The second-generation socialites who had been following the story were the first to receive news from the Su Family.
At nine in the morning, a car from the Su Family drove into the Qi Family’s courtyard. Three people stepped out—it was the entire family of three.
Qi Changrong had received a call from Su Linhai the day before, so today, he and his wife and son were prepared for a formal reception.
Moreover, he was curious to know whether the "little boy" mentioned in the novel was real.
Seeing Su Linhai approaching with his wife and daughter, Gu Qiao couldn’t help but whisper, "Lin, go call Quan down."
"Such bad manners," Qi Yuan scoffed.
Qi Changrong shot him a glare and stopped Qi Lin. "Don’t bother."
Qi Lin: "..."
The designated errand-boy silently stepped aside.
This was the first time the two families had met so formally, and with the Su Family taking the initiative to visit, Qi Changrong and Gu Qiao couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride.
Su Linhai was an exceptionally formidable figure in Longjiang City’s business world, one of the top players, and few could truly call him a friend.
Today, he had dressed meticulously, every detail of his appearance polished to perfection. Mrs. Su was similarly well-dressed, though her complexion was pale from years of poor health. Her eyes were slightly swollen, as if she had been crying, yet they shone with an unusual vitality.
She had always been reserved, rarely engaging in social interactions, but now she looked at Gu Qiao with an uncharacteristically gentle gaze.
Gu Qiao smiled at her, and she smiled back.
"President Su, your visit brings honor to our humble home," Qi Changrong said, inviting the three to sit.
Su Linhai set down the gifts he had brought and spoke earnestly, "I know President Qi is usually busy with work, so today’s visit is truly an imposition. Nuanuan, greet them properly."
Su Nuanuan obeyed, and out of the corner of her eye, she caught Qi Yuan’s bewildered expression, which gave her a strange sense of satisfaction.
He must still be completely lost.
After exchanging pleasantries, Su Linhai finally revealed the purpose of their visit. "President Qi, is Miss Qi Quan at home today? My wife and I would like to see her."
"She is. Should I have someone call her down?"
"No need," Su Linhai stood. "I’ll go up to see her myself."
Qi Changrong smiled and led the way. "This way, please."
He escorted Su Linhai and his wife upstairs, leaving Su Nuanuan in the living room.
"Su Nuanuan, what’s going on?" Qi Yuan finally blurted out. "Why do your parents want to see Qi Quan? You haven’t been chatting in the group these past two days either—what happened?"
Gu Qiao was equally confused, her ears perked up.
Su Nuanuan dropped a bombshell: "Haven’t you read the novel? Why ask me?"
"Novel? What novel?" Gu Qiao exclaimed without thinking.
"Aunt Gu," Su Nuanuan feigned mild surprise, "You really don’t know? Then do you know what Yingxue is doing now?"
"Yingxue is filming, of course."
"What kind of film?"
"She said it’s Director Wang’s project, but she kept the details confidential." Gu Qiao frowned slightly after answering. Weren’t they talking about a novel? Why bring up Yingxue?
Su Nuanuan curved her eyes into crescents. "Qi Quan-jie must have mentioned she’s writing a novel, right? Yuan-ge is even one of her readers."
If the siblings’ relationship was so bad, surely Qi Quan wouldn’t have told only Qi Yuan about it?
The fact that Aunt Gu didn’t know about Qi Quan-jie’s novel only proved that she hadn’t paid much attention to her.
It made her feel a little sad for Qi Quan-jie.
Gu Qiao understood—this girl was standing up for Qi Quan.
She admitted she favored Yingxue, but Yingxue was the child she had raised with her own hands. Twenty years of affection couldn’t be fake.
As for Qi Quan...
She had wanted to build a mother-daughter bond, but the girl’s sharp personality made it difficult. At her age, she simply didn’t have the energy anymore.
In the second-floor reception room, Su Linhai and his wife bowed deeply the moment they saw Qi Quan. She accepted the gesture calmly, but Qi Changrong was stunned.
"Miss Qi, we came today to sincerely thank you for fulfilling our long-held wish."
Qi Quan poured them tea. "Please, sit."
They took their seats on the sofa across from her, leaving Qi Changrong to sit to the side.
As steam curled from the teacups, he studied his daughter through the mist, his doubts and confusion growing stronger.
The young woman before him bore no resemblance—in demeanor, speech, or temperament—to the girl who had lived under his roof for the past three months.
Mrs. Su, her voice fragile with emotion, whispered, "Miss Qi, I read your article yesterday. Thank you, truly."
Years of heartache had dissolved overnight. She had wept until dawn, forcing herself to gather her strength this morning to visit the Qi Family and thank their benefactor.
Qi Quan: "No need for thanks. Mr. Su has already paid the divination fee."
They were even.
At the mention of payment, Su Linhai immediately pulled several documents from his bag—contracts he had drafted the moment he returned to Longjiang City yesterday—and handed them to Qi Quan.
"Miss Qi, you are our family’s greatest benefactor. These are tokens of our gratitude. A small gesture, but we hope you’ll accept."
Qi Changrong’s sharp eyes caught the title on the top document—Share Transfer Agreement.
His heart skipped a beat.
Qi Quan flipped through the papers indifferently.
Five percent of Shengxin Group’s shares. A luxury villa worth 75 million. A high-end car valued at 37 million. And several sets of jewelry worth over a hundred million.
Setting aside the latter items, just the five percent stake in Shengxin Group was enough to make even Qi Changrong, a man worth billions, covetous.
It was an immeasurable, ever-flowing fortune.
Having seen vast wealth in her past life, Qi Quan remained unmoved. After reviewing the documents, her expression betrayed no excitement.
Her composure only deepened Su Linhai’s admiration.
"Mr. Su, you didn’t come just to thank me, did you?" Qi Quan pushed the documents back.
Sui Linhai glanced at Qi Changrong.
Qi Changrong: What? Did he need to leave?
Seeing that Qi Changrong wasn’t budging, Su Linhai decided to speak plainly, consequences be damned. "Miss Qi, in yesterday’s chapter, the part about the Taoist priest seeing ghosts—was that your doing?"
Qi Quan didn’t bother with subtleties. "You want to see your son?"
"Miss Qi, please—we beg you to let us see him. I know this is presumptuous, but we miss him so much. Name your price, anything..." Mrs. Su broke down in tears before she could finish.
Qi Quan lowered her gaze as if in thought. The Su couple held their breath, not daring to make a sound.
As for Qi Changrong, his worldview was crumbling in real time.
After a long pause, Qi Quan finally looked up. "Where are his remains now?"
"At our home!" Su Linhai answered urgently.
Qi Quan rose slowly. "Then let’s go to your place to... summon your son."
The Su couple nearly wept with joy.
The system couldn’t resist asking: [Big Boss, you took so long to think—was their payment not enough?]
[No. I just don’t like going out.]
[...]
News of the true heiress boarding the Su Family’s car spread like wildfire among the second-generation novel enthusiasts.
Speculations ran wild.
[What’s really going on? What’s the Su Family’s stance? Why would Qi Quan get in their car?]
[Ugh, why is following a novel so stressful?!]
[Are the Su and Qi Families about to break ties?]
【Why hasn’t Young Master Du and the others arrived yet? If they’re late, the real heiress might already be crushed to dust by the Su Family.】
【As expected, the real heiress can’t compare to the fake one in terms of favor. The Qi Family didn’t even put up a fight—just handed her over like that.】
Qian Kun secretly messaged Su Nuanuan: 【Your family isn’t really planning to do something to the real heiress, are you?】
Su Nuanuan: …
What kind of idiot is this?! Just like Qi Yuan—another big idiot!
Qian Kun waited but got no reply, so he sent another message—
【Message sent, but rejected by the recipient.】
He got blocked?!
