The feeling was unlike every time Xia Wan came to Xue’s house before. As the car moved forward, he felt increasingly nervous.
He lowered his head and gently tugged at the corners of his shirt. But after pinching the edges, he unconsciously paused and lowered his eyes in silence.
Suddenly, a hand reached out and held his wrist. The dark watch made the hand seem like a cool piece of jade, but it felt really warm when you touched it.
Huo Yu didn’t say anything but gently held onto Xia Wan’s wrist.
But for some reason, Xia Wan’s heart suddenly felt at ease.
The Xue family’s front door wasn’t too far. As they got closer, they could see detailed European-style metal carvings on the door.
At this precise moment, aside from the housekeeper, there stood another slender and tall figure – Xue Zhen’s personal assistant, Zhou Qi.
As the car smoothly turned into the gate, Zhou Qi hurriedly approached Xia Wan, greeting him with a respectful tone, “Young Master.”
Seemingly aware of Xia Wan’s real identity, he turned to Huo Yu and addressed him, “Mr. Huo.”
Xia Wan got out of the car and addressed him in his usual way, “Mr. Zhou.”
With a friendly smile, Zhou Qi waved his hands, “Just call me Zhou Qi.”
Taking the lead, he guided the way and explained to Xia Wan, “The old gentleman insisted on waiting for you here, but Mr. Xue and his wife managed to persuade him to go inside.”
Upon hearing this, Xia Wan’s heart stirred, recalling the first time he met Xue Zhen who was waiting for him at the elevator door.
In a mix of emotions, he asked, “Grandpa, how is he feeling? Is he in a good mood?”
“Yes,” Zhou Qi nodded with a smile, glancing at the tightly clasped hands of Huo Yu and Xia Wan. “It’s a wonderful moment for the family. The old man is, of course, very happy.”
Upon hearing Zhou Qi’s words, Xia Wan glanced at Huo Yu, who responded by nodding with a subtle, curved smile.
Most of the plants in Xue’s house were always green, like those cool ones that don’t lose their leaves. Even though it was already late autumn, they stayed all fresh and green, making everything look alive and happy.
The big house was super quiet. With no sounds coming at all, just the wind chimes sometimes making a few crisp sounds under the corridor, like tiny musical notes.
Only when Zhou Qi stopped at the door and said something did a little noise suddenly burst out from inside the room.
Su Tang was the quickest to rush out, coming over like a little cannonball and hugging Xia Wan.
This time they were not meeting as roommates or classmates, but as cousins.
“You bad guy,” Su Tang said with a choked voice, “Do you know how long I cried after you left? It felt like forever!” he hugged Xia Wan tightly, showing both joy and a bit of scolding in his words.
Xia Wan’s initially tense nerves suddenly eased because of these words.
He was only two years old when he got lost. Growing up, he had no memory of his original family anymore.
But Su Tang was different. He lived in this place where traces of little Ake were everywhere. Everyone missed him, kept looking for him, and looked at his not-too-many photos over and over again.
Su Tang witnessed that kind of pain, and he was also a person who experienced it. Those details had long been engraved deep in his heart through repetition over and over again.
“I…” Xia Wan hesitated, pursing his lips. He looked up to see Xue Chong and Wen Yunzhi following closely behind them, with Xue Wenxuan and Xue Zhen behind them.
Years of practice made them handle things with a calm demeanor, but the eagerness in their brows showed their excitement.
As they spotted the two hugging, they came to a stop, their eyes reflecting a mix of emotions.
Grandpa Xue Zhen hadn’t heard his little grandson call him that in a really long time. But even though he always seemed strong, his eyes turned red right away.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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“Grandpa Xue, Uncle, Aunt,” Huo Yu said in a deep voice, standing right next to Xia Wan. His tone was respectful, acknowledging the family members.
“Come in quickly, come in,” Wen Yunzhi wiped the water marks from the corners of her eyes, and the tears in her eyes couldn’t hide the joy.
As she spoke, she and Xue Chong walked towards Xia Wan. Seeing this, Huo Yu calmly let go of Xia Wan’s clenched hand and took half a step back.
As expected, Wen Yunyi approached and immediately tightly held Xia Wan’s hand before saying, “Grandpa has been waiting for you for a while.”
“Yes,” Xia Wan nodded, glanced at Huo Yu, and then walked forward. He stood on the other side of Xue Zhen, with Xue Wenxuan accompanying Xue Zhen into the room, one on the left and the other on the right.
On the long table in the living room, there were lots of snacks that kids loved to eat, like White Rabbit toffees, different kinds of jellies, cheeses, sodas, and plenty of nuts and pastries.
Xia Wan glanced at them instinctively, and Su Tang immediately handed him a candy, “These are the ones you used to love when you were a kid. Remember?”
Upon hearing this, Huo Yu couldn’t help but curl the corners of his mouth slightly, a subtle expression of amusement crossing his face.
“Even now I love eating,” Xia Wan quickly replied.
“Of course, you pretty much love everything,” Su Tang laughed.
What started as a light-hearted joke made Wen Yunzhi involuntarily think about the challenges Xia Wan and Xia Chengzhang faced living together, causing her eyes to turn red once again.
“It’s a joyous occasion since Ake to come back, don’t think about sad memories” Xue Zhen whispered to Wen Yunzhi.
Wen Yunzhi nodded and didn’t say anything, but she continued holding onto Xia Wan’s hand without letting go.
“How’s everything with your adoptive father’s side?” Xue Zhen asked Xia Wan.
“Well,” Xia Wan spoke involuntarily, “My dad…”
As soon as he mentioned that title, he abruptly stopped and unconsciously glanced up at Xue Chong.
Xue Chong looked at Xia Wan gently, “It doesn’t matter. You can call him whatever you used to call me. Dad doesn’t mind.”
“Yes,” Xia Wan responded softly, “Dad is fine. Although he was a little emotionally affected, he knows his fault and urged me to come here early this morning.”
“That’s good,” Xue Zhen said, looking at Xia Wan. A smile slowly appeared in his eyes.
“Ake,” Xue Zhen said, “over the years, there hasn’t been a single day we didn’t miss you. Even though you haven’t come back, your parents and I have kept everything ready for you.”
“Grandpa,” Xia Wan called out, his voice filled with warmth. Yet, his eyes betrayed a hint of emotional soreness.
“Grandpa is content to still hear you shout like this,” Xue Zhen said.
He rarely displayed his emotions, but as he gazed at Xia Wan, the love in his eyes almost overflowed.
“Grandpa,” Su Tang chimed in, “I still need to get those shares you promised me. Don’t forget about my share just because A’ke is back.”
As soon as he said this, laughter rippled through the group. Su Tang’s playful remark lightened the solemn atmosphere instantly.
“That won’t do,” Xue Zhen pretended, a playful glint in his eyes. “I can’t wait to give the whole world to Ake. You have to stand aside,” he added, with a tone of affection and jest.
“Brother,” Su Tang complained to Xue Wenxuan.
“You didn’t even ask me,” Xue Wenxuan replied slowly and calmly, “I’m in the same boat now.”
“Ah~, I shouldn’t have brought it up now,” Su Tang wailed.
Despite knowing Su Tang was intentionally lightening the mood, Wen Yunzhi couldn’t resist her hand and poke his forehead. Then she said with a smile, “You are irreplaceable.”
“Actually, I don’t lack anything,” Xia Wan remarked once the laughter subsided. “Being back here makes me happy and satisfied.”
“This is your home; you should always be here. Everything here is yours” Xue Zhen expressed, a hint of unhappiness in his tone.
“Grandpa is like that,” Xue Wenxuan said with a smile, “Just accept whatever the old man gives you.”
Xia Wan nodded obediently, holding back the desire to refuse.
On the armrest of the sofa, there was a photo album with a nostalgic feel. Xue Wenxuan handed it to Xia Wan, asking, “Do you want to see the photos from your childhood?”
“Yes,” Xia Wan nodded and took the photo album.
The photo album was opened, and the first page revealed a picture of a very small baby holding a bottle and sucking milk intently.
Gazing at the photo, Huo Yu lowered his eyes, and a gentle smile unconsciously appeared on his face.
“What are you laughing at?” Xia Wan asked, feeling a bit embarrassed.
“I also have one with the same style,” Huo Yu said softly.
Xue Chong laughed when he heard it, and couldn’t help but look at Wen Yunzhi: “You and your in-laws have really similar aesthetics.”
“In the future, we can merge the two photos and create a couple’s picture,” Wen Yunzhi added with a smile.
“That would be a perfect match,” Su Tang commented.
“It’s already a perfect match,” Xue Wenxuan chimed in, “My brother has a good eye.”
Huo Yu lowered his eyes and smiled, the rationality in his eyes was slowly replaced by the layered warmth, and replied softly: “Okay.”
Wen Yunzhi said again: “Okay, then it’s decided. Just send me the picture, and I’ll send it to you when it’s done.”
After checking out the photo album, everyone chatted about lots of things. Gradually, the mood shifted from serious to really happy.
The grown-ups stopped talking about the sadness of losing Xia Wan and the struggles of finding him. Instead, they started talking more about Xia Wan’s earlier life.
Everyone kept asking Xia Wan about when he was a kid. Like, how did he live? Did he go through tough times? How did he manage without his mom and with Xia Chengzhang being disabled? When did he start drawing so well? It was like a ton of questions trying to fill in all the gaps from the eighteen years they missed in Xia Wan’s life, and they really didn’t want to stop asking.
Xia Wan responded patiently, speaking in a calm tone as he shared his stories. Despite his composed words, there were moments when members of the Xue family still had tears in their eyes.
Huo Yu observed quietly from the sidelines, not saying much. Initially, when he first came in, he felt a bit uneasy.
However, as he silently observed the Xia family coming together after overcoming numerous challenges, a sense of envy couldn’t help but wash over him.
Except for a few blurry memories from when he was really little, Huo Yu’s first big feeling of family love came from Xia Chengzhang, and the second time was now.
Xia Wan has two families, but it feels like he doesn’t have one.
But Huo Yu wasn’t jealous of Xia Wan, he was just happy for him.
Xia Wan is really great, and he deserves all the good things that come his way.
After lunch, Huo Yu had tea and played chess with Xue Zhen, while Xia Wan went upstairs with Xue Chong and Wen Yunzhi.
While downstairs, Xue Zhen brought up the topic of the Huo family for the first time. Huo Yu, in turn, gave a concise and straightforward answer to Xue Zhen’s inquiry.
“If you ever need help from the family, just ask,” Xue Zhen said. “You and Ake are married, and the Xue family is also your home.”
Huo Yu, holding the black chess piece, paused for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
Upstairs, Wen Yunzhi opened the safe and took out a stack of property certificates. There were contracts for fancy houses, commercial buildings, and even big shopping malls.
“These are all things your parents set up for you bit by bit over the years. Sometimes when you’re not at home,” Wen Yunzhi explained.
Xia Wan was about to say it might be too much, but he kept quiet and swallowed his words.
“The house Huo Yu and I live in now is nice,” he thought for a moment and said, “We don’t need that much.”
“Silly boy,” Wen Yunzhi smiled, “These are the things to help you start your life. Huo Yu has accomplished a lot, and when you two are together, there shouldn’t be too much difference. Even if you have a disagreement one day, you can be independent and confident.”
Xia Wan couldn’t help but smile, his lips pressed together. He said, “Huo Yu is really nice to me, and we don’t usually have arguments.”
“Don’t pay too much attention to your mom’s worries,” Xue Chong smiled upon hearing this. “Your mom just overthinks things, afraid that you might face difficulties.”
“Huo Yu and I won’t face difficulties when we’re together,” Xia Wan said earnestly.
Wen Yunzhi took Xia Wan’s hand and said, “These are nothing for our family. I’ll transfer all of them to your name when the time is right.”
Xia Wan felt a bit puzzled but nodded slowly in acknowledgment.
At that moment, Xue Wenxuan opened the door, smiling, and handed Xia Wan the car key. “Your brother arranged this for you. Having your own car is more convenient.”
“Huo Yu gave me one too,” Xia Wan hurriedly added, “But I was worried about finding parking, so I haven’t driven it yet.”
“What’s a parking space?” Xue Wenxuan smiled, “Mom bought you a house near the school just for the parking space two days ago.”
Upon hearing this, Xia Wan opened and closed his mouth several times. In the end, he silently took the car keys.
“In the past few years, we didn’t know when we would find you,” Xue Chong said. “We were worried we might not see you in our lifetime, so we set up a trust fund for you to handle any future emergencies. It’s in your name, and you’ll manage it yourself now.”
“I don’t need that much money,” Xia Wan said, feeling a bit overwhelmed after hearing this.
In his previous life, although his family wasn’t inferior to the Xue family, due to physical reasons, his parents provided more companionship and protection. Naturally, there was no limit on money, but he only shopped online and played games, which isn’t the case now. It feels like he suddenly became a little rich.
“I’m already really happy to have met you all,” Xia Wan said. “But I haven’t done anything to deserve this.”
Xue Chong and Wen Yunzhi’s actions indeed matched Xue Zhen’s description, as if they wanted the entire world for him.
“We haven’t given you much,” Xue Chong said, rubbing Xia Wan’s hair and sighing at his sensibility. “There will be more in the future.”
Xia Wan: ‘…’
……
On the way back, Xia Wan still hadn’t fully recovered.
“Eldest Master,” Xia Wan said suddenly, “I seem to be becoming a little rich man.”
“Haven’t you been a little rich person for quite a while now?” Huo Yu said with a slight smile, tapping the steering wheel lightly.
Xia Wan thought he was referring to his earnings from painting. Just as he was about to explain, he heard Huo Yu continue, “After all, everything about me belongs to you.”
There’s a paragraph that was typed twice : on the armrest of the sofa, etc.
One of xia wan’s name got cut too : wan said earnestly
Thanks for the update!
Noted. Thanks for pointing out
Cute (=>w<=)
Thank You for the new chapter ( ๑ ❛ ڡ ❛ ๑ )❤