Drama Queen Reborn as a Top Student!

Chapter 1053 - 524: Sample Confusion_2

Shen You’an knew that everything Na Amo had said came from the bottom of her heart.

"Thank you, Professor Na."

"You’re still calling me Professor Na? Call me Aunt Mo."

Shen You’an followed her lead. "Aunt Mo."

Na Amo broke into a smile.

"There’s something I need you to know. A long time ago, about forty years back, when your grandfather was still young, he and the old master and old madam of the Gu family were as close as brothers. People’s hearts were simpler back then. To carry on that friendship, the two families made a marriage agreement. They agreed that if the children they had in future were one boy and one girl, the two would marry. If they were both boys or both girls, then the agreement would pass on to the grandchildren. Forty years have gone by, things have changed and people are gone, but the promise the older generation left behind—the Gu family has never forgotten it. In the past, Yu Ruohuan used this marriage contract to force Bichen to comply. It was my failure in raising Bichen that let him be led around by the nose by Yu Ruohuan all this time. In fact, that marriage contract should fall on you and Bichen."

Na Amo took a sip of tea and, without showing it, sized up the girl sitting opposite her.

She was far too calm.

Shen You’an took out a Jade Pendant and pushed it in front of Na Amo.

"Is this what you mean, Aunt Mo?"

It was an exquisite piece of Mutton Fat Jade, glowing with a soft, warm luster under the light.

This was one of a pair of jade pendants passed down in the Gu family. After the marriage agreement was made, Elder Mrs. Gu had given one piece to Yu Yisen as the token of the engagement. She had thought she would never see this Jade Pendant again in her lifetime, but unexpectedly...

Na Amo exclaimed excitedly, "Yes, this is the jade pendant that was the token of the marriage agreement. The other piece is in my old lady’s hands. How did you...?"

"My grandparents gave it to me." Shen You’an took a calm sip of tea.

Na Amo froze for a moment, then stood up in a rush. "Uncle Yu and Aunt Qiu are still alive?"

Previously at Old Madam Yu’s funeral, Amos had caused a scene, accusing the Yu family of imprisoning the couple. But nothing more came of it afterwards, because the word outside was that the Yu family had indeed imprisoned the couple, and that during their captivity they had been abused and had long since died. Amos had come to seek justice, but he was ultimately a foreign national and had no way to shake the Yu family.

Shen You’an said coldly, "After the Yu family imprisoned my grandparents in Silent Garden on the back hill of Four Seasons Manor, they were subjected to inhuman torment for over twenty years. At the beginning of this year, Amos learned of it and rescued them. The two of them are currently in Siland receiving treatment and recuperation."

Na Amo ground her teeth. "The Yu family is truly vile. All these years and we didn’t hear a single word. Otherwise we could have rescued the two of them earlier and spared them some suffering."

Na Amo’s face was full of guilt and self-reproach.

"The Yu family has committed so many evils; their retribution will come."

Thinking of what had happened to the Yu family recently, Na Amo gave Shen You’an a probing look. "An’an, when did you find out about your background?"

"I had a Jade Pendant passed down from my father. It was from that pendant that I realized something was wrong. Then I followed the clues step by step and confirmed my own origins. Just then, Amos was also investigating my grandmother’s whereabouts, so we hit it off immediately."

Shen You’an made it sound simple, but as Na Amo listened, her heart thudded in fear.

The process definitely wasn’t as simple as she made it sound. It must have been full of thrills and dangers. As a child avenging her elders, she was beyond reproach. Na Amo had neither the standing nor the right to say anything against it.

Besides, An’an was an extraordinarily intelligent person. She knew exactly what she was doing. Looking into those deep, clear eyes, Na Amo was certain this child would not let hatred blind her.

Any lecture at this moment would seem pale and hypocritical.

"Aunt Mo will always support you. If you need anything, you must tell me. Don’t forget, we’re a family."

All she could do was understand and support her.

Na Amo handed the jade pendant back. "Actually, what I wanted to say is, An’an, that marriage contract is just an old-fashioned idea from the previous generation. You don’t need to treat it like a burden. Do whatever you should do; don’t let this engagement affect you. Of course, if fate brings you and Bichen together in future, I’ll certainly be happy. But even more, I want you to be free and unbound, to be with someone you truly like. As time has passed, this Jade Pendant has lost its original meaning. Just keep it as a keepsake."

Holding the smooth, warm jade pendant, Shen You’an looked at the gentle woman in front of her and, for some reason, her nose suddenly stung.

So this was what great maternal love felt like?

Shen You’an couldn’t help but think of her own mother. She could barely remember her anymore, but she knew that if her mother were still alive, she would be the happiest child in the world.

But at the same time, somewhere in this world there was another child, whose rightful happiness had been stolen away.

Shen You’an’s grip on the jade pendant tightened. She lowered her gaze without a trace.

"Aunt Mo, I’ve been reading a paper recently on the heritability of cognitive ability. It mentioned that GWAS—Genome-Wide Association Studies—have identified certain gene clusters associated with higher-order cognitive functions. That made me think of a phenomenon, and I’m not sure if I should bring it up."

As a "seeker of truth" type, Na Amo’s interest was immediately piqued.

"Is that so? Tell me about it. Actually, when I was in university I joined a genetics research team, but later our directions diverged so I left."

She did have experience in genetic research, though that experience was already long in the past.

Shen You’an rubbed the jade pendant between her fingers and said slowly, "I’ve noticed something very interesting. As far as I know, both your and Uncle’s academic achievements and IQ levels are extremely high. As is well known, cognitive ability has a heritability that is medium to above medium. However, I’ve observed that Gu Bichen’s behavioral patterns, cognitive habits, and areas of interest seem to show a significant deviation from what statistics would predict. By contrast, another friend of mine—despite having grown up in a completely different environment—displays thinking traits highly similar to both of you, such as very strong logical reasoning, concentration, and curiosity... This made me think: Bichen’s phenotype doesn’t match the expected genotype. That’s quite an interesting statistical outlier."

Na Amo hadn’t expected Shen You’an to link this to herself and Gu Bichen, but the more she listened, the more solemn her expression became.

The method scientists know best is to propose a hypothesis and then test it. She didn’t feel that Shen You’an’s words were offensive in any way. She was even amazed by An’an’s intelligence and meticulousness.

Shen You’an took a sip of tea, glanced at Na Amo’s expression, and continued to probe, brick by brick.

"Of course, environmental influence is complex and immense, and individual variation always exists. But the magnitude of the difference here makes me wonder whether this might be a special case for studying ’the impact of extreme environmental stress on gene expression.’ Or... whether there might be another, extremely low-probability possibility. For example, that at birth or in early childhood, some kind of... sample mix-up occurred?"

The moment those four words—sample mix-up—appeared, Na Amo’s whole body went rigid. Her expression darkened instantly, her eyes going deep and unreadable as she sank into thought.

The term "sample mix-up" is exceedingly common in biological experiments, but Shen You’an knew it would strike right at the professional nerves of the scientist in front of her.

Once the seed of doubt is planted, it grows like wild grass.