Zhou Xiaoling had assumed that mentioning her birth mother would upset Lin Xiaoxiao, so she wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Don't be sad. We'll always be here for you. So what if her precious son is her favorite? Look how useless he turned out. He's not going anywhere in life."

Lin Xiaoxiao snapped out of her thoughts and smiled. "It's alright, it doesn't bother me. I didn't grow up with her, so I don't have strong feelings toward her."

Zhou Xiaoling nodded in agreement. "Exactly. She gave birth to you—that doesn't make her special. How could she report her own daughter? And now she has the nerve to ask you for money? She says it's a loan, but we all know she just wants handouts."

Li Yunlan frowned. "Xiaoling, don't be so judgmental."

Xiaoling stuck out her tongue and grinned playfully at Lin Xiaoxiao.

Still, Lin Xiaoxiao was curious—what could have happened that made Cheng Mingyue come to her for money?

Zhou Xiaoling didn't know either. "I'll go ask around after dinner," she said, clearly intrigued herself.

But before she could head out that evening, Zhou Zhennan called her into his study.

Upstairs, Li Yunlan and Zhou Liyun were putting the children to bed, and the housemaid was in the kitchen washing dishes and sterilizing bottles.

As Zhou Xiaoling stepped into the study, she felt a wave of nervousness. Her father had never hit her or even scolded her severely, yet she couldn't help feeling afraid.

She sat down across from him, wiping her palms nervously on her pants. "Dad, did you want to talk about work?"

Zhou Zhennan smiled gently. "Relax. I just want to tell you a story. Would you like to hear it?"

Zhou Xiaoling looked at him suspiciously. Since when did her father tell stories?

He began softly, recounting a tale about a fighter pilot and a young woman from the army's song and dance ensemble. It was romantic and beautiful.

Not long after they married, the pilot died during a mission—leaving his wife pregnant. It was just after liberation, and enemy spies were still lurking in certain areas.

Later, the woman was injured while trying to save her older sister. She went into early labor, gave birth to a baby girl, and passed away soon after.

Zhou Zhennan spoke slowly, carefully detailing how the couple met and fell in love.

Tears welled in Zhou Xiaoling's eyes without her realizing it. Her heart felt heavy.

Zhou Zhennan looked at her. "Before she died, the woman held her sister's hand and said, 'If it's a girl, name her Xiaoling. May her life be as warm and bright as the rising sun.'"

He still remembered Jiang Qiong's words as she gripped Li Yunlan's hand: "Sister, I leave my child to you. I miss Jingdong too much—I must go to him. He said if we had a daughter, we should name her Xiaoling. When he flew in the sky, he loved flying toward the dawn. It meant hope..."

"I'm sorry for being selfish, sister. Please take care of my child..."

Zhou Zhennan took off his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose as he wiped a tear from the corner of his eye.

Xiaoling sat motionless, tears streaming silently down her face.

After a long pause, Zhou Zhennan put his glasses back on. He pulled a black journal from the drawer—a pen clipped to its cover—and opened it to reveal a small black-and-white photograph inside.

It showed a young man and woman in military uniforms, leaning close together. He was handsome; she was radiant.

Zhou Zhennan gazed at the photo for a moment before sliding the journal and picture toward Xiaoling. "Xiaoling, we would have hidden this from you forever if we could. You are our daughter. But now... I believe you have the right to know the truth."

Xiaoling didn't move. Through her tears, she looked at the people in the photo. They felt familiar—especially the woman, whose sweet smile looked so much like her own.

So it wasn't that she didn't look like the Zhous... She looked like her mother.

Zhou Zhennan stood, came over, and gently wiped her tears with his handkerchief. "I'm sorry we kept this from you. When you're ready, I'll take you to visit their graves."

Xiaoling looked up, her lips trembling. "Dad... are you going to send me away?"

His eyes reddened. "Silly child, you will always be our daughter. We would never let you go."

She hugged him tightly. "Dad, my heart hurts. Why did you tell me? I didn't want to know. I don't care what anyone says—I am a Zhou. My name is Zhou Xiaoling."

She cried bitterly, trying hard to keep quiet so Li Yunlan wouldn't hear.

Zhou Zhennan stroked her hair. "Xiaoling, I told you because you're grown now. It's time you paid your respects. But you will always be our little fourth sister, our Xiaoling. Nothing will ever change that."

When her tears finally subsided, she rubbed her eyes and began flipping through the journal. It was her father Lin Jingdong's diary—filled with his excitement at becoming a pilot, his joy after his first successful flight, and his happiness when he and Jiang Qiong fell in love.

Xiaoling skimmed through the pages, tears threatening to return. She looked up. "Dad, please don't tell Mom."

Zhou Zhennan patted her head gently. "Alright. Take it to your room and read it slowly. Your parents were good people, and they loved each other deeply."

Xiaoling slipped quietly back to her room, clutching the journal.

When Li Yunlan came out of Lin Xiaoxiao's room, she noticed Xiaoling's door was already closed. Strange—she was usually up making noise until eleven. Why was she asleep so early?

She went downstairs to the study and found Zhou Zhennan still lost in thought. "What did you say to Xiaoling? She went to bed so early. You weren't talking about work again, were you? Let her do what she loves. Don't push her too hard."

Zhou Zhennan smiled and stood, placing his hands on her shoulders. "No, we just talked a little about work. Our Xiaoling is a remarkable girl."

Li Yunlan beamed with pride. "Yes, our Xiaoling is the best girl in the world."

Xiaoling cried as she finished reading her father's diary, her heart aching. Clutching the journal, she tiptoed into Lin Xiaoxiao's room and whispered to Zhou Liyun, who was already in bed,

"Aunt, could you sleep downstairs tonight? I want to stay with Sister Xiaoxiao."

Before Zhou Liyun could turn on the light, Xiaoling stopped her and gently urged her out. "Please, I need to talk with her."