Although she was a little flustered inside, Cheng Qingyan forced herself to remain calm.

Who could be spying on her?

Aside from offending Ye Lingxi and Ye Zongzhi, have you offended anyone else?

With a sense of doubt, Cheng Qingyan asked, "When did that happen? Do you know that person, brother?"

Cheng Yuanfu frowned slightly, hesitating to speak, as if he was somewhat troubled.

But now that the matter has been discussed and the other person is already here, there's no point in continuing to hide it.

Besides, as the eldest son, he had been entrusted with the care of his parents. Even if it wasn't for Cheng Qingyan's sake, he still needed to give Cheng Qingyan a heads-up for the sake of his deceased parents.

Whether Cheng Qingyan can accept it, and what happens afterward, is not something he can decide.

Cheng Yuanfu lowered his head, avoiding Cheng Qingyan's gaze, and slowly said, "Do you know why you are so much older than me and the second brother?"

These words stumped Cheng Qingyan. She had long since become a completely different person, and even if the former Cheng Qingyan knew this, the current Cheng Qingyan did not.

But judging from what you've said, there seems to be a big scoop on this!

Cheng Qingyan shook her head in confusion: "About this matter, I..."

Actually, she knew a little bit about it, but whether it was right or wrong, or whether she would make a mistake, she didn't know, so she decided not to say anything.

Cheng Yuanfu sighed: "The villagers say you are your parents' late-life child, but that's not true."

"When your father and mother found you, you were still in your swaddling clothes."

Huh? Cheng Qingyan's head was buzzing. What was going on?

She was only a few years older than Cheng Shaowen, who was her second brother's child. And what about her eldest brother's child...?

She couldn't believe it; Cheng Lingfeng seemed to be older than her this year, and he was already a father.

That's not the key point. The key point is that she, Cheng Qingyan, was actually picked up by Cheng Yuanfu's parents!

Don't they check the gender when they pick them up?

Why was she still disguised as a man after being taken in?

How did I end up getting caught up in the gossip myself?

Is that why Cheng Yuanfu and Cheng Yuanji are not close to her?

I've thought of all sorts of ridiculous reasons, but this is something I really didn't expect.

Seeing that Cheng Qingyan was stunned, Cheng Yuanfu coughed to remind him to come back to his senses.

She continued, "When you were little, your mother wouldn't let me and the second son take you to play."

"You can play at home, but we absolutely cannot take you out. Perfect, your second brother and I are too lazy to bother with you anyway."

"However, you and Ling Feng used to play together when you were little, but you probably don't even remember it."

And you know what? She really doesn't remember any of it.

"Before my father and mother passed away, they entrusted you to me. I am ashamed that I have not fulfilled my responsibilities as their elder brother."

Cheng Qingyan didn't want to argue with him about this.

He certainly failed to fulfill the responsibilities of an elder brother and did not properly guide the original owner of the body.

Her wife suffered a lot before she arrived.

Cheng Qingyan slowly realized what was going on and asked, "What direct connection does this have with someone trying to find out about me?"

Oh no, now she's even more uncertain.

Not only was he not Cheng's biological son, but he was also being targeted by someone whose identity was unknown.

Cheng Yuanfu frowned and looked at Cheng Qingyan. After hesitating for a long time, he finally said, "The person who is targeting you is probably related to your biological parents."

"He actually knew you weren't a member of the Cheng family, and he even took something from the swaddling clothes you were in when he found you."

Good heavens! Cheng Qingyan exclaimed.

Cheng Yuanfu and the others knew they weren't true members of the Cheng family, so it's no wonder they hadn't been in contact with her for so many years.

However, they still had evidence that she was found, but they kept it a secret from her.

What's the point of talking to her about this now that someone else has taken it?

Wait, it seems like they took one item?

"That man took one item. Brother, do you mean you have anything else here?"

Cheng Yuanfu took out a sachet and handed it to Cheng Qingyan.

A plain-colored sachet with the character "砚" (inkstone) embroidered on it.

No wonder she didn't call him Cheng Yuan something like Cheng Yuanfu and Cheng Yuanji.

It turns out that her name was chosen based on the character "砚" (yan).

It's called a sachet, but it's long since lost its scent.

When you open it, there's a yellowed piece of paper inside.

It probably says her birth date or something similar, but there's nothing else written on it.

Honestly, at first, she wondered if Cheng Yuanfu was just teasing her.

How could it have been picked up?

But what's the point of Cheng Yuanfu lying to her?

She had never seen paper and cloth like these before, with their yellowed appearance and the materials used in the sachet.

Unexpectedly, the biological parents of this body were quite particular.

Seeing that Cheng Qingyan was quite accepting of the matter and did not act hysterically, Cheng Yuanfu quietly felt relieved.

“You had a gold lock on you back then, and I’m returning it to you today.”

Cheng Qingyan took it and examined it in her hands.

It's the kind of safety lock that babies wear, made of pure gold, and the workmanship is extremely fine.

She never expected Cheng Yuanfu to give her this. She thought that even if it had something valuable, it would have been sold off by now.

Stroking the patterns on the gold lock, Cheng Qingyan sincerely thanked Cheng Yuanfu: "Thank you, brother. You've worked hard all these years."

Cheng Yuanfu gave a rare slight smile: "You're surprised that I didn't keep this gold lock for myself, aren't you?"

After all, we've lived together for so many years, and we all know what kind of people we are deep down.

“Your second brother and I will never go against our father and mother’s last wishes, no matter what. That’s our bottom line.”

“I know you’re angry with us, and I also know you’re doing very well now.”

"I just hope you can visit your father and mother again when you have time."

"After all, they've always treated you like their own son."

Indeed, if that's the case, Cheng's parents really had nothing but praise for her.

Even though they weren't family members, they still received a share of the inheritance when the family divided the property.

Cheng Yuanfu and Cheng Yuanji also gave her several acres of land and a place to stay.

I used to think that four acres was really too little.

The old house was really dilapidated.

Now I suddenly realize that it's fortunate that Cheng Yuanfu and Cheng Yuanji didn't go against their parents' last wishes for a few acres of land.

Otherwise, she wouldn't even be able to meet Ye Lingyu, let alone be with her.

She's been here for so long, and she hasn't even visited her parents from the Cheng family once.

Even though she knew they had passed away, she had never even been to their graves.

She now wants to curse herself for being ungrateful and greedy.

Cheng Qingyan stood up and bowed to Cheng Yuanfu.

Cheng Yuanfu is the eldest son of the Cheng family, and as the eldest brother, he is like a father to her. She should bow to him, and he deserves it.