"Why don't you eat beef? It tastes great!" Nanako stuffed a slice of beef into her mouth, chewing happily.
She grew up eating top-grade Kobe beef—its texture and freshness were miles above this simple Cantonese-style boiled beef.But since this was Brother Caoyang's restaurant, even if he served her a plate of mud, she would still praise it.
"I know why. Yiyue told me before."Nanxi took over the conversation. "According to her, when Yiyue's great-grandfather was little, he fell into a pit in the mountains. Right when he was on the verge of death, an old yellow cow passed by. It heard his cries, jumped in, and lifted him out. To repay the cow for saving their ancestor's life, their family made a rule—no one in the lineage is allowed to eat beef."
"So that's why? Fine, then eat something else—but stop staring at my Brother Caoyang!"
Cao Yiyue's cheeks flushed. She quickly looked away and picked up some vegetables… only to glance back at Caoyang again.
Smack!Nanako slapped the table. "Too much!"
Last time she introduced a Chinese tutor to Caoyang, they turned out to be old acquaintances. That teacher even skipped all her classes just to hang out with him! Now she brought three classmates, and two of them were staring at him, too.
Her Brother Caoyang was simply too charming.She decided she needed to hide him away—no one else should see him!
"You're misunderstanding," Cao Yiyue said softly. "I wasn't staring for that reason. He just… looks very much like someone."
"First he looks like Zun Long, now he looks like your great-grandfather. What next—your boyfriend?"
Cao Yiyue ignored Nanako. She looked directly at Caoyang."You're Chinese, right?"
Caoyang nodded and lightly patted Nanako's arm, signaling her not to get upset. Brother's charm is just that overwhelming—get used to it.
"Are you from Hunan?"
That surprised Caoyang. He could understand her guessing he was Chinese—Nanako called him "Brother Caoyang" right in front of everyone—but how did she guess the province?
"That's great! My ancestors are from Hunan too. Our family name is also Cao. I think we might be related."
Caoyang chuckled. "Same surname. That makes us one family if you go back five hundred years."
"No, that's not what I mean."She leaned forward slightly, voice serious. "You look exactly like my great-grandfather. I suspect you might be his descendant—a case of ancestral resemblance."
Caoyang raised an eyebrow.Ah, so she's really working hard to hit on me…
"Have you heard of Cao Ying?"
Caoyang nodded. "Yeah, saw him on TV. That dog of a warlord—ruled Hunan like a tyrant, oppressed the people, and got beaten half-dead by our Liberation Army before fleeing like a rat!"
Cao Yiyue's face instantly darkened.
Caoyang continued, vividly recalling the TV dramas from his childhood."They say that dog warlord had eighteen concubines and popped out a bunch of little warlords—parasites who bled the common people dry. Good thing the Liberation Army came and drove that whole bunch of scum away so the people could finally live in peace."
"When I was a kid playing pretend war games, I always beat the 'Cao Ying' character till he ran for his life!"
He talked on and on, but eventually noticed Cao Yiyue's expression turning pitch-black.
"…Wait. Don't tell me you're related to him?"
Cao Yiyue nodded stiffly. "He was my great-grandfather."
Caoyang rubbed his neck awkwardly. "Ehh… my bad. Didn't know. I was just talking nonsense—don't take it personally."
Cao Yiyue said coldly, "History is written by the victors. I'm not going to argue about it. But you truly look like him. Exactly like him. It's possible you're one of his descendants."
"You're saying I look like Cao Ying?"
"Yes. Not just similar—identical."
"He died decades ago. You can't have seen him."
"I haven't seen him in person, but I've seen photos."
"Oh? Show me."
"I don't have them on me. They're hanging at home in South Lo."
"Then take a picture for me when you have time."
Caoyang said this casually. He didn't take any of it seriously.
But seeing him brush her off, Cao Yiyue leaned forward, earnest:"I'm not joking. You really look like him."
"When my great-grandfather lost the war, my great-grandmother led the troops and families into exile."
"The first and third branches escaped to Taiwan. The fourth and seventh went to South Lo. I'm from the fourth branch."
"We always wanted to return to China and search for the family members who didn't escape, but realistically… given the circumstances back then, those who didn't flee probably didn't survive. So the whole search attempt was abandoned."
"Until today—when I met you. Maybe not everyone died after all."
Caoyang was stunned.
Nanako whispered in his ear, "Brother Caoyang, don't believe her. She's making up stories to trick you."
Nan Da, who'd been silent, finally spoke:"Yiyue doesn't lie. She wouldn't bother deceiving you. The Cao family might have fallen in China, but in South Lo, they still hold considerable influence. If you really are a descendant of Cao Ying, it would only benefit you."
A subtle implication—We're wealthy and powerful. We have no need to scam a restaurant owner like you.
Caoyang laughed. "If you think someone survived, why not send people to look?"
"We did."Cao Yiyue sighed. "My grandfather sent people back more than ten years ago. But too much time had passed, and his memories were hazy. He was young when they fled, and my great-grandmother is long gone. Hunan is huge—where would you even start?"
"The only clue was a village called Cao-Li-Ma Village. But according to the maps, that village no longer exists."
Pfft—!Caoyang spat his tea all over the table.
The others—Nanxi, Nanda, Nanako—also stared strangely at Yiyue.That village name sounded… insulting.
But Caoyang wasn't stunned because the name was odd.He was stunned because Cao-Li-Ma Village was the original name of Langlang Village, his home village.
Back then, the village had three families—Cao, Li, and Ma—hence the name "Cao-Li-Ma Village."Later, the Ma family moved away, so it became "Cao-Li Village."After the incident with Caoyang's father, it was renamed "Langlang Village."
So… am I truly a descendant of Cao Ying?
The thought shook him.
But then he scoffed inwardly.So what if I am? It's been decades. What am I supposed to do—march back and recognize some long-lost clan?
He found it unnecessary.Four generations had passed. Any blood ties were paper-thin.
People who grew up under the same roof—real siblings, real cousins—would still fight each other bloody over利益.
Why the hell would he care about relatives he never met?