Chapter 2
Chen Pingzhou explained while gently pushing Jiang Cheng forward:
“Go on. He’s your grandfather. He loved you the most when you were little.”
One hundred thousand yuan!
Thinking this, Jiang Cheng walked up to the old man and was immediately grabbed by his hand.
The old man’s hand was thin and bony, his skin loose and hanging over the bones. His fingertips were cold, but his grip was surprisingly strong, making Jiang Cheng’s wrist ache slightly.
“Yin’er… my little Yin’er…”
Tears slowly filled the old man’s cloudy eyes. They rolled down his wrinkled face as his voice trembled uncontrollably.
“I never thought I would see you again in this life…”
Jiang Cheng stood stiffly, not daring to move.
This was completely different from the strict, powerful old man he had imagined. The person in front of him looked more like a dying oil lamp, with only a faint last glow left, making people feel a little sad.
“It’s good that you’re back… it’s good,” the old man kept murmuring. He carefully looked him up and down, his eyes full of longing.
“Yin’er, do you still remember grandfather?”
Jiang Cheng hesitated, then nodded… and shook his head.
When Chen Yin was lost, she was four years old. She probably had some memory, but not much.
“Yin’er, your grandfather is asking you something. Why aren’t you answering?” said a woman standing next to the old man, who had not spoken until now.
She looked about sixty years old. She was likely the old man’s second wife, the stepmother Chen Pingzhou had mentioned—someone who needed to be carefully guarded against.
Because Jiang Cheng had to cooperate in the act, Chen Pingzhou had not hidden everything from him.
For example, pretending to be Chen Yin was partly because the old man was old and they wanted him to leave this world without regrets.
But the bigger purpose was for power struggle—fighting against the stepmother and her son.
In recent years, both sides had been deeply involved in a fierce struggle. The stepbrother had a three-year-old daughter who was about the same age as the missing Chen Yin and looked somewhat similar.
Because the old man could not let go of his lost granddaughter, he had grown especially fond of that child, treating her almost as a substitute.
Chen Pingzhou was extremely uncomfortable with this. The old man clearly missed his sister’s daughter, yet the benefits were going to the stepmother’s child. Worse, the inheritance intended for Chen Yin might all be given to that little girl instead.
So they had found Jiang Cheng to impersonate Chen Yin.
Jiang Cheng immediately lowered his head, acting shy and timid.
Chen Pingzhou used the prepared excuse:
“Yinyin was kidnapped and sold multiple times when she was young. She suffered a lot, and later developed selective mutism. She no longer speaks.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve consulted doctors. This condition can be treated. I will contact the best hospitals and specialists.”
The old man’s face was filled with heartache.
“Make sure you find the top doctors in the country to cure her.”
“I will, don’t worry. The chances of recovery are very high.”
The old man nodded, then looked at Jiang Cheng again.
“You’ve suffered. Don’t be afraid. No one will bully you anymore.”
The old lady standing nearby rolled her eyes quietly.
At first, she thought Chen Pingzhou had brought a fake daughter to fool the old man, and she was planning to secretly get a DNA sample to expose him.
But now, it was obvious to anyone with eyes that this girl looked extremely similar to Chen Rou when she was young. She didn’t look like she had plastic surgery, and her age also matched.
Of course, she did not know that Jiang Cheng was actually three years younger than Chen Yin. The difference was too small to notice visually.
Hearing the old man’s words, Jiang Cheng nodded and forced a shy smile.
The old man immediately saw that smile and seemed to recall his deceased daughter again. He burst into tears once more, and everyone hurried to comfort him.
After about an hour, the recognition ceremony finally ended. The old man, emotionally overwhelmed, was exhausted and was taken back to rest by his caregiver.
“You must be tired too. Go rest,” the aunt said gently. “Your room is already prepared. I’ll take you there.”
For the sake of appearance, she personally led Jiang Cheng to his room and carefully gave him instructions in front of the servants before leaving.
After locking the door, Jiang Cheng finally relaxed.
He realized that pretending to be mute wasn’t easy. Sometimes, he almost instinctively wanted to respond.
But fortunately, he had gotten through it. The old man should already have accepted him as his “granddaughter.”
He had been in emergency training recently and stayed highly tense for fear of exposure. Now that he had successfully passed, exhaustion quickly hit him, and he fell asleep.
When he woke again, it was because a servant knocked on the door, saying an important guest had arrived and asking him to come downstairs.
Jiang Cheng got dressed.
The wardrobe contained clothes prepared by Chen Pingzhou’s wife (the aunt). Jiang Cheng was not used to wearing skirts—it felt like he wasn’t wearing anything underneath.
But he didn’t dare change into pants, afraid it would look too masculine and expose him. After hesitating, he chose a simple long dress.
After confirming it was fine, he went downstairs.
As he turned the corner of the staircase, he saw the old man talking with someone in the living room.
When he looked at that person, he froze slightly.
It was the tall, handsome man he had met at the service station!
What a strange coincidence.
Just as he was thinking this, Mrs. Chen noticed him and immediately smiled:
“Come, Yin’er, come meet your fiancé.”
Jiang Cheng: ??????
Wait—did he just hear “fiancé”?
Is he deaf? What did she say?!
Chapter 2
Shao Zhe Nian came to the Chen family today after just returning from university summer break.
He originally didn’t want to come, but his mother insisted. She said Chen Yin’s mother had once taken good care of her, and now that her daughter had been found after so many years, it was only right to visit.
As for the so-called childhood engagement, he didn’t care.
It was just something the two mothers jokingly arranged in the past. This was not an era of arranged marriage—no one could force him into it.
Shao Zhe Nian had no impression of Chen Yin’s mother. He came only because of his mother’s request.
He originally planned to meet and leave.
But unexpectedly, Mrs. Chen suddenly brought up the “fiancé” matter. Shao Zhe Nian frowned.
His mother pressed his leg, signaling him not to get angry.
He wasn’t angry. No one could force him to do anything he didn’t want.
He simply disliked this kind of manipulative behavior.
His mother followed his gaze toward the staircase and said:
“Look closely, she really looks like your Aunt Rou when she was young.”
Shao Zhe Nian casually looked up—and paused.
Standing there blankly was Jiang Cheng.
He raised an eyebrow slightly.
Jiang Cheng was completely stunned.
Chen Pingzhou never told him that Chen Yin actually had a fiancé!
But this wasn’t really Chen Pingzhou’s fault.
The Shao family was the top aristocratic family in the city. Shao Zhe Nian and his father were both only children, meaning he would be the future head of the family.
The engagement had only been a casual verbal agreement between two close friends years ago. No one took it seriously.
Besides, no one expected a mute girl who had suffered so much to be accepted by the Shao family.
And Shao Zhe Nian was not someone who followed arrangements.
If he refused, no one could force him.
So bringing up the engagement now was clearly intentional.
Mrs. Chen’s goal was obvious: to make the Shao family think the Chen family was trying to push a “poor mute girl” onto him, causing resentment toward Chen Pingzhou.
While Chen Yin was under Chen Pingzhou’s side, any resentment from the Shao family would naturally be directed at him.
At that point, a single move from Shao Zhe Nian would be enough to crush him.
So even though Mrs. Chen had been cold during the earlier recognition, she now smiled warmly and walked over, trying to pull Jiang Cheng’s hand—only for him to instinctively dodge.
She didn’t mind and smiled:
“Why are you still standing there? Come meet your fiancé. He’s the dream lover of many girls in our city. You’ll like him.”
With no one else to rely on, Jiang Cheng had no choice but to walk down.
A graceful woman who resembled Shao Zhe Nian stepped forward, eyes red with emotion.
She wiped her eyes and smiled:
“Good child… you’ve suffered. It’s good that you’re back. From now on, everything will be fine.”
Jiang Cheng felt helpless.
So this was the “mother of the fiancé”?
He felt a chill.
Help.
The woman smiled gently:
“You may not know me. I’m your mother’s best friend. You can call me Aunt Fang.”
Jiang Cheng could not speak, so he forced another shy smile.
Mrs. Chen then said:
“This child suffered a lot after being kidnapped. She developed a psychological condition and cannot speak.”
“That is selective mutism. It can be treated,” the old man said.
“Go tell the kitchen to prepare dinner early.”
Mrs. Chen had finished her move and smiled before leaving:
“Alright then, will the in-laws stay for dinner?”
“No need, we still have matters to attend to,” Shao’s mother replied.
Mrs. Chen left satisfied.
Shao’s mother then said to Shao Zhe Nian:
“Go greet your sister.”
Calling her “sister” was her way of clarifying her stance in front of the old man.
She could see the old man wanted the engagement fulfilled, but her son would never accept a forced marriage.
Shao Zhe Nian walked over and said:
“Hello. We meet again.”
Shao’s mother was surprised.
“You know each other?”
“Met at a service station today,” he said casually. “He even stepped on my shoe.”
He lifted his foot—there really was a faint shoe mark.
Jiang Cheng’s face turned slightly red.
He really didn’t mean it!
The old man laughed:
“Seems like fate brought you together.”
Shao’s mother almost rolled her eyes.
But she kept a polite smile and introduced:
“This is my son, Shao Zhe Nian.”
Jiang Cheng understood what she meant.
Clearly, they didn’t intend to fulfill the engagement—they only considered him a “sister.”
