SAG -Chapter 6 One Meeting with Uncle Zhang, a Lifetime of Longing

Guangzhou

Meng He sat on the sofa, fuming as he shouted toward his wife.

“Just look at your precious son! All he ever does is cause me trouble. He never gets anything serious done. And now he’s gotten so bold that he doesn’t even answer my phone calls!”

Lin Meizhi wasn’t about to let him have the last word.

“Isn’t he your son too? Every time something happens, you blame me!”

“Hmph!” Meng He snorted. “Who knows? Maybe he isn’t.”

Instead of getting angry, Lin Meizhi suddenly smiled and put on a bashful expression.

“Oh? Since you’ve figured it out, I’ll go change both the kids’ surnames back tomorrow.”

“I actually think Zhang Mingxuan sounds pretty nice, don’t you?”

Unexpectedly, Meng He didn’t explode this time.

Instead, he looked hesitant, as though struggling to say something.

“Dad, Mom…”

The young woman sitting beside them finally spoke up.

“Can you two stop bringing this up every time you argue?”

She rolled her eyes.

“When my brother and I were kids, you argued about this so often that we actually stole strands of your hair and had a DNA test done.”

Meng Zixuan truly didn’t know what to make of her parents.

What kind of family joked about whether their children were biologically related every time they had a fight?

And every single time, it was always the same joke.

She honestly couldn’t tell whether her father was simply incredibly broad-minded or just hopelessly thick-skinned.

No matter what her mother said, he never seemed genuinely offended.

Ignoring his daughter’s complaint entirely, Meng He turned seriously toward his wife.

“Honey…”

“I want to discuss something with you.”

Seeing his unusually solemn expression, Lin Meizhi looked surprised.

“What is it?”

Meng He thought for a moment before carefully choosing his words.

“Well…”

“Meng Mingxuan is already twenty-six.”

“It’s time for him to get married.”

“And after he does…”

“I want his first son to carry the surname Zhang.”

He lowered his voice.

“Our Meng family has already passed on its bloodline.”

“When we’re gone, someone will still burn incense and offer sacrifices for us.”

“But…”

“As long as we’re alive, it’s fine.”

“When we’re gone…”

“There won’t be anyone left to visit Brother Zhang’s grave.”

“No one to pay respects to him.”

Lin Meizhi’s expression immediately grew solemn.

After a long silence, she nodded.

“I have no objection.”

“Dad! Mom!”

Meng Zixuan couldn’t help blurting out.

“I know Uncle Zhang helped our family a lot…”

“But isn’t this taking it a little too far?”

Although she had never met this mysterious Uncle Zhang, she’d heard countless stories about him.

She had almost been forced to.

Every time her parents argued, his name inevitably came up.

When she was little, she’d even believed for a while that she was actually Uncle Zhang’s daughter.

How could she possibly forget?

“What do you know?” Meng He snapped.

“If it weren’t for Uncle Zhang, your mother’s illness would’ve never been cured!”

“If she hadn’t recovered, would you two even exist?”

“And if it weren’t for Uncle Zhang…”

“I’d probably still be making a living collecting scrap metal!”

Lin Meizhi also looked at her daughter.

“Actually…”

“When we used to tell you that you should’ve been surnamed Zhang…”

“We weren’t lying.”

“W-What?”

Meng Zixuan’s eyes widened.

“But… I had a DNA test done!”

“We weren’t talking about blood relations.”

Meng He sighed.

“You’re definitely my biological daughter.”

“That’s beyond question.”

“But when Uncle Zhang’s accident happened…”

“Your mother had only just become pregnant.”

“So we thought…”

“We’d let you take Uncle Zhang’s surname.”

“But you turned out to be a girl.”

“Eventually you’d get married anyway, so we decided against it.”

“When your younger brother was born…”

“Your mother’s health had deteriorated, and she couldn’t have any more children.”

“And…”

He smiled bitterly.

“I had my own selfish reasons.”

“I didn’t want the Meng family line to end.”

“So we never changed his surname either.”

His voice carried obvious guilt.

Fortunately, Meng Zixuan wasn’t offended by what sounded like favoritism toward sons.

Throughout her entire life, her parents had never actually treated her unfairly.

If anything…

They had always spoiled her more than her younger brother.

She clicked her tongue.

“I honestly can’t imagine what kind of charm this Uncle Zhang possessed.”

“He’s been gone for nearly thirty years…”

“And you still can’t stop thinking about him.”

She truly was curious.

It was a question she’d carried ever since she was old enough to understand.

Lin Meizhi’s face suddenly filled with dreamy nostalgia.

“You really shouldn’t underestimate him.”

“Your Uncle Zhang had incredible charm.”

“He was mature…”

“Steady…”

“Handsome…”

“Wealthy…”

“Sincere…”

“Loyal…”

“Talented…”

As she continued listing his virtues, her expression became more and more lovestruck.

Meng Zixuan pressed a hand against her forehead.

“Dad…”

“You’re really just going to sit there while Mom swoons over another man?”

“Aren’t you even a little jealous?”

Before Meng He could answer, Lin Meizhi shot him a sideways glance.

“Hmph.”

“If I’d thought I was worthy of your Uncle Zhang back then…”

“Do you really think it would’ve been this man’s turn?”

“Dad…”

Meng Zixuan stared at her father in disbelief.

“You can endure even that?”

When he still didn’t get angry, her jaw nearly hit the floor.

Once again…

Her understanding of this legendary Uncle Zhang reached an entirely new level.

She immediately scooted over beside her mother, wrapping both arms around hers.

“Mom…”

“Tell me more.”

“Just how charming was Uncle Zhang?”

“From the way you’re talking…”

“Isn’t this basically… ‘One meeting with Uncle Zhang, and you’re ruined for life?’”

Lin Meizhi laughed.

“That’s actually a very accurate way to put it.”

“You know Aunt Huo, don’t you?”

“Of course!”

Meng Zixuan’s eyes lit up.

“Aunt Huo is my idol!”

“If I could become even half as successful as—”

She stopped mid-sentence.

Her eyes slowly widened.

“…Mom.”

“Don’t tell me…”

“The reason Aunt Huo never married…”

“…is because of Uncle Zhang?”

Suddenly, everything clicked.

People had always speculated that Huo Zhiyuan remained unmarried because she was devoted to the single life.

Some even spread rumors that she preferred women.

Now…

Her mother’s words completely shattered everything Meng Zixuan had believed.

Lin Meizhi gently stroked her daughter’s hair.

“That’s exactly why.”

“What else did you think?”

“Actually…”

“I used to worry that someday you’d meet someone like Uncle Zhang.”

She smiled softly.

“Meeting a man like him is one of the most beautiful things that can happen in a woman’s life.”

“But…”

“It’s also one of the cruelest.”

“Because after that brief happiness…”

“…all that’s left is endless emptiness.”

She sighed.

“Fortunately…”

“I worried too much.”

“There’s only one Uncle Zhang.”

“And you were never destined to meet someone like him.”

After hearing all this, Meng Zixuan became even more fascinated.

“I really want to meet him now.”

“I wish I could travel back in time just to see what he was like.”

Then another thought suddenly occurred to her.

“Wait…”

“If Uncle Zhang was twenty-three when the accident happened…”

“In your generation, lots of people were already married with children.”

“Didn’t he have a girlfriend?”

Lin Meizhi nodded slowly.

“He said he did.”

“But none of us ever met her.”

“So we’ve always believed…”

“He only said that because he didn’t want to give certain women false hope.”

Meng Zixuan burst into laughter.

“So my Uncle Zhang really was a decent man.”

“Not a heartbreaker.”

“He just came up with an excuse so all of you would finally give up.”

“You naughty girl!”

Lin Meizhi laughed as she tapped her daughter lightly on the forehead.

“Is that any way to talk about your own mother?”

“Back then, your mother was quite the beauty too!”