My Bizarre Relatives 09

Fang Zhiyi happily took his daughter and Fang Yu away, rushing straight to Lawyer Yu. Originally, they had come today to stir up some trouble, but unexpectedly, there was an unexpected stroke of luck.

Meanwhile, Li Mei packed her things that same day and moved into her mother’s house. Her mother didn’t like her at all, even blaming her—if she hadn’t done this or that back then, things wouldn’t have turned out this way now.

Next door, the sound of cursing lasted half the night—Li Xue was venting her fury at imaginary enemies.

But what made Li Xue even more upset was that their family had undoubtedly become the laughingstock of the neighborhood, the topic of gossip over tea and dinner.

“Still calling yourselves family! You all just stood there watching me get beaten and didn’t lift a finger! Pah! You heartless, short-lived wretches! Why don’t you just drop dead? Ungrateful bastards, I must’ve been blind to ever consider you family!”

Her words seemed directed at her husband and son, but the other families nearby took it as an insult aimed at them. Still, intimidated by Li Xue’s ferocity, they could only cover their ears.

The mediator arrived quickly. First, they confirmed that Li Mei had no fixed residence, then looked into Fang Zhiyi’s situation. Fang Zhiyi owned a shop but no house. At the critical moment, Fang Yu stepped forward: “Who says he doesn’t have a house?” She slammed the keys to her own home on the table.

Li Mei looked at her daughter, reluctant to let go. But the situation left her no choice—none of her relatives had come to her aid, and Fang Zhiyi was no longer the pushover he once was. Every time she tried to say something, Fang Ruoruo’s piercing glare bore into her.

In the end, custody was reversed.

Now, Li Mei was ordered to pay child support and allowed to see her daughter twice a week.

Watching Fang Zhiyi happily walk away with their daughter, Li Mei felt a pang of sadness. But she quickly rallied herself—it didn’t matter. No matter what, her daughter would always be hers. Besides, she still had family—her eldest sister, second brother, third sister…

Fang Ruoruo moved into her aunt’s house. Though Fang Yu was usually carefree, she became surprisingly restrained around Fang Ruoruo, even correcting some of her bad habits for the girl’s sake.

Fang Zhiyi threw himself back into making money. This time, there were no shortcuts, but his experience still served him well. Progress was slow, but at least he could steadily earn a living.

He transferred Fang Ruoruo to a new school, bought her new clothes and stationery, and Fang Yu even cleared out a small room for her.

Everything was moving in a positive direction—except for one thing: every week, Fang Ruoruo insisted on visiting her mother.

There was no helping it. Fang Zhiyi couldn’t sever that bond. Still, he didn’t forget to use some “methods” to keep an eye on Li Xue’s two sons. Li Xue’s younger son was now in elementary school, but Fang Zhiyi held back for now, considering him too young.

Under Fang Zhiyi’s guidance, Fang Ruoruo studied hard, steadily improving her grades until she reached the same pivotal moment as in the original storyline—except this time, she performed even better, receiving an acceptance letter to a prestigious high school.

Fang Yu threw a small celebration banquet for her, inviting a motley crew of guests—mahjong buddies, coworkers, neighbors—but every one of them offered sincere congratulations to Fang Ruoruo.

The next day, Fang Ruoruo took her acceptance letter to show her mother.

Li Mei and Li Xue had patched things up—or at least, that’s how Li Mei saw it. She now believed her eldest sister made a lot of sense. Since her daughter had gone to live with Fang Zhiyi, life had become much easier—except for the monthly child support, which annoyed her. Fang Zhiyi’s payment reminders were more punctual than an alarm clock, and he often threatened to sic Lawyer Yu on her.

“Mom! I have great news!” Fang Ruoruo, familiar with the place from her weekly visits, pushed the door open without hesitation—only to find her aunt there as well. The two seemed deep in conversation. She quickly lowered her voice. “Auntie.”

“Ruoruo, heard you got into that so-called prestigious high school?” Li Xue’s tone was dripping with sarcasm, a smug smile on her face. Without waiting for an answer, she plopped onto the center of the sofa and patted her second son, Xu Jiayuan, who was engrossed in his game console. “Look at your cousin here—he only missed the cutoff by a tiny bit! What a shame! Boys are the pillars of the family—without a good high school, how’s he supposed to get into college? What’s the point of you studying so much? You’re just going to get married and raise kids anyway.”

Fang Ruoruo froze. A tiny bit? He’d scored two hundred points below the cutoff! But before she could speak, her mother Li Mei tugged her sleeve and whispered, “Ruoruo, your aunt makes a good point. We’re family…”

“What ‘good point’?” Li Xue’s voice rose sharply, her eyes bulging. “This is about blood being thicker than water! When your mother was in labor with you, it was me running around taking care of everything! Now you can’t even help your cousin out? All that studying’s gone to waste!” She reached out to snatch the acceptance letter. “Hand it over. It’s not like it’ll make a difference for you. Give it to your cousin—when he makes something of himself, he won’t forget you.”

Fang Ruoruo clutched the letter to her chest, tears welling up. “Auntie, I worked three years for this…”

“Worked? What’s a girl got to work for?” Li Xue rolled her eyes and shot her son a meaningful look. “Look how much weight your cousin’s lost studying! Can’t you let him have this? Besides, I already talked it over with your mom. Once your cousin gets into that school, I’ll buy you a new phone. Isn’t that better than clinging to some worthless paper?”

Li Mei wiped her tears. “Ruoruo, I know it’s unfair, but your cousin has potential too. We can’t let him fall behind… We’re family. We’ll see each other all the time…”

Li Xue slapped her thigh. “Exactly! Even your mother gets it. What’s a little girl like you being so stubborn for? Listen here, Fang Ruoruo—today, you’re giving up that spot whether you like it or not! Otherwise, you’re ungrateful and shameless, and people will curse you wherever you go!” She lunged for Ruoruo’s arm. “Give me that letter! Don’t make me force you!”

Fang Ruoruo stumbled back. “B-but it has my name on it! My photo! Even if he takes it, it’s useless!”

Li Xue smirked. “That’s none of your concern. Listen to your aunt—later, your mom will take you to buy that new phone.”

Fang Ruoruo’s mind spun, but after spending so much time with her aunt, some of that fierceness had rubbed off on her. She jerked her arm free. “No!”

But then, her father’s words echoed in her head—earlier that day, when Fang Zhiyi dropped her off, he’d told her: No matter what your aunt says, just agree.