After five bigwigs in Beijing's elite circle fell into their trap, I fled.

Chapter 209 A Peerless Beauty: Li Lingyan

The teacup was filled with steam.

Jiang Liuyun tilted his head and thought for a moment: "Yes, why is that... I asked him the exact same question."

-

That summer nineteen years ago was so hot it was almost unbearable.

Having just experienced the pain of losing her son, Jiang Liuyun wandered aimlessly through the dense forests of Xinghua Village, like a lost soul. She unexpectedly encountered the most handsome man in the capital, whom she had been amazed by when she was still the daughter of the Jiang family in the capital.

That stunning beauty, who could stir up a storm in the capital's socialite circles with her looks alone, suddenly appeared in this desolate wilderness, holding a tiny baby in her arms.

He sat gracefully in the Ziwu Pavilion, meticulously feeding the child and changing diapers according to the instructions. Sunlight filtered through the dense forest, casting dappled patterns. He looked down at the child in his arms, his gentle eyes and the smile on his lips like the most dazzling light in the world, dispelling Jiang Liuyun's sorrow.

I sat beside him for three whole days, watching him frantically but happily take care of the child, telling her stories and singing songs, lulling her to sleep, gently and helplessly telling her not to suck his fingers, and teasing her with various baby toys such as rattles and bells...

Three days later, Jiang Liuyun finally couldn't help but speak to him first: "Your daughter?"

"No," Li Lingyan said gently. "You've been here for so many days and still haven't left. What, do you think I'm good-looking with a child?"

"I just find it interesting." Jiang Liuyun paused, a pang of pain shooting through her heart, mixed with a touch of envy. "I should have been like you, revolving around my child, but I wasn't lucky enough to keep her."

Li Lingyan neither comforted nor mocked her. He simply thought for a moment and asked, "Do you want a hug? Her name is Xiao Shu, you can call her Shu Bao."

As the soft, cuddly baby nestled in his arms, Jiang Liuyun stared at her for almost half an hour without blinking, then, as if possessed, blurted out, "Since she's not your daughter, why don't you give her to me to raise?"

“No.” Li Lingyan refused decisively. “She is more important than my daughter.”

……

In the hospital room, Jiang Liuyun's tone carried a hint of uncertainty: "From the time we spent together those few days, I could tell that he really treated you like his lifeblood, cherishing you and holding you in the palm of his hand. If you cried even a little, he would panic and be at a loss, his eyes filled with heartache..."

Jiang Shu coughed lightly: "My damn charm..."

Jiang Liuyun choked for a moment: "But just a few days later, he suddenly appeared in front of me, covered in blood and as pale as a ghost, and took you in his arms, asking if I still wanted to take care of you."

Did he say why?

“He didn’t give me any explanation.” Jiang Liuyun recalled the scene at the time, “But he was very weak, and his white shirt was covered in blood. He looked like he was about to die. Even so, you in his arms were clean. There wasn’t a single drop of blood, not even a drop of milk or a wrinkle.”

Jiang Shu, holding her water glass, sighed, "How did I end up by your side like this?"

“He didn’t leave immediately, but came back to Xinghua Village with me and took care of you for several months.” Jiang Liuyun paused for a moment. “Many people in the village saw this, but they didn’t know that when I went out, my child died young and was replaced by Li Lingyan’s child.”

"No wonder, all those gossipy people in the village over the years, not one of them has revealed my identity."

“Li Lingyan said he was afraid you wouldn’t be used to having someone else taking care of you, so he took care of you for another three months. You loved his embrace and were very attached to him. So much so that when you were almost six months old and started learning to speak, your first word… was a halting ‘Daddy’ to him. Oh, he was quite embarrassed at the time and left the next day, taking with him your old bottles, toys, and some parenting books. I guess he wanted to take them back to remember you.” Jiang Shu’s eyes were blank: “I can’t understand it, I really can’t understand it.”

"Oh, right, I thought back on it later, and something else happened at the time, but I don't know if it was related to Li Lingyan changing his mind." Jiang Liuyun paused for a moment, "I remember that at that time, the leader of the Jitian Mercenary Group appeared in that mountain range with hundreds of super mercenary kings, seemingly to carry out an ambush operation."

Jiang Shu exclaimed in surprise, "The Extreme Sky Mercenary Group?"

"I remember it was from July 1st to July 4th. Li Lingyan didn't come to Ziwu Pavilion during those days. Then I heard that the Jitian ambushes failed, losing two-thirds of its members, a very heavy loss. When the Jitian mercenary group withdrew and Li Lingyan reappeared, it was that scene of him covered in blood."

Jiang Liuyun then recalled something else: "Rong Jingchen, as the next heir, was also in that mercenary group. I happened to see him then; he was only four or five years old, soft and cuddly, and quite handsome. I even thought to myself, 'Such a handsome boy, I'll snatch him up and make him my son-in-law when he grows up…'"

Jiang Shu ignored Jiang Liuyun's teasing: "According to your analysis, Mom, Li Lingyan's injury that time might really be related to the Jitian Mercenary Group."

“Later, I had Nie Zheng investigate secretly,” Jiang Liuyun added. “Jitian used international exchange as an excuse to actually take on a mysterious, huge murder order. And their resting place was also at Ziwu Pavilion, just a wall away from Li Lingyan…”

Jiang Shu seemed to be thinking: "What a coincidence."

"What's even more coincidental is that Rong Jingchen, who was only a few years old, clearly didn't participate in the fight. He just slept for a long time in the pavilion. When he woke up, he seemed to have lost his soul. I heard that it took him several months to recover, but his temperament changed. He became very violent and murderous... as if he had grown up overnight. And when he was twelve years old, he became obsessed with women, like a demon..."

"It's not that he's obsessed with women," Jiang Shu said, speaking up for Rong Jingchen. "He's innocent!"

"..." Jiang Liuyun glared at her, "You're a girl, don't keep talking about a man's innocence. Girls should be gentle and reserved."

Jiang Shu said "Oh," and steered the conversation back on track: "So after all this talk, I still don't know who my parents are..."

“We can ask Li Yubai to investigate. Given Li Lingyan’s attitude towards you, there should be clues. In fact, when he left Xinghua Village, it wasn’t because he never cared about you again.”

Jiang Liuyun sighed, "He would secretly appear by your side every month or two to see you, and I would send him your photos from time to time. Until you were eight years old, Li Lingyan could not escape the fate of the Li family and died suddenly, and his son Li Yubai appeared seamlessly and inherited everything from him..."

Jiang Shu thought for a moment: "The change of power between the old and new regimes must involve the transfer of countless resources and information. I'm sure we can find some clues with Li Yubai."

“Focus your investigation on Li Yubai,” Jiang Liuyun warned. “Their family genes are far too bizarre; it’s almost as if one person is playing multiple roles…”

“I haven’t met Li Lingyan, so I can’t comment on him. But I trust Li Yubai.” Jiang Shu stood up. “I’ll go find him now and get a DNA test done first!”

Jiang Liuyun hummed in agreement.

Then, just as Jiang Shu was about to leave, he suddenly called out to her:
"Shubao".

Jiang Shu turned around.

Jiang Liuyun met her gaze: "Now that you know I'm not your biological mother, I hope that if I have to leave this world, you won't be too sad."

Jiang Shu was silent for a few seconds: "I will not only be sad, I will also wreak havoc and walk every path you prevent me from taking. Just you wait."