Carmen walked her husband out until the helicopter took off. Once she was back inside the villa. She halted in her tracks when she spotted Zhan gazing at Lan Wangji's portrait. A frown crossed her face as she noticed the loneliness etched on Zhan's face, and her brows furrowed even more as she watched him tenderly brush his fingers over Lan Wangji's picture.
"My grandfather..." Carmen said softly and stepped closer. Zhan was a little surprised, having been so absorbed in the portrait and his talk with Lan Wangji. (A/N: In the back story of this novel, the character of Carmen – is a legitimate granddaughter of Lan Wangji due to her legal adoption of Lan Wangji's legitimate son. Meanwhile, the character of Quiren is Lan Wangji's illegitimate child. This is why Carmen refers to Lan Wangji as Grandpa. So no incest, as they are not related by blood and both met as adults before finding out Quiren's true parentage. I've made a ton of changes to this story. However, I want to keep some important scenes intact because they're essential for the story's pace, just like this detail. – And the original novel where I took this story from is part of a family series, I hope this makes things clearer 😊)
"Y-yes." He cleared the lump in his throat. "My mother said she never had the chance of meeting him..."
Carmen nodded. "He passed away three years before your mom and Quiren met."
"What was he like?" Zhan asked staring at the portrait.
Carmen chuckled, a blend of bittersweet memories washing over her. "A tyrant." She let out a laugh. "But you should meet other men in this family,—they're all cut from the same cloth."
She added, her expression turning serious as she gazed at the portrait. "Yes. He was. And he had a way of manipulating people's lives, but it was always because he wanted the best for them. He was a very good judge of character and he was seldom wrong. Above all, he loved us. Even after he was gone, he wanted to protect those he loved..." Carmen swallowed to clear her throat, meeting Zhan's eyes again. "Oh, I loved him dearly. There have been countless times I've wished Grandpa was still alive."
"W-what do you mean when you say he wanted to protect those he loved... even after he was gone?"
"Nothing at all, just my imagination. I occasionally felt like he was having a conversation with me." Carmen beamed at Zhan.
"H-how did he meet h-his... Shi Ying?" Zhan couldn't help but ask.
Carmen's eyebrows raised at his question.
"I'm sorry... Plain curiosity, that's all. I-I like to listen to stories about how couples come together," he added hastily.
"Oh, well..." Carmen gazed at her grandparents' portrait, lost in thought. "You know, I really haven't thought about it much. All I know is, among those who people link to him in the past, Shi Ying was the only one he truly loved."
You're wrong. A part of Zhan's mind protested, "That's not true! He loved me first!". Even with the loud denial echoing in his head, he knows it's not him but Wei Wuxian who was the very first ever Lan Wangji had loved.
"Well, if you are really that curious about old stories and the love story of my grandfather then perhaps you should ask Aunt Lanyi, his daughter. She's got loads of stories up her sleeve," said Carmen.
"I'd like to meet her one of these days," Zhan said with a serious tone. Carmen raised her eyebrows again, sensing there was something deeper behind his curiosity, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
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"Party?" Yibo raised an eyebrow, pausing his rummaging through the closet to glance at his mom. "I thought you would celebrate your anniversary by yourselves. What happened to the plans? Weren't you supposed to head to the Caribbean?"
