Director Wan’s family in Fancheng was indeed influential. The family had seven siblings. The youngest, Director Wan, studied medicine under the eldest brother.
The hospital, formerly Baoji Hospital, had belonged to the Wan family before being transferred to public management years ago.
Jiang Zhen briefly wondered if having handled over a hundred bandit corpses and charted half of Fancheng’s criminal network, she could offend the Wan family and still have a way out if needed.
She said calmly: “I didn’t expect Director Wan’s relatives to act so tyrannically. But I know exactly who you are and still dared to offend you. You’re young and may not understand. Perhaps your mother should think about it—she’s over forty. She shouldn’t be acting so immature, right?”
As Wan’s wife, Shen Gaoqin was aware of Jiang Zhen’s actions. Gu Jiaoxia’s sister-in-law, she intended to stay neutral, especially with her fourth child on the way, not wanting conflicts before giving birth.
She quickly called out, “Comrade Jiang, my daughter is spoiled. I apologize on her behalf. Please don’t bother a little girl.”
Jiang Zhen glanced at her protruding belly. Forty-five, determined against family opposition, and recalling He Shulan carrying charcoal to her home in frail form, she wondered how many hearts would ache in the future.
She asked, “Mrs. Shen, do you love your child?”
“Of course, who wouldn’t?”
“Even one you’ve never seen?”
Shen Gaoqin thought Jiang Zhen meant the third child, placed with the eldest sister’s family and rarely seen. But she still loved the child. “Comrade Jiang, please speak clearly—stop riddling.”
“All right, I’ll be clear,” Jiang Zhen said. “You have a child who was swapped at birth.”
“Which one?” Shen Gaoqin gasped.
“I don’t know,” Jiang Zhen replied. “Think carefully. Surely you remember some clue.”
…
After the expectant mother was settled, Director Wan was called. Shen Gaoqin questioned him: “A young nurse with such a bad attitude submitted her resignation, and you approved it? That’s not following protocol.”
Because it wasn’t standard procedure, Director Wan worried.
Before Jiang Zhen submitted her resignation, he received a call instructing him to approve it—Jiang Zhen was apparently entrusted with an important role and could not be obstructed.
He said: “She’s young. If she speaks in a way you don’t like, tolerate it.”
Being the youngest, he was soft-hearted and easily swayed. Shen Gaoqin wasn’t satisfied with this.
Comforting the crying Wan Zhi Zhi, Shen Gaoqin ordered her husband: “Jiang Zhen said one child was swapped. Call her over and confront her directly.”
Wan Zhi Zhi, the most spoiled, feared being the swapped child.
“Daddy, hurry up! Ask her now or no one eats or sleeps today!”
Wan Qiming dared not confront Jiang Zhen, cautioning his wife and child: “If no one overheard before, do you really want everyone to know now?”
Shen Gaoqin realized that if a swap really happened and the family found out, the small household couldn’t handle it secretly.
She reassured Wan Zhi Zhi: “You’re our dear little one. Whoever was swapped, it couldn’t have been you.”
“Can you guarantee that?” Wan Zhi Zhi persisted. “Jiang Zhen said she suspected someone was swapped. Was it big sister or little sister?”
Shen Gaoqin could only reply: “If not your eldest, it’s your youngest. Even if swapped, our family can manage.”
Wan Zhi Zhi pouted: “But why place them with the eldest sister in Fancheng? I wish it were big sister, she’s always bossing me around.”
Wan Qiming’s head ached. The eldest daughter believed the swapped child was Zhi Zhi. The eldest daughter’s personality resembled her aunt—strong-willed—and was already on her way. The matter would be handled by her. The middle child naturally worried about who she had become and whether she was well.
…
By the end of her shift, the Wan family hadn’t caused trouble. Jiang Zhen returned home and asked Gu Liancheng, “Director Wan knows about the swap, right? Otherwise, he’d have called me over.”
Gu Liancheng was making dumplings with fresh pork and cabbage. A few had already been sent to Professor Li’s next door.
He said, “Qingfeng mentioned that as soon as he heard you’d handle the swapped babies’ aftermath, he ran to tell his father-in-law and even called his wife. Are you sure you should discuss it directly with Shen Gaoqin?”
Jiang Zhen, taking charge, wanted to act quickly.
“He Shulan is still selling charcoal. I’m afraid she’ll freeze in the snow. I told you last night—I’ll handle her family first. If you think I’m doing it wrong, the higher-ups can replace me.”
Gu Liancheng hurriedly said: “I never meant that. My bad for asking too much. Come, have some dumplings.”
Jiang Zhen wasn’t targeting him—she just felt both Qingfeng and Director Wan were indecisive.
“Since the swap is known, I’m resigning today. Director Wan doesn’t seem concerned, poor Shulan. And Qingfeng, as the brother-in-law, the only proactive thing he did was call his wife—what’s that about?”
Gu Liancheng defended Qingfeng: “As a son-in-law, he can’t make decisions on the Wan family’s behalf. But he’s competent; when it comes to work, he never hesitates.”
Jiang Zhen simply chuckled lightly, not responding further.
Qingfeng arrived just then. Hearing Gu Liancheng’s summary, he stammered, “Sister-in-law, I just came to discuss this with brother. It’s getting colder, Shulan wears so little, her hands are frostbitten. This won’t do.”
Jiang Zhen sneered. “What won’t do? She’s survived fourteen years like this. If she hasn’t frozen before, she won’t freeze this year. I just think you overthink things. If I were He Shulan, I wouldn’t understand your excuses. After all, you eat warm dumplings while she suffers in the cold.”
Qingfeng was ashamed and muttered: “My wife’s family is complicated. If she doesn’t come, I can’t act alone. If anything goes wrong…”
Gu Liancheng supported Jiang Zhen: “Qingfeng, I’m just reminding you—decide swiftly on Shulan’s matter, or everyone will feel the cold.”
Qingfeng sighed. “Brother, you know my wife’s family. If even she can’t manage her parents, how can I persuade them? But with my wife calling her aunt over, it’ll be resolved.”
…
Regarding the swapped children, Jiang Zhen decided to tell the four kids. Gu Liancheng worried: “Is it too early? They’re still small.”
Jiang Zhen disagreed: “Raising children isn’t like feeding pigs. Just filling them up isn’t enough. If you don’t teach them with real examples, when will you? You’re really strange.”
Gu Liancheng: …He had no rebuttal. “I thought they were too young to know unpleasant things. You’re right. Let’s tell them together.”
In the warm little kitchen, Jiang Zhen and the children huddled around a pan of charcoal embers. The charcoal had been brought by He Shulan that morning, and Gu Liancheng had paid the top price for the best quality.
At the hospital entrance, her charcoal sold faster than anyone else’s. Even the second-grade charcoal often sold for the price of the top grade, and the small difference went straight into the girl’s savings for school. Using her own perseverance and a bit of cunning, she earned money for her education. Jiang Zhen thought it was fine—pay the higher price if it meant supporting her.
Gu Liancheng asked the children, “If you were in He Shulan’s position, what would you do?”
The eldest, Jiang Zhao, thinking from Wan Zhi Zhi’s perspective since he knew she was adopted, said sadly, “Mom, I don’t want to leave you, but if this home belonged to someone else, I would go.”
“Have you ever thought about living with someone else?” Jiang Zhen asked.
Jiang Zhao shook his head. “I’ve already taken someone else’s parents and home for so long. Even if I found out, I wouldn’t try to take them again.”
Jiang Zhen nodded, ruffling his hair. “You’re thinking the same as me. Luckily, you didn’t make the wrong choice—you don’t have to leave this home.”
Jiang Zhao felt a bittersweet happiness, leaning against her and wrapping his arms tightly around hers.
…
Jiang Tang hesitated, thinking herself lucky now. From Wan Zhi Zhi’s perspective, she asked, “Mom, if I weren’t your biological child, could I stay as a servant and not leave?”
Jiang Zhen laughed. “I don’t know about that, but you are your child—you don’t have to leave.”
Gu Pan responded to Jiang Tang’s hypothetical: “What belongs to whom, stays with whom. If I found out my brother wasn’t Dad’s child, I wouldn’t go back home—I’d live with my aunt instead.”
Jiang Zhen teased her. “Wit won’t help you here. Think carefully about your choice.”
Gu Pan thought seriously, considering both sides: “If I were He Shulan, I’d want Wan Zhi Zhi to return to her home and sell charcoal—it’d be fair. But if I were Wan Zhi Zhi, I’d try everything to stay and be friends with He Shulan, treating her kindly.”
Jiang Zhen asked, “But if He Shulan doesn’t let you stay, what then?”
Gu Pan sighed. “Then I’d leave and work hard. I’ll make sure I never live worse than her!”
Jiang Zhen nodded approvingly. “Very good.”
…
Gu Hui hadn’t chosen yet, so Jiang Zhen asked him with a smile, “Have you decided?”
He shook his head, concerned. “Auntie, what if no one in the Wan family wants He Shulan to return?”
Jiang Zhen looked at Gu Liancheng in surprise. “Is Gu Hui not liked in your family?”
Gu Liancheng sighed. “It’s New Year, let’s not talk about this.”
Gu Pan piped up: “Dad’s grandfather didn’t like Mom, so he didn’t like me or my brother. Great-grandpa and great-grandma didn’t like Dad, so they didn’t like us either. But it’s fine—I don’t like them either.”
Jiang Zhen ruffled her hair, hugging Gu Pan and Gu Hui. “Poor dears, I like you.”
“Will you always like us?” Gu Hui asked hopefully.
“I will,” Jiang Zhen said. “We’ve agreed—after you four, I won’t like any other children, okay?”
Jiang Zhao, being sensible, added: “Mom, then any children you and Dad have in the future—you’ll like them too, right?”
Jiang Zhen glanced at Gu Liancheng. “Are we going to have kids?”
“Up to you,” Gu Liancheng replied, blushing. He pulled the baked sweet potatoes from the charcoal embers and handed them to the children, giving the largest one to Jiang Zhen.
…
To help He Shulan, Jiang Zhen needed to involve the Wan family. Qingfeng said his wife could handle it, so Jiang Zhen decided to meet him at the ferry to pick her up.
The river had strict ferry rules—after Jiang Zhen and the children had fallen in, only local, trusted boatmen were allowed to operate, and nothing had gone wrong since.
At the ferry, when they arrived, Wan Hongyan asked Qingfeng again: “How do you know about the swap? Are you sure, Qingfeng? This isn’t a joke.”
Qingfeng repeated the agreed-upon account: “It was Comrade Jiang, who traced clues from Du Qiuyi, with Professor Li’s cooperation. There’s no mistake.”
Wan Hongyan, sitting on a stone bench, rubbed her temples. “You know, my sisters are closest to Zhi Zhi. This feels like tearing out their hearts. I wish it were me who was swapped.”
The family’s aunt brought the youngest daughter, Wan Chun Ni, holding her protectively: “Fortunately, it wasn’t Chun Ni. Even if it were, I’d take care of her myself.”
Chun Ni, unaware of the swap’s significance, teased gleefully: “Let the second sister be pleased. She’s not biological—hilarious.”
Wan Hongyan tapped her little sister on the forehead, exasperated: “The house is already in chaos, and you want to make it worse?”
Chun Ni said, “I just want to see my real second sister. I know what it feels like to be favored, so don’t let anyone bully her.”
…
Time was pressing. Qingfeng warned: “It’s snowing today. After her sister passed, Shulan hasn’t been in school. She sells charcoal in thin clothes. I can’t bear to watch. We need to act quickly.”
Wan Hongyan considered: “Better wait until my mother gives birth.”
Qingfeng glanced at Jiang Zhen nervously, afraid she would object. “I’ve already told Dad. Comrade Jiang mentioned it to Mom. We probably can’t wait.”
Wan Hongyan raised her voice: “How dare you act without permission!”
Jiang Zhen realized they weren’t acting like a married couple—more like superior and subordinate. She took charge. “Don’t blame Qingfeng. The swapped child isn’t yours. I’m busy and can’t wait for your mental preparation.”
Wan Hongyan, only strong at home, had to handle things carefully outside. She asked, “Comrade Jiang, any advice on handling our family’s matter?”
Jiang Zhen replied: “You haven’t met Shulan. Any plan you devise now wouldn’t truly help her. Let’s meet her first, then sit down as a family and discuss.”
…