In that instant, Zhao Mingshi suddenly realized something: Jiang Luo had known everything all along.
He had understood the full truth, yet had never spoken a word to anyone.
Back then, Jiang Luo had decisively and cleanly severed his eighteen-year parental bond with Zhang Xiangping and Jiang Jianmin, and simultaneously cut off all blood ties with the Zhao family. Without hesitation, without looking back, he walked his own path.
Jiang Luo had already gone so far, so far, no one could catch him.
Zhao Mingshi watched the figure recede down the corridor, eventually disappearing from sight. His eyes reddened, his lips pressed tight, and his hands, hanging at his sides, clenched tightly, trembling slightly.
All these years, he had considered Jiang Luo his “rival,” his “enemy.”
But in truth, Jiang Luo had never once placed him in his sight.
Jiang Luo had gone so far that, in his eyes, people like them amounted to nothing.
Zhao Mingshi recalled the way Jiang Luo had looked at him back when he followed Su Lan and Zhao Guangyuan to the old apartment buildings: unfamiliar, disdainful, arrogant, defiant.
Jiang Luo had always been like that—recklessly independent, following only his own path.
Reckless to the point of not caring even about the truth behind the swapped babies.
Suddenly, Zhao Mingshi realized something else:
He had lost.
He could never match Jiang Luo.
In any way, in anything, he could not compare.
When Zhao Guangyuan arranged to meet, Huo Zongzuo finally learned what had happened—he realized that, just as Jiang Luo had been exposed at the banquet, he had now deliberately revealed the truth about the baby swap.
Jiang Luo had known everything from the start.
Zhao Guangyuan sighed. “Su Lan took a huge blow from this. She’s been hospitalized.”
“I was worried about Jiang Luo too, which is why I reached out.”
“He’s fine,” Zhao Guangyuan added.
Huo Zongzuo said nothing further. “He’s completely normal.”
Zhao Guangyuan looked suddenly much older, his temples streaked with gray. “I never imagined the truth would be like this. I feel so guilty… and so does Su Lan. If I had stayed in the delivery room, if Su Lan hadn’t dozed off for that brief moment after giving birth… maybe none of this would have happened.”
Huo Zongzuo, calm, said: “It’s meaningless to dwell on that now.”
Jiang Luo’s life was normal: busy with work, earning money, cozy with Huo Zongzuo, occasionally going out with friends. His life—or rather, his entire existence—was almost “perfect.”
If only that day, Wang Chuang hadn’t called from Shenzhen…
At the time, Jiang Luo was dining with several finance professionals recently returned from the UK and the US, along with the branch manager of Bank of China. They were chatting happily when his phone rang.
Seeing it was Wang Chuang, Jiang Luo held the phone aside. Huo Zongzuo looked at him, silently asking. Jiang Luo replied, “Nothing, just Wang Chuang.”
He excused himself and stepped aside to answer. Huo Zongzuo continued chatting with the others.
At the window, Jiang Luo answered, but there was silence on the line. He tilted the phone, puzzled, and finally said, “Hello? Speak.”
Suddenly, Wang Chuang’s voice came through, wailing uncontrollably.
Jiang Luo stiffened. “What happened?” he asked, serious.
Wang Chuang’s sobs tore through the phone. “Luo… Luo… Brother… my mom… my mom…”
“What about your aunt?” Jiang Luo prompted.
“My mom… my mom…” Wang Chuang sobbed, wailing. “I just found out… they’ve been hiding it from me!”
“What is it? Tell me!” Jiang Luo demanded.
“She has cancer! Breast cancer!” Wang Chuang shrieked, voice breaking.
Jiang Luo froze.
The shock hit him so hard his phone slipped from his hand and fell to the floor.
How could this be…
For a long while, Jiang Luo couldn’t compose himself. He crouched, picked up the phone, closed his eyes briefly, and spoke calmly: “Tell me exactly what’s going on.”
“When did you find out? How long has she been ill?”
After hanging up, Jiang Luo returned to the private room, leaning toward Huo Zongzuo. “I have to go.”
Huo Zongzuo looked at him, asking silently.
Jiang Luo didn’t respond verbally, but handed over his phone. The screen showed: Wang Chuang’s mother has cancer.
Huo Zongzuo, surprised, immediately said, “I’ll go with you.”
He turned to the table, informing the others: “We have a sudden matter to attend to.”
On the plane, Huo Zongzuo, noticing Jiang Luo’s unusual expression, tried to reassure him: “It’s breast cancer. Not a death sentence. It’s treatable. If Shenzhen can’t handle it, we can go to Xiehe. If domestic treatment isn’t enough, we can seek doctors abroad.”
Jiang Luo glanced at Huo Zongzuo, said nothing, and remained quiet.
At the hospital, Wang Chuang, Mo Wanzhen, Wang Junwei were all present. Bai Ting sat on the bed, smiling, as if telling some amusing story.
Seeing Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzuo enter, Bai Ting exclaimed, “I knew it! I told you, and of course you’d come.”
“Nothing serious,” she added.
“Mom.” Wang Chuang’s voice cracked as he said it, trying to hold back tears.
Jiang Luo asked, “When did this happen? How long has it been? What did the doctors say?”
Bai Ting had felt some discomfort in her chest and initially went to Shenzhen for an exam. At first, nothing was detected—just a few nodules. Later, the pain worsened, and a detailed examination revealed a tumor.
The tumor was initially small. Doctors tried to control it with medication. During this period, Bai Ting and Wang Junwei quietly visited the hospital without informing Wang Chuang or Mo Wanzhen, thinking it wasn’t serious and treatable.
But recently, the tumor grew, becoming uncontrollable. The hospital insisted surgery was necessary. The couple, realizing they could no longer hide it, informed their son and daughter-in-law.
Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzuo immediately consulted Bai Ting’s attending physician. Huo Zongzuo even made several calls, seeking the best breast cancer specialists in Shenzhen.
After investigation, it was clear that surgery was necessary, followed by medication and chemotherapy.
Experts said prognosis varies individually—every case is different.
Bai Ting remained optimistic: “Luckily I get yearly checkups. It was detected early. Once removed, it will be fine, really.”
Wang Chuang and the others suspected she was putting on a brave front to avoid worrying them. Only Jiang Luo, silent, remained deep in thought.
Huo Zongzuo, noticing Jiang Luo’s concern, reassured him: “The chief surgeon in Shenzhen is among the best in the country for breast cancer. Don’t worry.”
It was evident that Bai Ting would be treated by the best local specialists in Shenzhen.
Huo Zongzuo added: “If treatment goes well, we’ll continue in Shenzhen. If not, I’ll arrange a transfer to Beijing to see the Xiehe experts.”
Jiang Luo nodded silently.
That night, back home at Yinhu, something struck him. Huo Zongzuo casually asked: “In your previous life, did Wang Chuang’s mother also have this illness?”
Jiang Luo paused, then replied, “Yes.”
“Was she cured?”
Huo Zongzuo looked at him. Jiang Luo met his gaze, expression unreadable. After a moment, he exhaled, “No. She passed away.”
No wonder his expression had been off.
Huo Zongzuo put an arm around him. “It’s fine now. Early detection makes the outlook optimistic. She can recover.”
Jiang Luo nodded. “I think so too. Thankfully it was caught early.”
Yet, lying in bed later, he reflected silently: Why? Why, even with all the reminders and annual checkups Wang Chuang ensured for Bai Ting, did she still develop this disease?
Why?
Everything else had changed.
Would this one thing remain unchanged?
If so, then he…
Impossible!
Jiang Luo immediately denied it in his heart.
No!
Bai Ting’s surgery would take place in a few days. Huo Zongzuo, busy, had arranged everything and would leave the next day.
Jiang Luo stayed behind.
He walked on the hospital lawn with Wang Chuang. Wang Chuang’s hands were in his pockets, facing the bright sunlight, exhaling slowly: “If my mom doesn’t recover… if she passes… I can’t even think about it.”
“She will be fine. Don’t think that way,” Jiang Luo said, walking beside him.
Wang Chuang continued, “You earn so much money, but what use is it? When someone falls ill, money can’t buy life.”
“How can money not help?” Jiang Luo asked. “Private rooms, surgery fees, chemo medication—none of it is free.”
“True,” Wang Chuang admitted, smiling ruefully. “I was being foolish to say that.”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry,” Jiang Luo reassured, placing a hand on Wang Chuang’s shoulder. “She’ll recover. Everything will be fine.”