"Sweetie, it's getting late. Hurry up and take your little sister to find the girl. She must be getting impatient."
Qu Huaiyuan knew that his son had been different from others since he was a child. Judging from his reaction, he must have recognized him.
But he hadn't decided to meet Zhen Wanwan now. Before Guaibao could reveal his identity, Qu Huaiyuan preemptively handed Tianbao to Guaibao.
He gently ruffled his son's hair with a smile: "It's been years since we last met. My son has grown up, and I've gotten old too."
The little girl pursed her lips, her eyes welling up with tears. Uncle Qu was finally back!
Even before he and his sister acknowledged their father, he had already considered Qu Huaiyuan as his father.
Uncle Qu was very good to him and his sister. Even though conditions were not good at that time, Uncle Qu did his best to take care of them and Grandma.
Life is unpredictable. Mother didn't like Uncle Qu, and they found their biological father. Although Uncle Qu was still kind to them, they rarely saw him.
In recent years, he has only received gifts from Uncle Qu during holidays or on his and his sister's birthdays.
At other times, they had almost lost contact with Uncle Qu, and no one knew where he went.
Thinking back to three years ago, my mother didn't come home for three days in a row, and my grandmother and other grandmothers and aunts were not home either.
He guessed that something might have happened, and sure enough, one evening his mother came home dressed in plain clothes.
The weariness and tears on her face made his heart clench. Hearing his mother and Granny Zhang's conversation, he learned that Uncle Qu's mother had passed away!
He remembered that just two months before this, Aunt Qu was still holding him and playing with him; he never expected it to happen so suddenly.
In the days that followed, Mother was always sighing. One day, she suddenly told him and Tianbao that Uncle Qu was leaving and his return date was uncertain.
Sweetie cried a lot then, and they comforted her for a long time. Her mother even said that when Uncle Qu left, she would take them to see him off.
He saw that Tianbao had prepared a gift early on, and although he pretended not to care, he secretly prepared a gift as well.
They waited for their mother to take them to say goodbye to Uncle Qu, but in the end, they could never give him the gift.
Uncle Qu had already left secretly, saying he was afraid the child was too young and would be saddened if he saw it.
The little girl stared silently at the man in front of her. Her uncle was even more handsome than before. He used to look naive and immature, but now he had become more manly.
Hmm... If Father is a charming yet dangerous man, then Uncle is harmless, gentle, and always makes people want to get close to him.
Qu Huaiyuan stared at the little boy in front of him, noticing the frequent fluctuations in his eyes. His heart tightened suddenly; the child was sensitive and probably blamed him in his heart!
He said hesitantly, "My darling?"
The baby emerged from his memories and returned to normal.
He glanced at Qu Huaiyuan, then at Tianbao, who was staring longingly at Uncle Qu with wide eyes.
He didn't know if Tianbao had already recognized Uncle Qu. When she was little, besides her mother, Uncle Qu was the person Tianbao liked the most.
Even her father got jealous about it several times.
He didn't know how long Uncle Qu would stay or what he would be doing here. He figured his uncle had been very busy all these years, and this time he must be back to do something important.
Afraid that her younger sister would cling to Qu Huaiyuan, Guaibao held her little hand tightly.
“Qu…” Qu Huaiyuan put his index finger to his lips and gently shook his head at Guaibao. Guaibao understood; his little sister hadn’t recognized him yet!
The little boy quickly changed his tune, saying, "Uncle, you don't look old at all, you're even more handsome than before. It's getting late, Uncle, would you like to come home with us first?"
Guai Bao looked at Qu Huaiyuan expectantly; he hadn't chatted with Uncle Qu in a long time.
Qu Huaiyuan smiled gently and patted the little boy's head: "No rush. Uncle won't be leaving for the time being. I'll be teaching at Rende Academy. Once I'm settled here, I'll come visit your home."
"Sweetie, when Uncle comes back, can you keep his secret for me?"
Guaibao and Tianbao exchanged a glance. Although they didn't know why their uncle was doing this, they still nodded obediently.
"Okay! I understand, sweetie!"
"Sweetie knows too!"
Sweetie nodded with a smile. She looked so cute that Qu Huaiyuan couldn't resist pinching her chubby little cheeks.
"Hurry up and go back with your brother! If you get back late, your mother will be angry."
Upon hearing this, the two little ones exchanged a guilty glance, hurriedly bid farewell to Qu Huaiyuan, hoping that their mother had not yet returned.
Qu Huaiyuan watched them leave, finding it amusing to see the two little ones running around like that.
"Brother Qu? Long time no see!"
Suddenly, a familiar voice came from behind him, accompanied by the fragrance of flowers that wafted into his nose.
Qu Huaiyuan froze, his hands clenched into fists, regretting not leaving with Guaibao and Tianbao.
He slowly turned around and saw a woman dressed in blue, her thick hair simply pinned behind her head with a hairpin made of fine wood.
Without heavy headdresses, her noble status was still easily discernible, even though she was rather plain.
Qu Huaiyuan only glanced at Zhen Wanwan a few times before he dared not look at her again, for fear of offending her.
"Your Highness! It's been a long time!"
Unlike Qu Huaiyuan, Zhen Wanwan didn't have as many reservations. She looked Qu Huaiyuan up and down.
He was dressed in the light blue robes of a teacher at Rende Academy, his hair half-tied up with the ends hanging naturally down his back, holding several books in his hands, standing there dumbfounded.
Zhen Wanwan couldn't help but compare the way Qu Huaiyuan looked when she first met him with how he looked now, and she felt that he had changed a lot.
He used to be just as refined and gentle as he is now, but he had a frail and delicate appearance, as if he would fall over if the wind blew him down.
He now exudes a vibrant energy, full of life, and coupled with his approachable demeanor, he is the epitome of a young nobleman.
No wonder Miss Xu couldn't forget him before she got married, and even cried several times because of it.
"Brother Qu, I told you before, there's no need to be so polite between us. When did you come back? Where are you staying now? Why don't you come back to see us?"
Qu Huaiyuan pursed his lips, unsure how to answer. After being away for so long, everyone except him had found a home and a place to belong.
He was still all alone, with no idea where he could settle down.
"I...I just got back a few days ago. I'm currently teaching at Rende Academy and living here. I was planning to settle in first before visiting you..."
I never expected to run into you like this!
Zhen Wanwan frowned and asked cautiously, "Did you come back with my husband and the others?"
Qu Huaiyuan nodded and briefly told Zhen Wanwan what had happened.
Zhen Wanwan nodded knowingly. She sighed softly. Ever since Aunt Qu passed away unexpectedly due to illness, Qu Huaiyuan had been depressed.
Later, he left Anqing Prefecture to venture out on his own. She only occasionally heard news about him, but did not know exactly what he was doing.
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