Chapter 36

Everyone frowned almost simultaneously, feeling somewhat offended.
But their good upbringing kept them from objecting.
Grandpa Gu nodded slightly and saw that Gu Ting, who had been eating quietly, had put down his chopsticks and was looking at Qiao An with a dazed expression.
Qiao An gave him an encouraging smile and silently recited in her heart: I want to know why you insisted on going to the amusement park back then.
As soon as Gu Ting met her gaze, his body trembled slightly, as if he had understood her intention. He lowered his eyes and said softly, "The day before my fifth birthday"
As soon as he began speaking, the expressions of the Gu family members turned strange. Most were surprised that Gu Ting could speak, but Gu Chi's face darkened. His hands on the table clenched imperceptibly as he said sternly, "Little girl, did you teach Gu Ting to say this?"
After all, with Gu Ting in such a state, how could he possibly articulate these things?
Especially with the tone of his speech, it sounded like a robot.
The others frowned even more deeply, their displeasure evident as they tried to interrupt, but Grandpa Gu raised his hand to silence them.
Only Gu Ze seemed to recall something, suddenly lifting his head to look at Qiao An, then at Gu Ting. His lips pressed tightly together, and the healthy color visibly drained from his face.
Grandpa Gu’s face twitched, his sharp gaze fixed on Qiao An.
Qiao An glanced at Gu Chi but remained silent, pretending not to hear.
Without her calling for a stop, Gu Ting continued speaking on his own, his voice eerily monotonous and stiff, as if reciting from memory. Yet his words were coherent and clear: "I heard Uncle Driver talking on the phone with Third Uncle. Third Uncle told Uncle Driver to take us to the Ocean Park, where there would be a car accident waiting for us. As long as we crashed, we would die, and he would receive a large sum of compensation"
Gu Chi’s face paled, his less-than-handsome features darkening slightly as he frowned and said, "Nonsense! What does this have to do with me?! Over the years, we’ve been monitoring everything. The driver who died back then was indeed in a difficult situation, but aside from the compensation we provided, there haven’t been any unexplained funds."
His voice grew colder, but he remained relatively composed, chiding with a hint of ridicule, "Besides, why would I have any reason to harm Eldest Brother’s family? I’ve done nothing all these years, and I haven’t benefited from any of this. Young lady, falsely accusing others comes with consequences!"
Qiao An still said nothing. Gu Ting’s voice continued like background music, uninterrupted even when others tried to cut in, unsettling everyone.
As the others listened to the content, their expressions shifted dramatically. They glanced at Gu Chi, noting his grim expression, and though they remained silent, their suspicions grew stronger with every word Gu Ting spoke.
"The trip to the Ocean Park was decided long ago, but my younger brother had a fever and couldn’t go. So, on my birthday, only my parents and I went. I begged them not to go to the Ocean Park, telling them they would die."
Gu Ting’s voice carried a trace of indescribable panic and helplessness, slowly shifting into a tone of resigned disappointment:
"Before this, Third Uncle deliberately frightened me, causing me to have the same nightmare for several nights in a row. Because this information overlapped so heavily with the nightmares, they refused to believe me. So I changed my story, suggesting we go to the amusement park instead, and even switched drivers"
"Yet even after changing the route, the car accident still happened. My parents protected me, so I wasn’t hurt, but they died. As soon as the car stopped, someone opened the door and took me away. I didn’t want to leave, but they knocked me out."
At this point, Gu Ting’s expressionless face began to contort. The fear, helplessness, and terror from the past mingled with his current pallor, creating a chilling and unsettling sight.
The dining room fell into dead silence. Any lingering doubts vanished, replaced by shocked and furious gazes fixed on Gu Chi. Their faces were filled with disbelief, yet tinged with deep suspicion.
Gu Ze’s eyes had unknowingly turned bloodshot, his voice laden with deep resentment as he demanded, "Third Uncle, was it really you?!
So, all these years, his relentless targeting of Gu Ting was just a misunderstanding?!"
If it really was as Gu Ting said, then Gu Chi was truly cunning. From start to finish, the setup and the conclusion were flawlessly executed, leaving them completely unaware.
Gu Ze clenched his jaw, his teeth chattering, his entire body trembling with cold.
If it really was like this, who could have guarded against it?
Gu Chi’s face darkened as he insisted, "I really didn’t! He’s lying! Didn’t you investigate everyone involved?"
Grandpa Gu closed his eyes briefly, then spoke heavily, "What if the second car accident was truly just an accident?"
Then everything would make sense.
Gu Chi’s brow twitched. He shook his head rapidly, stood up abruptly, the chair scraping with a piercing screech that grated on everyone’s ears. He hurried forward, trying to explain, his words tumbling out quickly, "Dad, my brother is my own flesh and blood, and Gu Ting is my own nephew. How could I do such a thing?"
"And if you weren’t?" Grandpa Gu looked up at Gu Chi and asked, "What would you do then?"
Gu Chi’s pupils contracted sharply, and for a moment, he was speechless.
The rest of the Gu family stared blankly at Grandpa Gu. Qiao An was also taken aback, never expecting such a twist. If it were true, then Gu Chi was truly something else.
Especially if he had known all along that he wasn’t the Gu family’s biological son, that would be even more disgusting. Not being a blood relative yet still scheming to seize the family fortune.
Though, in either scenario, he hadn’t succeeded.
Qiao An felt a sarcastic laugh bubbling up, but she suppressed it, pinching her palm to refocus her attention on the next question: [What happened after you passed out?]
Gu Ting’s voice sounded again, causing Gu Xun, who was about to confront Gu Chi, to close his mouth. He said:
"After I was knocked out and woke up again, I was in someone else’s home. That family favored boys over girls, and since they hadn’t had a son, they bought me. But I didn’t speak, I only ate. No matter how they beat or scolded me, it was useless. They thought I was an idiot, that buying me was a waste of food, and they wanted to abandon me. Once, when we were out on the street, I was taken by human traffickers. They saw it but said nothing."
"But I still didn’t speak. No one wants an idiot. The traffickers took me a long way before realizing my condition, and then they abandoned me. Only Xiao Bai stayed with me, finding me food, teaching me to beg from others…"
So it really was as Qiao An had guessed, it was that little white cat that helped him survive. But even so, he must have suffered greatly over those ten years.
Her nose tingled with emotion, and she quickly lowered her head, wiping away her tears.
Clearly, many in the Gu family remembered the little white cat. Gu Xun’s eyes were already red, his voice hoarse as he said, "So Xiao Bai didn’t go missing, he was with Gu Ting all along."
"That little kitten, he hadn’t raised it for long, but it was so perceptive," Gu Xun’s wife murmured softly.
Gu Ze let out a low gasp, clutching the fabric over his chest, feeling as though every breath was painful. He had truly been mistaken. His brother had suffered so much, and he had wrongly accused him of causing their parents’ deaths.
Gu Ting's voice continued, "But Xiao Bai died, and I was so hungry, I wanted something to eat. Someone gave me delicious fruit, and I was about to eat it, but Xiao Bai snatched the fruit away, wouldn't let me have it, and even scratched that person. After they left, I got angry with Xiao Bai, and then Xiao Bai started vomiting blood"
Plop! A tear that had been gathering in his eyes finally fell, splashing onto the table, making a sharp sound in the space where only his voice could be heard.
Qiao An quickly grabbed a tissue to wipe his tears. Just moments ago, she had inadvertently wondered what had happened to Xiao Bai, and then she heard these words.
Because Xiao Bai had been poisoned to death, he no longer trusted food given by others.
That was why he insisted on testing for poison.
Her heart began to ache, her mind momentarily thrown into disarray. Without her guidance, Gu Ting fell silent, somewhat bewildered. He reached up to touch his eyelids, only to find his hand wet with tears. Confused, he turned and saw Qiao An crying. Panicked, he clumsily reached out to wipe her tears and whispered, "Don't cry"
Gu Chi watched this series of events unfold, secretly pinching himself. With reddened eyes, he knelt before the old man, his words sincere and earnest. "Dad, he's talking nonsense. If you don't believe me, investigate it yourself. I really didn’t do it. Besides, why would I? Even if I’m not your biological son, I’ve inherited so much from you. And if my older brother died, it wouldn’t benefit me at all!"
Grandpa Gu seemed dazed. Only when he noticed Gu Ting and Qiao An huddled together did he snap back to reality, realizing he too was crying. He let out a bitter laugh, wiped his tears, and looked at the third son kneeling beside him, pledging his loyalty. In that moment, he seemed to age significantly, his back hunched over. "Did you really not do it?"
Gu Chi remained composed, his eyes red but showing no signs of guilt. He shook his head firmly. "No!"
But Grandpa Gu shook his head. "Third son, tell me the truth. When did you find out you weren’t my biological son"
Just as Gu Chi was about to deny it, he found his mouth moving against his will. "Three years before my older brother’s accident."
Grandpa Gu’s eyes sharpened instantly.
Qiao An lowered her head, closed her eyes, and desperately thought, Why was Gu Ting taken away?
Gu Chi’s heart sank. Panic surged within him, and though he tried to clamp his mouth shut, he couldn’t stop himself from speaking. "Because Gu Ting is a genius. Given time, he would’ve quickly taken over the Gu family. He couldn’t be allowed to stay in the Gu family!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Gu Chi’s face turned pale. All his earlier composure vanished as he shook his head frantically, shouting in agitation, "Dad, I didn’t! Just now, my mind went blank. I don’t even know what I said I don’t know."
"Third brother! How can you still deny it at this point?" Gu Xun suddenly stood up, his pent-up anger erupting in a terrifying outburst. "You killed our older brother because he was too capable. You took Gu Ting away because he was too talented. And you didn’t touch me because you knew I was neither skilled in literature nor martial arts, incapable of controlling the Gu family. You knew I’d have to rely on you sooner or later, didn’t you?! On the surface, I seemed to benefit, but you made me endure years of suspicion from others. In reality, you were the one who gained the most in the end!"
Qiao An's train of thought was abruptly cut off by the sudden roar. Her control faltered, and she bit the tip of her tongue. As she hurriedly tried to regain focus, she heard the system announce: [Time's up. Listening Card has expired.]
Qiao An was dumbfounded.
Fortunately, Grandpa Gu had already grasped the situation. No matter how much Gu Chi tried to defend himself, the old man looked weary as he said, "Third Son, none of this can serve as courtroom evidence. The car accident was an accident, and the charge of intentional murder can't be pinned on you. So, there's no need to say any more."
Gu Chi’s face turned ashen. He slumped to the ground in despair, still shaking his head in denial. "I didn’t…"
But why had he said those things just now?
A chill ran down his spine.
Then, a sharp pain shot through his cheek as a young man’s furious roar echoed in his ear: "Haven’t you ever dreamed of my parents at night?"
Suddenly, Gu Chi realized, had he just been… possessed by a ghost?
Knocked to the ground, his eyes filled with terror, he scrambled to evade Gu Ze’s attacks, bewildered and at a loss. Wasn’t today the Dragon Boat Festival?
How had a truth buried for over a decade suddenly been exposed?
Watching Gu Ze’s actions, Qiao An sighed softly. She was about to take Gu Ting away to spare him from the frightening scene when she noticed him staring intently at the man being beaten, his gaze unwavering.
Only when Gu Chi was too battered to move did Gu Ting finally turn to Qiao An, a faint smile curling his lips as if he had let go of something.