Xu Gui was unaware that he had just passed Aunt Tuanzi.
They followed the proprietress past the school, and after walking for another five minutes, they arrived at her restaurant.
The street where her restaurant was located was considered a food street, lined with various restaurants, but since it wasn't mealtime, they were all deserted. The proprietress's restaurant was even worse; the door was closed, clearly not open for business.
The proprietress explained as she pushed the door open, "We were thinking of entertaining you, so we didn't plan to open this morning and simply closed the door."
Otherwise, how could she entertain Xu Gui and his family while open? Would that be considered hosting guests? The proprietress and her husband felt they couldn't do such a thing.
On the way there, the proprietress had already sent a message to her husband, and when Xu Gui and his family arrived, a table full of food was already laid out.
The weather was a bit hot now, so the restaurant was air-conditioned, and a gust of cold air hit them as soon as they entered.
The proprietress's husband and son were waiting in the restaurant. Seeing Xu Gui and her group arrive, they rushed forward to greet them.
The paparazzi had already turned off their cameras, and for a fleeting moment, a pang of guilt struck him: he felt he'd become increasingly lazy following Teacher Xu for so long.
However, this guilt lasted only a second—a typical case of a little guilt, but not much. Once
Xu Gui and her group entered, the proprietress and her family warmly invited them to sit down.
"…Miss Xu, we really don't know how to thank you enough! You practically saved our lives!" the proprietress's husband exclaimed.
To get a little more sleep each day, the couple lived upstairs in the restaurant most of the year, and those two days were no exception.
So, if something had really happened at the restaurant that day, they would have been in trouble too. Therefore, saying that Xu Gui had saved their lives was no exaggeration.
The proprietress and her husband expressed their gratitude by constantly serving Xu Gui food.
"...If it weren't for Miss Xu, my husband and I would have been in real danger." The proprietress's husband spoke with a heavy accent, placing a large pork knuckle on Xu Gui's plate as he spoke.
The proprietress added, "Indeed, just thinking about it now makes me break out in a cold sweat." She
then placed a piece of sweet and sour pork on Xu Gui's plate.
The proprietress's son said, "Miss Xu, thank you so much for saving my parents..."
He picked up a chicken leg from a Sichuan-style stewed chicken and was about to put it in Xu Gui's bowl when he noticed that not only was her rice bowl already overflowing, but even the bowl the proprietress had brought for her to serve food was completely full.
The proprietress's son hesitated for a moment, holding the chicken leg, before carefully placing the lid on top.
Seeing the chicken leg settle securely on the overflowing dish, he was satisfied: "It's placed so securely!"
Meanwhile, the proprietress and her husband, seeing that Xu Gui's bowl was completely full, could only regretfully give up—"Oh, there's nothing left to take."
As for Xu Gui, she was currently engrossed in eating, completely absorbed in the abundance of delicious food on the table.
Having only ever eaten instant noodles, fruit salad, desserts… and various fast food options, this was the first time she had ever enjoyed such a lavish and presentable meal . The feast was breathtaking.
One bite of pickled cabbage and pig's trotter—the trotter was stewed until incredibly tender, falling off the bone with a single bite, soft, tangy, and fragrant—absolutely delicious!
The cold garlic spinach salad—the spinach was crisp and refreshing, so good!
The spicy chicken was incredibly flavorful and perfect with rice, absolutely delicious…
The more Xu Gui ate, the wider her eyes widened. She felt every dish on the table was so delicious that instant noodles were instantly banished from her culinary repertoire.
She was already tired of instant noodles.
Seeing her enjoy the pig's trotter, the landlady happily said, "Come to my house for breakfast tomorrow, and I'll give you…" "Make
some braised pork knuckle noodles, they'll be so delicious!" Unable to resist the temptation, Xu Gui readily agreed, "Okay, thank you, boss lady!"
Because the mung beans were so delicious, Xu Gui unknowingly ate two bowls of rice and a bowl of vegetables. That amount of food would make any celebrity agent faint... how many calories!
However, the person hosting the meal found Xu Gui's eating habits very pleasing, feeling she was being very considerate.
The boss and the owner now looked at Xu Gui with obvious delight, the boss lady's expression even becoming loving.
The person filming this scene understood: it seems Teacher Xu is about to gain another "mommy fan."
It's strange, though. Other female celebrities attract either boyfriend fans or career fans, but Teacher Xu attracts mostly "mommy fans"—even high school students who aren't yet adults, calling her "daughter" and becoming "mommy fans" themselves.
It just goes to show, attracting fans is truly a mysterious art; nobody knows what kind of fans you attract. The meal ended with a bowl of chicken soup that Xu Gui found particularly delicious. By then, she felt completely stuffed, and could only burp, covering her mouth. "
Mmm , I'm so full." The proprietress had also bought a watermelon, originally intended as dessert, but seeing that Xu Gui and the others were already full, she cut it into small pieces and packed it in a container for them to take home. So when Xu Gui and the others left, they had an extra box of watermelon in their hands—a perfect combination of eating and taking some with them. "The landlady's husband is such a great cook! Every dish he makes is so delicious!" On the way back, Xu Gui kept praising the landlady and her family, especially her husband's cooking. She exclaimed, "I've never eaten anything so delicious! It's really amazing!" The old man glanced at her and said, "Come on, I bet you'd even find instant noodles delicious." He'd never seen Xu Gui say anything was bad. But thanks to Xu Gui, they did indeed have a very good meal. The landlady's husband's cooking was indeed excellent; his dishes weren't the kind that were simply made to resemble a dish. It wasn't something made according to a set recipe, but rather something with its own ingenuity. The taste... to put it simply, it had more of a wok-fried aroma than other restaurants' dishes. Anyway, it was delicious. When they finished their meal and came out, it just so happened that it was the middle school letting out. The previously quiet street was now bustling with students leaving school, and many more stalls selling snacks or grilled sausages had sprung up on both sides of the road, crowding the students in front of them. Xu Gui casually glanced ahead, but quickly, her gaze abruptly turned and fixed on a certain spot. "Huh?" She looked at the figure standing at the school gate in surprise, muttering, "...Aunt Tuanzi?" Aunt Tuanzi, however, hadn't noticed Xu Gui's figure. She stood at the school gate, her eyes filled with excitement and anticipation as she looked towards it. Only when she saw a tall, thin boy walking out of the school from the crowd did she unconsciously take several steps forward. As the boy approached, Aunt Tuanzi could no longer suppress her excitement and called out, "Xueya!" But there was no response. Aunt Tuanzi pursed her lips and called out another name, "Bowen."
This time, the boy reacted. Hearing his name, he instinctively looked towards Aunt Tuanzi. Seeing her, his face lit up, he turned to his classmate and whispered something before running quickly towards her. Aunt Tuanzi watched
him approach, her lips curving into a smile, but tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks.
Lin Bowen was initially happy to see Aunt Tuanzi, but seeing her cry made his expression panic. Reaching her, he blurted out, "Auntie!"
Actually, Aunt Tuanzi was his former aunt, but he'd gotten used to calling her that as a child and hadn't changed his mind.
He looked at Aunt Tuanzi, whose tears were streaming down her face, and asked anxiously, "Auntie, why are you crying? Did someone bully you?"
Aunt Tuanzi gazed greedily at his face, forcing a smile, "No, no one bullied me. Auntie just missed you..."
Lin Bowen chuckled foolishly, saying, "I missed you too, Auntie. I haven't seen you in so long, and you never come to see me!"
"It's Auntie's fault!" Aunt Tuanzi immediately said, looking at Lin Bowen's expression, she couldn't help but reach out and cup his face, her gaze lingering on his features.
The more she looked, the more she thought he looked like her.
Aunt Tuanzi murmured, "I'm so stupid, how come I never noticed before? You look so much like Wu Hao."
Lin Bowen stared at her blankly.
*
Wu Hao was Aunt Tuanzi's ex-husband, and Lin Bowen was the son of Wu Hao's sister, who was also Aunt Tuanzi's former sister-in-law.
When Lin Bowen was born, Aunt Tuanzi had never met him. She didn't even know her sister-in-law had a child, because at that time, Aunt Tuanzi's own son had just gone missing, and she and her husband were still grieving the loss of their child.
It wasn't until Lin Bowen was about four years old that he first appeared before Aunt Tuanzi and her ex-husband, brought by her sister-in-law.
When Aunt Tuanzi first saw Lin Bowen, she thought he looked a lot like her ex-husband, but she didn't think much of it. After all, he was her sister-in-law's son. As the saying goes, nephews resemble their uncles; it was quite normal for a child to look like an ex-husband.
Most importantly, her child was only one year old when she went missing. Children change every year, and by the time he was four (actually five, and very different from when he was one), he was already quite different.
Who would have thought, who could have imagined, that her sister-in-law's child was the same child she had lost?
The thought that her child had been by her side all these years was like a knife to her heart, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.
Lin Bowen, unaware of the situation, asked somewhat blankly, "Auntie, what's wrong?"
Why was she holding his face and saying strange things one minute, and then starting to cry the next?
Auntie opened her mouth, wanting to say, "I'm not your auntie, I'm your biological mother! I'm your real mother!!"
But the words caught in her throat, and what came out was, "...Nothing, Auntie just missed you so much, so incredibly much, that seeing you made me so happy I wanted to cry."
—She was afraid Lin Bowen wouldn't be able to accept the truth.
Lin Bowen, bewildered, said, "Auntie, if you miss me, you can call me. I have a phone watch." He gestured with his wristwatch.
Aunt Tuanzi patted his head and said, "Good boy...come on, let Auntie take you to eat."
Hearing this, Lin Bowen looked troubled and refused, "No need, Auntie, I have to go home for dinner. If I don't go home, my mom..."
"Li Ru!"
Before Lin Bowen could finish speaking, a familiar, angry voice exploded in his ears. Before he could react, he felt his arm being grabbed and pulled sharply to the side, causing him to stumble.
When he regained his balance, he looked up and found someone standing between him and his aunt, blocking his way.
"...Mom?" Lin Bo called out in confusion and surprise—even though it was just his mother's back, he recognized her.
But why was his mother here? She hadn't picked him up from school for two years.
Oh, and not only his mother, his uncle was here too… Lin Bo glanced at Wu Hao, who stood behind his mother with a stiff expression, and felt even more bewildered.
What was going on? His aunt was here, and his uncle and mother were here too…
He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but Lin Bo felt that both his mother and uncle looked a little unwell.
No, even his aunt… all of them… Everyone's expressions were strange today.
Wu Tingting stood in front of the child, glaring fiercely at Aunt Tuanzi, and demanded, "Li Ru, what are you doing?! Who gave you permission to approach my son?!"
Aunt Tuanzi had initially managed to remain calm; she didn't want to make a scene in front of the child, and she was afraid of hurting him. But when she saw Wu Tingting and Wu Hao, the brother and sister, all the resentment she felt for being deceived over the years, the hardships and confusion she had experienced searching for her child all over the country, and the pain of her child being lost for so many years… all these emotions surged into her heart at that moment.
She could barely control her emotions.
"You still want to lie to me?" Aunt Tuanzi shouted almost in grief and indignation. She cried out, "He's clearly my son, my Xueya..."
She remembered the immense hope and love she had for her child when he was born. She named him "Xueya," meaning "the sea of learning is boundless," because she hoped he would grow up to be a learned person.
But the truth was, she never had the chance to see her child grow up. Just because of the words "the child is lost," her child was gone.
But who could have imagined, who could have imagined?! The child wasn't lost at all; he was taken away by her husband's family, and when he returned four years later, he was her sister-in-law's son.
"It was you, it was your whole family!"
Aunt Tuanzi raised her hand, pointing at the brother and sister one by one, saying each word slowly and deliberately, "It was your whole family who took my child away, but lied to me and said he was lost!"
"For the past thirteen years, watching me run all over the country searching for my child, don't you find it laughable?"
Stared at by her resentful and angry gaze, Aunt Tuanzi's ex-husband, Wu Hao, turned his head away quickly, as if his eyes had been burned, a hint of shame on his face.
But Wu Tingting, hearing Aunt Tuanzi's words, bristled like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, screaming, "Who told you that? I'm telling you, Bowen is my son! He's mine!"
Aunt Tuanzi said, "Don't be stubborn, Wu Hao has already told me."
She gave a bitter laugh, saying, "Actually, I should have realized it long ago. The doctor clearly said you had a history of recurrent miscarriages and it would be difficult for you to have children, but one day, you suddenly said you had a son, and that he was already four years old..."
She should have realized it long ago; if there wasn't a problem, why did you only bring the child to them when he was four?
But who in their right mind would think of this? Aunt Tuanzi never dreamed that someone could be so malicious.
Aunt Tuanzi glared angrily at her ex-husband, saying with deep resentment, "What I find most unbelievable is that Wu Hao, you, your mother, and Wu Tingting all conspired to deceive me!"
"Xueya is your child too! How could you give him to your sister?"
Tears streamed down Aunt Tuanzi's face. "Wu Hao, you've deceived me so cruelly!"
Wu Hao opened his mouth, explaining, "I didn't know about this at first. It was later, because we didn't want children, that my parents told me."
"...Do you know how I felt when I found out?"
He felt like the sky was falling, and he knew that he and Li Ru were finished.
He and Li Ru had a free marriage, and their relationship had always been good. After their child went missing, their family kept urging them to have another child, but Li Ru refused, and neither did he.
Several years had passed, and the couple seemed determined to continue searching. Finally, Wu Hao's mother, desperate, told him. After all, if Wu Hao and his wife didn't change their minds, she wouldn't have a grandson to hold.
"…The child isn't lost. Tingting's Bowen is now your Xueya." His mother said this.
At the time, Wu Hao only felt it was absurd. He even thought it was an excuse his mother made up to get him and Li Ru to have a second child.
However, a paternity test cannot be wrong.
When Wu Hao found out about this, he was furious. His first thought was to go back and tell his wife, but…
Wu Hao looked at Aunt Tuanzi and said, "…What can I do? That's my mother, my sister!"
"They knelt before me, crying and begging. Tingting said she wouldn't jump off a building to die because she didn't have Bowen... She really could do it!"
Wu Hao said. "You don't know, she even attempted suicide by cutting her wrists for Bowen. If Lin Kun hadn't found her in time, she would be dead!"
He murmured, "I couldn't watch her die!"
Aunt Tuanzi said coldly, "So, you can bear to watch me run all over the country looking for my child, is that it?"
Wu Hao avoided her gaze and said, "I had no choice..."
Aunt Tuanzi said, "So, because your sister couldn't have children, you secretly gave my child to her and kept it from me, right?"
Aunt Tuanzi laughed, but it was a laugh that was more painful than crying. She said, "So, your family is so close and harmonious, and I'm the only one who's been wronged, right?"
Wu Tingting said, "If you have to blame someone for how things turned out, you can only blame yourself!"
She looked at Aunt Tuanzi with malice.
*
Meanwhile, in a corner of the crowd, Xu Gui encouraged people to follow and film.
"Hey, cameraman, turn on the live stream! This is a lot of traffic..." she said enthusiastically. "I've already thought of a title: 'Searching for my son for thirteen years, only to find out he's my nephew?' What do you think of that title? Lots of people will definitely click to watch!"
The cameraman was used to carrying a camera everywhere he went. He turned it on after hearing Xu Gui's words, but said, "Ms. Xu, we're a variety show on Hunan TV, not UC Headlines!"
Xu Gui looked ahead and said dismissively, "Same here, same here."
The cameraman thought: Thank goodness the director didn't hear you.
Seeing the tense atmosphere with Aunt Tuanzi, Xu Gui first instructed the cameraman to carefully film the family's ugly faces... no, to film the whole thing, so that netizens wouldn't be left wondering what happened.
She thought bitterly, "Dare to steal Aunt Tuanzi's child? I'll make you famous right now!"