A White Cloud (GL ABO) - Chapter 73

At night, Tomb Cheng returned home and, as usual, went next door to fetch the cat.

“Meow~”

The Ragdoll cat behaved well, docile yet playful in her arms, much like its owner.

Tomb Cheng let the cat keep Xu Yiyi company on the small balcony while she started cooking.

During a break from simmering soup, she went to her room and pulled Xu Zhu’s letter from the drawer.

The envelope was plain, unremarkable—a simple kraft paper envelope.

The letter itself was written on a random sheet of white paper, torn from somewhere.

Tomb Cheng sat at her desk, thinking for a moment, then unfolded the letter again.

The handwriting looked rushed, slightly crooked.

Tomb Cheng couldn’t guess under what conditions Xu Zhu wrote it or when she secretly sent it.

Back then, her impression of Xu Zhu came only from a few brief mentions by Tomb Hua.

“She was sensible, never cried in front of me, and even comforted me, saying, ‘Mom, I’m fine,’” Tomb Hua had said.

“Little Zhu didn’t want me to worry.

The occasional messages she sent said she was doing well,” she added.

“She said she was learning to paint and made a friend,” Tomb Hua recalled.

Tomb Cheng remembered Tomb Hua’s words before her death, wondering if the friend Xu Zhu mentioned was Pei You.

The letter’s content was brief, just a few dozen words.

[ Dear sister I’ve never met, I’m your mother’s other daughter, Xu Zhu. I don’t know if Mom ever mentioned me. I deeply regret not joining you to mourn her passing years ago. Please forgive my circumstances. I’m writing to ask a favor. Could you take care of my daughter? For Mom’s sake, please, I beg you. ]

Signed Xu Zhu, the name smudged by water.

At first, Tomb Cheng didn’t understand Xu Zhu’s intent.

Was she sending her child to the military, to her?

Only when the police called, informing her of Xu Zhu’s death, did she realize it was a will.

Shen Zhiqing investigated Xu Zhu thoroughly and shared the details with her.

With such a concise will, what could Xu Zhu have lied about?

Tomb Cheng pondered long but found no answer.

Xu Zhu didn’t mention Xu Yiyi’s origins in the letter.

Was that a lie? Not really—Xu Yiyi’s other mother didn’t matter to her.

Shen Zhiqing noticed her distraction, climbed onto her, and smoothed the frown on her brow. “Can I see the letter?” she asked.

Having bared all their doubts and feelings, Tomb Cheng naturally shared this with her.

“Yes,” Tomb Cheng said, handing her the letter.

Shen Zhiqing nestled against her, reading it by the bedside lamp.

Her gaze lingered on Xu Zhu’s mention of being “helpless.”

Shen Zhiqing knew Xu Zhu entered the Qin family as a girl they adopted.

If Xu Zhu had a family, why was she adopted?

“Mu Mu, did Aunt say she lost a daughter?” Shen Zhiqing asked, probing this discrepancy.

Tomb Cheng answered quickly. “Yes, my mom said she was lucky. The day she lost her daughter, she found me abandoned and took me in,” she said.

If Tomb Hua could raise Tomb Cheng, why was Xu Zhu adopted?

Shen Zhiqing frowned, thinking deeply.

What could Xu Zhu hide from Mu Mu, aside from Xu Yiyi’s origins?

Qin Yishui kept Xu Zhu locked indoors, hidden, with contact limited to Qin family members and rare, merciful calls to Tomb Hua.

Xu Zhu’s art teacher, a distant Qin relative, also taught Pei You.

Beyond that, Xu Zhu never attended school, knew few people, and was likely just a toy to a spoiled elite like Qin Yishui.

Elite family?

Shen Zhiqing suddenly realized something.

She looked up, lips pursed, and asked Tomb Cheng, “Mu Mu, have you ever thought about finding your birth parents?”

Tomb Cheng blinked, caught off guard, then answered. “I did before, but my mom said she waited at the park for hours, and no one claimed me. I had a fever, was filthy, and pitiful, so she took me. No one ever came to the orphanage looking,” she said.

“After so many years, maybe they forgot me,” she added.

Tomb Cheng accepted her childhood loss or abandonment as fate.

Why else would no one search for her?

She didn’t dwell on it, but Shen Zhiqing felt an odd unease.

“With pheromone gene tech so advanced, if they wanted to find me, a test would show I’m their child.

But no one ever tested me,” Tomb Cheng said. Though at peace, her tone held faint regret.

The word “pheromone” sparked Shen Zhiqing’s memory.

Tomb Cheng seemed unaware of something.

When she awoke after forced differentiation, the pheromone genetics team had left, and Shen Zhiqing, conflicted, forgot to mention it.

“Mu Mu,” Shen Zhiqing called.

Tomb Cheng lowered her head, waiting patiently.

Shen Zhiqing paused, apologetic.

“Mu Mu, do you remember fainting for two days after your forced differentiation?” she asked.

Tomb Cheng nodded.

Shen Zhiqing took a deep breath and continued.

“When you woke, I only told you our pheromones were highly compatible,” she said.

“I know, and the genetics team gave us a pheromone match report,” Tomb Cheng replied.

Shen Zhiqing nodded.

“Yes, but I forgot to mention—because of our high compatibility, our pheromone data was stored in a separate system,” she said.

Tomb Cheng frowned, sensing what came next.

Shen Zhiqing met her eyes and went on.

“So, if your birth parents tried to find you through pheromone genetics…” she said.

“They couldn’t,” Tomb Cheng finished, stating the outcome.

Their differentiation wasn’t standard.

Tomb Cheng hadn’t fully differentiated when Shen Zhiqing’s unstable pheromones forced it.

Their high compatibility meant their pheromone records followed a special, highly confidential protocol.

The room fell silent, both lost in thought.

Shen Zhiqing felt stifled.

She had lured Mu Mu into forced differentiation, awakened her dormant pheromones with a bite, and marked her pheromones from the start.

Her actions were shameful, reprehensible.

Suddenly, she felt Tomb Cheng’s arms tighten around her.

Tomb Cheng pressed their foreheads together, her bright eyes gazing at her.

“Feeling guilty about me?” she asked.

Shen Zhiqing didn’t answer, but Tomb Cheng saw the guilt in her eyes.

Tomb Cheng sighed inwardly.

She never blamed Shen Zhiqing for the differentiation.

She felt grateful—grateful for their high compatibility, that Shen Zhiqing’s first Alpha was her, that her pheromones bore Shen Zhiqing’s mark.

She kissed Shen Zhiqing’s lips, her eyes sparkling with a radiant smile.

“Then, will you help me find them?” she asked.