Chapter 55: A Call from the Liang Family

Lu Qi'an took out the old wallet he used to carry; inside was a photograph that had been kept for many years. Qin Miaoyu wasn't sure what explanation Lu Qi'an meant, but guessed it was likely those messages she had, in anger, left unopened at the time.

She looked at the somewhat worn wallet he handed over, curiosity stirring about what kind of girl could captivate Lu Qi'an's heart for so long. She reached out and took it, and when she saw the photograph, she looked up at Lu Qi'an in disbelief.

"This is..."

"This was taken for the honor roll at First High School of South City."

Throughout her entire high school years, Qin Miaoyu only made it onto the honor roll once. It was after her artwork had been plagiarized; she stopped going to the studio, found herself with much more free time, and, unwilling to endure the tedious etiquette lessons her mother arranged, she used studying as an excuse to avoid them.

It wasn't really an excuse—during that period, she did devote much of her extra time to studying. Normally, her grades ranked around fortieth or fiftieth in the school. That time was her first—also her next-to-last—break into the top twenty, earning her a place on the honor roll.

But then came a warning from Liang Sixuan's clique, forcing her to intentionally lower her scores; she never appeared on the honor roll again.

Lu Qi'an had photographed her then because it was a rare occasion—her grades had finally made the honor roll, and the photo was particularly beautiful, so he kept it as a memento.

At the time, he only saw Qin Miaoyu as his savior, never expecting that this photograph would become the comfort he sought for so many years after failing to win her heart.

"I have copies in my office and at home, though recently I've replaced them with newer photos of you."

Qin Miaoyu never imagined the truth would be like this.

Lu Qi'an's long-cherished idealized love was actually herself?

"I don't remember ever meeting you before," Qin Miaoyu said.

"I only visited South City occasionally, so you rarely saw me."

Only then did Qin Miaoyu recall that Lu Qi'an was from Jing City, where he had lived, studied, and worked all his life. She hadn't noticed before, but his words were that she rarely saw him, not that she never had.

Staring at the photograph in her hand, she could hardly believe it—she was Lu Qi'an's idealized love?

But how did Lu Qi'an know her?

She was about to ask when her phone vibrated. She looked at the screen; it was a call from South City, a personal number.

She answered and heard a voice she wasn't particularly familiar with.

"Is this Qin Miaoyu? I'm Xi Ruofen."

Xi Ruofen—Qin Miaoyu knew the name, mother of Liang Sixuan. The few times she had encountered this socialite, her impression was far from pleasant. Each time, it was to excuse Liang Sixuan's misdeeds, after which her own mother would urge her to be patient and tolerant.

She replied coldly, "What is it? If you want me to clear the air online for Liang Sixuan, that's not going to happen."

Xi Ruofen naturally understood the chill in her words, but her voice remained unchanged.

"No, it's something else—something very important. You and Liang Sixuan were born in the hospital at the same time, and the nurses accidentally switched you. We've only just discovered that you are actually the child of the Liang family, while Liang Sixuan is the child of the Qin family..."

The phone slipped from Qin Miaoyu's hand and landed softly on her skirt.

How could that be?

She was the Liang family's child, and Liang Sixuan belonged to the Qin family?

Suddenly, Qin Miaoyu remembered the New Year's Day ceremony of becoming god-siblings.

That seemed to explain why the Liang and Qin families had suddenly grown close, and why they gifted Qin Lianzhu such an expensive handbag. They must have discovered the mix-up with the children.

So Xi Ruofen's claim that it was a recent discovery—Qin Miaoyu didn't believe it at all.

And using the god-sibling ceremony as a cover...

Clearly, the Liang family hadn't intended to make the switch public at first. Why, then, were they telling her now?

She didn't ask directly, only said, "Is there any evidence to prove the switch?"

"Sixuan and those from the Qin family have already done the paternity test."

As she spoke, Xi Ruofen's gaze drifted to the tightly shut door on the second floor.

Liang Sixuan had only recently learned about the switch herself.

Initially, she thought the god-sibling ceremony was genuine. Knowing they were Qin Miaoyu's parents, she had been extremely reluctant, but after her mother explained everything, she agreed to cooperate, even gifting Qin Lianzhu a new bag she had never used.

She was still somewhat displeased, but hearing Qin Lianzhu praise her and disparage Qin Miaoyu, she became elated; their interactions had grown more frequent since.

She never imagined the truth was like this.

It was only when an unexpected incident revealed the clues.

At first, she couldn't and didn't want to believe it.

It wasn't until the paternity test results came out that she finally accepted it was all true...

She rushed back to the Liang home, straight into her own room.

Qin Miaoyu, hearing that Liang Sixuan and the Qin family had already done the paternity test, said, "Then I'll come back and do a paternity test with you."

With that, she hung up.

"What happened?" Lu Qi'an had only caught a few words, not knowing what was said on the other end.

Qin Miaoyu answered calmly, "The Liang family says Liang Sixuan and I were switched at birth. Liang Sixuan has already done a paternity test with the Qin family."

The Liang family? Lu Qi'an frowned.

If he remembered correctly, the Liang family doted greatly on Liang Sixuan.

He had heard of several such switched-at-birth cases before; sometimes, families grew so attached to the child they raised that they neglected their own biological child.

He looked at Qin Miaoyu with concern. "What are you going to do?"

"I'll go back and do a paternity test, then see what they're planning. The Liang and Qin families must have already known about the switch, but I wonder why they suddenly decided to tell me."

Qin Miaoyu and Lu Qi'an returned to the hotel. After informing Gu Jing and Ji Xuan of her plans, she began booking flights to South City.

"I'll go with you," Lu Qi'an said. "If they have any ill intentions, I can help."

Qin Miaoyu didn't refuse his offer, so she booked tickets for both of them.

Gu Jing and Ji Xuan hurried back to the hotel just in time to accompany Qin Miaoyu to South City.

Once their flight landed, the group headed straight to the paternity testing facility.

Mother Liang, Xi Ruofen, was already waiting inside. When they entered her office, her attention wasn't on Qin Miaoyu, but on Lu Qi'an.

"And you, sir—may I ask your name?"

Xi Ruofen found Lu Qi'an familiar.

Lu Qi'an didn't reveal his name, only said, "I'm Miaoyu's husband."