5 Who's Your Grandpa?

A girl entered, wearing a white casual dress, printed with large sunflowers. Her long black hair tied up in a high ponytail, she looked to be in her late teens and shared many facial features with Wang Zhiyu. She sat down at the dining table as though she was a member of their family. Immediately, butler Yun went to get a glass of orange juice for her.

"Who's your grandpa? I certainly don't remember Xueting giving birth to more than one daughter." Elder Ning was dismissive, picking up his glass of juice. Wang Zhiling clenched her fists under the table and an ugly look crossed her face fleetingly, before returning to a smile. She reminded herself that sitting in front of her was not just a normal old man, but one of the country's founding fathers, Ning Ren. She couldn't afford to offend him.

In truth, she wanted to establish a good relationship with Ning Ren to boost her own status, so she politely replied, "Indeed you only have one granddaughter but I am Xiao Yu's sister, so I should also call you grandpa." She smiled at Zhiyu, expecting her sister to back her up. Instead, Zhiyu continued eating her breakfast, barely acknowledging the conversation. Ignored, Wang Zhiling smiled awkwardly.

As Wang Jingwen did not acknowledge her or her mother, the two of them lived in a separate villa and only Wang Zhiling could visit the family mansion once a week for breakfast. Her mother couldn't even step foot in the family mansion as a family member, only as a guest. Because of this, Wang Zhiling harboured a deep hatred for her sister and had been nurturing it for over ten years. Initially, she and her mother had thought that once Ning Xueting was dead, they would be able to take up the pedestal and live pampered lives as the respected wife and daughter of Wang Siqi. Who knew that Wang Jingwen would not acknowledge them and actually forbade them from living in the family mansion?

Zhiling had to take advantage of this weekly chance and make a good impression on her grandfather. She adopted many of Zhiyu's mannerisms, even going as far as to call elder Ning her grandpa. Elder Ning snorted at her statement: she and Zhiyu were sisters? What sister backstabbed her sister time and time again? Even if Zhiyu couldn't see the black-heartedness of her sister, as her elder, he could see that Wang Zhiling harboured ill intentions towards her.

"Hmph, I don't want to be associated with the likes of you." Elder Ning blatantly snubbed Wang Zhiling's attempt to get closer with him, turning the air uncomfortable. They continued eating in silence and eventually, the servants cleared the plates and brought out cups of tea and coffee as the group of four continued sitting at the table.

Although Zhiyu had initially planned to only eat breakfast before leaving to do some reading, she felt the need to bring up the topic of school. It would be her first step to leading a normal teenage life. "Grandpa Wang, I want to go back to school and complete my final year of high school."

"Why? Are the tutors I have hired not good enough? If you want, grandpa can hire more for you. It will be unsafe in school and you may have a relapse. What if you fall into a coma again?" Grandpa Wang was anxious to keep Zhiyu out of school. Although she had undergone psychological therapy and those professionals had said that she should not have any suicidal tendencies, he could not help worrying. After all, it had already happened once.

When she heard elder Wang's caring tone, Wang Zhiling felt a rush of jealousy within her. But then she thought, if Zhiyu went to the same school as she did, she would be able to 'take care' of her. "Grandpa, if Xiao Yu wants to go to school, you should send her to the People's High School. As her older sister, I can look after her while she is there." Zhiling purposefully emphasised her role as Zhiyu's older sister and eagerly persuaded her grandfather.

Ignoring Zhiling, Zhiyu refuted elder Wang's worries, "Grandpa Wang, there's nothing wrong with the tutors you've hired, I just want to have a normal school life. Besides, the doctors have already said that I have fully recovered. I'm not going to suffer from a relapse." She was keen to go. Having been homeschooled and practically caged in her previous life, she wanted to experience what it would be like in a classroom setting.

Elder Wang tried a different approach to persuade her against the idea. "There will be a ridiculously tough workload at school. I'm afraid you will not be able to handle it. The amount your tutors have been giving you is not comparable to the amount you will be given once you go to school. I don't want you to burn out from too much studying."

"Grandpa! I know my limits. Please don't use burning out as an excuse. The tutors have done their best and I am confident in my knowledge. I don't believe that I will be studying too hard. Please, grandpa, just let me go to school!" Zhiyu pouted, even letting her eyes become a little damp. It was hard to tell if she was faking her tears but it was clear to see that she was going to resort to everything she had in order to get her way. In the end, elder Ning couldn't stand her pitiful look and decided to intervene. "Old Wang, let the child go to school. She should spend her youth with people of a similar age, not sit at home holed up with two old fogeys like us."

Upon hearing this, elder Wang relented. He also wanted Zhiyu to lead a happy life, making friends with people of her own age. "Okay, I will let you go to school." Zhiyu's pout immediately turned into a smile, the tears in her eyes gone and she squealed inwardly. "However, if I feel you are working yourself too hard, I will take you out of school immediately." She was so happy she had stopped listening, practically bounced her way out of the dining hall towards the home library.

Zhiling smiled too, pleased that she could put her plan into action. This time, she would take everything from Wang Zhiyu. In her mind, everything Zhiyu had was meant to be hers. Hers by birthright. As breakfast was over, Zhiling also got up, said goodbye to the elders and left the mansion.