Chapter 124 – The Wenren Family’s Child
Wenren Qi’s gamble to wait until the couple had patched things up before discussing business had paid off. Yan Shengping, who had looked incredibly grim yesterday, arrived today looking as if he were basking in a spring breeze. When he got out of the car, they even saw him childishly holding Lin Ganzhi’s hand, only letting go with a blush when he noticed them watching. Yan Shengping looked as pleased as a cat that had stolen the cream.
Prior to this, the Wenren family had done a little digging into the relationship between Uncle Yan and Yan Shengping. They knew that this old man had painstakingly raised Yan Shengping, and had later followed him without hesitation when he was schemed against by the Zhong family. Yan Shengping had even taken his surname from this old man.
So, the first thing Wenren Qi did was step forward and take Uncle Yan’s hand, thanking him with a grateful expression.
Uncle Yan was surprised at first, then his eyes reddened as he said that this was the child he had watched grow up, practically half a son to him, so there was no need for thanks. Wenren Qi nodded in understanding and invited the old man inside. At this moment, everyone in the family was gathered in the living room except for Grandma Li. Grandpa Qin and Grandpa Wenren, Wenren Jian, sat in the main seats.
Wenren Jian was in his seventies. The moment he saw Yan Shengping, his eyes, which had just calmed down, reddened again. He was the first to stand up and walk step by step toward Yan Shengping. Just as Yan Shengping was unsure how to handle such a scene, Wenren Jian took the lead and hugged him. His weathered yet authoritative voice said just one thing: “It’s good that you’re home.”
That single sentence was enough to break through Lin Ganzhi’s defenses. When Wenren Jian released Yan Shengping and the two stood looking at each other wordlessly, Lin Ganzhi went over and hugged Wenren Jian, neutralizing the awkwardness between them like a soft marshmallow. He even comforted him, “Grandpa, don’t cry.”
Wenren Jian couldn’t help but smile. He ruffled his daughter-in-law’s hair and said, “According to seniority, you should call me Dad now, not Grandpa anymore.”
Lin Ganzhi blinked blankly, still a bit unfamiliar with the change in address. Besides, Yan Shengping hadn’t even made the switch yet, so how could he overstep? Just as he was thinking this, Yan Shengping pulled the silly fox back to his side, shielding him with his body.
Wenren Jian looked at his protective son, then at his daughter-in-law, and said with great tact, “You can wait until the time is right to call me that. Dad will give you a big red envelope then.”
A big red envelope?! Lin Ganzhi shyly and quickly popped out from behind Yan Shengping and nodded rapidly, his eyes clearly sparkling. Wenren Jian’s tears were successfully coaxed back by Lin Ganzhi. No matter what happened in the past, he could rest assured now that Yan Shengping had Lin Ganzhi by his side.
Once everyone’s emotions had settled, Wenren Jian, as the head of the family, detailed the kidnapping incident from back then, hoping to jog some of Yan Shengping’s memories. However, Yan Shengping just frowned and shook his head.
Although they were disappointed, everyone knew that if an eight-year-old child had retained any memories, he wouldn’t have been out of touch for twenty years. After all, for a prominent family like the Wenrens, a few contact numbers were just a click away on their official website.
Since tracing the past was fruitless, the matter of the Zhong family was inevitably brought to the table. It was clear that a family with the Wenrens’ temperament would not let this go so easily. Even though they knew Yan Shengping had already successfully turned the tables and brought down Zhong’s, that was a separate issue. When a child is bullied, what parent can just stand by and watch from the sidelines?
As the family head, Wenren Jian’s temples were gray, but his words still carried an undeniable authority. This was especially true after he investigated Yan Shengping’s past experiences with the Zhong family, his tone laced with an unconcealable, simmering anger. “The Zhong family really played their cards well. They made my child work his fingers to the bone to build a company, only to turn around and kick him out under some trumped-up charge. He even developed such a severe stomach condition. If he hadn’t married Ganzhi, he probably wouldn’t have had the chance to get better even now. We can’t just let this score be settled!”
The other members of the Wenren family nodded in agreement.
Lin Ganzhi, on the side, thought it felt pretty good to have family backing him up, especially family of this caliber. He imagined that when the Zhong family found out that Yan Shengping himself had destroyed Zhong’s Chips, they wouldn’t be able to say a word. How could they dare to cause trouble? However, Lin Ganzhi looked up at Yan Shengping. His sharp eyes were thoughtful, showing no intention of agreeing with the others.
Sure enough, after everyone had spoken, Yan Shengping opened his mouth. “The Zhong family’s actions last year were settled when I destroyed Zhong’s Chips. Thank you for your consideration, but I have my own plans. No matter how outrageous they were, they did raise me for over a decade. Having lost Zhong’s Chips, the Zhong family is no longer what it once was. In the future, it will just be an ordinary small enterprise that won’t cause any trouble for me or my family.”
“Hmm,” Wenren Jian, the leader, pondered for a moment before finally relenting. “Alright, I respect your decision, my boy. I know you’ve become very capable during this time. But there is one thing I hope you’ll agree to, and that is to announce your identity soon. It will at least bring greater opportunities and advancement to your career. And Ganzhi, with you and our family backing him, he can act in whatever he wants without having to worry about what others think.”
Yan Shengping listened to the first part with some indifference, but his expression immediately softened when he heard the latter part. Lin Ganzhi was his eternal weak spot. Thinking this, he looked down at Lin Ganzhi, who happened to be looking up at him. His eyes were sparkling, and he couldn’t quite control the upward curve of his lips. It seemed the silly fox had been thoroughly tempted.
“Of course, we will cultivate our relationship slowly, but we’ve only just found you. We hope to let the outside world know your identity first, to let them know you are a child of the Wenren family. At least you won’t be subjected to baseless slander like before,” Wenren Qi, a man used to being tough on the outside, nearly melted into a puddle in front of his younger brother, being both considerate of his feelings and protective.
Yan Shengping’s expression was a little unnatural. Lin Ganzhi thought it was because Yan Shengping couldn’t accept it, but surprisingly, Yan Shengping nodded and earnestly thanked Wenren Qi.
As the older brother, Wenren Qi was both happy and a little regretful, wondering when his younger brother would be as bold and impolite with him as that girl Wenren Yi was.
After they settled things, Grandpa Qin cleared his throat and brought up Madam Li. “I’ve examined Madam Li these past two days. Her condition has improved a lot since she moved back to the country to recuperate. It’s time to tell her about Shengping.”
“Yes, we should tell her. It’s been hard on her, waiting all these years,” Wenren Jian said with a sad expression. Everyone’s gaze unconsciously fell on Yan Shengping, waiting to see how he would react.
Fortunately, Yan Shengping’s personality as a child wasn’t lively either. His aloof and distant demeanor was very similar to how he was as a child, so everyone was somewhat mentally prepared for this. However, a child who had been missing for many years returning home to see his mother—everyone was worried about whether Yan Shengping could handle the scene.
“Can I go with Shengping?” Lin Ganzhi, who had been listening quietly, suddenly asked. He subconsciously took Yan Shengping’s hand and looked at the room full of elders, a determined smile on his face.
Yan Shengping was stunned for a moment, then squeezed Lin Ganzhi’s hand back tightly. His thumb couldn’t help but tap Lin Ganzhi’s palm, a strong sense of possessiveness surging within him. This person was his!
How could the elders possibly stop a daughter-in-law from seeing her mother-in-law? So, Lin Ganzhi and Yan Shengping followed Wenren Jian and Grandpa Qin to the greenhouse next to the main house. The old lady loved flowers, so they had built a huge greenhouse specifically for her, several times larger than the one at the Qin family’s estate.
The moment Madam Li saw Yan Shengping and Lin Ganzhi, she immediately put down the flower shears in her hand and walked over with a surprised smile. She even hugged Lin Ganzhi, looking exceptionally happy. Just as Lin Ganzhi was feeling a bit confused, Madam Li said, “It’s good that you two have made up. Grandma was so scared.”
So she was talking about what happened the day before yesterday. Lin Ganzhi smiled sheepishly and hugged Madam Li back, cooing shyly, “It was all a misunderstanding. It’s all cleared up now, Gran—uh,” Lin Ganzhi stopped halfway, realizing he probably couldn’t call her that anymore.
Seeing this, Wenren Jian walked to his wife’s side. Yan Shengping’s expression also became serious, but his trembling eyelashes betrayed his nervousness. Lin Ganzhi quickly went to Yan Shengping’s side and held his hand to give him encouragement.
Boss, you’re the best!
“What’s wrong? Why is everyone so serious?” Madam Li, still in the dark, teased.
Wenren Jian cleared his throat and said seriously, “We found our child.”
Madam Li was stunned, clearly unable to process the sentence. But her hands began to tremble uncontrollably. Her husband, Wenren Jian, quickly took her hands in his.
“Last time A Lin went to Shengping’s house, he brought back a few strands of hair. Shengping… is Xiao Zhuo. We’ve found our child,” Wenren Jian said firmly, each word deliberate. But looking at Madam Li’s dazed expression, his eyes couldn’t help but moisten.
Yan Shengping took a step forward with Lin Ganzhi.
Madam Li suddenly let go of Wenren Jian’s hand and walked up to Yan Shengping, her eyes trying hard to recognize the young man before her. A long time passed, so long that Grandpa Qin was about to step forward to check if she was having an episode, when Madam Li murmured, “He looks like him. His eyes are like when he was a child, and his nose too. I knew it. Why did I feel he was so familiar, as if I had seen him a long, long time ago.”
Yan Shengping couldn’t yet bring himself to call her “Mother,” but a subtle emotion made him take Madam Li’s aged hand. Thinking of all he had heard and seen in the past, he felt he could now better understand her feelings. After a long pause, Yan Shengping said, “I’m sorry for making you worry in the past.”
That sentence made Madam Li’s eyes well up with tears. It was that sentence that finally made her feel that her child had returned to her side. She said in a trembling voice, “Why would you need to apologize, my child? It’s Mom who should be sorry. I’m sorry for making you suffer for so many years.”
After saying this, Madam Li could no longer control herself and broke down crying in Yan Shengping’s arms. But these were tears of release, tears of reunion.
Afterwards, Grandpa Qin checked her pulse again and confirmed that Madam Li’s mental state had stabilized. The chances of a relapse in the future were close to zero. This news finally lifted the last heavy stone from the hearts of the Wenren family.
After the elders finished talking, the two older brothers had many things they wanted to discuss with their younger brother alone. Although Yan Shengping’s face was impassive, he didn’t refuse. Lin Ganzhi tactfully excused himself at this point. After all, if they started talking about work, it would be like attending a class for him—a class he had stumbled into by mistake and couldn’t understand at all.
As he came out, he happened to see Wenren Yi in the living room, enthusiastically chatting on her phone. Lin Ganzhi didn’t need to look to know who it was. He sat down next to her and started devouring fruit like crazy. His mouth was parched from all the talking earlier.
“Ganzhi, cut a piece of mango for your big sister to try?”
Lin Ganzhi silently glanced at Wenren Yi, and a thought made him raise an eyebrow. “I think you should be calling me ‘Little Uncle’ now.”