Chapter 130 Confirming Identity
Shen Qingtan's eyes moved slightly. Gu Zongci's reaction and words conveyed a message to her - she looked like someone he knew.
"Really?" Shen Qingtan asked tentatively, "You've traveled a lot, so you must have met my parents by chance."
At this point, she paused and said, "The wives of officials in the capital all say that I don't look like someone from the Cheng'en Marquisate. My mother said that I was smart from the womb and was specifically chosen for my good looks, so I don't look like them. Instead, I look more like my great-aunt whom I've never met."
Shen Qingtan smiled and said, "Perhaps you have met someone from my great aunt's side."
Gu Zongci clasped his hands tightly together, suppressing the emotions that were about to surge out of his heart.
He asked with restraint, "Great-aunt? Your grandmother's sister?"
Shen Qingtan nodded: "Yes."
Gu Zongci pointed out, "If that's the case, then you and your grandmother should bear some resemblance. Those officials' wives who said you didn't look like someone from the Marquis' Mansion were exaggerating."
Before he met Shen Qingtan, he didn't have much hope in his heart.
Because when my niece disappeared, several other children also disappeared at the same time.
Even if Shen Qingtan is not the biological daughter of Marquis Cheng'en and his wife, she is very likely one of the missing children.
She may not be his biological niece.
But the moment he saw Shen Qingtan, he was almost 70% to 80% sure that she would be his niece.
It’s because her eyebrows and eyes are too similar to her sister’s.
Anyone who has seen his sister will think that the two look very similar.
In particular, Shen Qingtan said that her appearance did not resemble those of the people in the Marquis' Mansion, but instead looked like her distant "great aunt".
The key point is that no one has ever seen this "great aunt", which seems like an excuse deliberately used by the Marquis's Mansion to deal with the public.
Gu Zongci couldn't help but guess what Shen Qingtan was thinking.
Did she know she wasn't the Marquis' biological daughter and deliberately say this to him? Or did she just say that she didn't look like the Marquis of Cheng'en and his wife?
"I don't look like my grandmother at all. The wives of officials are not exaggerating." Shen Qingtan picked up the teapot and poured a cup of tea for Gu Zongci. As she pushed the teacup over, her wide sleeves pulled up to her wrists, revealing the bracelet on her wrist.
She deliberately joked, "Perhaps my great-aunt also looks like her great-aunt? You can't say that I don't look like them because I'm not the daughter of a marquis, right?"
Gu Zongci stared at the filigree inlaid bracelet on her wrist, his eyes were sore and hot.
His sister gave birth to three sons in a row before finally having a daughter.
His brother-in-law doted on his daughter like the apple of his eye. From the moment his niece was born, he recruited skilled craftsmen and spent a year to make this pair of gold bracelets.
It turns out that when the painter designed the bracelet, he used the symbol of the Zhenbei Palace, a auspicious beast totem.
My brother-in-law rejected it immediately. He said, how could a delicate girl like her use ferocious patterns?
The painter then suggested using plum blossom patterns, adding, "Plum blossoms are elegant and noble, symbolizing pride and integrity."
My brother-in-law said without hesitation, "The fragrance of plum blossoms comes from the bitter cold. My beloved daughter is a flower of wealth and honor from Liangzhou. Naturally, she cannot endure even the slightest hardship. So, let's use peonies."
Before my niece was three years old, she was indeed pampered and lived in luxury.
Until fourteen years ago, a war broke out in Liangzhou, and the deputy general who had been with his brother-in-law through thick and thin was trapped by the enemy and captured.
Even though he knew that the enemy was using the deputy general as bait to lure him over, he still led his men deep into the enemy camp and rescued the man at the risk of his life.
Although the person was rescued, my brother-in-law was seriously injured and fell into a coma.
The enemy's morale was boosted and they took the opportunity to attack Liangzhou.
It just so happened that the ancestor of the Gu family was seriously ill, and the doctor said that he had only a few months to live at most.
The old ancestor was worried about his sister, but he also knew that his sister was married to the Queen of Zhenbei and could not leave Liangzhou without an imperial decree. He only called his sister's name unconsciously when he fell into a coma.
He didn't know that his brother-in-law was in trouble at that time, so he wrote a letter to his sister.
The situation in Liangzhou was dire, and my sister was worried that the city gates would be breached by the enemy before the imperial court could send reinforcements. She was also concerned about her ancestor's illness, so she ordered someone to secretly escort her niece to Nanlingzhou.
Firstly, to let her niece avoid disaster, and secondly, to let her niece see her ancestor for the last time on her behalf.
When he received his niece, he announced to everyone that she was the child of his wife's brother from her maiden side.
He also ordered everyone in the mansion not to take his niece out without permission.
Unexpectedly, during the Lantern Festival, his son secretly took the person out and lost him.
When our ancestor heard the news, he could not bear the blow and passed away that night.
Because the situation in Liangzhou was tense and their niece's identity was sensitive, they did not dare to look for her in a high-profile manner and could only look for her secretly.
After taking care of the old ancestor's funeral, his son disappeared and his whereabouts are unknown.
After receiving the letter, my sister had two suspicions.
One was abducted by a matchmaker.
One reason was that they were being targeted, and they were afraid that the Gu Mansion would suffer a disaster because of the involvement of the Zhenbei Palace, so they asked them to move out of Nanlingzhou.
Over the years, he has been doing business in various places to find out about his niece.
The Zhenbei Palace also sent spies, but they did not dare to come to the capital, for fear of alarming the royal family and disrupting the stability of the Zhenbei Palace.
After all, the late emperor issued an edict that anyone from the Zhenbei Palace who set foot out of Liangzhou would be charged with treason.
Although Emperor Jing'an is more benevolent than the previous emperor, his heart is unpredictable. With hundreds of lives at stake in the Zhenbei Palace, he dared not act rashly.
Otherwise, Emperor Jing'an would abandon his niece like his predecessor did, and even if they found her, they would die with her.
They have been waiting for an opportunity to make a contribution, and then confess their crimes to the emperor so that they can find someone without any scruples.
And this war in the north is an opportunity for them.
Fourteen years, a full fourteen years.
The Great Zhou is so vast, and there are no definite clues, it is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Unexpectedly, he found it in the capital.
Gu Zongci's hands couldn't help but tremble, and the grown man was almost in tears.
He suppressed his emotions and tried his best to remain calm.
Because Shen Qingtan's identity is rather troublesome, she is now the daughter of Marquis Cheng'en. If they recognize each other now, and reveal that her biological parents are the King and Queen of Zhenbei, it may bring about even greater disaster.
After all, Marquis Cheng'en and his wife have always been targeting Shen Qingtan openly and secretly.
Isn't this just handing the handle to the Marquis' Mansion for nothing?
He planned to write immediately to tell his brother-in-law and sister that their daughter had been found.
In the letter, he urged his brother-in-law to speed up the war in the north and return to Beijing in triumph to recognize his daughter as soon as possible.
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