Many people didn't sleep well that night, but Old Mr. Zhang certainly did.
Now he had no other desires, his mood was extremely relaxed. He thought about how this was Xiao Ya's first time in Jiang City, and after accompanying her for several days of sightseeing, the group finally headed back to Jin City.
Before leaving, Xiao Ya had gone with the Chief Inspector to pay respects to her grandmother.
In Jin City, the Secretary was waiting early outside the door. As soon as people got out of the car, he anxiously asked, "How was it? Is the old gentleman holding up alright?"
"You've been gone for several days, I..." The Secretary couldn't finish his sentence.
He saw that Old Mr. Zhang's complexion was rosy and glowing, even his wrinkles seemed to have smoothed out a bit.
It looked like... he had put on a little weight.
There were signs of fatigue, but even more so excitement.
"Xunyuan, come look!" Old Mr. Zhang called the Secretary by name.
"What do you want me to see, sir?"
"Look." Old Mr. Zhang grabbed Li Xiaoya's hand and led her out of the car.
"I've already met her, sir."
"No, you haven't," Old Mr. Zhang said with a smile in his eyes. "Let me introduce you again. This is my granddaughter."
The Secretary understood and couldn't help but smile, "So this is the great news you mentioned? You've made Xiao Ya your goddaughter?"
"What do you mean goddaughter?" Old Mr. Zhang glared at him, but the corners of his mouth were clearly holding back a smile. "She's my real granddaughter! Flesh and blood!"
"She... how did she suddenly become..." How did she become a real granddaughter? You can't fool children like this!
"Surprising, isn't it? I was surprised too." Old Mr. Zhang paused. "She's Xinian's daughter."
The Secretary seemed frozen in place for a moment.
After a while, Old Mr. Zhang said, "We can't stand here keeping you in suspense. It's windy. Xiao Ya, let's go inside with grandpa."
The Secretary snapped back to reality and grabbed Old Mr. Zhang's sleeve. "Re-really?"
Old Mr. Zhang said, "Pinch yourself and see."
The Secretary actually did pinch himself.
"It hurts," he mumbled. "It's real... Why? How is this so sudden? How did you find out? Please tell me everything!"
Old Mr. Zhang was now like someone who had just received a priceless treasure, and couldn't help but show off a little.
He pursed his lips and said, "Listen, I'll tell you slowly..."
Before he could finish, the Secretary recited, "It's windy out here."
With that, he bent down and scooped up Li Xiaoya, carrying her inside first.
The Secretary's full name was Wu Xunyuan. He had also served in the military when he was young. He was younger than Old Mr. Zhang and could easily carry a child.
He walked with swift, steady steps.
"Xunyuan, you..." Old Mr. Zhang couldn't finish his sentence before his granddaughter was carried away.
His lips quivered, and he quickly chased after them, forgetting to use his cane. For a moment, his legs were surprisingly nimble.
This sight even bewildered the family doctor waiting inside.
"...So that's how it happened." After sitting down inside, Old Mr. Zhang briefly recounted the whole story to Wu Xunyuan.
Wu Xunyuan had been by his side for so long that he was practically family.
Despite his dark complexion, he cried quite loudly.
"This is the best New Year's gift ever, there couldn't be a better gift than this..."
"Indeed."
"It's a pity Xinian doesn't know..."
"Don't worry, I'll write him a good letter tonight and burn it for him."
As they talked, they seemed on the verge of sobbing again.
Li Xiaoya quickly handed some tissues to Wu Xunyuan.
"Thank you, thank you." Wu Xunyuan took the tissue but didn't wipe his face. Instead, he mumbled, "Good child, such a good child... So good, yet suffered so much. Thinking about the scenes from the show..."
Wu Xunyuan cried even louder.
Li Xiaoya quietly sighed.
Well, let them cry then.
It just meant she'd have two pairs of puffy eyes staring at her tomorrow!
It was Sheng Yuxiao who spoke up: "Do you have any thoughts about Xiao Ya's new name?"
The two men opposite immediately stopped crying.
"New name? Yes, yes, she should have a new name!" Old Mr. Zhang's eyes turned cold as he thought of Li Jiang.
Now they didn't have to worry about the surname not sounding good, Sheng Yuxiao thought to himself.
"Where's the dictionary? We need to look through it," Old Mr. Zhang said, barely containing his excitement.
"Should we bring over the Three Hundred Tang Poems as well?" Wu Xunyuan asked.
"The Book of Songs could also be a reference... In any case, we need to choose one with good meaning, beautiful characters, and pleasant to say. We must choose carefully. Yes, we should decide before the banquet, otherwise it won't be good for writing the invitations..." Old Mr. Zhang rambled on.
They had completely forgotten about crying now.
"I already have a name," Li Xiaoya said softly.
Old Mr. Zhang smiled kindly, "Yes, our Xiao Ya has a name. But we can't just change the surname, can we? 'Zhang Xiao Ya' doesn't sound quite right, does it?"
"Not that name. Mom gave me another one... called 'Shengxi'."
Everyone was stunned.
"Which two characters?" Qin Sui asked.
Li Xiaoya poured a little water and slowly wrote the characters on the table.
Old Mr. Zhang recited, "The great square has no corners, the great vessel is late in completion, the great note is rarefied in sound, the great image has no form."
"It's a good name," Old Mr. Zhang sighed immediately after.
"Then why do they still call you Xiao Ya?"
"Because Mom said in some places, being too unique isn't a good thing. People prefer you to have a common name. So that name was hidden away, and I was just called Xiao Ya."
"Xiao Ya is good too. 'In the warm spring river, ducks are the first to know.' It seems like Xiao Ya brought spring to us," Old Mr. Zhang said, grinning from ear to ear. "And indeed, Xiao Ya has brought spring to grandpa."
"However, about changing the name..." Old Mr. Zhang's tone suddenly shifted, "We still need to discuss it with your maternal grandfather. We can give you two names, one with the Zhang family surname, and one with your mother's surname."
"Why don't we set a time to meet in person?"
Old Mr. Zhang was already pondering what gifts to prepare for the meeting.
"Then I need to go back and see Grandfather. It's hard to explain over the phone," Li Xiaoya said.
"Alright." Although Old Mr. Zhang was a bit reluctant, he nodded.
He thought to himself that after Xiao Ya left, the adults could prepare for the banquet.
Sheng Yuxiao escorted Li Xiaoya back to the Gui family home.
It had been a while since she'd been back, and upon entering, it was extremely quiet.
It seemed as if the atmosphere had switched with the Zhang family.
"Where's Grandfather?" Li Xiaoya immediately asked the servant.
The servant said, "The master went to see a friend."
"That's what you said last time too..."
"Yes, and he's been gone for a long time."
Li Xiaoya frowned.
Sheng Yuxiao remembered the abnormal breathing he had heard during his last phone call with the old man.
"Let's give him a call," Sheng Yuxiao said.
Li Xiaoya nodded.
The call was answered quickly. Wei Xuanming asked on the other end, "What is it?"
His tone seemed normal.
"I found Mom's boyfriend," Li Xiaoya said.
"Who?!" The tone on the other end suddenly changed, becoming cold and sharp. "Are you with him now?"
"Grandfather, we can't be together anymore. Dad... he's dead."
"..."
Wei Xuanming's tone became dejected: "I see, I see... So that's why we couldn't find any clues. I see."
Li Xiaoya briefly recounted what had happened.
Wei Xuanming on the other end of the phone remained silent for a long time. He didn't cry, nor did his breathing change. After a while, he only said, "Alright, taking the Zhang family name is fine. There's no need to meet, and I won't attend the banquet either."