Cheng Tianyuan's eyes flashed slightly and he was speechless for a moment.
"...No, didn't you say it earlier?
An old relative from my hometown passed away, and my mother was very sad... I guess it was caused by sadness."
Xue Ling glanced at him and whispered: "Which of us will follow whom?
Do you think you can hide it from me?
In the evening you were absent-minded and spoke incoherently. I knew then that you were lying to me.
Let’s sleep together for decades, not just two days a day.”
Husband and wife have been of the same mind and have a harmonious relationship for decades, not overnight.
There are some things and some words that can be understood without saying too much.
Cheng Tianyuan smiled bitterly: "It seems that I still can't hide it from you."
Xue Ling patted his chest and asked, "What's going on?
I want you to tell me everything."
Cheng Tianyuan sighed helplessly and explained in a low voice: "Mom...do you think the two juniors can find one with the surname 'Cheng'.
She is worried that if Xue Yang’s surname is ‘Xue’ in the future, future generations of the Cheng family may not have a share.”
"oh."
Xue Ling had clearly heard the conversation between mother and son on the way here earlier, so she didn't know that he had hidden part of it.
Cheng Tianyuan shook his head: "Ignore her.
She is old and her thoughts are inevitably old-fashioned and outdated.
Since it was agreed upon at the beginning, it is a deal, and it cannot be changed overnight."
"It was not decided at the beginning."
Xue Ling told the truth: "At that time, I only said that Xue Yang would take my surname. Later, when I was pregnant with twins, the third child would take your surname, and the fourth son would take my surname."
Cheng Tianyuan "Hey!"
He made a sound and said: "Xue Yang is already surnamed 'Xue', so his descendants will naturally follow his surname 'Xue'.
What does it mean to have a surname of ‘Cheng’?
The child’s father’s surname is ‘Xue’ and his mother’s surname is ‘Wang’. How did Cheng come from?
Don't put unnecessary burdens on the younger generations.
The surname is just a prefix, there is no need to involve too much."
"Since Mom likes it, let's choose a surname of 'Cheng'."
Xue Ling said warmly: "She is so old, and there are still things that she can't bear to think about, so let's accommodate her.
The old lady is in her nineties, how long do we have to accommodate her, right?"
Cheng Tianyuan was stunned for a moment, then shook his head: "That's not necessary.
If the babies are our children, we still have the right to choose and make decisions.
But they are the children of Xue Yang and Xiaoxiao, and the decision is theirs.
How can we make arbitrary decisions without their consent?"
Xue Ling explained in a low voice: "National laws and regulations do not stipulate that citizens can only take their parents' surnames, and they can also choose the surnames of other relatives to follow.
If you are from an ethnic minority, you have to respect their naming habits and customs and make your own arrangements.
After we agree, let’s ask Xue Yang and Xiaoxiao for their opinions.”
"I don't agree."
Cheng Tianyuan frowned and said, "We always give our children enough freedom.
If the two of us decide, Xue Yang and Xiaoxiao are both filial people and will naturally listen to us.
If they are unwilling in their hearts, wouldn’t that make things difficult for them?
It’s not like our family has no descendants with the surname ‘Cheng’! The eldest and the third will also get married and have offspring in the future. In the future, a lot of grandchildren will follow my surname of ‘Cheng’, so there is no need to worry.”
Xue Ling couldn't help but remind: "We are also filial people.
Your mother thinks so, can we not listen to her?"
"That's different."
Cheng Tianyuan lowered his voice: "When my mother mentioned this, I don't know what my father-in-law and mother-in-law thought.
At the beginning, my father promised that his two children would be named Xue, and he agreed.
My mother is more traditional and her ideological consciousness is not high. She always remembers some feudal ideas of the older generation.
You can't spoil her with everything, or you will spoil her."
"Aren't I afraid of putting you in trouble?"
Xue Ling smiled bitterly: "She is angry, and it is the most uncomfortable for you to be in the middle.
In my opinion, what can be more important than spending our old age well?
no?
Mom, she's old and can't bear her anger. Please accommodate her if you can."
"I disagree."
Cheng Tianyuan said: "If half of the children in each family are to be named 'Cheng' and the other half are named 'Xue' in the future, won't things get messy sooner or later?"
If a child only has one child or three children, wouldn’t it be unevenly distributed?
Will her old man be in trouble again?
My child, I can still make the decision.
My grandchildren, I can't make the decision one by one.
You can be reasonable and considerate of her elderly person, but what about others?
My daughter-in-law came to our house as a relative on the way, and she is no more capable of scolding or beating than our own children.
We must respect our daughter-in-law’s opinions even more.
Now that Xinzhi and Xiaoxin are engaged, is it possible to make such a request to them?
Xinzhi's paternal relatives were all gone, so he inherited a surname.
Are you embarrassed to tell him that your future child’s surname will be ‘Cheng’ or ‘Xue’?”
"When you say that, it wakes me up."
Xue Ling sighed quietly: "I didn't think deeply about it earlier, I just thought there was no need to make the old man angry over a trivial matter."
Cheng Tianyuan patted her arm and said warmly: "I know you do it for me too.
But we really can’t agree to this easily, otherwise it will be difficult for the children to do it in the future.
The second child is asked, what about the eldest and third child?
Where is the fourth child?
She is even more different from her brothers. She is a married daughter. She has several brothers in her natal family. How can she ask her children to take their maiden name?
Wouldn't opening such a mouth embarrass Xinzhi and Xiaoxin?
Why bother?
It makes the juniors feel uncomfortable."
"Indeed."
Xue Ling smiled bitterly: "If it is our child, we have the final say.
But the grandchildren... it’s really hard to talk.”
Cheng Tianyuan lowered his voice: "If we ask now, Xue Yang and Xiaoxiao will probably agree. After all, they are both good children who are filial to their elders.
But in the future they will have children, and the eldest and the third child will also have children.
How will it be distributed then?
One is named ‘Cheng’ and the other is named ‘Xue’?
If the quantity is an odd number, which one is more?
If we do this, will all the daughters-in-law agree?
Son-in-law also agrees?
If the daughter-in-law also asks for half of her surname to be hers, wouldn’t it be even more confusing?”
"I was too greedy at first."
Xue Ling sighed: "If there was only one with my surname back then, my mother probably wouldn't care too much about her great-grandchildren's surname 'Xue' today."
Cheng Tianyuan shook his head: "That's not the case. My mother is too greedy."
"It's not good to be too arbitrary about this matter."
Xue Ling whispered: "When mom wakes up, I have to analyze it carefully with her.
She is not an unreasonable person, she has to be moved by emotion and reason."
"take it easy."
Cheng Tianyuan said: "We have to let Xue Yang and the others talk to the old man themselves.
The child is theirs, we cannot make the decision at will.
If they refuse, what else can the old man say?
Of course I have nothing to say."
"OK."
Xue Ling nodded: "This may be better.
If we open our mouths, the old man might be even more angry."