When the hospital room was finally empty, leaving only Wei Jinning behind, Xiao Liu spoke up in her mind:
[Master, your acting skills—no wonder you were an award-winning actress in your past life. Xiao Lui is truly impressed.]
Wei Jinning waved it off casually:
[Oh, that was nothing. Just a little trick. Not worth mentioning, hehe.]
Xiao Liu widened her eyes at her master’s shameless demeanor, so annoyed that she shut her eyes altogether—out of sight, out of mind.
Meanwhile, Wang Wei didn’t choose to conduct the paternity test at the hospital. She was too impatient to wait, so she went straight to the Law Enforcement Division.
Just four hours later, the test results came out hot off the press.
When she saw the DNA report showing that the two were completely unrelated by blood, Wang Wei’s eyes widened in shock, her face full of disbelief:
“Really?”
The officer handling the test chuckled at her reaction:
“Sis, you still don’t believe it?”
It turned out that the officer and Wang Wei were not only former classmates but also close friends.
His name was Xiang Jin, a man in his forties, dressed in a crisp white lab coat and a face mask—only his small eyes were visible.
Wang Wei smiled as she explained,
“It’s not that I don’t believe it, I just told you earlier about that little girl’s situation…”
“I really didn’t expect it to be true.”
A hint of relief finally surfaced on her face.
“If it weren’t for your kind heart, who knows what might have happened to that child?” Xiang Jin said as he pulled down his mask.
“You should see her—such a sweet and lovable girl. Absolutely adorable.”
“What I can’t wrap my head around is, they already had a son and clearly preferred boys—so why go and steal a girl?”
“Really doesn’t make sense. Looks like we’ll have to interrogate them thoroughly.”
Wang Wei’s first reaction to the results was a mix of joy and confusion.
“Yeah, we really should question them properly—see if there are any other stolen children involved,” Xiang Jin said with concern, suspecting a human trafficking case.
“Alright, I’ll head back now. Thanks again. I’ll treat you and your wife to a meal sometime.”
“Sure, sounds good.” Xiang Jin replied, not standing on ceremony.
…
[Master, the results are in. Guess what?] Xiao Liu chimed in.
[Do I even need to guess? I already knew, didn’t I?] Wei Jinning replied smugly.
Soon after, Wang Wei returned to the hospital with a bright smile and an energetic stride.
That’s the benefit of having law enforcement handle things—if she’d done it herself, she would’ve had to wait 72 hours.
Even though she already knew deep down that she wasn’t related to the Wei family by blood, seeing the proof with her own eyes brought a wave of relief.
Now, she could leave everything else to the law.
Wei Dachuan and Li Xiaohua had already been taken in by the authorities for investigation. Since Wei Chenglong had only been five years old at the time of the incident, he was not brought in with them.
“Officer, don’t tell me that brat caused trouble again? This has nothing to do with me, you know. The last officer already told us to go home,” Wei Dachuan complained, reeking of alcohol, his eyes half-closed with exhaustion.
He had just come home and had a drink with his son, laid down for a nap, and was suddenly arrested, even cuffed.
His first thought was that Wei Jinning had stirred up trouble again.
“Enough talk! Start talking. Where did you steal Wei Jinning from?” a male officer barked.
“Officer, what are you saying? She’s my wife’s biological daughter! We even have a birth certificate from the hospital!”
Wei Dachuan instantly snapped wide awake, all traces of drowsiness gone. His eyes widened as he excitedly tried to defend himself:
“You don’t understand—at the time, I said we should just deliver the baby at home. But the village doctor insisted the baby was malnourished and said it would be dangerous. He insisted we go to the hospital. That trip alone cost me over 300 yuan!”
“Do you have any idea what 300 yuan was worth twenty years ago?”
Wei Dachuan had regretted it ever since. Had he known it was going to be a girl, he wouldn’t have gone to the hospital at all. If they lost the baby, so be it.
The male officer cut him off,
“Alright, I’m not here to listen to your rambling. So you didn’t go to the hospital at the time?”
“Yeah, I didn’t go. Where would I have found the time? Besides, giving birth is just giving birth—how many people do you need for that?”
“Did anyone else from your family go?”
“No. Only Li Xiaohua went. She stayed in the hospital for three days and came back by herself.”
In Wei Dachuan’s eyes, it was that woman who was being dramatic. If she hadn’t been so delicate, insisting on going to the hospital to give birth, they wouldn’t have had to spend money. So naturally, no one else from the family went with her.
After the interrogation, the officers concluded that Wei Dachuan truly didn’t know the truth.
In the other interrogation room:
“Officer, I……”
Li Xiaohua stared in fear at the cold handcuffs around her wrists, her entire body trembling, face pale as paper.
“Do you still remember the circumstances around Wei Jinning’s birth?” one of the officers asked sternly.
Li Xiaohua’s lips trembled slightly. Her eyes darted around evasively, and she stammered,
“I… I… don’t really remember.”
The two officers exchanged a glance, suspicion rising in their hearts. Li Xiaohua’s nervous behavior suggested she was clearly hiding something.
“Were you really the only one who went to the hospital at the time?” the other officer pressed.
“Yes.”
Li Xiaohua’s hands clenched into fists unconsciously, her knuckles turning white from the tension.
“Weren’t you scared giving birth all by yourself? It’s dangerous, and you had no family with you.”
The officer’s gaze was sharp as a blade, cutting straight into her.
Li Xiaohua took a deep breath, trying to steady herself, but her voice still quivered:
“Of course I was scared. But there were a lot of doctors and nurses around me, and they kept encouraging me… so it didn’t feel quite as frightening.”
“If that’s the case, then why did you steal Wei Jinning? You had already given birth to your own child!”
The officer’s words were like a sword striking her heart.
“I didn’t steal her! She is my daughter! I gave birth to her myself!”
Even though she was filled with fear, Li Xiaohua clung tightly to her denial.
Her back was instantly drenched in cold sweat, and tiny beads of perspiration formed on her forehead.
“This is the paternity test between you and Wei Jinning. There’s no biological relationship. I suggest you tell the truth,” the officer said, handing the results to Li Xiaohua.
Li Xiaohua didn’t even dare to look—she already knew what it said.
…
In the end, unable to withstand the intense interrogation, Li Xiaohua completely broke down and confessed everything.
“You don’t understand… the baby I gave birth to… was stillborn. And it was a girl, too…”
Her voice was filled with despair and grief.
“I collapsed on the spot. When I woke up, the nurses tried to comfort me, saying I was still young and would have more chances to give birth in the future.”
“But they didn’t understand—how could I face my family after delivering a dead baby? They’d think I was unlucky… cursed. Maybe they’d even divorce me. And where could a divorced woman even go?”
By now, Li Xiaohua was sobbing uncontrollably.
“I spent those three days in the hospital terrified, not even daring to sleep, afraid they’d suddenly show up and find out the truth…”
“Luckily, they never did,” she murmured, as though still trapped in that painful memory. Her body trembled uncontrollably, and large drops of sweat rolled down her cheeks.
“That brat had real luck! The moment she was born, she had people to care for her. And her mother—so beautiful and elegant—always calling her ‘little Jinning,’ ‘sweet baby,’ ‘precious girl.’”
Jealousy and resentment flashed in Li Xiaohua’s eyes.
“Just a girl—what’s so great about her?”
“When I was discharged, I waited until the nanny went out and the woman was asleep. Then I quietly took the baby.”
“At first, I was worried someone would come looking, but no one ever did. Guess they didn’t care that much about a girl anyway.”
“It wasn’t stealing. If not for me, that brat might’ve been abandoned and starved to death somewhere.”
“Yeah… this isn’t my fault.”
Wei Dachuan was released with no charges.
Li Xiaohua was convicted of child abduction and sentenced to five years in prison.
Law enforcement officers then reviewed the police reports from the hospital Li Xiaohua had stayed in twenty years ago—and they found the case right away.
“Hello, is this Mr. Huo?” an officer asked over the phone.
A deep, steady voice responded:
“Yes, this is him. Who’s calling?”
Huo Shan’s voice carried the calm weight of someone who had been weathered by time and sorrow.
“This is the Chun City Public Security Bureau,” the officer continued. “Twenty years ago, your daughter went missing from the city hospital. We now have someone who may be your biological daughter. We’re requesting your cooperation for a DNA test.”
The moment Huo Shan heard the words, a tremor passed through him. His usually composed gaze suddenly filled with overwhelming emotion. He could barely believe what he was hearing.
“You… you’re saying… you’ve found my daughter?”
His voice trembled with uncontrollable excitement and longing.
The officer confirmed,
“Based on the current evidence, it’s highly likely. But final confirmation requires a DNA test.”
“Alright! I’ll come immediately. Please… take care of her until I arrive.”
Huo Shan replied quickly, his voice full of urgency.
After hanging up, his heart was still pounding.
But this time, he chose not to tell his family.
Over the past twenty years, they had suffered too many false hopes. Every time a lead turned out to be nothing, it left a scar. He couldn’t bear to break their hearts again with another disappointment.
So Huo Shan boarded his private jet to Chun City alone.
Back when Zhao Qiuying was pregnant, her emotions had been unstable. Just before delivery, she insisted she’d dreamed of Chun City and wanted to go there. Huo Shan had no choice but to accompany her.
But less than half a day after landing, Zhao Qiuying went into labor and was rushed to the city hospital. She gave birth to a baby girl. The couple was overjoyed.
However, just then, the Huo family’s business ran into trouble, and Huo Shan had to return to Beijing urgently, leaving a nanny to care for Zhao Qiuying.
By the time he returned to Chun City, their daughter was already missing.
They had always suspected someone in Beijing was responsible, so their investigation went in the wrong direction—and that mistake had kept them from finding her all these years.
As the plane neared Chun City Airport, his thoughts surged like a tidal wave.
He’d experienced this kind of hope too many times before—only to have it crushed again and again.
But his longing for his daughter had never faded.
“I wonder how she’s doing now? Has she suffered over the years? Could she really be my daughter? Please… let it be true this time…”
Huo Shan silently prayed, heart brimming with both hope and fear.
As the plane touched down, his heartbeat thundered in his chest, as if it might burst from his throat.
When Huo Shan finally saw Wei Jinning, he knew immediately—this was his daughter.
She looked just like his wife when she was young. The resemblance was uncanny.
There was no need for a DNA test.
For a moment, he was too stunned to speak or move, as if trapped in a dream.
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