Xia Ran was startled and subconsciously looked ahead. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that Grandpa Xia was not looking at her.
He turned his head to look at Gu Zheng and whispered,
"Ah Zheng, stop fooling around, Grandpa will see it later."
Gu Zheng's lips curled slightly, and he reached out to fiddle with the bracelet on Gu Chen's wrist.
"Grandpa said, 'When you were little, you wore these on both your arms and legs? Didn't they take up space?'"
Upon hearing this, Xia Ran's face flushed red.
“I… back then, my grandpa insisted on making me wear it. Later, when I was in second grade, I absolutely refused to wear it anymore, and that's when my grandpa finally took it off for me.”
Xia Ran felt embarrassed when she thought about her childhood.
He felt that during the few days he was at home, his grandfather was about to expose all his secrets!
"But now that Grandpa is willing to give the bracelet to Xiao Chen, it proves that Grandpa really likes Xiao Chen, which is a good thing."
Xia Ran was also very shocked by her grandfather's act of giving the bracelet to Xiao Chen, but it was a good thing for them.
Gu Zheng gave a soft "hmm".
When the group arrived at the restaurant, it was indeed very crowded.
If they hadn't made reservations in advance, there really wouldn't have been any seats available.
Because this restaurant here has the best food, it's always packed, let alone today being a holiday.
After acknowledging Gu Chen, Grandpa Xia made no attempt to hide his affection for him. Sure enough, when the waiter brought over the high chair, he immediately had Gu Chen sit next to him and Xia Ran.
"Xiao Ran, you must find a girlfriend and have a baby soon after you go back to work this time, so that you and Xiao Chen will have a companion, right?"
There was a moment of silence in the carriage after Grandpa Xia said this, until Xia Ran finally spoke first.
"Grandpa, what's the rush? Now that you have Xiao Chen, let me play for a few more years."
"You silly child, getting married and having children is a normal thing, why do you always want to play around?"
Grandpa Xia said to Xia Ran helplessly.
Qin Hao glanced at Grandpa Xia, then at Xia Ran and Gu Zheng, before his eyes darted around before he smiled at Grandpa Xia and said,
"Grandpa, I'm a little older than Xia Ran. Do you have any good girls to introduce me to? How about you introduce me to one? Then my wife and I can have a few more grandsons for you to play with."
"But Grandpa, you must treat my children the same way. You absolutely cannot dislike my children."
Qin Hao spoke with a smile, which immediately diverted Grandpa Xia's attention, and he immediately asked Qin Hao what type of girl he liked.
Xia Ran breathed a sigh of relief and secretly gave Qin Hao a grateful look.
He was really afraid that his grandfather would keep asking, and he wouldn't know how to deal with him then.
The thought of his grandfather's obsession with him getting married gave him a headache.
Actually, he was quite curious at times. His grandfather was very open-minded about many things and not so old-fashioned, but he was very resistant to, and even disgusted by, relationships between men.
Because of the many people accompanying him, Xia Ran could clearly sense that Grandpa Xia was very happy during his morning tea, and the smile on his face never stopped from beginning to end.
Especially when he met some friends, he would happily and proudly introduce Gu Chen and Gu Zheng.
Since he has now recognized Gu Chen as his great-grandson, Grandpa Xia directly said that Gu Zheng is also his grandson.
Xia Ran and the others followed Grandpa Xia with smiles on their faces until they finally got out of the restaurant, only to see Yu Chao coming to the restaurant.
The moment Xia Ran saw Yu Chao, his heart suddenly tightened. He was afraid that Yu Chao would say something inappropriate in front of his grandfather.
Yu Chao never expected to run into Xia Ran. In fact, he had been deliberately keeping his distance from Xia Ran lately. After all, Xia Ran already had a family, and if he continued to pester her, it would be very bad for both himself and Xia Ran.
But he didn't expect to run into Xia Ran today.
However, upon seeing Gu Zheng and the others, Yu Chao understood that Xia Ran only had one grandfather, and he had probably brought his family back to spend the holiday with the elderly man.
"Xiao Ran, I didn't expect you to be back too," Yu Chao said with a smile.
Xia Ran could only bite the bullet and reply, "Yes, it's a holiday, so I definitely have to come back to spend the holiday with Grandpa. By the way, senior, are you going to eat? Hurry up and go in, don't keep people waiting."
When Yu Chao heard Xia Ran's words, there was still some doubt in his eyes.
He knew Xia Ran well; Xia Ran wouldn't usually say things like that.
Yu Chao glanced at Gu Zheng next to Xia Ran, as well as the two unfamiliar middle-aged couple, and probably said that because he was afraid of misunderstanding their relationship.
Yu Chao didn't know how to describe his feelings, only that he felt a little bitter. However, he wasn't a clueless person, and he understood that he really needed to keep his distance from Xia Ran now.
"Okay, I'll go in first then. But you and your partner have to treat me to a meal next time you have time. We're all classmates, and you didn't even tell me you got married. That's not very nice of you."
Yu Chao said with a smile that he was just Xia Ran's classmate.
After saying that, Yu Chao looked at Grandpa Xia and said,
"Grandpa, my family is still waiting for me inside, so I'll go in first."
He not only spoke to Grandpa Xia, but also nodded to Gu Zheng and Aunt Gu, and then looked at Gu Chen in Gu Zheng's arms.
"I can bring Lin Yang to see him again next time I have time, but the child seems to be much better now."
Xia Ran's face was already extremely pale with fear.
"Senior, you should go in first. Don't keep people waiting. We can get together again next time when we have time."
"Okay, I'll go in first then."
Yu Chao didn't notice the slight change in Xia Ran and the others' expressions. He nodded and left.
After Yu Chao left, none of Gu Zheng and the others dared to speak.
"Ranran, what did Xiaoyu mean just now?" Grandpa Xia asked with a puzzled look, his scrutinizing eyes fixed on Xia Ran.
Xia Ran froze, unsure how to answer. He even considered telling his grandfather instead.
Xia Ran's silence made Grandpa Xia's expression very unpleasant. He disregarded the fact that they were outside and asked coldly,
"Xia Ran, what exactly happened? What did Xiao Yu mean by that just now?"
Chapter 112 Grandpa Xia's Suspicion
Grandpa Xia felt a sudden unease. He glanced at Xia Ran, whose face was pale, and then at Gu Zheng beside her. A thought suddenly came to mind.
Xia Ran was also very uneasy and conflicted. He even considered whether he should just tell his grandfather directly, because he really didn't know what reason to come up with to continue the story.
Aunt Gu and the others dared not speak and could only remain silent.
But just as Xia Ran was about to tell the whole story, Gu Zheng, who was standing next to him, spoke up.
“Grandpa, it’s like this. You know a little about Xiao Chen’s situation. We’ve consulted many doctors before, but nothing worked. Then one time, I heard Xia Ran mention that one of his classmates knew a doctor who was knowledgeable about Xiao Chen’s condition, so I asked Xia Ran to ask him for me.”
"But that doctor had a very strange temper. No matter how much we offered for medical treatment, he refused to treat Xiao Chen. He said he only treated relatives and friends. Later, we had no other choice but to tell him that Xiao Chen was Xia Ran's son and asked Xia Ran's classmate to go and beg the doctor again."
"Fortunately, the doctor agreed to examine Xiao Chen after listening to his story. Do you think Xiao Chen is much better now than when he came last time? Actually, I brought Xiao Chen here last time because I wanted to ask Xia Ran's classmate for help. However, the misunderstanding has not been cleared up, and Xia Ran's classmate thought that Xia Ran was married."
Gu Zheng spoke in one breath, leaving Xia Ran, Aunt Gu, and Qin Hao all stunned.
Qin Hao, in particular, stared at Gu Zheng as if he'd seen a ghost. Was this really his brother? Could he have been possessed by some evil spirit?
Xia Ran was also shocked that Gu Zheng would say such a thing, but he reacted quickly and followed up on Gu Zheng's words.
"Yes, it was for Xiao Chen's sake before. There was really no other way. It seems that I should explain things to my senior as soon as possible to avoid him misunderstanding."
Grandpa Xia glanced at Gu Zheng, then at Xia Ran, as if considering whether Xia Ran and the others were telling the truth or not.
Qin Hao's eyes darted around, and he followed suit, speaking up as well.
"Exactly, exactly. But that doctor has a really bad temper. Last time I took you there, he was all hostile. But, well, we have to put up with it since we need his help."
After hearing Qin Hao's words, Grandpa Xia seemed to believe him somewhat. "Is that so?"
Xia Ran quickly replied, "Of course that's how it is, otherwise why would I lie to you, right?"
Xia Ran took Grandpa Xia's hand and continued speaking.
"Grandpa, let's hurry up and go. There are so many people coming and going. It's not good for others to see us like this. They might think something has happened to us. Besides, we need to go back and prepare the food for the Mid-Autumn Festival tonight."
Seeing that Xia Ran had said this, Grandpa Xia also felt that Xia Ran was not the kind of person who would lie to him. Moreover, he had just thought that the person's words were a bit strange. Now that the others had explained it, he believed it, and a smile immediately appeared on his face.
Impossible, he must be overthinking it. How could his grandson possibly...?
"Alright, alright, let's hurry back then. You can go to the market later and buy some snails and fresh vegetables. Tonight, our family will enjoy the moon together."
This is the first time in so many years that so many people have celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival together in our family. It would be a lie for Grandpa Xia to say he wasn't happy.
"Okay, I'll go in a bit." Xia Ran felt relieved when he saw that his grandfather seemed to believe him.
But Xia Ran never expected that his relief would only last for a short while.
The group happily returned home. The incident was like an insignificant interlude to Grandpa Xia, causing little disturbance.
After returning home, Grandpa Xia didn't even sit down before urging Xia Ran to go to the market with him, and of course, he brought Gu Chen along as well.
Grandpa Xia clearly wanted to show off, and Xia Ran saw this but didn't stop him.
However, if Gu Chen goes, Gu Zheng will also go.
Qin Hao, not wanting to be left behind, also clamored to go, but was stopped by Aunt Gu and the others.
The vegetable market is right next to Xia Ran's house, about a ten-minute walk away.
"Mom, why didn't you let me go? It's rare for me to get out and have fun, and if I had gone, I might have been able to help my brother and Xia Ran deal with any unexpected situations!"
After Xia Ran and the others left, Qin Hao looked at his mother with dissatisfaction.
When Aunt Gu saw Qin Hao like this, and thinking about how Gu En had already returned home, she was immediately furious and grabbed Qin Hao's ear and twisted it.
"Play, play, play! All you think about all day is play! The family is almost falling apart and you still want to play! Are you trying to drive me crazy?"
"Ouch, ouch, ouch, Mom, let go!" Qin Hao cried out, but he didn't dare touch his mother's hand, letting her twist his ear as she did so.
"Oh no, Mom, what did you just say? What do you mean the family is falling apart? Explain yourself clearly."
Aunt Gu didn't keep pulling on Qin Hao's ear.
Qin Hao rubbed his still sore ear, and after glancing at his mother's pale face, he felt a little panicked.
If his mother gets upset, he'll be the first to suffer!
"Hey Mom, what did you mean by what you just said?" Qin Hao sat down on the sofa opposite them. "What do you mean the family is falling apart? Aren't we doing just fine now?"