Qi Ao's Great Wisdom (Part 1)

The Zhang Family Residence,

Qi Ao sat at the table, stuffing a handful of snacks into his mouth. He stared at his phone with a pensive expression, opening his mouth several times as if to speak, then stopping himself, conflicted for quite a while.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, which then gently opened from the outside.

A servant and the Zhang Family Head stood in the doorway, witnessing this scene.

The Zhang Family Head's expression turned somewhat strange, as if deep in thought.

The servant, not noticing the family head's unusual demeanor, stepped forward and bowed slightly, saying, "Young Master, the Family Head is looking for you."

Qi Ao looked up at the Zhang Family Head, this person who was supposedly his grandfather, but whom he had only met a few times.

At his age, without proper introductions or much time spent together, the Zhang Family Head was not much different from a stranger to him.

Being summoned in the middle of the night made Qi Ao feel a bit scared and nervous.

Noticing the change in his emotions, the Zhang Family Head's stern face softened slightly, "Come chat with Grandpa in the study."

As he spoke, the Zhang Family Head's gaze was drawn to Qi Ao's phone. The lit screen showed a Wechat conversation interface, with the chat partner displayed as...

[Yuan]

Qi Yuan?

The Zhang Family Head's eyes narrowed. Why would the message sent to Qi Yuan have that expression?

Or perhaps...

Was his guess correct?

The Zhang Family Head recalled Qi Ao's nervous behavior earlier, and the seeds of suspicion in his heart were once again watered, taking root and sprouting.

Qi Ao hopped down from the chair, looking up at the Zhang Family Head. By now his neck was sore from craning upwards, but his grandfather still hadn't snapped out of his daze.

He couldn't help but look sympathetic. This must be what Brother Gao called senile dementia?

Brother Gao had said that if Grandpa said anything bad about his brother, it was because his senile dementia was acting up. He should remember what was said and tell his brother.

Qi Ao remembered he had complained about his brother many times, and shrank his neck, not agreeing to do so, but he did remember the term "senile dementia."

Once suspicion arose, the Zhang Family Head thought of all the possibilities and couldn't relax.

He immediately pulled back his wandering thoughts, just in time to meet Qi Ao's sympathetic gaze.

The Zhang Family Head was taken aback for a moment, his expression twisting slightly before quickly returning to normal.

He led Qi Ao by the hand to the study and had someone stand guard outside.

The study was neatly arranged with various items. It was Qi Ao's first time visiting, and he curiously looked around.

Until a wooden sword was held out in front of him - then he couldn't take his eyes off it. Although he wanted it very much, he didn't reach out to take it.

He looked expectantly at the Zhang Family Head, waiting for a kind grandfather to gift him the wooden sword.

"Don't you want to try it?"

The Zhang Family Head's eyes were deep and unfathomable. Could an ordinary child control their desires so well? How had he not noticed so many inconsistencies before...

Since it wasn't explicitly offered as a gift, Qi Ao's face immediately fell.

But when he picked up the wooden sword, he happily swung it around a few times, striking some classic poses from TV dramas, before reluctantly placing it back on the table.

Does he not like it...?

The Zhang Family Head observed Qi Ao's expression and quickly concluded - No, he loves it!

If Qi Ao's previous behavior was within the Zhang Family Head's expectations, his ability to refuse something he liked was truly surprising.

The Zhang Family Head didn't realize this was the result of family influence, and instead his thoughts raced down a strange path.

He recalled the events of the past few days, becoming increasingly certain in his mind.

...

"Family Head."

"You're here. How did that boy perform today?"

The Zhang Family Head removed his reading glasses and massaged his temples. It was break time, perfect for hearing about the younger generation's situation.

"The Young Master had a conflict with other family children during class break. Because the teacher for the next class arrived early, the matter was left unresolved."

"Why did the conflict occur?"

The Zhang Family Head opened his eyes, staring intently at the person before him, his pressure overwhelming.

Was someone trying to sow discord? Or was that boy causing trouble?

The former would be challenging his authority as family head, while the latter would force him to question Qi Ao's value. Potential meant nothing until realized; currently, his greatest value was as a communication link between the Qi and Zhang families. If he didn't take the Zhang family seriously at all, any attempts to win him over would be futile.

"It seems the family children believed the Young Master to be an illegitimate child brought in from outside, so they said some unkind things."

Hearing this, the Zhang Family Head felt a bit uneasy. He remembered now.

For the sake of his daughter-in-law and grandson, they had not been in contact with the Qi family for many years. When inviting Qi Ao for a short stay, they didn't want to make a big fuss about it. Wouldn't that make the Zhang family look like they were currying favor?

So, they had been vague about Qi Ao's specific situation.

But of course, the Zhang Family Head wouldn't admit his own mistake. Instead, he coldly questioned, "Who dares to be so presumptuous! To disrespect someone both I and the elders value highly?!"

When the subordinate reported a few names, the Zhang Family Head fell silent. These were people close to his eldest grandson.

They were standing up for the eldest grandson, so he couldn't really scold them.

"Then what happened?"

"The teacher started class..."

The Zhang Family Head interrupted him, "When did you lose sight of what's important?"

"Yes, sir. Afterwards, they made up and even accepted the Young Master as their leader."

"... Perhaps you should start from the beginning."

The subordinate: ...

"... The teacher was discussing how to explore when encountering a fusion domain, and called on the Young Master. He answered that one should stay put and wait for rescue. The teacher asked if he had been paying attention in class. If encountering a mid to high-level monster that even the Patrol Team couldn't handle, would he just stay in place waiting to die?"

"The Young Master replied that he would call his brother. So, the teacher asked who his brother was."

The Zhang Family Head waved his hand, indicating that was enough. He could guess what happened next without being told.

He had thought that after clearing things up, there wouldn't be any more mishaps. But he didn't expect that a day or two later, a servant would report to him that Qi Ao was planning to steal a family treasure.

"Are you sure about this? If you're making false accusations, you'll lose your job."

"Yes, sir. I overheard it. The Madam kindly asked if he was uncomfortable with anything in his living arrangements, but he used the opportunity to inquire about the location of the forbidden area. After the Madam left, he said he would sneak into the forbidden area that night."

At first, the Zhang Family Head was suspicious of the servant's motives - perhaps his daughter-in-law had bribed her. But the last part sounded exactly like something Qi Ao would do.

He summoned the servant who had been present at the time, along with his subordinate, and asked for clarification on the situation.

Things were indeed much as the servant had described, with the difference being that the daughter-in-law wasn't unaware, but had actively leaked the information.

With his experience, he of course understood this was an open conspiracy. His daughter-in-law thought that by going along with it, she could rest easy, believing he couldn't do anything to her without evidence.

This muddle-headed daughter-in-law thinking herself clever was nothing new.

So he called in his son and berated him, "If you can't even control your wife, what kind of husband are you?"

That night, as the Zhang Family Head was planning to catch Qi Ao sneaking into the forbidden area and use the opportunity to win people over, he was met with an unexpected visitor - his daughter-in-law.

After being "groundlessly" accused by her husband, she didn't even bother with pretenses anymore. She brought in quite a crowd, making the situation uncontrollable.