Zhang Guoqing quietly pulled his mother-in-law, and the two of them quietly retreated outside. They remained silent until they reached the kitchen. No one knew what to say, so they just sat there in silence. It had happened so suddenly, without a second thought.

Zhang Guoqing had considered many scenarios, but he hadn't expected such a heartbreaking one. It made sense why Old Man Zhou treated him and his daughter this way. First, they weren't biological children, and second, they were cousins. Yet, he'd been constantly under his cousin's sway, and with his temperament, he must have been envious and jealous. He might even blame Zhou Jinyu for the Zhou family's downfall. Gu Mingzhu must have left behind quite a few things, and seeing his superior cousin pass away, he decided to return to his hometown to live a stable life.

Thinking of his father-in-law, Zhang Guoqing sighed deeply. This was definitely a recognition of his biological father. Fortunately, Zhou Xiaocun was spared. Even if they had raised his father-in-law, the grudge had long been settled. The old lady might really be reluctant to part with this adopted son, but to say that Old Man Zhou was reluctant to do so was pure nonsense.

Lin Lishan sighed and said in a low voice: "Your grandmother is from the Jiangnan Gu family. I knew Gu Mingzhu you mentioned just now. I never thought that my mother-in-law would be Gu Mingzhu."

Zhang Guoqing looked at her curiously, "Mom, then aren't you and my dad cousins? After all these twists and turns, we're family. It really is fate."

"Hey, distant cousin. I wonder how your dad is doing? Should we go check on him?"

"You go in and comfort her later. I'll think about this outside first. This is really a headache. My dad will definitely want to rediscover his ancestral roots. Grandpa can't leave his descendants empty. People also need to know that the Zhou family's main branch still has blood. Let's wait and see what Dad says in a few days."

"Xiaowu, are you in there? Xiaowu, I'm your second brother, come out quickly..." A shouting voice came from outside the door.

Zhou Guoqing quickly stood up and walked out, "Mom, it's my second brother shouting outside. Could something have happened to Jiaojiao?" After saying that, he ran out quickly.

When Lin Lishan heard that something might have happened to Zhou Jiao, she was so scared that she didn't have time to think about anything else and hurriedly followed him out.

Zhang Guoqing didn't have time to reply. He ran to the yard and opened the door. He was stunned. "What's going on? Grandpa, where did you come from? And... everyone, come in first."

Outside the courtyard gate, a sea of ​​elderly, middle-aged, and young people in military uniforms stood out, their faces particularly conspicuous under the light from the courtyard. He saw an elderly couple in the front, each supporting the other, tears glistening in their eyes as they stared intently into the courtyard with anticipation and excitement.

Zhang Guoqing suddenly had an idea and blurted out, "Liu Xizhi?"

Upon hearing this, Mr. Cheng immediately stopped and looked at him. "You are Zhou Xiaozheng's son-in-law. Not bad, you have good judgment. Take us to see your father. Is he there?"

Zhang Guoqing saw his mother-in-law stumbling over and hurriedly shouted, "Mom, Jiaojiao is not in trouble. Slow down, be careful not to fall."

After saying that, he said to Old Cheng and the others who were walking in, "My father just found out about his past. Please take your time and wait for him to recover. He is in the living room with Old Madam Zhou right now."

Seeing them nod, he breathed a sigh of relief and secretly observed them, especially the old lady among them, who should be Liu Xizhi, about the same age as Gu Mingzhu. The couple looked like professors, and their military ranks were not apparent from their casual uniforms, but the fact that Mr. Lin took a half step back in front of him also revealed their status. Especially since he came in, the guards around him were always on alert. What was their purpose in coming here? It was already dark, and it didn't look like they came by train. Moreover, they were accompanied by a military doctor. Seeing that there was nothing unusual in Xiao Zhou's eyes when he looked at him, he finally felt a little relieved.

Zhou Xiao was in the living room when he heard someone calling from outside. It sounded like the second son of the Zhang family. Just as he was about to get up, he saw his son-in-law quickly running to open the door. He listened carefully to see what was going on outside—quite a few people had arrived, and they were soldiers.

He calmed himself down, straightened his clothes, and said to the uneasy old lady, "Mom, don't overthink it. You are my mother after all, and you raised me. Let's not talk too much. There are guests coming. We can talk about these things later."

Seeing that the old lady was fine, Zhou Xiaozheng walked out and saw Mr. Cheng and Mrs. Cheng coming towards him. He raised an eyebrow, and suddenly realized that Mrs. Cheng might be Liu Xizhi, who later changed her name to Liu Qinglian. No wonder he couldn't find her. Given her identity and the industry she had worked in in her early years, he really had no idea what to do.

Old Mrs. Cheng looked at Zhou Xiaozheng in front of her, tears streaming down her face. She pushed aside her husband's supporting hand, rushed forward, hugged him tightly, and cried, her whole body trembling, her fingers tightly clasped around Zhou Xiaozheng's arm.

Zhou Xiaozheng didn't dare to move. He stretched out his hand and patted her gently, "It's okay, we are all fine. Let's go in and sit down and talk slowly." Seeing that the other party had loosened up, he hurriedly supported her to sit on the chair.

Zhang Guoqing looked around and saw there was nothing for him to do. He realized that everyone hadn't eaten yet, and it wouldn't be convenient to discuss business at the restaurant. He pulled his second brother over and asked him to help call his eldest sister, Zhang Meili, to come and cook.

He watched his second brother go out and lead Xiao Zhou and the others to the kitchen. "Brother Zhou, this place is not big. I'm sorry to have you here. I can only bring you to the kitchen. You have to help me take care of the older brothers. Brothers, you are in for a treat today. We just happened to have seafood here. I guess you haven't eaten yet. Let's do it ourselves. Whoever wants to drink should pour it themselves."

Xiao Zhou smiled as he sat down at the table. He pulled Xiao Chen beside him to sit down and called out to the other colleagues, "Hurry up and sit down. There's no need to be polite with Xiao Wu. You'll know his personality in the future. He doesn't like to put on airs. Just treat him as your own brother. Xiao Wu, what are you busy with? Just give him some food and stop fiddling."

Zhang Guoqing carried two bamboo baskets and placed them beside the table, pointing at the conchs and other seafood. "They're all fresh and still alive. The small hut in front is the warehouse, so if you don't have enough, take some yourself. I'll light the fire first, and who among you can clean it up can do it yourself. I can only boil it, so who has better cooking skills?"

A soldier stood up, looked at the bamboo basket, and said with a smile: "It seems that I am the one who should do it, Xiaowu, right? You go and entertain the old man, and we can handle this here. Just don't worry about eating too much."

Zhang Guoqing laughed heartily and said, "Brother, don't underestimate my food. You won't be broke even if you eat whatever you want today. Let's cook some snacks for ourselves first, and then my sister will come over to cook dinner."

After saying that, he went to the warehouse and moved two jars of wine into the kitchen. Seeing that they had already started working, he left and walked towards the living room. Standing not far away outside, and seeing that nothing unexpected happened inside, he left the yard, got in the car and drove quickly to the fat master's place.

Outside the eastern suburbs of the county town, Zhang Guoqing got off the car and walked towards the kitchen in the yard. Fortunately, there were not many guests tonight, so he could order a few more dishes.

"Master Fat, hey, I'm here again. This time I'm here to help someone in need. Could you please prepare some food and wine for me? I want to take it away. There's no other way. When a distinguished guest comes, I can only come to you."

The fat master laughed when he saw Zhang Guoqing. "I'm so glad you're here. Where can I not do business? Can you take it away?"

"You can take it. I can drive back and forth quickly. But you have to use the dishes first. If you need them urgently, I can bring them over tonight."

"What are your food requirements? You have to tell me first."

"Three elderly people, five or six soldiers, the main thing is to be quick. I guess they haven't eaten yet in their haste. How long do you think I have to wait?"

The fat chef took a look at the ingredients and thought for a moment, "I have an idea. You take the wine and cold dishes first. When you come back, I will have almost everything ready. I can start cooking on three stoves at once, it will be very fast."

"Thank you, Master Fatty. You can make the arrangements. I'll listen to you, the expert."