At a birthday banquet, Jian Qing's arrival stirred up quite a stir, and causing Quan Yifei to interrogate the old patriarch about Jian Qing's story as soon as she returned home.
Unable to resist her, and slightly overjoyed because Quan Jingwu had finally returned to the main mansion for the night, the old patriarch agreed.
Thinking back to what happened seventeen years ago, the old patriarch sighed, stroking his white beard, "I heard more than twenty years ago that An Chong had a love affair outside, and that woman had his child, which became widely known by the An family not long after. This almost caused a great stir within the An family. It was An Yi who stepped in to settle things down. The woman was taken away by people sent by An Yi. However, a few years after the woman gave birth to the twins, she died in a car accident. The An family didn't investigate, nor did they plan to take the twins. Actually, I had a talk with An Yi afterwards, he actually wanted to bring the twins back to him at that time, but they suddenly disappeared along with the woman's ashes."
That woman, he saw once when he visited An Yi, based on his years of experience in reading people, that woman could not possibly wreck someone else's family. The nobility expressed in her every move is not something ordinary people could have. Whatever happened between them, he has no idea, after all, it's not his place to interfere in others' family matters.
After hearing the old patriarch's story, Quan Yixuan and others felt complicated emotions. Quan Yifei's lips lightly parted, somewhat shocked.
"Grandpa, why does An Chong seems to dislike Jian Qing so much? She's his daughter after all." Having collected herself, Quan Yifei asked puzzledly.
The old patriarch's expression became a little strange, "There were rumors that the twins were not An Chong's children, that they did not carry the An family's bloodline. But with An Yi shielding them, very few people in the An family saw the twins."
As for this point, he was skeptical when he first heard it because An Yi was no fool to be easily deceived. If they were not of An family's bloodline, how could he favor them so much? More importantly, none of the juniors in the An family were favored more than the twins. The only explanation is they must be of An family's bloodline. As for what the unspeakable truth within this is, probably only An Yi knows.
"What?" It wasn't just Quan Yifei, even Quan Mingxuan was stunned.
They aren't from the An bloodline? Then why did the old man An publicly acknowledge that Jian Qing was his great-granddaughter? It's really confusing.
"That's impossible, considering the old man An's attitude towards Jian Qing today, clearly favored her. I guess none of the An family members receive as much affection from old man An as Jian Qing." Recalling the attitude of old man An towards Jian Qing at the banquet today, Quan Mingxuan calmly analyzed.
The wrinkle between the old patriarch's eyebrows couldn't help tightening, and he nodded, "Indeed, An Yi favors these children more than the others like An Yun, also given what happened, the An family owes Jian Qing and her brother is undeniable. I am still sure that Jian Qing is of An family's bloodline."
Who else in the An family can casually be so spoilt by An Yi if not his own granddaughter, Jian Qing?
Quan Yifei frowned, struggling to understand the ins and outs of this, "Oh my gosh, why is it so complicated."
The old patriarch coughed lightly, "Alright, it's late, everyone should go to rest."
Knowing that these young people wouldn't sleep this early, the old patriarch didn't stay any longer, after all, he was old, and his sleeping schedule was quite fixed. Standing up, he went upstairs to rest.
For a moment, only Quan Yimo and others were left in the living room.
Seeming to have thought of something, Quan Yifei stared at Quan Jingwu sharply, "Third Brother, the person I talked about earlier to you is Jian Qing. It seems like she also lives in Shijin Haoting. Do you have any impression?"
Since his return, Quan Jingwu had maintained his silence all along. Hearing Quan Yifei's words, his eyes darkened, "No."
Ignoring Quan Yifei's bitter face, Quan Jingwu stood up to go upstairs.
"Why is Third Brother like this!" Quan Yifei complained with a face of despair.
Quan Mingxuan leaned on the couch, speaking quietly, "Why do I have a feeling that Jingwu has been acting a bit strange tonight, even deciding to stay here."
Usually, he would have left midway through the banquet, but tonight he waited until the banquet ended, even coming back home with them which was quite unexpected.
"No, not at all!" Caught up in thoughts about Jian Qing, Quan Yifei responded absentmindedly.
Quan Mingxuan didn't count on her not being sharp enough to understand anything. He shrugged his shoulders, a slight smile playing at the corner of his mouth.
This was starting to get interesting!
Returning to his room, Quan Jingwu stood in front of the window, his tall figure casting a faint, long shadow on the floor under the soft light.
The phone rang softly, Quan Jingwu took it out, "How so?"
"Boss, I've found it. Someone recently purchased one of the apartments at Shijin Haoting. The buyer's named Jian Qing." The respectful voice from the other end of the call slowly came through.
Quan Jingwu hummed in acknowledgement before hanging up the call.
Looking out of the window with slightly narrowed eyes, a faint lingering hint of her scent seemed to still be lingering around his nose.
Jian Qing!
…
Since the day of the banquet, Jian Qing disappeared like a gust of wind from outsiders' eyes. Even Quan Yifei would often come to Shijin Haoting in hope of a chance encounter with Jian Qing.
Keeping the An family nervous, Jian Qing comfortably stuck at home, dealing with documents from M country daily, occasionally video calling with the old master, talking on the phone with Jian Luo from time to time, and addressing the problem of meals with delivery.
However, Jian Qing was always searching for Beijing's culinary delights during the past few days. She'd read online about a restaurant named "Qianshi", and she coveted the food there dearly.
For her, food is something absolutely indispensable, like what Jian Luo said, her foodie skills had been unlocked long ago.
After dealing with the documents sent from M country, Jian Qing changed clothes, planning to go out to eat.
It was only when she stepped out the door that she realized she had once again forgotten about an important task, buying a car.
Having no choice, she decided she would have to walk out today and take a taxi, eat first then buy a car. Yes, that was the plan.
Qianshi Restaurant, the highest-ranked restaurant in Beijing, is located in the busiest area of the city. Unlike ordinary restaurants, Qianshi does not provide delivery service. No matter who it is, wanting to eat at Qianshi requires one to be physically there.
Looking at the quaint restaurant in front of her, Jian Qing couldn't help but think of the restaurants she had seen in historical dramas. As soon as she stepped in, a smiling waiter greeted her.
"Hello, did you make a reservation in advance?"
Jian Qing slightly shook her head, "No."