Reborn as a Tough Army Wife-Chapter 773 - 768: Is a Stepmother Greater Than a Birth Mother?

Zhou Yunmei was in high spirits as she spoke, but was interrupted by Luo Zhiyong, who came out from the room with a dark expression. Luo Zhiyong looked at Luo Dashan and Zhou Yunmei with a furrowed brow and said, "We’ll talk about these things later. Since you’re here, come inside. I have questions for you."

"I..." Zhou Yunmei instinctively felt Luo Zhiyong’s attitude was off, as if there was something else, making her uneasy.

Luo Cuilan, who was following Luo Zhiyong, then whispered to Zhou Yunmei, "Mom, don’t say too much. Big brother has something important to ask you. Go inside first. If you really want to admit your mistakes, be sincere later on. Whatever happened back then is how it was. Don’t be calculating."

"What happened back then..." Zhou Yunmei was more confused by Luo Cuilan’s words. What was Haohao talking about back then?

Following behind were Luo Dashan and Luo Honglan, who were even more clueless about what was going on. Luo Dashan looked at Luo Cuilan, who seemed fine, but saw that Luo Zhiyong and the others had serious expressions, leaving him puzzled. "Zhiyong, what’s going on? Didn’t you just ask us here to see Cuilan?"

Luo Zhiyong had already set foot inside. Upon hearing Luo Dashan’s question, he paused at the doorway, called everyone inside, and then gave Luo Dashan and Zhou Yunmei a serious look before directly asking Luo Dashan, "Dad, I ask you, am I really part of the Luo Family? Who are my biological father and mother?"

When Luo Dashan heard Luo Zhiyong’s question, his heart skipped a beat. He instinctively wondered if Luo Zhiyong knew about what happened back then. But uncertain, he decided to keep lying if he could. With an awkward expression, he dryly replied, "You, you are, of course, part of the Luo Family. Your father is me, your mother..."

When mentioning the mother, Luo Dashan hesitated, unsure if he should continue.

But Zhou Yunmei quickly interjected, "Your mother is me. I raised you with my own hands. Could it be anyone else?"

Zhou Yunmei also suspected whether Luo Zhiyong knew about the past. Although she had always intimidated Luo Dashan, at this moment, she was frightened that Luo Zhiyong might find out.

If she wasn’t Luo Zhiyong’s biological mother, how could she justifiably demand his unconditional filial piety?

Luo Zhiyong looked at them with a frown. By the time he posed the question, seeing Luo Dashan’s reaction, he already had a feeling that what Luo Cuilan said was likely true.

He knew Luo Dashan too well; Luo Dashan was never one to lie, and his expression betrayed the tension in his heart.

Luo Zhiyong stopped beating around the bush and pressed them directly, "Stop dodging the issue with me. Since I can ask this question, I’m not completely in the dark. You’ve deceived me for years, and I don’t want to be lied to anymore."

Luo Dashan and Zhou Yunmei, hearing this, confirmed that Luo Zhiyong knew about the past. They exchanged a silent look.

Luo Cuilan, observing this, simply said, "Dad, Mom, I’ve told big brother about it. Just honestly tell him what happened back then, don’t keep it from him."

"This..." Luo Dashan stammered, still unwilling to speak, or perhaps his tongue was tied, unable to find the words to minimize the hurt to Luo Zhiyong.

With no other option, Luo Zhiyong kept pressing, but Luo Dashan remained silent. The atmosphere in the room was as dead as a doornail. Zhou Yunmei knew it was impossible to hide anymore, so decided to confess openly, shouting, "I’ll say it!"

"That’s right, Zhiyong, you indeed aren’t the same as Zhiming and Cuilan. You’re not my biological child; you’re the child of your dad and another woman."

"Why?" Luo Zhiyong, having already been mentally prepared, although shocked by Zhou Yunmei’s admission, didn’t find it unacceptable. After a moment of silence, he asked, "What exactly happened back then?"

The question made Zhou Yunmei pause, but it was Luo Dashan who answered.

However, Luo Dashan kept it very simple, "Your biological mom died. I married Yunmei after, and since you were young, Yunmei took care of you and you accepted her. That’s just how it was." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

"Is it really that simple? Why hide it from me all these years?" Luo Zhiyong finally couldn’t hold back, losing all sense and shouting, "Even when she made things incredibly difficult for me, when she never treated me as her son, you insisted I know nothing, always saying she’s my real mother, that no matter what, I had to tolerate her, be filial to her?"

Actually, Luo Zhiyong didn’t want to bring these things up at this moment. Because no matter if Zhou Yunmei was his real mother or not, she did raise him. As a stepmother, maybe she wasn’t exceptionally bad.

However, he couldn’t accept that Luo Dashan and Zhou Yunmei had hidden these things for so many years, then seemed like they never planned to explain to him, tacitly trying to brush it off with a few simple words.

"I..." Luo Dashan froze for a long time before shouting, "Zhiyong..."

Luo Zhiyong sighed and forced himself to calm down slightly, "I’m giving you one last chance. Tell me everything that happened back then, or I won’t forgive you."

"I..."

Seeing that Luo Dashan still remained silent, Zhou Yunmei couldn’t hold back any longer, "I’ll speak. Zhiyong, since you so desperately want to know, I’ll tell you."

Thus, Zhou Yunmei explained everything from back then to Luo Zhiyong in detail. Of course, she slightly exaggerated certain things, like how Luo Zhiyong’s biological mother, Xiutao, abandoned him or her disdain for Luo Dashan, but overall, she didn’t stray from the truth.

After recounting the past, Zhou Yunmei sincerely added a few words, "Zhiyong, the reason we kept it from you wasn’t out of ill-intent, but because we worried about you. We feared you couldn’t handle being abandoned, and even more, we feared your identity would affect your military career, so we never said anything."

She paused and continued, "True, over the years, ever since Zhiming and others were born, I’ve treated you worse, but as a stepmother, I believe I’ve treated you decently, certainly better than your real mother. After you were born for a few days, she left you behind for her own future and never cared about your life or death since, without even visiting you once. It was me who raised you."

When Zhou Yunmei said these words, she had her own intentions, deliberately admitting her mistakes first and then portraying Luo Zhiyong’s biological mother as horribly as possible so that when Luo Zhiyong compared, he’d find this stepmother infinitely better than his real one. In the end, who could deny the saying that the one who raises you is greater than the one who gives birth to you?