"Little Daddy, this is the surprise I wanted to give you! You haven't forgotten about the parent-child activity at kindergarten tomorrow, have you? This is the outfit we'll be wearing for tomorrow's activity. I picked it out myself. Do you think it looks good?"
Looking into the child's expectant eyes, Xia Ran immediately praised him.
“Our Xiao Chen picked it out! That’s great! Let’s open it and take a look.”
He had already mentally prepared himself for the parent-child activity with Gu Zheng tomorrow, so he didn't feel anything when talking about it now.
Because of Xia Ran's praise, Gu Chen's eyes shone as if little stars were twinkling.
"Wow, it looks so good!" Xia Ran took out the clothes, looked at them, and praised them again without hesitation.
Xia Ran was telling the truth. The clothes were indeed quite nice. Although they were all common hoodie styles, the cut and quality gave a very good impression, which was also the style Xia Ran liked.
The one he was holding should be his own size; he even held it up to his body to compare.
"Little Daddy is so handsome!" Gu Chen also gave Xia Ran a very generous compliment.
Xia Ran couldn't help but laugh, "This is all thanks to you, Xiao Chen! You chose this!"
Gu Chen's fair and delicate face turned red.
“I’m glad my little dad likes it. This small one is mine, and the big one is my big dad’s. I originally wanted to buy one for my great-grandfather too, but the saleswoman said they didn’t have four.”
Gu Chen was very disappointed about this. He turned to look at Grandpa Xia with pleading eyes and said softly,
"Great-Grandpa, don't worry, I'll definitely find you the same one in the future!"
Grandpa Xia was overjoyed by the coaxing.
"Alright, alright, great-grandfather believes in Xiao Chen and will definitely wait."
Watching from the side, Mr. Lin finally understood why Xia Ran and the old man liked this child so much.
Not to mention the two of them, even he himself felt incredibly fond of it.
Xia Ran adjusted her clothes, but subconsciously ignored Gu Zheng's.
"By the way, Daddy, can I sleep with you tonight? I've already talked to Daddy, and he'll come pick us up tomorrow, is that okay?"
Xia Ran looked down at Gu Chen, "You... even your eldest father agreed?"
"Yes, yes, I promised, Daddy. It's been so long since I slept with you."
Faced with the child's expectant eyes, Xia Ran simply couldn't refuse.
And it's true that he hasn't slept with his child for a long time. It wasn't convenient in the hospital before, but it's not a problem now.
"Okay, I'll cook you a nice meal tonight. Haven't you had your dad's cooking in a while?"
Xia Ran held the child in her arms, feeling somewhat emotional as she recalled the events of the past few days.
"Mmm!! I've been thinking about it!" Gu Chen put his arm around Xia Ran's shoulder.
Mr. Lin, who was watching from the side, couldn't help but speak up.
"Xiao Ran, shouldn't this child call me Grandpa according to seniority? Why don't you have him call me that?"
This time, Gu Chen finally turned his attention to Lin's father.
"Little Daddy, who is he? Why do we call him Grandpa?"
Chapter 367 A Father's Responsibility
Gu Chen's brows furrowed into a small knot, clearly showing his complete incomprehension.
Xia Ran glanced at Lin's father, then at Gu Chen, as if considering how to explain Lin's father's identity.
However, Lin's father had long been fascinated by Gu Chen, and upon hearing this, he immediately reached out and patted the child's head.
"I am your great-grandfather's godson and your stepfather's uncle, so according to seniority you should call me grandpa."
Gu Chen's brows remained furrowed. He didn't answer Lin's father immediately, but instead looked at Xia Ran.
Xia Ran and Grandpa Xia were somewhat surprised by what Lin's father had just said.
Unexpectedly, Mr. Lin treated them this way... he actually admitted it directly.
This made Grandpa Xia and Xia Ran secretly determined to treat people as their own family even more.
Xia Ran glanced at Lin's father before lowering her head to speak to the child.
“That’s right. According to seniority, Xiao Chen should call him Grandpa. Although this Grandpa is very young, he really should call him Grandpa.”
Finally, Xia Ran couldn't resist teasing Lin's father.
Mr. Lin chuckled, clearly pleased with Xia Ran's words.
"I'm not young anymore, I'm forty-seven. It's just that I've been living a comfortable life these past few years, which is why I look younger. If I were born at the same age as Ming, I would be a grandfather by now."
Mr. Lin spoke with a smile, his eyes fixed on Gu Chen.
Xia Ran was somewhat surprised to hear what Lin's father said.
"Uncle Lin, are you already forty-seven? I thought you were only forty at most!"
"How could I only be forty!" Mr. Lin said, somewhat amused and exasperated. "If I were forty, how young would I have been when I had Ziming? Ziming's mother and I were childhood sweethearts, and we got engaged as soon as we turned eighteen."
"Later, I was even more afraid that she would be snatched away by someone else, so I couldn't wait to get married at the age of nineteen. At that time, my family laughed at me for being too impatient. But when you really like someone, you realize how much you want to keep that person by your side, even if it means doing everything you can."
Recalling the past, a rare sweet and gentle smile appeared on Mr. Lin's face.
"Your aunt is very beautiful, but she's also very absent-minded, clingy, and afraid of pain. But when she gave birth to Ziming, she was like a different person. She didn't complain about the pain and instead comforted me, saying that she would definitely give Ziming a younger brother or sister in the future."
"You know, someone who's so afraid of pain actually comforted me. How foolish of her! But I was afraid of her pain, so for two or three years after giving birth to Ziming, I didn't want her to have any more children. But then... an accident happened when Ziming was three years old. There was a change in our family, and she died unexpectedly because of her child. I..."
Mr. Lin's voice choked up, and tears streamed down his face without him even realizing it.
Xia Ran gently nudged Gu Chen and winked at him. Gu Chen quickly understood and immediately leaned into Lin's father's arms, raising his hand to wipe away Lin's father's tears.
"Don't cry. Daddy said that a real man bleeds but doesn't cry. If you cry, you're not a real man."
Gu Chen's words, spoken with a stern face, warmed Lin's father's heart and brought him back from his reverie.
"I'm sorry, Grandpa was being naughty. He's such a big guy and he's still crying." He wiped away his tears and then put the child on his lap.
Gu Chen's body stiffened slightly, and he subconsciously looked up at Xia Ran.
Xia Ran smiled encouragingly at him this time, but did not hug him.
Mr. Lin needs someone to comfort him right now, and Gu Chen is that person.
"Xiao Lin, don't overthink it. She'll be sad to see you like this over there," Grandpa Xia comforted Lin's father. He hadn't expected Lin's father to have such a past.
“Yes, Uncle, don’t be sad.” Xia Ran also said, “Look, you just said that you and Aunt are truly in love. You grew up together as childhood sweethearts. Isn’t that a wonderful thing?”
“You two were together through every stage of your lives, and those memories are irreplaceable. You have her everything. Even though she's no longer in this world, she'll always be in your heart, right?”
Xia Ran didn't know how to comfort Lin's father, so she could only express some of her thoughts.
And his words were indeed more effective than any words of comfort.
"Yes, no matter what, I had her, we loved each other, and when the time comes, I can go there to find her."
Mr. Lin spoke with a smile, his face no longer showing any sign of distress.
He's come to terms with things a lot over the years, but he couldn't help feeling a little sad just now when he talked about it.
“Then your idea won’t work. You must live a long and healthy life, the kind that lasts a hundred years. Only then can you properly tell your aunt about the changes in the world when you see her again.” Xia Ran quickly added, afraid that Lin’s father might do something rash.
Mr. Lin, of course, understood Xia Ran's meaning and said with a smile,
"Don't worry, don't worry, I won't do anything rash. I haven't lived enough yet. I told your aunt before that no matter which one is gone, the other must live well and live on in place of the other person."
Xia Ran breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good. Maybe when Ziming gets married and has children, he'll give you a few grandchildren and you can enjoy the joys of family life."
Upon hearing Xia Ran's words, Lin's father's mind flashed to Yu Wu's face, and he instantly laughed again.
"That's not necessarily true."
"Huh?" Xia Ran looked at Lin's father in confusion. "What does Uncle Lin mean?"
"It's nothing, it's nothing. Come on, let's not talk about this anymore. Let's talk about something happy. Xiao Chen, right? Come on, quickly call me Grandpa."
Mr. Lin looked down at Gu Chen on his lap with a happy smile, his face full of anticipation.
Gu Chen didn't know whether to call out or not, so he could only look at Xia Ran with longing eyes.
Xia Ran nodded slightly to him, indicating that she could.
Even though Xia Ran nodded and told Gu Chen to call out, Gu Chen still hesitated. He didn't know this person and didn't like him much because this person hadn't let his father in.
But his stepfather also made him shout... so he was a little conflicted.
Mr. Lin noticed his child's resistance. Although somewhat disappointed, he didn't intend to force the child and simply said cheerfully,
"It's okay, it's okay. If you really can't get used to it, then don't call it anymore. You can call it when you get used to it later. There's plenty of time."
Xia Ran was also somewhat helpless; he roughly understood what the child meant.
Because of the child's personality, the child is unwilling to shout.
"Uncle Lin, no..."
"grandfather."
Just as Xia Ran was about to apologize to Lin's father, a soft but somewhat unnatural voice rang out.
The three adults present all looked at Gu Chen. Under their gazes, Gu Chen's face flushed red, and he stammered,
"Little...Little Daddy, why...why are you looking at me like that? I..."
Xia Ran snapped out of her daze and burst out laughing.
"No, no, it's just that our Xiao Chen is good-looking."
"That's right, that's right, our Xiao Chen is so handsome." Grandpa Xia chimed in.
Mr. Lin was overjoyed when his child called him "Grandpa".
"Good, good, good child. But it's a pity that Grandpa didn't bring anything with him. I'll bring you something tomorrow after I go back."
He couldn't help but rub the child's head. What a pity this wasn't his child, otherwise he really wanted to give him a big kiss. That soft, chubby face was just too cute!
Xia Ran: "Uncle, there's no need to get him anything. He has everything. Don't spoil him."
"Yes, I have everything, so I don't need to take anything. But... thank you, Grandpa."