DFYMHGFS Chapter 80

80 – The man sensed something was wrong, turned his head, and his brow suddenly furrowed.

On Christmas Day, Tang City’s upper class hosted another banquet, but this time, An Xing didn’t attend it.

“Don’t think that I didn’t know. These gatherings before Christmas are all about networking. If I went, I’d surely be pulled into endless conversations by all sorts of people.”

An Xing sat on the sofa, refusing to join his parents and older brother at the Christmas banquet.

An Zhaoming tried to persuade his son once more.

“While networking is expected, isn’t your brother going? You could just trail behind him as a mascot. If you get bored, grab some pastries. Or do you plan to stay home alone?”

An Rong offered no rebuttal, tacitly accepting his role as the little tail.

The teenager puffed out his chest proudly, beaming with satisfaction.

“Who said I’d stay home alone? I’m going stargazing on the mountain with my Chen ge!”

The An family: …

They never imagined the little fool to actually plan a Christmas date!

Thus, the An family reluctantly attended the Christmas banquet, clinking glasses amidst the clamor of the banquet hall, painstakingly socializing with others.

Meanwhile, the little fool was comfortable at home, waiting for Lu Tianchen to pick him up and take him stargazing on the mountain.

That damn Lu Tianchen, still harboring those thieving intentions!

An Rong clinked glasses with Xiao Yi and Chen Bo, thinking expressionlessly.

“So, Xing zai and Lu Tianchen went stargazing on the mountain?”

Xiao Yi’s mouth twitched. He exchanged a glance with Chen Bo, seeing the same meaningful look in the other’s eyes. Just as they suspected—Lu Tianchen had ulterior motives toward the adorable Xing Zai.

He was the one saved by Xing Zai’s charm, yet nothing had ever developed between them. Xiao Yi thought sourly.

An Rong also felt a bit down. Though it wasn’t the first time the three of them attended a banquet without bringing An Xing, neither he nor the An family couple could quite get used to it.

It wasn’t that they were unaccustomed to attending banquets, but rather that they weren’t used to the family not being complete.

It turned out that long ago, without realizing it, he had accepted himself as part of the An family and truly regarded An Xing as his own younger brother.

Lost in these thoughts, An Rong suddenly felt Chen Bo nudge his arm.

“Hey, is that your second uncle’s family over there? What are they doing here?”

An Rong froze, following Chen Bo’s gesture to see An Zhaoyuan, accompanied by Tan Xiu and An Hao, appearing at the banquet hall entrance.

His expression darkened instantly. Not everyone can enter this banquet. Those who receive the invitation must at least fully own a company that has good performance and is well-known in the industry. Only then can they bring their families to attend the banquet.

An Zhaoyuan had clearly been kicked out of Anning Jewelry. How could he attend today’s banquet?

An Rong set down his wine glass and started to approach, but Chen Bo stopped him.

“So many people are watching you. Let me ask around for you.”

An Rong paused, then saw the young man wink at him with a smile. He murmured, “Thanks, Brother Bo.”

Chen Bo raised an eyebrow.

“No need to thank me. We might need your help someday too.”

An Rong and Xiao Yi remained put, watching Chen Bo approach others and engage in conversation. An Rong scanned the banquet hall, spotting An Zhaoming and Shen Ying. The pair were deep in discussion, oblivious to the entrance of An Zhaoyuan’s family.

Soon, Chen Bo returned and informed An Rong and Xiao Yi:

“Your second uncle’s family represents Weiqing Jewelry.” An Rong felt both surprised and somewhat relieved.

Ever since Su Yiran stole An Xing’s design drafts, the An family had suspected Weiqing Jewelry’s ties to the second An family, but back then, An Hao had hidden behind Su Yiran, leaving them without concrete evidence.

But after An Hao’s performance fraud at Anning Jewelry was exposed, the second branch seemed to lose all restraint. They no longer concealed their actions, now openly representing Weiqing Jewelry at banquets.

An Rong narrowed his eyes, excused himself to Xiao Yi and Chen Bo, and walked toward his parents.

At that moment, An Zhaoyuan’s family also approached the An couple.

“Brother, why didn’t you bring Xingxing? Why did you only bring Rongrong?”

Seeing An Zhaoyuan, An Mingzhao’s expression turned cold. Hearing his younger brother’s words, he merely replied indifferently.

“He has other plans.”

“What kind of plans could a kid have on Christmas? Probably hanging out with those rowdy friends again, huh?”

An Zhaoyuan chuckled.

“We can’t let Xingxing pick up bad habits.”

“Heh…” An Zhaoming smiled faintly, his voice light as a feather. “Xingxing went out with Tianchen. Tell me, would Tianchen lead Xingxing astray?”

An Zhaoyuan’s expression darkened, only then realizing Lu Tianchen hadn’t come today either.

He gritted his teeth in frustration, yet couldn’t bring himself to call Lu Tianchen a troublemaker. His face turned grim.

With the three family members present, An Zhaoyuan was silenced. An Hao wanted to defend his father, but An Rong had already stepped forward, standing before him with a cold stare. Coupled with the usual authority of his great-uncle An Zhaoming, An Hao found himself unable to speak.

Seeing this, Tan Xiu stepped in to smooth things over.

“We all know what a good child Xingxing is. He’s always been well-behaved. Even if he goes out to play, nothing bad will happen. Zhaoyuan is just worried about Xingxing.”

Her words were meant to save face for everyone, after all, it was a banquet, and it wasn’t appropriate to cause a scene. But what no one expected was that after Tan Xiu finished speaking, a cold female voice rang out.

“What harm could possibly come to our Xingxing when he goes out? Second Brother, Sister-in-law, as elders, you should wish for his safety. To speak of worrying about him getting into trouble—I find that rather puzzling!”

An Rong paused slightly, sensing an overwhelming familiarity in his mother’s current demeanor—it was very similar to a certain moment not long ago.

Right—it was that time when Tan Xiu came to sow discord. Shen Ying had worn the same expression then, like a lioness roused to fury.

Tan Xiu also froze, seemingly surprised that her words had provoked such anger in Shen Ying.

Her face darkened, but she couldn’t afford to make a scene. She forced a strained smile. She could even sense the mocking glances from others around her. Seeing no advantage to be gained, An Zhaoyuan acted decisively, pulling his wife away from the scene.

He now understood: his elder brother’s family had likely uncovered their behind-the-scenes dealings and were furious—so furious they no longer bothered to maintain even a superficial facade of brotherly harmony.

Once they reached a more secluded corner, he dismissed his son and asked Tan Xiu:

“Have you cleaned up all the loose ends from your brother’s affairs?”

Tan Xiu’s expression shifted, but she forced a response: “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

In the past, if Tan Xiu had put on a cold face, An Zhaoyuan would have given his wife some leeway. But now, he only replied coldly:

“I’m not unaware of your family’s affairs. What happened in the past can be forgiven, but times have changed. There are people waiting to seize our weaknesses. If those matters were exposed, you should know the consequences.”

The woman’s expression shifted repeatedly before she finally gritted her teeth and agreed.

She couldn’t fathom when things had gone wrong, why everything she tried to accomplish now backfired, drawing suspicion instead.

*

An Xing remained unaware of the events unfolding in the banquet hall. Shortly after Uncle Li escorted his parents and An Rong away, Lu Tianchen arrived to pick him up.

The man watched the teenager carrying numerous bags and packages, stepping out of his car to greet him.

“What did you pack?” Lu Tianchen asked curiously.

“Aunt Zhang packed it for me—snacks, treats, and clothes.”

An Xing handed the items to the man, beaming with delight.

While Aunt Zhang had been packing, others seemed equally worried he wouldn’t have enough to eat or wear, adding their own suggestions until the pile grew ever larger.

This love from my family is so heavy!

Lu Tianchen loaded the items into the trunk without mentioning they were only staying one night in the mountains at a well-maintained guesthouse where they wouldn’t lack for food or clothing.

He ruffled the teenager’s hair and agreed,

“Uncle An and the others thought of everything. They care deeply about you.”

An Xing blinked, watching the man’s earnest, backhanded compliment with a hint of amusement.

He nudged the man’s forehead with his own, sweetly adding:

“Brother Chen, you’re so good to me too!”

The man withdrew his hand, his ears flushing red.

Night was falling. The road up the mountain would become treacherous if they delayed further, so they said no more. An Xing climbed into the car and carefully fastened his seatbelt. Luo Tianchen took the driver’s seat.

The car slowly slid into the night.

Winter had arrived, bringing dry, clear weather. With the holiday season in full swing, the streets were bustling with people, causing some traffic congestion. By the time the car merged onto the highway, darkness had completely fallen. Perhaps because of the holiday, even the highway was congested, with a sea of red taillights stretching ahead. Fortunately, they had planned to stay in the mountains tonight anyway, so arriving safely was the priority— and there was no need to rush.

An Xing scrolled through the campus forum for a while, only to find none of the fanfics he followed had been updated. Bored, he locked his screen.

He glanced at the traffic jam ahead. Earlier, Luo Tianchen had been driving, so it wasn’t the right time to interrupt. Now seemed like the perfect moment to chat.

The teenager spoke mysteriously, “Brother Chen, do you feel like Dad and Brother have been hiding something from me lately?”

Lu Tianchen paused slightly. “Hiding what from you?” “I don’t know, that’s why I’m asking you. Help me figure it out.” An Xing nudged the man. “I just feel like they’ve been acting secretive lately, always having private talks away from Mom and me.”

Lu Tianchen felt a twinge of guilt, as he was one of the people keeping secrets from the boy.

The mix-up involving An Xing and An Rong was clearly suspicious, and it was connected to the second household of the An family. That couple from the second household—neither of them could be innocent.

If Tan Xiu had deliberately swapped the two children, how could she have monitored An Rong for twenty years without An Zhaoyuan ever suspecting his wife’s actions? And where had An Zhaoyuan obtained the funds to secretly manage Weiqing Jewelry?

Thus, for the past fortnight, they had been investigating An Zhaoyuan and Tan Xiu’s finances while searching for that crucial witness, Brother Hai.

Thus, over the past fortnight, they’ve been investigating An Zhaoyuan and Tan Xiu’s finances while searching for that crucial witness, Brother Hai.

Lu Tianchen has been collaborating closely with the An and Shen families, exchanging information throughout. As for An Rong… he’s likely been kept busy studying under An Zhaoming, which explains his mysterious demeanor.

But Lu Tianchen hasn’t shared any of this with An Xing. On one hand, the little fool was too naive—learning the truth could easily alert the enemy. On the other, they didn’t want the boy to know the children had been deliberately switched.

For anyone else, discovering they’d been swapped and enjoyed twenty years as a wealthy heir might bring fleeting joy. But they knew An Xing—he wouldn’t be happy. Only grief and rage would follow.

This left them unsure how to reveal the truth, so they tacitly agreed to keep it hidden for now.

“Maybe it’s because the New Year is approaching? A surprise for you?”

Lu Tianchen followed the slow-moving traffic ahead, smiling at the boy.

“What about you? Planning anything for the New Year?”

Hmm, that made sense too.

An Xing shook his head.

After all, this was An Rong’s first New Year back home, and since An Rong was taking on the family responsibilities, it made sense for him and Dad to prepare for the holiday together.

“You’re right! I should get my brother a New Year’s gift too!”

The boy instantly perked up, clenching his little fist.

Lu Tianchen: …

No, he was just making excuses… Never mind. I’ll just mention it to An Rong and have them consider New Year gifts too.

Putting that aside, An Xing continued chattering away with Lu Tianchen.

Traffic moved slowly, and soon they passed the worst congestion, they saw a traffic accident had occurred here—a three-car pileup. The middle vehicle was already mangled beyond recognition.

Lu Tianchen’s driver’s seat was near the accident scene. He glanced over briefly and frowned. The scene was gruesome, with faint traces of blood still visible around the wreckage. He drove away from there, only to find another traffic jam ahead, forcing him to stop and wait again.

Then he realized An Xing hadn’t spoken for quite some time. He hadn’t uttered a single sound, not even when he saw the accident scene.

The man sensed something was wrong, turned his head, and his brow suddenly furrowed.

The teenager was huddled in the passenger seat, as if he’d encountered something utterly terrifying. His hands were clenched tightly around the seatbelt, his face deathly pale.

“Xingxing? What’s wrong with you?!”

TRANSLATOR’S CORNER:
I am not a native speaker of either Chinese or English. I basically MTL and edit the text, sometimes I also use some sites for reference. I can’t guarantee that everything here is accurate, But I try to stick to the author’s work as much as possible. Please feel to comment any mistakes🙂🤗.