Though the other party was wearing sunglasses and a hat, Madam Ruan was still sure that the person in front of her was her daughter-in-law, Ruan Tianxin!
"Tianxin!" She strode forward, as if afraid the other person would run, and clasped her hands excitedly. "Tianxin, is it you?! You're still alive!"
Ruan Tianxin stood frozen in place. She knew she might encounter the Shao family upon returning to the country, but she hadn't expected it to be so soon. She ran into them not long after deplaning.
If it weren't for Kai Kai's condition being unable to wait any longer and needing to return for Xiao Hemiao's help with treatment, they wouldn't have come back.
Since they were destined to meet, she could only face it.
"Auntie..."
This one word, "Auntie," made Madam Ruan's tears instantly break free. She hugged Ruan Tianxin tightly, sobbing, "That's wonderful, you're still alive! You're still alive! It's so good, I thought you all were dead..."
Seeing his wife hugging Ruan Tianxin and weeping, Shao Wenyan was also moved.
After the shipwreck, he had people search the accident site for a full year. Nothing belonging to his son was recovered, and he had completely lost hope.
Now, seeing that Ruan Tianxin was still alive, and with a child who looked exactly like Shao Chen did as a child, he couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope.
Shao Chen had eloped with Ruan Tianxin back then. Now that Ruan Tianxin was alive, perhaps Shao Chen was too...
"Miss Ruan, where is A'Chen? He..." He couldn't help but step forward to ask, but he was afraid of hearing bad news, so he stopped mid-sentence.
Mentioning their son, Madam Shao released Ruan Tianxin and tried to calm herself. "Yes, where is A'Chen? He went on the cruise ship with you that year, he, he..."
Like Shao Wenyan, she had finally managed to move past the accident of those years ago. Now, seeing Ruan Tianxin alive, she instantly saw hope, but she was also afraid that the hope she had just found would be dashed by disappointing news.
"He..." Ruan Tianxin had just opened her mouth when a loud, clear shout came from behind.
"Don't touch her!"
Hearing the familiar voice, Shao Wenyan and his wife both froze and turned their heads stiffly.
They saw the person they had been worried about for six years standing behind them, looking much the same as she did six years ago, with no significant changes, only appearing more mature.
"Daddy!" Kai Kai saw Shao Chen return and called out crisply.
Shao Chen and his assistant had gone to collect the checked luggage. Each of them was pulling two suitcases when they returned and happened to see Ruan Tianxin with his parents.
His steps faltered, then he let go of the suitcases and strode forward quickly, as if afraid they would do something to Ruan Tianxin and the children, shielding them behind him.
Seeing his defensiveness, Shao Wenyan felt both resentful and guilty.
Madam Shao, however, didn't notice her son's guardedness at all. Seeing that he was alive and back, the tears that had finally stopped began to flow again.
"A'Chen! A'Chen, it's really you! You're still alive too!" She hugged Shao Chen tightly, sobbing uncontrollably. She hadn't cried this hard when she first learned of her son's accident.
Seeing Madam Shao cry so sadly, Ruan Tianxin also felt a pang of guilt. After all, Madam Shao was a good person, and their elopement must have been a great blow to her.
Over the years, they had changed their identities and lived a romantic life together in the Arctic Cape of Norway, married and had children.
Although Shao Chen claimed he no longer paid attention to the Shao family's affairs, he couldn't help but occasionally check the Shao family's situation online.
They both knew that the Shao family mistakenly believed they had been on the cruise ship and died in the shipwreck. They had indeed boarded the ship at the time, but the doctor on board couldn't handle Shao Chen's knife wound and told them to go to the hospital. Ruan Tianxin had no choice but to forcibly take Shao Chen off the ship.
The two went to a nearby hospital to get bandaged and rushed back, missing the departure of the cruise ship. They had to rest on the spot for a few days to let Shao Chen recover.
Unexpectedly, they soon received the tragic news of the shipwreck, and they had, by a stroke of luck, avoided this disaster.
They also took the opportunity to let the Shao family believe they were dead and left China.
Later, they saw from the news that Old Master Shao had suddenly fallen ill and eventually succumbed to his illness.
After that, there was no more news from the Shao family.
"Mom, stop crying, I'm fine, aren't I?" Shao Chen comforted her, feeling his shoulder getting wet from her tears.
"You're alive, why didn't you tell Mom? Do you know how heartbroken I was? You're my only son, how could you leave Mom and go first?" Madam Shao cried, patting his shoulder, but worried about hurting him, she hugged him and sobbed.
"We didn't say anything, and you know the reason why," Shao Chen said, glancing at Shao Wenyan.
Shao Wenyan pursed his lips and said nothing. He knew what his son meant: It was your fault!
But he didn't think he had done anything wrong. Shao Chen's unauthorized elopement was wrong in the first place!
Madam Shao sobbed and glared resentfully at Shao Wenyan. He immediately straightened up.
"Alright, stop crying. It's good that you're back. Let's go home quickly. Crying in a public place, what will people think?" he said sternly.
This, in turn, earned him a cold look from Madam Shao.
Shao Wenyan: "..."
Shao Wenyan: "Did I say something wrong?"
Didn't people say that the one who tied the knot must untie it? His wife was cold-shouldering him because of their son. Why, now that their son was alive and back, did he feel that his wife's attitude hadn't changed, and had perhaps even worsened?
The assistant standing by couldn't help but worry for Shao Wenyan inwardly: Boss, please stop talking, or your plan for a second child will be ruined.
Facts proved that with his son and grandson back, his idea of a second child was completely dashed.
During the brief reunion, Ruan Tianxin introduced the two children to Madam Shao. "Our eldest son is Shao Zhan, he's five years old, and our second son is Ruan Yuankai, he's three years old. Babies, say hello to Grandma and Grandpa."
When Shao Wenyan heard that his second grandson's surname was Ruan, his brow furrowed.
"Grandma." Zhan Zhan only called out to her, not to Shao Wenyan. He felt that Grandpa didn't like them.
"Hello Grandpa, Grandma." Kai Kai was very well-behaved. After greeting them, he even took out a pack of tissues from Ruan Tianxin's bag and handed it to Madam Shao. "Grandma, use these tissues to wipe your tears."
Madam Shao was instantly charmed by his cuteness. She took the tissues, wiped her tears and runny nose, "Thank you, Kai Kai. Grandma, can I hug you? Will you come home with Grandma?"
Kai Kai looked at Shao Chen and Ruan Tianxin. "I need to ask Mom and Dad if it's okay."
"If we're going back, we're all going back together. If not, none of us are going," Shao Chen said.
His meaning was clear: if they didn't accept him being with Ruan Tianxin, he wouldn't go back.
"Of course, we're all going back together! Hurry up and have the driver get the car ready. Tianxin's belly is so big, standing for too long is tiring. Hurry home and rest," Madam Shao said, supporting Ruan Tianxin, ignoring whether Shao Wenyan agreed or not.
"Auntie, I'm not tired," Ruan Tianxin said with a smile.
"Still calling me Auntie? The children are this old! Call me Mom!" Madam Shao chided playfully. Then, thinking of something, she asked, "Did you two have a wedding? Whether you did or not, since you're back, let's have a grand ceremony to make up for it!"