“Uncle Xu, let’s talk inside.”

With Xu Zhongyi in such an emotional state, Grandmother Yu must be equally moved.

The elderly lady had diabetes, and her health had only recently improved after two years of careful attention. Xia Xiaolan worried that Grandmother Yu couldn’t handle such emotional shock. Xu Zhongyi also belatedly realized this. He heavily kowtowed on the stone steps before the threshold, breaking the skin on his forehead.

As he shakily stood up, Liu Fen quickly gave up her spot, letting Xu Zhongyi support Grandmother Yu.

Father and son flanked the elderly lady as they helped her inside.

Liu Fen, walking a few steps behind, said to Xia Xiaolan:

“Grandmother Yu has finally lived to see this day! Well, why keep dwelling on the past? Being reunited is better than anything else.”

She had previously been indignant on Grandmother Yu’s behalf, cursing Xu Zhongyi for being unfilial.

But seeing how moved Grandmother Yu was at the reunion, Liu Fen’s heart immediately softened.

Xia Xiaolan felt the same way.

Outsiders couldn’t make decisions for Grandmother Yu. As long as she was satisfied, that was truly what mattered.

After walking a few steps, Grandmother Yu noticed that Xia Xiaolan and the others were lagging. She refused to continue walking, repeatedly calling “Ah Fen,” insisting that Liu Fen come over.

Though she was overjoyed to see her son and grandson, Grandmother Yu still felt empty without Liu Fen and Xia Xiaolan by her side.

After mother and son had released their emotions from years of separation, Grandmother Yu spoke her first words:

“These past few years, it’s been Ah Fen and Xiaolan who’ve stayed by my side caring for me. Finding you was also thanks to their help. Let me be clear upfront – no matter what happens, you must never do anything to wrong these two.”

Liu Fen had just wiped away her tears, but Grandmother Yu’s words made her cry again.

Xia Xiaolan understood Liu Fen completely. Just as she had opened her eyes to find Liu Fen’s kindness and treated her as her real mother, Liu Fen’s situation was similar to hers.

Xia Xiaolan hadn’t experienced maternal love in her previous life, and Liu Fen likewise lacked maternal love. Liu Fen’s parents had passed away when she was very young, and after marrying into the Xia family, she encountered a cruel mother-in-law… It was with Grandmother Yu that Liu Fen finally felt the warmth of a female elder.

Grandmother Yu’s “warmth” was initially wrapped in harsh words.

Fortunately, Liu Fen’s good nature meant she didn’t take offense at the old lady’s manner.

Later, though Grandmother Yu’s stern personality remained unchanged, she came to see Liu Fen as one of her own. She might criticize Liu Fen for being foolish, but let anyone else try to look down on her!

Grandmother Yu could transform into a fierce defender at any moment, verbally destroying any opponent.

When Ji Ya looked down on Liu Fen, Grandmother Yu didn’t care if she was the daughter of an old acquaintance – she berated her all the same! She scolded until the entire Ji family couldn’t hold their heads up, preferring to take detours to avoid seeing Grandmother Yu.

While Liu Fen felt she wasn’t good enough for Tang Hongen, Grandmother Yu never thought that way. If Liu Fen was going to remarry, why not marry the best?

Grandmother Yu had thrown all her effort into matchmaking, determined to pair Liu Fen with Tang Hongen.

Xia Xiaolan’s grandmother had passed away early, never having the chance to make such plans for Liu Fen. Grandmother Yu had done what Xia Xiaolan’s grandmother should have done, even facilitating a marriage that Xia Xiaolan’s grandmother would never have dared to imagine if she were alive. Why hadn’t Xia Xiaolan given up searching for Grandmother Yu’s family even after learning it was dangerous? Wasn’t it precisely because of Grandmother Yu’s dedication to both mother and daughter?

Feelings were mutual.

Even when reunited with her son and grandson, Grandmother Yu hadn’t forgotten Liu Fen, putting her first emphasis on Liu Fen.

How could Liu Fen not break down in tears?

Blood ties?

Blood ties were important.

But sometimes they weren’t so important.

Xia Xiaolan’s eyes grew moist as she and Zhou Cheng left the room.

“Zhou Cheng, do you think Grandmother Yu knows something? Why would she suddenly say such things? We haven’t told her anything.”

Zhou Cheng looked at his wife’s reddened eyes, reminding him of a little rabbit.

Yes, just like a little rabbit, always hopping around in his heart.

Others might not see her this way, thinking Xia Xiaolan was as fierce as a tiger, as cunning as a fox… But in Zhou Cheng’s eyes, his wife was a little rabbit who needed protection. The tiger and fox were just facades, displayed for strangers.

Inside, she was just a soft, adorable rabbit, tender-hearted and emotionally rich.

None of these were flaws.

His wife had no flaws.

Zhou Cheng couldn’t resist kissing Xia Xiaolan’s reddened eyes. “You’re overthinking because you care. Think carefully – how clever is Grandmother Yu? Give her just the beginning, and she can figure out seventy to eighty percent of what happened.”

Zhou Cheng was right!

As soon as Xia Xiaolan and Zhou Cheng left the room, Xu Zhongyi knelt again.

This time, Grandmother Yu sat in her chair while Xu Zhongyi knelt on the ground to explain.

He detailed the reasons for their twenty years of separation from beginning to end.

When he spoke of Cui Yiru’s death, Grandmother Yu was moved.

When he mentioned Zhang Jiadong’s cruelty, Grandmother Yu gritted her teeth.

She had once treated Cui Yiru like her own daughter. The Cui family had also been wealthy before – how else could Cui Yiru have studied music?

The Cui family had fallen into decline earlier.

Grandmother Yu and her husband hadn’t been picky about this, still honoring the marriage arrangement, taking Cui Yiru in early to raise her, and waiting until she turned twenty before letting her marry Xu Zhongyi.

It couldn’t be said their marriage was unhappy.

Xu Zhongyi was well-educated and refined, sharing many common interests with Cui Yiru. After marriage, the couple lived in harmony.

When the situation turned dangerous, they had first arranged for Xu Zhongyi to take Cui Yiru abroad. Grandmother Yu felt they had treated their daughter-in-law well enough.

She wasn’t a saint.

She wouldn’t have minded if Cui Yiru had remarried, but she took issue with Cui Yiru’s affair during marriage, which had indirectly led to the Xu family’s tragedy over so many years!

“Changle, your mother is gone now. They say when a person dies, all past grievances can be forgotten, but that doesn’t work for me. I don’t acknowledge her as a Xu family daughter-in-law. Now that she’s dead, she still can’t be buried in the Xu family cemetery! I don’t care what you father and son think, anyone else can be magnanimous and forgive her, but I absolutely will not forgive her!”

Remarriage alone would have been fine.

If it had just been remarriage, Grandmother Yu would have still been grateful to Cui Yiru – it was normal for a woman to remarry after raising two children alone abroad.

Even if she had married the mastermind Zhang Jiadong, if Cui Yiru hadn’t known his true nature, Grandmother Yu wouldn’t have blamed her.

But marrying the man she had an affair with during her marriage – whether Cui Yiru knew Zhang Jiadong’s true nature or not, Grandmother Yu had no intention of forgiving her… Such conduct made her unworthy of being a Xu family daughter-in-law!

After the emotional crying, Grandmother Yu’s stern nature emerged unmistakably.

Even facing her son and grandson reunited after twenty years, she would not compromise!

Xu Changle opened his mouth but couldn’t defend his mother.

If not the family cemetery, then she would be buried separately and worshipped separately.

Xu Changle had already silently agreed, and Xu Zhongyi’s feelings were also complex.

Seeing neither father nor son objecting, the old lady reached for the cane beside the table. Liu Fen found it strange that there was a cane there, as Grandmother Yu had always been proud, saying she would never use a cane unless her legs were broken.

Now, Grandmother Yu picked up the cane and pointed it at Xu Zhongyi:

“Now explain carefully – you say you arranged for people to guide Xiaolan to rent my house. Since you could manage that, you must have known about our movements. I won’t ask why, having such capabilities three years ago, you let me worry needlessly… I only want to know what you were thinking as you watched Xiaolan ‘searching for relatives’ in America. Just stay kneeling there and explain. If you don’t explain well, don’t get up!”