252 Observation

Su Xiaoxiao put away the stethoscope and blood pressure gauge and handed him a bowl of freshly brewed medicine.

Qin Canglan hated drinking medicine.

However, this was handed over by his granddaughter. It was most likely made by her.

Thinking of this, he gritted his teeth and poured the medicine into his mouth.

Su Xiaoxiao took the empty bowl and reminded him, “I need to observe your head injury for a night.”

Qin Canglan’s eyes lit up. “You mean I can sleep here tonight?”

Su Xiaoxiao nodded.

A concussion was not a small matter. He had to stay for observation.

Su Xiaoxiao treated Qin Canglan as a patient. Therefore, from the beginning to the end, she was very calm.

Qin Canglan could not calm down.

When he suddenly found out that the son he had raised for many years was not his biological son, it was like being struck by lightning.

His mind was still buzzing. He had to use a lot of restraint to maintain his composure.

“Well…”

He opened his mouth, not knowing what to say.

The old general who killed without batting an eyelid was at a loss in front of a little girl.

Su Xiaoxiao packed her things and was about to leave when Qin Canglan made up his mind and stopped her. “Daya?”

She was called this, right? He had asked the old monkey. The elder sister was called Su Daya, and the younger brother was called Su Ergou. Coincidentally, they were actually the same age as Qin Yanran and her brother.

Thinking of Qin Yanran and Qin Yun, Qin Canglan’s eyes turned cold.

If Su Cheng was the real Qin Che, then what was going on with the one in the residence?

He thought about how everything he had done all these years was the result of a scheme; he had raised a stranger’s child while his own flesh and blood wandered among the commoners, starving and freezing, as he lived like a beggar.

He hated him deeply!

He hated the person who schemed against him and hated himself!

“What’s the matter?” Su Xiaoxiao asked.

Qin Canglan looked at Su Xiaoxiao nervously. “That… that… that… I… I…”

He stuttered!

Su Xiaoxiao tilted her head. “Where are you feeling unwell?”

“No!” He tensed solemnly and tried to sit up, but was defeated by the headache and dizziness.

He said to Su Xiaoxiao anxiously and uneasily, “I’m your grandfather, your father, Su Cheng… is my biological son!”

He finally said it!

Then he blushed.

The last time he was so flustered was when he got married to Su Huayin.

In the blink of an eye, most of his life had passed.

He was afraid that if he didn’t say anything, it would be too late.

“Oh, I know,” Su Xiaoxiao said.

Qin Canglan was stunned.

Little girl… What did she mean?

She, she knew long ago?

The old monkey did not say!

Qin Canglan cursed Su Shuo 70 to 80 times in his heart. Then, his gaze landed on Su Xiaoxiao’s face again. “Can you…”

Could she call him grandfather?

Forget it. He had yet to digest the truth after such a big thing happened, let alone a little girl.

He should give her more time.

“Your father… and Ergou…”

Su Xiaoxiao understood what he wanted to ask. “They don’t know. My father doesn’t remember what happened before he was six years old. If he remembers, his illness will flare up. It’s very painful. When he wakes up, he forgets. Before I find a suitable treatment, you’d better not agitate him.”

“I… I understand.”

Qin Canglan agreed with difficulty.

An extremely strong sense of self-blame surged in his heart.

A six-year-old child had lost everything overnight. He had gone from being the young master of the Duke’s Estate to a cowherd in the countryside.

How had he endured it?

Qin Canglan’s heart ached.

His throat was swollen. “It’s been hard on you all these years…”

Su Xiaoxiao didn’t say anything else and prepared to leave with the small medicine box.

“By the way.” Qin Canglan took out a small stone from his pocket. “This is Erhu’s. He left it on me.”

Su Xiaoxiao took the stone and left the room.

Su Ergou went to Father Su’s room to sleep. The three little ones were in her room, and so was Wei Ting.

The three little ones had slept too much during the day and were not sleepy now. They somersaulted on the bed!

“Erhu, your stone.” Su Xiaoxiao handed him the small stone.

Erhu said, “I gave it to Great-Grandpa.”

Su Xiaoxiao said, “He asked me to return it to you.”

Erhu thought for a moment. “Okay.”

He happily accepted the stone!

He decided that if there was a chance next time, he would give the big man a big one!

The three little ones called him great-grandpa not because they knew Qin Canglan’s identity. Su Cheng was a grandfather early and they had met people much older than him in the countryside. The little fellows called these people great-grandpa.

Old Li was Great-Grandpa Li, and the village head was Great-Grandpa Guo.

Qin Canglan relied on his unique appearance to successfully obtain the longest title—Big Great-Grandfather.

“It’s time to sleep,” Wei Ting said to the three brats.

The three of them did not sleep.

Su Xiaoxiao said to Wei Ting, “Come out for a moment. I have something to tell you.”

The two of them came to the door and left it ajar.

The rain stopped.

The air was filled with the smell of rain and soil.

Su Xiaoxiao scratched her head. “Um… you should know who my father is.”

“Su Mo said so.” Wei Ting’s expression was very calm as if what Su Mo had mentioned was not worth mentioning in his eyes.

Su Xiaoxiao continued, “Then, there’s someone lying in Ergou’s room. It’s Qin Canglan.”

Wei Ting was speechless.

Killing intent flashed across Wei Ting’s eyes.

Su Xiaoxiao looked at him unblinkingly. There was a huge grudge between them.

“Are you angry?” Su Xiaoxiao asked.

“No…” Wei Ting subconsciously retorted. He paused and said, “I’m not angry with you. The grudges of the older generation have nothing to do with you.”

Ever since the little girl was born, she had never eaten a grain of rice from the Marquis of Zhenbei’s Estate and the Protector Duke’s Estate. What did the grudge between the two families have to do with her?

Su Xiaoxiao nodded. She didn’t think it had much to do with her.

She was a lonely soul from another world. She accepted Father Su and Su Ergou because they relied on one another.

If the Qin family and the Su family were good, it would be the icing on the cake. If they were not, it was fine if she did not acknowledge them.

No matter what, she would support this family.

Under the night sky, Su Xiaoxiao looked at him quietly. “Can I ask what grudge there is between the Wei family and the Qin and Su families?”

Wei Ting hesitated for a moment and said in a low voice, “When the previous emperor was alive, he did not appoint a crown prince. The princes fought openly and secretly for that dragon throne. The Wei family was loyal to the eldest son of the previous emperor, Prince Nanyang, and the Su family was loyal to Prince Ruyang. At first, the Qin family did not stand on any side. After marrying the Su family, they also became supporters of Prince Ruyang.”

Su Xiaoxiao said, “It sounds like… they each have their own plans.”

Su Xiaoxiao’s speech was definitely not like that of a village girl. This was something that Wei Ting would sigh about from time to time no matter how long he interacted with her.

Although he had taught her some words, he had not taught her those so-called articles and principles.

“Who became the emperor later?” Su Xiaoxiao asked.

“Prince Ruyang,” Wei Ting said.

Su Xiaoxiao said, “So the Wei family was on the wrong side?”

“Sort of,” Wei Ting said. “After Prince Ruyang ascended the throne, he had always wanted to take back the Wei family’s military power.”

Su Xiaoxiao said, “Has he taken it back?”

Wei Ting looked at the endless sky, and a dark glint flashed across his eyes. “He took back some.”

After all, they were old subordinates of King Nanyang. It was not surprising that the emperor had a grudge against the Wei family.

Su Xiaoxiao continued, “Was it distributed it to the Qin family and the Su family?”

“There’s also the Leng family,” Wei Ting said. “The Leng family was on the same side as the Wei family. We can barely be considered to have kept the goodies to ourselves.”

Su Xiaoxiao frowned. “If it’s just political disagreements…”

“More than that,” Wei Ting said.

However, he did not say what grudges there were.

Su Xiaoxiao didn’t force him.

She could tell that he was not in a good mood. Tolerating Qin Canglan under one roof was already his greatest concession.

“Oh yes.”

Wei Ting hesitated for a moment before telling him what he had just found out. “The guard of the Protectorate has been here. He doesn’t seem to be Qin Canlan’s subordinate.”

If he was Qin Canglan’s subordinate, he would definitely be guarding near Qin Canglan.

Wei Ting said, “There’s something else. Perhaps you need to know too.”

Su Xiaoxiao was stunned. “What?”

“Qin Canglan was originally going to stay at the manor outside the city today. It was Qin Che who asked him to go. For some reason, he came to Pear Blossom Lane.”

After Wei Ting saw the unfamiliar guard, he asked the secret guard to secretly follow him and investigate the Protectorate. He found some traces of Qin Canglan’s movements.

Su Xiaoxiao pondered for a moment. “He… should be here to return Erhu’s Little Stone.”

Many things that could not be explained were now clear.

It turned out that Erhu had led him here by chance.

Wei Ting glanced at her and warned, “Be careful. Perhaps Qin Che already knows of Dad’s existence.”

Su Xiaoxiao looked at him meaningfully. “You called him Dad quite smoothly.”

Wei Ting said coldly, “Get to the point.”

“Oh.” Su Xiaoxiao raised her eyebrows. “You just called him Dad easily!”

Wei Ting was speechless.