Hearing this, Lin Wu said, "Yes, I indeed don't know my own biological family. But that's still better than knowing yet being as good as an orphan without the upbringing of relatives."
"What did you say?!"
Lin Jiangchuan's anger surged.
Standing by, Lin Qian quickly grabbed him and said softly and meekly, "Second Brother, don't be angry with her. It's normal for her to be upset with us since she's been driven out of the Lin Family. We shouldn't stoop to her level, otherwise, wouldn't it make Grandpa uncomfortable when we meet again in the future? You've seen how much Grandpa likes her."
Lin Jiangchuan grew even angrier.
He looked at the obedient and pretty Lin Qian, then at the irritating Lin Wu, and he just couldn't understand why the Old Mr. Lin favored Lin Wu and not Qianqian?!
Hmph, old people really are muddled!
Not willing to let it go, Lin Jiangchuan was about to further mock Lin Wu.
However, the Old Mr. Lin in the hospital room had already heard the commotion and immediately called out, "Wuwu, is that you? Come in quickly."
Seeing them blocking the doorway, Lin Wu barged past them to enter.
Lin Jiangchuan and Lin Qian probably hadn't expected Lin Wu to be so strong; she bumped them, causing them to stagger.
Lin Jiangchuan quickly went to steady Lin Qian, and only after she was stable did he turn around, storm into the room, and, looking at Lin Wu standing in front of Old Mr. Lin's bed, scolded, "Are you blind? Can't you see that you bumped into me and Qianqian? Kneel and apologize to me!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than he saw Lin Wu look at him, her dark eyes filled with chill.
Lin Jiangchuan stepped back, realizing he had been intimidated, and said annoyed, "What are you looking at! You were the one who bumped into us first!"
Old Mr. Lin frowned and said, "Enough! Wuwu didn't do it on purpose. You were the ones blocking her way in the first place, so who's to blame?"
Lin Jiangchuan couldn't believe what he was hearing, "Grandfather, Qianqian and I are your relatives. How can you side with an outsider! Besides, it's obvious that she did it on purpose to provoke us!"
Lin Qian, who was standing behind, flashed a look in her eyes, moved to Lin Jiangchuan's side, and pulled on his arm, "Second Brother, let it be. Don't upset Grandpa; it's bad for his health."
Lin Jiangchuan became even more dissatisfied, "Grandpa, look how filial Qianqian is to you! Yet she is being wronged because of Lin Wu, this wretch, and you're not even helping her. Are you still our family's Grandpa?!"
Lin Qian bit her lip and lowered her head without saying anything further.
Old Mr. Lin, also angry at being questioned, said, "Did you treat me as your Grandpa? First thing in the morning, all you talk and ask about is whether I will attend the grandchild's paternity press conference and insist on making me hear her call me 'Grandpa'. Have you ever asked how this old man is feeling or whether I can be discharged from the hospital?!"
He patted the bedside table; the banging sounds made Lin Jiangchuan and Lin Qian's hearts skip a beat.
"I've grown old, but my mind is still clear! I can clearly see who treats this old man well and who sincerely cares about me!"
Lin Jiangchuan felt somewhat guilty, "But aren't you well now, Elder? Since there's nothing wrong, shouldn't that be great? You should be able to leave the hospital. Moreover, for the press conference of your grand-daughter acknowledging her ancestors, as a grandfather, you should attend, even if you have to be in a wheelchair, shouldn't you?"
Old Mr. Lin laughed out of extreme anger, "Go? Go back and tell your confused parents, when you realize your mistakes, that's when I will recognize you!"
Hearing this, Lin Qian felt aggrieved, her eyes welling up with tears, she said, "Grandpa, I know you cherish Lin Wu, but I haven't done anything wrong. Why won't you accept me? I also want to be like Big Brother and Second Brother and be a proper child of the Lin family."
Old Mr. Lin couldn't help but soften inside, but as soon as he saw Lin Wu standing aside coldly and indifferently, he immediately firmed his resolve and turned his face away, "It's not that you did anything, but your parents and two brothers made mistakes!"
Lin Jiangchuan was displeased at this, "It's clearly you who are wrong, Grandpa! Lin Wu isn't as well-behaved and obedient as Qianqian, and she can't compare to Qianqian in her studies either. She's simply ignorant! With Qianqian as your granddaughter, you should be the one feeling secretly pleased!"
The Lin Family patriarch frowned, "Nonsense, when has Wuwu ever been ignorant? She has always had the best grades..."
Lin Wu interrupted the Lin Family patriarch, "Grandpa, you should rest."
Lin Jiangchuan scoffed, "The best grades? Grandpa, do you think we never asked her middle and high school teachers? Smoking, drinking, skipping classes, fighting, never missing a single punishment, and frequently absent from exams—is this your idea of 'good'?"
Turning back, he took Lin Qian's hand and dropped a cold sentence, "Such a person is your treasure. Grandpa, just make sure you don't regret not acknowledging Qianqian later!"
With that, Lin Jiangchuan directly dragged Lin Qian away.
The Lin Family patriarch wanted to argue but didn't get the chance before angrily lying back down, saying, "This child, he's been spoiled rotten by Shenghai and the others!"
Lin Wu sat down and said indifferently, "He didn't say anything wrong. I really did all those things."
The Lin Family patriarch stared at Lin Wu in astonishment.
Lin Wu casually took an orange to peel for the Lin Family patriarch and said with her head down, "Otherwise, with my grades, why do you think I wasn't recommended for early admission to Beijing University? There were too many disciplinary actions in my file, and I couldn't pass the political vetting."
The Lin Family patriarch's frown deepened and after a while, he asked with a grave expression, "Wuwu, tell Grandpa the truth, did you get bullied at school and were forced to do those things?"
Lin Wu's eyelids drooped slightly.
Bullied?
Who would dare in school?
At that time, she had just moved to the countryside and initially, Lin Shenghai would call to check in on her every now and then, but it wasn't long before he stopped asking, and no one told her when she could return.
Later, she encountered some troublemakers and casually heard them say how they were always being pestered by their families for their disorderly behavior, which annoyed them to no end.
She stupidly took note and started copying them.
When the dean called Lin Shenghai and Fang Ruling, they didn't come but scolded her over the phone instead, and later on, they didn't even pick up the dean's calls.
Lin Wu understood and gave up.
However, it was also around that time that she came into contact with another world through those troublemakers. Although she suffered quite a bit in the process, fortunately, she had now climbed to a position where she no longer needed to care about anyone.
Lin Wu handed the peeled orange to the Lin Family patriarch and said softly, "It was nothing, I was just ignorant back then. Grandpa, I have a question for you. Did you go anywhere last week? Somewhere like a laboratory?"
Seeing that Lin Wu didn't want to talk about the past, the Lin Family patriarch followed her lead and did not ask further.
He said, "No, I didn't. Why are you suddenly asking this?"
Lin Wu didn't want the Lin Family patriarch to know too much, to avoid him getting anxious with all sorts of thoughts. She said, "Just asking. Have you seen anyone strange, or has someone given you any strange thing?"
The Lin Family patriarch thought for a moment, then shook his head, "If we're talking about people from outside of the hospital I saw last week, that would be Shenghai and the others coming to visit me, wanting me to help them get you to come back. To persuade me, they even brought me a gift."