Additional Inheritance - Chap 2
Chapter 2
Wen Xiaohui was in a daze for a long time after reading the suicide note. He took a deep breath and flopped onto the bed. Looking up at the snow-white ceiling, he recalled Luo Yaya’s face, and memories of her flooded his mind.
Although Luo Yaya was adopted, she wasn’t adopted into their family from childhood – she was already 12 or 13 years old at the time. Wen Xiaohui’s father had adopted her because he and her father were comrades who had gone through life and death1, and also to repay the debt of her father falling into an eternal slumber on a snow-covered mountain by the border, in order to protect him. Yaya’s mother was reluctant to bring her daughter with her when she remarried, so his father took her in without hesitation.
At the time, his parents hadn’t been married for long and his mother was less than 10 years older than Yaya. Naturally, she was unwilling to become the stepmother of such a grown-up daughter, but she couldn’t refuse to care for the daughter of her husband’s saviour. Back then, his mother had worked as the cashier of a textile factory, and his father had retired from service and transferred to work as a security guard at the factory. His family wasn’t well-off financially, and adding an extra mouth to feed as well paying for school was a huge burden. In addition, Yaya’s appearance was extremely beautiful, an extraordinary kind of beauty that had the ability to stun after merely one glance. His mother’s heart had never felt comfortable at having an outsider in her home. She also had an overbearing and shrewish personality which meant that she found it hard to accommodate her adopted daughter. After a period of endurance, she eventually exploded in anger when she fell pregnant with him.
During his mother’s pregnancy, her mood had fluctuated greatly. She often quarrelled with his father about Yaya, but his father was taciturn for the most part. When pressed, he responded that he couldn’t fail his comrade-in-arms and he was willing to sacrifice everything he had to raise Yaya to adulthood.
Yaya was very sensible, or according to the words of his mother, she was extremely calculating. When he was born, she took the initiative to take care of him, which meant that he was brought up by her, when he was young. He used to think that his sister was even closer to him than his parents. He still recalled the essay assignment he’d received when he was younger, where he had to write about his most beloved person in the world, and the person he wrote about was his sister.
Afterwards, Yaya graduated from high school and started working. Sun Ying was the boss of the beauty salon where she was employed, and she was the mistress of a wealthy man. They all felt that Sun Ying had led Yaya astray. In his memory, Yaya had once disappeared for a period of time, but his memory was hazy because he was too young at the time. According to his mother, it was at this time that Yaya got together with that powerful and influential man who was already married. Not only that, she gave birth to a child when she was only 18 or 19 years old, about the same age as him now.
Yaya’s actions made his father vomit blood in anger; he genuinely vomited blood. His father had sustained injuries on the battlefield and his strained body had deteriorated with age. It was after that Yaya rarely returned home and became more and more estranged from her family.
But he never told his parents that he’d remained in contact with Yaya, or maybe his parents already knew, but never mentioned it. As a child, he didn’t understand adult morals; he only knew that his sister was family and she’d always treated him well. After she started earning a salary, she would occasionally go to his school to find him, buy him lots of things and take him out to eat and play. He didn’t notice much difference except his sister didn’t return to their family home.
After a few years, he matured significantly and began to understand a lot more and at the same time, under the influence of his parents, he began to develop his own opinion of Yaya. But the real reason why he broke off relations with Yaya was because of his father’s death.
Four years ago, his father was in a critical condition and wanted to see Yaya, but he didn’t know where Yaya lived. He made countless calls, desperately begging Yaya to come back, but she never came back in the end. His mother had repeatedly complained that it was Yaya who had made his father ill. Although he didn’t agree with his mother initially, he could no longer regard Yaya as his sister because of this. He hated her for being selfish, fickle and cruel, and he pretended that such a person had never existed in their family.
A man’s lifespan is long, and he thought that there would still be an opportunity for them to meet again. He never imagined that when he finally received news of Yaya, they would be forever separated. In the face of death, all past grievances became so faint that they could no longer be seen clearly. On the contrary, he remembered vividly how she’d treated him with kindness in the past.
The phone number for the lawyer was at the bottom of the suicide note; Wen Xiaohui had read it so many times that he could nearly recall it from memory. Should he make the phone call? Was he really going to help Yaya raise the child? 15 years old… That wasn’t much younger than himself and how could he support a teenager? He couldn’t even look after himself.
Should he tell his mother about this? Even though his mother had never liked Yaya, he understood her and he knew that she had a good heart despite her harsh tongue. She would definitely be angry to hear of Yaya’s passing and furthermore, she would never accept Yaya’s child. Perhaps his mother would change her mind when she heard about the house and three million yuan?
Wen Xiaohui had been thinking so much that his brain hurt, but he didn’t find a solution. He made a decision and before he regretted it, he took out his mobile and dialled the lawyer’s number. No matter what, Yaya had entrusted her orphan to him, so he had to meet him.
The call was quickly connected. “Hello, Cao Hai.”
“Em, Mr2 Cao, hello.”
“Hello, who is it?”
“I’m… Wen Xiaohui.”
“Mr Wen? I’ve been waiting for your call.”
“Eh….” Although Wen Xiaohui was usually eloquent and could scold people non-stop for five minutes without repetition, he was so nervous that he didn’t know what to say.
Cao Hai spoke more slowly. “Mr Wen, how about we meet up tomorrow afternoon if you’re not busy? There are many things we need to discuss in person. Of course, Luo Yi will also be there.”
“That’s fine.”
“That’s settled then. I’ll send you the time and exact address later.”
“Are her funeral arrangements sorted?” Wen Xiaohui blurted out.
The person on the other end of the phone was momentarily silent. “Let’s talk about this when we meet up.”
“… Okay.”
He got out of bed and washed himself. He put ice cubes on his eyes for a long time, and looked at his red and swollen eyes and his dejected appearance in the mirror. He was reluctant to go out, but he still had to go to work.
After graduating from high school, he couldn’t get into a reputable university and he didn’t wish to continue studying. Since he had an interest in makeup and image-styling from childhood; he dedicated himself to lots and lots of research, until he finally had some achievements in his career. His beauty blog had more than 60,000 fans which meant that he usually had opportunities to earn extra income. It was because of this that he was spotted by the partner of the industry-leading Juxing Stylists and he currently worked as a trainee at Juxing.
Although the monthly apprentice salary was only 1500 yuan3, it was an opportunity that money couldn’t buy. As long as you trained at Juxing for a year and a half, you were guaranteed a decent job anywhere. What you could learn and also the people you could encounter were extraordinary, and it was an easy way to enter the fashion and entertainment industry in the future.
He rushed to the studio and as soon as he entered the door, a man shouted, “Hey, you’re fifteen minutes late!”
Wen Xiaohui replied softly, “Traffic jam.”
“People who drive usually say they’re in a traffic jam but how can you have a traffic jam on the subway? Did you crash into an earthworm?” A man whose hair was bleached an off-white colour, not overly tall and dressed in a skin-tight pair of leather pants approached. He had a slender frame and he was so thin, making his cheeks appear sunken. Although his facial features were attractive, no amount of embellishment was enough to disguise his poor complexion.
His name was Luca, whom Wen Xiaohui secretly awarded the title of the studio’s number one son-of-a-bitch4. He was also an apprentice, but he started half a year earlier than him and he had been targeting him since his first day at work. Normally Wen Xiaohui wouldn’t stand for this, but he wasn’t in the mood to deal with this kind of provocation and he put down his bag and went inside.
“Hey?” Luca came over, grasped his chin and tilted it up. “What’s the matter? Your eyes are as red as a rabbit’s. Did you get dumped? Or are you still feeling sore from losing your virginity?”
“I’m hungover.” Wen Xiaohui slapped his hand away. “Leave me alone.”
Luca glared at him. “Sydney is here already and she’s waiting for you.”
Wen Xiaohui took a few deep breaths, forced himself to raise his spirits and put on a smile. He walked over, crying out sweetly, “Sydney-jie.”
A woman who was playing with her mobile phone on the sofa raised her head. She appeared to be only 27 or 28 and looked enchantingly beautiful. From her hairstyle to makeup to clothing and accessories, everything was refined and lavish, as if her entire body sparkled.
Sydney pouted. “Adi5, what took you so long?”
“It was my friend’s birthday last night and I drank too much.” Wen Xiaohui sat down with a grin and at a volume that could be heard throughout the whole store, he shouted, “Wow, the Cartier limited edition from their spring collection.” He raised Sydney’s thin snow-white wrist, using a finger to gently stroke the exquisite diamond bracelet. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see several guests who were having their hair done in the store staring at them. He knew that his mission for today had been accomplished.
After Sydney felt those envious eyes on her, she smiled happily. “It’s so beautiful; I went to stroll around the store the other day and fell in love with it instantly. It’s the only one in China.”
“There’s only one in China! It’s super beautiful, especially when it’s being worn on the wrist of the great beauty Sydney. It’s 10,000 times more beautiful than in the display cabinet.”
Sydney pinched his cheek. “Little scoundrel’s mouth is so sweet.” She opened her bag and took out a gift box from inside. “Here, it’s the gift I brought you back from Japan. Don’t say that jie doesn’t spoil you.”
Wen Xiaohui opened the gift box, lying inside was a Prada wallet. He was both shocked and happy, and thanked her profusely, coaxing Sydney into a smile.
Sydney looked at her watch. “I’m leaving now.”
Wen Xiaohui’s pair of big eyes shone brightly. “Sydney-jie, did you come especially to give me the present? What should I do? I feel so touched.”
“It’s on the way to Taili6 and I was free anyway. By the way, I have an event next Saturday, so free your schedule for me.”
“No problem. Sydney-jie’s matters are most important to me.” He walked Sydney towards the door.
Before Sydney left, she suddenly remembered something and said, “Adrian, you shouldn’t drink too much and stay up all night. Your complexion looks awful today and your face looks deathly white. It’s not some good foundation that you’ve found, right? It looks very natural.”
Wen Xiaohui said with a smile, “No, I didn’t use makeup today.”
Sydney snorted, “It’s great being young, your skin looks so supple and moisturised.”
“Sydney-jie’s skin is so supple and moisturised. There’s no need to mention anyone else.”
Sydney chuckled, “Alright, I’ll go. You don’t have to see me out.”
“Sydney-jie.” Wen Xiaohui called after her.
“Huh?”
Wen Xiaohui smiled slightly and said sincerely, “I’ve been extremely unlucky today, and seeing you is the only good thing that’s happened to me. Thank you.”
Sydney smiled faintly and winked, then waved as she walked away.
After sending her away, Wen Xiaohui leaned against the door and took a deep breath again. He didn’t know whether it was because of his hangover or that he’d been crying too long, he felt like he had a splitting headache and could faint at any moment.
Going back to the store, Luca was styling the hair of a middle-aged woman and deliberately said in a loud voice, “Yes, that’s Sydney, the presenter of the entertainment program on Channel 2. I bet she’s a kept woman, that bracelet must cost as much as her salary for a full year?”
Wen Xiaohui was pissed and he sneered once. “Luca, you’re wasted as a stylist. Why don’t you go work as a secret agent? Mrs. Zhang, you should be careful when talking to Luca. Luca only has a special agent’s talent for gossip, but not the ability to keep it confidential.”
Luca raised his voice. “Wen Xiaohui, what do you mean?!”
“Zhang Xiong, what do you mean?!” Wen Xiaohui raged. “Gossiping all day, what gives you the right to gossip about my customer?”
“You son-of-a…”
“What’s with the shouting?!” A violent cry came from the office, and a man with an eye mask on top of his head rushed out, “What are you doing? There are customers here. Do you not want to fucking work here anymore?!”
The man who cursed was in his early thirties. His extra-wide European double eyelids didn’t seem that compatible with the shape of an Asian face, but he was still considered pretty good-looking.
Wen Xiaohui immediately said very softly, “Raven, I’m sorry, it’s my fault.” Raven was one of the partners of Juxing studio and he was a famous stylist and makeup designer in the industry. He had many A-list celebrities on the books. Although it was said that his character was dubious and his private life was very chaotic, Wen Xiaohui still admired him a lot for his abilities and talents.
Luca’s arrogance deflated immediately. “Raven, I’m sorry.”
Raven glanced at them and approached with a smile. “Zhang-jie, I’m sorry. The newbies don’t know anything. The bill’s on me, okay?”
Mrs Zhang gave a gentle nod of her head.
Footnotes:
生死之交, comrade-in-arms in the context of the novel as their fathers were in the military, but it can also mean friends who have such a deep friendship that they’re ready to die for each other.
WXH refers to the lawyer as Lawyer Cao throughout, as this is a typical way of addressing a lawyer in Chinese. Since this reads funny in English, I’ve localised it to use the title ‘Mr’.
Equivalent to $240/£175.
贱人, a derogatory term that doesn’t really have a direct translation but the closest would be slut/bitch/bastard. It refers to Luca’s potty mouth, so I’ve altered the term ‘bitch’ so that it’s more appropriate to Luca’s gender.
Adi is short for Adrian, Wen Xiaohui’s English name.
A village outside of Beijing.
