Chapter 4 — Return to Eighteen

“Uc Nhue Ninh, what the hell are you talking about!” I said nothing, just sat there calmly. Seeing that I didn't speak, Mr. Uc's father grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the chair. "Get out of here! Don't be embarrassed here anymore!" Mr. Uc's father pulled open the bedroom door and pushed me out with force. The door behind me was slammed shut, I heard from inside the apologetic laughter of Australia's father. "Sorry guys, this girl is crazy..." I didn't listen anymore and walked out of the restaurant. The June wind blew into my face, bringing with it hot humidity. I walked around aimlessly for a long time, unconsciously arriving at the school gate. The university entrance exam ended, the schoolyard was deserted. I crossed the schoolyard and found a cardboard diary on the corner of the lecture hall building's rooftop. Whenever the academic pressure is great, I often go to the rooftop to write in my diary. First page. 'Today Lac Tu Hanh bought me breakfast, he said he knew I hadn't eaten breakfast, afraid I'd be hungry.' Second page. 'Lac Tu Hanh said he wanted to take the same university exam as me, I'm so happy.' Third page. 'I don't understand, why my parents always treat Nhue Dao better than me.' The fourth page, fifth page... It's all about Lac Tu Hanh's name and my confusion towards Nhue Dao's favoritism. parents. I turned the pages one by one, my fingers shaking slightly. Flipping to the last page, I stopped. On the back of the last page, using a pencil, very faintly wrote a small line. 'If one day, I am like Nhue Dao, will they also favor me?' I stared at that line, the corners of my eyes stinging. The previous life was too miserable, this life returned too quickly. How could I forget, actually I was always a child that no one loved. The wind howled, blowing the diary rustling. I took a deep breath and tore down each page of the diary. White pieces of paper flew from my hand, scattered by the wind, flying into the sky like snowflakes. Each piece of paper passed by me, like some kind of farewell. I just watched those pieces of paper gradually disappear at the edge of the terrace. I stood on the rooftop for a long time before coming down. As soon as I stepped out of the school gate, a gray-haired old lady suddenly stopped me. The old woman was wearing a faded floral shirt, holding a wooden stick in her hand, her whole body shaking. Face full of tears. I didn't know her, but for some reason I felt sorry for her, so I quickly helped her and asked, "Grandma, what's wrong?" Her tears fell even faster, she grabbed my hand tightly. "Grandchild, I'm your grandmother!" My head was ringing, and I stammered a bit. "You're wrong, my grandmother lives in Giang Son district..." The old woman held me tightly: "Stupid child, that's your sister's grandmother, not yours." "Your biological mother is my daughter! My current mother You are the woman my father was looking for outside, your daughter was provoked to death by them!” I was stunned on the spot, my whole body turned cold. The old woman cried until she choked up: "When I was one year old, my father brought that promiscuous woman home. My mother was so angry that she couldn't get up." "My father didn't let me treat him, and every day he led that woman around in front of my mother." "The day my mother left, he took her hand and said - Mom, help me take care of Nhue Ninh." "But not long after, my father remarried and moved house, no matter how much I looked, I couldn't find you!" My legs were weak. I could only shake my head instinctively: "It's not like that..." But the times when Australia's mother discriminated between me and Australia Nhue Dao remained stuck in my heart. The old lady saw that I didn't believe her, so she took out a yellowed photo from her pocket. "Look, this is a photo of your mother holding you." I tremblingly took it, the child in the photo looked exactly like me in the album at home now.

But the person who was gently hugging me was not Australia's mother. With just one look, tears fell from my eyes. It turned out that the person who had favored Nhue Dao since childhood, saying I had personality problems, was not my biological mother at all. Grandma squatted down and hugged me. "Grandchild, grandma has been looking for you for fifteen years..." I cried for a long time, until my tears dried up, then I raised my head from her chest. The voice was hoarse, but carried a certain determination. "Grandma, don't worry, I won't let you down." Having said that, I took out my phone from my pocket and dialed a number. "Hello, is it the Department of Education? I want to anonymously report that someone wants to exchange my college entrance exam scores." After hanging up, I stood in place for a long time in a daze. Grandma gently pulled my hand: "Grandchild, can you come home with me?" "I rented a house in the slums, there are also houses in the countryside, I won't leave you without a place to stay." Looking at her careful expression, my nose stung. I used my strength to hold her hand and softly said: "Yes, I will go home with you." "But before that, I still have to do something." "What job?" I didn't say anything, I just dragged her to the electronics market and bought a super small hidden camera. Then go back to the Australian family's house. Pushing the door in, there was no one in the house, which made me breathe a sigh of relief.