Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Chen Minxia ignored Grandfather Ruan’s sudden stares.
In reality, his reputation gained traction only in the past few years. When Chen Minxia married into the family, Grandfather Ruan was merely an ordinary teacher who did not attract that much reverence from the public.
When she got married, she was slightly taken aback by the old man’s demeanor, but she gradually became used to it and it reached a point where she was numb to it already.
Even if the old man gained an abundance of veneration in public, they did not feel that he was that worthy of being revered. His individuality overshadowed whatever brilliance he had.
Grandfather Ruan said to the boy, “Come, come. Let Great-Grandpa hug you.”
“Hehe,” Qi Youxuan chuckled somewhat maliciously. He threw himself over, causing the old man’s back to hit against the sofa.
‘Who told you to call me fat.’
“Oh dear!” Grandfather Ruan rubbed his chest and held the little boy’s meatiness. He laughed dryly and said, “Our Youxuan is a very strong kid, hehe.”
Grandfather Ruan had just returned home. He hugged his little son and dragged Ruan Danchen over to have a chat. Although Ruan Keshan had already told everything to him, he wanted to hear it from Ruan Danchen herself.
The old lady looked at her watch and finally interrupted the two of them, “Don’t forget, we agreed to visit the Qi family tonight. We can’t go late because it’s rude.”
“Yes, yes,” answered Grandfather Ruan. All of a sudden, he thought of something. He exerted plenty of effort to carry the boy and place him down, and as he stretched his waist, he reached for his luggage and took out a plastic bag with the airport’s tax-free shop logo on it. From the bag, he fished out five different boxes of chocolate.
He gave them to the wide-eyed Qi Youxuan.
“I came back in a hurry so I couldn’t go shopping, except around the airport. I didn’t know what to buy, but when I thought of Youxuan, I thought that kids would definitely like these,” Grandfather Ruan smiled and said. He puffed out his chest and looked as though he was eagerly anticipating some praise from the boy.
“Thank you, Great-Grandpa Ruan. You’re my favorite person!” The little boy smiled immediately, turning his face into a little bun-like shape. The mere mention of food sufficed to make his face light up.
“You can only eat one piece a day,” Qi Chenglin voiced out suddenly from one side.
Before the little boy could protest, Grandfather Ruan chuckled. “Hehe, going on a diet?”
Qi Youxuan, “…”
Why did he feel as though the old man was so annoying!
“Hehe, since that’s the case, we’ll leave the rest here. You can bring one box home, and when that’s finished, you can come here and get another one. Great-Grandpa will keep an eye on you so you don’t eat too much.” Grandfather Ruan placed the smallest box of chocolates onto Qi Youxuan’s hands, keeping the rest to himself. He opened one box in front of the boy and took out a shell-shaped chocolate. Popping it into his mouth, he said, “Oh my, melts in your mouth! Hehehe.”
Grandmother Ruan took the box of chocolates from him, including the already-opened box. “I’m worried about your diabetes!”
She stored the chocolates in the kitchen cabinet and came out to urge Grandfather Ruan. “Go and change your clothes. We’re going to meet the in-laws.”
Grandfather Ruan chuckled and pinched the little boy’s cheeks before heading into the room.
“…” Qi Chenglin ruminated silently, and out of the blue, he said, “I suddenly know where Youxuan got his attitude from.”
No wonder he could not find the source of it. After all, no one in the Qi family had Youxuan’s attitude.
Everyone was speechless.
After some time, Grandfather Ruan came out to a completely silent living room. No one was speaking.
The moment he came out, everyone’s attention was directed to him.
“What are you looking at? Why is everyone so quiet? Grandfather Ruan looked left and right but found nothing wrong with himself.
“Hehe, let’s get going.” Grandmother Ruan thought it best not to say too much.
Ruan Keshan’s car was still being serviced, but fortunately, Grandfather Ruan told his driver to wait downstairs. His car, plus Qi Chenglin’s car, was enough to fit all eight of them.
Grandfather Ruan sat at the back of Qi Chenglin’s car, along with Qi Youxuan. He looked at Qi Youxuan and smiled constantly, making Qi Youxuan feel ruffled.
“Great-Grandpa Ruan, don’t smile at me like that!” the boy said after finally having enough of it.
“Why?” asked the old man, confused.
“It’s terrifying!” The boy rubbed his arms together and cowered behind.
Grandfather Ruan, “…”
…
Grandfather Ruan’s teasing lasted the entire trip until they finally reached the old manor.
Qi Youxuan was relieved. After getting out of the car, he exhaled heavily. The stress was too great after spending so much time with Grandfather Ruan.
While the rest of them were still walking behind, Qi Youxuan ran into the yard and rang the doorbell.
He did not expect the old Qi couple to be waiting at the door in person. They warmly welcomed Grandfather Ruan and Grandmother Ruan.
The scholarly scientist aura was very much prevalent despite Grandfather Ruan’s silence.
Grandmother Qi said respectfully to Grandfather Ruan, “Look at you rushing here right after your flight. You didn’t have to rush here. It’ll be much better if you have some rest before our two families gather here. That’ll be much more relaxing.”
“It’s alright.” Grandfather Ruan shrugged it off with a wave of his hand. “I slept throughout the flight anyway, so I’m not tired. I’m full of energy right now!”
Everyone could see that Grandfather Ruan was full of spirit. He really did not look tired at all. They were also surprised that such a leading scholar was so approachable. He definitely proved himself to be a scientist of high intellectual capacity.
Even Guan Liya and Xia Wenna looked at him with admiration.
Grandmother Ruan and Ruan Keshan’s expressions twitched.
Grandmother Ruan told Grandmother Qi, “Our Danchen is lucky to marry a man as good as Qi Chenglin. You treat her well too, without paying too much attention to her status. We… We really don’t know how to thank you.”
“Don’t say that. It feels so distant. Danchen’s our daughter-in-law, she’s like a half-daughter. Our Chenglin likes her, so we like her too. If we treat her badly, won’t that make Chenglin feel bad too?” Grandmother Qi smiled and said.
At that point, Grandfather Ruan’s cell phone rang. It was a call from the leader.
“Old man, have you reached?”
“Yes. I’m at my in-laws’ house,” Grandfather Qi answered honestly.
“I thought you went back to meet your granddaughter?”
“I did. I came back to meet her and visit her husband’s family.”
“…”
Well that progressed quickly.
“Since everything is settled already, are you still coming back to the States? We haven’t started the meeting yet. You can still come back in time.”
Grandfather Ruan heard that and groaned immediately. “I’m an old bag of bones. Don’t you have a heart? Are you really willing to do that? Do you want me to risk my life for an annual meeting? I’m telling you: death can be trifling, or it can be a serious matter. I can’t let my death be an insignificant one just because of this small meeting! I want to serve humanity’s growth and die a noble death as a scientist who struggles and strives endlessly for improvement!”
The leader was speechless.
“It’s not that bad, is it?”
The leader unwittingly said what he wanted to say.
“It’s not that bad? I’ve just met my granddaughter and my great-grandson. I haven’t even gotten to know them better yet! Do you really have the heart to just separate me from my family? I’ve cried my heart out at home. If you want me to leave now, my heart can’t take it! I’m old! I could suffer from any psychological illness! If something happens, what are you gonna do about it?” Grandfather Ruan was practically crying already.
The leader, “…”
“Oh, Youxuan! Your Great-Grandpa is useless! He can’t decide things for himself. He needed so much effort to come back and see you, but people already want him to go back!” Grandfather Ruan cried and exclaimed.
The little boy ran over to Grandfather Ruan’s embrace and groaned into the phone, sobbing like nobody’s business. “Great-Grandpa, don’t leave me!” He sobbed even more. “Don’t go, Great-Grandpa. Your Xuanxuan only managed to meet you after seven years! I can’t bear to be separated from you!” The sobs became more fervent.
The leader could feel his head exploding after hearing the cries of the old man and the little boy.
What kind of nonsense was that? Why did the two of them cry like it was a life-and-death scenario?
“Oh, Granddaughter! I can’t bear to part with you!” Grandfather Ruan stretched out his hand to Ruan Danchen.
That action was exactly like how Erkang 1stretched out his hand [1], prompting Ruan Danchen to wonder if the old man frequently used the internet to keep up with the times.
Ruan Danchen, “…”
She never expected his shamelessness to have no bounds, just like the little boy.
While she was still stuck as to how she should react, Ruan Keshan ran over and began crying.
“Dad, Dad, you can go without worrying. I’ll take care of Danchen. You just came back and you just met Danchen, but now you have to go back. It’s too disheartening! Scientific researchers need to be flexible and have human nature, don’t they? This is asking you to leave aside your family and your life just for scientific advancement! If you go, will we still be able to see you again next time?” Ruan Keshan threw himself at the feet of his father and cried wildly.
The Qi family was speechless, and so was the leader.
‘The hell is this nonsense?’
“I… I was just saying that casually! Don’t get anxious! Please don’t let Professor Ruan get too worked up!” The leader knew the voice to be Ruan Keshan and felt that the father-son duo was making himself look like the bad guy.
“You see, I can’t just let you be separated from your family, right? If you really can’t make it, then don’t come. When I come back, I’ll let Xiao Jing report on the meetings’ contents to you. You… Just set your mind at ease at home, have a good reunion with your granddaughter and your family. You’ve already contributed so much to the scientific knowledge and advancement in our country. We can’t possibly deny you this liberty, right?” the leader twitched his lip and said.
“I think so too.” Grandfather Ruan was all smiles. His grin from ear-to-ear, with his earlier grief vanishing into thin air completely.
The leader chuckled and hung up. His energy was thoroughly drained from speaking with the old man.
Grandfather Ruan put the phone away after the call ended. He turned to the Qi family as if nothing had happened and said, “Say, isn’t it a bit too unreasonable to make an old man like myself cry?”
“Hehe.” Grandfather Qi ran out of words to describe Grandfather Ruan. He looked at the old lady with an expression that clearly stated, ‘This guy? Going on TV and making the news?’
Grandmother Ruan was so embarrassed that her face turned red.
Earlier, Aunt Liu had brought Little Youjin into the room to sleep, as there were too many people around and the noise might disturb the little guy. Little Youjin began crying and flailing his arms about in search of his mother. Aunt Liu then carried him out.
Grandfather Ruan was elated to see that little baby. Once Song Yu coaxed him enough that he stopped crying, Grandfather Ruan took the boy into his hands. A momentary loss of self-control prompted him to lightly pinch the boy’s chubby little butt.
Even though Little Youjin could not speak, he angrily retracted his bum and tossed around inside Grandfather Ruan’s arms. He stretched out his hands miserably, seeking help from anyone to set him free from the naughty hands that pinched him!
Seeing Grandfather Ruan light up with happiness, Song Yu did not feel too good about saving the boy. It was Grandmother Ruan who stared at her husband and carried the boy out from his arms.
Sensing that he was out of danger, Little Youjin mumbled incoherently and stayed put adorably in Grandmother Ruan’s hands.
“Is he thinner than Youxuan when Youxuan was a baby?” Grandfather Ruan was not at all ashamed for teasing a little baby. He poked Little Youjin’s belly and received an angry kick in return, but that only made him even happier.
“Umm…” Guan Liya began confessing guiltily, “When Chenglin brought Youxuan home, he didn’t have a mother at the time. Chenglin’s always busy with work, so Youxuan’s with me, and I was worried that he would go hungry…”
Since Youxuan had no mother to take care of him and Qi Chenglin was too busy, Guan Liya felt that her grandson was too pitiful. She could not stop herself from giving him the best things in life.
The absence of mother’s milk prompted her to give him lots of milk formula. She was worried he did not eat well.
In the end though, she accidentally turned that little ball into a tender, fair-skinned ball of fat.
The little boy looked at Little Youjin and voiced out abruptly, “Lil’ Bro’s too skinny. He needs to eat more!”
Qi Youxuan’s thinking was very pure and simple. He wanted his younger cousin to grow fat, so they would then be able to go on a diet and eat vegetables together. He would not need to suffer alone, at least.
Beside him, Grandmother Qi nodded. “It’s much more fun if a kid is chubby when he’s young.”
Qi Chengzhi and Song Yu did not know how to react.
Little Youjin, however, seemed to understand everything. He stretched his arms out happily toward Grandmother Qi, asking to be carried. Once in the old lady’s hands, he mumbled and drooled while reaching out to the strawberries on the table. His arms waved about but were unable to reach them, making him very frantic.
Grandmother Qi took one for him. His tiny hands grasped on the strawberry and he chewed them continuously. It was so sweet that his lips curled into a smile—he was incredibly happy.
After some more chit-chat, Grandmother Qi looked at the time and suggested that they go to Dynasty.
She breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed that the Ruan family acted normal without having too much of a reaction. That made her feel that the Ruan family had character—not only were they worthy of being called scholars, they were also very calm when faced with favor or otherwise.
Qi Chengzhi lifted Little Youjin out from Grandmother Qi’s embrace. The baby’s hands were stained with strawberry juice and he wiped it on Qi Chengzhi’s clothes, leaving a pinkish stain of strawberry extract.
Qi Chengzhi stared at him and said solemnly, “If you do this again, you won’t be allowed to eat strawberries anymore.”
Little Youjin was frightened by that. He grabbed onto the strawberry and was afraid to let go. He no longer dared to rub his other hand on Qi Chengzhi’s sleeve. Instead, he flung his hand back a couple of times in an attempt to rid his hand of the strawberry juice.
Then, he gnawed on the strawberry like a mole.
Grandmother Qi and Grandmother Ruan went out just in time to meet a group of neighbors in the corridor. They were walking back after some plaza dancing and were dragging their carts after doing their grocery shopping. A good number of people were present.
The crowd was curious after seeing the two old ladies talking so affectionately, especially since there were a few unknown people behind the two old women.
Just as they were beginning to wonder, they could hear Qi Youxuan—who ran over with his wiggling butt and held Grandmother Ruan’s hand—saying, “Great-Grandma Ruan, I’ll go with you in your car.”
A good cajoling would enable him to eat more meat later that night.
As a result, everyone was surprised. ‘Great-Grandma Ruan?
‘Was that Ruan Danchen’s family?
‘Isn’t Ruan Danchen an orphan? When did she have a family all of a sudden?’
“This is… Danchen’s grandmother?” Aunt Ge looked at Grandmother Ruan in shock.
“Why yes. Danchen’s not an orphan. Her family was just separated and now they’ve found each other!” said Grandmother Qi with great pleasure. She remembered the old Ruan couple’s status and realized it was just perfect for showing off!
Aunt Ge immediately believed it after hearing that, but there were those amongst the crowd who viewed the statement with suspicion.
Some thought that the Qi family might have been worried that Ruan Danchen’s identity was too plain, therefore necessitating the Qi family to find a group of people to pose as Ruan Danchen’s family.
Although such thoughts would be regarded as strange by some ordinary people, the mindset of those great families were unconjecturable and different from the masses.
At that time, Grandfather Ruan walked over as well. He maintained his air of solemnity in front of strangers.
Holding that graceful posture, he looked exactly like what was shown on the news.
“This man… Why is he so familiar?” Beside Aunt Ge was Aunt Wang, who posed the question. The more he looked at the old man, the more familiar he was to her eyes, as though she saw him somewhere but could not put her finger down on where that was as she did not have too much of an impression.
Grandmother Qi straightened her back and seized the moment as an opportunity to show off. She introduced warmly, “Come here, let’s all introduce ourselves. These are my in-laws. This is Danchen’s grandfather, Ruan Lichuan. He’s a professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He’s the one that was awarded the Fields Medal previously and made the news! He’s supposed to be in a meeting in the US, but when he found out that Danchen was the granddaughter he had been looking for all this time, he flew back without further ado and just touched down today.”
Although the old lady did not really put much importance on a person’s background, she would still be happy if the family was a good family that could be shown off.
It was just like back then when she was so worried about Qi Chengzhi and Qi Chenglin’s marriage-less status. Everyone was saying that the two of them might not get married for the rest of their lives, but Qi Chengzhi brought back Song Yu out of the blue.
Grandmother Qi brought Song Yu for a walk around the neighborhood at once, introducing her to everyone and flaunting the fact that her grandson now had a partner. The same thing happened when Qi Chenglin brought Ruan Danchen back.
Her in-laws were so amazing, being the respectable scientists that they were. No doubt, the old lady would want to show them off eagerly.
After the old lady’s statement, Aunt Ge and Aunt Wang, including all the other ladies, began to have some recollection. By then, some of the old men were passing by—they usually had nothing much to do at home except watch the news.
Celebrities were relatively unknown to them, but to them, a highly-intellectual person was exactly like how youngsters treated celebrities.
That refresher by the old lady jolted the old men’s memories.
Uncle Ge and Uncle Wang dragged their buddies and huddled together. They each held Grandfather Ruan’s hand without letting go, as if they were protecting a jewel.
“Grandfather Ruan, hello, hello. It’s an honor, it’s an honor,” Uncle Ge said.
“I never expected to see someone from the news right in front of me,” Uncle Wang was so emotional that he nearly cried.
