"You said you've been looking for us all these years. Fine, let me put it simply, if you went to the Public Security Bureau and explained the situation, and managed to get someone to help you check, wouldn't you be able to find us?"
Qin Tian remained skeptical.
"I did go. I asked people at the Yucheng Public Security Bureau to help me check your mother's name and property information. There were several people with the same name, and I visited them all, but none of them were her,"
Qin Hongwen replied earnestly.
"Xiao Tian, our household registration is still with your maternal grandfather in the village, and this apartment is also in your uncle's name. When I returned back then, I asked your uncle to transfer this apartment in the city to me, but I didn't have enough money on hand, so I didn't have him change the name. Later, when the money was all repaid, this matter just got delayed and forgotten."
Tang Xiuxia explained.
Qin Tian was stunned for a moment, not knowing what to say.
If that was truly the case, it was understandable that they couldn't be found.
Yucheng, while not a large city, was still a county-level city with a permanent population close to a million. Looking for two people aimlessly was not an easy task, let alone a needle in a haystack.
Xia Nuannuan, listening quietly, breathed a sigh of relief.
It seemed that Qin Tian's father wasn't a bad person.
Of course, based on her understanding of Qin Tian, he wouldn't accept the man so easily.
"What about that woman?"
Qin Tian suddenly asked again.
"What?"
Qin Hongwen asked, taken aback.
"The daughter-in-law your mother approved of!"
Qin Tian said indifferently.
"I was not familiar with her at all, and it was certainly impossible for me to marry her. She later married a man of equal social standing."
Qin Hongwen quickly replied.
Qin Tian said nothing more and picked up his teacup to take a sip.
When he fell silent, the other three didn't know what to say. The room fell quiet, and the atmosphere became somewhat delicate.
"You must all be hungry. There are still dumplings in the refrigerator. I'll go cook some for you."
Tang Xiuxia said.
Qin Tian was indeed a bit hungry. He had eaten lunch at his maternal grandfather's place earlier, and it was already past six in the evening.
Qin Hongwen was even more so.
He had actually arrived yesterday and had been waiting anxiously in his car. He ate biscuits and canned food from the car when he was hungry, so he was already famished.
"Auntie, I'll help you."
Xia Nuannuan stood up with a smile.
"No, no, there's no need to help with cooking dumplings. You just stay here."
Tang Xiuxia waved her hands, signaling her to sit back down with her eyes.
In the current situation, she couldn't let the father and son sit alone together.
Xia Nuannuan understood her meaning. She looked at Qin Tian and Qin Hongwen and then sat back down as requested.
Tang Xiuxia hurried out of the room to cook dumplings in the kitchen.
The room fell into a brief silence again.
"Even if everything you've said is true, the hardships and suffering my mother endured all these years are also true."
Qin Tian said abruptly.
Qin Hongwen nodded calmly, "I understand."
"Therefore, don't think it's that simple, expecting an apology to make up for twenty years of absence. After you finish this bowl of dumplings, you can go wherever you came from!"
Qin Tian unceremoniously issued the order to leave.
Xia Nuannuan looked at him in surprise.
Qin Hongwen's body trembled, and his expression turned dejected. "Then where can I go?"
"Don't you have a sister?"
"She already has her own family. That's not my home!"
"This isn't my home either."
Qin Tian said calmly.
Xia Nuannuan unconsciously clenched her small hands, opened her mouth, and hesitated to speak.
She knew that Qin Tian's heart was definitely not as cold-blooded and heartless as he appeared on the surface. It was just that he still couldn't forgive the man at the moment.
But she also understood that she shouldn't try to persuade him.
"Before you've experienced someone else's suffering, don't try to persuade them to be kind!"
The grievances and hardships that Qin Tian and his mother had experienced over the years were something she, who grew up in a well-off family and never suffered much, couldn't empathize with.
A moment later, their mother came back with two large bowls of cooked dumplings and placed them in front of Xia Nuannuan and Qin Hongwen.
"You eat first, Xiao Tian. I'll get yours."
"Auntie, no need. I'll give this bowl to brother. I've already eaten dinner and I'm not hungry."
Xia Nuannuan politely declined with a smile and gently pushed the dumplings in front of her towards Qin Tian.
"Have a bit more. They're pork and cabbage, quite good."
Tang Xiuxia said with a smile.
"I'll eat two from brother's bowl. You don't need to get me any, to avoid waste, really."
"Alright then, I'll get another bowl for myself."
"Yes, yes!"
"Xiao Tian, you can give Nuannuan a few first."
Tang Xiuxia instructed with a smile and then walked out of the room.
Qin Hongwen held his chopsticks, staring blankly at the dumplings in front of him.
"Uncle, do you like to add a lot of vinegar to your dumplings?"
Xia Nuannuan asked curiously.
Qin Hongwen looked up at her in surprise.
Xia Nuannuan pointed to the bowl in front of him, smiling sweetly, "Auntie still remembers!"
Qin Hongwen's eyes seemed to redden instantly, and he nodded heavily, "Yes, she still remembers!"
"Nuannuan, here, eat the dumplings!"
Qin Tian interrupted their conversation and offered her a dumpling with a spoon.
"Oh!"
Xia Nuannuan smiled sweetly and opened her mouth to bite.
"Blow on it, be careful it's hot!"
Qin Tian pulled his hand back and reminded her.
"Oh, oh, whoosh... whoosh..."
After blowing on it a few times, Xia Nuannuan took half of the dumpling.
Qin Tian put the other half into his own mouth and said to Qin Hongwen, "Don't flatter yourself. It's not that my mother still remembers. It's just that I also like to add a lot of vinegar when I eat dumplings, so she's used to making them that way."
Xia Nuannuan's beautiful eyes widened, and she looked at him with a surprised expression.
She clearly remembered that Qin Tian, like her, didn't like to add much vinegar to dumplings. They hadn't added much vinegar to the bowl they were eating from.
Qin Tian glanced at her calmly.
Xia Nuannuan quickly turned her head away, raised her hand to cover her mouth, and chewed the dumplings in her mouth like a hamster.
Qin Hongwen, being a person of high intelligence, naturally saw that Qin Tian was making a forced explanation. He smiled and didn't refute, just buried his head and ate the dumplings with large bites.
Soon, Tang Xiuxia came back with another bowl, sitting down beside Xia Nuannuan.
"Nuannuan, here, have two from my bowl too!"
"No, thank you. I've already eaten two. I'm too full."
Xia Nuannuan waved her hand.
"Alright!"
Tang Xiuxia didn't insist further. She looked at Qin Hongwen, who had already eaten half a bowl, and said, "There's still more in the pot after you finish. I'll get more if it's not enough."
"Yes, yes!"
Qin Hongwen nodded with a bright smile.
Tang Xiuxia avoided his gaze a little flusteredly and took a sip of the dumpling broth.
Beside them, Xia Nuannuan watched this scene unfold and her lips curved into a slight smile.
She tilted her head to look at Qin Tian, a thoughtful expression appearing on her face.