When he returned home and saw his wife looking at him expectantly, he chuckled, "It's our sister and brother-in-law's son. It's absolutely true. We have all the evidence and witnesses. Zhou Xiao is the son of Zhou Jinyu and Gu Mingzhu. My dear, we have found the child. I am finally not afraid of being ashamed to see Brother Jinyu like you." After saying this, Old Cheng wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes.
Seeing his wife grinning excitedly with tears in her eyes, he quickly said, "Don't worry, don't get excited. We're going to the Northeast right away to settle accounts with that bastard from Old Zhou's family. You take all of my sister and brother-in-law's things, don't leave anything behind. We're going to the Northeast on a military plane tonight. Hurry, we'll see the child tonight. Wear something warm, and we'll leave as soon as the doctor comes."
"Haha, that's great. I said Zhou Xiaozheng must be that child, he must be our nephew. I have packed my things a long time ago, and I am waiting for you to take me to find the child. Father of the child, we will go after you make all the arrangements." Old Mrs. Cheng's face flushed with excitement. She wiped her tears happily and ran to the bedroom in a hurry.
Old Cheng watched his wife happily busy herself, and quickly found the nanny, "You don't have to prepare meals for the two of us tonight. When the children come back, tell them that we found his cousin Zhou Xiaozheng, and we're rushing over there tonight. We can talk to you when we get back if you have anything." After saying that, he thought about it and decided to tell Old Lin, otherwise he would be angry.
Old Master Cheng turned and walked out of the kitchen, then found Xiao Chen. "Xiao Chen, go to the Lin family and see if Old Man Lin is back. If he is, ask him to come over. It's urgent."
After a while, Old Mrs. Cheng came out with two suitcases. "Let's go. Everything is inside." After that, she walked out quickly with high energy. It was hard to tell that she was lying in the hospital bed a few days ago.
Old Cheng followed his wife out of the house. Before they left the yard, they saw Old Man Lin about to come in. "Don't come in, we all have to hurry to the Northeast. To catch up with the military, I'll make it short. Your son-in-law, Zhou Xiaozheng, is my wife's nephew. We've been looking for him for over forty years. Now we have to rush over to settle accounts with Old Man Zhou and the child as well."
"Who? Who are you talking about? Zhou Xiaozheng is your nephew, are you kidding me?" Old Master Lin looked at his old friend in disbelief. Seeing them getting ready to get in the car, he hurriedly pulled his old friend along.
Old Cheng looked at him and said patiently, "Remember what I said about the youngest son of the eldest house of the Zhou family having a photographic memory and the Jiangnan Gu family? The youngest son of the eldest house, Zhou Jinyu, and Gu Mingzhu of the Gu family were not dead at that time. My wife is Gu Mingzhu's sister, the adopted goddaughter of the Gu family, and also Gu Mingzhu's distant cousin. Zhou Jinyu and Gu Mingzhu left behind a son, and we have never found him. You said that Zhou Xiaozheng is from the Zhou family in Beijing, and Jiaojiao has a photographic memory. I feel something is wrong. I have been busy investigating these days, and there is evidence and witnesses that have confirmed that Zhou Xiaozheng is the child. Zhou Jiao inherited her grandfather's photographic memory. We will talk about the details when we come back. Don't stop me, we are in a hurry." After that, he squeezed into the car.
Old Master Lin was stunned by what he heard. When he came to his senses, the car had already left. He stamped his feet and yelled for Xiao Zhou to drive over quickly. When Xiao Zhou arrived, he remembered that he hadn't told his wife yet, so he called out to the nanny at the door, "When my wife comes back, tell her that I accompanied Old Cheng and his wife on a military mission to the Northeast to visit his nephew Zhou Xiaozheng. Tell her to ask the Cheng family for details."
Before the nanny could react, the car had already driven away. She was afraid that she had said something wrong, so she kept muttering to herself, but as she kept muttering, she felt that something was wrong.
Old Mrs. Lin went to the service center to get her hair cut, and then she slowly walked into the yard carrying the fish she bought. Seeing the nanny spinning in circles on the ground, she walked over to take a look out of curiosity.
When her aunt saw her, she said happily, "Luckily you're back, otherwise I would have forgotten. The old man told him to follow Old Cheng and his wife on a military plane to the Northeast to find his nephew Zhou Xiaozheng. He told you to find the Cheng family if you don't know."
Old Mrs. Lin frowned, "Are you talking about my nephew Zhou Xiaozheng?"
Auntie nodded quickly, "Yes, he said he was following Old Cheng to look for his nephew Zhou Xiaozheng. He didn't even come through the gate, and just drove away after saying that."
Mrs. Lin nodded and went straight into the bedroom with the fish in her hand. The aunt behind her stared at her with wide eyes as she carried the fish in and closed the door. After a while, she went back to the kitchen with a tut-tut sound.
On the lawn of the military district airport, in addition to Cheng Sijin, the old couple of the Cheng family, and Mr. Lin who rushed over after receiving the news, there was also a personal doctor and two service soldiers, Xiao Zhou and Xiao Chen.
Old Master Cheng sighed and said, "Boss, you really don't need to go. It's not like the three of us old guys are going there to fight. Look, the doctor is following you."
"I didn't say I was going to fight. I went to find Zhou Xiaozheng. Isn't he my cousin? I just asked him to entertain me. He didn't even come to see my little friend when he came back and slipped back to the Northeast. I finally caught him. I also have to go see my niece and my great-nephew. We finally have a girl in our family. Haha, Dad, you are the elder. Did you and Mom prepare more? Don't go empty-handed."
Old Mrs. Cheng smiled as she watched her usually calm eldest son showing off. "I really didn't bring anything this time. I'll wait for next time. This time, I'll go and recognize the people first, and then I'll recognize their ancestors. And I'll take them back to the old house, which is his. I have all the documents from your aunt's donation. This is the best gift."
Cheng Sijin frowned, "Aunt donated everything, so the things in your hand should be left to my niece. Girls like jewelry. What grandma gave you is just right to be passed on to Jiaojiao. There are no girls in our family. Look at what girls use, and when you pick it up, you can say that it was given by grandma." The grandma he mentioned is Gu Mingzhu's mother. As for her biological mother, she remarried and abandoned her child who was less than a month old. So she has nothing to do with her mother or the Cheng family.
Old Mrs. Cheng sighed, "It's useless. If it was your aunt's granddaughter, she wouldn't accept him. Look, your Uncle Lin even nodded and smiled. The child is just like them. Even if he hasn't seen it, the genes are inherited. He has a good temperament and is content with his wealth. Your aunt hid her identity because she was afraid that the Gu family would be rich and cause trouble. She even hid your cousin's birth, otherwise I wouldn't have had to look for him for so many years. Later, she donated everything for your cousin's safety, but unfortunately she still didn't get her son back. If she hadn't blocked a wooden barrier for me, she wouldn't have died with regrets, and she wouldn't have died without getting her child back."
"Mom, don't be sad. The three of us will respect our cousin as our eldest brother. From now on, we will be four siblings. Didn't you tell us when we were little that we still had an older brother? Now that he's home, you should be happy. I just called Siyu and Ruzhu, and we've agreed that when our eldest brother comes back, we'll take the children to pick him up."
Old Mrs. Cheng grabbed his hand and said happily, "Okay, you're right to think so. Putting aside the fact that your grandmother saved Mom's life once, and your aunt saved it once, and that Mom owes your cousin a life, let's just say that the friendship between the three families' elders must be maintained for generations. Do you still remember the three-family tradition your grandfather talked about?"
Cheng Sijin nodded, holding the old lady's hands and intentionally tightening his grip. Some things were hard to say in front of outsiders. He knew more than her mother. As the eldest son and grandson, he knew more than anyone except his father. Old Lady Cheng patted his hands, indicating that she understood. The two were filled with excitement and anticipation for meeting Zhou Xiaozheng.
During the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, the eldest sons of three families attended Jiangnan Academy. Their shared personalities led them to become brothers. They pledged mutual support and support, ensuring a lasting bond between the eldest sons and their grandsons. Years later, the three ancestors formed a family: the Zhou family served as officials in Beijing, maintaining connections in the government; the Gu family built wealth in Jiangnan through commerce; and the Cheng family, cultivating talent through private schools, fostered a culture of literature. For over three hundred years, the three families remained united, never once engaging in foul play.
As the Qing Dynasty declined and circumstances worsened, the Zhou family withdrew from officialdom, the Gu family began to retreat, and the Cheng family remained alone in their ancestral academy, all three families rising and falling together. Outsiders were unaware of the origins of the three families, and even the eldest sons were unknown to the world. Zhou Jinyu's fame spread far and wide, attracting the eldest daughter of the Jiangnan Gu family. Little did they know that his eldest aunt and uncle were childhood sweethearts, even traveling together to study abroad. The same was true of his parents. Engaged since childhood, his mother and eldest aunt disappeared, leaving his father waiting for his mother to reappear before marrying and having children. Those who were unaware of the true story only met and married later.
His grandfather hated his own incompetence throughout his life, failing to fulfill his ancestors' wishes. Eventually, the Zhou and Gu families fell into decline, leaving the three families unable to help. He put down his pen and ink, determined that his eldest son and grandson abandon literature and pursue a military career. Before his death, he wept bitterly over the misfortunes of the Zhou and Gu families, and how helpless his family was. He implored his father to find his cousin, who carried the blood of both families, and as the eldest son and grandson, he had been guarding outside the door at the time.
He understood his parents' obsession with finding his cousin better than his younger siblings. His cousin's existence wasn't just a matter of guilt for his aunt and auntie, but also a symbol of the three hundred years of heritage of the three families. This was the reason he put aside his duties and rushed to see Zhou Xiaozheng.
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