Liu Fen decided to tell everything at once, sharing all of Xia Xiaolan’s suspicions.

Grandmother Yu’s expression shifted from excitement to gravity.

She wiped the tears from her eyes: “I almost forgot about that.”

She had known, but in her excitement, she hadn’t thought about it.

The clues found in San Francisco and the message received at the airport all told Grandmother Yu that her son Xu Zhongyi had likely been living in danger.

She never imagined Cui Yiru would remarry such a man.

Compared to her daughter-in-law whom she hadn’t seen for years, Grandmother Yu naturally trusted Xia Xiaolan more.

Xiaolan wouldn’t lie to her. If Xiaolan said Zhang Jiading was suspicious, it couldn’t be groundless speculation.

“That Zhang man, he’s coming back with Yiru?”

Seeing Liu Fen nod, Grandmother Yu gripped her cup tightly.

The excitement hadn’t fully dissipated, but Grandmother Yu grew more cautious and determined: “Ah Fen, I’ve faced every kind of hardship in my life. Without seeing Zhongyi, I can endure anything.”

It would be better if Zhang Jiading came to China—she could see what kind of person he was.

“Are you alright?”

Liu Fen was even more agitated than Grandmother Yu.

Grandmother Yu slowly stood up, steadying herself against the table: “Xiaolan told me the news in advance. No matter how useless this old woman might be, I won’t be easily fooled. As for you, after all this time you still can’t hide things well. Fortunately, you met Tang Hong’en—if you’d remarried someone else, they would have eaten you alive. When they arrive in Shangdu, don’t show yourself. We can’t let them notice anything unusual.”

Grandmother Yu could control her own emotions but couldn’t guarantee Liu Fen’s.

Liu Fen agreed, “Then I’ll go book the flight tickets! Even if I don’t meet them, I should accompany you back to Shangdu, right?”

Grandmother Yu had no objection to this.

Grandmother Yu’s house in Shangdu was currently rented to Li Fengmei’s sister-in-law.

Li Fengmei had lived there before, but this year she moved to Pengcheng to reunite with Liu Yong, so the house was given to her sister-in-law. This wasn’t taking advantage—she paid rent and helped watch over the house for Grandmother Yu.

A house needs people living in it to maintain its vitality; empty houses quickly fall into disrepair.

Moreover, having someone there gave Grandmother Yu peace of mind.

She feared that if she didn’t keep watch, she might miss Xu Zhongyi’s family finding their way back.

She had kept this vigil for so many years.

Now finally there were results… whatever the outcome, it was better than no news at all.

Grandmother Yu was so excited she couldn’t sleep at night.

Liu Fen had warned her that Xu Changle and granddaughter Tina were raised by Zhang Jiading, saw him as their real father, and might not be enthusiastic about visiting China.

Hearing this, Grandmother Yu felt disappointed.

But she quickly rallied her spirits.

“Being alive is what matters most.”

Grandmother Yu told this to Liu Fen, also convincing herself. One shouldn’t be too greedy—it would be wonderful if her grandchildren could feel close to her, but wasn’t it natural if they felt distant and unfamiliar?

Even grandson Changle had left the country at age five.

Even the closest relatives could become strangers.

Not to mention Tina.

That child had grown up in America since birth—forget about her unfamiliar grandmother, the entire country of China would be foreign to her!

Grandmother Yu was good at managing her emotions.

Among her old friends, Ning Yanfan was the only one Grandmother Yu still kept in touch with. Learning that Xia Xiaolan had found Cui Yiru and the others in America, Ning Yanfan was genuinely happy for Grandmother Yu. Before she boarded the plane, Ning Yanfan came specially to see her at the airport:

“You were right to trust that girl. Only she could accomplish this—finding people who had been out of contact for so many years! Junior Sister Yu, your bitter days are finally over!”

Ning Yanfan’s joy was sincere.

Grandmother Yu wouldn’t share her unresolved suspicions and worry Ning Yanfan, so she simply agreed with everything he said:

“It’s good that they’re found, it’s good that they’re found.”

Watching Grandmother Yu board the plane with Liu Fen, Ning Yanfan sighed: her fortune had changed in her later years after meeting Xia Xiaolan and her mother.

When Ning Xue called Ning Yanfan, she would mention Xia Xiaolan’s achievements in America. The lucky ones weren’t just Junior Sister Yu, but also that old stone Mao Kangshan, who had lucked into such a talented disciple.

These things were unpredictable.

Originally, Junior Sister Yu had asked him to look after Xia Xiaolan, and after observing her for a while, he had somewhat intended to take her as his disciple.

But his daughter-in-law Zhen Wenxiu had ruined it.

Xia Xiaolan’s pride couldn’t tolerate Zhen Wenxiu’s “doubts,” and the disciple who was almost his slipped away… Fortunately, Ning Yanfan was generous by nature. If he were petty, seeing that Xia Xiaolan’s talent was even higher than initially estimated, all going to benefit Mao Kangshan instead—it would have been enough to take years off his life from anger!

Liu Fen accompanied Grandmother Yu back to Shangdu.

Grandmother Yu had lived in the capital with Xia Xiaolan and her mother for quite some time, so she hadn’t returned to this house for a while.

Since she moved to the capital, the house had been occupied by Li Fengmei, and now Li Fengmei’s sister-in-law—not outsiders, they all knew what this house meant to Grandmother Yu, and everyone took good care of it.

The house remained largely unchanged from when Grandmother Yu left.

Even the flowers she had planted were still alive, well-tended.

Everything was kept clean.

Grandmother Yu thanked Li Fengmei’s sister-in-law, who felt embarrassed:

“If we’d known you were coming back so suddenly, we would have cleaned everything thoroughly.”

Hearing that Grandmother Yu’s family was returning from America, Li Fengmei’s sister-in-law assumed she probably couldn’t continue renting the house. She really liked Grandmother Yu’s courtyard—spacious, well-located, with many rooms. Mainly, she had lived there since arriving in Shangdu and had grown accustomed to it, reluctant to move.

Grandmother Yu noticed this:

“It’s fine, it’s just for a few days. You can keep renting the courtyard. You’ve taken such good care of the house, I’m at ease!”

Li Fengmei’s sister-in-law was bewildered.

What?

She had thought that since Grandmother Yu had found her lost family, she would take back the house for them to live in.

But it seemed she could keep renting… where would Grandmother Yu and her family stay?

Li Fengmei’s sister-in-law was puzzled—surely they wouldn’t still live with Liu Fen and Xia Xiaolan?

Of course, she wouldn’t voice her questions.

Who would dare comment when Liu Fen was willing to care for Grandmother Yu?

Did they still think Liu Fen was the pushover from before?

Li Fengmei’s sister-in-law understood clearly—ultimately, the Li family’s current prosperity depended on Li Fengmei, who managed the clothing stores in Shangdu while her husband worked with Liu Yong in Pengcheng. The Li family relied on Li Fengmei, and Li Fengmei’s hope lay with Liu Yong.

And who did Liu Yong depend on?

Liu Fen, who had married a high-ranking official, was basically at the top of the food chain.

When Grandmother Yu returned to Shangdu from the capital, people heard that her son’s family, who had been in America for many years, had been found and would soon reunite with her in Shangdu. Outsiders didn’t understand the complexities involved and saw it as pure joy—Grandmother Yu, formerly a street sweeper, had suddenly become someone with overseas connections. This was 1986, different from ten years ago—having overseas connections no longer meant persecution, but rather brought envy and admiration!