Chapter 36 Unseen Struggles
+8 Pearls
Wendy’s tears threatened to spill over. She could hardly believe it. At that moment, she understood the suffocating source of this family’s troubles.
“Wendy, are you okay?” Shirley noticed Wendy’s reddened eyes and asked with concern.
“I’m fine!” Wendy sniffled dabbing at her eyes with a tissue. “Shirley, do you think Joshua is really our biological brother?”
“Well… Shirley hesitated, startled. “He should be! Mom and Dad have done several tests. Two years ago, they still had doubts and tested again. But after that, they stopped questioning it.”
They spent a lot on tests? They even tested again two years ago?” Wendy was surprised by this revelation.
Shirley nodded. “Yes! Mom and Dad said Joshua doesn’t look like them or us. So, they ran the tests. I saw the reports myself. It’s a hundred percent confirmed.”
Wendy felt even more perplexed, but as she reflected, some things began to make sense.
Maybe they just see Joshua as a lost cause, like mud that can never be shaped. No wonder they refuse to visit his school -they think it’s humiliating. No wonder they won’t give him a private car and driver—they find it disgraceful. No wonder they avoid taking him out in public—it’s all about shame.
Wendy sniffled again, her chest tight with heartache, but the story didn’t end there.
“Wendy, why are you asking all this?” Shirley, noticing Wendy’s unsettling tone, asked cautiously.
“I went to the police at noon. They found Joshua. He was selling live crabs at the market to earn money. He wasn’t missing!” Wendy explained.
“What?” Shirley exclaimed, stunned.
“I also went to Eastview Orphanage–Joshua’s old orphanage–and saw many of the children there!” Wendy continued.
“The little ones, parentless and alone, fought ferociously over a broken doll, sobbing uncontrollably. The older ones bullied the younger; the taller ones preyed on the shorter.”
Shirley froze, unable to grasp Wendy’s meaning. She asked quickly, “Joshua is selling live crabs? Why would he do that?‘
“Why do you think so?” Wendy fixed her gaze on her.
Shirley fell silent.
“Shirley, you graduated top of your class at Borchester University and even studied at Dartmouth University. You must have taken psychology courses! You majored in music, read countless stories, and studied diverse lives. But have you ever truly understood the life of an orphan? Have you ever explored the psychological changes they endure?” Wendy asked, her eyes piercing.
Shirley’s eyes widened slightly. “Well… there are so many orphans in orphanages.”
7:18 pm
Chapter 36 Unseen Struggles
+8 Pearls
“Yes! So many orphans. We all know that. And we all know Joshua grew up in one–he was once an orphan!” Wendy took a deep breath. “Even with all his flaws and bad habits, those aren’t inherent. They’re the result of being a parentless orphan with no one to shield him from the storms. He had to survive like a cockroach–because otherwise, life would have been unbearable.”
“Even so, he shouldn’t be stealing! He’s already taken so much already!” Shirley exclaimed, frustration evident in her voice.
Wendy immediately laughed. “Shirley, how much allowance do you get at home each month? What’s your salary?”
“Well…”
“18,000! I know!” Wendy looked at her with a smirk. “Your salary is 3,000 a month, not including other things! But have you heard what Mom said? She gives Joshua–only 70 dollars a month! Just 70 dollars! Is our family really that broke?”
Shirley hadn’t realized Joshua’s allowance was so meager–only 70 dollars a month.
She was taken aback when she heard Maggie mention it a few days ago.
She had assumed Maggie gave Joshua a decent amount! She never imagined it was so little!
“I asked Maddy. Over the years, it seems you guys haven’t bought him much in terms of clothes or shoes! Maddy, Judy, Indy, Cassidy–I asked them all, and most haven’t! Maddy even said, since Joshua doesn’t buy her anything, why should she buy anything for him?” Wendy sniffled, feeling a pang of sorrow. “He only has 70 dollars a month, not even enough for food. How can you expect him to buy anything?”
Shirley immediately furrowed her brows.
“Shirley, you’re complicit in this too!” Wendy suddenly ground her teeth together.
“Wendy, w–what exactly are you trying to say? I don’t really understand what you mean,” Shirley asked, her expression serious as she stared at her.
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7:18 pm
Promise to Punish My Ridiculous Family
