Qiao Xi was full of smiles as she asked in a gentle voice, “Are you the real Xia Yunlou?”

The surroundings suddenly fell silent. Xia Yunlou slowly looked up, and her empty eyes seemed to have a crack. She replied indifferently, “I am.”

Qiao Xi was stunned. Her grandmother and uncle both suspected that she was not the real Xia Yunlou, but even under hypnosis, Xia Yunlou was still able to confirm her identity.

Hypnosis could control someone like Gu Zheng, who had extremely strong self-control. Of course, she could also control Xia Yunlou. Moreover, she was clearly hypnotized now. Under such circumstances, she would not lie.

Could it be that she was really Xia Yunlou?

Ring, ring, ring…

Suddenly, Xia Yunlou’s phone rang. Her empty eyes gradually recovered their clarity and were shrouded by anger and viciousness. She did not remember what had just happened at all and warned fiercely, “You have to come to this family banquet, or you’ll bear the consequences!”

Qiao Xi was silent for a moment before she smiled lightly. “Alright, when does it start?”

Xia Yunlou probably did not expect Qiao Xi to agree so readily. She was stunned for a few seconds before replying, “Seven in the evening.”

“Alright.” Qiao Xi nodded.

Xia Yunlou smiled proudly. Qiao Xi was stubborn, but in the end, she was afraid of the Xia family’s power and did not want to offend them, so she still had to obediently attend the family banquet.

She would slowly deal with her when she arrived at the Xia family!

Qiao Xi watched Xia Yunlou’s departing figure. She had indeed agreed to attend the family banquet, but she would not attend on time. She had to make the entire Xia family anxious. It would be best if they sent someone to personally invite her.

…

Longwan Residential.

Qiao Xi went straight to the bedroom as soon as she entered. She found her grandfather’s notebook and found it. It recorded that if the other party was hypnotized, what they said would definitely be the truth. Hence, Xia Yunlou was not lying. There were only two possibilities, then. This person was the real Xia Yunlou, but for some reason, her character had suddenly changed. She hated her siblings and mother very much.

The other possibility was that she was not the real Xia Yunlou, but she thought that she was. Perhaps she had lost her memory, or perhaps there was another reason. In short, she subconsciously thought that she was the real Xia Yunlou.

Uncle and Grandma had always thought that the real Xia Yunlou was still wandering outside. That was a thorn in their hearts and also a strand of hope. However, if this person was the real Xia Yunlou, then all their previous efforts and persistence would be in vain.

Qiao Xi was unable to imagine how sad and helpless they would be when they found out about this.

She closed her grandfather’s notes. Actually, when she thought about it carefully, Xia Yunlou was only five or six years old back then. How could she have pretended? At that time, she really liked her brother, sister, and mother. If she was pretending, how could Grandma not tell?

Just as she was deep in thought, Gu Zheng pushed the door open and walked in. “I heard you’re going to the Xia family’s banquet?”

Qiao Xi nodded.

Gu Zheng took off his jacket and sat beside her. He hugged her from behind and muttered in a low voice, “Mrs. Gu, you know that they have ill intentions, yet you still want to attend?”

“I’m not stupid, so I’ll be careful. Moreover, what can those idiots do to me?” Qiao Xi grunted coldly with disdain, but Gu Zheng’s face remained cold. “Mrs. Gu, you have to remember that safety comes first. I don’t want you to take the risk.”

“Yes.” Qiao Xi nodded obediently, then said softly, “I don’t think the Xia family knows that I’m the descendant of the divine physician. They probably invited me back for my mother’s inheritance. I tested Xia Yunlou today, and she was indeed very nervous. Since Xia Cheng wants to obtain those things, he needs my signature. He won’t hurt me for the time being, but they might want to have me under their control first. For example…”

“By poisoning you?” Gu Zheng’s expression darkened, then he chuckled and said, “Unfortunately, you’re immune to poison! Looks like you’ve already planned it out. Even if you go, they won’t really hurt you, but are you so sure that there’s no danger at all?”

Looking at Gu Zheng’s deep eyes, Qiao Xi could not help but feel slightly guilty. Of course, it was impossible for her to not be in danger at all, but she was very confident that the trash from the Xia family could not hurt her. Since she had decided to attend the family banquet, she would not let the Xia family have an easy time.

Gu Zheng looked at her seriously. “Mrs. Gu, I hope you can protect yourself. Otherwise, you’ll regret it.”

Hearing the man’s low and hoarse voice, Qiao Xi’s entire body could not help but tremble as she gulped.