The freckled beauty glanced at Zhou Ziwei with affection, immediately took the glass of liquid, and then swayed gracefully with her slender waist as she walked into the inner room.
Five minutes later, when Yu Xiaoru and the other two, who had been unconscious, finally woke up one after another, everyone exclaimed in surprise again.
Just moments ago, they were marveling at how such a large cup of seemingly random substances, all mixed together, could resemble a cup of clear water. But now they realized that the water-like substance was far from simple; just three spoonfuls each had managed to revive three patients who had been in a deep coma.
This...this is truly astonishing.
Upon hearing the news that the three people inside had woken up, Zhou Ziwei did not immediately go to see his parents. Instead, he sat on a chair outside, his expression somewhat melancholy as he reminisced for a moment, recalling some of his past life's habits and everyday details. Once he had a general idea in his mind, he went to the communications company in the military compound to make a phone call. After everything was arranged, he first walked towards the room of his parents from his past life...
"So handsome..." The freckled little girl hid behind the curtains in the inner room, secretly peeking at Zhou Ziwei outside. When she saw Zhou Ziwei tilting his head and lost in thought, her eyes were filled with sparkling little stars. Especially when Zhou Ziwei's eyes shone with that deep and somewhat melancholic sadness, the freckled little girl was so excited that she wanted to rush up and hug Zhou Ziwei and offer herself to him. Handsome... I never thought that such a young child could be so handsome... This kind of handsome is real handsome... The freckled little girl immediately felt that all the men who usually pursued her were more childish than children. They didn't seem as mature as this five or six-year-old child.
Zhou Ziwei entered his parents' room and saw that they had just woken up from a deep coma. As they got older, their mental state was inevitably poor. At this moment, they were only half-opening their eyes and lying there without wanting to speak.
Zhou Ziwei glanced at the two nurses who were taking care of the elderly couple in the room, waved his hand, and told them to leave and not to bother him unless necessary.
The two nurses looked at Zhou Ziwei with obvious curiosity in their eyes, but... knowing that even Major Xu dared not neglect this little brat, they naturally dared not disobey Zhou Ziwei's words, and immediately agreed and left one after another. Before leaving, the big-breasted girl did not forget to sway her voluptuous breasts at Zhou Ziwei.
Zhou Ziwei was speechless and had to force himself to swallow hard... Damn it... He's only a "five or six-year-old" kid, and if he were to act so lewdly, that... just doesn't seem right...
After the two nurses left and closed the door tightly, Zhou Ziwei turned around and walked to Mr. and Mrs. Yang. He looked at their faces, which were covered with fine wrinkles, with some excitement, and then suddenly knelt down.
Getting one's parents from a past life to recognize each other is not an easy thing, but Zhou Ziwei is their son and has countless little secrets that only they know, so... it's not that difficult to do.
Moreover, Mr. and Mrs. Yang were deeply saddened by their son's passing. Although they were extremely surprised by this outcome, they remembered that since their son's death, they had been silently praying that his spirit in heaven would be at peace and happy, and that he would no longer suffer the injustices and hardships he had endured in his previous life. The two elders believed that it must have been their sincere prayers that moved heaven and earth, which gave their son an extra chance to be reborn, and that he was even reborn with the memories of his previous life.
Of course... they weren't easily fooled. To avoid the embarrassment of mistaking one son for another, they all called Zhou Ziwei over and thoroughly examined him, asking him many details about his son's life from childhood to adulthood, leaving Zhou Ziwei completely bewildered.
Although Zhou Ziwei is indeed Yang Hongtao from his previous life, at least his soul is real, without any fakery.
However... sometimes parents ask some really strange questions that are hard to answer, such as... when did they first lose a tooth in their past life... when did they first have a nightmare... when did they first have a wet dream...
When Mom asked about nocturnal emission, she wasn't trying to tease her son. That's precisely where her cunning lies. In her eyes, Zhou Ziwei is still just a five or six-year-old child. So even if Zhou Ziwei was misled into memorizing some of his past life's habits, a five or six-year-old's attitude towards nocturnal emission is fundamentally different from an adult's attitude towards such a sensitive issue.
Sure enough, when Mom asked the question, she actually saw a complex mix of surprise, embarrassment, and shame on Zhou Ziwei's face. In her heart, she was already convinced that her son was definitely not a fake. If he wasn't really someone who had been reborn with memories of his past life, even if a five or six-year-old kid knew what nocturnal emission meant, why would he show such complicated emotions about this question?
Having finally passed his parents' test, Zhou Ziwei felt utterly exhausted. This feeling... was even more nerve-wracking than taking the college entrance exam in his previous life... Especially his mother, who kept asking him those incredibly embarrassing questions. Ugh... it was driving him crazy...
Fortunately, he finally passed the test, which made his parents extremely happy. They hugged him and cried their hearts out. Then they couldn't wait to ask him about what happened after he was reincarnated in this life.
Zhou Ziwei immediately started spouting nonsense, saying that he was born into an ordinary family in Dangyang in this life, and because he was born with memories of his previous life, he performed exceptionally well and became a prodigy who attracted much attention. He was recruited by the country and secretly sent to the country's highest military institution for a period of training. Now... he has graduated ahead of schedule and is carrying out some small missions.
He came to Zhongdu this time to carry out a counter-terrorism operation. He learned from a satellite signal interception that his parents and Yu Xiaoru from his previous life had been kidnapped. So he and his team members worked together to rescue his parents from his previous life.
Zhou Ziwei didn't go into much detail about the process, and his parents didn't ask him how he saved them. They just kept asking him about small things that happened after he was born, such as what kind of people his parents were in this life, whether they had ever abused him, whether it would be too hard for him to be born at such a young age, what he usually ate in the army, and whether he had milk to drink every morning.
Zhou Ziwei had never made any detailed plans for these matters, and for a moment he was overwhelmed by his parents' questions, which were even more thrilling than the examination he had just undergone.
After all, the things that happened in his past life were real and actually happened to him, while the things that happened in this life were all made up by Zhou Ziwei himself. Making up these lies really tests a person's literary skills. Fortunately, Zhou Ziwei's writing skills in his past life were not bad. He even wrote a fantasy novel on a certain literary website. Unfortunately, because the click rate was too dismal, he had no choice but to castrate himself.
However, having already read quite a few fantasy novels about rebirth, Zhou Ziwei had a lot of experience. He combined the anecdotes from those novels and talked nonsense to his parents, which managed to fool them quite a bit.
It wasn't until her parents and Zhou Ziwei had talked for a long time that Yang's mother suddenly remembered about Yu Xiaoru. After asking her about it, she learned that Yu Xiaoru had also been rescued with them and was now out of danger. Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief.
However, afterwards... Yang's mother's expression as she looked at Zhou Ziwei became extremely strange.
"Mom... what's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?" Zhou Ziwei felt uncomfortable under Yang's mother's gaze and couldn't help but ask in a low voice.
Yang's mother coughed lightly, glanced at Yang's father, and then said with a wry smile, "This... about Xiaoru, how much do you... know?"
Zhou Ziwei sighed softly and said, "Well... I know a little about Xiaoru through some connections. I know that she... ever since I was executed, she has been by your side, taking care of you in my place. She's even more filial to you than... even more filial than my sister, isn't that right?"
"Yes...it's good that you know..." Mother Yang sighed softly, "She's such a sensible and filial pared to her sister, she's simply...um...I suppose you know that too! Xiaoru has been living with us as our daughter-in-law for so many years, but she's lived like a widow. We're not stupid; we felt really bad about her sacrifice. Seeing so many talented young men pursuing her, we've advised her more than once...to stop thinking about you all the time, and if there's someone suitable, she should just...just get married."
But she just wouldn't agree, no matter what we said, she wouldn't listen. Originally… if she insisted on spending her life alone with us, we would feel a little guilty, but… there was nothing we could do. But now… you've been reincarnated, so… how are you going to resolve your relationship with her? Hmm… as for her older sister, Xiaoya, we won't interfere. That girl isn't very kind-hearted; we don't care what you do to her. But as her mother, I just hope you won't let your hatred for your sister affect your younger sister. Xiaoru is a good girl; she's taken such good care of your parents for six years. You absolutely can't mistreat her.
But... well... you're so young now, if you really marry her... that might not be quite right. And if you don't marry her, that would be unfair to her too... Ugh, I can't help with this headache. You young people should figure it out yourselves! Anyway, what Mom means is... no matter what, you have to respect Xiaoru's wishes. You can't let her suffer, understand? Otherwise... Mom won't acknowledge you as her son anymore.”
Upon hearing this, Zhou Ziwei was immediately speechless... He had only thought of using his current identity as a child to play a trick of reincarnation so that he could successfully reunite with his parents, but he forgot to consider that this would make his relationship with Yu Xiaoru very awkward.
You know, Yu Xiaoru has always presented herself as a daughter-in-law of the Yang family in public, and many people already know this. Xiaoru doesn't seem to have any intention of finding another man. From the request that Yu Xiaoru and Zhou Ziwei made in the role they were impersonating last time, Zhou Ziwei knew that she really loved him, and loved him so deeply and intensely that it was impossible for him to refuse.
However, Zhou Ziwei has now reappeared in front of Yu Xiaoru as a child, which is... quite troublesome... As for his current age, it doesn't matter to his parents. Whether he is thirty or three years old, in his parents' eyes, their son will always be their son, and it has nothing to do with age.
However, this is a very difficult distinction to make between lovers, or rather, partners.
Love knows no borders, no age... But apart from some women in the old society who would marry young children as child brides, I've never heard of a woman nowadays being crazy enough to marry a child who is twenty years younger than herself.
If Yu Xiaoru also acknowledges that Zhou Ziwei is the reincarnation of Yang Hongtao, then how should their relationship be defined?
Can their past life's love continue? Or...?
Zhou Ziwei was also quite troubled by this problem, but after thinking about it, he stopped worrying about it. Anyway, he already had quite a few women. If Yu Xiaoru really had her eye on him and wouldn't change her mind even if he turned into a child, then Zhou Ziwei would have nothing to say. He could just take another wife.
The only headache for him is figuring out how to persuade Wang Xuewei and the others. However, he thinks that even if Wang Xuewei and Liu Xiaofei are unwilling, they shouldn't be too opposed to this kind of thing.
If Yu Xiaoru sees that Zhou Ziwei is now a child and no longer insists on the feelings from her past life... then Zhou Ziwei naturally won't force her. In short, he'll let her choose for herself.
For Zhou Ziwei to recognize Yu Xiaoru and convince her that he is Yang Hongtao from his past life is quite difficult. After all, in his past life, Yu Xiaoru was Yang Hongtao's girlfriend's younger sister, and only had occasional contact with Yang Hongtao. Although Yu Xiaoru had always secretly loved Yang Hongtao, because of her relationship with her older sister, she naturally wouldn't have much contact with her "future brother-in-law," and they hadn't even exchanged more than a few words.
Because of this, there are naturally fewer little secrets that belong only between two people.
Mr. and Mrs. Yang were quite familiar with this kind of thing, so they didn't let Zhou Ziwei recognize Yu Xiaoru on his own. Instead, they had someone call Yu Xiaoru over to them, and Mr. and Mrs. Yang explained the matter of their son's reincarnation.
Yu Xiaoru was initially skeptical, but as she spent more time with Zhou Ziwei and saw that he often displayed some of the unique little habits of Yang Hongtao from her previous life, and did them with remarkable naturalness, and that his tone of voice and extensive knowledge made him seem nothing like a five or six-year-old child, her doubts were finally dispelled.
Volume 3, King of the City, Chapter 490: Be His Woman
When Yu Xiaoru had completely accepted Zhou Ziwei and fully believed that he was the reincarnation of Yang Hongtao, whom she deeply loved, Yang's parents quietly left the room.
Yu Xiaoru stared blankly at the little child looking up at her, suddenly feeling a bit lost.
She longed to hold Zhou Ziwei and cry her heart out, but... but what she needed was a man's strong, broad shoulders, not a child who still needed to be cared for.
Although... her feelings for Yang Hongtao had never changed in the slightest, and she was very happy to learn that Yang Hongtao had really returned to her side, Yu Xiaoru really found it hard to regard a child who was not even as tall as her waist and hips as the lover she had been longing for for many years.
Seeing Yu Xiaoru's expression, Zhou Ziwei guessed what she was thinking. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly, feeling both relieved and a little lost.
To be honest, he didn't have any feelings for Xiaoru. In his previous life, Zhou Ziwei only took care of her because she was his girlfriend's sister.
At that time, he was still a relatively simple-minded and orthodox man. Although he saw his girlfriend's younger sister growing up to be as beautiful as a lotus flower, he never had any other thoughts about Xiaoru.
Moreover, Zhou Ziwei and Yu Xiaoru didn't have much contact in his previous life. If they hadn't met again in this life, Zhou Ziwei might have forgotten what Yu Xiaoru looked like over time.
Besides... Zhou Ziwei already has enough women. He doesn't want to become a super stud. If Yu Xiaoru is still attached to the feelings from her past life, Zhou Ziwei might still be unable to refuse her. But if she herself can no longer hold on to those feelings, Zhou Ziwei naturally won't try to win her over anymore.
"Xiaoru... thank you for taking care of my parents during this time..." Seeing that Yu Xiaoru hadn't said a word for a while, Zhou Ziwei figured it wouldn't be right for the two of them to just stare at each other like that, so he casually threw out this uninformed but absolutely heartfelt expression of gratitude.
Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaoru quickly waved her hand and opened her mouth, but she didn't know what to say to Zhou Ziwei.
"Um... if you... if you don't have anything to say to me, then I... I'll go out first..."
Zhou Ziwei originally wanted to repay Yu Xiaoru for taking care of his parents over the years, for example... by acquiring Yunzhong International and gifting it to Yu Xiaoru, making Yunzhong International Yu Xiaoru's private property, or... by giving her a large sum of money so that she could invest it freely and spend it however she wanted.
However, Zhou Ziwei thought about these words but didn't say a word, because he knew in his heart that Yu Xiaoru did those things without expecting anything in return. If he said those words, it would be an insult to Yu Xiaoru.
Moreover, even if he makes a promise now, Yu Xiaoru probably won't believe that a little kid who looks only five or six years old really has such great ability to acquire Yunzhong International and give it to her... In that case, Yu Xiaoru would easily look down on him.
So Zhou Ziwei said nothing. Actions speak louder than words. He decided to wait until he had done everything properly, and then she would understand his good intentions.
Moreover, the backstory Zhou Ziwei just fabricated still needs to be perfected. He doesn't know how things are going with the old commander, or whether he's taken care of the arrangements below. He needs to go and check before he can feel at ease. Otherwise, if Yang's parents suddenly decide to see his son's colleagues and teammates who came out on the mission with him, it won't be easy to fool them...
Seeing that Yu Xiaoru still didn't speak, Zhou Ziwei smiled slightly and turned to walk out the door.
"Tao... Brother Tao!" When Yu Xiaoru saw Zhou Ziwei turn and leave, leaving behind a faint smile filled with helplessness and regret, she immediately felt as if she were seeing Yang Hongtao six years ago, standing in court facing an unjust trial and the grief and disappointment of his relatives and friends, with that tearful smile. At that time, her eyes met Yang Hongtao's tearful eyes for a moment, but then she found that his eyes were full of contempt and mockery.
Yu Xiaoru knew that it was because of her sister. He must have regarded their whole family as ungrateful and treacherous wolves. It was contempt for the two sisters and a mockery of himself.
He seemed to be saying to himself: Look! This is how you repay your two sisters who worked so hard, getting up early and working late, to support them through college. They truly have deep affection and loyalty...
That time... Yu Xiaoru was so ashamed that she wanted to disappear. She went home, covered herself with the blanket, and cried all night.
And this time... Yu Xiaoru seemed to see the same pair of eyes from the same person again. She seemed to understand the full meaning in Zhou Ziwei's bitter smile, and she suddenly felt that she was really stupid.
Did she not love Yang Hongtao? That's absolutely impossible. Otherwise, she wouldn't have continued to act as Yang Hongtao's wife after his death, moved into the Yang family home, and taken care of Yang Hongtao's parents for six years without complaint.
Since she still held onto this doomed relationship after Yang Hongtao's death, doesn't that prove that she loved Yang Hongtao's soul, and not just a simple man? And now... this person who possesses Yang Hongtao's soul is standing in front of her, so why is she still hesitating?
Even if Yang Hongtao has become a child, so what? As long as he has Yang Hongtao's soul, isn't he still the man she once deeply loved and will always love for the rest of her life?
"Brother Tao... please don't leave me again, okay?" Having made up her mind, Yu Xiaoru finally didn't hesitate at all. She rushed to Zhou Ziwei, who had already reached the door, and threw herself into his arms with tears of happiness in her eyes... oh, no... she hugged Zhou Ziwei tightly.
Although Yu Xiaoru also wanted to lean on Zhou Ziwei's chest and have the man she had loved for so many years take good care of her, Zhou Ziwei's body was too small at the moment. Yu Xiaoru could only pick him up and bury her face in his hair, bursting into tears.
Zhou Ziwei sighed softly. He knew that once Yu Xiaoru had overcome that hurdle in her heart, she would probably never be able to leave him again in this lifetime. So... wouldn't he have to owe this woman another lifetime of gratitude?
Some people will only fall in love with one person in their entire lives, and once they have chosen their target, they will remain devoted until death.
Some people fall in love with many people in their lifetime, and each one seems to be an indispensable part of their lives.
And some people... will never fall in love with anyone, because the only person they truly love is themselves.
Yu Xiaoru clearly belongs to the first category, while Zhou Ziwei belongs to the second category.
Zhou Ziwei wondered if his current fickleness was due to a heartbreak in his past life, just like a beautiful piece of porcelain that, once broken, could never be restored to its original state no matter how much it was repaired.
His heart was like a broken porcelain vase, no longer capable of focusing on any one woman. However... he believed he didn't intend to toy with any woman, nor did he have the philandering mentality of wanting to sleep with every beautiful woman he saw. It was just that those women were all too good to him, making it impossible for him to refuse...
Alright! Since Yu Xiaoru also wants to be the moth drawn to the flame, then I'll grant her wish! However... I can't tell her everything about myself all at once; I need to let her process it slowly on her own.
For Zhou Ziwei now, the most urgent task is to find a way to restore his body to a normal state.
Otherwise, if he continues to look like this... then there will be a lot of trouble in the future. If he returns to Dangyang looking like this, even Wang Xuewei and Liu Xiaofei probably won't recognize him.
If he were to barge into the Zhou Group like this, the security guards would probably throw him out immediately!
Shaking his head helplessly, Zhou Ziwei soon felt a large wet patch on his neck. This woman was truly made of water; she could cry on cue without any preamble.
Yu Xiaoru's tears came quickly but also subsided in a short while. Then, Yu Xiaoru lowered her head slightly and looked at Zhou Ziwei, who was being held in her arms and was secretly kneading her full breasts with one of his small hands. Her pretty face flushed red.
Zhou Ziwei found it somewhat amusing. He had no choice; he was genuinely terrified of women's tears and worried that Yu Xiaoru's crying would be so devastating that it would be his own sin. So, in order to stop Yu Xiaoru's crying, he had to resort to such a rogue and despicable method to distract her.
And you know what... this trick really works! In just a moment, it stopped Yu Xiaoru's crying abruptly, even more effectively than an emergency brake button...
Zhou Ziwei was initially hesitant to make a move on Yu Xiaoru, but... he was currently in the size of a child, tightly held in Yu Xiaoru's arms, with one of his small hands pressed firmly between his body and Yu Xiaoru's full breasts. This provided him with an opportunity to make his move, and even if he didn't make a move, his hand had already touched there. Anyway... Yu Xiaoru wouldn't blame him, so why not take advantage of it!
Zhou Ziwei's pinch felt extremely comfortable, but it made Yu Xiaoru incredibly embarrassed.
She's the kind of person who never shows any affection to any man. At work, there are plenty of male bosses who have tried to make a move on her, but no matter who it is, even if they try to touch her hand, she will scold them mercilessly or slap them in public. So... Yu Xiaoru has never had any intimate behavior with any man in her life.
Although her heart had long been set on Zhou Ziwei, because of her sister, under normal circumstances, Yu Xiaoru would probably never take that step between them. She didn't even dare to let Zhou Ziwei guess or see any trace of her feelings for him.
Six years ago, her sister's betrayal actually made things easier for her, allowing her to express her feelings freely without any reservations, no longer needing to hide them from anyone.
Unexpectedly, six years later, her lover, who had been executed, reappeared before her, only this time as a tiny child.