The whole family sat neatly on the sofa in the living room. We looked at each other, our eyes asking who would speak first.
"I have something to say." After a moment of silence, Shen Zhixian raised his hand weakly.
"Speak." Dong Wushuang said.
"Can I have breakfast first? My stomach is growling with hunger."
Shen Zhixian looked at the various Chinese breakfasts on the coffee table and swallowed silently.
It was a hot day, the soy milk was still steaming, and the aroma of milk and pork tempted my nose.
My eldest brother has returned home, and the family is going to have dinner together.
"Dad, Mom, can't we talk while eating?" Shen Zhixian asked. There was no rule in the family that one should not talk in bed or during meals.
"I think what Lao Si said is right. People are hungry if they don't eat. Let's go to the restaurant to eat."
Dong Wushuang showed his most friendly smile and asked Zhan Xinyue beside him: "Xinyue, what do you like to eat?"
Since we can look up the name of Sheng Tunan and his son, we can certainly look up the name of his daughter-in-law as well.
Here, Shen Min'e also asked his eldest son with a smile: "Tunan, what do you like to eat? You choose first."
"Yes, big brother, big sister-in-law chooses first." Three younger brothers and one younger sister said in unison.
Whenever my parents are at home, they will talk about my eldest brother. On October 5th of every year, our family will cook a large table of delicious dishes and cook a bowl of longevity noodles to celebrate my eldest brother’s birthday.
The younger siblings knew clearly that their eldest brother was 25 years old, and that when he was stolen, the swaddling clothes he was wrapped in had the words "Tunan" embroidered on them, which were sewed stitch by their now deceased grandmother.
Mom and Dad would also talk about the appearance of my eldest brother. As a newborn, his facial features were already deep, much like my grandfather when he was young. His eyes were a light blue, the same color as the second oldest child, Shen Peifeng. Under the light, his eyes seemed to be filled with stars.
Of the five children in the Shen family, the eldest and second child inherited their mother's eye color, while the eyes of the others were pure black or dark gray. The second and third children inherited their mother's shiny white skin color, which could not be tanned even in the sun.
During these twenty odd years, Shen Min'e and Dong Wushuang had never forgotten their eldest son and had always firmly believed that he was still alive. They often talked about him at home, which led their younger brothers and sisters to subconsciously believe that their eldest brother had gone on a long journey and would return home one day for a reunion.
Therefore, although Tian met his eldest brother for the first time, his younger brothers and sisters did not feel strange. In their imagination, their eldest brother was just like Sheng Tunan.
Tall, strong, handsome, and with a strong aura!
"I'd like to have soy milk and fried dough sticks, thank you." Zhan Xinyue said with a smile. She didn't call mom and dad, so the first time she called mom and dad, she must let Sheng Tunan call them.
"I'm fine with anything." Sheng Tunan didn't shout either. After all, at this moment he didn't know how the Shen family confirmed his identity.
It would be so embarrassing if you get it wrong!
"Okay," several people moved to the restaurant. Dong Wushuang handed the soy milk and fried dough sticks to Zhan Xinyue, while Shen Min'e placed dumplings, steamed buns and white rice porridge on Sheng Tunan's table.
Shen Zhixian laid out the cold dishes and everyone started eating.
There were three soldiers at the table, all of them had big appetites, plus one who had just returned from abroad and hadn't eaten Chinese food for a long time. Shen Zhixian had already started to wolf down his food, but this little food was obviously not enough.
"I'll go cook some noodles and snacks." Dong Wushuang said.
"Mom, let me help you." Shen Fuyao also stood up.
In the Snow Flower brand refrigerator were the wontons that the chef had made yesterday, and in the cupboard were dried noodles. Everything was ready, and the mother and daughter worked quickly and cooked the noodles and wontons. They divided them into several bowls of wonton noodles, and topped each bowl with a golden fried egg.
The twins smelled the aroma and went into the kitchen, helping to serve the wonton noodles to the restaurant.
It was hot, and the wonton noodles were too hot to eat. Everyone had already eaten half full and were no longer hungry, so we just started talking.
Shen Min'e began: "Wushuang, I don't mean to hide it from you. We have been disappointed too many times before. I am afraid of being disappointed again, so I decided to investigate first. If I am sure, I will definitely tell you as soon as possible."
Dong Wushuang did not refute. For the past 25 years, the couple has never stopped looking for Sheng Tunan. Every time someone provided clues, they happily rushed over, but no one found their son.
"Dad, when did you start investigating?" Shen Zhiyan asked.
"Tunan Xinyue saved me. When I regained consciousness in the hospital, I called Commander He and asked him to help investigate."
"Tunan, do you still remember? I woke up in the car and saw your eyes were like Lao Er's in a daze. I thought you loved him. You called Pei Feng's name. Then I woke up and heard your name Tunan. Combined with your appearance, I guessed that you were my son."
Later, Commander He sent someone directly to the Changhong Brigade. After a secret visit, he learned that Sheng Tunan was indeed taken back from the Sheng family.
"Tunan, is your swaddling clothes still there?" Shen Min'e asked.
"Yes." Sheng Tunan nodded excitedly.
"The investigators told me that when your Grandpa Sheng brought you home, many people saw it. A sharp-eyed teacher saw the two characters Tu Nan and thought they had a good meaning, so he suggested that Grandpa Sheng name you Tu Nan."
"Tunan, Mom, Dad, and your brothers and sisters have finally brought you home."
Shen Min'e stood up suddenly and hugged her eldest son who had been lost and found again, tears already flowing uncontrollably.
Crying is easily contagious, and for a moment, everyone was crying for joy.
Zhan Xinyue also began to wipe away her tears secretly. In her previous life, she did not marry Sheng Tunan, Sheng Tunan did not leave the army, and did not save Shen Min'e.
In his previous life, Shen Min'e was shot by a traitor's hired mercenary. He never knew of Sheng Tunan's existence until his death. Therefore, Sheng Tunan missed the first chance to find his biological parents.
"Tunan, this is your lover Xinyue. She is so beautiful."
The family cried for a while. Dong Wushuang wanted to be a good mother-in-law, so she kept an eye on her beautiful daughter-in-law, fearing that she would feel uncomfortable.
"Oh my." Sheng Tunan looked at Dong Wushuang, whose facial features were three or four points similar to his own. He opened and closed his lips several times, and finally shouted, "Mom, Xinyue is my love."
Dong Wushuang was so surprised that he couldn't believe his ears. His blue eyes widened. It took him a long time to react. He happily responded loudly: "Hey!"
"Xinyue, wait a moment." Dong Wushuang ran to the bedroom excitedly and started looking for cash.
Shen Min'e looked at his wife's cheerful back, lowered his head and pushed his glasses.
The moment Shen Min'e lowered his head, Zhan Xinyue keenly noticed the restrained grievance in his eyes.
How can I not feel wronged?!
Obviously Shen Min'e saw the eldest son first, why did Sheng Tunan call her mother first?!
Academician Shen felt wronged, but he didn't say anything.
Zhan Xinyue touched her lover's hand and gave him a look.
Sheng Tunan immediately understood what his wife meant and shouted to Shen Min'e: "Dad!"