Chapter 162: These Shoes, She Can't Wear Them, Right?
The Ye Family Home.
Ye Dad, who had just returned from fishing with a twenty-pound catch, was in high spirits.
What lifted his spirits even more was Ye Fuli’s call minutes earlier, informing him she was coming home and bringing him a gift.
Ye Fuli had always been indifferent to family ties, coming and going as she pleased with little regard for anyone else's feelings.
But now, not only was she considering others' feelings, she was even taking the initiative to bring gifts for her old man.
To describe his current feelings with an imperfect phrase, Ye Dad might say he felt "flattered and surprised."
"My daughter's coming home. I'd better brush up on my cooking skills and show her what I can do."
"As a father, even if I let my children live freely, I should still do something for them, right?"
"Let her try this fish…"
"I wonder if she even likes cilantro?"
Ye Dad carried the fish into the kitchen, then hesitated.
He realized how little he truly knew about his daughter!
He didn't know what she liked to eat, let alone if she had any dietary restrictions…
Aunt Zhang, the new kitchen helper, saw Ye Dad's troubled expression and couldn't help but laugh. "Boss, you're not the kitchen type. Leave it to us! Such a fine fish—don't ruin it. That'd be a shame."
"I still want to do something for my daughter."
Ye Dad sighed.
He set down the large fish in his hands.
The fish flapped wildly in the sink, sending splashes of water everywhere.
"Come to think of it, I have no experience spending time with children. I don't even know how to make her happy. I feel like such a failure as a father."
Aunt Zhang's smile faded slightly as she asked earnestly, "Has the young lady never brought any friends home? Surely she must have a few classmates she gets along with well! Ask them about her, and you'll get a pretty good idea of what she's like outside the home."
This question made Ye Dad feel even more ashamed.
Not only had he been absent from Ye Zhen's upbringing, but he knew next to nothing about Ye Fuli.
All he knew was that Ye Fuli had lived in a slum with a pair of abusive adoptive parents, who were now missing…
As for Ye Fuli's friends?
Ye Fuli had only ever expressed affection for Ye Zhen to him.
She probably had friends at school, but as her biological father, he simply wasn't aware of them.
"Now that you're retired, it should be easier to pursue something new—it just depends on whether you have the patience to see it through."
Aunt Zhang seemed quite knowledgeable when it came to raising children.
"Oh dear! My daughter was quite rebellious. Right after she turned eighteen, she insisted on running away with some local thug. Naturally, her father and I refused! In the end, she drank half a bottle of pesticide over that thug, trying to kill herself…"
"I hit her, I yelled at her, and more than once I thought about cutting ties with her."
"But she's still my child. My husband and I only have that one child in our entire lives. She turned out this way—we parents can't say we bear no responsibility at all."
Aunt Zhang paused here, her voice thick with sorrow.
Recalling the past, her heart ached.
Every parent envies other people's well-behaved children…
Ye Dad listened quietly, deep in thought.
"I spent a long time reaching out to her friends, her teachers, and even went to meet the family of that thug boyfriend of hers."
"Eventually, I learned she resented me for always showing up disheveled to parent-teacher conferences, resented her father for his drunken rages, and resented us for using work as an excuse to leave her in our rural hometown for five or six years."
"Her thug boyfriend could charm her so easily just because of a bowl of plain rice porridge… She said that bowl of porridge gave her a sense of home! How ridiculous is that?"
Aunt Zhang gritted her teeth as she spoke of that bowl of plain rice porridge.
The thought of her beautiful daughter, whom she had worked so hard to raise, being lured away by a bowl of plain rice porridge was utterly preposterous.
What was even more despicable was that the thug kept finding excuses to swindle her daughter out of money! One moment it was her younger siblings needing school supplies, the next it was her parents falling ill, and later he even claimed he needed to go back to school…
This scoundrel dropped out of school at fifteen—what campus was he going back to?
The more Aunt Zhang thought about it, the angrier she became!
Ye Dad was stunned by what he heard.
He quickly asked, "So what about now?"
Aunt Zhang sighed and shook her head helplessly:
"His father and I had no choice. We discussed it and both quit our jobs to stay home and care for our child for half a year."
"During those six months, I cooked porridge for her every day, trying different recipes until she finally had enough. After taking a break, I transformed from a disheveled housewife into this polished woman. The child's father successfully lost weight and became a handsome guy. I even forced him to quit drinking, and our home suddenly felt much cleaner and fresher!"
At this point, Aunt Zhang smiled and stroked her face.
"My daughter finally came to her senses and broke up with that good-for-nothing boyfriend. Probably because we old folks spent all the savings, leaving them with nothing to live off—ha ha!"
Well, she was getting more and more excited as she talked.
Aunt Zhang cleared her throat lightly and quickly steered the conversation back on track.
"So, boss, no matter what, take some time to figure out your kid's social circle. It'll pay off! Just address the root cause, and that's that."
…
Ye Dad emerged from the kitchen.
He felt Aunt Zhang's words held some truth.
But how exactly should he go about it?
That evening, a young girl dressed like a proper young lady stood timidly at the Ye family's front gate, a backpack slung over her shoulder.
"Uncle, I was referred by Aunt Wang…"
She pulled out her various ID photos.
Mr. Ye stepped forward, took them, and examined them carefully.
After reviewing them, he recalled.
The family had a nanny surnamed Wang who had returned to her hometown. Before leaving, she had indeed mentioned wanting to introduce someone to take over her duties.
He had assumed it would be a middle-aged woman in her fifties, but never expected such a young girl.
Ye's father immediately felt it wasn't reliable.
However, seeing the girl arrive covered in dust and sweat, her clothes completely soaked, he felt a bit sorry for her and didn't want to refuse outright.
"Your name is Jiang Nini? You're skilled at raising fish, right? Do you have any work experience in this field?"
Jiang Nini nodded. "Don't worry, Uncle! Back home, I helped run my family's goldfish shop, so I know all about this stuff."
"Well then, come on in."
After receiving permission, Jiang Nini immediately thanked Ye Dad.
She took off her muddy shoes, leaving them outside the threshold, and tiptoed inside wearing only white socks.
"There are slippers in that cabinet over there. Feel free to take a fresh pair—don't use the old ones."
Watching this child, who was the same age as his two daughters, Ye Dad sighed.
He couldn't help but think of Zhenzhen.
He hoped Zhenzhen wasn't living in such squalor!
"Okay, Uncle." Jiang Nini opened the shoe cabinet and glanced at the assorted styles of women's slippers inside. She couldn't help but snort inwardly.
These shoes—she couldn't wear them, right?
Let her guess—which ones belonged to Ye Fuli, and which ones belonged to Ye Fuli's biological mother?
After secretly pondering for a while, she still didn't make a move. Instead, she obediently picked out a pair of plain new slippers.
"Uncle, is it okay if I wear these?"
"Mhm, you may."
"Thank you, Uncle. I've never worn such nice shoes before. I feel a bit embarrassed to step into them." Jiang Nini feigned coyness and whispered, "May I fetch a basin of water to wash my feet first?"
"Sure, go ahead."
Ye Dad didn't dislike this well-mannered child.
Still, no matter how polite she was, he only saw her as "Zhenzhen's classmate" or "Ye Fuli's classmate."
Just as Jiang Nini finished slipping into her slippers, Ye Fuli pushed open the courtyard gate and stepped inside.
She turned and met Ye Fuli's deep, piercing gaze.
Jiang Nini blinked and smiled.
Ye Fuli said nothing, returning the smile.
But those who knew Ye Fuli understood: her gentlest smile was the most terrifying…