537 The Secret About the Past 155

"Hubby, this is a guaranteed success. Have you got any rewards for me?"

"Of course." Gu Dongcheng picked her up in his arms and lowered her onto the bed. "I'm going to make you beg for more."

"I'm pregnant now!"

"I'll be gentle."

"…"

After discussing their plan thoroughly, Gu Dongcheng began taking action in the evening.

He specially invited his father for a meal outside.

It was just the two of them alone.

To sugarcoat and put things nicely, they were merely having a heart-to-heart talk and a casual conversation about their family matters.

However, Mr. Gu still had his guard up against Gu Dongcheng since he knew that his son was the culprit behind the incident at the ancestral hall.

Noticing that his father was still sober, Gu Dongcheng dared not mention a word about Gu Beicheng's birth characters.

Instead, they returned to the Gu family mansion right after the meal.

Xu Youran initially thought that he would succeed. However, she was struck with disappointment upon seeing him shake his head.

Mrs. Gu instructed the kitchen helpers to prepare some hangover broth for Mr. Gu and Gu Dongcheng before joining everyone else in the living room.

"Don't we have enough liquor for you two at home?" Mrs. Gu handed Mr. Gu a bowl of broth and said, "Drink up. You're not in the pink of health, avoid consuming so much alcohol."

"Mother, Father only had a little to drink. I wouldn't dare to let him drink that much," Gu Dongcheng said while smiling.

Mrs. Gu naturally did not feel good about Gu Dongcheng, for she still bore a resentment toward him for the incident in the ancestral hall.

"Good that you know."

"By the way, Mother, where's our household register?" Gu Dongcheng asked.

"What do you need it for?"

"I need it for some matters," Gu Dongcheng answered briefly.

"I'll go get it for you."

Mrs. Gu immediately proceeded to her bedroom to retrieve the household register and handed it to him. "Here's the new register, which was replaced yesterday. The old one is no longer in use."

Gu Dongcheng took it from her hands and flipped through the pages of the register, only to discover that the birthdays of every member of the family were no longer stated on the register, leaving only the year of birth.

"Huh? Mother, are our birthdays no longer stated on the household register?"

"Yes. They've changed the information in the database accordingly too. Xiaoning was the one who called the Civil Administration office to instruct them to do so. This is to prevent those shameless scoundrels from using our birth dates for evil purposes. How revolting."

A look of dismay formed on Gu Dongcheng's face, which quickly vanished afterward. He then feigned ignorance and asked, "What evil purposes can birth dates be used for?"

"Who knows? Anything is possible in this world, and you can never read someone else's mind. You'll never know what ill thoughts one may harbor deep down. But Heaven will definitely punish one for their misdeeds at the end of the day. Heaven will never let such malicious people off."

Gu Dongcheng could not help but feel like Mrs. Gu seemed to be referring to him. He returned the household register to Mrs. Gu, who then took it back to her bedroom.

—

An Xiaoning received a call from Jin Qingyan at night. She knew that it must have been an urgent matter since he chose to call directly instead of sending her a text message.

She ran toward the bathroom and answered softly, "Hello, did you manage to find out about the thing I asked you to?"

"Yes, Honey, hear me out. I've already gotten a hold of the photos, I'll send them to you immediately. But I'm letting you know beforehand, the woman in the photos looks almost identical to you. I almost mistook her for you," Jin Qingyan said agitatedly.

"Really?" An Xiaoning asked in astonishment.

"Yes, really. But, the president's brother doesn't seem to resemble you much. I can't really tell since the photos are too blurry. Take a look for yourself later."

"Send me the photos now."

"Alright."

After ending the call, An Xiaoning exited the washroom, perplexed and bewildered. If her mother was really the woman Tuoba Shuo loved, then that meant her mother was already dead. Did that also mean her father was Tuoba Shuo?

Ding-Dong.

She tapped on the latest notification and zoomed in onto the photo. Although it was a little blurry, she could tell with just one glance.

Although the woman in the photo resembled her greatly, they were not the same person.

The woman had long, curly locks that cascaded down her back, a pair of smiley eyes, and rosy, upturned lips. She was a ravishing beauty.

In the photo, she was dressed in a bright, red Qipao.

Tears welled up in An Xiaoning's eyes as she stared at the photo. Soon, her teardrops rolled down her cheeks.

At this very moment, she was certain that the woman must be her mother!

After piecing the puzzle together based on the information given by Tuoba Danxue, she was sure that Tuoba Shuo was her father, without a doubt.

She took another look at the only photo of Tuoba Shuo she could find online. Although it was rather blurry, she could still manage to see his features.

An Xiaoning decided to go to the front yard tonight to visit him using her true identity.

She especially put on a comfortable pair of flats, tied the rope around her waist, and put on the needle-embedded hair clip.

Little did she expect to bump into Zhi Yin as soon as she exited her room.

"Where are you going?"

"I decided to go out for a walk since I can't fall asleep."

"Chat with Her Highness if you can't sleep. Come with me," said Zhi Yin, walking toward Tuoba Danxue's room.

An Xiaoning had no choice but to follow her into Tuoba Danxue's room.

"Your Highness, here's your juice. Mu Ning said that she had trouble sleeping so I asked her to come in and chat with you," said Zhi Yin, handing her the glass.

"Yes, take a seat, both of you." Tuoba Danxue lay in bed and gulped the entire glass of juice down in one go.

Zhi Yin grabbed the empty glass from her and placed it onto the table.

"Mu Ning, are you troubled? Why can't you fall asleep?" Tuoba Danxue asked.

"Maybe she misses her boyfriend. After all, she's definitely going to feel sad about his death deep down, though I can't tell at all that she's upset," Zhi Yin interrupted.

An Xiaoning was peeved by Zhi Yin's sarcastic tone. "Why do I have to let you see that I'm upset? I just don't want to affect Her Highness with my negativity," she retorted.

Tuoba Danxue nodded and asked, "Mu Ning, are you really only 24 years old?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Although you're only two years older than me, I feel like you're much more mature than I am. I also find you to be very different from Zhi Yin and the rest."

"Your Highness, how is she different from us? Are you referring to her appearance?" Zhi Yin asked in puzzlement.

"Sister Zhi Yin, why do you always have to be so crude and harsh with your words? You're speaking as if you're the most beautiful. I really can't stand your personal attacks," An Xiaoning castigated.

"But I was just stating facts. Mu Ning, any girl in this palace is easily prettier than you are."

Tuoba Danxue burst into laughter and said, "That's enough, don't keep insulting Mu Ning about her appearance. I have my reasons for saying that Mu Ning is different from you guys."

"Your Highness, how is she different from us? Tell us, quick," said Zhi Yin, listening attentively.

"I've never seen Mu Ning swooning over good-looking men or admiring them."

An Xiaoning was surprised to realize that Tuoba Danxue had been observing her.

"That's true… Mu Ning, do you keep all your feelings of admiration to yourself?" Zhi Yin turned to ask her.

"No."