"Oh? Right, I remember now. Old San Shi's second wife is your close friend, and your friend is this girl's mother. You must have seen her before, haven't you?"
It seems sisters-in-law truly know each other best. She could remember such a trivial detail about her sister-in-law's unreliable friend from before the marriage, even after more than a decade.
Madam Xu's face drained of color. "I have indeed seen this child before, but this shouldn't be possible. Could there be a mistake?"
Younger Aunt Xu gave her a look of disbelief. "Sister-in-law, this child looks so much like me."
Madam Xu recalled her sister-in-law's youthful appearance and had to admit there was indeed a resemblance to the girl. Even now, similarities could be found between their faces.
Madam Xu clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms. "If we have the chance, we should do a DNA test first. We wouldn't want to identify the wrong child."
Younger Aunt Xu scoffed, "Of course. We can't possibly give someone else's child that we've raised for over a decade to another family to raise."
After Madam Xu left, Old Mrs. Xu tried to persuade her daughter, "Your sister-in-law is a good person. She doesn't have any ill intentions."
"Hmph, she's so stupid she can't even recognize her own child. What good is being nice? Just think about how much that child must have suffered all these years outside our family. It's all because she let the wolf into the house."
Thinking about her granddaughter suffering for so many years, Old Mrs. Xu couldn't even convince herself, let alone her daughter.
Without Song Ying's knowledge, someone had stolen a strand of her hair and secretly conducted a DNA test.
This was a juicy piece of gossip handpicked by Shi Liyan, guaranteed to be true and sweet. The test results showed a familial relationship.
In front of her son and daughter-in-law, Old Mrs. Xu didn't say a word of criticism. They only discussed how to bring Song Ying back home and how to handle the situation with the two girls.
One was their biological daughter who had been wronged for years, while the other was an impostor who had been raised by them for over a decade.
It was truly a difficult situation to handle.
The family discussed late into the night, with Xu Yiran crouching nearby, keeping watch. Just then, Xu Xinxin pushed open the door from outside, startled to see the living room full of people.
"Oh my, why aren't you all in bed? What are you doing here so late?"
Seeing his daughter return home wearing only a tank top and hot pants, Xu Xing's face darkened. He wasn't a traditional father, but seeing his daughter dressed like this in the middle of the night was too much even for his good temper.
"We're sitting on the sofa as a family, discussing matters. Is there something wrong with that? As for you, running around dressed like that in the middle of the night, do you think it looks good?"
The family had been busy all day trying to find their biological daughter, leaving no time to keep an eye on Xu Xinxin. Seeing that no one was paying attention to her and unable to resist her cravings, she had quickly found a way to buy drugs just two days after returning to the country.
Every cat and mouse has its own way. She had quickly found a way to buy her fix.
"Dad, I'm grown up now. Can you please stop controlling me? Give me some freedom. Parents abroad aren't like you at all!"
Xu Yiran couldn't help but retort, "Sister, if you want freedom, you can have it. But that means you'll need to be self-reliant."
After all, she wasn't his real sister, so he could say whatever he wanted.
Xu Yiran's words weren't wrong. Freedom comes with responsibility. If you don't want your parents' guidance, then you should be independent and not ask them for money!
Xu Xinxin immediately flew into a rage. "Mom and Dad aren't dead yet, and you're already eyeing their assets? You want to kick me out of the house, don't you? Not a chance!"
Xu Yiran thought to himself that it wasn't about him wanting to kick her out; she was about to lose her inheritance rights anyway.
It hadn't even reached the point where he needed to take action.
Xu Yiran noticed that his sister's temper was even worse than a year ago. He didn't bother to argue further, seeing her now as nothing more than a grasshopper after autumn, with not many days left to jump around.
Even Younger Aunt Xu, who had never gotten along with Xu Xinxin, didn't try to provoke her, let alone Xu Yiran.
Old Mr. Xu slowly stood up and said, "Alright, it's getting late. Daughter, don't go home tonight. Let your husband and children know not to wait for you. We'll discuss this matter tomorrow."
The Xu family couldn't wait too long to claim their child. The next day was the longest they could hold out before going to the Shi family.
As school let out, Shi Li checked her phone as usual and saw a message from her birth mother sent two hours ago.
[Wait for Song Ying after school and go home together. The Xu family just came by, saying Song Ying is their daughter. Apparently, there was a mix-up at birth.]
Shi Li now doubted what she had read. [The Xu family coming to find Song Ying? Wasn't this supposed to happen two years from now? What made them come earlier?]
[How strange]
Some classmates were packing their bags, while others had already finished and were heading out the door. They heard Shi Li's voice but continued with their actions as if nothing had happened.
But now the problem was that there was an interesting drama unfolding at Shi Li's house. Couldn't they go along as well?
They were all classmates after all, and they wanted to be happy witnesses too!
Song Ying was also shocked. She hadn't expected her birth parents to come looking for her before she had done anything.
Besides shock, there was also a sense of being caught off guard and unprepared.
Song Ying couldn't quite remember what excuse Shi Li had used to accompany her home.
Even after getting into the car, she still felt a sense of unreality.
Was it really going to be on such an ordinary afternoon that she would suddenly meet her birth parents after returning home?
Shi Li leaned in to help her fix her hair and clothes, wanting Song Ying to look her best when facing her parents and relatives.
Shi Li's actions snapped Song Ying out of her daze but also made her more nervous.
Was her face clean? Was her hair messy? Would her parents find her unkempt and unattractive when they saw her?
Song Ying looked at Shi Li with moist eyes. "Sister, I..."
She was a girl who always kept herself neat and tidy, so there wasn't much for Shi Li to help with. Shi Li gently patted her shoulder and said, "Oh my, our little sister looks so pretty."
Both sides were prepared. Song Ying had been mentally preparing herself the whole way home, but she was still startled to see a room full of strangers in the living room when she returned.
[What's going on with the Xu family? Did their entire family come out to find the child?]
There were truly many unfamiliar faces in the living room. Song Ying only recognized Xu Xing and Madam Xu - one from search engine entries and the other from gossip articles and a brief encounter at a banquet.
She didn't recognize anyone else, but Shi Li was different. She knew them all.
Although the Shi family and Xu family didn't have much private interaction, and logically she shouldn't know those family members who rarely appeared in public, Shi Li recognized everyone because in her previous life, the Xu family had all come to their house to find the child.
The Shi family had also gathered in full force, from the eldest uncle who was usually busy with meetings to the cousin who had just started an internship at the company.
Only when Shi Li and Song Ying returned from school was the family complete.
Everyone else wore expressions of anticipation for the drama about to unfold, except for Hong Yan and Youngest Uncle Shi, whose faces were equally grim.
Song Ying put on quite a show. Upon seeing the strangers in the room, she instinctively grabbed the hem of Shi Li's clothes and took a step back, indicating that she felt safest behind Shi Li.
This small gesture broke the hearts of her birth grandmother and mother.
