Chapter 163: Lu Qixiao

After the old man returned to his room to sleep, Lu Qi'an summoned the housekeeper.

"Uncle Fu, do you know where the old man has been going lately?"

Uncle Fu did not know why his young master was asking, but he answered truthfully: "The old man has been doing the same as usual—meeting up with other old gentlemen to go fishing or have tea."

"Grandfather just said he had arranged to go fishing with Grandpa Pei these past two days. Did he only make plans with Grandpa Pei?"

"Was it Grandpa Pei? When the old man left, he said he was meeting Grandpa An for tea."

A cold, somber expression settled over Lu Qi'an's face.

The discrepancy in the old man's stories indicated that his recent outings were not for fishing at all, but for something else entirely. He had likely given the housekeeper a casual excuse about tea with Grandpa An, and when questioned just now, he had fabricated a story about fishing with Grandpa Pei.

Lu Qi'an asked again, "Does Grandfather go out often lately? Does he visit the Li family frequently?"

At the mention of this, a trace of a smile appeared on Uncle Fu's face: "He goes out often enough, but at least he hasn't mentioned going to the Li residence."

From the tone of his words, it was clear that Uncle Fu held no love for the Li family. This was perfectly natural; the previous housekeeper of the Lu household—Uncle Fu’s own father—had been brought into the family by Cao Xiuhua when she first married. When the old housekeeper faced issues, Uncle Fu’s father was promoted to the position. Later, when his father’s health declined, Lu Fuling ensured Uncle Fu succeeded him. Because of this history, Uncle Fu knew the secrets of the past and had no fondness for the Li family.

However, Uncle Fu’s words did not bring Lu Qi'an any comfort.

If Madam Li was growing increasingly arrogant, even confronting his grandmother, it meant she felt secure—surely because she had not cut ties with the old man, or perhaps because some other development had bolstered her confidence. If the old man really hadn't been seeing them, Madam Li would have long since lost her patience and stormed the Lu residence.

In the past, when the old man visited the Li family, he never hid it; he would openly tell Uncle Fu his destination. Now that he was being secretive, it meant there was something fishy going on—a guilty conscience, no doubt.

He subsequently had Uncle Fu call everyone working in the Lu household to be questioned, but no one knew where the old man was really going.

"Young Master," the housekeeper suggested, "why don't I try to sound out Assistant Wang when he comes tomorrow to see where the old man has actually been?"

Seeing Lu Qi'an’s persistent questioning, Uncle Fu realized that the old man’s actual whereabouts and his stated plans were completely different.

Lu Qi'an shook his head. "Don't ask. If Assistant Wang realizes you are tracking the old man's movements, it will alert him. I will find another way."

When he received a message from Qin Miaoyu the next morning, Lu Qi'an immediately suspected that the old man’s outings were related to this mysterious "Young Master Li."

He knew all the young men of the Li family. Logically, Uncle Hu should know them too, but since Uncle Hu needed to see a photograph, it meant this person was not a resident of the Li household. He had sent people to investigate the Li family recently, but they had found nothing unusual.

Wait—there was one anomaly: the sudden appearance of Li Qixiao. He seemed connected to the Li family.

When Gu Feng had investigated Li Qixiao, he discovered irregularities in his records, and someone had been helping to cover his tracks. They had wondered who possessed the influence to pull such strings; now, he wondered, could it be his grandfather?

If it were the old man, what could possibly drive him to go to such lengths for Li Qixiao? Was it just for the sake of his old ties with Madam Li? Lu Qi'an felt it couldn't be that simple. The old man had been acting strangely in too many ways recently; every detail suggested he was hiding something significant.

After Qin Miaoyu told Lu Qi'an what she knew, she stopped worrying about it. The Lu family’s affairs had little to do with her. Once, the identity of a "granddaughter-in-law" might have given her a reason to intervene, but now, sharing what she knew was enough.

When they reached the office building, Qin Miaoyu told Uncle Hu that he didn't need to pick her up anymore.

Uncle Hu shook his head. "I can't. The young master told me to look after you."

"Uncle Hu, I will talk to Lu Qi'an about it later. Since the old man gave you a task yesterday, he might call on you again. You won't be able to run back and forth between us."

Qin Miaoyu was right; Uncle Hu had indeed been assigned a task by the old man. Lu Qi'an confirmed through Uncle Hu that the person he was tasked to pick up was indeed Li Qixiao—frequently meeting him at a bar and driving him to the Li residence.

When Uncle Hu picked up Li Qixiao, the man was usually drunk, needing to be helped into the car. But the first time Uncle Hu saw Li Qixiao’s back while he was sober, he was shocked.

"Young Master, when I saw him get out of the car, I almost thought it was you! His back is so similar, and now that I think about it, his face bears some resemblance too!"

Lu Qi'an didn't even frown at this; he had known about the resemblance in their silhouettes for a while.

"Other than picking up Li Qixiao, does the old man have any other tasks for you?"

Uncle Hu shook his head. "No. It’s always just picking him up from the bar. Come to think of it, young master, you are Lu Qi'an, and he is Li Qixiao. If your surnames were the same, people might think you were brothers!"

Lu Qi'an looked at Uncle Hu in disbelief. "Uncle Hu, what did you just say?"

Uncle Hu patted his head. "Young master, I’m just rambling. That Li Qixiao—his demeanor is nothing like a member of the Lu family. How could he be your brother? It’s just a similar name, I’m thinking too much!"

Lu Qi'an did not think Uncle Hu was thinking too much. He hadn't considered this angle before and hadn't paid attention to the name. But now that he thought about it, the brothers and sisters of the Lu family’s collateral branches all shared the character "Qi," and their last character always featured the "roof" radical.

Saying "Li Qixiao" didn't sound striking, but what about "Lu Qixiao"? Lu Qixiao, Lu Qi'an—when placed side by side, the connection became glaringly obvious.

What was the relationship between Li Qixiao and the Lu family? And what was his connection to Madam Li?

Lu Qi'an immediately called his father. "Dad, are you certain the second son of the Li family is not Grandfather's illegitimate child?"

Lu Fuling replied firmly, "I am sure. The birth date of the Li family's second son doesn't align, so it is impossible. Why are you suddenly asking about this?"

Lu Qi'an offered a bitter smile and told him about Li Qixiao.