Ji Yuxin lowered her head, a glint of secret joy in her eyes. Yan Yaru glanced at her, took a deep breath, stood up, bowed deeply to her parents, and stopped. "Dad, Mom, thank you for your guidance over the past eighteen years. I know you mean well, but I... am ultimately surnamed Ji. I think it's best for us to go our separate ways. Please don't blame me."
Hearing her choked voice, Yan's mother's eyes reddened, but she valued etiquette above all else and managed not to lose her composure in front of outsiders. She simply lowered her eyes, suppressing the turmoil in her heart. Yan's father was silent for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, Dad respects your choice. And remember, even if we are not related by blood, you are still our daughter."
Yan Yaru's tears fell silently to the ground. She blinked, slowly straightened up, and replied, "I'll go pack my things." She politely excused herself from the four elders and walked upstairs with her back straight and unhurried. Her manners were taught by her mother, and she naturally wouldn't allow herself to be impolite in front of others. Even if she wasn't the little princess of this family, she had her own pride.
Mr. and Mrs. Ji were both quite excited. They hadn't expected Yan Yaru to be willing to go with them. It's easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality. Everyone understands this principle. Now that their daughter is willing to go home with them, does it mean that she also wants to get along well with them?
Yan's parents' faces darkened. They were busy with work and had only had one daughter all these years. Seeing how outstanding Yan Yaru was, they had groomed her to be the heir of the Yan family, waiting for her to graduate from university and join the company. But now, with Ji Yuxin back, all their years of effort had been wasted. Psychologically, they were dissatisfied with Ji Yuxin, not to mention how they could possibly teach her at her age.
Thinking of this, they felt a surge of resentment towards the Ji family. They were both raising daughters, so how could the Ji family have raised her to be like this! Trading the excellent Yan Yaru for such a daughter—what an unfair thing to do! However, they wouldn't argue with the Ji family; there was no point in bringing it up. They could only think about how to educate Ji Yuxin, because no matter how outstanding Yan Yaru was, the Yan family couldn't pass her on to outsiders.
This is also why they didn't try to persuade Yan Yaru to stay. Having two daughters at home would create too much conflict and make it difficult for servants and subordinates to see which way the wind was blowing. Having everyone return to their proper places was indeed the best option. Yan Yaru thought the same way. She understood her parents and didn't want to cause them any trouble; she knew when to advance and when to retreat.
After returning to her room, Yan Yaru stood at the door for a while, lost in thought. Then, she slowly surveyed the room she had lived in for so many years. From now on, this place would no longer belong to her. She felt uneasy about leaving for an unfamiliar environment and living with unfamiliar parents, but she knew there was no turning back. She picked up a photo of herself and her parents from the bedside table, looked at it, and put it in her suitcase. She also placed a thick photo album from the bookshelf inside, as a way of preserving some memories. She took two sets of the cheapest clothes from her wardrobe and her study books. She left everything else behind, including the valuable jewelry in the drawers. Those things didn't belong to her; they belonged to the daughter of the Yan family.
She locked her suitcase and looked up to see the pile of gifts in the corner. They were gifts from everyone at her eighteenth birthday party; she hadn't opened any of them and didn't know what they were. She had actually been looking forward to her eighteenth birthday celebration, but these gifts didn't belong to her, and opening them was pointless.
Just then, a red box caught her eye. She remembered that Xu Zifan had given it to her that day. This… should belong to her, right? She picked up the box, sat on the edge of the bed, and opened it. As soon as the box was opened, the contents emitted a warm, yellowish light. Yan Yaru took it out, and the light disappeared. She looked at it carefully; it was a frosted glass jar.
Yan Yaru hesitated for a moment, then took a picture with her phone and anonymously posted it online, asking what it was. Netizens quickly answered her: it was a solar-powered light-generating jar, a great birthday gift because the warm sunshine would make her wishes come true.
Yan Yaru was stunned for a moment, then picked up the curtain remote and drew all the curtains, plunging the room into darkness. Then the sun jar in her hand emitted a warm light, making the engraving on it look especially beautiful.
No matter how dark it is, you can always see the sunlight.
Yan Yaru silently pondered those words, then a faint smile appeared on her face. Xu Zifan must have known something all along; he had come specifically to disrupt things that day. She was actually quite grateful to Xu Zifan for saving her from losing face in front of so many guests. Looking at the sun-drenched jar radiating warmth, she suddenly felt that her coming-of-age ceremony had been a very precious gift. Darkness wasn't scary; she had already seen the sunlight.
Yan Yaru smiled, put the sun-drying jar into her suitcase, opened the door, and went out. This time, she didn't look back.
Seeing that she had only taken so few things, Yan's mother immediately said she would have the maid pack up everything in her room and send it to her, but Yan Yaru politely declined with a smile. Unable to persuade her otherwise, Yan's mother had no choice but to send a car to take them back to the Ji family home, and Ji Yuxin naturally went back with her to pack her things.
When getting in the car, Ji Yuxin pulled her parents to sit in the back first, appearing quite intimate. Ji's mother immediately looked at Yan Yaru, but Yan Yaru didn't seem to care and sat in the front passenger seat. She would have felt awkward sitting in the back; after all, they were strangers she was meeting for the first time, and she wasn't used to it.
Throughout the journey, Ji Yuxin talked to her parents, who barely responded. She could talk on and on, even crying twice, clearly indicating her reluctance to leave them. But the more she did this, the more distressed her parents became. Once they became suspicious of someone, they noticed all her odd behavior. If she truly didn't want to leave the Ji family, why didn't she say so in front of the Yan couple? It was Yan Yaru's restrained reluctance that made them feel even more pity for her.
They are fast.
Upon arriving at the Ji family home, they found it to be a 120-square-meter, three-bedroom, one-living-room apartment. While the three of them usually found it quite spacious, the contrast with the Yan family home made it seem rather small. Ji's mother, somewhat awkwardly, invited Yan Yaru to sit on the sofa and poured her a glass of juice. Yan Yaru had always drunk additive-free, all-natural freshly squeezed juice and had never tried packaged drinks before, but she didn't show it. She simply thanked her politely and took a sip silently.
Ji Yuxin went back to her room to pack her things. The thought of Yan Yaru living in this small room from now on filled her with a mix of relief and unease. Yan Yaru had enjoyed eighteen years of wealth and luxury; to exchange it all so easily felt like too good for her. After thinking for a moment, Ji Yuxin started using various excuses to ask the Ji family for help, hoping to strengthen her relationship with them one last time and also to cause Yan Yaru some trouble.
Even Mrs. Ji could sense that Yan Yaru was somewhat resistant to her. Mrs. Ji pursed her lips unhappily and said to Yan Yaru, "Yaru, Zifan's family lives next door. You know them, right? Our two families have always had a good relationship. Shall I take you to meet them?"
Yan Yaru didn't want to hear Ji Yuxin's voice either, so upon hearing this, she got up and went to the Xu family with her.
Mrs. Xu knew that the Ji family and the Yan family were meeting today. As soon as she saw the two of them, she hurriedly invited them in and said with a smile, "This must be Ya Ru, right? She's really pretty and looks a lot like you and your brother."
Yan Yaru gave a polite smile and said, "Hello, Auntie."
"Hey, come on in, have a seat. You're classmates with my Zifan, right? I'll go get him. By the way, what would you like to drink?"
"Don't bother, just use plain water, I can do it myself." Mrs. Ji didn't stand on ceremony and went straight to the water dispenser to get a glass of warm water for Yan Yaru.
Xu Zifan was working on his ninth-grade math problems when he heard that Yan Yaru had arrived. He knew something was up, or at least that he needed to ease the tension, since he was the only one who knew Yan Yaru, even though they had only spoken once. He changed his clothes and went out, smiling, "Auntie, Yan Yaru, are you moving back today?"
Yan Yaru nodded. "They've already moved in."
Xu Zifan didn't ask how Ji Yuxin was doing. Instead, he glanced at his watch and said, "There's a song and dance performance in the community square tonight. Do you want to go check it out?"
Yan Yaru was stunned, "I..."
"Sure, Mom, Auntie, let's go together. It'll be a good opportunity to have a meal together and get to know each other better." Xu Zifan smiled at Yan Yaru. "I'm bored at home with nothing to do. It's better to go out and have some fun with other people. What do you think?"
Yan Yaru thought that if she were to have dinner alone with unfamiliar parents that evening, the atmosphere would probably be quite awkward. It would definitely be better if it were lively outside. Besides, she glanced at Xu Zifan; this boy seemed good at lightening the mood. With him around, she should feel more relaxed, right? So she looked at Ji's mother, hesitated for a moment, and didn't call her "Mom," but said, "Auntie, is that alright?"
Mrs. Ji looked slightly disappointed, but she knew she needed to get used to it, so she nodded and said, "Of course, whatever you want to eat tonight, we'll have it."
Yan Yaru looked at Xu Zifan, but how would she know what food was available here? Xu Zifan smiled and said, "How about Japanese food? There's a new place nearby that's pretty good."
Yan Yaru nodded, and both Mrs. Ji and Mrs. Xu thought it was a good idea. If it were something like a few stir-fried dishes or hot pot and skewers, Yan Yaru probably wouldn't be used to it. Mrs. Ji glanced gratefully at Xu Zifan, feeling relieved. Mrs. Xu patted her hand, sensing she must be feeling frustrated, and winked at Xu Zifan, smiling, "Zifan, I bought something new to show your aunt. You and Yaru watch TV here for a while."
Xu Zifan responded, and after they went into the bedroom and closed the door, Xu Zifan thought for a moment and asked Yan Yaru, "Are you good at math?"
"Huh?" Yan Yaru was taken aback, then nodded subconsciously, "It's alright."
"Could you explain two problems to me?"
"...OK."
Xu Zifan went back to his room to get his error notebook, then took Yan Yaru to the study. He pointed out the questions he had answered incorrectly to Yan Yaru and sincerely asked for her help, "I clearly followed the method in the example questions, so why is the answer wrong? Could you please help me see which step I went wrong?"
Yan Yaru looked down and exclaimed, "A middle school question?"
"Yes, I didn't do well in school before, and I need to build a solid foundation to catch up."
Yan Yaru glanced at the solution steps, picked up a pen and started scribbling on them, "We need to add a step here, the thought process isn't like this..."