The Prodigal Child

Xiaodie's earliest memory was a group photo at the orphanage when she was eight years old. That photo had faded, making it hard to see faces clearly. But she still remembered her childhood appearance. The photo provided by He Jian was extremely clear; it was indeed her, unless there was another girl in the world who looked exactly like her. Even looking at the architectural background in the photo, Xiaodie felt an indescribable familiarity, as if she had seen it somewhere before.

Tiantian scratched her head: "But why did the DNA test show no biological relationship?" With that, she and her uncle looked at each other, "Could it be..."

The imagination of a romance novelist instantly exploded: "Actually, Xiaodie is Ni Mo, but Ni Mo is not the biological granddaughter of the old lady, nor the child of her son, but the old lady just doesn't know!" This was a bold hypothesis. Although a bit disrespectful to the deceased, especially Ni Mo's mother, it seemed plausible.

"Or perhaps Old Mrs. He's side made a mistake, and her son was switched at birth, leading to a lifelong error?" Shen Fu seriously added another possibility.

The romance writer looked at the Xianxia writer with admiration: "You certainly have a wild imagination!"

Shen Fu looked at the hesitant Xiaodie: "Old Mrs. He is in Xiangjiang. You've never met her. Do you want to meet her once?" Xiaodie thought for a moment and nodded: "Yes."

Lying in bed, Shen Fu didn't disturb Xiaodie, knowing her mind was in turmoil. He patted her shoulder gently: "If you can't sleep, drink some soothing tea."

Xiaodie shook her head: "I want to keep a clear head."

"Then what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking about what to say when I meet her tomorrow," Xiaodie replied. "What kind of person is she? Is she kind?"

"I'm not sure if she's kind, but she is very beautiful. She must have been a great beauty when she was young." Shen Fu recalled Old Mrs. He's appearance.

Xiaodie smiled: "No wonder Grandpa Chen was so devoted to her, even remaining unmarried his whole life."

"Yes, it feels like his daily visits to our house are like he's supervising us on her behalf..." Shen Fu laughed, then suddenly paused, "Wait, there's something off about Old Chen!"

"What is it?"

Shen Fu's eyes gleamed: "Ever since Old Mrs. He left, Old Chen has been showing up every day, clearly keeping an eye on you for her! But the test results said there's no biological relationship, so why is she still doing this?"

Xiaodie: "Perhaps Grandpa Chen is just lonely and wants to come to our house for some company."

"No, he didn't do this before the old lady arrived." Shen Fu couldn't sleep anymore and picked up his phone to call Old Chen. "Let me ask if he knows anything."

Xiaodie stopped him: "It's so late, you shouldn't."

"Elderly people often have trouble sleeping and don't sleep this early," Shen Fu said. "How about this, I'll let it ring three times. If he doesn't pick up, it means he's asleep, and I'll hang up immediately."

The phone rang three times, and Xiaodie urged Shen Fu to hang up. Just as Shen Fu hung up, Old Chen was groggily waking up and reached for his phone, but the ringing had stopped. "Who could it be?" He sat up and saw it was a call from Shen Fu, thinking: "Did this kid run into trouble in Xiangjiang? Why did he hang up after just a few rings?" He wanted to call back but feared being too obvious, thinking that if it was urgent, the boy would call again. So he sat and waited, but instead of a second call, he ended up with insomnia.

On the other side, Shen Fu and Xiaodie fell asleep. Before sleeping, Xiaodie left a few notes for the other personalities, recounting today's events and asking about her background. The other personalities seemed to avoid this issue, and even "Ma Kính" was restricted from accessing information.

The next morning, Shen Fu and Xiaodie were awakened by a phone ring. It wasn't Old Chen, but an unknown number calling Xiaodie.

"Hello?" Hearing the other party speak English, Xiaodie immediately switched languages. Then she bolted upright, asking in disbelief, "Can it be returned?"

The other party was surprised: "Madam, is there something about our service that dissatisfies you?"

"No, it's just... I was a bit impulsive with my shopping," Xiaodie thought for a moment. "Alright, I'll buy it. How much is the total?"

"Madam, the total is 45 million dollars. You have already paid the deposit, and we will arrange it soon..."

Shen Fu had also woken up. Hearing the figure of 45 million dollars, he instantly became fully awake. Seeing Xiaodie hang up, he asked tremblingly, "If I didn't hear wrong, did someone just say 45 million dollars?"

Xiaodie nodded with tearful eyes: "They... they just bought a private jet, spending 45 million dollars!"

Shen Fu calculated on his fingers. Heavens, nearly 300 million RMB, even more expensive than the villa in Yihe Mingyuan. His face turned pale: "Can't it be returned?"

Xiaodie sighed: "I think it was bought with money earned by the other personalities. I have no reason to interfere."

"But is buying a plane really that simple? Don't they need to inspect it?"

"The other party also found it surprising how quickly she bought it, but they had called for a consultation last night and paid immediately."

Shen Fu: "Seriously, spending money so lavishly right after winning. What a prodigal child!"

Xiaodie looked up the private jet's information on her phone. It was a Bombardier Global 5000, with a range of nearly 10,000 kilometers, a large business jet. Looking at the specifications, her heart ached: "Even if we don't use this plane, keeping it there costs a fortune in maintenance every year!" A thrifty girl like her couldn't bear this. It was truly the style of a wealthy capitalist heiress.

Shen Fu comforted her: "We don't use it often, but we can let Yaoyao Lin or Tianbeng use it. Company staff travel a lot, so we won't have to buy plane tickets in the future, saving a bundle."

Xiaodie looked at her husband as if his IQ didn't match his looks: "Are you sure it's saving money and not spending more? Operating a private jet is far more expensive than buying commercial tickets."

Shen Fu thought about it and realized she was right: "But it saves time, which is also a plus. Since we've bought it, we just have to accept it. After all, it's not our money. Selling it would cause internal discord."

With that, Shen Fu picked up a note on the table: "Here, they left a message for you." It was the note Xiaodie wrote last night, saying she had gathered money into several bank cards and listing the passwords. The other party replied: "Thanks. Also, Sofi plans to buy a private jet and a European-style castle. The plane is chosen, but we're still looking at castles. If you have any good recommendations, please share."

Shen Fu read it and was dumbfounded: "Who is Sofi? Sounds like a foreign name."

Xiaodie scratched her head: "Probably a foreign personality. No wonder my QQ often had foreign friends added. This is too much, wanting to buy a castle. Are they planning to raise Dracula?!"

Shen Fu picked up another note, which was Xiaodie's question: "I want to know about Luo Heng. Is he really dead?" The answer made Shen Fu shudder: "Death is too good for him." He looked at Xiaodie: "Looks like he was indeed killed, which can be considered solace for my father in heaven. Don't think too much about this; A Gui did it, it has nothing to do with us."

Xiaodie was silent for a moment, then nodded. She picked up another note and wrote: "Is that Qi Ye one of ours? Male or female?" The other party replied: "I am female." Xiaodie compared the three notes and saw completely different handwriting: "How many people appeared in just one night!"

Cuối cùng còn một tờ giấy, câu hỏi là: "Hách Lệ Lai thực sự là bà nội của chúng ta sao?" Tờ giấy này không có câu trả lời, cũng giống như "Ma Kính", bị cố ý phớt lờ.

Shen Fu: "Let's just go meet the old lady once, and everything will become clear. Even if the other personalities don't want to acknowledge her, this is your biological relationship. It's not up to them."

The two walked out of the room. Tiantian in the next room had also woken up. She had heard no noise last night and slept very well. Shen Fu and Xiaodie temporarily hid the purchase of the plane to avoid shocking her. The three of them had breakfast at the hotel. He Jian was already waiting, no longer calling her master but calling her sister.

"Sister, which subject are we starting with? Or should we roll dice? Experts like you can probably tell the points just by listening to the sound, right?"

Xiaodie put down her chopsticks: "He Jian, I want to meet your grand-aunt. Can you arrange it?"

"Huh? Meet her? Why?" He Jian hesitated, "Are you and Ni Yan still not done with your business?"

"You don't need to worry about that. Just take us to her house."

He Jian was a bit embarrassed: "Grand-aunt is in Xiangjiang, but she seems to be in a bad mood. She just gave my father and uncles a harsh scolding. Juniors like me are hiding from her. Otherwise, I wouldn't have run to Aomen and lost all my money before daring to come back."

"If she's in a bad mood, maybe she'll be happy to see my wife. Didn't you say my wife looks a lot like your cousin?" Shen Fu winked.

He Jian thought it made sense. Maybe bringing Miss Bai to grand-aunt would make her happy, and she might even reward him! So the fool eagerly led the way, with Shen Fu and the other two following in a rented car. In the car, Tiantian told Xiaodie to pay attention to the scenery along the road to see if it triggered any memories. Shen Fu argued that after more than ten years, the scenery must have changed a lot, but Tiantian insisted that Xiangjiang was a major city, so the main structures would remain the same.

While they were on their way, back in the capital, Old Man Chen had also stayed up all night waiting for morning to call He Lilai. Hearing the news, the old lady grew anxious: "Call back and ask immediately! What if something happened last night!"

Old Man Chen immediately called Shen Fu. Shen Fu put it on speaker: "Hello, Grandpa, what's the matter?"

"I should be asking you. Why did you call me last night?" Old Chen lied, "I only saw it this morning."

"Then you woke up a bit late," Shen Fu laughed. "I just wanted to ask about Old Mrs. He. Is she absolutely sure my wife isn't her granddaughter?"

"Yes, it was tested twice."

"Ah, it's like this. Recently, someone contacted us saying their family lost a child, and the age and characteristics are very similar to Xiaodie's. It's just a bit far, all the way at the Yunnan border, almost out of the country. Since Old Mrs. He is certain there's no connection, we plan to go to Yunnan to take a look."

"No, this must be verified carefully. What if you're being scammed?" Old Man Chen was worried.

"We have to try. Xiaodie really wants to find her family," Shen Fu said casually.

Hanging up, Old Man Chen immediately reported back. Old Mrs. He narrowed her eyes, feeling this wasn't simple. If she believed Xiaodie was her granddaughter, then that family in Yunnan was definitely fake. Perhaps they were the ones who kidnapped Xiaodie back then and now wanted to eliminate the threat once and for all.

"No, I must protect Xiaodie!" Just as the old lady thought of this, He Jian arrived with the guests. Seeing her useless grandson driving a sports car, she was about to grab her cane to teach him a lesson, but when she saw the person stepping out of the car behind, her face instantly broke into a gentle smile. Only, why were they here? Didn't they say they were going to Yunnan?!