"I have a distant cousin. His wife passed away early, leaving him to raise their child alone. Then he died in an accident, and the girl was left with no one. My parents have kind hearts, so seeing her all alone, they took her in and have been raising her like a granddaughter. Who could've imagined it would lead to this? Now there are rumors spreading that she's my illegitimate daughter… Sigh. This is a complete disaster."
"Yingzi… what can I say to make you believe me? If you really don't believe me, I'll call my hometown right now. I'll get the village chief to vouch for me, ask the neighbors—you can investigate however you want. But you have to understand, the only people I've ever loved in my life are you and Jiajia."
Liu Yingzi's expression finally softened a little, and the tight frown on her brow gradually relaxed.
She gently poked Cao Daqiang's chest, her tone carrying a hint of playful reproach.
"Oh, why are you being so serious? I was just saying. Besides, you're my man; I believe you. It's just that as a mother, my heart aches for my child. Seeing Jiajia get wronged makes me upset. She's the apple of my eye. Of course I'm not happy when someone makes her suffer."
"Jiajia is the apple of my eye too. If you're hurting, I'm hurting."
Cao Daqiang's tone softened, and his gaze grew gentle.
Then, he bent down and kissed her rosy little cheek. The stubble on his cheek tickled Jiajia, making her giggle.
"Daddy loves you the most, doesn't he? Don't be scared. Daddy's here. No one will dare bully you."
Liu Yingzi's voice suddenly rose a few notches.
"That girl may be young, but she's quite calculating. To put it nicely, she's ignorant. To put it bluntly, she has no manners! A creature born but not raised. So young and already bullying others. Since she's a relative's child, as her elders, we have an even greater responsibility to discipline her properly!"
Cao Daqiang glanced at the obvious stain on his daughter's dress, and his brow furrowed sharply.
He had specifically asked someone to buy that dress from a brand-name children's clothing store in the city.
He muttered under his breath, "This outfit cost quite a bit of money…"
"My daughter wears it for the first time and it ends up like this. What a sight. Looks like I really have to teach that wild girl a lesson."
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, the image of that small, thin figure appearing in his mind.
Cao Daqiang's fists clenched secretly.
'Ever since that girl arrived, everything has been a mess.'
'And now, even my future might get dragged down with it!'
'He, Cao Daqiang, had always had the upper hand in the competition. But now, because of this, people were whispering behind his back that "a man who can't keep his house in order can't command respect."'
'Thinking about it that way, the girl was practically a jinx.'
'No!'
'I have to get rid of her as soon as possible!'
The more Cao Daqiang thought about it, the more scared he became, and a cold sweat nearly broke out on his forehead.
'If Yang Dapeng really snatches this position away…'
'Who knows how those guys in the barracks would laugh at him.'
"Yingzi, you're the one who understands things. Since my parents took care of that girl for a few days, and we're relatives, I can't just watch her go down the wrong path and do nothing. Letting her run wild would be hurting her, and it would be hurting ourselves."
'Rather than take the risk, it's better to pull out the root of the problem early.'
"Let's go, Jiajia. Daddy will take you to get justice!"
He stood up, holding his daughter, and strode toward the door.
The stain on her dress was glaring, but he no longer cared.
'The important thing was to let everyone know.'
'That his daughter, Cao Daqiang's daughter, would not be bullied.'
"Great! Beat the bad seed to death!"
Cao Jiajia's little face was flushed red, her eyes burning brightly as she cursed nonstop.
Cao Daqiang stood with his hands in his pockets, his heavy gaze fixed on his daughter.
'He knew his wife Liu Yingzi's temperament, and he understood that she wouldn't let today's matter rest so easily.'
Liu Yingzi stared at her daughter with a proud expression.
"Yes, that's right. Don't be afraid, Mommy's here."
Liu Yingzi had been doted on by her parents her whole life and had never been allowed to suffer the slightest grievance.
She was the only daughter in the family, accustomed since childhood to having everything handed to her.
So she had always believed in one principle.
I can wrong others, but others can absolutely never wrong me.
'Her daughter was still young. If she didn't teach her not to take any nonsense from anyone, what would happen if she got bullied all the time later on?'
'She wanted Cao Jiajia to live her life with bold self-righteousness.'
'Even if she was the one in the wrong, she had to learn to be the first to cry, make a scene, and tattle.'
She glanced at Cao Daqiang, who was walking ahead holding their child, and a flicker of contempt crossed her eyes.
'The man always walked with his head down and spoke so cautiously.'
'He even checked his mother-in-law's expression before daring to greet her.'
'How could a man like that raise a child with any backbone?'
'It was normal that a man from a poor family wouldn't understand her way of thinking.'
'But she would absolutely not let his weakness affect her daughter.'
"Jiajia, tell Mommy, how exactly did that wild girl bully you?"
She crouched down, gently stroking her daughter's cheek.
"In a little while, we'll have Daddy teach her a harsh lesson for you!"
"Mhm! It's just…"
Cao Jiajia nodded immediately, her two small hands clutching and twisting the corner of her dress, a flicker of panic in her eyes.
But when it actually came time to say how Shanshan had bullied her, she couldn't come up with anything specific.
"There, there, don't be nervous," Liu Yingzi continued to comfort her in a soft voice. "Mommy and Daddy are here. No one will dare touch a single hair on your head. You just have to say it."
'Mommy wanted to hear "I was bullied," not "I didn't tell the truth."'
So as not to disappoint her mother, she simply reversed everything she had done to Shanshan and said it was the other way around.
"She… she tried to snatch my toy. I wouldn't give it to her, and then she pushed me…"
The more Liu Yingzi listened, the uglier her expression became.
She whipped her head around to look at Cao Daqiang, who was equally furious.
'A bastard, daring to touch her daughter?'
'She had to see this through to the bitter end today!'
When the family of three walked into the Yang Family's courtyard, it was still full of lively chatter.
The courtyard was buzzing with voices, and no one even noticed the three of them enter.
Seeing that no one was paying them any mind, both Liu Yingzi and Cao Daqiang felt a loss of face.
"Oh, Yun Hua, you've really made it through the hard times now! Your Dapeng's future is only going to get brighter and brighter!"
Their neighbor, Aunt Zhang, started shouting the moment she entered the courtyard, her voice raised.
"Look at this crowd today! The whole family compound is here. Who doesn't know that your Dapeng performed a great service? The regiment commander praised him personally. That's a huge honor!"
"Why wait for the future? Dapeng performed such a great service, this position is his for sure!"
Uncle Yang stood at the entrance leaning on his cane, squinting and nodding repeatedly.
"Haven't you all heard? I just heard from Old Wu in the mess hall. They even mentioned it at the battalion meeting, said that Dapeng rendered great service this time!"
"Isn't that the truth! Once Dapeng gets promoted, he'll have to look out for us old neighbors!"
Xiao Liu's wife, who was standing nearby, chimed in with a smile.
"When the kids from our compound join the army in the future, we'll have to rely on Big Brother to give them a hand! Ms. Yunhua, am I right or am I right?"
This time, Zhang Yunhua was truly in the limelight. She moved back and forth through the crowd, beaming as she accepted everyone's congratulations.
She had specially worn a brand-new blue floral blouse for the occasion, and her hair was combed neatly.
Every few steps, an acquaintance would come up to offer their congratulations, and she would respond to each one.
From time to time, she would glance at her own husband, his face beaming with joy, and her heart felt incredibly secure.