"If we want to find out the truth, the only way now is to start with Madam Guo."

Thinking of Madam Guo's behavior in the ancestral hall, she was clearly trying to hide it and didn't want Guo Jin'ang to see Guo Jinliang's memorial tablet.

In Madam Guo's room.

"Didn't you find the thief?"

The room was lit, and Madam Guo sat under the lamp. Her husband had almost noticed her, but luckily she managed to conceal it in time.

It looks like another sleepless night.

A maid rushed in, "Madam, the thief has probably already escaped."

"By the way, Miss Sun and Mr. Fu have arrived and are outside right now."

Madam Guo was taken aback. "What are they doing here in the middle of the night?"

Logically and emotionally, the entire Guo family is currently in a precarious situation, and she has no intention of seeing outsiders. However, Fu Yuchi is an honored guest, and it would be inappropriate not to see him.

"Alright, bring me my clothes."

Sun Miao'er came in, and Madam Guo, dressed neatly, sat in front of the lamp, her face looking rather pale because of what had happened that evening.

"Miss Sun, why are you coming at this hour?" Madam Guo asked hesitantly, feeling uneasy.

Sun Miao'er didn't intend to keep her in suspense any longer, so she asked, "Madam Guo, why is there still a memorial tablet for Lieutenant Guo in the ancestral hall? Wasn't he serving in the military?"

Madam Guo was shocked and asked, "How did you know, Miss?"

"Could it be that the thieves in the manor just now were sent by you?"

Sun Miao'er nodded in agreement, "That's right."

"You!" Madam Guo felt a surge of anger rising within her, and she pointed at Sun Miao'er, about to lash out.

At this moment, Fu Yuchi spoke coldly, "Madam Guo, in fact, our visit to the Guo family this time is not just for the purpose of staying overnight."

"When the army was checking household registrations, we found that Captain Guo's household registration was different, so we came to Guo's house."

"After all, we are currently at war between the King of Wei and the imperial court. If any spies were to infiltrate, it would be difficult to explain."

"Therefore, the household registration of the soldiers must be carefully screened."

Madam Guo shook her head repeatedly, retorting, "Impossible, he is definitely not a spy for the imperial court, I can assure you, Mr. Fu."

"Oh? How does Madam Guo know he's not a spy for the imperial court?" Fu Yuchi emphasized. "But his household registration is indeed suspected of being falsified. If it's confirmed, his entire family will be implicated!"

Sun Miao'er listened from the side. Her master was usually gentle, but she never expected him to be so ruthless when it came to making harsh remarks.

These words terrified Madam Guo. Her face turned ashen, and her hands trembled. "No! No! I'll tell you, Mr. Fu, I'll confess to you."

She sighed, knowing that the truth would eventually come out, and had no choice but to confess: "It's not that the Guo family intentionally deceived us, but we really had no other choice."

Sun Miao'er had already guessed seven or eight parts of the reason. She saw that the Guo family was dominated by women and had few male members. On the battlefield, swords and spears were indiscriminate and killing was ruthless. The Guo family must be reluctant to send their male members to the army.

A country has its laws, and a family has its rules.

"It was all the old lady's idea."

With tears in her eyes, Madam Guo said helplessly, "Back when the King of Wei conscripted soldiers, the old lady gave birth to three sons: my husband, my second brother, and my third brother."

"My second brother died young, and my third brother is frail. Only my husband is still healthy enough to take on the family business."

“But my third brother is weak, and he is also a son of the Guo family. If my third brother cannot join the army, then only my husband is left. But if my husband goes to the army, my third brother will definitely not be able to protect the Guo family’s huge estate, and it will definitely fall into the hands of the collateral branches.”

Therefore, it is highly likely that Captain Guo in the military camp is her father, and we are getting closer to the truth.

"The old lady first told my husband about this, but I didn't expect him to be so young and impetuous. He insisted on joining the army and said that my third brother was weak and the Guo family couldn't produce a male heir, so they would definitely be harassed by the higher-ups."

"Later, the old lady asked me to handle this matter secretly, to find a healthy man from outside, prepare a household registration list for him, and let him join the army in place of my third brother."

Sun Miao'er was puzzled. "Then why is Master Guo completely unaware of this matter?"

"On the day the people we found joined the army, my third brother found out about it. He was stubborn and knew that if the matter were found out in the future, the Guo family would be wiped out. So he insisted on joining the army as well."

"The old lady had an argument with her third brother. The third brother was weak and fainted in anger, never to wake up again."

As Madam Guo spoke, she became increasingly heartbroken and choked up. "Later, when my husband returned and learned of this, he was filled with grief and indignation and fell seriously ill. I'm afraid his heartbreak will not heal on its own. He always feels that his third brother is still alive, and his memory of him is very vague. Sometimes he is lucid and sometimes he is confused."

Hearing this, Sun Miao'er roughly understood that Guo Jin'ang was unwilling to admit that Guo Jinliang was no longer alive, so he had been deceiving himself.

"The old lady was also heartbroken, but she had to consider the bigger picture. In order to prevent her husband from going mad, she could only secretly place her third brother's memorial tablet in a corner of the ancestral hall. A few years later, the old lady also passed away."

Madam Guo murmured to herself, "Back then, my husband even asked me why my third brother wouldn't come back after Mother left, and whether I was still angry with him..."

After saying this, Madam Guo grabbed Sun Miao'er's sleeve, "Miss Sun, Mr. Fu, please, the Guo family did not deliberately hide it, and he is not a spy."

"Then where did he buy it from?"

Sun Miao'er's heart was in her throat; she was waiting for Madam Guo's answer.

Madam Guo said, "It was quite a coincidence. At that time, I asked someone to find a slave trader and asked him if he had any young and strong men in their thirties."

"That human trafficker was used to buying and selling women; this was the first time he had ever seen someone asking her to buy a man."

"But she actually found them for me. She said that these men were all sold from the east to work as laborers. One of them was not very clear-headed, but he was very meticulous. He just forgot his own name and where he lived."

"When the old lady and I met him, we pretended to recognize him as a relative and told him that he was the son of the Guo family. He did not suspect anything and soon joined the army for the Guo family."

Sun Miao'er gripped her sleeves tightly. Yes, that's it!

Captain Guo is undoubtedly Sun Yuanyong; her father is not dead!

It's true that Sun Yuanyong has amnesia, but it's hard to say whether he ever doubted the identity the Guo family fabricated for him.

After all, given the choice between doing manual labor and joining the army as a wealthy young man, anyone would choose the latter.

"The doctor said he injured his brain, so it's normal for him to have memory problems, and he may not be able to recover in the future."

After hearing the last sentence, Sun Miao'er felt empty again. What could she do if she couldn't get better?

At least as long as they're alive, she and Xiao Ning have something to look forward to.

"Very well, your Guo family also has its difficulties. Since Madam Guo is willing to be frank with me, I will explain everything to the Prince after the matter is investigated, and I will not make things difficult for the Guo family."