“Huaiqing, where is this Comrade Yu Yao you mentioned? Shall we go find her now? I suspect she is your sister Zhizhi. The red mole on her arm may disappear over time, but her family’s genetics will not.”
Wu Huaiqing frowned, not quite understanding: "Aunt, what do you mean by family heredity?"
Suppressing her excitement, Wu Wanying explained, "I was sorting through your grandmother's belongings a while ago and discovered a secret about the girls in our family, which is related to your maternal grandmother being from an ethnic minority."
Wu Huaiqing knew from a young age that his grandmother was a girl his grandfather met in the Northwest when he went there to do research.
Their family members have deeper-set eyes than others, and Yu Yao's eyebrows and eyes do indeed have this feature, but this cannot be used as evidence to determine that Yu Yao is Zhizhi.
People from other ethnic minorities also share this characteristic.
With tears in her eyes, Wu Wanying smiled and said, "It's the color of her eyes. When Zhizhi went missing, your grandmother was mentally unstable, and neither your uncle nor I knew this characteristic."
“It wasn’t until recently, when I was sorting through your grandmother’s belongings and saw her diary from when she was young, that I realized that there’s a common trait in our family as adults. Actually, the boys also have it, but it’s not as obvious as it is in the girls.”
Hearing this, Wu Huaiqing also became excited, "Auntie, tell me quickly what the characteristics are."
"You and your uncle were wondering why my eyes changed color before. It's because it's a family hereditary condition. Your grandmother wrote in her diary that our eyes turn pale gold in the sunlight."
"As long as Yu Yuyao's eyes also have the same characteristics, it can prove that she is Zhizhi."
Wu Huaiqing tried hard to recall what Yu Yao's eyes looked like, but he couldn't remember if Yu Yao's eyes would change color in the sunlight.
Wu Wanying paid no attention to her nephew's troubles; she was overwhelmed with joy at the prospect of seeing her daughter and just wanted to rush over there as soon as possible.
She wanted to see Zhizhi, to ask her if she had been eating well, dressed warmly, or bullied all these years.
"Huaiqing, let's go to the military compound now. I don't want to wait a minute longer."
Wu Wanying was overjoyed and got up to prepare a gift for her daughter.
"Auntie, don't worry."
Wu Huaiqing pulled her to sit down and gently advised, "It's already dark outside. They definitely won't let you into the military compound now. Besides, Yu Yao just got home today. She's had such a long journey, she might already be asleep."
Wu Wanying glanced out the window; it was indeed dark.
"We can't disturb Zhizhi's rest, so let's go first thing tomorrow morning. The clothes I made for Zhizhi last year must be too small. Luckily, we have some fabric at home, so I'll make new ones for her."
After saying that, Wu Wanying didn't even want to eat and wanted to go back to her room. It was only after Wu Huaiqing persuaded her to eat properly that she said, "If you don't eat, your stomach will hurt and you'll miss seeing Zhizhi."
While eating, Wu Wanying mentally rehearsed what she should say to the woman she met. She was genuinely happy and ate half a bowl more than usual.
"It's a pity your uncle is busy with important research lately and can't contact the outside world. Otherwise, given the distance between the shipyard and the family compound, he might have found Zhizhi before we did."
As the two were talking, a commotion came from the corridor outside the family compound, and occasionally, crying could be heard.
Wu Wanying: "Huaiqing, has something happened?"
Wu Huaiqing put down his chopsticks and said, "Auntie, you should eat first. If you don't eat soon, your stomach will hurt. I'll go out and take a look."
After saying that, he opened the door and went out.
When the neighbors saw him, they told him what had happened without him even asking: "Several people who went to the meeting in Guangdong Province were ambushed by spies. Professor Cui is still in a coma in the hospital because he was protecting important data from the shipyard."
"These damn spies, I don't know why, they've swarmed out like madmen."
"No wonder the factory recently sent experts from Qinghai Province to provide support. I was thinking that with more people, my husband wouldn't have to work so hard. Who would have thought it was for this reason?"
Just then, Lu Ze appeared at the family building with Song Yiming.
His gaze fell on Wu Huaiqing: "Comrade Wu, are Professor Cui's family members here? Please come with us to the hospital."
Upon hearing this, Wu Huaiqing's heart sank, "Has something happened to my uncle?"
Lu Ze was silent for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "Professor Cui was infected after his injury, and the doctors are trying to save him. We would like to trouble Professor Cui's family to come with us."
Professor Cui had been out of danger, but last night, his wound became infected for unknown reasons, and his condition is very bad.
Just in case, the teacher asked him to pick up Professor Cui's family.
Wu Huaiqing's expression hardened. "Commander Lu, I understand. Please wait a moment, I'll go in and call Auntie."
With a heavy heart, Wu Huaiqing turned and went into the house.
Not long after, he and Wu Wanying, whose eyes were red and swollen, came out together with some things.
The moment Lu Ze saw Wu Wanying, his dark eyes swept over her face without making a sound.
Although he was puzzled, he didn't say much; completing the mission was the priority.
Lu Ze and Song Yiming escorted the two to the dock, where they boarded a military vessel and headed towards Guangcheng at top speed.
On the way, Wu Huaiqing found Lu Ze and handed him the pocket watch, saying, "Commander Lu, take a look at this."
Lu Ze's gaze fell on the photograph in the pocket watch, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes before returning to normal. "This is...Ms. Wu?"
A hint of agreement flashed in Wu Huaiqing's eyes. "I didn't expect Comrade Lu to recognize her at a glance. If I hadn't known beforehand that it was my aunt, I would have easily mistaken her for Comrade Yu at first glance. This is a photo of my aunt when she was young. Doesn't she look a lot like Comrade Yu?"
Lu Ze handed the pocket watch to Wu Huaiqing, and thinking about the long-term search by the Cui family for their lost daughter, the truth was about to be revealed.
"Is Yu Yao the daughter that Professor Cui has been searching for all these years?"
Lu Ze's voice was steady, and he used a declarative sentence rather than an interrogative one, indicating that he already had a judgment in mind.
"If nothing unexpected happens, Yu Yao will be my cousin."
Lu Ze recalled Wu Huaiqing's eagerness earlier, "You took the initiative to talk to Yu Yao on the train before, just to confirm if she was your sister?"
Wu Huaiqing nodded. "I couldn't help but be suspicious when I saw Yu Yao's appearance, but I didn't notice the red mole at the time and thought I was misunderstanding."
Wu Huaiqing told Lu Ze that Yu Yao's eyes would change color in the sunlight.
Lu Ze said in a low voice, "Yu Yao's eyes do change color in the sunlight; they turn a pale gold."
He noticed this the first time he met Yu Yao.
"Then there's no doubt about it, Yu Yao is my sister." Wu Huaiqing, who was originally only 90% sure, instantly became 100% certain after hearing this.
If my uncle knew that Zhizhi had been found, he would be fine.
Lu Ze had no idea that Yu Yao was Professor Cui's daughter, which meant that Wu Huaiqing in front of him was his brother-in-law, and Professor Cui had become his father-in-law.
He paused, then looked at Wu Huaiqing: "Should I apply to the teachers for permission for Yu Yao to visit Professor Cui?"
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