Reborn as a Tough Army Wife-Chapter 789 - 784: Are They Mother and Son? (Third Update)

Luo Zhiyong looked at Fang Pingying with a gentle smile, reached out to hold her hand, and as they walked toward the sofa, he said, "Now that things are done, I came back early to spend time with you..."

Before Luo Zhiyong could finish, the old aunt who had already reached the doorway suddenly turned around and, with a look of disbelief, asked Luo Zhiyong, "Your name is Zhiyong?"

"Huh?" Luo Zhiyong was a bit puzzled. Was his name that unusual? Weren’t there many people with this name now?

Suddenly, Luo Zhiyong didn’t react, just looked at Taotao in the distance.

Taotao probably also felt that her question was too abrupt, so she immediately smiled awkwardly and waved at Luo Zhiyong, "It’s nothing, nothing, just asking casually."

After speaking, Taotao continued to walk forward, but she was too far from Mrs. Liu. Seeing that she and Tingting had already left Fang Pingying’s courtyard, but Taotao was still lingering inside, Mrs. Liu shouted angrily, "Liu Xiutao, are you coming or not? If not, I’m leaving you behind."

Upon hearing this, Taotao immediately quickened her pace to leave, responding, "Oh, coming, coming."

"Xiutao?" Fang Pingying’s heart skipped a beat when she heard this name.

She didn’t know why, but although she wasn’t very familiar with the name, she was sure she had heard it somewhere before.

Thinking very carefully, she suddenly remembered that when Luo Zhiyong was injured and in critical condition, Luo Dashan had mentioned this name. At the time, she was preoccupied with Luo Zhiyong’s injury and didn’t pay attention, but now upon reflection, Luo Dashan had indeed been murmuring the name Xiutao.

Moreover, Fang Pingying clearly remembered that at that time, Fang Xiu had also wondered who this person was and had speculated with her about it.

Back then, because Luo Zhiyong’s background was hidden, Fang Pingying and the others didn’t connect it to that, but now it was different.

Also, she remembered that just now, Mrs. Liu kept calling that old aunt ’Taotao.’

Intuitively, Fang Pingying felt that this Xiutao might be the name of Luo Zhiyong’s biological mother.

And, adding to that, Taotao’s reaction when she called Zhiyong earlier filled Fang Pingying with suspicion.

She couldn’t believe in such coincidences—that after so many years apart, a mother and son could meet so simply. But as long as there was a sliver of possibility, she wanted to test it.

After all, even though Luo Zhiyong had always said he didn’t care about the identity of his biological mother, she believed that anyone would want to know everything about their birth mother.

Thus, she deliberately walked quickly to the small courtyard outside, then glanced at the old aunt walking ahead and pretended to water the flowers while shouting loudly toward the house, "Luo Zhiyong, bring the watering can from inside; these flowers are almost scorched to death."

If Fang Pingying’s earlier call of "Zhiyong" surprised Xiutao, now, when Fang Pingying called out "Luo Zhiyong" loudly, Xiutao seemed struck by lightning, freezing on the spot, unable to move.

After a while, she slowly turned around, face pale, her voice trembling slightly as she looked at Luo Zhiyong, who had just walked out of the house, and asked, "Your name is Zhiyong; your surname is Luo?"

"Yes, Aunt, my husband’s surname is Luo; he’s called Luo Zhiyong." As she spoke, Fang Pingying intentionally mentioned their rural address in detail.

She then carefully observed Xiutao’s reaction.

After hearing Fang Pingying’s words, Xiutao’s face seemed to grow even paler, and she almost couldn’t stand steadily, swaying in place until Fang Pingying supported her, helping her regain balance.

During this time, her gaze remained fixed on Luo Zhiyong, and how to describe it? That gaze contained many things.

There was regret, guilt, motherly love, but soon it turned into relief.

With such a gaze, Fang Pingying was almost seventy percent certain that this Xiutao was indeed Luo Zhiyong’s biological mother, but she said nothing. She wanted to see how a mother who had abandoned Luo Zhiyong for so many years would react when facing her son again.

Perhaps today, a scene of mother and son reunion would play out, or at least, Xiutao might reveal to Luo Zhiyong the truth about her being his mother.

To put it mildly, maybe when Xiutao left Luo Zhiyong, she had her reasons, and over the years, she might have been thinking about her son but couldn’t visit him due to circumstances. Meeting him now, she would surely be concerned about him.

At the very least, she would want to know how her son had been over the years.

In the worst scenario, Fang Pingying hadn’t forgotten how this old aunt had knelt before her, begging due to some leverage Mrs. Liu had on her, and now that she knew Luo Zhiyong was her son and that she was her daughter-in-law, would she use this relationship to achieve her goals?

However, to Fang Pingying’s disappointment, after seriously examining Luo Zhiyong for a while, Xiutao turned and left, as if she hadn’t even noticed the bond between them.

Yet, before leaving, Fang Pingying heard her mumble, "As long as he’s doing well, I’m relieved."

Fang Pingying watched as Taotao’s figure disappeared into the distance. Although she couldn’t understand why, without any certainty, she didn’t dare say much at that moment.

Aside from Fang Pingying, Luo Zhiyong also noticed Taotao’s odd behavior. He glanced at Taotao in the distance and then, puzzled, murmured to Fang Pingying, "Who is she, staring at me? I feel like I’ve never seen her before, don’t even know her."

Fang Pingying wanted to figure things out before telling Luo Zhiyong. When she came to her senses, she deliberately teased him, "Because you look handsome, so she took a few more glances."

Upon hearing this, Luo Zhiyong raised an eyebrow at Fang Pingying. Was this woman praising his looks?

Whether she was or not, Luo Zhiyong found it pleasing. He reached out and pulled Fang Pingying into his arms, kissed her forehead, and whispered, "I only need my wife looking at me, no one else."

Seeing him touchy-feely with her in broad daylight, Fang Pingying slapped him lightly, blushing and scolding, "It’s broad daylight, be mindful of the influence, don’t mess around."

Luo Zhiyong chuckled softly, seeing no one around, embraced Fang Pingying tighter, and kissed her lips. "We’re at home; what’s wrong with kissing my wife?"

"No way," Fang Pingying replied with a smile, trying to push away Luo Zhiyong who held her tightly but thought to herself if she should investigate this Xiutao’s background.