"My Hengzhi, you're blaming me, blaming me for losing you, blaming me for not finding you sooner."
It was all her fault. If she had gone back to him sooner, Hengzhi wouldn't have been lost.
"Old woman, give Hengzhi some time."
Chen Yongjun comforted him.
They had no say in their son's early life, so it's understandable that the elderly couple were distant from him.
Now that their son has returned, the elderly couple will spend the rest of their lives with him and trying to make up for lost time.
These are all debts they owe.
"Grandma Liu and Grandpa Shen, why don't we sit down and talk?"
The two elderly people were very emotional; it would be troublesome if something happened to them.
"I was so happy that I forgot you were still standing."
"Zhang Ma, quickly make three cups of tea."
Liu Sanmei quickly asked them to sit down.
"this."
Ruan Hengzhi wanted to leave.
"Grandma Liu, let's prepare the food first."
Ruan Qiushui was so hungry that she had no strength left.
"Okay, okay, Grandma will go right away."
Liu Sanmei gave Ruan Qiushui a grateful look.
Look, her granddaughter is so thoughtful. She's making an excuse to leave her son behind so he can spend more time with her.
Liu Sanmei went to the kitchen to help Zhang Ma prepare dinner, and Shen Yongjun was not idle either.
She was busy preparing tea and snacks for her son and daughter-in-law, and also giving Ruan Qiushui meaningful glances.
"Ahem, Grandpa Shen, why don't you tell me first how you lost my father?"
Seeing that the old man's eyes were almost twitching from blinking so hard, Ruan Qiushui forced herself to speak.
Judging from the elderly couple's expressions, it didn't seem like the father had been abandoned on purpose. If he had indeed gotten lost, having Shen Yongjun talk about it might ease some of his anxieties.
"That's a long story."
Seeing that Ruan Hengzhi had raised an eyebrow, Shen Yongjun became interested and quickly began to tell the story.
"The story begins forty years ago."
"That October, your mother and I, with you who were not yet two years old, followed the main force to Wuqi Town in northern Shaanxi, successfully completing the Long March. In December of the same year, due to the intensified invasion of North China by the Dwarf Kingdom, I was ordered to go and participate in the support."
"The battlefield is dangerous, and swords and spears have no eyes. I'm entrusting your mother and you to a local family. I'll come back to reunite with you after the war is won."
"But who knew that when your mother took you out, she unexpectedly encountered armed spies. In order to protect your safety, she hid you in a bamboo basket under a thatched shed not far away."
"When your mother lured the spies away and came back to look for you, you were nowhere to be found, only a pool of blood in the bamboo basket remained."
“Your mother refused to believe you were dead. She searched for you for forty years, and to this day, she has never given up looking for you.”
After He Yongjun finished speaking, he sighed.
Losing her son was a lifelong worry for the old woman.
If it weren't for his unwavering belief in finding his son, his wife would have passed away long ago.
Is everything you're saying true?
Did they really search for themselves for forty years?
Ruan Hengzhi doesn't remember much about his childhood.
All he knew was that he had been begging on the streets with his adoptive father since he was a child, constantly moving from place to place to avoid the war.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, his adoptive father passed away. Having lost his family, he resolutely joined the army and participated in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea.
Until the end of the war, he followed his superior to be stationed in Beijing, where he unexpectedly discovered his talent in nuclear bomb making and joined the research institute.
Later, she met He Ruyi, and the two fell in love and had three children.
"My child, I will not lie to you. The person I would never want to lie to in this life is you."
"Your mother and I love you very much. If we could, we would rather die ourselves than lose you."
Shen Yongjun burst into tears, recalling the day he reunited with his wife, when she cried her heart out, telling him that she had lost their son and wanted to commit suicide.
"Grandpa Shen."
Ruan Qiushui felt tears streaming down her cheeks, realizing that she was moved by Shen Yongjun's heartfelt words.
“Hengzhi”.
He Ruyi gripped Ruan Hengzhi's trembling hand, giving him strength.
She didn't know if her husband was willing to forgive his biological parents; she just wanted to tell him that she was by his side.
“I don’t blame you, but I can’t accept you right away.”
Understanding is one thing, but acknowledging and accepting it is another.
The loss of paternal and maternal love over so many years cannot be soothed by a few words.
"Okay, as long as you don't blame us."
Shen Yongjun didn't expect his son to accept them right away. He and his wife had taken the ginseng pills given to them by their granddaughter and were in good health. They had plenty of time to make their son accept them.
"Come on, come on, sit down and eat."
Liu Sanmei helped Zhang Ma bring all the dishes to the table and warmly invited Ruan Hengzhi to sit down.
"Hengzhi, see if there's anything you like to eat? If you don't like any of them, I'll ask Aunt Zhang to make something for you."
Liu Sanmei had long lost the sharp and domineering demeanor she displayed when facing Shen Yongjun. Looking at Ruan Hengzhi beside her, she clenched her hands tightly, her heart filled with trepidation.
"I'm not a picky eater."
I've eaten tree roots and grass roots, what else can't I eat?
"Then try Zhang Ma's pickled fish. It's Zhang Ma's specialty."
"And this salted egg yolk baked shrimp is especially delicious."
Liu Sanmei and Shen Yongjun sat on either side of Ruan Hengzhi, constantly serving him food.
Ruan Qiushui and He Ruyi, who were standing to the side, were happy to have some peace and quiet and were eating their own food.
"That's enough, we can't fit any more."
Ruan Hengzhi rubbed his forehead. The bowl was already full of food, piled high, as if afraid it would fall.
"Then eat quickly, and Mom will give you more after you finish."
Liu Sanmei put down her chopsticks embarrassedly, waiting for her son's evaluation.
"Thank you, it's delicious."
Ruan Hengzhi picked up a piece of meat and put it in his mouth; it tasted really good.
"If it tastes good, then eat more. If you like it, ask Aunt Zhang to make it for you again next time."
Liu Sanmei was overjoyed to see that the dishes Zhang Ma had prepared suited her son's taste.
"Here, have some soup, don't choke."
Shen Yongjun, making his presence known, quickly ladled out a bowl of three-delicacy soup.
If there hadn't been a rush, I would have definitely asked Zhang Ma to get a free-range chicken to stew with cordyceps for my son to nourish him.
“…”
Seeing that the two elderly people treated him like a child, Ruan Hengzhi looked at his wife and daughter, feeling at a loss.
Ruan Qiushui and He Ruyi: I can't see, rice is the most important thing.
"You all eat too, there's no need to take special care of me."
Seeing that his daughter and daughter-in-law ignored his pleas for help, Ruan Hengzhi had no choice but to bite the bullet and put a piece of meat on the plate for the two elders.
"Okay, okay."
Looking at the slices of meat in the bowl, He Yongjun was deeply moved by his son's filial piety.
My son specially put the food on his plate because he was worried he was hungry.
Liu Sanmei, who was standing nearby, was also moved.
She thought her son would hate her and complain about her, but to her surprise, he was willing to serve her food.
Does this mean that their son is starting to accept them?
After dinner, it got dark, and Ruan Hengzhi and He Ruyi had to postpone their plans to prepare a dowry for their daughter until tomorrow.
"We should go back."
Ruan Hengzhi took a sip of tea, feeling somewhat uneasy.
He simply couldn't handle the intense gazes of the two elders.
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