Chapter 374 - 371: Acknowledging Parents

Chapter 374: Chapter 371: Acknowledging Parents

"You’re quite the protector, aren’t you, dear?" Professor Xiao gave her beloved student a look that was half-smile, half-smirk. ’So quick to side with him, and so obviously, too!’

Zhou Lian pouted and said matter-of-factly, "Listen to yourself, Teacher Xiao. If I don’t protect my man, who will? Have you two made up your minds? If you have, just say yes. This is a limited-time offer, you know! If you really become my mother-in-law and father-in-law, it’ll take some getting used to for us!"

"You’re the one with all the clever words. Go make some tea!" Professor Xiao shot Zhou Lian a glare, her tone exasperated.

Zhou Lian, ever the clever one, simply smiled at her words and got up to brew tea.

Li Xiu watched them, dazed. He didn’t understand how this perfectly fine New Year’s Eve dinner had taken such an unexpected turn. ’Father? Mother?’ In both of his lifetimes, Li Xiu had held a deep-seated hatred for those two words. ’Now they want me to acknowledge them as my parents... Can I do that? Wasn’t I always fated to have a poor relationship with parents?’

After kneeling and serving the tea, Li Xiu was still in a daze. He watched mechanically as, after he stood up, Zhou Lian knelt in the exact same spot. She held a cup of tea out to Professor Xiao and Professor Fan, addressed them by her new titles, and cheekily demanded a red envelope!

"Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful! Our Li Xiu finally has parents to love and protect him!" Grandma Li said happily, muttering to herself as she wiped away tears.

Seeing Professor Xiao and Professor Fan talking with Li Xiu, Zhou Lian quietly sat down beside Grandma Li and whispered, "Grandma, why did you suddenly..."

"I saw the way Li Xiu was with Mr. Fan, acting like a child seeking affection. I watched that boy grow up; how could I not know him? When he looks at Professor Fan, his eyes are full of dependence, filial admiration, and hope—things he’s never been able to feel before. Since there’s someone now who can love and protect him, what’s wrong with his old grandma being the one to make it happen?" Grandma Li said, looking with relief at the granddaughter-in-law who so fiercely protected her grandson.

Zhou Lian lowered her head and said softly, "Grandma, thank you. Thank you for giving Jin Chen a complete life." The very concept of parents had been an impossible dream for Li Xiu across two lifetimes. Now, with Professor Xiao and Professor Fan, whether in name only or in daily life, they had given Li Xiu a legitimate chance to experience parental love and protection.

Li Xiu was still flustered and dazed when he and Zhou Lian returned to their bedroom after staying up past midnight to ring in the new year. His mind hadn’t yet settled. Seeing him like this, Zhou Lian sighed. ’It’s just as I thought. No matter how much he pretends not to care, a man who has gone two lifetimes without parental love can’t help but yearn for it.’

"Jin Chen, don’t overthink things. Just follow your heart. Aren’t you always the one who acts so freely and without constraint? All that’s happened is you’ve gained two more people who genuinely love and want to protect you. What is there to be afraid of?"

Hearing Zhou Lian’s voice, Li Xiu snapped out of his stupor. He asked, a note of uncertainty in his voice, "Bao’er, is it real? Can I really have this? Will they... will they regret it? I mean, will Teacher Xiao and Professor Fan regret it?"

"They won’t, Jin Chen. You know what kind of people Teacher Xiao and Professor Fan are. When have you ever seen them go back on their word or regret a promise? You’re such a good person; how could they not be sincere? From now on, you have parents to love you. They may be your adoptive father and mother, but I know their love for you won’t be any less for it!" A bitter ache filled Zhou Lian’s heart as she looked at this uncharacteristically insecure Li Xiu. ’Other than with me, when has he ever been this unsure of himself?’

Seeing the certainty in Zhou Lian’s eyes, a joy so palpable it was visible spread across Li Xiu’s face. He said, his voice a little choked, "Bao’er... so does that mean... that from now on, I’ll have parents to love and protect me, too? And they’re really, truly sincere about it?"

"Yes, of course they’re sincere with you, Jin Chen. Look, you’ve never been short on people who genuinely like and care about you. Your master is one, Teacher Xiao and Professor Fan are the same, as are my own parents. Even those old gentlemen from the Imperial Palace—sure, there might be some ulterior motives at play, but you can’t deny that they’ve shown you genuine kindness. Jin Chen, your stubborn streak is really one of a kind!"

As Zhou Lian’s comforting words filled his ears, a sweet warmth slowly spread through Li Xiu’s heart. He hugged her tightly and smiled. ’I’m just an ordinary man, after all.’ He wanted everything life had to offer—love, friendship, family, even to serve a righteous cause. But he also knew how unrealistic that was.

The sound of firecrackers popped and crackled, near and far, heralding the start of a new year. Li Xiu gazed, entranced, at the love of his life sleeping soundly in his arms. ’I thought I was just fated to have a poor connection with parents. I thought I could be indifferent to it all. I thought that as long as I had Zhou Lian, I wouldn’t need anything else. Turns out, I’m pretty greedy.’

’First I had the love of my life, then I wanted both a son and a daughter. I had confidants, but I wanted friends who would face life and death with me. I had deep bonds of brotherhood, but I still wanted the love of parents.’ He had always believed these things were impossible, desires he kept firmly suppressed deep in his heart. He never imagined that now, at thirty years old, he would suddenly gain a new set of parents.

’Is this life compensating for my last one, which was so miserable and filled with things I could seek but never obtain? I have a love for all of eternity, a few dear friends, a son and a daughter, and now, even the love of parents.’

He had lived with Professor Xiao and Professor Fan for several years, so he knew them well. He had always taken their kindness toward him and Zhou Lian to heart. Sometimes, when he was around Professor Fan, the professor’s attitude and actions reminded him exactly of a father guiding his son, full of expectations and discipline. He would occasionally wonder, ’What would it be like to have a father like Professor Fan?’

But that’s all it was—a passing thought. Li Xiu never would have deluded himself into thinking it possible. Yet today, on New Year’s Eve, he had knelt, served tea, and acknowledged a new father and mother. Parents who would genuinely love and cherish him. Even now, hours later, Li Xiu still felt like he was in a dream. He was no longer that person—the one whose father didn’t care, whose mother didn’t love, and whose siblings despised him.

He, Li Xiu, finally had people he could occasionally depend on, be a little willful with, and show his weakness to. ’In front of my adoptive father and mother, can I let my guard down? Can I put aside my tough exterior and show my vulnerability?’ Could he let his exhaustion show, knowing someone would stand before him like a mountain, shielding him and letting him truly rest for a while?

Li Xiu glanced down at Zhou Lian sleeping peacefully in his arms and smiled without a sound. ’It’s all because of her. All of this is because of the love of my life.’ He had come to the Capital City because she had gotten into university. He had met the people in the Ping household thanks to her best friend, Zhang Hongying. And now, he had gained a set of parents who were genuinely good to him—and they just so happened to be Zhou Lian’s respected teacher and her husband.

’No wonder people say some women are destined to bring their husbands good fortune.’ In his previous life, his relationship with Zhou Lian had been colder than ice, and as a result, he had spent his entire life stuck in a pit, never able to climb out. It wasn’t until he reached middle age that he finally understood: his father had never cared for him, his mother had seen him only as a tool, and his younger siblings had no affection for him whatsoever—they were just using him.

And as for him? His wife and children had become distant. His life had been one of mediocrity and unfulfilled desires. He died filled with nothing but regrets, hating the world, his heart seething with resentment. He had been utterly defeated, his heart covered in scars.