At night, the Tang family.
"Honored Father, you're back! Have you eaten? Honored Mother is in the kitchen preparing food for you!"
"Mm! Preparing food for me? But I've already eaten! As for you, Xiao Rou, have you eaten?"
"I've eaten! Thank you for your concern, Honored Father!"
"......."
Dressed in a suit and leather shoes, Tang Guo'an had just returned home when he saw his daughter personally open the door to greet him, and at once he revealed the kindly smile of an old father.
My daughter is just too considerate~~~
She understands her old father's hard work and worries that he hasn't eaten enough~~~
Sure enough, a daughter is a father's little cotton-padded jacket~~~
Warmth welled up in Tang Guo'an's heart as he cast a loving look at Tang Rou.
Out of the corner of his eye he happened to see Tang Chuan sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed, cracking melon seeds and leisurely watching TV, and his face immediately darkened.
Hmph, sons are like bulletproof vests—only good for getting on your nerves!!!
Sensing a dangerous gaze on him, Tang Chuan's face stiffened; he immediately tossed away the melon seeds, stood up with an awkward smile, and greeted, "Dad, you're off work!"
"Only just now you noticed?! Look at your sister, how concerned she is about her old man! And you, you little brat....."
"Hmph! The day you're half as sensible as Xiao Rou, I won't know how warm my heart will feel."
"Too bad you're useless except for making me angry—might as well have given birth to a cudgel!"
"........"
With a depressed look on his face, Tang Chuan hunched his neck and obediently accepted Tang Guo'an's mountain-like fatherly scolding.
Two and a half minutes later.
Feeling refreshed, Tang Guo'an finally let his son off for the moment.
The next second, as if remembering something, he shifted the topic to Lin Xuan.
"Right. That girl in the hospital you mentioned this afternoon—what happened with her?"
At the mention of this, Tang Chuan immediately perked up. He pointed toward the kitchen and his face filled with schadenfreude.
"Her? I don't know! Mom went to the hospital by herself this afternoon; you should ask her, she'll know clearly...."
"But knowing Mom's hatred for evil, she definitely gave that beast of a cousin a good beating and rescued that pitiful girl while she was at it!"
"......."
Hearing that the girl had been saved, Tang Guo'an finally relaxed and nodded in satisfaction.
Because of what happened back then, he had completely lost faith in his hopeless nephew Lin Xuan.
So, for all these years he had utterly given up on him, letting him fend for himself.
He hadn't expected that after so many years, the next time he heard news of Lin Xuan, it would still be that the brat hadn't changed his ways, and was trying to harm an innocent, pitiful young girl.....
He really is… a dog that can't stop eating shit!!!
Because of his preconceived notions, Tang Guo'an didn't doubt his son's speculation at all; his impression of Lin Xuan once again plummeted to rock bottom.
"Good! The net of heaven is wide, but none escape its mesh! Any evil will eventually be brought to justice!"
"If that kid Lin Xuan still won't repent, one day he'll pay a heavy price for his beastly behavior."
"Sigh… I just pity my younger sister. If, down in the nine springs, she knew her son had turned into such a bastard, how heartbroken would she be?"
"......."
When the image of his sister Tang Yuwei flashed through his mind, Tang Guo'an let out a deep sigh; in his heart there was both self-blame and anger at his nephew's uselessness.
At the side, Tang Rou's eyes immediately turned red, her heart full of self-reproach.
.......
"I'm sorry! Honored Father, Honored Brother, it's all my fault."
"If it weren't for me… you wouldn't have ended up falling out so badly with Cousin Lin Xuan."
"Had I known it would turn out like this, when Cousin Lin Xuan tried to ruin my innocence back then, I shouldn't have resisted......"
"For the sake of family harmony, I'm willing to sacrifice anything!"
"Even if it was a girl's most precious first time! For the sake of this big family of ours, I'd have been willing to let Cousin Lin Xuan trample my body....."
"But I..... I've let down the aunt who passed away; clearly by sacrificing just me, we could have kept a happy family...."
"......."
Tang Rou pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed her tears, her mouth spilling regret again and again.
This pitiful look that would move even stone hearts instantly made Tang Guo'an ache all over for her.
Look at that, just look at that......
What a kind and simple angelic daughter (sister).....
???( ˊ?ˋ )???*.
For the family's harmony, she was willing to sacrifice herself, o(╥﹏╥)o ignoring the boundless grievance she suffered.
Clearly, she was the victim, yet she so kindly and generously forgave that beast Lin Xuan, and even felt guilty that her justified self-defense had led them and Lin Xuan to sever all ties....
At this moment.
To the father and son of the Tang family, it was as if they could see holy light shining from the girl, dazzling and resplendent.
They also sincerely thanked heaven for bringing such a gentle and kind angelic daughter (sister) to their side.....
With tears streaming, Tang Guo'an softly comforted:
"Daughter! The one at fault isn't you—it's that beastly nephew of mine! You're just too kind!"
"Sigh, it's your old dad who's sorry for you! Every time I think of what happened back then, I want to slap that animal with a few more big slaps!"
"(￣ε(#￣)☆╰╮(￣▽￣///)....."
Tang Chuan's eyes grew moist; he sighed over what virtue he possessed to deserve such a kind, angelic sister in this life. ┭┮﹏┭┮
"(?"? ?)?"(???︿???) Sis, don't blame yourself; I'm the one who should be blamed!"
"If I hadn't misjudged that beast of a cousin, how would you have nearly been harmed by him?!"
"[○?｀Д′? ○] The more I think about it now, the angrier I get. If I'd known, I should've 'bang bang' given him a few more punches back then, instead of just breaking his nose...."
"......."
In the kitchen.
Hearing her husband's voice from outside, Xu Shuyun lifted the stew and walked out.
Seeing the father and son trio with tear-filled eyes, she froze on the spot.
"What are you all... doing? |_?)"
"Mom! You're just in time; I'd been meaning to ask....."
Seeing Xu Shuyun appear in the living room, Tang Chuan's eyes lit up; he couldn't wait to ask:
"Hurry and tell us—the whole process of how you rescued that girl in the hospital and then gave that beastly cousin a hard lesson?"
"Mm? Who told you I went to teach Lin Xuan a lesson?"
Casting a glance at her airheaded son, Xu Shuyun spoke irritably.
Ever since confirming that Lin Xuan's inner voice was true....
Xu Shuyun knew this nephew of hers was destined for the extraordinary.
After all, the ability to foresee the future is too terrifying; rising up is only a matter of time.....
Therefore, even if the Tang family didn't befriend him, they must avoid becoming enemies at all costs; otherwise, sooner or later they might face a reckoning, and then the mighty Tang family would be in peril.
According to tropes from the films she's seen.....
People like Lin Xuan are "protagonists" blessed with great fortune, who always turned danger into safety, and any faction that opposed him would never end well in the end.
Even though she, as the fated Eldest Aunt, now possessed the special ability of "eavesdropping on inner voices," it would still be hard to compete with him.
┐(?～?)┌ Nothing she could do about it......
After several hours of testing, she despairingly discovered her ability seemed to work only on Lin Xuan.
And according to her conjecture....
She couldn't be too far from Lin Xuan; beyond a certain distance, the special ability failed and she couldn't eavesdrop on his inner voice......
On top of that, Lin Xuan now seemed different from before, and he had even saved her biological daughter.....
After careful consideration....
On top of that, Lin Xuan now seemed different from before, and he had even saved her biological daughter.....
The only complication was..... her husband and children.....
Their prejudice against Lin Xuan ran deep; they likely wouldn't agree to this easily, so she could only slowly think of ways later.
'For the family's future, I can't let them continue to be at odds with Lin Xuan.'
'Sigh~~ who made me the chosen one?'
'In the end, I alone must bear it all.....'
Xu Shuyun sighed inwardly.
Then, with a serious expression, she instructed the dumbfounded Tang Chuan and the others:
"I went to the hospital this afternoon and saw it with my own eyes—Lin Xuan did not harm that girl."
"On the contrary, he saved her and gave her the hope to live on....."
"You all misunderstood Lin Xuan! He has now turned over a new leaf; he's already a different person. From now on, stop looking at him with prejudice!"
"........"
(???(??? ;) what??????
Did we hear that right?!
Lin Xuan?
Didn't Mom always call him directly by name before, even cursing at him out loud.....
How did a trip to the hospital turn into her calling him so affectionately when she came back???
And she even said we misunderstood that kid Lin Xuan, asking us to drop our prejudice against him?!
After hearing Xu Shuyun's words, all three members of the Tang family present were stunned on the spot Σ(☉▽☉"a, questioning their entire life....
The quickest to react, Tang Chuan, grew agitated; his face flushed as he glared at Xu Shuyun, as if betrayed by his closest kin.
.......
"Mom?! Has something gone wrong with your brain?"
"How could that beastly cousin have turned over a new leaf? Impossible, absolutely impossible!!!"
"What kind of potion did Cousin give you? Don't forget! That guy is the animal who tried to hurt little sister Xiao Rou!"
"As the saying goes: how can a dog stop eating shit?!"
"I have 95% absolute confidence you were fooled by Cousin's disguise......."
"......."
Beside him, Tang Guo'an nodded in deep agreement, feeling that his nephew was utterly beyond saving.
He also frowned and shot his wife a look, somewhat displeased, not understanding why she suddenly spoke up for Lin Xuan?!
Did she not realize their biological daughter was right here?
Xiao Rou had nearly been harmed by Lin Xuan; speaking for the perpetrator in front of her—how would Xiao Rou feel? How upset would she be.....
Standing beside the two, Tang Rou said nothing; a shadow flickered in her eyes and an inexplicable unease rose in her heart.
She kept feeling that ever since Xu Shuyun returned from the hospital....
Her attitude toward her had changed slightly.
These changes were like silent rain, impossible to describe clearly or pinpoint exactly what was different, but Tang Rou could distinctly sense them.....
On the other side.
Facing Tang Chuan's loud reproach, Xu Shuyun arched a brow, stepped forward, grabbed his ear, and gave it a hard twist.
"You little brat, (⊙x⊙;) shut up! You've really gone and flipped the sky, daring to talk to your mom like that?!"
"And also… who said dogs can't stop eating shit? Wangcai, get over here!"
"Ask Wangcai if it eats shit now?"
"......."
At Xu Shuyun's call, a large golden retriever wobbled out from the hallway.
This was the Tang family's pet; its food, drink, and supplies were all the very best.
Hearing that Tang Chuan wanted it to eat crap, Wangcai's dog face was full of disbelief?!!
It widened its doggy eyes and looked at Tang Chuan with a gaze that even had a hint of human contempt.....
"Woof woof woof~~~"
(Dog-speak: I may not be a real person, but you're a real dog?!)
"Woof woof woof woof woof~~~"
(Dog-speak: It's the 21st century and there are still owners willing to let pets eat crap?!)
.......
"See that? What era do you think this is? Who says dogs can't stop eating shit?!"
"Lin Xuan turning over a new leaf is perfectly reasonable, isn't it? Besides! To err is human!"
"Back then Lin Xuan also acted on impulse; we should give him a chance to reform."
"......"
Since she didn't want to tell others about [eavesdropping on inner voices], Xu Shuyun could only clearly state her present stance.
As for the matter of Chu Ling and Tang Rou's identities.....
She wanted to first privately discuss it with Old Tang, then decide how to lay it out to the children......