Chapter 3

2013.9.8

I'm so happy, today is the first time Mom and Dad praised me.

Because I won a provincial gold medal in the Olympiad math competition.

They said they'd reward me with a trip to Pizza Hut.

Judging by the name, is it a Western restaurant?

It should be quite upscale, right?

I happily went to invite Xintian, hoping to take her for a meal.

But she told me that the more you eat that junk food, the faster you die?

She also said a breakfast for her costs enough to eat at Pizza Hut for a month, what's there to brag about?

I felt very disappointed.

These past three years, I realized Xintian has always been the precious darling loved by Mom and Dad since she was little.

As for me, I'm merely a stranger child with blood ties to them.

So, I only ever wanted to be good to Xintian.

I never intended to show off.

At noon, the servant told me that Xintian was jealous because Mom and Dad promised to take me out.

To appease Xintian, they took her to an upper-class banquet.

The servant also said only the true eldest daughter of the Song Family is qualified to attend.

...

After waiting for them to return in the evening, I thought I could go to Pizza Hut with Mom and Dad.

But as soon as Mom came back, she slapped me.

Dad was very angry, telling Mom to hit me harder.

"Hit her hard! Let's see if she dares to lie again in the future!"

"It was clearly Xintian's classmate, President Zhao's daughter, who got the medal!"

"I kept saying, how could a child educated in an orphanage be better than our Xintian?"

Dad looked at me viciously.

I didn't know what I did wrong.

I wanted to explain, but Xintian also came forward to accuse me of lying.

"Wantang, I understand you want to gain Mom and Dad's affection, but lying won't work."

"You want to be a daughter of the Song Family, first your virtue needs to pass the standard!"

"A fake gold medal is still fake, just like a false thousand gold!"

She threw the gold medal I worked hard for into the garbage truck.

Mom and Dad didn't listen to my explanation, they just left after scolding and hitting me.

But I really did win the gold medal.

I know I'm not as excellent as Xintian, but why do they have to deny even the achievements I worked hard for?

In the three years, even when Xintian ties her shoelaces, she gets encouragement and praise from Mom and Dad.

I've been diligently learning knowledge, etiquette, and how to please everyone, but in the end, there's not even a person willing to hear my explanation.

Does this family even have a place for me anymore?

The host paused after reading.

"Mrs. Song just explained that you were strict with Lin Wantang for her own good."

"Looking back now, do you think you might have been too harsh?"

He asked Mom, looking at her.

Mom's eyes initially dodged, but soon she regained her composure and confidence.

"I wasn't aware of the gold medal situation!"

"Who asked her not to explain it clearly at the time, any normal person would assume gold, silver, and bronze meant one of each!"

"Besides, winning the gold medal, so what? I hit her to teach her not to be arrogant and rash."

She didn't think she was wrong at all.

The host smiled wryly, questioning back: "So, if it were Miss Song Xintian who won the gold medal, would you have hit her the same way?"

"How could that be? She is our darling, I'd be too happy to..."

Mom suddenly stopped halfway; her face appeared somewhat embarrassed.

"What I mean is, the two kids are not the same kind, they can't be treated the same way."

"Xintian, she's a girl with a delicate face, you have to coax her!"

Again, she trailed off as she spoke.

The comments flooded the screen at that moment.

[Isn't this way too much of a double standard? Song Xintian gets praised for tying a shoelace, but Lin Wantang gets slapped for winning a math gold medal?]

[Don't be easily fooled, the diary was written by Lin Wantang herself, zero credibility, okay?]

[How many thoughts can a thirteen-year-old kid have?]

[To write that she knows she's just a stranger child with blood ties after three years in the Song Family, how desperate she must be inside…]