Chapter 595 Extra – Liu Guojuan Seizes the Daughter

Chapter 595 Extra—Liu Guojuan and the Daughter

The blazing sun made it impossible to keep one's eyes open. Liu Guojuan stood at the school gate, holding iced mung bean soup. Today was the day of Tang Jia's college entrance exams.

Over the years, Liu Guojuan had often visited Tang Jia in secret, even becoming her close friend.

When Tang Jia struggled with academic pressure, Liu Guojuan was there to comfort her. When Tang Jia clashed with her family, Liu Guojuan was the one who talked her through it.

Tang Wenhao genuinely adored his daughter, but Ji Pojun had never bonded with Tang Jia.

Though she never deprived Tang Jia of necessities, compared to the usual affectionate mother-daughter bond, Ji Pojun remained distant—even somewhat resistant.

This was her husband’s child with another woman, a mark on their marriage.

Despite her reluctance, the couple needed a child. Otherwise, the gossip around them would have crushed them, and their marriage would have been in jeopardy.

Most importantly, the one who couldn’t bear children was Ji Pojun herself, so she had no choice but to bite back her resentment.

She knew Tang Wenhao loved her, and she loved him just as much. In the end, it was her love for her husband that made her compromise again and again. Apart from missing the usual mother-daughter closeness, she had never mistreated Tang Jia.

Tang Wenhao, too, understood his wife’s feelings. Since Tang Jia wasn’t her biological child, he was already grateful that his wife had never shortchanged her in daily life—even sparing no expense for her education and living needs.

All of this was seen by Liu Guojuan. Though the couple weren’t the best people, she had to admit that, given the circumstances back then, Tang Jia was better off with them than with her.

Over the years, Liu Guojuan had worked diligently at Ping'an Trading Company, which had since grown into the province’s largest wholesale electronics market. As a veteran employee, she had risen to become a key member of the management team.

She now owned her own home, built a life with Hui Hui, and had built up a sizable savings. She never hid anything from Hui Hui—everything she had would be shared equally with her sister.

As Tang Jia walked out of the school, Liu Guojuan was about to approach her when Tang Jia spotted someone else in the crowd.

"Mom? You came?" Tang Jia was surprised and happy. Her mother had always been indifferent toward her, so she hadn’t expected her to wait for her at the gate.

Ji Pojun’s eyes were now lined with wrinkles. She reached out to tuck a strand of Tang Jia’s hair behind her ear, her gaze complex. The little baby she had taken in had now grown into a young woman.

Despite her initial resistance, she had raised Tang Jia with her own hands. She couldn’t say she felt nothing.

Deep down, she understood the significance of Tang Jia’s existence for her and Tang Wenhao. Without Tang Jia, she would have dealt with a lifetime of gossip, judgment, and pressure from her in-laws—her marriage might not have even survived.

In the end, she needed this child. She needed Tang Jia’s existence to prove she was a mother, a healthy woman, and to protect her from judgment.

After all these years, she had made peace with it—Tang Jia was her own child.

"How did it go?"

Tang Jia’s face fell. "Mom, the questions were really hard. I don’t know how I did—I’m really nervous."

Ji Pojun patted her shoulder. "It’s okay. Your dad and I are here for you. Let’s go home."

Tang Jia let out a sigh of relief, then turned and spotted Liu Guojuan in the crowd.

"Aunt Liu? You’re here too? Is Hui Hui also taking exams today?" Tang Jia greeted her cheerfully, knowing Liu Guojuan had a daughter a year older than her.

She then turned to introduce her. "Mom, this is the Aunt Liu I’ve told you about—she’s so kind."

Liu Guojuan met Ji Pojun’s gaze. "Jiajia’s mom—hello."

The woman’s gaze made Ji Pojun uneasy, but her good upbringing compelled her to respond politely. "Hello, hello. Tang Jia has mentioned you many times. I’ve been meaning to thank you but never got the chance."

Liu Guojuan smiled. "I adore Jiajia. I’ve been wanting to visit you for a while. Today, knowing she had exams, I specially brought some chilled mung bean soup. Here, Jiajia, have some—it’s nice and cold now."

Tang Jia happily took the bottle from Liu Guojuan's hand—it wasn't the first time Liu had brought her something. "Thanks, Auntie."

Ji Pojun grew even more uneasy but plastered on a smile. "Thank you for being so thoughtful, coming all this way to bring Jiajia mung bean soup. If you’re free, why don’t you stay for dinner?"

"Sure!"

Ji Pojun was stunned—she never expected Liu Guojuan to accept so quickly.

At the Tang residence, Ji Pojun busied herself in the kitchen, listening to the laughter between Liu Guojuan and her daughter in the living room, which only deepened her discomfort.

Tang Jia had never been this close to her.

When Tang Wenhao returned from work, he heard his daughter’s laughter even before stepping inside, and a smile instinctively spread across his face. "What’s all the laughter about?"

"Dad, you’re back!" Tang Jia greeted him cheerfully.

"Dad, come here, let me introduce you—"

Liu Guojuan interrupted. "No introductions needed. We’ve met."

With that, she turned to Tang Wenhao with a bright smile. "Wenhao, long time no see."

Tang Wenhao went rigid, his face draining of color. Staring at Liu Guojuan standing beside his daughter, his eyes filled with raw terror.

Ji Pojun, still wearing an apron, rushed out of the kitchen when she saw her husband’s terrified expression, barely catching him as he stumbled back. "Wenhao, what’s wrong?"

If she didn’t see Liu Guojuan was trouble now, she was blind.

"Dad, what’s wrong? Are you okay?" Tang Jia asked anxiously.

"You... why... why are you here?" Tang Wenhao couldn’t meet her gaze before urgently turning to Tang Jia. "Jiajia, go to your room first."

But Liu Guojuan didn’t give him the chance. "I came to see my daughter. Thank you for raising her so well all these years."

"Auntie, what... what are you saying?" Tang Jia went rigid, her face pale.

Liu Guojuan handed Tang Wenhao a business card. "I’ve seen my daughter and thanked you. I have other matters to attend to, so I won’t disturb you further. Oh, I’m staying at the Wanhua Hotel."

With that, Liu Guojuan turned and left—but the Tang family’s world had shattered. That night, a screaming match broke out, tears and curses flying, that lasted well into the early hours.

The next day, Tang Wenhao went to see Liu Guojuan, immediately demanding why she had reappeared, why she was destroying his family, when she had started getting close to his daughter, and what exactly she wanted.

"If you’ve been in contact with Jiajia for so long, then you should know we’ve treated her well. She’s the only child I’ll ever have, and I’ve kept every promise I made." Tang Wenhao’s eyes were rimmed with red.

Liu Guojuan remained calm. "Tang Wenhao, by your logic, I should be thanking you? And you dare say Jiajia is your only child? As if you could’ve had more—was Ji Pojun even capable of having more?

Back then, when your wife couldn’t conceive, you and Ji Pojun deceived me into giving birth to Jiajia, then snatched her from me. I never held it against you, and now you dare interrogate me?

The way you’re carrying on, you’d think I’m the villain here."

Tang Wenhao panicked. "What do you want? Even if we wronged you, Jiajia is still your biological daughter. Are you trying to ruin her life?"

Liu Guojuan met his gaze. "She’s old enough to know the difference between right and wrong—and the truth."

After Tang Wenhao left, Tang Jia stepped out, her eyes swollen from crying. "So that’s it... No wonder Mom never really loved me..."

Liu Guojuan left, knowing better than to press further. Tang Wenhao and Ji Pojun were the ones unraveling now.

She urged Tang Jia to come to A City when she could—her birth mother and sister were waiting for her there. That’s where her family is.

Tang Jia said nothing, watching Liu Guojuan leave.

Over the next two years, Tang Jia's life was difficult. Ji Pojun became more controlling, to the point where Tang Jia wanted to escape, yet she couldn't bear to cut ties.

This was exactly what Liu Guojuan had hoped to see. The two families remained locked in this struggle for three or four years.

Tang Jia was getting married.

For the first time, Liu Guojuan asked something of Tang Jia—she wanted to attend the wedding as the bride's biological mother and had prepared a generous dowry for her.

Over the years, every time Ji Pojun caused a scene, it was Liu Guojuan who handled the fallout. Even when Ji Pojun cut off Tang Jia's college tuition to control her, Liu Guojuan quietly stepped in to cover it. Tang Jia knew Liu Guojuan tolerated Tang Wenhao and Ji Pojun in many ways—all for her sake.

This was the first request Liu Guojuan had ever made of her in all these years, and she couldn't refuse.

At the wedding, two mothers wore corsages as the bride's mothers. Liu Guojuan, now a manager at Ping'an Trade, was no longer the meek single mother of the past. She was socially adept, charming, adaptable, and commanding attention. She even took the stage to deliver a speech.

Tang Wenhao and Ji Pojun, weathered by years of anguish, looked much older and frailer. Already a decade older than Liu Guojuan, they now seemed like a generation apart.

To their credit, they genuinely loved Tang Jia. Despite the guests' judgmental stares, Ji Pojun, seething with anger and trembling so badly she could barely hold her wine glass, forced a smile and endured.

Tang Wenhao watched his wife carefully, knowing how devastating this was for her. Though both were barely on their feet, they maintained their strained smiles through the ceremony, determined not to leave any regrets for Tang Jia's wedding.

After the banquet, Ji Pojun collapsed in the lounge, clutching her chest. By the time Tang Wenhao got her to the emergency room, he too had collapsed.

Liu Guojuan watched as Tang Jia, tears in her eyes, hurriedly changed out of her wedding dress and rushed to the hospital, her mouth filled with bitterness.

The love that raises a child means more than the blood that made her. She had missed Tang Jia's childhood, her growth—things money could never make up for. In this battle between her, Tang Wenhao, and Ji Pojun, there were no winners.