290: Gu Shouzhuo

It was Papa and Mama Wang’s first time coming to the Imperial Capital. Their eyes widened when they came to the bustling big city; the towering buildings were much taller than the ones in Shanhai City, and pedestrians and vehicles could be seen hurrying in all directions. Even though they were over fifty, the two of them couldn't help but look around curiously like they were children.

"Father, Mother, why did you suddenly come here without any notice?"

Wang Ning'an breathed a sigh of relief when he received his parents. After he calmed down, he felt that something was wrong. His parents had never left Shanhai City in their lives, and refused to come to the Imperial Capital when invited before. Why did they suddenly decide to come now, and without any notice, either?

"Huh, Chengcheng didn’t tell you?" Papa Wang asked, surprised.

Wang Ning'an was stunned, "Could it be that Chengcheng asked you to come here? When?" It was impossible for this to happen, no matter how he thought about it. His younger brother had gone abroad today, so how could he have arranged things while he wasn’t even here?

The two elders didn’t notice the change in his expression, and Papa Wang continued to explain: "It was just yesterday. Chengcheng suddenly sent us a message, asking us to come quickly because something happened to you, and he also said that it had something to do with my biological parents. He already bought the air tickets for us, so we were able to hurry over here. Your mother and I were quite worried about you. However, when we called Chengcheng, the call wouldn’t go through. We thought there might be some problem, so we called you."

Wang Ning'an's expression sank. "Then before that, did the other party say that they arranged for someone to pick you up at the airport?"

"Yes."

"Ning’an, did something happen?" Mama Wang was attentive as usual, and soon realized that his expression was not right.

Wang Ning'an said: "Father, Mother, you may have been deceived. The person who arranged for you to come to the imperial capital was definitely not Chengcheng. He and Chu Yifeng went abroad this morning, so it is impossible for him to have arranged for you to come here. When you called him, he was most likely on his plane. The people who asked you to come over might have ulterior motives. Fortunately, you called me. Those people who were sent to pick you up probably gave up after seeing me."

Papa and Mama Wang were stunned.

Wang Ning'an's guess was not wrong. It was true that another party was deliberately using Wang Cheng's name when he went abroad in order to trick his parents into coming to the imperial capital. He now questioned whether or not the person behind the scenes was someone who wanted to steal the jade pendant. If so, his parents might be in danger.

Wang Ning'an guessed right about the first part, but wrong about the last part.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, the doorbell of the apartment suddenly rang. Through the peephole, Wang Ning'an saw a polite-looking middle-aged man in a suit; he didn't look like someone with bad intentions. Papa Wang walked over, wondering why Wang Ning’an had been at the door for a while but there were no guests coming in, and the doorbell rang again.

"Ning’an, who is it?" Wang Ning’an shook his head before finally opening the door. However, he did not open the extra security door.

The middle-aged man outside the door didn't mind. When he saw him and Papa Wang, he nodded to them. "Mr. Wang Ning'an, sorry to bother you. I'm Lu Yi, the butler of the Gu family. I'm here by the order of Master Gu, who intends to invite you, your mother, and your father to have a meal. He’s requesting the presence of all three of you."

"Ning'an, what's going on? Who is the Gu family, do you know them?" Papa Wang was confused. They had just come to the imperial capital, why would anyone want to invite them to dinner?

The doubts in Wang Ning'an’s heart were cleared when Lu Yi said his words. The other party appeared in such a timely manner. Obviously, the one impersonating Chengcheng and inviting his parents to the imperial capital was Gu Shouzhuo, his alleged grandfather. Chengcheng’s guess was correct, the other party really had known about them for a long time.

"Then please wait outside for a while." After Wang Ning’an said this, he closed the door, not waiting for Lu Yi's reaction. If possible, he didn't want his parents to be involved in the matters of wealthy families. His parents had been farmers for half their lives, and might not be able to accept living in the imperial capital for a long time, let alone accept being part of a wealthy family.

He Ping went to his training course. When Guan Meifang saw that the atmosphere in the living room was a little serious, she also went to the kitchen by herself.

Papa Wang and Mama Wang sat on opposite ends of the sofa, staring at their eldest son.

Wang Ning'an explained succinctly: "Father, Chengcheng and I actually found the origin of the jade pendant that your mother left you back then. That person outside is the butler sent by the person who might be your father, the Master Gu he mentioned. He already knew about your existence, but he just might not be completely sure about your relationship yet, so he wanted to meet us."

When he heard his son's words this morning, Papa Wang was already a little panicked. Now his biological father wanted to meet him. Papa Wang finally realized how his youngest son must have felt, he was quite mentally unprepared.

Sensing her husband's mood, Mama Wang said, "Ning’an, what do you mean? Shall we go or not go?"

Wang Ning’an thought for a while, "I think we should go. However, if Father finds it difficult, he doesn't have to go."

Wang Ning’a was going, not because he was greedy for the Gu Group, but because if he didn't go, who knew what the people in the Gu family would do? If the behind-the-scenes plan was successful, and if this person wasn’t Old Man Gu, his parents might be in real danger. So, if they could take this opportunity to let the other parties know that they already knew of each other’s existence, it could keep their relationship calmer.

"Since Ning'an wants to go, let's go." Papa Wang suddenly realized that it was not just himself he had to think about, but also his son.

"Father, don't worry, it will be alright." Wang Ningan knew at a glance what Papa Wang was thinking, and with a burst of emotion in his heart, he stood up: "Then let's go."

Papa Wang hurriedly said, "Ning’an, do you think we need to change our clothes?"

Wang Ning'an smiled and said, "No, let's just go. If Old Man Gu dislikes Mother and Father because you’re not dressed well, there's no need for us to recognize him."

Outside, Lu Yi was not angry that he closed the door on him, he just waited patiently until Wang Ning’an and his parents came out, still smiling. When they got downstairs, the group of people sat in a limousine, which took them to where they were eating.

Wang Ning'an thought they were meeting at a restaurant outside. However, the car stopped in front of the gate of a retro-looking building. The huge iron door slowly opened, and the car drove in, turned around the flower bed, and stopped after crossing the courtyard.

Lu Yi got out of the car and helped Papa and Mama Wang open their doors, "Here you are."

"This is it?" Papa Wang and Mama Wang looked at the building in front of them, not expecting such a sight. This was clearly a big mansion, not a restaurant at all.

Wang Ning’an walked over, already aware of where they were. If he guessed correctly, they were at the main house of the Gu family. He never thought that Old Man Gu would invite them to dinner at the mansion. However, he had to say that the other party seemed to attach great importance to this meeting, letting Wang Ning'an feel more at ease.

Lu Yi asked them to sit down in the living room first, while he went to get the family head.

Papa Wang and Mama Wang looked around. The two had been feeling a little out of tune with the styles of the imperial capital, but felt very good about this retro building. They immediately formed a good impression of it. It didn't have a strictly-structured feeling like modern buildings, there was warm wood everywhere.

"Do you like it here?" The two of them were so absorbed into looking around, that they didn't realize that an old man had walked up to them until he began to speak. They were startled, quickly turning their heads to look at him.

Gu Shouzhuo was seventy-nine years old this year, a few years older than Old Man Chu. However, he was in good health and did not need a cane yet. Because he came in from outside, only Wang Ning'an noticed his arrival.

Papa Wang awkwardly gazed at the old man who was now sitting down in front of him. He was already in his fifties, but he was only now meeting his biological father. There were situations like this in TV dramas, but the protagonists were all the age of his son.

At this time, Lu Yi handed a photo to Gu Shouzhuo. Gu Shouzhuo glanced at the photo and said with a nostalgic tone, "Your daughter looks very much like your late mother, as if they were carved out of the same mold."

After he finished speaking, he asked Lu Yi to pass the photo to Papa Wang.

Papa Wang was hesitant and curious, and had no option but to accept the photo. At first glance, the photo was very old, maybe from the 1950s or 1960s. The woman in the photo was wearing a cheongsam, and a shawl covered her shoulders. A soft smile adorned her face, making her appear both noble and elegant. However, what attracted Papa Wang the most was the woman's appearance.

The woman looked quite like Wang Ziyu. However, the woman in the photo looked as if she was twenty-five or twenty-six years old, while Wang Ziyu was only 19 years old this year, meaning she was relatively immature. Their original doubts were dispelled after seeing this photo. If they were not related by blood, how could Papa Wang’s mother and daughter look so similar?

Papa Wang nostalgically stroked the woman in the photo. It turned out that his mother looked like this. Since he learned of his background, he actually wanted to know what kind of person his biological mother was. Although he had never seen her, he knew she must be a great person, because she gave up her life for him.

Wang Ning'an was a little surprised to see this scene. His gaze shifted to meet Old Man Gu’s, who offered him a kind smile.

***

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