"Have you realized your mistake?"
"No, you're just scared!"
"You're afraid of losing what you've gained, and even more terrified that your dirty deeds will be exposed!"
"That's why you've framed Third Brother over and over again."
"Back when we were kids, you sold him off just because you envied him for being smarter than you!"
"Now that I’ve finally managed to bring him home, you’re smearing his name again."
"Are you even human?"
The moment these words were spoken, the room erupted in shock.
Huo Tingtao’s pupils constricted violently as countless thoughts surged through his mind.
The moment he saw those two bruised and battered men walk in earlier, he’d sensed something was wrong.
But he knew better than to panic. Besides, it had been so many years—how could anyone dig up the truth now?
And even if they did, so what?
Back then, he was just a nine-year-old child.
Third Brother’s kidnapping was entirely that man’s doing—it had nothing to do with him!
He’d only coaxed Third Brother outside, that was all.
Moreover, after Third Brother returned, Huo Tingtao had tested him several times.
He was certain—Third Brother remembered nothing of the past.
With that in mind, his panic subsided.
But Mother Huo’s accusations hit him like a thunderbolt. For a moment, he couldn’t tell whether she was bluffing or if she’d truly uncovered something.
His expression shifted several times before finally dissolving into a choked sob.
"Mom—"
"I was wrong, so wrong. I failed Third Brother."
"You can hit me, curse me—I’ll take it all."
"I just beg you not to say such hurtful things."
"Mom, please…"
Huo Tingtao was ruthless—as he spoke, he slammed his forehead against the floor, again and again.
Soon, his brow was bruised and swollen.
Dong Lihua’s heart ached at the sight, and she rushed forward to pull him up.
"Tingtao, get up!"
"Auntie, don’t stop me. I deserve this. Mom has every right to be angry."
How could she not intervene?
If he kept this up, he’d crack his skull open.
Dong Lihua pleaded, "Sister-in-law, he’s admitted his fault. You’ve scolded him, punished him—let’s just leave it at that."
Huo Tingtao said nothing, only continued kowtowing.
Seeing him still putting on an act, Mother Huo let out a cold laugh.
"You should kowtow a few more times—especially to your real mother, Dong Lihua. She’s shielded you all these years!"
The words struck Dong Lihua like a bolt of lightning.
She stood frozen, unable to process them.
"Sister-in-law… what do you mean?"
"What do you mean, ‘real mother’? My child was lost 28 years ago!"
"No! The child you lost was mine!"
Even knowing Dong Lihua was innocent, Mother Huo couldn’t suppress her bitterness.
She turned her face away, wiping at her tears—but they fell like unstrung pearls, unstoppable.
No words could comfort a mother’s wounded heart now. Jiang Si didn’t try to console her mother-in-law, only handed her a handkerchief.
After steadying herself, Mother Huo continued, "And the child wasn’t lost—Yang Zhiqi abandoned him at the orphanage gate on purpose."
"That’s impossible! You’re lying—Zhiqi would never do such a thing!"
As if to prove her point, Dong Lihua raised her voice. "I gave birth to that child—how could I not recognize my own?"
Mother Huo had no patience for arguments. "If you don’t believe me, ask Sister-in-law Tian."
Yes—Sister-in-law Tian!
Dong Lihua seized the woman’s hands. "Sister Tian, you helped deliver my baby. Those two children looked nothing alike—how could I have mistaken them?"
"And they were born a month and a half apart! Their sizes were completely different—I couldn’t have gotten it wrong!"
At this, Sister-in-law Tian flushed crimson. After a long pause, she whispered guiltily,
"I’m sorry, little sister… Back then, I didn’t have enough milk to feed both babies properly."
"Your husband couldn’t bear to see his own child go hungry, so he told me to feed yours first."
"One baby was always full, while the other barely got a taste."
"By the time you recovered from childbirth, their sizes had reversed."
It was only then that Sister-in-law Tian noticed the two babies bore a striking resemblance—five or six parts alike.
Since she’d fed them daily, she could tell.
But after Dong Lihua’s confinement, Yang Zhiqi had never let her hold the child again.
So when she first saw the baby, she hadn’t recognized him.
"Little sister, I wronged you."
"My family was dirt-poor back then—you know my husband was sick."
"When your man took the child back, he gave us a sack of millet and some money… I had no choice…"
She didn’t finish, but Dong Lihua understood.
No wonder, before the child went missing, he’d doted on Tingtao more than his own.
She’d called him out for favoritism, confused.
But he’d said, "I promised my cousin I’d raise his child well—I can’t break my word."
She’d believed him, even admired his loyalty.
All these years, he’d drilled it into her—"Be good to Tingtao."
Having lost her own child, she’d poured seven years of misplaced love into Tingtao.
Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined—Tingtao was her flesh and blood!
If Sister-in-law Tian’s confession left Dong Lihua half-doubting, her brother-in-law Yang Zhiqiang’s next words erased all uncertainty.
Yang Zhiqiang said, "Sister-in-law, I had no idea Big Brother switched the babies—it was all his doing."
"I tried to talk him out of it, but you know how stubborn he is!"
"Otherwise, he wouldn’t have disfigured himself on purpose."
Dong Lihua stiffened. "What do you mean, ‘on purpose’? That was an accident!"
The factory had even given them compensation for it.
Yang Zhiqiang didn’t know whether his sister-in-law was naive or willfully blind.
After decades at the steel mill, how could his brother make such a rookie mistake?
He said, "Haven’t you noticed? Tingtao looks more like Big Brother with each passing day. He mutilated himself so it wouldn’t ruin Tingtao’s future."
Dong Lihua heard nothing else.
Her mind was a whirlwind of chaos.
On one hand, she was overjoyed—her son was alive.
On the other, she had no idea how to untangle this mess.
In the end, she could only turn to Huo Tingtao with desperate hope.
"My son—"
