After reading the stack of materials Gu Xu prepared, Zhou Shitao finally believed that his own disciple was innocent.

However, Zhou Shitao still had some doubts, really, this kid looked too much like his disciple.

"The day you told me you wanted to go to Dongyang as an exchange student, you were there for more than four months, nearly five months. I didn’t initially support your going; you insisted on it. Counting the time, the appearance of this child is really too much of a coincidence."

"If this child is really yours, don’t hide it from your master. There’s no need to hide this. You and that Gu Family boy are already married now. Even if this child was born out of wedlock, it would be setting things right. Although it’s a bit out of line, it’s back on the right track. You don’t need to mess with things to fool us."

Zhou Shitao suddenly looked at Huo Sining and spoke.

Huo Sining immediately understood what Zhou Shitao meant by these words; her master thought that when she went to Dongyang as an exchange student, she secretly went to give birth to a child?

Huo Sining felt a wave of disbelief, nearly fainting. She didn’t expect that just a five-month exchange program would lead to such a misunderstanding with her master!

"Master, what are you talking about? I really went to Dongyang as an exchange student. If I had been pregnant at that time, I would have been four or five months along, right? At four or five months, it would definitely show, wouldn’t you see it? Besides, when Master Qin got sick later, I even came back once. Did you forget? I also brought back some lost artifacts from the Dongyang National Museum, did you forget about this too?"

Huo Sining felt a bit speechless, she really admired her master’s imagination and ability to jump to conclusions.

Reminded by Huo Sining, Zhou Shitao remembered that when Qin Lianshan suddenly fell seriously ill, Huo Sining indeed returned to the country. That girl was lively at that time, and she also brought back some fresh marine products from Dongyang, definitely not like someone who had given birth or was pregnant.

Realizing his mistake, Zhou Shitao’s face turned red in embarrassment. He looked at Huo Sining awkwardly and coughed a few times uncomfortably.

Ji Kun couldn’t help but chuckle, looking at his master’s eyes with a hint of exasperation. Master, how come you didn’t tell me the little junior sister came back, if I had known, there wouldn’t have been such a misunderstanding!

Zhou Shitao’s eyes carefully scanned the child, who was clinging to Gu Xu’s neck and covering his face with Gu Family’s boy’s saliva, and he finally believed that the couple truly adopted this child out of compassion due to fate.

"Alright then, we made a mistake. Since you’ve decided to adopt this child, you must take good care of her. You haven’t informed the Gu and Huang families yet, have you? If you are sincerely planning to adopt, you should notify both families early. Don’t wait for those idle media to take photos and create baseless stories; you won’t be able to explain it then."

Recalling the times Huo Sining was trapped by the media due to the earthquake and Beast Head events, Zhou Shitao felt a surge of anger, still haunted by the experience, and couldn’t help but remind the two.

"I understand, professor, rest assured, there’s no need for Ningning to worry about this. I’ve already started preparing the follow-up arrangements; it will be resolved within these days without any issues."

Gu Xu nodded, saying.

Zhou Shitao, knowing Gu Xu’s usual steady and methodical ways, wasn’t worried. He looked at Gu Xu, seeing him in a state of distress, and then looked at the severely deformed clothes rack he had dropped on the ground, feeling a bit embarrassed:

"Gu boy, the few hits I gave you were meant to teach you a lesson. Though Huo girl is not my biological granddaughter, I consider her as one. If you bully her and let her clean up your mess, next time I won’t just use a clothes rack!"

Hearing these words, Ji Kun couldn’t help but secretly roll his eyes. His master was too prideful; even after making a mistake and hitting someone, he couldn’t bring himself to apologize. He said so much grandstanding just to cover up his embarrassment.

Huo Sining also wanted to laugh, but seeing her master’s ears turn red, she held it in to avoid embarrassing him further.

Gu Xu, in the posture of a student being taught, sat upright:

"Professor, rest assured, Ningning marrying me is already a blessing I’ve achieved over several lifetimes. I absolutely won’t let her be wronged. If she ever suffers, you tell me what to do, and I, Gu Xu, will comply without hesitation."

Zhou Shitao was satisfied with Gu Xu’s sensibility, nodding repeatedly: "I know a bit about the Gu Family’s traditions. If you speak like this in front of me, I believe you’ll do it. Alright, since you’ve come all this way, Ji Kun and I won’t stay here to bother you. You two have a good time. Huo girl, if there’s anything, let’s discuss it later over dinner."

Knowing her master wanted to discuss the Han Princess Tomb, Huo Sining nodded and said to Zhou Shitao, "Okay, we’ll tidy up here. I’ll call you later when we go out for dinner."

Zhou Shitao pulled Ji Kun out of Huo Sining’s room, and Ji Kun had already booked a suite online on the same floor as Huo Sining’s room. The two picked up their luggage and walked straight to the suite.

Seeing her master and senior brother disappear at the end of the corridor, Huo Sining finally breathed a sigh of relief, closed the door, and turned around, glaring at Gu Xu:

"You scared me to death! Why didn’t you notify me in advance? If I had known you had prepared the adoption procedures, I wouldn’t have been so nervous!"

Gu Xu also felt innocent: "I just thought yesterday that it’s always good to be prepared. I didn’t expect your master to find out so quickly about this matter. I was almost caught off guard. Fortunately, your master called me to Fucheng. Meanwhile, I got a call saying the adoption procedures were completed. I rushed to the airport while waiting for my friend to deliver these documents, more nerve-racking than any high-level task I’ve ever taken."

Seeing Gu Xu still on edge, wiping cold sweat, Huo Sining couldn’t help but chuckle. Looking at the deformed clothes rack Zhou Shitao had thrown on the ground, she felt another wave of anxiety and quickly moved closer to ask:

"Take off your clothes quickly. Let me see if you got hurt? Don’t be fooled by my master’s age; he’s quite strong. He deals with antiques and tools all day, very dexterous, and hitting people really hurts!"