Her current disheveled state did not even remotely resemble her usual noble and elegant comportment.
Yun Qinghong took a step forward and his hand pressed down on Yun Che’s shoulder. His face bore a faint smile, but when he opened his mouth, he seemed to choke on his words. It was only after a good period of time, with a smile that faintly trembled, he softly said, “Che’er, welcome home… We have already waited for you for a very long time in our dreams…”
Yun Che quietly wiped the corners of his eyes and raised his head, softly replying, “Father, Mother, I am sorry. This child has only come back now. And because of this, I have caused both Father and Mother so many years of pain.”
“You are not late at all.” Yun Qinghong laughed as he shook his head, “As long as you have come back to us, all is well.”
The person before him who was so excellent that it caused him to exclaim in admiration, who had caused Mu Yubai to disregard his status and seniority in order to become sworn brothers with, was actually his own flesh and blood. The kind of pride, joy and contentment he felt… was intense beyond description. He even felt that even if he had to use his own death to trade for this moment of truth, he would go with a smile on his face.
“Yurou, our son has already come back and he is even this big. He won’t run away again, so how long do you want to keep hugging him?” Yun Qinghong lovingly patted his wife’s back, “Can it be that you want our son, on the day of his return, to kneel there the entire afternoon?”
Yun Qinghong’s last words had an immediate effect. After she saw that Yun Che had knelt there motionlessly for nearly half a day, Mu Yurou instantly felt such self-reproach and regret that she almost cried once more. She hurriedly wiped her tears and extended her hand to lift Yun Che up, “Che’er, quickly get up, the floor is cold… Oh, this is all Mother’s fault, I had even forgotten that you were kneeling on the ground.”
Yun Che stood up as Mu Yurou lightly supported him. He shook his head and said, “This is nothing, Mother. I was unable to be by your side all these years, so the amount of kneeling I owe the both of you, even kneeling for three days and three nights wouldn’t make up for it.”
This kind of close intimacy was simply too precious and too warm. He was willing to present his best and most obedient side, in order to bring them comfort and joy. At their side, Yun Xiao hesitated for a good long while before coming forward in a rather timid manner, saying, “Father, Mother, Big Brother, Congra… Congratulations on finally being able to reunite as a family…”
“It is not ‘a family’, it is ‘our family‘ reunion!” Yun Che pulled Yun Xiao close, “The words you just said sounded like you weren’t part of the family at all.”
“But, I… I…” Yun Xiao softly bit on his lips and looked at a complete loss. He faced Yun Qinghong and Mu Yurou, bowed his head, and said in a lifeless and dazed voice, “I… I… In the future, can I still… call the both of you… Father and Mother?”
His words caused Yun Qinghong and his wife to be slightly startled, but after that, they laughed at the same time. Mu Yurou said in a gentle tone, “You silly child, you have always been Father and Mother’s Xiao’er. The son we watched grow up, whom we loved the most. So why would we not let you address us as Father and Mother?”
“Hey, Yun Xiao! What are you saying? We are sworn brothers, you know!” Yun Che patted him on the head, “When we said our vows to each other when we became sworn brother, we swore that we would be brothers for life, that your parents would be my parents and my parents would be your parents. It was only two months ago, but now you don’t even recognize this big brother of yours anymore?”
“No, it’s not… I…” Yun Xiao waved his hand, and his eyes became misty for a short while. At this moment he suddenly realized why Yun Che wanted to become sworn brothers with him… Because his parents were actually Yun Che’s parents… This was a vow which they could not go back on, and the reason why Yun Che had waited two months before he had identified himself was because of him… Solely because of him…