Chapter 1: Mistaken Identity—The Gu Family Comes Calling

"Ci, you’ve finally come down from the mountain, haven’t you? You have no idea—your birth family’s people have been looking for you for several days. They’re still waiting outside the village chief’s house right now!"

Just as Gu Ci reached the foot of the mountain, Old Lady Wang, who had been keeping watch, called out to her.

Gu Ci responded politely, as though she were listening intently, but her expression barely changed.

Old Lady Wang eyed her with suspicion. She’d always known this child to be quiet and reserved, but now she wondered if it was just her imagination—Gu Ci didn’t seem to react at all to the news that her birth family had come looking for her.

But such thoughts were quickly swept aside. Old Lady Wang resumed her gossip with even more enthusiasm, her words tinged with both excitement and confiding tones.

“Ci, I think your birth parents are much more reliable than Haobin’s folks ever were. As soon as they heard you were here, they sent their steward to look for you. They’ve been waiting for days!” Old Lady Wang paused, a bit embarrassed. “Their steward even gave each of us two hundred yuan a day—just to keep an eye out for when you’d come down the mountain!”

“I tell you, Ci, they’re serious about taking you back to live a good life!”

As she spoke, she tugged Gu Ci along while instructing her, “See that black car with the fan logo? Even if you don’t recognize it now, let Granny tell you—that’s an extremely expensive luxury car!”

Haobin’s folks were Gu Ci’s adoptive parents. Not long after her birth, the young couple quarreled and abandoned her in the village while she was still swaddled. Fortunately, the elderly couple who lived on the mountain found her and raised her, or she wouldn’t have survived.

That elderly couple had passed away five years ago, but the child remained steadfast on the mountain. Now that her birth parents had come, perhaps her hardships were finally at an end.

Sensing the faint pity in Old Lady Wang’s gaze, Gu Ci could only wonder where her thoughts had wandered, unable to suppress an amused sigh.

Following the direction of the old woman’s finger, Gu Ci spotted the “fan logo” car parked in front of the village chief’s house.

A Mercedes S450—wheelbase 2560mm, 512 horsepower, 63 lb-ft of torque.

Gu Ci glanced at it once and lost interest.

But Old Lady Wang’s loud voice brought all the neighbors at the foot of the mountain out of their homes.

These past few years, Qihu Village had developed at an astonishing pace; it was no longer the impoverished mountain hamlet it had once been. The villagers, now with idle time, had become more enthusiastic and nosy than ever.

Under the villagers’ fervent stares, Gu Ci had no choice but to head to the village chief’s house.

…

As soon as Gu Ci stepped inside, a middle-aged man’s sharp, appraising gaze fell upon her—intense and utterly unguarded.

But when his eyes landed on Gu Ci’s face, he was momentarily stunned.

The girl before him was breathtakingly beautiful, her skin like sculpted jade, flawless and fair. Her eyes seemed to hold countless stars—deep and boundless.

She was nothing like the grimy, rustic girl he’d imagined.

Coming back to himself, the man’s expression grew even harsher and more rigid as he remembered how this girl’s existence had driven gentle, kind Miss Zhi Ran to tears.

“So, you’re Gu Ci?”

There was no denying Gu Ci’s outstanding looks.

In fact, even if he didn’t want to admit it, he had to acknowledge that Gu Ci was far more beautiful than Miss Zhi Ran.

But aside from that face, the girl before him had nothing else going for her.

She wore cheap, unbranded clothes—plain and simple from head to toe. The only accessory she had was a red thread bracelet with a silver-like square hanging from it.

That air of poverty aside, she couldn’t possibly compare to their carefully raised Miss Zhi Ran in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, or academics…

Steward Shen had first traced Gu Ci to her high school.

Her homeroom teacher said she hadn’t attended for nearly half a semester, and even before that, she was hardly ever present—barely a ghost in the school. As for her grades, a stack of neatly arranged zero-marked test papers had nearly made him faint.

Gu Ci lifted her gaze, her languid eyes meeting the middle-aged man’s.

He looked stern, his suit immaculate, exuding an obvious air of superiority.

Gu Ci said nothing, merely defaulting to indifference.

She lowered her eyes and lazily picked up her phone, logging into WeChat for the first time in days. Skipping past the almost ninety-nine plus red notifications, she focused on the messages from someone with the nickname “Mr. Lu.”

Scattered messages had accumulated over half a month.

Above those were messages from over a month ago.

[Sis Ci, the nouveau riche Gu family from Songdu is probably coming to find you soon.]

[Guess what?]

[You and that Gu family member were switched at birth!]

[Sis Ci, do you want to meet them? If not, I can have someone keep them away.]

[But really, how did those two idiots manage to give birth to a monster like you?]

There was also a detailed dossier on the Gu family.

Gu Ci’s lips twitched, her gaze lingering on the final message: [Sis Ci, if you don’t reply, the director is going to come for you.]

She ignored the dossier and righteously replied, “I’m on vacation,” then logged out.

Seeing Gu Ci playing with her phone, Steward Shen’s eyes flashed with displeasure, but he finally spoke. “I am the Gu family’s steward, Shen. You may call me Steward Shen from now on.”

His tone was arrogant, his gaze full of disdain. “Miss Gu Ci, I’ve come today because you are the child stolen from the Gu family over a decade ago. The Gu family does not allow its bloodline to be lost, so we have never stopped searching for you. Recently, having found you, I was sent to bring you home.”

After saying this, Steward Shen cleared his throat. He glanced at the rough, earthen teacup on the table with a flicker of distaste, but ultimately did not drink.

He looked at Gu Ci, waiting to see delight, shock, excitement, or gratitude in her expression, so he could continue his prepared speech.

But he was destined for disappointment.

Gu Ci’s expression remained indifferent; she only raised an eyebrow at being called the “stolen child.”

She bent one leg slightly, leaning lazily against the wall, her expression toward Steward Shen half-amused, half-mocking.

Steward Shen felt distinctly uncomfortable.

There was no joy at discovering her prestigious origins, nor even surprise at learning her parents were not who she’d believed. In fact, her look seemed almost derisive.

Moreover, with Gu Ci refusing to respond, he couldn’t even lecture her about not fighting with Miss Zhi Ran for anything.

But thinking it over, he understood.

How could a rustic girl from such a remote, impoverished place possibly comprehend what the Gu family of Songdu represented?

With this thought, a flash of contempt passed through Steward Shen’s eyes.

Surely a girl so ignorant wouldn’t dare compete with Miss Zhi Ran for anything.

He rose, brushed imaginary dust from his clothes, and said loftily, “In any case, that’s the situation. Miss Gu Ci, the car is outside. Come with me.”

Looking again at the Mercedes outside, the words “free labor” popped into Gu Ci’s mind, and she mused silently.

Noticing Gu Ci’s gaze on the Mercedes, Steward Shen snorted inwardly, his contempt deepening.

Just as expected of a backwater girl—no matter how well she hid it before, now, faced with a luxury car, her true greedy, ignorant nature was revealed.

Gu Ci paid no mind to what Steward Shen thought. She narrowed her eyes, made her decision, and said, “I need to go back to get a few things. Please come again tomorrow at this time to pick me up.”

Steward Shen’s brow furrowed instinctively.

He’d only wanted to take the girl and leave this destitute village immediately, but now Gu Ci wanted him to stay another day?

The village chief had warned them that Gu Ci lived alone on the mountain and couldn’t be contacted—she’d come down when she wanted. That was why they’d had to wait at the base of the mountain—five or six days already!

Steward Shen was already frustrated from waiting. Now that he’d finally found her, he was eager to leave this godforsaken place without delay.

He suppressed his impatience. “Miss Gu Ci, Madam and Miss have already prepared everything you’ll need. You don’t need to bring anything from here—just come with me.”

He instinctively assumed Gu Ci wanted to pack her things.

“Oh? And what exactly have they prepared?” Gu Ci’s fingers tapped the table rhythmically, as if in earnest inquiry, but her whole bearing was one of careless indifference, touched with a cold detachment.

Steward Shen stiffened, falling silent in an instant.