Sheng Zexi learned about Li Shuyao’s situation through Hua Zhenrong.
In the capital, Li Shuyao’s matter was far from a secret.
After all, many people knew that Li Shuyao from the Li family had been taken away in the middle of the night that day.
Recently, everyone had been closely following the developments of Li Shuyao’s case.
Or rather, Li Shuyao herself wasn’t the focal point—what truly mattered was her surname, Li, as well as the influence of her grandfather, Old Man Li, and Li Tingxuan.
However, no concrete information had been available until recently.
Now, the results were finally out.
But the outcome left everyone stunned.
Especially the Li family, who were utterly shocked by the revelation.
At this moment, Li Tingxuan was in the hospital, dressed in his military uniform, watching the elderly man lying asleep on the hospital bed.
It was only now that Li Tingxuan truly realized how old his grandfather had become—so old that he could no longer endure too many blows.
The thought of Li Shuyao—no, the fake Li Shuyao—made Li Tingxuan clench his fists tightly, his eyes slightly reddening.
Although Li Tingxuan and his “sister” Li Shuyao had never been particularly close, and though Li Shuyao had always been spoiled and difficult to get along with, Li Tingxuan had still cared for and protected her whenever trouble arose.
Yet he never could have imagined that the Li Shuyao who had lived with him for nineteen years was not his biological sister at all.
His real sister had been swapped at birth by someone from R Country and had died shortly after.
The girl he had grown up with was an imposter—a spy from R Country, even an enemy agent.
At first, he couldn’t believe it.
But upon deeper reflection, it made sense.
For instance, the reason behind the mission failure that had haunted him across three lifetimes—the cause of his PTSD.
He knew there had been a leak.
But he could never identify the traitor.
Now, if that person turned out to be Li Shuyao, everything fell into place.
In truth, he had suspected her before, but he had dismissed the idea—how could his own sister, no matter how spoiled or reckless, betray him like this?
After all, if the mission failed, he, her brother, would be left with almost no chance of survival.
Even if they weren’t close, they were still bound by blood.
Yet reality had struck him a heavy blow.
After eliminating all impossibilities, the only remaining possibility, no matter how unbelievable, had to be the truth.
What pained him the most was the realization that his real sister had died shortly after birth.
Li Tingxuan’s parents had both passed away from illness.
His mother had succumbed to a severe disease when he was seven, leaving within a year.
His father, deeply devoted to his mother, gradually deteriorated in both health and spirit after her death.
By the time Li Tingxuan was ten, his father could no longer hold on and followed his mother into the afterlife.
Before their deaths, his parents had entrusted him with one final wish—to take good care of his sister.
Li Tingxuan had promised.
But now…
His sister had been dead all along.
If his parents knew this in the afterlife, how heartbroken they would be.
And then there was his grandfather…
Li Tingxuan’s gaze settled on the elderly man lying on the hospital bed.
He knew that in his grandfather’s heart, the Li family came first.
He, as the grandson, mattered too.
But that didn’t mean Li Shuyao, as the granddaughter, was insignificant.
Otherwise, over the years, Shuyao wouldn’t have lived so freely—Grandpa had never forced her into an arranged marriage.
He had even spoken to Sheng Zexi’s father, Commander Sheng, after learning of Shuyao’s feelings for Sheng Zexi.
That was why, upon discovering that Shuyao was not his real granddaughter and that his true granddaughter had long since died, the shock had sent him back to the hospital.
Now, despite the investigation confirming that neither Grandpa, Li Tingxuan, nor any other member of the Li family had any connection to the fake Li Shuyao, the fact remained that she had come from the Li family.
This would inevitably affect the Li family.
The specifics were still unclear, but for now, they couldn’t act freely.
For instance, Li Tingxuan had originally been scheduled to transfer to the Northwest Military District, but due to this incident, his movements had been temporarily restricted.
Looking at his grandfather’s graying hair, Li Tingxuan felt a pang of heartache.
He could only hope this matter would pass quickly.
…
Meanwhile, Sheng Xinhào was still fuming over his unfilial son’s failure to inform him about the birth of the twins when he suddenly learned about the Li Shuyao incident.
He was stunned.
After all, he had once strongly favored Li Shuyao, intending for her to marry Sheng Zexi and become his eldest daughter-in-law.
In his eyes, only a women of her status was worthy of his son—someone who could propel Sheng Zexi’s career forward.
But that stubborn boy had refused and instead married a village girl.
Sheng Xinhào had always believed Sheng Zexi would regret it someday.
Yet now…
He was the one who might be regretting it.
Because the “village girl” Sheng Zexi married had turned out to be extraordinary, while his chosen Li Shuyao was actually an enemy spy.
If Sheng Zexi had really married her…
Just look at the Li family now.
Both Old Man Li and Li Tingxuan’s futures were bound to be affected.
Had Sheng Zexi become her husband, the repercussions would have been even more severe—possibly even being taken in for investigation, ruining his career entirely.
For the first time, Sheng Xinhào felt a flicker of gratitude that Sheng Zexi hadn’t obeyed him.
Could it be…
That brat had actually made the right choice?
While he had been wrong?
The truth was staring him in the face, but Sheng Xinhào refused to admit it.
Naturally, his pride wouldn’t allow him to apologize to his own son.
“Hmph, he just got lucky.”
…
Gu Jianing had given birth to twins, so by tradition, she should have observed a two-month postpartum confinement.
But she felt her body had recovered well enough and ended the confinement after just one month.
Finally stepping outside, she felt invigorated.
Being cooped up at home for a month had been suffocating, even for someone who wasn’t particularly fond of going out.
At the moment, Yao Chunhua and Grandma Sang were busy cooking in the kitchen, while Gu Jianing amused herself with Xingxing and Yueyue, who had just turned one month old.
In the past month, the two babies—already fair and delicate at birth—had grown even more tender, their features becoming slightly more defined.
The little boy resembled Sheng Zexi more and more, especially when he frowned—his serious expression was a perfect copy of his father’s.
Meanwhile, Yueyue looked increasingly like Gu Jianing.
Both babies had also filled out a bit.
Everyone who visited remarked that the twins looked like celestial children.
Zhang Shuwān, in particular, couldn’t help but compare them to her own two boys—skinny little monkeys who couldn’t hold a candle to Xingxing and Yueyue.
Of course, even if they were “skinny little monkeys,” Zhang Shuwān still adored her hard-won sons—after all, they were her own flesh and blood.
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