Chapter 689 It turns out they had met before.
But Kong Wange couldn't figure out why the man in front of her was joking with her.
All the doubts from just now seemed to have been answered at this moment.
She knew why she felt a natural affinity and trust towards him.
She knew why he felt there was a subtle resemblance between him and her in their eyes and brows.
She also knew why he protected her in the midst of danger, even at the cost of getting hurt himself.
Because he is her father.
Indeed, it seems that only this reason makes sense.
Logically, she should have asked him to provide some proof, but then she felt it wasn't necessary.
His very existence here seems to be the best proof.
At that moment, she realized that there really is such a thing as a connection between true blood relatives.
But she still found it absurd and said woodenly, "You say you are my father, so since you are still alive, why haven't you come to see me all these years?"
"And why did you abandon my mother? Do you know what she suffered in the Wen family and the Kong family? Do you know how much pain she endured before she died and how difficult it was for her to give birth to me?!"
As she spoke, tears welled up in Kong Wange's eyes, and her voice rose involuntarily.
A flicker of pain crossed Wan Qingzhou's face. He took a deep breath and said slowly, "I know I haven't abandoned Zhiyi. I will avenge her. I will make her pay for everything she went through, tenfold."
His tone was flat, and in just a few words, one could easily hear the despair under pressure and the determination to survive against all odds.
Everyone was shocked and remained silent for a moment.
"As for why I haven't come to see you all this time..." Wan Qingzhou took a deep breath and looked at Kong Wange, saying, "Actually, I've been by your side all these years."
“What did you say…” Kong Wange was stunned.
"Girl, do you still remember the person who taught you the harmonica in Yan Heli's thatched cottage back then?"
As soon as Wan Qingzhou finished speaking, Kong Wange suddenly realized what he meant.
She finally understood why that face was so familiar—it wasn't just because she looked like him, but because—she had actually seen him before!
That must have been shortly after she arrived in the countryside, when Yan Heli brought her back to his side.
She followed him every day to learn to identify herbs and memorize medical texts. Yan Heli was very strict with her, and she would be punished if she made even the slightest mistake.
They were either forced to copy medical books or punished with beatings on their hands.
She was still young then, and despite her exceptional talent, she was punished several times a month.
Every time she was punished, she felt wronged and sad, wondering why she could never meet her master's standards despite her hard work.
Until one day, she was punished to copy books. Because she was too tired and sleepy, she used a little trick and secretly distributed the books to the children in the village at the foot of the mountain.
They helped her copy books, and in return, she would give them herbs. They could then take the herbs to a pharmacy in a town six or seven kilometers away to exchange them for money.
Yan Heli discovered this the very next day.
Because she forgot that the other children's handwriting was different from hers. Even if she tried to imitate them, she could only get about 60 or 70% right. Yan Heli, with his sharp eyes, could spot the mistake at a glance.
That was the first time Yan Heli had ever gotten so angry with her.
One theory is that she made her copy books so that she could memorize what she couldn't.
Secondly, it was said that she was dishonest and would inevitably go astray in the future.
She felt both regret and grievance. When she learned that she would have to pay the price for this—kneeling in the ancestral hall all night—she burst into tears.
Crying is useless; after crying, you still have to kneel.
So that night, she knelt on the prayer mat, with statues of her ancestors, doctors, before her. Her head bobbed up and down, and every time she tried to fall asleep, she would wake up because of the pain in her knees.
Just when she felt hopeless about life, she heard the sound of a harmonica.
The voice was exceptionally beautiful and melodious, instantly capturing all her attention and making her almost forget the pain in her knees.
She instinctively wanted to stand up and find the source of the music, but her legs were too weak and she almost fell over.
Just then, a tall uncle walked in and took her into his arms.
For a long time, his features had become blurred in Kong Wange's mind.
But at this moment, it perfectly overlapped with Wan Qingzhou in front of him.
No, she was probably a younger version of Wan Qingzhou back then.
His wrinkles weren't this deep, and he wasn't as unkempt as he is now.
She slowly exhaled, recalling the first words he had said to her: "Would you like to learn the harmonica?"
She seemed frozen in place, nodding blankly.
Wan Qingzhou then carried her to the soft couch at the back, had her sit on the bed, took out his harmonica, and patiently taught her little by little.
Finally, he said, "Try blowing on it?"
Little Kong Wange stared wide-eyed, tentatively tried to blow, but it was completely out of tune.
The uncle in front of me smiled and didn't press me: "It's okay, you can learn slowly later if you don't understand, no need to rush."
Kong Wange blushed slightly, nodded, and looked at him: "Will you teach me again?"
The man seemed to pause for a moment, then said, "If you want to learn, I'll teach you."
Kong Wange smiled: "Uncle, you're so kind."
The young Wan Qingzhou looked at her with doting and affectionate eyes, and patted her head: "Go to sleep if you're tired. You'll have more energy to study when you're awake."
Kong Wange pursed her lips: "No, Master is punishing me by making me kneel in the ancestral hall. He won't let me leave until I've knelt all night."
The man's expression hardened for a moment, then he relaxed slightly as if afraid of frightening her, saying, "Don't worry, I'll talk to your master. You can go to sleep."
Kong Wange was truly exhausted and utterly worn out. His words also had a strangely reassuring power, so she nodded her little head: "Alright, be careful, don't make Master angry. Master can be quite fierce when he gets angry."
The man seemed to chuckle again, ruffling her hair: "Don't worry, your master can't out-scare me."
Hearing this, Kong Wange felt relieved, and her eyelids could no longer stay open, so she closed them and fell asleep.
In her sleep, she vaguely heard a conversation between two people—
"You're being too demanding of her."
"If you don't care about your child, then don't worry about how I will! Zhiyi's wish is to see her succeed, not to be raised into a useless person!"
"Zhiyi just hopes that she can grow up healthy and happy!"
"..."
She didn't listen to the sounds after that, probably because she felt they were irrelevant to her.
It seems so ridiculous now. How could it be unrelated?
They were talking about themselves!
It's a pity that she was too young at the time, and sleepiness completely overcame her curiosity, causing her to miss a golden opportunity to recognize her biological father.
In the end, Wan Qingzhou emerged victorious in that debate, because from then on, Yan Heli never treated her so harshly again.
On the contrary, as she grew older and came to understand her master's good intentions, she began to be increasingly strict with herself.
From then on, Yan Heli never had to worry about her again.
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