Call Me Daddy

During this period, the relationship between Su Yixing and Zhu Xining progressed rapidly. Although they hadn’t known each other for long, their shared hobbies and habits had already developed into a deep friendship. So, when she saw the concern in Zhu Xining’s eyes, Su Yixing didn’t hide anything and directly told her about her grandmother’s illness and hospitalization.

“What?!”

Zhu Xining exclaimed in surprise. It turned out that the time when the Dean Grandma truly fell ill was much earlier than in the previous life when she had gone to the hospital for a check-up due to feeling unwell.

“Is Grandma alright?”

She asked nervously. The real reason she had arranged for three health check-up packages was just for the Dean Grandma. In the previous life, the Dean Grandma had passed away due to colon cancer. Returning to this era, she only wanted to prevent that regret from happening.

In the previous life, Grandma didn’t even get to enjoy her life before she passed away in the pain of cancer. At that time, she was still in school and wasn’t able to give back to her Grandma. By the time she had achieved success and fame, the most important person was no longer by her side.

Zhu Xining, or perhaps it would be better to call her “Su Yixing”, had lived for 47 years in another parallel universe. After passing away from illness, she opened her eyes again, finding herself in the body of a girl who had died by suicide.

The original owner of her body was a girl from a well-off family, but who had lacked love since childhood. Her parents were only seen once or twice a year, and the people who appeared the most in her life were the constantly changing nannies. The girl was sensitive and silent by nature. After scoring second in the city in her high school entrance exam, her parents had promised to come home and celebrate, but they broke their promise once again.

That night, she chose to end her life by burning charcoal and sealing the room.

The girl had truly died. In her past life’s as “Su Yixing” and her memories, the news of the high school entrance exam’s second-place winner committing suicide by burning charcoal had been a sensation at the time. In this world, for some unknown reason, she had been reborn into this dying body, becoming the new Zhu Xining.

After successfully saving herself, Zhu Xining began to recuperate and investigate the time she had appeared in.

She felt that perhaps this was an opportunity given by heaven, allowing her to prevent many regrettable things from happening again.

One of her primary goals recently was to ensure that the Dean Grandma had regular check-ups to prevent colon cancer, but she hadn’t expected that her grandma’s cancer would be diagnosed more than a year earlier than she remembered.

“Luckily, it was caught in the early stages when it was detected, and the chances of a successful surgery are high. As long as she recovers well, it won’t significantly affect her lifespan.”

Most cancers have a relatively high cure rate when detected early, but many cancers are often only taken seriously by patients and checked at the hospital when they start showing symptoms, by which time they are already in the middle or late stages.

“This… this is something I have to thank my Dad for.”

Su Yixing had rarely called him ‘Dad’ since she was a child, so when she mentioned this title now, she spoke it awkwardly, revealing a sense of unfamiliarity and discomfort.

“He bought Grandma an annual check-up card, making sure she had the most detailed medical examination every year. This time, it was thanks to that card that the cancer was fortunately detected at an early stage.”

Su Yixing felt grateful in her heart, but she still felt a bit uneasy about that man.

“So it’s… your father?”

Zhu Xining’s expression immediately became complicated, but she quickly adjusted her mood and told Su Yixing with relief, “Your father is truly the hero here. If it weren’t for his filial piety, Grandma’s condition could have become much more serious.”

To the “Su Yixing” who had returned, that man was also one of her regrets, but she knew that to the current Su Yixing, that man was the so-called relative she both resented and hated.

Before knowing the truth, she had been full of resentment toward that man.

Why was my father a murderer? Why could other people’s parents be with their children while my mother had passed away, and my father was in prison?

Why did my parents indulge in pleasures at an inappropriate age without taking proper precautions? Why did they bring me into the world under such circumstances and then blame my mother’s death on me? Wasn’t the one who made my mother pregnant the man who was at fault?

Why wasn’t I wanted, loved, or given even a tiny place in the heart of the person I called my father?

…

…

She had always felt she had every reason to resent him. Even though he provided child support to the Dean Grandma, what did that matter? It was his legal obligation before she turned 18. She resented him for bringing her into the world but never giving her any fatherly love. She also resented him for the crime he had committed, which caused her to suffer from the prejudices of others.

Especially during several important decisions about her future, she couldn’t apply to her dream university, the National Defense University, because of his criminal record and failing the political examination. After graduation, she couldn’t apply to work in the public security and law departments for the same reason.

So, for a long period in her life, she had firmly believed that she had every reason to resent and hate him.

***

After a heated argument, she lost her composure in her anger and used some methods to conduct a DNA test between them. The result proved that there was no blood relation between them. The moment the result came in; her mind went blank.

All her resentment had been based on the premise that the man was her biological father.

If I’m not his child, then whose child am I?

The Dean Grandma had personally watched her being brought out of the delivery room, and everyone who had seen her mother said that their appearances were almost identical, so she must have been her mother’s daughter; that couldn’t be wrong.

So, who did my mother have a child with?

“Su Yixing” unraveled the mystery step by step, searching for everyone who had been close to her “parents” at that time. From their accounts, “Su Yixing” learned the complete love story of her “parents” for the first time. In the love they described, how could her mother have betrayed her lover and had her, a child of unknown origins?

Having been admitted to a prestigious law school and working as a lawyer afterward, “Su Yixing” immediately had some unsettling thoughts.

She thought of the person who had been killed by him!

“Su Yixing” found the half-brother of the deceased, who was still alive, and conducted a DNA test with him. The result of the test left her devastated.

She was indeed the daughter of the man killed by him. “Su Yixing” investigated all the information about the deceased from that time, and it was clear that even if Ji Xing had broken up with Su Aobai, she would never have looked at such an old bachelor.

She was the product of sin, born guilty!

Even in this new body, thinking about this fact made Zhu Xining feel sick and suffocated.

Therefore, after discovering this truth, “Su Yixing” spent a long time unable to accept it. She couldn’t resist taking the DNA reports and confronting the man who had been her nominal biological father for over 20 years.

She asked him why he had concealed the truth for over 20 years, enduring grandma’s misunderstandings and complaints during that time. Why hadn’t he told anyone the truth? Over those 20 years, so many people had misunderstood him, believing he was unfit to be a father, when in fact, he was innocent.

She also questioned the truth behind the murder. Although the act of killing couldn’t be justified, there were reasons behind it. He wasn’t the violent, obsessive person others had described, who would suddenly commit murder over minor disputes. Why had he served 9 years in prison while the real criminal had been buried with the guise of a victim?

“Su Yixing” wanted to uncover the truth and ensure that the real criminal received the punishment deserved, even if that person was already dead; he should still be held accountable posthumously.

It was the first time Su Aobai had physically attacked her. Previously, he had only been indifferent and had never even scolded her.

After slapping her, he had only said that he wouldn’t tolerate it. From then on, he refused to see her again.

The 20-something “Su Yixing” didn’t understand, and even felt wronged. It wasn’t until later, due to her unique experience, that she became more focused on cases related to sexual assault and violence.

As she encountered more cases, she finally understood his intentions.

She took over the first sexual assault case, the victim was a 15-year-old schoolgirl.

She did her best to bring the murderer to justice and let the other side bear the highest sentence in this type of case. “Su Yixing” felt that she had done justice for the girl, but after the murderer was jailed for a short period of time, the girl committed suicide. The reason was that the case was publicized on the internet and her uncensored pictures were posted.

The neighbors near her home and her schoolmates all knew about the misfortune that happened to her, and those contemporaneous glances or those sarcastic and despicable stares became a knife that stabbed her in the heart, forcing her to end her own life.

The prejudices of the world were deeply rooted; they would revile the murderer, but they would also pick on the victim.

Why did they rape you instead of someone else?

One by one, they had to pick and choose a few points on the victim that would support that argument before those people felt satisfied.

A bunch of irrelevant people were online, claiming to be her classmates, neighbors, or relatives, and spreading rumors that the victim had a chaotic romantic life and wore revealing clothing. These unverified statements were widely broadcast, and many people commented below, saying, [No wonder, I always thought girls should love themselves more.]

The rapist had killed her once; public opinion had killed her countless times.

At that point, “Su Yixing” began to understand his resistance.

An orphan, a very pretty orphan, a very pretty orphan who, after moving out of the orphanage at 16, cohabited with her childhood sweetheart—what kind of public opinion would surround a girl like this after being assaulted?

In that era, the first question would likely be why the girl didn’t act more prudently. Wasn’t she already living with a male partner at such a young age? Wouldn’t that suggest she had been involved with multiple partners?

“Su Yixing” knew that being an orphan came with many prejudices. She had grown up in such an environment and could understand that after her mother had been assaulted, she would feel immense shame and fear, wishing she could just die. She would hide this secret, absolutely determined not to let anyone else know. She couldn’t bear another round of humiliations and gossip.

The first thing they would likely do was go home and scrub themselves clean, torturing themselves in their own little shell for a long time. By the time they gathered the courage to report it, the evidence would be gone.

In such circumstances, reporting the crime again would only reopen old wounds and raise another issue—whether it was rape or consensual sex.

As for a beautiful orphan, there were many more ways to exploit her situation.

***

So after finding the perpetrator, Su Aobai chose to take matters into his own hands. How many years could one get for rape? Who would compensate for Ji Xing’s life? Compared to the minimal punishment the law could provide, he preferred to have blood repay blood.

He took revenge for Ji Xing in his own way, hoping to end it there.

The truth from that time didn’t matter, nor did his reputation or future. He only wanted Ji Xing to die with her dignity intact. For him, having his childhood sweetheart’s death be a result of natural causes and having her die after being assaulted and bearing a child were completely different in terms of posthumous reputation.

He didn’t want the dirty gossip about Ji Xing’s tragedy. He didn’t want the disaster that ruined their lives to become fodder for others’ conversations. He didn’t want Ji Xing to be criticized or despised.

For this reason, he was willing to bear all the misunderstandings from the outside world.

“Su Yixing” understood his thoughts, but she still maintained her stance.

She hoped that all women, when faced with persecution, would use legal means to protect their rights and seek justice for themselves, rather than suffering in silence. Remaining passive would only allow the wrongdoers to go unpunished, and they would continue to harm other innocent women or continue their abuse.

At 47, “Su Yixing” had become a well-known lawyer. Throughout her career, she had taken on countless cases of sexual violence and assault for free. Most of her income was used to provide psychological support for women and children who had been violated, earning her much acclaim in her later years.

Of course, there were people who criticized her as a publicity seeker, but by then, “Su Yixing” had learned to ignore such barking dogs.

She had helped many people who had suffered similar fates to her mother’s, but she could never reconcile with the other half of her own dirty blood.

She was someone who should never have been born!

With this thought in mind, “Su Yixing” kept herself busy with continuous work, which led to her early death at 47. She never married or had children, and in the 20 years following the Dean Grandma’s death, she lived alone.

***

Zhu Xining snapped out of her memories. Clearly, in her recollection, the Dean Grandma’s illness had only been detected after more than a year. How had it been discovered earlier in this world?

Could someone else have been reborn like me?

Zhu Xining recalled what Su Yixing had just said about how her father had taken grandma for annual check-ups, which had led to the early detection of the illness.

Could it be that in this life, he had also been reborn?

Zhu Xining felt an indescribable mix of emotions. The resentment she had once felt before knowing the truth had vanished the moment she learned it, replaced by self-loathing.

He should hate me. Compared to their tepid interactions and the support fees he had provided for the Dean Grandma, she would rather he hated her.

From the moment she discovered her rebirth, Zhu Xining had never considered interfering with his life. Perhaps staying out of his sight was the greatest compensation she could offer.