A-Gua raised her head, noticed Jiang Li approaching, carefully placed the bamboo basket on the table, and trotted over to her.
She stopped in front of Jiang Li and looked at her with expectant eyes: “Sister, are you here to see me?”
Jiang Li took A-Gua’s small hand and walked to the guest room in the back courtyard.
Then, Jiang Li told her about Pan Shiyan.
“I had people investigate. Your father was deceived and did not know that your mother and you had come to the capital, nor did he know that you had tried to find him. He has been searching for the whereabouts of you and your mother all this time and has refused several marriage proposals.”
A-Gua’s expression did not change after hearing this.
Jiang Li asked gently: “Do you want to see him?”
A-Gua shook her head again, her eyes reddening slightly: “Even if he was deceived, my mother is truly gone. I do not want to see him, and I do not want to acknowledge him as my father.”
Jiang Li could understand A-Gua’s rejection of Pan Shiyan, but after all, A-Gua was a child; her mother was gone, and Pan Shiyan was her only living parent.
If Pan Shiyan truly cared for his daughter, he would be able to take good care of A-Gua.
Seeing Jiang Li hesitate, A-Gua seemed to sense something.
She asked cautiously: “Do you want me to see him?”
Jiang Li took a deep breath: “I think he should know about these things and see how he reacts. If, after you see him, you still do not want to live with him, then you can return to the pastry shop. Of course, this is just my opinion; you should decide for yourself.”
It didn’t take long for A-Gua to nod and agree: “Okay, I will listen to you.”
Jiang Li rubbed A-Gua’s small head and took her out.
Jiang Li first sent someone to deliver a message to Pan Shiyan, who was on duty at the Hanlin Academy, and then she and A-Gua waited at a nearby teahouse.
Upon hearing news of his daughter, Pan Shiyan immediately asked for leave from his superiors and hurried to the teahouse.
The moment he saw A-Gua, Pan Shiyan froze.
When his daughter was just born, Pan Shiyan had entered the capital to study; he didn’t even have time to name her.
After he settled down in the capital, he intended to bring his wife and daughter to live with him, but he was told by his mother that his wife had run away with the child.
Pan Shiyan did not believe his wife would betray him, so he had been inquiring about news of them all these years.
He never imagined that he would see his daughter again in such a setting.
Inside the private room, there was no sign of the wife he had thought of day and night, only a little girl who resembled her closely around the eyes.
Pan Shiyan could tell at a glance that she was his daughter.
Pan Shiyan looked at Jiang Li, feeling she looked familiar, but he couldn’t recall who she was.
Without waiting for Pan Shiyan to ask, Jiang Li introduced them: “This is Ji Yan and your daughter, named A-Gua.”
In fact, Pan Shiyan had been certain she was his daughter the moment he saw her.
However, his heart was still heavy with worry for his wife, and the fact that his daughter showed no reaction upon seeing him made him deeply uneasy.
Pan Shiyan swallowed and plucked up the courage to ask: “Where is Yan-niang? Why didn’t she come?”
Jiang Li saw that Pan Shiyan’s expectation did not seem feigned, but some truths, no matter how cruel, had to be told.
“Three months ago, Ji Yan brought A-Gua to the capital to find you, but she was driven away by the servants at your residence. Soon after, she fell ill and passed away. A-Gua was left wandering the streets and was taken in by human traffickers.”
Hearing such news, Pan Shiyan nearly lost his footing and shook his head repeatedly: “No, this is impossible. How could Yan-niang have been driven away? It is even more impossible that she would leave me.”
Seeing Pan Shiyan’s reaction, Jiang Li felt even more pity for the deceased Yan-niang.
“It is true; you can send someone to investigate. But I must warn you that the people under you have been bought by your mother, Madam Song. Even if they find out the truth, they will not tell you the facts. Madam Song not only bribed your servants but also deliberately deceived you, making you think Yan-niang ran away with the child. In fact, Yan-niang was always at your home, waiting for you to return. It was Madam Song who forbade them from coming to the capital. Yan-niang missed you, which is why she came to the capital to find you.”
Hearing this, Pan Shiyan was already streaming with tears.
Although he hadn’t had anyone investigate yet, he had always believed Yan-niang wouldn’t leave him.
Pan Shiyan had always felt that Yan-niang must have had some compelling reason, but he had never thought that it was his mother who had deliberately torn them apart.
A-Gua watched Pan Shiyan shed tears; her face remained expressionless, and she was not moved in the slightest.
Pan Shiyan met A-Gua’s gaze and asked with a final shred of hope: “Yan-niang named you A-Gua, right? A-Gua, I am your father. Tell Father, is your mother really gone?”
A-Gua blinked, but her words caused Pan Shiyan even more pain: “Do you feel sad? Ever since I can remember, my mother has often wiped away tears in secret, thinking you had abandoned her. After coming to the capital and being driven away, my mother lost all hope; she cried every day, and her body gave out. All these years, my mother has sacrificed so much to feed me—where were you during that time?”
Jiang Li did not expect that a child as young as A-Gua could say so much.
However, thinking of what A-Gua had been through, she felt it wasn’t surprising.
Pan Shiyan knelt before A-Gua, his voice choked with sobs: “I’m sorry, A-Gua. It is Father’s fault; it is Father’s failure to understand, and failure to take care of you both.”
A-Gua remained completely unmoved: “That is your incompetence. Even if you shed all the tears in the world now, my mother won’t come back. I will not forgive you, nor will I acknowledge you as my father.”
Having said this, A-Gua looked at Jiang Li: “Sister, can we leave now?”
Pan Shiyan wanted to stop his daughter, but he felt he truly had no face to face her.
His daughter was right; it was his failure. Even if he had been deceived, he should not have allowed this to happen.
Jiang Li patted A-Gua’s head and told her to sit down first: “I have a few words to say to your father.”
Hearing Jiang Li, A-Gua sat down obediently.
Jiang Li looked at the weeping Pan Shiyan and took a deep breath: “Master Pan, I know you had your reasons, but A-Gua has truly lost her mother and suffered at the hands of human traffickers. She does not want to acknowledge you for the time being. It would be better if I take her back to the pastry shop. If you wish to see her, go to the Jiang family pastry shop. However, whether A-Gua is willing to see you will depend entirely on her.”
Pan Shiyan was in immense pain after hearing the news of his wife, but thinking of his daughter, he gradually regained a sliver of hope for the future.
This was the child of his and Yan-niang’s.
Hearing Jiang Li mention the Jiang family pastry shop, Pan Shiyan tentatively called out: “Miss Jiang?”
Seeing that Jiang Li did not deny it, he continued: “Miss Jiang has taken in my daughter, and I am deeply grateful. If there is anything I can do to help, please feel free to ask.”
Jiang Li had not originally intended to make Pan Shiyan do anything, as she had not taken A-Gua in for profit.
But considering that she now needed to shut down the shops under her own name, and the pastry shop was still in operation, it was time to find a suitable nominal owner for it.