After the Fake Heiress Died, She Was Filled with Regret - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Take Back What That Girl Occupied…

Three consecutive days of evening classes finally ended. Tang Yin quickly ate dinner at the cafeteria and headed to the school gate to wait for the bus. When the bus arrived, she found a random seat, and her phone screen lit up.

The owner of the coffee shop where she used to work part-time sent a message, saying that the temporary staff they had recently hired were unreliable and asked if she could help out once if she was free soon, offering double the pay.

Tang Yin calculated the time and replied with an “Okay.”

It would be foolish not to make money when she could.

She clutched her phone and looked out the window. The bus drove away from the university town. The streets outside became increasingly brightly lit, gradually revealing the prosperity of the big city, but Tang Yin felt alienated and afraid.

Back in her hometown, she yearned to grow up and go to university in City A.

But now, she wished she could go back to the past, when she knew nothing, was poor, but always felt she could carve out a path for herself.

After getting off at the stop, Tang Yin didn’t walk long before arriving at an old alley. A few recycling stations were open nearby, and the smell was naturally unpleasant, but a smile hung on Tang Yin’s face. She walked quickly to an apartment building, climbed the stairs in a few steps, and then knocked on the door.

The person inside moved slowly. Tang Yin waited patiently, but when the door opened, she saw a kind and benevolent face that looked very pale.

“Grandma!” Tang Yin’s smile froze on her lips. She quickly helped the elderly woman into the house.

“Why is your complexion so poor? Why aren’t you resting? What are you busy with!?” She looked around the room and saw the dim light in the kitchen was still on, with some dishes piled up.

Tang Yin seemed to understand. Her tone carried a hint of reproach: “Didn’t I tell you not to set up the stall to sell sweet soup when I’m not here?”

There was a night school nearby, and Grandma used to set up a stall selling sweet soup next to it, but her health hadn’t been good this year, so Tang Yin had told her to stop.

“I have nothing to do anyway, and summer is coming soon. Many people drink sweet soup at night. They all like to drink it.” Tang Bixia said with a chuckle and then asked curiously, “Why are you back? Didn’t you say you’re busy this semester? You even knocked. It’s not like I didn’t give you a key.”

Tang Yin locked the door and then very consciously took out the broom and started cleaning. “You forgot we’re going to the hospital for a check-up tomorrow? I intentionally knocked because I wanted to see if you were busy doing things behind my back and not taking good care of yourself.”

Tang Bixia: “Nonsense. I’m not a little girl anymore. How could I not take good care of myself?”

“Then stop setting up the stall! How can I be at ease at school if you’re like this!!” Tang Yin stomped her foot, quickly swept the floor clean, and then went to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

The next moment, she found the kitchen light was flickering, which hurt her eyes.

Tang Yin sighed, the frustration in her heart was blocked in her chest and couldn’t be released. She pulled down the sleeves she had just rolled up and was about to go out.

“Yingying, where are you going?”

Tang Yin practically ran down the stairs, the wind whistling past her ears. She breathed deeply until she saw a convenience store, then walked in, and came out holding several bags.

Tang Bixia was worried about her granddaughter and left the door open, waiting for her to return. Seeing the items in her hand when she came back, she frowned and sighed with distress, complaining, “I told you not to come back. As soon as you’re back, you buy this and that… Anyway, I sleep early. It doesn’t matter if the light doesn’t work. Buying a new one is a waste of money! Do you have enough money? I’ll give you some more allowance.”

“No need!” Tang Yin stopped her grandmother and made her sit on a chair. She then changed the light bulb herself, speaking in a gentle tone: “Grandma, my allowance is enough. If the light bulb breaks again, call me immediately, and I’ll change it for you. Also, tell me if anything else is broken. Don’t always try to save money. These things should be replaced when they need to be.”

Tang Bixia agreed. Watching Tang Yin change the light bulb and then go to heat water, she couldn’t help but sigh that her granddaughter had truly grown up. She smiled contentedly and said, “Yingying, are you dating anyone at school?”

“No,” Tang Yin said without thinking, while busy with her tasks.

“Why not? Is there no one you fancy?” Tang Bixia was curious. “When I set up my stall at night, I often see young people in pairs, about your age.”

Tang Yin brought her grandmother a basin of warm water for her feet, squatted down to help her take off her shoes and socks, and looked up, saying, “What’s the point of dating? I just want to graduate early, earn lots and lots of money, treat your illness, and let you enjoy a comfortable life.”

“You don’t need to worry about my illness. It’s been so many years, and I’m old. Maybe one day…” Tang Bixia stopped herself quickly when she saw her granddaughter’s face change. She smiled and asked about another topic. “Then you should also make more friends at school. Everyone can help each other.”

“Mhm.” Tang Yin agreed. Suddenly, she thought of Xia Shinan, and the corner of her lips curved up slightly, “I helped a good girl two days ago.”

“A good girl? Was that girl very well-behaved?”

Tang Yin lowered her eyes and thought for a moment. “She seems very well-behaved. She has excellent manners too. I heard her family is very rich and gave her the best education since she was a child. She’s definitely better off than me.”

“What about that? You are attending the same university. That means my Yingying is not bad either,” Tang Bixia said with a smile. “What did you help her with?”

Tang Yin naturally didn’t want to go into detail, “It was nothing. Just a small thing.”

After massaging her grandmother’s feet and letting the elderly woman return to her room to rest, she got up to clean herself up in the bathroom.

Tang Bixia watched Tang Yin tidying the sofa, her heart aching.

This small apartment had one bedroom and one living room. They rented it because it was close to the hospital for the elderly woman’s check-ups and because the price was cheap. Tang Bixia was initially reluctant to rent it for only one reason: there was only one bedroom.

But her granddaughter was very satisfied, “It’s fine for me to sleep on the sofa. I only come back occasionally; I usually stay at the dorm.”

Though she said that, every time she saw Tang Yin sleeping on the sofa, Tang Bixia felt heartache.

“Yingying, sleep with Grandma?”

“No need, Grandma. I still have to wash up and things. Sleeping on the sofa is more convenient and won’t bother you,” Tang Yin said with a smile, helping her grandmother into the bedroom, “Get some rest early. We have a hospital check-up tomorrow.”

“Okay,” Tang Bixia replied with a smile. She knew her granddaughter was dutiful. She was also trying her best to take care of her health so her granddaughter wouldn’t worry.

After Tang Bixia fell asleep, Tang Yin slowly got herself ready and then lay down on the hard sofa.

She wasn’t sleepy and couldn’t fall asleep. She simply took out her phone to memorize English vocabulary, but as she was doing so, she started thinking about Xia Shinan from a few nights ago.

This was the first time she had interacted with Xia Shinan, but it wasn’t the first time she had seen her.

In her last year of high school, she wore a faded school uniform and sat with a woman in a cafe. This was the fanciest place she had ever been to—coffee costing thirty to forty yuan a cup, sparkling crystal chandeliers, and elegant music—all made Tang Yin feel uncomfortable.

“The girl over there, do you see her?” the woman took a sip of coffee and said to Tang Yin.

Tang Yin followed the direction she pointed to. It was a girl quietly reading a book. She was wearing a delicate school uniform, had long, smooth black hair, wore a white headband, and sat gracefully. Every movement she made was gentle…

Her friend arrived, and the girl looked up and gave her friend a soft smile, like a pure white little rabbit.

“Her life was originally yours,” the woman spoke again. Facing Tang Yin’s surprise, she said faintly, “Tang Yin, get into University A, get close to the Xia family, and take back everything that girl occupied.”

Take it back… She also wanted to live a good life. She didn’t want to study in dim light every day.

Tang Yin studied desperately, finally got into University A, and entered the university with Xia Shinan. The momentary joy made Tang Yin forget the plan.

If she could get into University A, then she could also live a good life by herself in the future. She didn’t necessarily have to go to the Xia family, the ones who didn’t want her.

Until her grandmother’s illness flared up last year. That huge medical bill was something she, someone who still needed poverty assistance, couldn’t afford. The woman found her again and helped pay the medical expenses, “If you return to the Xia family, your grandmother will receive the best treatment and live a long life.”

“But I can’t compare to Xia Shinan. Even if I find the Xia family, they won’t want me.”

“Then destroy Xia Shinan, so the Xia family has no choice but to accept you.”

Destroy Xia Shinan? Tang Yin thought of that gentle, little-rabbit-like girl.

Then… what would happen to that good girl?

“She has lived better than you for twenty years. Even if she leaves the Xia family, would she be worse off than you?”

The woman’s words stung Tang Yin. Yes, no matter how bad it got, it wouldn’t be worse than her.

She and her grandmother relied on each other when she was little. They were underfed and poorly clothed, sleeping in a cold basement, and studying with the help of subsidies… Even though their life had slightly improved now, she and her grandmother were still crammed into this one-bedroom, one-living-room apartment. Every day, besides classes, she worked part-time, but no matter how hard she worked, her salary from a year of part-time work couldn’t match Xia Shinan’s expenses for a single month.

And she definitely couldn’t afford her grandmother’s long-term medical bills.

Tang Yin turned around, looked at the closed bedroom door, and whispered:

“Grandma, I will let you live a long life.”

The sunset melted into the clouds, and the dim yellow light sprinkled down thinly.

The commercial pedestrian street near the West Gate of University A gradually lit up with neon signs, welcoming the last craze of the weekend.

Tang Yin came here directly after taking her grandmother for the check-up and walked into a barbecue restaurant to start her part-time job for the evening.

Today was the weekend, which meant it would be busy non-stop.

Tang Yin walked to the utility room to get her uniform. Faint noises came through the door. It was Chen Li, another part-time worker at the restaurant, on the phone.

“Where would I get any money?”

“Didn’t I transfer half of last month’s salary to you?”

“It’s only the beginning of the month. I need to eat too. I don’t have money for you. I know, I know… I’ll see if I can borrow some.”

No need to guess. It was probably her gigolo boyfriend asking her for money again.

She waited for a while and saw that the person still hadn’t come out, so she raised her hand and gently knocked on the door twice.

Chen Li quickly hung up the phone and opened the door, forcing a stiff smile at Tang Yin.

“Sister Yin, you’re here for work?”

Tang Yin put on her uniform. “Mhm. Friendly reminder, don’t give money to men. Be careful, or you’ll lose everything.”

Chen Li was embarrassed: “I didn’t.”

Who would believe that… Tang Yin glanced outside and said, “A customer is here. Let’s go.”

“Okay, I’ll go now!” Chen Li breathed a sigh of relief and quickly went out with the menu.

The peak dining time had arrived, which meant the start of the busy period. Tang Yin arranged raw meat and vegetables on plates according to the orders and also prepared snacks like fried chicken… Chen Li lifted the curtain, revealing a tired face, and immediately started complaining.

“There are so many people today! Why doesn’t everyone go to the cafeteria? University students with money are really abundant, unlike us poor people who can’t rest on weekends and have to serve others.”

Tang Yin retrieved the fried chicken wings from the deep fryer to drain the oil and said with a smile, “Serving others can earn money. Being served by others requires spending money. Which one do you choose?”

Chen Li paused, rinsed the cloth in her hand clean, and stammered, “That’s true, but… I still feel unbalanced.”

Tang Yin shook her head. Hearing the doorbell, she put on a mask. “I’m going out to take orders.”

Two girls came in, looked around, chose a table by the window, sat down, and immediately started chattering.

“Waiter, we’d like to order!”

“Coming.”

Tang Yin approached with a notepad and pen, just about to ask what they wanted to eat, when one of the girls, carrying a cup of milk tea, walked over and sat down, angrily saying, “I just ran into a friend from the Art Department. She said Xia Shinan slept in their dorm, on the day of Miao Miao’s birthday.”

“What?! Didn’t she say she couldn’t come back because she was at home that day?”

“Exactly! Isn’t she lying to us? She didn’t even give you your birthday gift, Miao Miao. What does that mean? She doesn’t consider us friends? Is she playing games with us?”

“Would you like to order now?” Tang Yin tapped her pen and asked expressionlessly.

“Oh, oh, oh, yes, we want to order! One pork belly, one beef, and fried chicken wings…”

Tang Yin finished writing the order and left.

“No, I’m calling her over now to ask her clearly!”

Tang Yin paused her steps and then walked into the back kitchen.

They are talking about the good girl? But she remembered that the good girl clearly said that day that she was returning to the dorm to celebrate her roommate’s birthday. Why didn’t she go in the end?

“Sister Yin, the chicken wings are going to burn!” Chen Li’s exclamation brought Tang Yin’s thoughts back to reality. She quickly lifted the chicken fryer basket, looked at the golden chicken wings, let out a sigh of relief, and quickly placed them aside to drain the oil.

Chen Li: “What were you thinking about? You’re distracted.”

Tang Yin shook her head, “Nothing.”

Chen Li rubbed her hands hesitantly: “Sister Yin, can you do me a favor? Can you help me add charcoal to the grill outside later? Maybe even help with the grilling. I’ll do the work in the back kitchen. Some classmates from my class came, and I feel quite awkward going out there.”

Tang Yin raised an eyebrow and looked at her, “Classmates?”

Chen Li nodded: “The table by the window that just came in. You don’t know them anyway. I just really don’t want them to see me working here. It’s embarrassing.”

“Embarrassing?” Tang Yin glanced at the uniform Chen Li was wearing. She was wearing the exact same thing—a black jacket with “Qianfan Wan Kao” (Thousand Grills, Ten Thousand Roasts) printed on it. She rolled her eyes: “What’s embarrassing about it? What’s wrong with earning money through your own hard work?”

Chen Li glanced at Tang Yin and didn’t dare to speak anymore.

Tang Yin seemed easy to get along with, but she actually had a sense of keeping people at a distance, especially when she was angry; it was very intimidating.

“Then I’ll just do it myself…” she stammered, but she hadn’t expected Tang Yin to actually agree.

“Just this once.”

“Okay! Thank you, Sister Yin!” Chen Li was incredibly grateful and quickly washed her hands.

After a few seconds of silence, Tang Yin spoke, as if casually bringing it up:

“Do you know Xia Shinan too?”

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