Su Chenghai called Su He precisely for this matter. With his capabilities, he couldn't find the whereabouts of the mother and son. All his remaining assets had been taken by them, so he was naturally anxious.
After listening to his explanation, Su He silently scoffed in her heart: Serves you right!
For being an unscrupulous rich man!
For being a philandering rake!
Retribution has come, hasn't it!
"We have no relation anymore. I don't want to get involved in your family's affairs." Su He's words were rather cold. But they were like strangers to each other, so such words were not unexpected.
Su Chenghai abandoned his usual stern demeanor towards her, his tone carrying a hint of pleading. "Everything in the past was my fault. I only beg you, for the sake of our father-daughter relationship, to help me with this..."
Su He, however, had no patience for his rambling and spoke directly, "I'm very sorry, but I'm unable to help."
"I know your difficulties, but your husband is Lu Yanbei. It's just a matter of him opening his mouth to find someone..." Su Chenghai refused to give up and continued to pester her.
"Why should he help you?" Su He chuckled.
Su Chenghai choked slightly. "After all, I was his former father-in-law."
"Tell him that yourself," Su He said, preparing to hang up.
Su Chenghai became anxious. "Su He, if you agree to help, I'll tell you a secret."
The word "secret" successfully made Su He pause.
What secret could she possibly have?
Fearing Su He wouldn't believe him, Su Chenghai revealed a few keywords. "It's related to your disappearance back then."
Su He wasn't simply swapped at the hospital; she was deliberately switched by someone with ulterior motives and then abandoned. When Su Dazhi found her, she was squatting by a steamed bun stall, drooling, her longing gaze something Su Dazhi would never forget. Later, the Su family found her and only vaguely explained the reason. But the truth behind it was never revealed to her.
Su He took a deep breath, hesitating whether to make this deal.
Lu Yanbei came out of the bathroom, drying his hair, and saw her sitting on the bed with a troubled expression. "What's wrong?"
Su He decisively hung up the phone. "Su Chenghai wants to make a deal with me."
"He still dares to approach you?" Lu Yanbei frowned displeasantly. "What did he say?"
"He wants to trade the secret of my disappearance back then for information about two people." Su He told him the whole story. "What do you think, should I agree to him?"
"Do you care about the truth of what happened back then?" Lu Yanbei asked in return.
Su He hesitated and nodded. "If it was just a simple mix-up, there would be nothing to fuss about. But if it was something someone meticulously planned, I want to seek justice for myself."
Lu Yanbei put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his embrace. "In that case, agree to him. However, the authenticity of the information needs to be verified. As long as the information is true, I'll help him this once."
Su He stroked his smooth chin and asked, "Will this make things difficult for you?"
"It's just a matter of saying a word." Compared to anything else, his wife's feelings were the most important.
He didn't want Su He to dwell on this matter.
Resolving this inner conflict was very necessary for her.
His bottom line was always her.
"Thank you," Su He looked up gratefully and pecked him on the corner of his lips.
"Such a perfunctory kiss?" Lu Yanbei grumbled and pushed her down onto the bed.
Su He blushed involuntarily and protested, "Haven't you had enough of teasing in the morning?"
"Not enough," Lu Yanbei replied honestly.
Su He glared at him. "How can you be so shameless!"
"I'm a normal man." Lu Yanbei leaned on her shoulder, his warm lips gently nibbling at her neck, causing Su He to tremble.
Was this man a dog?
After a while, Lu Yanbei, panting, rolled off the bed and went back into the bathroom.
Su He quickly pulled her sleep dress, which had slid down to her waist, back up and rolled into the covers.
She clutched her chest, feeling her heart race.
It was not difficult to imagine what would happen after her period ended.
Su He covered her face, feeling both nervous and inexplicably expectant.
With Lu Yanbei's capabilities, finding out about what happened back then was a piece of cake.
Soon, his subordinates learned from a former nanny of the Su family that when Su An'an was brought back to the Su family, Qin Ruofang sensed something was wrong and felt that it wasn't her child. However, because Su An'an was fair-skinned and much better-looking than her own wrinkled infant daughter, she had a momentary lapse in judgment and didn't mention it to anyone, allowing the mistake to continue.
Because she didn't give birth to a boy, the Su family harbored resentment towards her. Before she even finished her confinement, a second child was already in the plans. If Su Chenghai had seen the child looking so disheveled upon his return from a business trip, he might have been even more disgusted.
Driven by a moment of madness, she decided to go along with the mistake and raised Su An'an as her own daughter.
It had to be said that Su An'an was indeed capable, excelling in everything she did. Moreover, she was obedient and likable, which pleased a new father like Su Chenghai for quite some time.
It wasn't until Old Mrs. Su fell gravely ill and needed a bone marrow transplant from a relative that Su An'an's identity was exposed.
At that time, the Su family was greatly shocked and cursed Qin Ruofang, pointing fingers at her. They accused her of not even recognizing her own biological daughter! Qin Ruofang naturally put on a wronged act, saying that all babies look alike when they are born and she didn't know what had happened.
But even after Su He was found, the Su family didn't seem to like her much.
After all, the Su family valued males over females; daughters were always married off and were of no consequence.
Upon learning the truth, Su He remained silent for a long time, then she laughed.
She never imagined that there could be such a heartless mother in the world!
To avoid being disliked by her in-laws, she was willing to let her own daughter wander outside and doted on an imposter for decades.
Thinking of this, Su He couldn't help but laugh.
"Fortunately, I had good fortune, and my adoptive parents, elder brother, and elder sister doted on me." Su He leaned in Lu Yanbei's arms and finished reading all the documents, her expression remarkably calm.
Lu Yanbei patted her shoulder reassuringly. "Such relatives are not worth keeping."
"I never considered them family anyway," Su He said. "I only recognize my adoptive parents."
Lu Yanbei tenderly kissed her forehead. "From now on, I won't let them hurt you one bit."
Lying in his arms, Su He felt completely at ease.
*
Qin Ruofang, sunbathing on an island abroad, involuntarily shivered.
She glanced at the bright sun outside and couldn't help but wonder.
Could it be that Su Chenghai had found her whereabouts?
That shouldn't be right!
She firmly believed her maternal family wouldn't betray her!
Besides, the hush money she paid was substantial.
Could it be that Su Er had made a mistake?
As she was thinking, her phone rang. It was Su Chengtáo.
She pondered for a moment and finally answered the call. "You better have something important to say."
"Sister-in-law, my brother beat me up. Shouldn't you compensate me more for medical expenses?" Su Chengtáo reasoned amicably. He only received five percent from Qin Ruofang and was naturally dissatisfied. But he also knew Qin Ruofang's personality and couldn't push her too hard.
His elder brother's fate was a prime example.