Chapter 5: Unregistered Household

The Captain looked at Lu Yichen and asked, “How is the person now? Has she woken up?”

Lu Yichen replied coldly, “She woke up once earlier, ate something, and then went back to sleep.”

Luo Qiao knew she would have to face this sooner or later, so the sooner it was resolved, the better. It was best to avoid any complications arising later.

Getting off the kang (heated brick bed), she prepared to go out. Just then, she heard footsteps approaching the house. Several people entered all at once.

The Captain noticed Luo Qiao putting on her shoes and asked, “Girl, are you feeling better now?”

Luo Qiao’s complexion was still not great. These years spent with the Luo family in the resettlement farm had been tough on her, leaving her not just short but severely thin.

Luo Qiao weakly replied, “I’m feeling better, thank you for your concern, Captain. I have a few questions for Auntie Zhao. Is that alright?”

The Captain glanced at Gao Suhua and said, “Sure, ask whatever you want.”

Luo Qiao asked, “Auntie Zhao, do you know where my parents are?”

Gao Suhua nervously responded, “How would I know? Back then, that family left in a hurry, and the Luo family happened to want a daughter, so they took you away.”

Luo Qiao asked coldly again, “Are you sure I’m not your daughter?”

Gao Suhua said, “How could there be any doubt? Just by looking at your appearance, you couldn’t possibly be my daughter.”

Everyone looked at Luo Qiao’s small face. Indeed, there was little resemblance to the Zhao family. Zhao’s six daughters all inherited their parents’ broad faces.

Luo Qiao stated, “So you won’t take me back to Zhao’s family, is that right?”

Gao Suhua replied, “If you’re not my daughter, why would I raise you? I certainly won’t take you back.”

Luo Qiao sighed and continued, “But you took money from the Luo family and agreed to let each party go their own way. Now that the Luo family has left, you’re saying this. What am I supposed to do now?”

Gao Suhua replied, “It’s not our Zhao family’s fault, it’s the Luo family. You were never our Zhao family’s daughter to begin with. I can’t neglect my own daughter to raise someone else, and that money was compensation from the Luo family for us raising their son.”

Turning to the Captain and the villagers, Luo Qiao said, “Captain, fellow villagers, you’ve all seen my situation now. The Zhao family says I’m not their daughter and refuses to recognize me. Since that’s the case, I can’t force trouble upon them. But could the village help me register my household and find a place to stay? I can earn my living through work points.”

Luo Qiao knew that although the village hadn’t distributed land yet and people were still earning work points, this situation wouldn’t last long. Land distribution was imminent.

Some of the villagers who were watching said, “Since Zhao’s family doesn’t want you, why don’t you go back to Luo’s family? They have urban household registration.”

Luo Qiao replied, “As you all saw yesterday, the Luo family won’t take me back, and my household registration has already been transferred to Zhao’s family. Those documents were handed over to Auntie Zhao yesterday.”

Gao Suhua hurriedly took out a few papers from her pocket and handed them to Luo Qiao, saying, “You keep these documents yourself. Our Zhao family can’t manage them.”

Luo Qiao opened the papers and glanced at them, then said, “Captain, if you won’t intervene in this matter, I’ll have to go to the commune. I might even have to involve the public security bureau.”

Gao Suhua interjected, “This is something the village can handle. There’s no need to involve the public security bureau. It wouldn’t look good.”

Feeling aggrieved, Luo Qiao said, “I need the police to investigate my background. The Luo family has already moved my household registration out. If I can’t register here, I might end up as an unregistered person.”