The private room lights were turned back on.
"Clap, clap, clap..."
Liangqiu Feiyan led the applause, and siblings cheered for Ji Xinghuo together as the floating cara captured this mont.
Ji Xinghuo cut the cake and shared it with everyone.
The usually quiet Wang Zizhen suddenly asked, "Third brother, if your biological parents wanted to take you back ho, would you agree?"
The room beca quiet.
For foster children to return to their biological families, they would have to give up the relationship with their public family, aning leaving this ho.
Actually, this was a question long buried in their hearts, but no one had asked it before.
Until now.
Yet Ji Xinghuo showed no hesitation and firmly replied, "I wouldn't."
"That's great!"
Liangqiu Feiyan imdiately cheered excitedly. She was the one who least wanted Ji Xinghuo to leave; she would be heartbroken if any sibling departed.
"Really?" Ye Dongyun was also very happy.
"Of course it's true, big sister," Ji Xinghuo said seriously.
He himself had hesitated for a long ti, considering various possibilities, until just a few hours ago, before setting off for the birthday party, he had made his final decision in the apartnt.
Zhong Ming laughed and said, "What if they gave you up back then out of necessity and not voluntarily and now they sincerely want to make ands? If your biological parents were influential figures or listed among the wealthiest magnates, would you still not consider it?"
This scenario was not unheard of, albeit extrely rare.
There had been a case where a foster child, upon finding out that his biological parents were billionaires, did not hesitate to leave his public family and beca a second-generation rich.
"No matter the situation, I would never return," Ji Xinghuo emphatically stated. "We will always be family!"
Zhong Ming nodded vigorously.
Ye Dongyun, Liangqiu Feiyan, and Wang Zizhen all ca over and hugged Ji Xinghuo one by one.
"Third brother, here."
Wang Zizhen pulled out the virtual glasses he was carrying.
Ji Xinghuo sat down on the sofa in the private room and put on the glasses while the others quietly waited beside him.
Ji Xinghuo tapped the fra of the virtual glasses.
"Beep!"
The scene changed before his eyes, connecting to the wireless network, and a login screen appeared in his field of vision. His mind slightly trembled as it connected with the system.
Ji Xinghuo entered his userna and password.
This userna and password were universally used on the internet and tied to his real identity, unique, and anyone in the Asia-Pacific Community Country wanting to access the internet had to have a legitimate identity account. It could be used to directly log into any platform, website, or social dia.
He opened the official website of the Departnt of Civil Affairs, logged in, and imdiately received a prompt that he had an important notification.
The flashing information icon was sowhat dazzling to his eyes.
Ji Xinghuo paused for a few seconds but eventually opened it.
"Citizen Ji Xinghuo, there is a docunt concerning your birth information and custody rights which has reached its decryption date. Please review."
Opening the docunt revealed a list of files.
The first was the birth certificate.
It was Ji Xinghuo's first ti seeing his birth certificate. The date was July 23, 2201, the place was a maternity hospital in Hai Xia City, and his previous na was "Xin Ye."
"Hai Xia City..."
"So, I was born there?" Ji Xinghuo continued reading. The most crucial information on the birth certificate, his parents' nas, were Xia Qingyu for the father and Xin Yimo for the mother, born in 2159 and 2178 respectively.
"A 19-year difference."
Ji Xinghuo instantly had a bad feeling.
Indeed, the birth certificate stated that the couple was not married and that Xin Yimo had an unintended pregnancy and was unmarried at the age of 23.
There was a photo of them together in the file.
Xia Qingyu looked nothing like his 42 years at the ti, resembling a man in his thirties with very handso features, bright eyes, and a confident deanor. Xin Yimo, dressed like a young girl, nestled in his arms, looked beautiful and her eyes filled with admiration for the man beside her.
The two were closely together, a handso man and a beautiful woman, very well-matched.
Looking at the man in the photo who resembled himself by nearly seventy percent, Ji Xinghuo humd with mixed feelings, unable to express the taste of it.
There were also two declarations in the docunt.
They ca separately from the baby's biological parents, both agreeing to voluntarily relinquish the newborn's custody rights to the governnt, including their electronic signatures.
As expected, it was a cliched story.
The man was a powerful Mutant with good looks and most likely very wealthy, adept at making won happy, deceived a beautiful college student who beca completely infatuated, and accidentally created a new life.
And that new life was himself!
"Heh..."
Ji Xinghuo chuckled to himself, not surprised by this outco.
In fact, most foster children had similar stories, either accidental pregnancies or broken marriages, with only a very few being unfit or unwilling to be parents, throwing their child to the governnt and washing their hands of them.
Regardless of the situation, it did not change the nature of being "abandoned."
"This is for the best."
Ji Xinghuo opened the last two files, which were two emails forwarded by the Departnt of Civil Affairs, sent by Xia Qingyu and Xin Yimo.
This indicated they were still alive, at least without any mishaps.
Generally, parents wanting to reclaim their foster children would include contact details in these emails as the first step to reestablishing familial ties.
Of course, if you don't want to reconcile, there's no need to write.
"He even sent an email..." Ji Xinghuo was a bit surprised as he opened Xia Qingyu's letter, only to find it empty, without a single word.
There were no contact details, nor any video content.
Just at the very bottom, there was a pending transaction to be claid, from a trust fund in Chang'an, amounting to ten million Ya Yuan!
Ji Xinghuo widened his eyes, counted again to confirm, and yes, it was ten million.
This kind of fund was truly given upon a single click!
Since it was a gift from biological parents, there were no taxes required, nor any obligations after claiming it, let alone signifying a rebuilt relationship with them.
In short, it was given freely.
Ji Xinghuo was usually calm, but even he couldn't help his heartbeat quickening at this situation.
He checked the additional information on this transfer again, and incredibly, it dated back twelve years, when he was just ten years old.
The intention of Xia Qingyu was clear: he didn't wish to shoulder the responsibilities of a father, but he wasn't entirely abdicating responsibility either. This ten million was his compensation to his child. By accepting this money, it ant they owed nothing to each other, and should not seek him out in the future.
"This man does have so principles."
Ji Xinghuo could guess what kind of person Xia Qingyu was.
Chasing strength, enjoying life along the way on the road of evolutionary advancent, indulging in the pleasures of wealth and desires without refusal, yet never allowing them to interfere with his cultivation, advancing to beco a more powerful mutant.
Escaping troubles as they appear, and if not possible, then running away imdiately.
Latterly feeling guilty, he would do whatever was within his capability to make ands, to soothe his own conscience.
Such mutants were nurous, almost countless.
"Xia Qingyu's strength must be quite formidable, at least an advanced mutant; otherwise, he couldn't have afforded to drop ten million into a fund over a decade ago."
"He must be stronger now."
Ji Xinghuo thought for a mont, and then searched the web for information on Xia Qingyu, but ca up empty.
The Asian Communist Governnt's protection of personal privacy was exceptional; unless one was a public figure or had publicly shared their information online, ordinary people could not access soone else's information.
This required very high-level clearance.
Ji Xinghuo didn't have the clearance, so naturally, he found nothing.
He didn't claim the ten million Ya Yuan imdiately. The transaction had a twenty-year limit, so there was no rush to claim it later. He then opened the email from Xin Yimo, sent last month.
The first thing that caught his eye was a long letter, sprawling over thousands of words.
Ji Xinghuo patiently read through.
She introduced herself in the letter: from Hai Xia City in the southeastern province, currently married with a son and a daughter, managing an entertainnt dia company with her husband. The company was not small, with several hundred employees and a minor reputation in the industry, valued at over ten billion and seeking to go public. Her husband's family had considerable influence in Hai Xia City.
Attached were introductions to the company, dozens of photos of the company, a mansion, and daily life, showcasing her financial strength.
Lastly, there was a video.
Ji Xinghuo hesitated briefly but then decided to open the video. A woman who appeared to be in her thirties ca into view, seated in a luxuriously decorated living room, evidencing from the backdrop that she was in a high-rise building, with the sea visible not far from the window.
She hadn't changed much from the photos in her file, just more elegantly dressed and more mature.
"Xiao Ye, please forgive ..."
Xin Yimo, with a face full of sorrow and regret, narrated the past events to Ji Xinghuo.
She had just graduated from university when she t Xia Qingyu in Chang'an, got tricked by his sweet words, dated for a few months, then unexpectedly beca pregnant. Thus, she considered marrying him and having the baby. However, upon learning about the situation, Xia Qingyu disappeared overnight.
In panic, she could only return ho to give birth, repeatedly attempting to contact Xia Qingyu to no avail during that period.
"I was young then, with no experience in raising children."
"Besides, I was so angry at the ti, nearly going mad. I continuously sought that scumbag Xia Qingyu, hoping that he might regain his conscience and change his mind."
"It was only after you were born that I realized I had no custody certificate."
"While caring for you, I also studied for my certificate amidst chaotic living conditions and poor ntal state. I feared I could not provide you with a good living, so..."
At this point, Xin Yimo's face was filled with imnse regret as she began to cry.
The video cut briefly here.
She regained her composure, showing a joyful expression, and continued, "I rember every one of your birthdays. When you were eighteen, I learned from the governnt that you were doing very well, and it always made happy."
"A few years ago, I began preparing to take you ho. My husband also supports this, promising to treat you as his own child. Your younger siblings are also eager to have an older brother."
"Son, if you co ho, mom will provide the best conditions for you."
"No matter what you want to do, whether becoming a mutant, pursuing higher education, or starting a business, I will support you fully."
"In the future, you can also inherit our family business."
"Xiao Ye, co ho soon!"
After watching the video, Ji Xinghuo found himself not as composed as he had expected; his emotions were turbulent, and it took him a few minutes to calm down.
Xin Yimo's emotions were genuine, and despite possibly exaggerating or misrepresenting the part about Xia Qingyu, she genuinely wanted to nd the mother-son relationship.
However, Ji Xinghuo shook his head internally.
From the content of the letter and the video, he noticed so details; when Xin Yimo ntioned her husband and his family, she did not seem as confident as she described.
At least in this matter, she couldn't make decisions entirely on her own; there were certainly disputes.
The so-called company and ten billion estate might be attractive to others, but to him, they weren't worth the ti and effort to compete over, ultimately resulting in trouble, better to rely on his own efforts.
With the Wanxiang Star Pupil, anything was possible!
After considering for a mont.
Ji Xinghuo looked at the contact information in the email, but ultimately decided to exit. By not initiating contact, Xin Yimo wouldn't be able to find him, not even knowing his current na.
"I won't disturb your family and life then, wish you all the best."
Ji Xinghuo closed the docunt, took off the virtual glasses, and seeing the siblings around him, a smile appeared on his face.
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