Chapter 1535

Hearing that the fondant figurines were not meant to be eaten, Ye Chen breathed a slight sigh of relief; otherwise, if he really had to eat the figurines of himself or Gu Qiuyi as children, that feeling would indeed be a bit strange.

Beside him, Gu Qiuyi looked at Ye Chen with deep affection and said softly: "Brother Ye Chen, let me sing the birthday song for you just like when we were little! You can make a birthday wish while I sing, and you can blow out the candles after I finish."

Ye Chen nodded gently and said with a smile: "Okay!"

Gu Qiuyi adjusted her breathing slightly, then sang softly and affectionately: "Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~~~ Happy birth~day to~ you~~ Hap~py~ birth~day~ to~~~ you......"

At this moment, Ye Chen clasped his hands together, closed his eyes, and silently made a small wish.

He no longer had any material desires; his greatest wish was to uncover the truth about his parents' deaths and avenge them, but making such a wish on such a warm birthday felt somewhat out of place.

Therefore, he silently wished in his heart that all his family and friends could be safe and healthy.

That would be enough.

After the wish, Gu Qiuyi finished singing the birthday song, and Ye Chen blew out the 27 candles on the five-tier cake in one go.

Gu Qiuyi, along with Gu Yanzhong and Lin Wanqiu, applauded together. Lin Wanqiu smiled and said: "Chen'er, Auntie wishes you this day every year and this moment every age, and may all your wishes come true!"

Gu Yanzhong also nodded and said: "Chen'er, Uncle wishes you a lifetime of smooth sailing and peace!"

Ye Chen was moved and thanked them repeatedly. Gu Qiuyi, who was on the side, leaned into Ye Chen's ear, pointed quietly at herself among the fondant figurines, and said in a volume only Ye Chen could hear: "Brother Ye Chen, I wish you marry this tag-along home soon!"

Ye Chen smiled knowingly, neither confirming nor denying.

He had long understood Gu Qiuyi's intentions, but many things could not be said explicitly, so he simply played dumb.

At this time, Lin Wanqiu handed over a knife for cutting the cake and said: "Chen'er, you are the birthday star, you cut the cake first, everyone will have a couple of bites to share in the joy, and then we will officially start the meal!"

"Okay, Auntie Lin!" Ye Chen agreed quickly, then used the knife to cut a few pieces from the bottom layer of the cake, placed them on small plates, and handed them to the three of them one by one.

Afterward, Gu Yanzhong pulled him to sit back at the dining table and began to drink and chat happily.

He took the initiative to raise his glass and said to Ye Chen: "Chen'er, too many words of gratitude have been said, so Uncle won't add any unnecessary fluff here. On behalf of our family of three, I toast you with this glass!"

Ye Chen did not decline, raised his glass, and said earnestly: "Thank you, Uncle Gu!"

The two then drank the white liquor in their glasses in one gulp.

Gu Yanzhong continued: "Chen'er, your parents left early. Given my relationship with your father, after he passed, it was only right that I take on the obligation of caring for, raising, and educating you, treating you as my own. But for so many years, I haven't been able to find you, and in your twenty-seven years of life, nearly twenty years have been missing. The regrets in this are truly too many..."

Speaking of this, Gu Yanzhong sighed lightly and said earnestly: "From now on, Uncle only hopes that in my remaining years, I can accompany you for a few more birthdays!"

Ye Chen was moved and said with a smile: "Uncle Gu, how can just a few birthdays be enough? It would only be reasonable to celebrate at least a few dozen, right?"

Gu Yanzhong laughed heartily and said: "Right! A few dozen it is!"

Amidst the toasting, Ye Chen and Gu Yanzhong had each drunk a jin of white liquor, yet both were only slightly tipsy.

Even Lin Wanqiu, who originally had a low tolerance for alcohol, showed no signs of discomfort after drinking a bottle of red wine by herself.

On the contrary, she felt very pleasant due to the effects of the alcohol. Under its influence, her cheeks were slightly flushed, and combined with having just taken the Rejuvenation Pill, her complexion appeared rosy and charming.

Gu Yanzhong looked at his wife, slightly stunned, and couldn't help but exclaim: "Wife, looking at you now, I have the illusion that we just got married..."

Lin Wanqiu smiled slightly and said somewhat shyly: "The children are here, don't talk nonsense..."

Gu Yanzhong said solemnly: "Everything I say comes from the bottom of my heart!"

As he spoke, he took out his wallet, opened it, and in the outermost transparent card slot was a photo of the two of them taken when they were young.

Gu Yanzhong handed the photo to Ye Chen and Gu Qiuyi and said: "You two take a look, am I telling the truth?"

Ye Chen looked at the photo. Lin Wanqiu in the photo looked to be about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old. However, at that time, she followed a mature style, and even as an old photo, she appeared exceptionally moving. At that time, her temperament was even a cut above the current Gu Qiuyi.

Gu Qiuyi, who was on the side, looked at her mother's old photo and sighed: "Mom, you were really beautiful when you were young. Although I've seen this photo many times, every time I see it, I can't help but praise it..."

Lin Wanqiu smiled and said: "Stop with the flattery. To say something sentimental, that was youth that has long since passed; you are the ones at the age of true youth."

As she spoke, she couldn't help but sigh again: "But if we're talking about when we were young, Sister An was the truly beautiful one."

After saying that, she looked at Ye Chen and said sincerely: "Chen'er, you don't know how outstanding your mother was when she was young. Back then, there was a saying in the Yanjing socialite circle that the moment Ye Changying brought An Chengxi from the United States to Yanjing, the radiance of all the women in Yanjing was instantly extinguished..."

Ye Chen couldn't help but smile lightly: "Auntie Lin, is it as exaggerated as you say?"

"Of course it is." Lin Wanqiu said extremely seriously: "Your mother was an absolute dimensional strike in Yanjing at that time. Her appearance, temperament, figure, education, and background were all crushing existences. After all, the country had just begun to open up at that time. When it came to trends, the United States was definitely the center of world trends, so in our eyes, your mother was stunning in every aspect."

As she spoke, Lin Wanqiu added: "Moreover, your grandfather's family has been deeply rooted overseas for many years and can definitely be considered an old-school major family. Those so-called nobles in Europe were far behind your grandfather's family. Your mother was the apple of the An family's eye and received a dual aristocratic education from both the East and the West since she was a child. How could we compare to that..."

Speaking of this, Lin Wanqiu couldn't help but sigh: "Back then, whatever clothes your mother wore would immediately trigger a fanatical trend in the Yanjing socialite circle. At that time, your mother was the weather vane of the Yanjing socialite circle. Whatever she wore or wore as accessories, others couldn't wait to find a way to buy them and imitate her..."

Gu Qiuyi asked in amazement: "Mom, is what you're saying true?"

"Of course!" Lin Wanqiu said earnestly: "At that time, we hadn't truly connected with the world, and the information gap between domestic and foreign was still very large. It's not like now, where the information network is so developed that there is basically no information gap between domestic and foreign."

Speaking of this, Lin Wanqiu suddenly remembered something and asked Ye Chen: "By the way, Chen'er, have you ever thought about going to the United States to see your grandparents?!"