Chapter 10 Our Father Has Been Dead for a Long Time

Tan Xingqi pressed her lips together, her expression indifferent. “Thinking it over, it’s not entirely unexpected. Mother once said that after Tan Yunge married the heir to Prince Ding, she was unable to conceive. So she devised a plan for Mother to become pregnant, kept her at a separate estate, and then seized my elder brother, pretending he was her own child.”

“I’ve always wondered—Prince Ding’s heir is, after all, the emperor’s own grandson. If Tan Yunge were to randomly find a child to impersonate a royal descendant and confuse the imperial bloodline, it would be a grave crime. How could she dare?”

“But if the man was actually Prince Ding’s heir, then it all makes sense. In that case, even if the truth were eventually revealed, Tan Yunge could claim that my brother was indeed the son of Prince Ding’s heir. As his wife, she couldn’t bear to let the imperial bloodline stray, so she raised him herself.”

Tan Xingyou nodded, though his brows remained tightly knit. “So, does that mean Prince Ding’s heir is really our father...?”

Before he could finish, Tan Xingqi interrupted him. “No. We have no father. Mother told us so—our father died long ago.”

Seeing Tan Xingyou’s confusion, Tan Xingqi sighed softly before continuing, “You heard what Miss Yin Xue said earlier. Prince Ding’s heir is a dissolute, reckless man, always chasing women and indulging Tan Yunge’s cruelty. He’s certainly not a good person. Do you really want to acknowledge him as father?”

Tan Xingyou’s eyes widened, and he hurriedly shook his head. “No, no, not at all. Mother’s right—we have no father. We have Mother, and so many elders who care for us. That’s enough. Why would we need a father? I’m just curious, that’s all...”

“Then let’s not bring this up in front of Mother.”

“Alright.”

Just as the two finished their discussion, the sound of a door opening came from behind them.

Xingqi and Xingyou turned to look at the door, first seeing Li Wei seated in a wheelchair, then the attendant pushing him, and finally Tan Qingjiu emerging from the room.

Li Wei was speaking to Tan Qingjiu, “The famed divine healer truly lives up to her reputation. I’ve seen many doctors for my illness, taken countless medicines, but nothing helped—in fact, it only worsened. Yet, after one round of acupuncture from you, my pain has eased considerably.”

Tan Qingjiu smiled. “Follow the prescription, and the pain will soon disappear completely.”

“That’s wonderful. I never dared hope this illness could be cured. Thank you, divine healer. You’ve solved my greatest problem. If—”

Li Wei turned his head mid-sentence, his gaze landing on Xingqi and Xingyou, and abruptly stopped. His eyes were shocked. “This...”

With a tremor in his voice, Li Wei said, “These two young gentlemen and the divine healer...”

Tan Qingjiu glanced at Xingqi and Xingyou, a hint of a smile on her lips. “They are my children.”

She looked at Li Wei’s astonished face. “Minister Li, is something the matter? Is there anything amiss with my children?”

Li Wei stared at them for several moments before hurriedly shaking his head. “No, nothing. It’s just that these two young gentlemen resemble someone I know.”

Xingqi and Xingyou exchanged a glance, sharing a silent understanding. Xingyou quickly spoke, “Really? When we were out shopping, someone said we looked just like his uncle. Maybe we just have common faces?”

Tan Qingjiu looked at them but paid no heed to their diversion. “They resemble someone you know, Minister Li?”

“Yes, they look somewhat like—” Li Wei stopped mid-sentence, gripped the wheelchair’s armrest tightly, and quickly corrected himself, “like the heir to Prince Ding.”

Prince Ding’s heir?

Tan Qingjiu narrowed her eyes. She had seen the heir to Prince Ding at the Prince Duan’s residence.

At the time, she only recognized him as the man who, six years ago, left her to die and even tried to force himself upon her. She hadn’t noticed anything else.

But now, with Li Wei’s comment, Tan Qingjiu thought carefully about the heir’s appearance, then looked at Xingqi and Xingyou. Her brows furrowed—it did seem there was a striking resemblance.

Prince Ding’s heir...

He was Tan Yunge’s husband.

Tan Qingjiu’s fingers, hidden within her sleeve, paused for a moment, though her expression softened into a smile. “Is that so? How coincidental. But I’ve never met Prince Ding’s heir before, and their father has already passed away. It must just be chance.”

Li Wei still seemed distracted and nodded absentmindedly. “Yes, probably just coincidence. But let me remind you—the wife of Prince Ding’s heir is notoriously jealous. If she sees these young gentlemen, it could lead to unnecessary trouble.”

“Thank you, Minister Li. I appreciate your warning.”

Li Wei nodded. “Then I’ll take my leave.”

The attendant lifted Li Wei’s wheelchair and carried him downstairs, out of the inn. Only then did Tan Xingqi and Tan Xingyou leap to their feet, flanking Tan Qingjiu on either side. “Mother, don’t believe what he says. We just have ordinary, common faces. Someone really did say we look like his uncle.”

“Mm,” Xingqi nodded, echoing in agreement.

Tan Qingjiu squinted at them, suspicion rising in her heart. These two little rascals, before entering the capital, had been curious about who their father was.

Why, now that there’s finally a clue, do they react this way?

Could it be that they know something?

Suppressing her suspicions, Tan Qingjiu nodded and patted their heads. “So don’t run around outside too much lately, or you might get snatched up because you look like someone else.”

“Mother, you’re just trying to scare us,” Tan Xingyou retorted dismissively. “Is that supposed to trouble us? Didn’t Fifth Elder teach us disguise techniques for nothing?”

“We can just make a couple of masks and wear them when we go out.”

Tan Qingjiu looked at his proud expression and couldn’t help but rub her forehead. “You little trickster.”

The three of them laughed and chatted, the atmosphere lively and cheerful, as if Li Wei’s words hadn’t affected them at all.

Downstairs, in the carriage, Li Wei’s face was grave.

What he had wanted to say was not actually Prince Ding’s heir.

The two children did resemble Prince Ding’s heir, but even more so, they resembled someone else.