NOVEL WEB Chapter 435
"Has Mr. Ji not woken up yet? I have urgent matters to discuss with him!"
The nanny pushed against the person in front of her, occasionally glancing toward the elevator.
Since Zhiliao's death, she had managed to seize some authority, but this very authority was also the source of her greatest frustration.
That woman had lived like an emperor in the Ji household, coming and going as she pleased—so why were there so many restrictions now that it was her turn?
"The family head hasn't summoned you. Step back."
The black-clad man spoke coldly.
The nanny refused to relent: "This is about Tangtang! I need to discuss her engagement with Young Master of the Gu Family with Mr. Ji. Isn't he going abroad soon? Before he leaves, shouldn't he finalize the betrothal with our Tangtang?"
The black-clad man remained unmoved.
Just then, the elevator doors opened, and Bruce stepped out, his face drenched in sweat.
Spotting him, the nanny called out, signaling with her eyes for him to help her swipe his access card to go upstairs.
Bruce clutched his head, groaning dramatically, pretending not to see her.
Once he had brushed past her, he sighed in relief, thinking, This is ridiculous. At best, she's just hired help—at worst, she's nothing more than a nanny. Yet she struts around as if she owns the Ji household.
If Ji Tingzhou weren't so busy, she'd have been kicked out long ago for being this much of a nuisance.
Shaking off the thought, Bruce wiped the sweat from his brow, only for his expression to darken again.
He hadn't slept much the previous night, having spent the entire time remotely monitoring Ji Tingzhou's vitals from the lab. When he saw that Ji Tingzhou had actually entered deep sleep—with all his readings stable—he nearly burst into tears from sheer relief.
Exhausted after the long night, he handed over the monitoring duties to his assistant and collapsed into bed.
But he hadn't slept long before he was summoned again—Ji Tingzhou wanted to see him.
He rushed over without even washing his face, assuming the man wanted an update on his condition. He had his report ready.
Yet the moment he entered, he saw Ji Tingzhou sitting by the bed in a robe, staring intently at something. Before Bruce could speak, Ji Tingzhou demanded sharply:
"Where did the incense and medicine come from?"
Caught off guard, Bruce blurted out, "...Young Master Gu bought them from O Country."
Ji Tingzhou's eyes darkened instantly, his entire demeanor turning feral, like a beast roused from slumber: "Bullshit!"
"It wasn't him! Investigate. I want to know who made that medicine and incense!"
His fury was so intense it seemed as if he'd been poisoned.
Terrified, Bruce scrambled out of the room.
When Bruce called Gu Xiuyuan, the latter refused to reveal the truth, citing Gu family confidentiality.
But the moment Gu Xiuyuan returned home, Gu Jing confronted him, his expression grim as he demanded to know what he had done.
The Ji family had called Gu Jing directly.
Though Gu Jing was initially puzzled by the call, the moment he learned his son was involved, his composure shattered.
Meeting his father's cold gaze, Gu Xiuyuan thought, Tch, so they went straight to Gu Jing.
What exactly was in the medicine Ji Nian had given him?
Given the uproar, had she poisoned Ji Tingzhou?
"You're still in contact with that girl, Ji Nian?"
Recalling the reports from his subordinates, Gu Jing frowned. The older his son got, the harder he was to understand. Just days ago, he had been furious over his girlfriend's situation—and now he had spent money to secure passports and visas for the very culprit, sending her abroad.
"You should know the difference between the Ji family's young miss and an outcast."
Gu Xiuyuan was already an adult, even starting to learn the ropes in the company, so Gu Jing could no longer confiscate his phone like he had when he was a child.
Instead, he cut off Gu Xiuyuan's connections to O Country.
Gu Xiuyuan accepted this without protest, as if he had long grown accustomed to his father's control.
But his compliance wasn't feigned—ever since Ji Nian had landed in O Country, he hadn't been able to reach her at all. He had no idea what she was doing.
After being lectured by Gu Jing, Gu Xiuyuan played the part of the dutiful son, nodding along in contrition. But the moment he stepped out, his expression turned icy—clearly, the reprimand had gone in one ear and out the other.
Back in his room, he continued sending messages to Ji Nian, but there was still no reply.
It wasn't until the afternoon, when he visited Shen Qingtang at the Ji residence, that he learned something startling—Ji Tingzhou, who had been ill for so long, had suddenly begun inquiring about Ji Nian.
Gu Xiuyuan understood then.
Ji Tingzhou must have figured it out.
Meanwhile.
Ji Tingzhou reclined against the headboard while someone behind him, gloved and trembling, carefully dyed his hair.
Ji Tingzhou himself was absorbed in the documents in his hands—the records of a child named "Ji Nian."
The life outlined in the file matched what Lu Zhi had seen. But when his gaze landed on the timid ID photo, his eyes sharpened.
Though the expression was different, the face—half-covered in burn scars—was identical to the ghostly clown apparition he had seen before.
"...Hah."
A little ghost had been living under his roof, and he hadn't even noticed.
His lips curled into a smile, but there was no warmth in his eyes.
"Ji Lian."
He murmured the name Wei Yang had cried out in hunger these past few days. Before, the pain had been too overwhelming for him to think deeply about anything.
But now, freed from all suffering, Ji Tingzhou's mind was clearer than ever.
He recalled the flowers he had found at Da Gen's grave.
The lotus-shaped incense, the medicine that seemed beyond this world's capabilities, and the girl who bore little resemblance to the one described in the records.
With all the pieces laid out before him, Ji Tingzhou had no doubts left.
A black-clad man entered and bowed. "Family Head, we've confirmed her location—she's at the national research institute funded by the Lu family."
"The package was also sent from there."
"There's one more thing..."
"Ji Nian's reason for meeting Mr. Lu was that she claimed to have a way to help Young Master Lu."
Memories unfurled like an ink painting.
In his dream, the small figure of a child who had once traveled alone to O Country when he fell ill resurfaced.
Pathetic. To think I've fallen so low that even a fever requires a brat's help.
Ji Tingzhou nodded in acknowledgment, showing no surprise at Ji Nian's activities in O Country.
His fingers traced the thin file that chronicled the girl's life, and he searched his own memories.
It must have been seventeen years ago—one day, Zhiliao had suddenly brought home a child. Even without a paternity test, it was obvious whose bloodline she carried. At the time, Ji Tingzhou, already plagued by worsening insomnia, had been furious.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the leering faces of the Ji family, their malice so vivid it felt like a premonition of the child's future.
Without hesitation, he had ordered the infant's execution.
But Zhiliao had intervened, sending the child far away and hiring caretakers to raise her in secret.
After that... Ji Tingzhou had no further recollection.
In fact, he hadn't even known the child's name—until his dreams revealed it.
The black-clad man asked in a low voice, "Shall I bring her back?"
Ji Tingzhou rested his chin in his hand, his mind conjuring up the image of that tear-streaked face from that night—snot bubbles and all.
"No need."
Idiot. Even crying at the wrong grave—am I your dad or something?