Recognizing Kin Part 1

“We didn’t come here to buy anything,” said Old Madam Ji. “You look very much like my deceased younger brother. We raised a child for over twenty years who turned out not to be our biological son. You are our real son.”

“……” Lin Chengshan found this statement quite laughable.

Lin Chengshan looked up at the sky, it was still broad daylight. Were these people joking?

“Back then, we left you with the Lin family, intending for them to raise you until we came to get you. When we were supposed to fetch you, your father had something to attend to, and I was ill, so we sent someone else to get you. Unexpectedly… they brought back the Lin family’s child instead.”

“……” Lin Chengshan was silent. Was he really not the Lin family’s child?

Lin Chengshan found that he wasn’t as moved as he might have expected. After all, the Ji family was wealthy and influential, but he had earned a lot of money through his own hard work in his previous life.

He was clear about what he wanted in this life. it wasn’t about having biological parents come looking for him. What he wanted was for his daughter to grow up safely.

“Daddy.” Lin Qingqing had woken up and wanted to wait for her father at the door. She stayed in the yard because her father had told her not to go outside. She called out to her dad, having just heard his voice.

“I’m here.” Lin Chengshan hurried to the door when he heard his daughter’s voice. “Are you hungry?”

Lin Qingqing looked down at her stomach, which seemed to be growling. Despite having eaten so much, why was she still hungry?

“Chengshan.” Old Madam Ji called out to Lin Chengshan.

“You know I’m Lin Chengshan, so you should understand that I’m only Lin Chengshan,” Lin Chengshan said. “I’m not your son.”

“But you are our biological son,” Old Madam Ji insisted.

“Ha.” Lin Chengshan scoffed. He turned to them. “Do you know who my ex-wife married? Do you want me to be your son, or do you want to be relatives with her?”

“Do you still want to be with her?” Old Madam Ji couldn’t help but ask.

“No,” Lin Chengshan said. “Are you thinking of forcing her to divorce so she can be with me again? That’s impossible!”

Lin Chengshan no longer liked Xiao Man. He suddenly had an idea. “If you want me to recognize you as my family, you must provide me with a shop and give me as much money as you gave that fake son.”

“Of course, we will give you what you ask for,” Old Master Ji said. “May I see my granddaughter? Can I hold her?”

Money is trivial compared to family, and Old Master Ji didn’t think there was anything wrong with Lin Chengshan’s demands. If Lin Chengshan wanted money and a shop, they could provide it.

“……”

Lin Chengshan didn’t expect Old Master Ji to fixate on his daughter so intensely. At this moment, Old Master Ji seemed like a human trafficker!

Lin Qingqing was a bit scared and hid behind Lin Chengshan, not understanding the situation.

“You’re raising the child alone which is too tiring. Let us help take care of her,” Old Master Ji said. “Isn’t she about to start kindergarten? We can find her a better kindergarten and pick her up and drop her off from school.”

“I can manage it myself,” Lin Chengshan said.

“You’re a single dad. How can you handle all that?” Old Master Ji said. “Do you want your child to be bullied at school? Or are you planning to find her a stepmother so others think you have a complete family?”

“I have no intention of remarrying!” Lin Chengshan frowned.

“Then it’s settled. You can’t properly take care of the child,” Old Master Ji continued. “She’s a girl. Can you bathe her properly? At such a young age, she might fall while bathing alone. Look at her, so thin and not fully grown.”

Old Master Ji had always been fond of Ji Mingzhu and had heard from Ji Zenan and his wife about how challenging it was to care for a child. He could readily list many reasons and was genuinely interested in taking care of Lin Qingqing.

“Our family has always been male-dominated, with no girls. If she were with us, she would receive the best care,” Old Master Ji said.

“……”

Lin Chengshan had indeed heard this before.

Not only Ji Mingzhu but also Xiao Man’s stepdaughter had received much affection from the Ji family.

The Ji family truly liked girls.

“Come inside,” Lin Chengshan said. It wasn’t about having a family for himself. He thought, if they cared so much about girls and were indeed his blood relatives, why couldn’t they care for his daughter?

Lin Chengshan carried his things in one hand and held his daughter with the other as he entered the house.

Once inside, Lin Chengshan ignored the Ji family and placed his daughter on the dining table to eat first.

“She’s so small. Can she eat by herself? Let me feed her,” Old Master Ji said.

“Just these things to eat,” Lin Chengshan said, having not prepared anything more.

“We’ve already eaten,” Old Madam Ji said.

Lin Qingqing looked at Lin Chengshan, who did not stop Old Master Ji from helping. Lin Chengshan knew his daughter was too well-behaved and had never been favored by her biological mother.

Old Master Ji noticed Lin Chengshan’s deep concern for his daughter.

“You’d better investigate thoroughly. Don’t claim today that I’m your biological son and tomorrow say I’m not,” Lin Chengshan warned.

“We’ve investigated thoroughly. We had someone look into it recently,” Old Madam Ji said.

“When Old Lady Lin came to our house and said you were coming to see us, I was very surprised. I had someone investigate. She said you believed you were our biological son. Even if you thought so, you’re not our biological son, and we couldn’t accept you even if you came to us. So why did she make the trip?”

Old Madam Lin was caught in her own cleverness, never expecting that Old Madam Ji was not so easily deceived. She also never imagined that Lin Chengshan would actually resemble her deceased brother so closely.

Lin Chengshan, regardless of the situation, was a reborn person and not one to be overly sentimental.

Yes, there was a moment when Lin Chengshan wondered if these people were joking and he did not want to acknowledge them.

However, seeing how they cherished Lin Qingqing, he thought that if they could pamper her a bit and help her become less timid and scared, it would be good. Lin Chengshan encouraged his daughter to speak more, and he could sense her reluctance. Despite his efforts to be there for his daughter, he was just one person and could not cover everything.

Lin Qingqing had learned to feed herself from a young age, as her mother would let her go hungry if she didn’t. She had to learn to grasp things on her own, and later use chopsticks and spoons, as her mother did not like her using her hands.

Because of the Ji family’s visit, Lin Chengshan decided not to set up his stall today. He needed to resolve matters with the Ji family first. Lin Chengshan did not plan to move to the Ji family’s house with his daughter. Having grown up in the countryside, he felt out of place with the Ji family, let alone his daughter.

Lin Chengshan decided to stay where he was, while Old Master Ji thought about buying a house nearby. Even if it wasn’t the house next door, a house nearby would be fine. That way, he could still see his granddaughter frequently.

The news about the Ji family’s true and false sons quickly spread, and the Dong family soon learned of it.

Mother Dong was utterly shocked to learn that her son’s wife was Lin Chengshan’s ex-wife. What a calamity.

“Why were you in such a hurry to get married?” Mother Dong said.

Dong Weixin sat on the sofa, and as soon as he got home, his mother began to complain.

“Now you’ve brought your cousin’s ex-wife into the family,” Mother Dong gritted her teeth.

“I… I didn’t know it would turn out like this,” Dong Weixin said. “What, should we get a divorce now?”

“Divorce? How do you propose to do that?” Mother Dong scoffed. “The news of your marriage has already spread, and the wedding date has been set. If you divorce now, what will others think? Will your cousin and his family think well of you?”

It is known that Mother Dong and Old Master Ji were distant relatives. They came from the same village and belonged to the same clan, but that was several generations ago.

Mother Dong slapped herself in frustration. “I even spoke poorly of my sister-in-law’s son, called him a country bumpkin… all for your sake!”

Xiao Man, having divorced and remarried, did not want others to think that her family forced her into divorce or that they accepted someone of questionable character into the family.

Now, with things turned this way, how would Mother Dong face the Ji family in the future?

When Mother Xiao learned that Lin Chengshan had become the Ji family’s biological son and that Old Master Ji had even bought a house next to Lin Chengshan’s, she was stunned. Old Master Ji had also given Lin Chengshan a considerable amount of money and even bought a store.