Jiang Yong'an's gaze fell on the young girl.

This child should be ten years old this year. Compared to the socialites and noble ladies of Beijing, he looks a bit thinner and younger.

But those eyes felt familiar to Jiang Yong'an, as if he had returned to many years ago, to the time when that woman, always dressed in fine clothes, frantically knocked on the door and rushed into his house. Although she was flustered, her eyes were so decisive.

The girl met Jiang Yong'an's gaze defiantly.

outsider.

To her, this nominal father was an outsider.

The girl did not hide her feelings.

However, she soon felt the powerful pressure. Beneath the man's calm brows lay an overwhelming sense of killing intent, making Jiang Mingzhu feel as if she were on an ancient battlefield strewn with corpses.

The yellow sand stretched endlessly, flesh and blood churned, and all he could see was himself, an endless expanse of deathly silence and loneliness, accompanied by despair that surged toward him like a tide.

Fear made the girl's jaw tremble.

The unusual sound reached Gu An'an's ears, and she quickly grabbed Jiang Mingzhu's hand, "You are Jiang...it's you?"

The incident happened just two days ago, so Gu An'an naturally remembered this man.

However, she never expected that the person who saved her that day was actually Jiang Yong'an.

The man nodded slightly, seemingly unwilling to bring up the past.

"Thank you for your hard work these past few days."

"It's not hard work." Gu An'an was momentarily dazed by her subconscious answer. When she came to her senses, she realized what she had just said.

But before Gu An'an could get her revenge, she heard a wail, "What sins have I committed?"

Grandma Jiang finally appeared, and her howling made Gu An'an frown. She was about to hand the child over to Jiang Mingzhu, saying, "You take Bao'er and Mingxu to Grandma Li's house to play."

Jiang Mingzhu knew, of course, that Bao'er and Mingxu shouldn't see this scene; they were still too young.

But she was also worried about Gu An'an.

Judging from Gu An'an's reaction just now, it seems that she knows her father.

But I'm still worried.

Before Jiang Mingzhu could take the child, a hand reached out and intercepted Bao'er, pulling her into its own arms.

The little girl felt that this embrace was hard and stiff, completely different from the soft embrace of her empress. "I want my empress." She was a little scared, even though this man was not fierce at all and would smile at her.

But she was scared.

"Baby, be good. Your mother is tired. Let Daddy hold her for a while, okay?"

The man's voice was exceptionally gentle, like a spring breeze and a gentle rain, which calmed the little girl down instantly. She carefully nestled in his hard embrace and settled down.

Gu An'an was stunned for a moment. What was Jiang Yong'an doing?

What is this person, who barely appears in the novel, doing now?

I can't figure it out, I can't understand it.

Gu An'an wasn't the only one who couldn't understand it; Jiang Yong'an's unusual behavior also baffled the Jiang family.

Jiang Ersao was most puzzled. These past two days, the three brothers had been drinking and reminiscing about the past. Was it all for nothing?

The third brother was actually being so kind and gentle to that little slut.

How can this be!

"Third brother, what are you doing? Have you forgotten what you saw the day before yesterday?"

Jiang Ersao's subtle reminder made Jiang Yong'an's gaze fall on Gu An'an.

The latter was completely confused; what had he seen?

"Seeing is not necessarily believing. For example, Mother is crying very sadly now, but I don't think she is really sad."

Gu An'an: "..." Huh?

These words abruptly stopped Old Lady Jiang's wailing; she seemed unable to believe what she had just heard.

"Look, she's stopped crying now."

Grandma Jiang: "..." So she'll keep crying?

Jiang Yong'an's words left Old Mrs. Jiang in a dilemma, unsure whether to cry or not, creating an extremely awkward situation.

"Third brother, didn't you go hunting in the mountains? Why are you back so soon?"

Jiang Lao Er tried to make conversation, realizing he didn't know this brother at all—it was utterly unbelievable. They were born of the same mother, so how could they be like strangers separated by a mountain?

"I didn't go up the mountain."

Jiang Yong'an calmly stated the facts, "I heard you discussing bringing Gu An'an over, and I thought I might need to step aside to make arrangements for you, so I made up an excuse."

What kind of convenient arrangement is this?

Gu An'an thought Jiang Yong'an was truly an amazing person.

Did this guy fully understand the Jiang family's plans and simply choose to be an observer, watching their ridiculous performance?

When this thought popped into her mind, Gu An'an couldn't help but glance at Jiang Yong'an.

The man did look quite different from the two brothers from the Jiang family.

Although he was dressed in coarse cloth, his expression was even more stern, which reminded Gu An'an of Tian Bu'er's words—that his hands were stained with a lot of blood.

He has killed people.

Just as Gu An'an frowned, she suddenly met those eyes.

Caught peeking, Gu An'an wasn't embarrassed at all. She smiled generously and then slowly looked away.

Old Mrs. Jiang was quite upset when she heard her youngest son's words. "Third son, what did you say?"

"Mother, don't you understand? Isn't this all your own doing?" Jiang Yong'an patiently told the story. "You used the money I left to marry me off, leaving the children in her care. Now that I've come back, you're afraid I'll cause trouble for abandoning them, so you fabricated the story that she's a wet nurse, and that the children have been corrupted by her, putting all the blame on her, a woman."

Jiang Yong'an's expression was calm, even his smile conveyed a sense of serene composure. "Yesterday, I overheard my eldest brother, second brother, and sister-in-law discussing bringing Gu An'an back, preferably so she would go berserk and attack you, Mother, so I could witness it. That way, her crime of being a wicked woman would be confirmed, and she wouldn't be able to clear her name even if she jumped into the river. Am I right, second brother and sister-in-law?"

The Jiang family was shocked.

"You, you..."

"Second sister-in-law, do you think everyone in the world is a fool, letting you manipulate them?" Jiang Yong'an's eyes revealed a hint of sarcasm. "At first, I didn't think there was anything wrong with you, because I couldn't believe that my own flesh and blood would treat my children like this."

But Lao Liu was his brother who had shared life and death with him, so it was even more impossible for him to lie to him.

How could someone as simple-minded as him fabricate information to deceive himself?

The two statements are contradictory, so the problem must lie with his family.

These past two days of feigned compliance with his family have been enough for Jiang Yong'an to repeatedly ascertain the truth of the matter.

He looked calmly at his elderly mother, whose face was devoid of tears, and said, "Mother, am I not your son? You have never liked me since I was a child, and you treat even my children this way."

Grandma Jiang was stunned for a moment, not knowing how to answer.

When she finally came to her senses, she saw Jiang Yong'an talking to Gu An'an, "Let's go home."

As he spoke, he picked up Jiang Mingxu from the ground and held him in his arms.

The little boy was still a bit reluctant, "You're quite smart, but you're still far from being my father."

"Xu'er..."

"Mother, don't let lust make you forget everything else."

Gu An'an looked extremely embarrassed. "If you keep talking nonsense, I'll make sure you don't eat."

Jiang Mingxu immediately chickened out, "I'll stunt my growth if I do this, Mother, are you willing to let me?"

"What's there to be reluctant about? It's not like I'm not going to stop growing."