Chu Beiying placed her hand on Nangong Kunpeng’s wrist and carefully took his pulse, her face growing more and more worried.
“Yingying, what’s wrong? Does Daddy have some health problem?” Nangong Kunpeng asked, seeing his daughter’s troubled expression.
“You’ve been poisoned.” Chu Beiying looked at the middle-aged man with slightly graying temples and felt a pang of distress.
Only after returning to the Nangong family did she learn how this man had struggled over the years.
“Daddy suspected it, so I asked you to come back to the country and to the Nangong family. That’s why I just handed over the Nangong family to you in front of everyone – I’m afraid that if one day I suddenly die, you’ll be left helpless and bullied, devoured until there’s nothing left. Your eldest brother has been taken away and disappeared; we don’t know if he’s dead or alive. Your second and third brothers died young and tragically, leaving only you, a girl. Can you imagine how difficult it would be for you? Daddy didn’t want to drag you into the Nangong family’s vortex, but to ensure your survival, I had no choice but to bring you back. I hope you can forgive Daddy, and don’t blame me for dragging you into this treacherous household.”
Nangong Kunpeng clutched his daughter’s hand, his voice filled with anguish.
“I don’t blame you. Don’t worry, as long as I’m here, you won’t die.” Chu Beiying excelled in medical skills, and her master and mentor had taught her extensively about various pathologies and toxicologies.
She had spent years running through the mountains with her master, catching poisonous insects and snakes for research.
So the poison in Nangong Kunpeng’s system was no match for Chu Beiying.
“Seeing you become so successful and able to protect yourself now makes Daddy very happy. I’ve lived a long life, so even if you can’t save me, I have no regrets.” Nangong Kunpeng looked at his daughter with affection.
But deep down, he still had regrets. In his lifetime, he probably wouldn’t be able to see his lost eldest son and sister again, and he felt that he had failed his deceased wife and parents.
“Daddy, what are you talking about? I told you, you won’t die, so there’s nothing to worry about.” Chu Beiying didn’t know why, but after hearing Nangong Kunpeng say such things, the word “Daddy” slipped out effortlessly.
Nangong Kunpeng’s eyes instantly reddened. His daughter, who hadn’t called him “Daddy” since her return, finally did so. Even if he were to die now, he would have no regrets.
“Pingzhi, our daughter called me Daddy. Did you hear that?” Nangong Kunpeng looked at the distant sky, silently speaking in his heart.
Back then, his wife got truly sick after being deeply hurt, and later, when she discovered she was pregnant again, Nangong Kunpeng sent her away out of fear for her safety. This was how their wife and child were saved, though regrets remained. Due to her past heartbreak, his wife’s health suffered fundamentally, and after their daughter was born, her health deteriorated. She died when their daughter was only one year old.
Upon hearing the news, Nangong Kunpeng rushed over just in time to see her one last time. After arranging for their daughter’s care, he brought his wife’s body back to the Nangong family for burial.
He and his wife had always had a good relationship, so after her death, he didn’t remarry. Instead, to keep people’s suspicions at bay, he took in Jiabao and Jiahui and raised them by his side, simply to confuse others.
In the end, his efforts were not in vain. He and Pingzhi’s daughter grew up safe and sound, without meeting an untimely demise.
Nangong Kunpeng kept his word. He fulfilled the promise he made to his wife, though he genuinely had no idea where his missing eldest son was. Over the years, the people he secretly dispatched to look for him always reported the same message, containing just one sentence: there was no trace of the eldest young master.