The video call ended.
Gao Hongyi’s reddened eyes remained fixed on the phone screen.
The sound in the car seemed to have been completely sucked away, leaving only the low hum of the engine and the subtle, monotonous sound of the tires rolling over the road.
Her slender fingers lightly brushed the edge of the screen, as if she wanted to touch the young man’s face through the cold glass.
She hadn’t wanted to be so pathetic, much less break down in front of him.
But the emotions she had suppressed for three whole years finally burst forth.
Excessive joy could no longer be restrained by logic; once it started, there was no turning back.
Her parents were truly gentle.
From beginning to end, they remained quiet, even now.
They didn’t ask questions or interrupt.
They simply stayed by her side in silence.
About 10 minutes later, Gao Hongzhi finally spoke, his tone intentionally soft as if afraid to disturb her lingering tears.
“How about we go back to the hotel to rest for a bit?”
“Dad…” Gao Hongyi’s throat tightened.
Gao Hongzhi kept his eyes on the road, his hands steady on the steering wheel.
He kept his voice as calm as possible.
“That person just now, that’s the young author Baiye Duxing you always talk about, right? I heard you call him Uncle Bai just now.”
Gao Hongyi took a soft breath.
“Dad, Mom. My favorite author, Baiye Duxing, is actually Gu Yebai. He’s not in Xinghai City; he’s in Linchuan. He is your real son. Just now… I saw Gu Yebai’s ID photo.”
This sentence was like a heavy bomb dropped into a lake.
“Oh my god.”
Gao Hongzhi instinctively eased off the gas.
As his emotions surged, he worried that he might lose control and cause an accident.
Ya Xinyao’s hands were involuntarily clasped over her chest, like a devout believer praying.
Her voice trembled slightly, yet it was filled with tenderness.
“This must be heaven’s arrangement. Our Hongyi’s favorite young author turned out to be our biological son. How could there be such a coincidence in the world?”
“Yeah,” Gao Hongzhi said, his Adam’s apple bobbing with inexplicable excitement.
“Our daughter and son were destined to come together after all.”
Gu Yebai’s appearance and grades exceeded his expectations.
The image of a delinquent boy with dyed hair wasting away in a small county town vanished completely.
In its place was a piece of unpolished jade once covered in dust.
He not only had outstanding learning abilities, but he also possessed a quiet, gentle face.
More importantly, he was a remarkable novelist.
As Gao Hongyi’s father, Gao Hongzhi knew her very well.
His daughter had high standards, and boys from ordinary families wouldn’t catch her eye.
Yet she was so obsessed with Gu Yebai’s writing.
This showed he didn’t just have talent; he had a temperament and perspective far beyond his age.
He was a near-perfect child.
And he was their flesh and blood.
A sense of pride rose in Gao Hongzhi’s heart, though he knew he had no right to be proud.
In the first 16 years of the boy’s life, he hadn’t been there for a single day.
Even so, he couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
‘Fate is truly mysterious.’
“Honey.”
Ya Xinyao’s eyes were incredibly bright, and she looked 10 years younger.
“Our son is amazing, and Hongyi likes him too. I was worried at first. They’re the same age, and after everything that happened, I thought there might be a rift between them.”
“Haha,” Gao Hongzhi laughed.
“The Gao family has produced a great writer. Good boy, and now there’s the connection with Hongyi. It’s even more perfect.”
Initially, Gao Hongzhi had hesitated.
Visiting out of the blue might be too much of a shock for a child, and it also seemed undignified.
He was an entrepreneur who liked things to be thorough; he had to maintain decorum and a sense of boundaries.
He felt like he was slowly approaching a wary kitten.
He had even composed numerous openings in his mind.
‘Son, I don’t need you to see me as family right away. Just think of me as an older friend. If you have trouble, tell me. I want to help.’
That was his refined version.
Now he had a new one.
‘Son, I’m Xiao Yi’s father. My daughter loves your work, and I’m a fan too. I’m very familiar with your stories. Can we talk? The Vincent murder case left a deep impression on me.’
But before that, there was one last step.
Gao Hongzhi had arranged to meet Gu Yebai’s middle school teacher.
He wanted to understand the boy more fully.
What was he like at school?
Was he bullied?
How did he get along with classmates?
Were there hidden wounds or stubbornness?
He needed more information to decide how to approach without hurting the boy.
In this process, Gao Hongzhi had already begun to feel like a father.
What surprises would this boy he hadn’t met yet bring?
Linchuan County was small.
He set the meeting at the Linchuan State Guest Hotel.
It was very characteristic of a county town—not grand, but with a certain official solemnity.
There were wide steps, red carpets, and a few black Magotans and Passats parked outside.
The gold letters on the sign with yellow lights were the symbol of class in the county.
Gao Hongzhi wasn’t particularly satisfied, but to show sincerity in a county town, there weren’t many choices.
As he reached the entrance, an elderly female teacher walked up.
She wore old-fashioned black-framed glasses and had a thin frame with slightly hunched shoulders—likely from years of grading papers.
“Hello. You must be Gu Yebai’s biological father, Mr. Gao Hongzhi?”
Her tone lacked any flattery, which was distinct from most people he met.
He realized she might be a truly good teacher.
“Yes. Thank you for coming, Teacher Xu. Please, come in.”
He stepped aside with professional courtesy, as if hosting an important partner.
The private room had warm lighting and a white tablecloth.
Within 10 minutes, the dishes arrived.
Sea cucumber over rice, crispy sweet and sour pork, steamed turbot, a large plate of braised bones, and a pot of sauerkraut with pork belly.
They were all hearty Northeastern dishes.
However, Teacher Xu barely touched her chopsticks.
She pushed the wine glass aside.
“I am first and foremost a teacher of the people.”
She looked at him through her glasses.
Her voice was steady but firm.
“If you weren’t Gu Yebai’s biological father, I wouldn’t have come here to eat, even if the principal or the Director of the Education Bureau asked me personally.”
She paused, giving him a chance to understand.
“I’m not a leader or a businessman. My job is to teach. A big hotel like this isn’t the place to discuss a child’s upbringing.”
Gao Hongzhi’s heart sank, but he wasn’t annoyed.
He realized she was an honest person who wasn’t afraid to offend.
He would likely hear the most accurate, unbiased evaluation of Gu Yebai from her.
“During Gu Yebai’s third year of middle school, he was absent for nearly half the semester. He took a lot of leave, but he wasn’t skipping class. Back then, his parents were gravely ill. He was at school every morning, and he spent every afternoon at the hospital…”