Chapter 684: My Surname is Lin

Chapter 684: My Surname Is Lin

Jiang Yu was even more confused. "Then who are they?"

He Tingyue shook his head. "I’ll check with the Housing Authority tomorrow."

If there was an issue, the Housing Authority would send someone to handle it.

Jiang Yu didn’t worry about it for now—after all, they didn’t need the house immediately.

They were definitely getting it back; it was just a question of how.

The next day, Jiang Yu brought up the courtyard house while talking to Old Lady Ma.

Old Lady Ma asked, "You mean the house Grandpa Ting Yue left you?"

"Yes, the one in the hutong—someone’s living there now."

Old Lady Ma frowned. "How is someone living there? That house has been empty for years."

Jiang Yu cocked her head, puzzled. "Teacher, you know about this courtyard house too?"

Old Lady Ma nodded. "Actually, that courtyard was mine originally. I sold it back then for cash, and I only found out later that the He family had bought it."

At the time, she figured it was for the best—at least no one would dare to seize it.

After all, back in those chaotic times, it was common for houses to be occupied by others.

Only in recent years did they start settling property disputes.

Even now, many people still occupy homes that aren't theirs.

Jiang Yu was surprised by this twist and casually asked, "Teacher, could the family living there be Qin family friends?"

According to the Housing Authority’s records, the house hadn’t been reassigned.

If the occupants didn’t even know the owner, how could they just move in like that?

She guessed that perhaps they knew about the Qins and assumed the Qin family would never be rehabilitated, which was why they felt safe occupying the house.

Old Lady Ma immediately said, "I’ll go with you to take a look."

The moment they walked out, they saw Qin Yunan’s car parked at the gate.

"Mom, where are you going?"

Old Lady Ma pulled Jiang Yu into the car. "Great, you can drive us."

She gave Qin Yunan an address.

Qin Yunan had a hazy memory that this place used to belong to the Qin family.

Old Lady Ma explained to him, "Back then, to send you all to Hong Kong, I sold off a lot of our belongings. Later, I found out this house was bought by Grandpa Ting Yue, and now it’s ended up with Jiang Yu and her husband."

Qin Yunan suddenly understood. "Ah, I see. Mom, I came today to tell you—I’m going back to Hong Kong to get Baiyun and the kids."

He’d gotten approval for his factory project on the mainland.

From now on, he could travel between Hong Kong and the mainland more easily.

Jiang Yu caught the name in his words and fell silent.

"Baiyun? Senior brother, may I ask, what's your wife's name?"

Qin Yunan replied frankly, "Wei Baiyun—she’s from North City too."

Jiang Yu: "..."

How weird is it when your mother-in-law turns into your sister-in-law?

Old Lady Ma picked up on her discomfort and asked softly, "What's wrong? Do you know her?"

Jiang Yu: "I don’t just know her—I know her well."

Qin Yunan did a double take, glancing back at her.

"You know Baiyun?"

Jiang Yu’s lips thinned, her voice tight.

"Uh... Ting Yue’s mom goes by that name."

Old Lady Ma: "..."

Qin Yunan hit the brakes and pulled the car over to the roadside, his emotions complicated.

They were both on their second marriage. They hit it off and tied the knot fast.

All he knew was that Wei Baiyun had been married before and had children, all in North City.

She didn’t like dwelling on it, so Qin Yunan didn’t press further.

He just hadn’t seen this coming.

"Wait—Wei Baiyun’s your mother-in-law?" Qin Yunan confirmed with Jiang Yu, word by word.

Jiang Yu gave a stiff nod. "Yeah. That’s her. Senior, do you have a pen and paper on you?"

Qin Yunan passed her a notepad and his trusty fountain pen.

Jiang Yu wrote down the three characters "Wei Baiyun" on the paper.

"If it’s the same name, then no mistake about it."

Qin Yunan looked at the name on the paper and was already certain.

"That’s the name."

He let out a dry laugh, dragging a hand down his face, unsure how to face Jiang Yu at the moment.

Here he was, Jiang Yu’s senior brother, but also He Tingyue’s... stepdad?

"This is a whole mess." Jiang Yu didn’t even know whether to call him "senior" or "uncle" now.

Qin Yunan shrugged and restarted the car.

"Let’s just roll with it for now. We’ll sort this out once Baiyun’s back."

Jiang Yu craned her neck. "Senior, what’s my mother-in-law been up to all this time? Ting Yue had no clue where she’d gone. Who knew she’d wind up in Hong Kong?"

Qin Yunan said, "Her position was delicate. Had she stayed in Hong Kong, she would have been implicated."

The Wei family was wealthy, as shown by the lavish dowry Wei Baiyun brought when she married He Jingyi.

With so many assets under her control, even if she surrendered them all, she wouldn't have escaped consequences.

"The Weis had better connections than mine, so she got off relatively easy. In fact, she even helped me during my toughest times."

His relationship with Wei Baiyun could be described as a classic poor-boy-meets-rich-girl romance.

Back then, he had no connections in Hong Kong. If not by chance, he probably wouldn’t have had the opportunity to interact with Wei Baiyun at all.

Qin Yunan paused before asking, "Do Ting Yue and his sibling resent her?"

Jiang Yu shook her head. "No. Ting Yue once told me that his mother longed for freedom, and he only has good wishes for her."

Qin Yunan heaved a heavy sigh.

The car stopped at the entrance of the alley, and Old Lady Ma and Jiang Yu got out.

When they reached the door, Jiang Yu stepped forward and knocked.

The person who answered was the same man they'd met the day before.

The moment he saw Jiang Yu, he looked wary again.

Running into her yesterday might have been a coincidence, but today was different.

"Why are you here again?"

Jiang Yu replied, "Because this house belongs to me. I came yesterday to claim it and was surprised to find people living inside. I’m here today to check again. May I ask who you are?"

The man’s expression changed. He adjusted his black-framed glasses, growing agitated.

"I don’t know what you’re talking about. This house is mine. You're mistaken."

He scrambled to shut the door, but Old Lady Ma spoke up.

"Yaowen."

The man bracing the door froze and looked up at Old Lady Ma.

He stared at her for a long time, his face cycling through confusion to shock, and finally to panic.

Old Lady Ma let out a long breath, her expression stern as she spoke in a low voice:

"After all these years apart, can't you recognize your own grandmother?"

Jiang Yu gasped—this man was actually Qin Yunan’s eldest son, Qin Yaowen?

Even though Old Lady Ma had already revealed herself, the man still kept dodging.

"I don’t know you. I'm not a Qin anymore. My surname is Lin. I have nothing to do with the Qin family!"

These were words Old Lady Ma had heard many years ago.

Qin Yaowen—no, he now went by Lin Yaowen.

Before the Qin family even faced trouble, when rumors first spread, he was quick to disown them.

Later, he even took part in ransacking the Qin family with the rioters.

Thus, his denials now rolled off Old Lady Ma.

"If you’re no longer part of the Qin family, why are you living in this house? What gives you the right to stay here?"