Free Web NovelChapter 128: Chapter 130: What If Sonia Quincy Is Their Daughter?
"...Huh?" The question made Sonia Quincy laugh. "Mr. Shaw, Cecilia Quincy and I were switched at birth in the hospital. Since Cecilia is the Quincy family’s biological daughter, that naturally means I’m the biological child of another couple."
"Jackson!" Brianna Bell hit Jackson Shaw’s arm, a reproachful look in her eyes. "Your search for our daughter is driving you crazy. How could you ask Mr. Quincy a question like that?"
"Mr. Quincy, my sincerest apologies. I’m afraid we’ve overstepped."
"It’s alright." Sonia Quincy shook her head, not particularly bothered.
"Dad, what’s wrong?" Mason Shaw walked up behind his father, placing his hands on the man’s broad shoulders and leaning down to look at his grave expression.
Jackson Shaw’s brow was slightly furrowed, his gaze fixed on Sonia Quincy, who was sketching with her head bowed. He didn’t say a word.
"Dad?" Mason gave him a worried look and whispered, "I understand you’re anxious to find our sister, but Mr. Quincy’s biological parents have already been confirmed. She can’t be our sister."
"..." Jackson Shaw silently pulled his gaze away from Sonia Quincy, his deeply lined face veiled with a pall of dejection.
"Hannah," Julia Dawson said, seeing the scene unfold. She quietly reached out and poked Hannah Sutton’s thigh. "Have your in-laws still not found their younger daughter?"
"Sigh..." Hannah Sutton heaved a deep sigh and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Not yet. Ever since Xiao Wan was diagnosed with acute leukemia, they’ve been having people search everywhere for the younger sister. Now Xiao Wan is gone, but there’s still not a single clue."
"But how could they not find her?" Julia Dawson found it very strange. "Since their younger daughter was the one switched at birth, finding Xiao Wan’s biological parents should lead them to her. She has to be with that family."
Hannah Sutton said, "She wasn’t there! Five years ago, Mason tracked down Xiao Wan’s biological parents. There was a little girl with them, but she wasn’t a descendant of the Shaw family."
"She wasn’t?" Julia Dawson narrowed her eyes. "You did a DNA test?"
"Mhm." Hannah Sutton nodded emphatically. "The very first day they met the girl, Mason took a sample of her hair to get a DNA test. The results showed she wasn’t related to Mason’s father."
"Oh my god..." Julia was dumbfounded. "This whole thing... how can it be so strange?"
"So Xiao Wan was the one who was switched, but the child with her biological parents wasn’t the Shaw’s lost daughter? Then where did she go?"
Hannah Sutton gave a bitter smile. "No one knows where she went. They just can’t find her anywhere. The hospital where she was born was a county hospital in Xembria, and there weren’t many other mothers giving birth that day. But over the past few years, Mason and the others have practically turned Xenning upside down and still haven’t found a single trace of her."
"A living person vanished as if into thin air. It’s become a constant heartache for his parents."
"...Weird." The weirdness of the situation left Julia Dawson at a loss for words. She kept shaking her head, repeating, "It’s just so weird, too weird!"
At four in the afternoon, Sonia Quincy successfully landed the major contract with the Shaw family.
Ten minutes after signing, Sonia Quincy received an initial deposit of 800,000 from Mason Shaw.
"Mr. Quincy, your design skills are simply amazing! This ’Everbloom’ set... the more I look at it, the more I love it!" Hannah Sutton exclaimed, looking at the preliminary sketch Sonia had provided, her whole face lit up with adoration.
She made no secret of her admiration and was lavish with her praise. "Mr. Quincy, I’m not kidding. With your talent, you could be a senior jewelry designer, not wasting your potential working online."
Hearing this, Sonia Quincy lowered her gaze to her round, pregnant belly and said with a gentle smile, "In my current condition, I doubt anyone would hire me. Besides, I don’t really like being tied down by companies and rules, so for now, I think being an online designer is quite nice."
"But your designs won’t sell for a high price that way." Hannah Sutton grabbed her hand, her sympathy and admiration entirely genuine. "A design of this quality... the last two designers I hired would have definitely charged over four million for it!"
Sonia Quincy smiled nonchalantly. "Every designer prices their work differently. For me, getting over a million for designing a set like this is more than enough. Besides, you’re responsible for the materials and manufacturing, so this is all pure profit for me."
"Mr. Quincy is a person of integrity," Mason Shaw praised sincerely.
Sonia Quincy replied politely, "You’re too kind."
It was getting late, so after chatting for a few more moments, the Shaw Family left Mina Jennings’s studio.
"Honey, Mr. Quincy is such a good person—so gentle and patient, and her design skills are top-notch. I almost want to help clear her name in Aethelburg."
Closing the car door, Hannah Sutton mused aloud as she buckled her seatbelt.
Mason Shaw responded softly, "That’s all in the past. If you try to clear her name now, you’ll only make people in Aethelburg rehash old stories, which would just cause her more trouble."
"Her life is peaceful now. Let’s just let her continue being a mysterious designer in peace."
"...Alright, then." Hannah was convinced.
"HUMMM—"
The Rolls-Royce gave a low hum, pulling out of the parking space and merging directly onto the main road.
"Jackson, are you still thinking about that?" Brianna Bell asked tentatively, seeing Jackson brooding in silence.
Jackson Shaw didn’t answer her question directly. "This Mr. Quincy, she’s from Xembria, too."
Brianna Bell replied, "But Mr. Quincy’s biological parents have already been identified. She can’t be our Charlotte."
"What if, though?" Jackson Shaw remained stubborn. "She looks so much like me, and she’s also from Xenning. What if... what if she *is* the Charlotte we lost?"
"There are no what-ifs," Brianna said firmly. "When the Quincys sent her back to Xenning, they would have certainly confirmed that couple were her biological parents before doing so. There’s no room for ’what if’."
"..." Jackson Shaw fell silent.
The man, his face etched with the hardships of life, sat dejectedly in his seat, a heartbreaking sight to behold.
"Jackson." Brianna Bell raised a hand and gently patted his shoulder, her voice full of sympathy. "Mr. Quincy has had it hard enough. Let’s not trouble her life further with our speculations. She’s been abandoned by her parents twice. Do you really want to be the third?"
"..." Jackson Shaw was speechless with disappointment.
Brianna Bell leaned over, resting her cheek gently on Jackson Shaw’s arm. "Don’t worry. We’ll find Charlotte. We will."
