Chapter 554 - Do You Have the Guts? (1/2)
Su Peizhen looked at herself in the mirror, carefully painting her lips red. When she was done, she pouted them slightly. Deciding she looked stunning, she stood up from the chair.
Putting on her coat, she looked at herself in the mirror once more, to ensure that every last detail was perfect. Only then did she pick up her purse to head out.
She opened the door and saw Xiang Caiping there.
Xiang Caiping was waiting at the door and seemed to want to talk to her.
“Mom, what are you doing here?”
“It’s almost dinner time. Are you going out again?”
Xiang Caiping looked at Su Peizhen and spoke carefully,
“Yeah. I have an appointment with a friend. We’re meeting up for a chat.”
Xiang Caiping’s lips twisted as though she was chewing on the words that she held back.
“You haven’t eaten at home for three days. Peizhen, I’m just…”
“Mom, I really have to do this. I’m not playing around,” Su Peizhen blinked her eyes as she explained herself, “I just moved to this city. I don’t know this place well yet. I have to make some local friends, don’t I?”
Xiang Caiping looked at the girl.
She was pretty and well dressed with delicately applied makeup. She still looked like the rich girl from Lin City that she used to be.
For a moment, Xiang Caiping wondered what her life would have been like, had she not taken Su Peizhen back.
“Peizhen.” Xiang Caiping’s face grew serious all of a sudden.
“Yeah?” Seeing the look on her mother’s face, Su Peizhen adjusted her attitude and erased the careless smile she was wearing.
“What’s wrong?” She asked.
“Nothing. I’m just wondering if you wanted to go back to Lin City.”
“Mom, why would you say that?”
“I mean it.” Xiang Caiping had been doing a lot of thinking recently. The more time she spent with Su Peizhen, the more she had missed the previous months when she had kept Su Qingsang at her side.
She knew it wasn’t right, but she couldn’t stop herself from comparing the two girls.
Su Peizhen didn’t like Xiang Caiping and could not accept her as her mother. Xiang Caiping was well aware of this. She had a lifetime of experience that allowed her to recognize it.
Comparing Su Peizhen’s attitude with Su Qingsang’s, Xiang Caiping saw clearly that Su Peizhen might not want to be her daughter.
“I’m thinking that maybe you like Lin City more. In fact, it’ll be fine if you want to go back there. I-I can beg your father, I can ask him to let you return.”
“Mom.” Su Peizhen’s face fell. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m serious.” Xiang Caiping didn’t want to, but she thought maybe the girl would prefer it. She could see the differences between Su Peizhen and Su Qingsang.
Su Qingsang had grown up as the illegitimate daughter of the Su Family. She had never been loved by Su Chenghui and Li Qianxue when she was little.
In contrast to her, Su Peizhen used to be like a princess, treasured by the entire Li Family.
The Li Family was super-wealthy, and Su Chenghui was rich too. Xiang Caiping understood the girl might be having difficulty adapting to her current life.
“Your father owes me. If I beg him to, I believe that…”
“Mom.” Su Peizhen raised her voice to speak. “I won’t call you Mom again if you do that.”
Xiang Caiping was shocked to hear Su Peizhen say that. Her face had changed so drastically. She stood there, not certain how to respond.
Su Peizhen cleared her throat when she realized that she had been too aggressive.
“Mom, listen to me. We are good now. Really, I like our life here.”
“Really?” Xiang Caiping hated Su Chenghui, but she loved her daughter.
Su Peizhen wrestled down her discontent and forced smile on her face as she looked at Xiang Caiping.
“Mom, listen to me. We are together now. We have each other. As for my father, I’ll never forgive him for casting me out of the family. So please, don’t say anything like that again.”
“I won’t. I won’t.”
Xiang Caiping forced herself to smile reassuringly. She treated Su Peizhen in a different way from how she would have treated Su Qingsang.
She found herself somehow a little afraid of Su Peizhen.
“Peizhen,” she said, “when you’ve finished with whatever work you doing now, can you spend more time at home?”
Su Peizhen knitted her brows, wanting to say no. However, seeing the nervous look on Xiang Caiping’s face, she couldn’t bring herself to push those words out.
“Alright, I get it. I’ve been busy lately. But don’t worry. I’ll spend more time with you when I get everything done. Alright?”
“That would be great.”
Xiang Caiping didn’t dare to say anything else as she watched Su Peizhen leave.
After Su Peizhen had left, she leaned against the wall. She couldn’t help but think of Su Qingsang again.
Su Qingsang would never leave her at home alone like that, would she?
Su Qingsang would stay and comfort her.
Of course, Su Qingsang wouldn’t always be going out. She had spent much of her time at home, keeping Xiang Caiping company when they had lived together.
Realizing where her mind had wandered, Xiang Caiping felt her heart once more welling up in bitterness.
She hated Su Chenghui so much. That hatred reached its zenith at that very moment. It was all his fault. Everything was his fault.
Su Peizhen was oblivious to Xiang Caiping’s internal struggles. She got into her car but before she started the engine, she turned to glance at Xiang Caiping.