Even when he heard last year that his daughter had pulled off Prince Kaiyang’s belt in the street, Grand Commander Luo hadn’t felt his heart racing out of control like it was now.

That secret buried deep in his heart was enough to make one’s heart tremble.

Looking at Luo Sheng’s casual smile, Grand Commander Luo calmed himself and said with a stern face, “Sheng’er, don’t speak such nonsense.”

Luo Sheng looked utterly surprised. “Father, don’t you find it strange? The former Prince Zhennan only had one young son, yet the new Prince Zhennan bears a facial resemblance to Si Nan. If Si Nan had no connection whatsoever to Prince Zhennan’s manor, that would be one thing—we could call it coincidence. But Si Nan’s family were once servants of Prince Zhennan’s manor, which I’m afraid cannot be dismissed as mere coincidence…”

Grand Commander Luo felt his mood grow heavy.

When his daughter became sharp-witted, the pressure was immense.

Luo Sheng leaned closer. “Father, what if they made a mistake? What if the new Prince Zhennan is actually Si Nan’s brother, and the true orphan of the former Prince Zhennan is someone else entirely—”

“Sheng’er!” Grand Commander Luo cut off Luo Sheng’s words.

Luo Sheng looked at Grand Commander Luo with an aggrieved expression.

Grand Commander Luo softened his face and cleared his throat. “Sheng’er, you cannot speak such words carelessly. The new Prince Zhennan was appointed by His Majesty himself.”

Luo Sheng pressed her lips together. “What I say to Father won’t reach His Majesty’s ears.”

Grand Commander Luo thought about it and realized she was right. His stern expression softened further as he spoke with earnest concern, “Even so, you shouldn’t ponder such matters. Prince Zhennan’s manor’s affairs have nothing to do with our family.”

Luo Sheng laughed lightly. “Your daughter merely noticed the new Prince Zhennan’s resemblance to Si Nan and was curious enough to discuss it. Of course Prince Zhennan’s manor’s affairs have nothing to do with our family.”

At this point, she looked at Grand Commander Luo suspiciously. “But Father, why are you so nervous?”

Grand Commander Luo gave a dry laugh. “How could your father be nervous? You girl just love to cause trouble.”

What had he been trying to change the subject from just now?

Forget it, better to change back.

Grand Commander Luo was just feeling troubled when he heard Luo Sheng say, “What if others also notice that the new Prince Zhennan resembles your daughter’s deceased male companion—would they let their imaginations run wild?”

“Si Nan entered the manor several years ago. Apart from our family members, only some people from the Jinlin Guard saw him. Outsiders probably won’t notice this. Sheng’er, don’t think too much about it.” As Grand Commander Luo said this, he resolved to have a stern talk with certain people.

Hearing these words, Luo Sheng secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Although no one wanted to switch the identities of the real and fake Bao’er more than she did, now was not the time.

The reason Emperor Yong’an had returned the princely title to Prince Zhennan’s manor was because the world knew the orphan of Prince Zhennan was still alive, and after Prince Zhennan’s manor was exonerated, returning the title was naturally justified. But if someone made an issue of the new Prince Zhennan’s questionable identity, it would likely play right into Emperor Yong’an’s hands. At that time, he could justifiably reclaim the title, and moreover, could prosecute the new Prince Zhennan for impersonating the former Prince Zhennan’s bloodline, eliminating future troubles.

Before Luo Chen’s identity became public knowledge, she needed to do everything possible to ensure that young man’s identity remained secure.

The one who could actually accomplish this wasn’t her, but Grand Commander Luo.

Just as Grand Commander Luo had said moments ago, Si Nan had entered the Grand Commander’s Manor several years ago, and almost everyone who had seen him had some connection to Grand Commander Luo.

And this was precisely Luo Sheng’s purpose in coming to Grand Commander Luo’s study.

“Understood. I’m going to play with my younger brother.” Luo Sheng responded casually and withdrew from the study.

Outside, the cold wind swept in. The banana leaves by the window had already withered, while winter plum blossoms in the corner were quietly blooming.

Luo Sheng glanced back and sighed softly.

If Luo Chen’s identity were made public, Grand Commander Luo’s act of preserving Prince Zhennan’s manor’s bloodline all those years ago could not be concealed, which would undoubtedly be a catastrophic disaster for the Luo manor. And how to prove Luo Chen’s true identity was also a difficult problem.

The road ahead was long and still strewn with thorns.

Luo Sheng went directly to Luo Chen’s quarters.

Luo Chen was resting. Hearing the young servant report that his elder sister had arrived, he rose from the bed. “Show her in.”

Why wasn’t Luo Sheng at the tavern at this hour?

He had also wanted to go to the tavern, but seeing Luo Sheng staring stupidly at the new Prince Zhennan felt embarrassing. In a fit of anger, he drank two cups of wine and then felt a bit dizzy.

Luo Chen waited with a stern face for Luo Sheng to enter, not taking the initiative to speak.

“Am I disturbing your rest?” Luo Sheng walked over. Though she said this, there wasn’t the slightest hint of embarrassment on her face.

Luo Chen twitched the corner of his mouth. “Did elder sister come for something?”

Luo Sheng sat down with a cheerful smile. “Nothing in particular. I just thought since you were home, I’d come find you to play.”

Luo Chen suppressed the upward curve of his lips and said reservedly, “We’re not children anymore. What’s there to play?”

Luo Sheng smiled with curved lips. “Little brother grew up in Jinsha since childhood. I really don’t know what you played with when you were small. Did you play in the mud with the cousins?”

Luo Chen fell silent.

How did Luo Sheng come up with such a childish topic?

But since Luo Sheng was so interested in his childhood, she must be showing concern for him.

The young man answered with a furrowed brow, “I watched the cousins climb trees to steal bird eggs, go down to the river to catch fish…”

Luo Sheng listened patiently, interjecting a comment from time to time. The siblings gradually opened up in conversation.

“Has little brother ever played with a pellet drum?” Luo Sheng seemed to ask casually.

“Of course I have.”

“What was it like?”

Luo Chen looked at Luo Sheng with the gaze one gives an idiot. “Children stop playing with pellet drums after age two. How would I remember?”

Was there something special about pellet drums?

“Weren’t any of little brother’s childhood toys preserved?”

Luo Chen looked deeply at Luo Sheng for a moment and shook his head. “No.”

Hearing this answer, Luo Sheng couldn’t say she was particularly disappointed. She chatted casually for a while longer before standing to leave.

She hadn’t been certain whether that half Vermilion Bird Token was in Luo Chen’s possession. Today’s mention of the pellet drum to Luo Chen was merely a test.

Testing might yield a pleasant surprise, but even if it didn’t, there was no loss.

After Luo Sheng left, Luo Chen thought for a moment and instructed a young servant to fetch a sandalwood box from the small storeroom.

Shortly after, Fu Song came carrying a wooden box and, at Luo Chen’s indication, placed it on the desk.

Luo Chen personally opened the wooden box. Inside were children’s playthings piled up: a kite with broken string, a faded clay whistle, a cracked diabolo…

Looking at these small toys, Luo Chen’s first thought was that he had actually played with these things?

Then he reached in and moved aside the items piled on top.

At the bottom of the box lay a slender pellet drum. The drum face was apricot yellow, and the red cords on either side were strung with large, perfectly round pearls serving as the drum beaters.

He didn’t remember whether he had played with this pellet drum, but he knew that among the sandalwood box containing his childhood playthings was such an item.

He had lied to Luo Sheng.

Based on his understanding of Luo Sheng, if he had said yes, she would definitely have asked for it without any courtesy.

He wanted to first examine what was unusual about this pellet drum that would make Luo Sheng specifically mention it.

After staring at the pellet drum lying at the bottom of the box for a long while, Luo Chen reached out and took it out to examine it carefully.

The young man gently turned the drum handle, and the pearls at the ends of the cords struck the drum face, producing a thumping sound.