100 Xie Yaoyao's Background

Huo Yanxi put his phone back in his pocket and looked down at Grandma Deng's gray hair.

He had visited Granny Deng in the small fishing village before and heard that she was in poor health and had been taken abroad by her son to recuperate.

He sent people to inquire several times, but failed to find out where her son was abroad, so he had to give up.

It now appears that she and Manman have maintained contact.

Huo Yanxi shook his head. "No, she's very busy. I came back first to arrange matters for the seventh anniversary of my grandmother's death."

“You are a filial child. Qin made the right choice in adopting you,” Grandma Deng said.

In recent years, when Huo Yanxi returned to pay respects to his maternal grandmother, the most frequent praise he received was for his filial piety.

In reality, he is not filial at all; he just loves the house because of its inhabitants.

Seeing that she was thin and swaying from side to side in the sea breeze, Huo Yanxi said, "There are chairs over there, let me help you to sit down."

Grandma Deng smiled and nodded, "Okay."

Huo Yanxi bent down slightly and helped Granny Deng to sit down next to the rainbow chair.

Grandma Deng looked in the direction of the boat house and said, "I often think about how Aqin used to live here with you all. It's a pity she left us too early and didn't get to enjoy your blessings."

Huo Yanxi listened to the old man's rambling stories of the past without getting annoyed.

"Grandma, doesn't Grandma have any other relatives?" Huo Yanxi had this question in her mind.

He lived with them for so many years, and while others had relatives visiting during holidays, his family only consisted of the three of them.

Grandma Chi never visited her relatives, and her relatives never came to visit her either.

Upon hearing this, Grandma Deng sighed deeply, "No, the Chi family only consists of the grandmother and granddaughter; we have never met anyone else."

"What about Manman's parents? They've never shown up either?" Huo Yanxi asked again.

Grandma Deng shook her head. "No, actually even your maternal grandmother and Manman appeared out of nowhere in the fishing village."

Huo Yanxi raised an eyebrow slightly, his eyes deep and unfathomable. "What do you mean by appearing out of thin air in a small fishing village?"

"One day, she suddenly appeared in the small fishing village with Manman in her arms, gave the village chief a large sum of money, bought a household registration here, and settled down here."

Huo Yanxi had never heard before that Granny Chi was not a local, but had bought her household registration.

"At the time, we were still guessing that she was probably an escaped from a wealthy family, because the fabric of Bao Manman's swaddling clothes looked very expensive, unlike what ordinary families could afford."

"Later, during holidays, the grandmother and granddaughter never visited relatives or friends, and no relatives came to see them. I even asked Aqin why Manman's parents couldn't see the grandmother and granddaughter."

When Huo Yanxi first heard about this old story, he became increasingly puzzled.

"What did Grandma say?"

A hint of pity appeared in Grandma Deng's eyes. "She just cried and didn't say anything. Later, we stopped asking. But once she invited me to drink, and we both got drunk. She said a lot of things to me, but I didn't remember them all. I did remember a few sentences, though."

"What did she say?" Huo Yanxi pressed.

"She said she was sorry to Manman, that Manman was born to be a young lady but could not return home, and that she would spend the rest of her life in remorse."

Huo Yanxi was in turmoil; Manman's background seemed to have some hidden secrets.

"Grandma, please think back carefully, what else did Grandma say?"

Grandma Deng frowned and tried to recall carefully. A few fragments flashed through her mind, but she couldn't quite grasp the clues.

After a long silence, she shook her head. "I'm getting old, I don't remember anymore. Xiao Huo, Manman has suffered a lot, you have to be good to her."

"I know."

Grandma Deng stood up, leaning on her cane, her figure swaying unsteadily. "You are a good person, and good people will be rewarded."

Huo Yanxi also stood up and followed Granny Deng closely, intending to take her home since she was old.

Grandma Deng walked very slowly, probably because she was old and would say whatever came to mind, jumping from one topic to another.

Huo Yanxi was very patient, responding occasionally, and escorted her to the door of the boathouse before saying goodbye to Granny Deng.

Grandma Deng stood at the door, thought for a long time, and finally remembered something. She said, "That's right, there was a name embroidered on Bao Manman's swaddling clothes. It was embroidered with gold and silver threads. It was quite unique, so I took a second look."

Huo Yanxi's eyes were dark. "What name is embroidered?"

"I think her name is Chi Wanwan."

A thunderous sound rang in Huo Yanxi's ears. He grabbed Granny Deng's arm, his voice trembling slightly, "Are you sure you didn't remember wrong?"

What a coincidence! The name embroidered on the baby's swaddling clothes is exactly the same as that of the eldest daughter of the Chi family.

Unfortunately, not long ago, Mrs. Chi went to a medical appraisal center for a paternity test and found out that Chi Wanwan was not her biological daughter.

Could it be that Manman is the Chi family's biological daughter?

Grandma Deng thought for a moment before nodding vigorously. "Although I'm getting senile, I do remember this. Oh, right, I still have that swaddling cloth. Come with me, I'll go find it for you."

Huo Yanxi followed Granny Deng into the house. The boat house was damp and had a faint smell of water and mildew because it had been uninhabited for a long time.

Grandma Deng turned on the light and went to rummage through the wardrobe.

Seeing that she was having some trouble searching, Huo Yanxi took off his suit jacket and draped it over the bedside. "Mother-in-law, let me look for it."

Grandma Deng was panting heavily from exhaustion, and Huo Yanxi helped her sit down on the edge of the bed.

He bent down and began rummaging through the items, taking them out one by one, while Grandma Deng watched from the side.

“It’s a pink swaddle blanket. When my granddaughter was born, she was in poor health. There was a legend in the village about the ‘hundred-family garment’, which said that wearing the old clothes of a strong child could ward off disasters. When Aqin heard about it, she gave me the swaddle blanket. I’ve kept it ever since, but I don’t know where I put it. You can look for it carefully.”

Huo Yanxi searched very carefully; it was the only old item that could prove Manman's identity.

Of course, the most direct evidence would be a paternity test, but he also wanted to take the old items back with him.

I searched several wardrobes and finally found the blanket at the very bottom of one of them.

The houseboat was damp, and the blankets were covered in mold. Even the three characters "Chi Wanwan" embroidered with gold and silver thread were rotten by the mold and crumbled at the slightest touch.

Grandma Deng said excitedly, "It's this blanket, but unfortunately it's rotten."

Huo Yanxi looked at the swaddled blanket in his hand and shook his head. "It's alright, thank you for keeping these old things, Grandma."

"What a pity, Xiao Huo, will this help us find Manman's biological parents?"

Huo Yanxi nodded, "Yes, don't worry, Manman will return to her biological parents."

Grandma Deng nodded with relief, "That's good. If Aqin is watching over us from heaven, she'll be at peace now."

After leaving the Deng family's house, Huo Yanxi immediately called Pei Yan, "Find a way to get a hair from Madam Chi."

Pei Yan looked completely bewildered. "What do you need Madam Chi's hair for?"

"I may have found her biological daughter."