I arrived in the afternoon and waited, squatting on the stairs by the door. I mused that Gao Ziyan was not to be underestimated; to deal with Cao Qian, she had spared no expense to find the Cao family, where Cao Qian had lived as a child.
Alas, this method of dealing with enemies would no longer be needed.
I waited for a while longer, but no one came. My purpose in being here was to see what kind of family it was that made Cao Qian so stubbornly seek revenge for them.
However, after waiting for a while, I suddenly thought that this might cause trouble for Cao's parents.
After all, Cao Qian might still have many enemies!
But just as I was about to leave, Cao's father and mother returned, and they were with a little boy, whose appearance was strikingly similar to Cao Qian's.
The little boy looked to be around Tang Yi's age, and at this age, my head buzzed.
Back in Shandong, when I dealt with Zhang Si, my senior sister had exploited a loophole. Later, when we met in Beijing, my senior sister appeared to have already given birth and was with a girl named 'Tang Yi.'
All along, I had assumed that 'Tang Yi' was the product of a mistake between her and me. But in fact, Lin Han had confirmed that 'Tang Yi' was merely a child she had bought, and in that scheme, my senior sister had ruthlessly used a child as a 'tool' to control me with her death.
The irreconcilable conflict between us began then. But upon seeing this child, I was stunned. Did my senior sister really have a child of her own?
"Young man, who are you looking for?"
"Cao Qian sent me."
I lied, but to my surprise, as soon as I finished speaking, Cao's mother's eyes immediately welled up, and she asked tremblingly, "Qianqian is dead?"
What was going on? For a moment, I didn't know what to make of it, nor how Cao's mother had deduced it.
Before I could ask further, Cao's mother squatted on the steps and sobbed uncontrollably. The little child, not understanding, tugged at Cao's mother and said, "Grandma, don't cry, Huanghuang will give you candy, okay?"
Cao's father was stunned, but he was the first to regain his senses. He opened the door and invited me in, pulling Cao's mother inside as well. Cao's mother still couldn't control her emotions and rushed into the bedroom after entering.
The little child named Huanghuang also started crying and followed Cao's mother into the bedroom.
I stood outside the door, feeling awkward and unsure of what to do.
"Come in!"
Cao's father invited me into the house.
After entering, Cao's father tremblingly poured himself a glass of water. After a few sips, he managed to calm himself down somewhat. He asked me, "Young man, your name is Tang Nan, right?"
"How did you know?"
"Qianqian told us."
"Oh!"
Cao's father slowly began to tell me about Cao Qian.
Cao Qian returned home a few months after the Shandong incident. By then, her belly was already quite large, making her movements difficult.
At that time, Cao Qian still had many things to do, and she knew that this child would definitely be used by Zhu Guang as my weakness against me. However, no matter what, Cao Qian wanted to give birth to this child.
Where to give birth was an issue. Cao Qian had no one she could trust, so in the end, she thought of Cao's father and mother!
For many years, Cao's father and mother had not moved from their residence, hoping Cao Qian could find her way back. When Cao Qian returned this time, already heavily pregnant, Cao's mother was both happy and sad.
Cao's mother was happy that Cao Qian had a child, but sad that this child had no father.
In Cao Qian's words, this child was conceived through borrowed seed. After her beloved had a car accident, Cao Qian had not thought of having any real entanglement with anyone, until she met me.
Perhaps, like my own perception, Cao Qian also felt that it was impossible for us to become husband and wife and love each other for life.
But some emotions cannot be hidden. Cao Qian couldn't suppress her feelings for me. Perhaps we couldn't end up together, but Cao Qian wanted to have a child with me.
After that incident, Cao Qian traveled extensively, staying in the Northeast for a long time. In a poor household there, she arranged for a child. The pregnant woman there was about the same stage of pregnancy as Cao Qian.
After giving birth here, Cao Qian, without even observing the postpartum confinement period, quietly rushed to the Northeast and raised Tang Yi with her own milk.
The biological son, however, was left with the Cao family.
As they parted, Cao Qian helped Cao's mother wipe away her tears and said, "If the child is still young and a man comes looking for him, then I will be dead. That man must be the child's father; only he would have the fate to find this place. If, by the age of eighteen, no one has come, I will arrange a prosperous life for this child after he turns eighteen."
Cao's mother listened, heartbroken, and softly asked, "What is that man's name?"
"His surname is Tang."
Cao Qian said she had lied her whole life, and her child's name was Li (Lie). Cao's mother disagreed, saying there was no reason for a child to bear the sins of his parents, so Cao's mother changed the child's name to a homophone, Huang.
The child's name was still rather strange, surnamed Tang and named Huang.
After an unknown amount of time, Cao's mother finally managed to calm her emotions. She walked out and looked at me, hesitating to speak. She probably wanted to ask me why I had treated Cao Qian like this, couldn't we have loved each other properly?
But Cao's mother couldn't bring herself to say it; she didn't understand her daughter at all.
"Huanghuang, come here!"
The little child obediently walked to his grandmother's side, his eyes wide as he looked at me.
"Huanghuang, this is your father."
"Father? My father?"
"Yes, Huanghuang, he is your father."
"I really have a father! Other children have fathers and mothers, I thought I didn't."
After saying that, he playfully walked over and smiled at me. I wanted to hug him, but he ran away, startled.
"Good boy, Huanghuang, go with your father. From now on, you will live with your father."
Cao's mother said, covering her face, and ran back into the bedroom.
Huanghuang looked at me puzzled, "From now on, I will live with my father?"
"If you want to, you can."
Cao's father sighed, and hearing my words, he added, "This was Cao Qian's request. She said this is her and your child. Even if you don't believe it, a paternity test will prove everything. She also said, since you are here, take him with you. Even without a mother, he must have a father for Huanghuang to become an excellent person."
"Can you bear to part with him?"
"This child is very smart. He probably inherited Cao Qian's excellent genes. With us two old people, he would be held back. Please take him with you. However, I have one request: regardless of what kind of secret work Cao Qian and you are involved in, I hope you can leave us an address so that we old folks can visit the child when we have the chance."
"I promise."
That day, I went to the hospital with Cao's father and mother to conduct a paternity test. They had to see that Huanghuang was my biological son before they could be at ease letting me take him away.
I stayed at a nearby hotel for a few days. After the test results came out, I stared at the results in a daze.
This Huanghuang was indeed my son.
Cao Qian's thoughts were truly unfathomable. She would rather take a fake daughter to deceive me than bring her real child before me. She believed she had the ability to find an outstanding future for the child. But she also knew that her life had always been on the edge of a cliff; the longer she walked, the more likely she was to make mistakes.
I took Huanghuang onto the train. He was very naive, thinking I was taking him out to play today and would bring him back tomorrow, as his grandmother had told him. But that was a lie.
Watching Cao's mother's tears and Cao's father's reluctance, I explained everything to Huanghuang on the train.
Huanghuang didn't speak, nor did he cry. He took out a letter and handed it to me, "Grandma asked me to give this to you."
"What is it?"
"I don't know."
I opened the letter. It was written by Cao Qian to me.
"Tang Nan, you've arrived. Despite my thousandfold reluctance, at this point, we are likely separated by life and death. Since it has come to this, I will be honest and say, I loved you a little. I'm sorry, only a little. For someone as heartless as me, a little is quite a lot. So, please don't be sad because of my departure. Honestly, writing this letter feels like writing a suicide note, and I'm not quite sure how to proceed! Let me think! It seems we have encountered an unbeatable enemy. I believe that no matter what kind of person I am at the end, I will be on the same front line as you. Although I am dead, I think the enemy I cannot defeat may not be able to defeat you. You are not a good schemer, nor do you have much talent. But I think your greatest strength is your kindness. You are favored by heaven, and many people are willing to help you, willing to love you. I will likely die a long time from now, as I don't believe I can lose to Zhu Guang, or Duan Dongyang, you will know this name later. Of course, our enemy cannot be our Master; he doesn't have the ambition to conquer. So who is the enemy? Never mind, I don't want to think about it. I want to know who finally marries you. By the time I die, I will probably know. My heart will surely be unwilling. Perhaps I will greatly disrupt your relationship, don't resent me, because in the world of love, everyone is selfish, even if I only love you a little. Speaking of your wife, I can probably guess it's Lin Han, who was with you in Shandong. Honestly, I hated her the moment I saw her, because I could feel that you two were a perfect match. However, it's not certain, she might die by my hand. No one can see the future, not even if our ancestor Mr. Wende were revived. However, I am foolishly writing this letter. You probably won't come for the child when he turns eighteen, as I am not someone who can be easily defeated. But, sigh, what are all these 'buts.' This child is called Huanghuang, our biological son. No matter what happens between you and me, this cannot be changed. If you come, treat him well. Don't let your wife bully him, and don't let your children with your wife bully him. Goodbye, Tang Nan. Despite a thousandfold reluctance, we must finally part. In this life, I love you a little. In the next life, perhaps I will not love you at all. Loving you is too tiring! Farewell, Tang Nan."