Chapter 116
The moment Ji Ran’s words fell, the entire blood donation station sank into a deathly silence.
Seemingly sensing that the atmosphere was wrong, the doctor in charge of registration looked left and right, then quietly retreated into the blood collection cubicle in the back for the time being.
Father Lin’s expression shifted from initial shock to uncertainty, and then he suddenly turned to look at Mother Lin, who was standing right beside him.
Mother Lin said nothing.
But anyone could tell that the panic and guilt on her face were impossible to hide. One look and it was obvious she had something to hide.
The three Lin brothers were neither blind nor stupid, and the two whose blood types had been directly called into question changed color immediately.
The doubts Lin Chen had already been harboring in his heart gave a heavy jolt the moment he saw his mother’s expression, twisting into a kind of absurd panic.
Lin Mubai, still mindful of the cameras, quickly yet with difficulty forced his expression back under control and frantically questioned the Heartthrob System in his mind: [System! Why didn’t I know about this?!]
[It’s normal that you didn’t know, Host.] the Heartthrob System replied. [This system can only see things that would happen on the original world line, and in the original world line, Host never proposed that the whole family donate blood together, so the abnormal blood type issue was never discovered.]
[Something not happening on the original world line does not mean the established fact itself does not exist.] The system paused, then added, [Host, you were too impatient.]
[So what you mean is that my abnormal blood type is somehow my problem?!] Lin Mubai nearly screamed. [You’re blaming me? Blaming me for suggesting we donate blood?!]
The Heartthrob System fell silent once more, as though it had never spoken at all.
And among the three brothers, Lin Juezhou—the only one whose blood type was “normal”—did not question anyone right away after noticing something wrong with his mother’s expression. Instead, he instinctively turned his gaze toward where Lin Zhiqiao stood, as though trying to seek the truth from him.
At that exact moment, Lin Zhiqiao had just lifted his head from Song Fengshi’s test report after hearing the commotion. His pale-colored eyes were shining with astonishing brightness, and his whole face practically had two giant words written on it—
There’s gossip?!
As if completely unaware that he had just said something earthshaking, Ji Ran added, “Could it be like Cheng Xia and me, where you got switched at birth or something?”
Mother Lin gave a violent start and immediately reacted. “Y-yes… but even if we really were switched back then, Xiao Chen and Mubai are still children we raised with our own hands. They’re not blood-related, but they’re no less than our own, so—”
She looked nervously at Father Lin. In the unfinished words lay both her hope and a trace of pleading.
“So what you mean is that we don’t need to continue with a paternity test, right?” Father Lin picked up where she left off and let out a cold laugh. “Yuxian, if they really were switched at birth, then I’ll definitely find our real child back, don’t you agree?”
The meaning was crystal clear: he was absolutely going through with the paternity test.
Mother Lin broke out in nervous sweat. At the side, Lin Mubai softly cut into the exchange: “Dad, we’re still filming the show. Whatever this is, can’t we wait until filming is over?”
Mother Lin threw him a grateful look and nodded repeatedly. “Yes, husband, this really isn’t the time to talk about this. We—”
Before she could finish, Father Lin interrupted again. “No.” He pulled at the corner of his mouth, his eyes cold. “Qin Yuxian, are you feeling guilty?”
Mother Lin hurriedly denied it. “How could I be! Husband, how can you think that about me?!”
Father Lin stared at her for a long time. His gaze then swept over the three children before finally settling on the camera still filming.
Family shame must not be aired in public.
Even if Qin Yuxian really had done something to betray him, that was still an internal Lin family matter. It concerned the Lin family’s face.
Father Lin closed his eyes, and when he spoke, the words were practically squeezed out through clenched teeth. “Fine. Then we’ll wait until the recording ends—”
“Why wait that long?” Song Fengshi suddenly spoke. “If there’s a chance they were switched, then the earlier you confirm it, the earlier you can publish a missing-person notice.”
Mother Song smiled slightly and kindly added, “Exactly. And since we happen to be filming a show right now, with so many viewers watching, the buzz will spread more easily too, and that’ll make it easier to find someone.”
Father Song also said, “As it happens, the Song Group owns a medical facility. For the sake of our friendship from filming together, the paternity test results can be expedited. I imagine Xiao Shi would even be willing to give you a discount.”
“Completely free.” Song Fengshi looked steadily at the Lin family. “The Song Group also happens to have a public service project for locating missing children, so we can help publish the search notice.”
Under the eyes of the three members of the Song family, Father Lin and Mother Lin immediately broke into cold sweat.
Mother Lin tried to resist, but her voice was as weak as a mosquito’s hum. “Th-this isn’t very appropriate, is it? It would hold everyone up…”
Father Lin interrupted her again. “Good. Then many thanks to President Song.”
He had already seen Song Fengshi’s absolute determination. And between publicly exposing family shame or offending the Song Group, Father Lin decisively chose the former.
If they really had been switched, then fine. If they had not… then the one who had made the mistake was not him, and the one who would be blamed would not be him. At worst, the family would just lose face online.
If giving up a little dignity could win the goodwill of the head of the Song family, then in Father Lin’s eyes this transaction was more than worth it.
That was the Song Group!
Just thinking about it, Father Lin felt it was an incredibly profitable deal.
Mother Lin still wanted to say something, but Father Lin gripped her wrist tightly, and the coldness in his eyes already revealed his determination completely.
Mother Lin’s heart was in complete chaos.
And for some reason, not one of the three Lin brothers spoke at this moment.
Lin Mubai screamed in his mind: [System! What do I do now!!]
The Heartthrob System replied: [I don’t know, Host.]
Lin Mubai screamed again: [Don’t you have some kind of function like a paternity test? Is there any way you can run one for me in advance? Or temporarily alter the paternity test result for me?]
If he absolutely had to choose between being an illegitimate child and being the wrongly switched fake young master, Lin Mubai would much rather be the latter.
The Heartthrob System answered: [There is, but…]
It pulled up an item from the system shop. Lin Mubai had not even had time to feel joy before he saw the price—
The favorability points needed for the item were so absurdly high that even if he stripped away all the favorability sustaining every last remaining buff he had, he still would not be able to afford it.
Terror rose in Lin Mubai’s heart. [System, think of something! We’re bound together now—you have to help me! You must help me!!!]
The Heartthrob System stayed silent for a long time before finally saying softly: [Host, there’s nothing I can do.]
Lin Zhiqiao, of course, had no idea that Lin Mubai was mentally on the verge of collapse.
Although Song Fengshi had offered free paternity testing, it would not happen immediately. They still had to finish the blood donation first before heading over.
But Lin Zhiqiao was already too impatient to wait for the truth.
Before he could even say anything, 888 had already perfectly guessed what he wanted: [I get it. Open blind boxes. Use the designated card!]
Lin Zhiqiao rubbed his hands together like a little gossip-loving raccoon: [Exactly!]
Ever since he had bound with 888, this was the first time he had entered into a true “frontal confrontation” with every member of the Lin family.
He had known from the beginning that the Lin family was not nearly as harmonious as it looked on the surface. Underneath that pretty facade, who knew just how rotten and foul it had really become.
Song Fengshi turned his head slightly and glanced at the person beside him. He sharply caught the excitement in Lin Zhiqiao’s eyes and immediately understood.
And this time, luck was clearly on Lin Zhiqiao’s side. The very first blind box that opened was a direct bombshell—
[The three Lin brothers all have different fathers!!!]
The people around them expertly held their breath and all adopted the posture of fully focused gossip-eaters.
A faint pat sounded somewhere in the room, but no one paid attention to it.
Lin Juezhou crouched down and reached to pick up the disposable paper cup that had fallen to the floor, but the fingers that stretched forward trembled slightly, and a blank, stunned look appeared on his face from sheer shock.
[Since the day Lin Man and Qin Yuxian got married, outsiders always thought the two were respectful toward one another and had a very good marriage, but in reality, both of them had secretly kept quite a few lovers behind each other’s backs.]
[Of the three young masters of the Lin family, both Lin Chen and Lin Mubai are children Qin Yuxian had with other lovers. They look like they’re full brothers from the same parents, but in reality they only share the same mother and have different fathers.]
[Lin Man knows absolutely nothing about this. He has always raised the two of them as though they were his own biological children.]
[I knew the Lin family had gossip, but this Lin family gossip—holy shit, isn’t it way too explosive?!] Lin Zhiqiao sucked in a breath. [Two out of the three children he raised all these years aren’t even his. If Lin Man finds out in a bit… is he going to blow the roof off the medical building or what?]
Song Fengshi was amused by the wild leap of Lin Zhiqiao’s imagination, and the corners of his lips unconsciously rose a little.
The people secretly listening to his thoughts and feasting on the gossip all nodded repeatedly, their eyes on Lin Man now mixed with sympathy.
Lin Juezhou held the paper cup tightly in his hand, his face blank—
No. Impossible!
Lin Zhiqiao had to be lying to him!
His parents’ relationship was so good. He had grown up living with them, and the number of times they had ever fought was vanishingly small. How could it possibly… how could it possibly be as filthy as Lin Zhiqiao was saying?
But when he thought of all the times Lin Zhiqiao had been proven right before, a tiny voice in Lin Juezhou’s heart told him that every word Lin Zhiqiao was saying was true.
Lin Juezhou’s face darkened. He almost wanted to cover his ears, to become just like his parents and brothers—someone who could not hear the inner voice and knew nothing.
But Lin Zhiqiao clearly had no intention of letting him off that easily.
[Holy shit, holy shit! So that wasn’t even the most explosive part!!!]
Lin Zhiqiao took one huge breath, his tone now excited to the limit: [Lin Juezhou! He’s not even Father Lin’s biological son either! He doesn’t even have a blood relationship with Mother Lin!!!]
Lin Juezhou froze.
So he was the one who had been switched?
Being switched at birth was better than being a bastard.
That was how he comforted himself.
But in the very next instant, that “beautiful” fantasy of his was shattered by Lin Zhiqiao.
[Good lord. Not only did Qin Yuxian have children with her lovers, one of Lin Man’s little mistresses also gave birth to a child for him!]
[At the time, Father Lin was crazy in love with that little mistress. By sheer coincidence, the mistress and Qin Yuxian gave birth on the exact same day, so he secretly switched the two babies.]
[The child Qin Yuxian gave birth to was switched over to the mistress, and the Lin family’s second young master, Lin Juezhou… was actually the child born by the mistress!]
Everyone collectively sucked in a cold breath!
But the more quick-witted ones had already caught the “loophole” in Lin Zhiqiao’s words.
If Father Lin’s mistress gave birth to Father Lin’s child, then how could that child have no blood relationship with Father Lin?
And very soon, that question was answered.
[This is too good. Absolutely too good!!]
[Lin Man always thought the child his mistress gave birth to was his own flesh and blood. But in reality… the mistress was involved with another man besides him too, and that child—the Lin family’s second young master Lin Juezhou—is from beginning to end someone else’s child!!!]
Lin Zhiqiao was practically about to laugh out loud. In his heart he clapped and cheered: [Brilliant! Just brilliant! After raising three children all these years, not a single one of them turns out to be his own seed! Lin Man, oh Lin Man, in the world championship for ultimate doormats, you are the uncontested number one!!!]
