"Aunt Yuan, is there anything I can help you with?" Yan Xiaonan asked softly.
Aunt Yuan shook her head and said, "Nan Nan, may I call you Nan Nan?"
Seeing Yan Xiaonan nod, Aunt Yuan slowly said, "You can call me Aunt Jiang or Aunt Yao, but don't call me Aunt Yuan. My surname isn't Yuan."
Yan Xiaonan had some guesses. Could it be that this Aunt Yuan, no, this Jiang Yao, had remembered things and wanted to acknowledge Ye Chenming again? She just didn't know if Ye Chenming could accept his biological mother.
"Aunt Jiang, did you remember something?" Yan Xiaonan asked.
When Jiang Yao heard Yan Xiaonan address her as Aunt Jiang instead of Aunt Yao, she knew that in Yan Xiaonan's heart, she was nothing more than a stranger.
“I’ve recalled some fragments, and some distant memories. My head aches whenever I think about them, but I already know that Chenming is my biological son,” Jiang Yao said calmly.
Yan Xiaonan nodded but didn't reply; she was waiting for Jiang Yao to state her needs.
“I will not go down the mountain, because what I have done makes me unworthy of being a mother, let alone a daughter-in-law of the Ye family. I gave my first life to my parents, and my second life to Grandpa Xue. As for Chenming and his father, I can only let them down.”
Hearing Jiang Yao address Xue Weixing as "Grandpa Xue," Yan Xiaonan felt a little annoyed. She had always called Xue Weixing "Grandpa Xue," but now it seemed like she was on the same generation as Jiang Yao.
However, since Jiang Yao was unwilling to come down the mountain, Yan Xiaonan didn't mind. In Ye Chenming's heart, he didn't have a mother, and Ye Huili had already moved on from this relationship, so there was no need for Jiang Yao to appear again.
"I understand. I will pass on your words to Ye Chenming. As for my father-in-law, he finally managed to get you out of his heart, so I won't add to his wounds."
After saying this, Yan Xiaonan stood up and prepared to leave.
"Nan Nan, can we give this to a few children?"
Jiang Yao held a bankbook in her hand and looked at Yan Xiaonan somewhat awkwardly.
Yan Xiaonan shook her head, turned around and quickly went down the mountain. Since she wouldn't acknowledge her biological son, she shouldn't acknowledge her grandson either, otherwise it would only cause more trouble and be pointless.
Jiang Yao was hurt by Yan Xiaonan's resolute departure. She was the child's biological grandmother, but she couldn't blame Yan Xiaonan; it was all her fault.
Jiang Yao stood in the courtyard, tears streaming down her face, reflecting on the mistakes she had made back then. She was filled with remorse and heartache. If only she hadn't been rescued back then, living would have been too painful.
Xue Weixing shook his head, turned and left. It was hard to imagine that such a weak and timid woman was Ye Ren's daughter-in-law. Ye Huili must have been blind and heartless back then.
Fortunately, her son is a good one, but it also depends on who raised him. If he had been raised by Xiao Yuan from a young age, he probably would have been ruined.
As soon as Yan Xiaonan returned to the eight-courtyard house, she was surrounded by the whole family, especially the three children and Ye Chenming, who all looked thinner.
And then there's Grandma Yan, who's gotten even older, needing her parents' support to walk.
Yan Xiaonan felt a pang of pain in her heart, and a surge of mountain god energy erupted, entering Grandma Yan, Yan Xiaoqiang, Cuihua, the three children, as well as Ye Ren, Fu Qingping, Ye Huili, and Ye Chenming.
Everyone felt as if they had suddenly been warmed by the summer sun in the dead of winter, feeling warm and comfortable all over, and even wanting to lie down and take a nap.
"Nan Nan, why did it take you so long to come back? What happened?" Ye Chenming asked, voicing everyone's concerns.
"My trip up the mountain this time was specially arranged by Grandpa Xue, Xue Weixing. I signed a confidentiality agreement and can't tell you the specifics, but you should find out from other channels in the near future," Yan Xiaonan said succinctly.
Ye Ren's heart skipped a beat, sensing something was wrong. Since an agreement had been signed, Nan Nan definitely couldn't leak any information. It seemed he needed to investigate.
This time, Ye Ren miscalculated. He called his phone repeatedly, but all he could find out was that Yan Xiaonan had gone up the mountain in Xue Weixing's car and stayed there for a week. He couldn't get any other information.
"Huili, you need to be careful during this time. I feel something is wrong, so please be very careful." Ye Ren's thousand words were condensed into this short sentence.
Half a month later, Yan Xiaonan was invited up the mountain again. This time, not only Ye Ren, Ye Huili, and Ye Chenming accompanied her, but Grandma Yan was also invited up as well.
Yan Xiaonan knew that Xue Weixing's time was approaching, and he wanted to see himself and his family one last time, and also to give the Yan family and the Ye family a final look.
Xue Weixing's first request was to see Ye Ren. It's unclear what he said to Ye Ren, but when Ye Ren came out, his face looked extremely grim.
Next up were Grandma Yan and Yan Xiaonan. Xue Weixing held Grandma Yan's hand and thanked her repeatedly for cultivating such an outstanding talent for Xia Kingdom, which made Grandma Yan feel a little uncomfortable. Xiaonan was a reincarnation of a deity, so it had nothing to do with her.
The last two to go in were Ye Huili and Ye Chenming. When they came out, their facial expressions were a little strange. Fortunately, they both knew that they had to be careful in this place.
Ye Chenming drove his family home. Three days later, he received a call from Xue Honggen. Xue Weixing had passed away at the age of ninety-nine, as the day he died was his birthday.
Upon receiving the message, the Ye family had no choice but to drive up the mountain again. This time, Yan Xiaonan wouldn't let Ye Ren and Grandma Yan go, as they were both in their eighties or nineties and it was better for them not to attend such occasions.
The funeral was simple yet solemn. Xue Weixing was all alone, having devoted his heart and soul to the Xia Kingdom. Although he had no children, many people willing to be his juniors came to bid farewell to this hero. Of course, heroes have their own places to go.
After the funeral, everyone went their separate ways and returned home. Ye Chenming's car hadn't arrived home yet when Ye Ren, who was waiting for them to come back, received a call from Xue Honggen.
Hearing Xue Honggen's voice, which sounded like either sadness or shock, Ye Ren sighed helplessly: "Xue Honggen, I'll tell them when they get back. Please help me handle it."
Upon hearing this, Xue Honggen nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. This Xiao Yuan—no, this Jiang Yao—is your daughter-in-law! Why don't you care about her at all?
Ye Ren gave a wry smile. The beginning and end of a relationship are all determined by fate.
When Ye Chenming heard Ye Ren tell him this, he was stunned for a few seconds, and then, nothing more.
Yan Xiaonan was also shocked by Ye Ren's words. This Aunt Yuan, no, Jiang Yao, had actually taken the medicine she had prepared beforehand after Xue Weixing's death and kicked the bucket.
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