone living in that large courtyard knew everyone’s business, so it was understandable why Bai Xianglan’s grandaunt was asked.

"But she... looks so much like Brother Zhong. If you said she was your son, people would believe it!" Mrs. Lin Sr. added bluntly.

"Sister Lin, don’t joke around! He’s my maternal brother’s son! Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore; I’m heading inside!" Bai Xianglan, carrying on with the joke, smiled and walked towards her home without forgetting to beckon the father and daughter.

She didn’t take it to heart, but Bai Ruxue couldn’t help pondering.

She had always suspected that her father wasn’t Grandma Bai’s biological son.

She didn’t doubt her father resembling her grandaunt, but how could he resemble her grandaunt’s husband, whom they hardly ever mentioned?

When she entered the house, she found her grandaunt’s home quite small. The courtyard where they lived was rather old as well.

She carefully followed her grandaunt into the bedroom, as things were piled up in the outer room, quite a lot and very messy, as if preparing to move.

However, when she entered the bedroom, it was remarkably tidy and not a bit dusty.

"Xiao Xue, take a seat! Auntie will make you some sugar water!" Bai Xianglan directed Bai Ruxue to the kang before going out to fetch water.

Bai Ruxue took a look around the room.

There was only one kang cabinet on the kang, nothing else; it was incredibly neat. The floor only had a stool.

A portrait hung on the wall, and Bai Ruxue looked closely, realizing it did have a bit of resemblance to her father.

"Dad, did you notice that you kinda look like grandaunt’s husband?" Bai Ruxue ventured, voicing her thoughts.

"Xiao Xue, don’t talk nonsense. The old lady was joking with your grandaunt! How can I look like your grandaunt’s husband!" Bai Daliang scolded lightly.

"Seriously! Look carefully! The eyebrows and contours are so similar!" Bai Ruxue insisted, pointing at the portrait.

"If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll be angry! What would happen if your grandaunt hears?" Bai Daliang warned sternly.

Bai Ruxue chose not to argue further, introspectively studying the portrait.

In the portrait, grandaunt’s husband appeared young, his face smiling, but just one look in the eyes could tell he was an honest person, a naive demeanor.

"Come, Daliang, Xiao Xue! Have some sugar water!" At that moment, the grandaunt came in carrying two cups.

"Why did you make sugar water for me too? It’s a waste!" Bai Daliang expressed embarrassment.

He had just come to pay respects to the late grandaunt’s husband! Although grandaunt hadn’t been in contact with the family for years, he never forgot how she helped him during his toughest times.

"Auntie, does Uncle Gangzi have any other photos?" Bai Ruxue, impatient to uncover the mystery, asked eagerly.

"Yes, I’ll find them for you!" Bai Xianglan didn’t suspect anything, and after climbing onto the kang and searching through the cabinet for a while, she found some black-and-white photos.

"Here you go! He didn’t like taking photos when he was alive. This was when a relative came to visit who ran a photo studio, and he reluctantly got a few taken!" The grandaunt handed the photos to Bai Ruxue after getting off the kang.

Bai Ruxue saw that they had the same background, the same clothes as the portrait, only the expressions and poses were different.

"Auntie..." Bai Ruxue wanted to ask more but was interrupted by her father Bai Daliang.

"Aunt, where’s Brother Gangzi? Why isn’t he home?" Bai Daliang quickly changed the subject to prevent his daughter from speaking recklessly.

"Him? Who knows what he’s off doing again. Ever since his wife ran away, he’s been idling around, drinking and gambling, and now, he’s even refusing to go for his job arrangement today!"

Upon hearing her son’s situation, Bai Xianglan’s face was filled with sadness.

She only had one son, but his character was poor. He married a wife who ran away after two years, and he became even worse.

Not only was he idle, but he gambled as well, spending all the money his parents earned on his own indulgences.

The mess in the house was because after his father died, the son would anxiously search for hidden money, overturning cupboards and digging in the room.

She couldn’t control him when his father was alive, nor could she now.

"Did he remarry?" Bai Daliang asked.

Because he knew that the only daughter-in-law of his grandaunt’s family had run away.

But at the time, Brother Gangzi was still young, seemingly under twenty, and could absolutely marry again.

"No, many introductions were made, including some nice girls, but he refused to accept any, no matter how hard we tried! Oh..." Bai Xianglan sighed deeply when speaking of her son, feeling powerless as if she had given up.

She was nearing retirement age, having worried about her son all her life; now it was time to let go!

"Auntie, how old is Uncle Gangzi?" Bai Ruxue, frustrated by her father’s diversion, asked again.

"Speaking of which, Gangzi and Daliang were born on the same day! Both of us had difficult births at the town’s health clinic! This child nearly cost me my life... It affected my health so much I never had more children! My sister-in-law recovered well!" Bai Xianglan said with tears nearly flowing down.

Had she given birth to more children, her mother-in-law wouldn’t have tormented her, nor would she feel so helpless now.

Had her parents not favored her brothers, they wouldn’t have disregarded her wishes and married her off to a husband ten years older.

Now he was gone, leaving her with that son, what could a woman like her do?

"Born on the same day? And in the same health clinic?" Bai Ruxue’s mind exploded with possibilities, pondering if Grandma Bai intentionally swapped the babies, knowing that her grandaunt and grandaunt’s husband had jobs.

The more Bai Ruxue thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Based on Grandma Bai’s personality, she would definitely do something like that.

Her father resembling her grandaunt’s husband made things unclear.

"Yes! There was a lot of drama, even conflict between the families." Bai Xianglan confirmed, nodding.

"Auntie... Who does Uncle Gangzi look like?" Bai Ruxue asked again.

"Your Uncle Gangzi? He takes after me in appearance! Just not in character! He doesn’t even have his father’s good-natured honesty! Who knows what I did in a past life to bring forth such a troublesome child?" Bai Xianglan said passionately, lamenting what could have been.

"Xiao Xue, did you hear that? Your Uncle Gangzi resembles your aunt! So don’t talk nonsense!" Bai Daliang, unable to discern his daughter’s persistence with the old lady’s joke, emphasized.

"Dad! Don’t you see that aunt’s face resembles grandpa’s?" Bai Ruxue remarked softly.