But back then, she refused.
Huo Tingzhou didn’t want to force her.
Clearing his throat, he changed the subject. "Sweetheart, you still haven’t told me what you really think about all this."
"I feel the same as you—these things don’t matter much to me either."
To put it bluntly, no matter how wealthy the Huo Family was, it couldn’t compare to her own fortune.
But Jiang Si wasn’t so self-righteous as to reject their goodwill. After all, she and Huo Tingzhou would eventually return to Capital City, and having more connections and resources would only be beneficial.
She made her stance clear: "The division of the family assets is for the elders to decide. I won’t interfere."
"If they give, I’ll take. If they don’t, I won’t fight for it."
Huo Tingzhou understood her meaning, his eyes softening with a smile. "Alright, whatever you say."
With the serious matters settled, the two moved on to lighter topics, mostly with Jiang Si talking and Huo Tingzhou listening.
Just before hanging up, Jiang Si finally voiced the question that had been weighing on her for a long time.
"Do you remember what happened before you were kidnapped?"
She had asked Huo Tingzhou this same question when she was very young.
Back then, there was suddenly someone in her life who wasn’t her brother but acted like one, protecting her every day. Naturally, she was curious.
Later, her Third Uncle told her that Huo Tingzhou had been trafficked to Hu City.
But what happened in between? No one knew.
Because aside from the severe head injury he had suffered, Huo Tingzhou had also been forcibly fed large amounts of sedatives and hallucinogenic drugs.
The doctor who examined him at the time said that excessive consumption of such drugs could lead to cognitive dysfunction, emotional numbness, memory distortion, and even temporary speech loss.
These symptoms later manifested in him one by one.
So asking him was pointless.
This time, Huo Tingzhou gave the same answer. Every moment of the decade he spent with the Jiang family was etched deeply into his memory.
But everything before the age of six and a half remained a blank.
It wasn’t until he saw his own photo in a missing person’s notice in the newspaper that he realized he had been kidnapped by traffickers.
This wasn’t a secret—both the Jiang and Huo families knew about it.
Now that Jiang Si brought it up again, Huo Tingzhou immediately followed her train of thought.
"Sweetheart, do you think something’s off about it?"
Jiang Si didn’t hesitate. "Yes. I suspect you weren’t kidnapped by strangers—I think you were sold by someone you knew."
She even named her prime suspect outright.
"I think the person who sold you was probably your uncle’s brother-in-law."
"But it wouldn’t have been easy for him to do it alone. So I suspect he had an accomplice—most likely your so-called..."
She paused, feeling that calling him "eldest brother" would be an insult to the title.
"The accomplice was probably his son, Yang Tingtao."
Huo Tingzhou frowned.
"He was only nine at the time."
"Nine? So what? Some people are just born rotten."
Though there was no concrete evidence yet, Jiang Si had no qualms about making an educated guess.
"These past few days, I’ve been talking with Grandpa and Grandma about your childhood."
During their outings, they often reminisced about the four brothers when they were young.
And Jiang Si noticed something interesting.
Truthfully, the Huo elders had always tried to treat all four brothers equally, though they did show a bit more favor toward the fake eldest brother.
She could understand that—after all, the imposter had only returned to the Huo Family at the age of seven.
Whether out of guilt or a desire to compensate, it was natural for him to receive more attention and affection.
But others didn’t see it that way.
Jiang Si continued, "Did you know? When people in the neighborhood talked about you as a child, the word they used most was ‘exceptionally bright.’"
"But when they talked about your fake brother, the most common description was ‘well-behaved and obedient.’"
"Grandma told me that when he first returned to Capital City, the other kids made fun of him for not speaking Mandarin properly."
"And when you were six, you participated in an abacus competition. Your fake brother did too—you took first place, while he didn’t even make it past the preliminaries."
"With a younger brother as brilliant as you overshadowing him, how could he not be jealous?"
"Besides, you never liked sweets. There’s no way some trafficker could’ve lured you away with candy."
"And most importantly—on the day you were taken, he was with you."
"But you were the one who got kidnapped, while he came out unscathed. Since when do traffickers pick and choose?"
Then again, it wasn’t entirely impossible—Huo Tingzhou had been an exceptionally good-looking child.
Huo Tingzhou had no memory of any of this.
But hearing Jiang Si defend him so fiercely and praise him so warmly filled him with a strange, bittersweet warmth.
Just as he was about to speak, a sigh came through the receiver.
Jiang Si said, "But none of this matters now. It’s been over twenty years—finding proof won’t be easy. They’ll just get away with it."
Get away with it?
Huo Tingzhou’s voice dropped low. Nothing in this world came that cheap.
For now, he said nothing over the phone, simply soothing Jiang Si before hanging up.
Outside, Xiao Zhengjun’s legs had nearly gone numb from squatting. When Huo Tingzhou finally emerged, he slung an arm around his neck.
"Damn, kid, you think phone calls are free?"
"What were you and the missus talking about for so long? Must’ve been an expensive chat—over a yuan a minute."
But his curiosity didn’t last long.
Because Huo Tingzhou’s hand was already outstretched. "How much money do you have on you? Lend it all to me."
All of it?
Xiao Zhengjun blinked. "You went on a mission without a single cent?"
He had some—just not much.
After paying for the call, he was left with only thirty-five fen.
"You reckless spender! You think saving up pocket money is easy?"
Despite his grumbling, Xiao Zhengjun still handed over the cash—then couldn’t resist asking,
"Is it enough? If not, I can go back to the dorm and borrow more from the others."
Huo Tingzhou wasn’t sure either. "Help me gather some more. I’ve got something to take care of."
"Fine."
As Xiao Zhengjun watched him leave, he suddenly realized—
"Wait, where are you going?"
"The dorm’s the other way. That’s the direction of the military hospital—"
Huo Tingzhou wasn’t wrong. His destination was the Provincial Military Hospital.
Once there, he headed straight for the third-floor psychological clinic.
To ensure pilots’ mental well-being, since last year, every provincial military hospital had been assigned aviation psychologists. All active pilots were required to undergo psychological evaluations once or twice a month.
When Doctor Liao saw Huo Tingzhou walk in, he didn’t find it unusual.
Until Huo Tingzhou voiced his request.
Doctor Liao was visibly taken aback, his brow furrowing slightly. "Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"But I must remind you—the memory gaps from those missing years could be due to medication, or it might be your subconscious choosing to forget."
Doctor Liao spoke bluntly: "If the brain selectively erases memories, they’re likely... not pleasant. Forcing yourself to recover them now may not be wise."
"I understand."
Huo Tingzhou’s tone was uncharacteristically solemn as he replied.
Before, he hadn’t cared, believing it unnecessary—as long as he knew his parents hadn’t abandoned him, that was enough.
But now, with something more important at stake, he needed to eliminate all uncertainties.
Seeing his resolve, Doctor Liao didn’t press further.
After signing the consent form, he led Huo Tingzhou to the adjacent room and adjusted the leather recliner to a comfortable height.
"Find a relaxed position and lie down. Let your whole body unwind."
"Good, very good. Now close your eyes—"
