Chapter 205: I Will Stay with Mother!
Zhou Anran secretly observed both her second son and eldest daughter, and slowly, her eyes settled on Xiao Yuanwei’s neutral expression.
He merely glanced at the mask on the ground and didn’t even bother picking it up. Her eyelids throbbed, and her suspicion deepened.
Why is this man acting like this? Her shoulder trembled at the thought of him already remembering his memories. If that was the case... does he want to reconcile with her?
She shook her head at the thought, finding it ridiculous.
"Second Brother, what kind of expression should I use?" Xiao Yuxi had a flash of panic on her face.
If she had known that the cunning old man would suddenly take off his mask, she would have looked his way even if someone paid her to look at him!
Xiao Fenghao also stiffened and hissed. "H-how would I know?!"
He already determined that this old man had an ulterior motive now. His martial art skills weren’t low considering that he had taught them in their childhood. How can he be as incompetent that he couldn’t grab a mask on time?
"Mother is looking at this way..." she mumbled.
While the siblings were panicking, Zhou Anran was also studying her children’s expressions worriedly.
At this moment, Xiao Jingran suddenly told her.
"Mother, you don’t need to worry about it... Hao’er and Xi’er actually already found out that he is our father." He tried to use a voice as calm as possible.
Zhou Anran’s head whipped toward him, her hands slightly trembling. "Jing’er, did you tell them?"
He shook his head. "I am sorry, I didn’t tell you about this before, Mother. Some time ago, they accidentally heard Little Ya’s inner thoughts when we encountered Father’s carriage on the road."
"Mother, you don’t need to be burdened with anything. We are going to support your decision," he added softly.
Zhou Anran’s tense shoulders became slightly relaxed.
She let out a sigh. "It’s a blessing of a lifetime to have understanding children like all of you."
At this moment, Xiao Qingya also looked over, nearly dropping Xiao Xue in shock at the live drama in front of her.
[Woah, that old man is showing off. He even dares to show his face now.] She clicked her tongue.
The System also commented. [Like a male peacock spreading its feathers...]
Xiao Yuanwei suddenly felt embarrassment burning in his heart at his youngest daughter and the System’s commentary. He was actually also slightly nervous.
He deliberately showed his face in front of his children so that they would recognize him.
After all, they were already adolescents when he went missing; it was impossible for them to forget about his face unless they also had amnesia like him.
As a result, his youngest was truly mischievous, the liveliest one compared to her other siblings.
He could see that Xiao Fenghao and Xiao Yuxi were trying to avoid looking at him, but failing miserably because they already did it. Xiao Jingran didn’t even hide it, which means that he must have known about his identity beforehand.
This eldest son of his... he didn’t even approach him to find an answer for the reason he was missing.
Do all of them feel angry at him? He pondered the question deeply.
As soon as Xiao Fenghao and Xiao Yuxi received the signal from their eldest brother, they all bolted to them.
"Mother..." Xiao Yuxi immediately grabbed her mother’s hand, trying to act sweetly.
Xiao Fenghao pursed his lips, waiting for his mother’s words, secretly thinking that the old man was really a troublemaker.
"You two already figured it out?" Zhou Anran asked them carefully, studying their expressions.
She was the most worried about them leaving her. These two loved martial arts so much, and she knew that they idolized their father who possessed great martial art skills.
It was unknown whether they would really exchange their current life and leave with Xiao Yuanwei. After all, in terms of resources, she couldn’t compete with someone who had the imperial in his hands.
They all nodded carefully.
"What are your thoughts on it?" Zhou Anran asked.
The two were taken aback by her question. They exchanged glances in confusion.
Upon seeing that, Xiao Jingran immediately explained on behalf of his anxious mother. "Are you staying with Mother or..."
Although he didn’t continue his words, they all instantly understood. Xiao Yuxi widened her eyes. "How could I leave Mother? Of course, I am staying with Mother!"
Xiao Fenghao also nodded fiercely. "Mother, how can you think we are going to leave with that troublesome old man?"
Zhou Anran’s mouth twitched when she heard that, and she subconsciously also heaved a sigh of relief upon hearing the answer she wanted to hear the most.
At this moment, Xiao Qingya was already going over with her short legs. Xiao Xue was trailing behind her. With Xiao Xue and Xiao Yuanwei’s guards around, she could run around safely.
[Eh, the atmosphere is so tense. What happened?] She stared at them with puzzlement.
[Oh wait, my father finally revealed his face in front of everyone. How can I forget?] She smacked her own little head softly. [Let’s see everyone’s reaction.]
They all stiffened again when they heard Xiao Qingya’s inner thoughts.
In order not to make her suspicious, they decided to act in front of her.
Xiao Fenghao had a complicated look on his face. "Mother, is what you said true?"
He resembled someone who still couldn’t accept reality for a while.
Zhou Anran nodded at him, secretly relieved at her children’s quick thinking. "Hao’er... I didn’t mean to hide this from all of you."
Xiao Qingya blinked and pretended to ask. "What is true, Second Brother?"
They all seemed to be so shocked that she couldn’t help but ask, even if she already knew the answer. She wondered what they would tell her.
However... she didn’t even have the time to receive the response when they spotted Zhou Wenzhi walking toward them.
Once he arrived not far from them, Xiao Yuanwei turned around at the same time Zhou Wenzhi lifted his head. The latter stared at Xiao Yuanwei.
***
Zhou Wenzhi’s words were stuck in his throat; he was about to ask his daughter about the bamboo irrigation installation process.
Zhou Defeng had told him that his daughter and her children had cut some bamboo and were transporting them to the fields.
It was already in the afternoon and in an hour, the sun was going to set. He was worried they might return late, so he went to find them, not understanding why they would go to the fields at such a time.
Upon seeing Xiao Yuanwei did he understand the reason. There were also some of his subordinates who helped his eldest daughter’s family.
He walked over calmly and thought that they would return soon before the sky went dark. Xiao Yuanwei’s figure had his back to him, and the moment he turned around, Zhou Wenzhi’s expression froze.
Why does Xiao Yuanwei have the same face as his son-in-law? He thought he was hallucinating.
"Father." Zhou Anran’s voice snapped him back to the present and he took a deep breath.
His voice was trembling as he asked, "Who is that man? You all also see him, right?"
Their reaction was too calm for him, and his mind went blank. He already thought that Xiao Yuanwei’s figure resembled his son-in-law a lot and didn’t expect it to turn out to be really him!
He turned to Zhou Anran who had been silent for quite some time. "Ran’er, how long have you known about it?"
Zhou Anran pursed her lips and didn’t immediately answer. "Father, this is not the place to talk about this."
Upon hearing her answer, Zhou Wenzhi covered his face with his hands and took several deep breaths. He knew her really well. If she answered it like that, there was a high possibility she had known that back in the Hejia Village.
"What happened to him?" He sighed. "He went missing for so many years, and when he returned, he didn’t recognize any of you."
On top of that, his identity was also different now. He had become someone from a noble household.
Zhou Wenzhi never saw Zhou Anran trying to actively acknowledge Xiao Yuanwei as her husband, and judging from her temperament, it was easy to guess the reason.
The moment his grandfather’s gaze landed questioning on him, Xiao Jingran immediately explained. "Grandfather, he doesn’t remember anything."
"We all know that Father didn’t have any memories about his actual identity when he landed in our Hejia Village." He paused. "The moment he recalled his old memories, it overshadowed his present memories, making him forget about us."
Xiao Qingya was a little surprised. [Eldest Brother is so smart. Did he figure out all of this himself or is there any ghost who was helping him?]
At this moment, they suddenly saw Xiao Yuanwei heading in their direction. It didn’t take long before he reached them.
Zhou Wenzhi was still a little overwhelmed. Still, he greeted him like usual. "Mr. Su."
Unexpectedly, he greeted back with a shocking address. "Father-in-law."