Mother Zhou, startled by his glance, withdrew her outstretched hand, not daring to snatch anything. She gave an awkward smile and said to Lu Dongming, “Mr. Lu, can we have a word with Yangyang?”
“You can ask Yangyang. If he’s willing, that’s fine.”
Lu Dongming replied coolly, glancing at the bag Father Zhou was carrying. He said to Father and Mother Zhou, “Uncle Zhou, Auntie, Yangyang had a fever yesterday. The doctor said it was throat inflammation. That day, you took him to eat a lot of fried chicken and crisps, which caused his throat to flare up.”
“You’ve brought KFC for him again today. If Yangyang eats it, he might get a fever again. In the future, please give him less of these high-calorie foods.”
Mother Zhou immediately looked anxious, reaching out to touch Yangyang’s forehead. “Yangyang had a fever? Is he okay now? Yangyang, are you still feeling unwell? If you’re not feeling well, why didn’t you take a day off to rest?”
“A day or two off from kindergarten is fine; there’s no need to rush back to school.”
“Yangyang doesn’t eat much. We did take him to eat fried chicken, but he didn’t eat much, just a tiny bit, and it caused throat inflammation?”
Yangyang’s temperature was normal. After withdrawing her hand, Mother Zhou looked suspicious and said, “Could it be that you usually give him lots of high-calorie foods, causing heat to build up, and then you blame us for taking Yangyang to eat the fried chicken he likes?”
“I know you don’t like us seeing Yangyang. You want Yangyang to grow distant from us. We are his biological grandparents, bound by blood!”
“That blood tie cannot be severed. It’s not something people without blood relations, like you, can replace. Yangyang is my grandson. I can visit him whenever I want and bring him some food. Mr. Lu, you have no right or authority to stop us.”
“Yangyang’s surname is Zhou—Zhou Yang. His father is Zhou Honglin, not you!”
Lu Dongming let Mother Zhou ramble on with her accusations. When she finished, he still replied patiently, “Auntie, Yangyang’s surname is indeed Zhou. He hasn’t changed it and still carries his biological father’s surname.”
“I’ve never thought of preventing Yangyang from seeing you. You are his grandparents—that’s an undeniable fact. It won’t change just because Yangyang follows Hailing and marries me.”
“I also never said you couldn’t bring Yangyang some food. Just don’t take him to eat junk food; too much of it isn’t good. At home, Yangyang’s diet is light and nutritionally balanced, so there’s no issue with heat buildup.”
Mother Zhou’s face darkened. “By saying that, aren’t you still blaming us for taking Yangyang to eat what he likes? What’s wrong with that? He’s our grandson. If he wants something, we buy it for him. Is that a crime?”
“Yangyang is under your care, and he got sick with a fever. That’s because you didn’t look after him properly, yet you have the nerve to pin it on us.”
“I think you’re just looking for an excuse to keep Yangyang away from us.”
“Yangyang, don’t listen to him. You’re not his biological child. His kindness is just an act for your mum. When your mum’s not around, he shows his true colours. How many stepfathers or stepmothers are truly good?”
“You…”
“Grandma, Uncle Lu is a good person. Don’t say bad things about him!”
Yangyang, with a stern little face, interrupted his grandmother’s accusations against Uncle Lu.
“It’s usually Auntie who takes care of me. Does Grandma think Auntie doesn’t care about me or love me?”
Yangyang couldn’t understand why his grandmother and aunt kept badmouthing Uncle Lu.
Uncle Lu was clearly a good uncle. He liked Uncle Lu more than his dad.
“Yangyang, you don’t understand. You’re still young. You don’t know how many people seem nice on the surface but aren’t what they seem.”
“Do you want to eat fried chicken? Look, Grandpa and Grandma brought you fried chicken. It’s still hot. Eat it while it’s hot—that’s when it tastes best. There are chips and sausages too.”
Mother Zhou tried again to lift Yangyang from Lu Dongming’s lap.
Yangyang was even questioning her now, defending Lu Dongming.
Mother Zhou worried that if this continued, her grandson, even if he didn’t change his surname to Lu, would grow distant from them.
With only one son who refused to divorce that vile woman and remarry, Yangyang would be their only grandson in this lifetime. The thought of Yangyang ignoring them made Mother Zhou panic and angry.
She blamed Hailing for leaving Yangyang in Guancheng instead of keeping him by her side.
They could trust Hailing, but they didn’t trust Lu Dongming.
No matter how good Lu Dongming was to Yangyang, it was all to please Hailing. How much of that affection was genuine?
