After the newlyweds finished their vows in front of the statue of the great man, they bowed to their parents. Only Mr. and Mrs. Xue were present, so they bowed to Mr. and Mrs. Xue together. After that, the couple bowed to each other.

"Alright, the ceremony is complete," Commander Lu announced.

After the wedding ceremony, it's time to invite the guests to the banquet.

The Xue family booked six tables at the military region's canteen to entertain mostly Xue Yanchen's comrades-in-arms with whom he had fought side by side and their families, as well as some leaders who were close to him.

Hearing that they were going to a banquet, the children ran the fastest and rushed towards the military canteen.

Mr. and Mrs. Xue still had to greet the guests, so they went to the cafeteria first. Luo Jingyan went back to the bridal chamber to rest for a while, and Xue Yanchen stayed to keep her company. After a while, they also went to the cafeteria, as the newlyweds, they still had to toast the guests.

Because the wedding banquet was being held in the military canteen, the lively atmosphere easily attracted the attention of other comrades eating there. Song Qingsong happened to be eating nearby at that moment. He watched the commotion for quite a while before realizing that Xue Yanchen and Luo Jingyan were getting married.

He didn't even know his brother-in-law was getting married. If word got out, he'd be laughed at.

He was incredibly embarrassed and wanted to escape as soon as possible. He hadn't even eaten a few bites of the food he had just gotten when he prepared to sneak back to his dorm.

He also saw Mr. and Mrs. Xue, but oh well, there was no time to greet them anyway. Even if he went over, they probably wouldn't welcome him. He decided to go back to his dorm.

Just as he got up to leave, a comrade stopped him.

"Qingsong, I see that it's your brother-in-law's wedding over there, they're having a banquet. Why aren't you going? Hey, they're having fish and meat and eating good food over there, but you're here eating cabbage and steamed buns. Didn't your brother-in-law tell you?"

Song Qingsong didn't know how to answer, so he waved his comrade's hand away, said nothing, and left.

His comrade scratched his head behind him, utterly bewildered.

"What exactly happened between Qingsong and his brother-in-law? He didn't even attend the wedding. What kind of conflict led to him not being invited to the wedding? Will they never speak to each other again?"

Beijing City

After losing her job at the garment factory, Xue Ningnan hadn't found a new one. In order to get her parents' help, she visited the Xue family much more frequently than before, going there every few days.

With nothing else to do, she came again, only to find the Xue family's door locked.

Because today is a day off, her parents would usually be resting at home at this time, and she doesn't know what they've been doing today.

She saw her neighbor, Aunt Tong, the same aunt who had prevented Xue's mother from letting her in when she visited the Xue family before the Lunar New Year, and instead tried to take her to her own home.

She quickly asked Aunt Tong, "Auntie, do you know where my parents went?"

Aunt Tong really knew. "I saw your parents leave with their luggage the morning before yesterday and they haven't come back yet. They must have gone to visit relatives in another province. Your maternal grandmother's family is in Jilin Province, so they must have gone to your maternal grandmother's house."

"But my mom never said she was going to visit my grandma." Xue Ningnan was a little confused. How could her parents just leave like that?

Forget it, I won't take her. She'll save money this way.

But she wanted to know if Xue's parents had taken Xue Ningyu with them. After all, she felt that her parents were biased. If they only took Xue Ningyu and not her, it meant they looked down on her and were not as close to her as they were to Xue Ningyu.

Since she was bored anyway, she rode her bicycle to the Zhao family's house after leaving the Xue family's house.

When she arrived at the Zhao family's gate, little Zhao Ming was playing in the sand at the entrance. He saw her and called out, "Second Aunt."

She knelt down in front of Xiao Zhaoming and asked him, "Mingming, is your mother home?"

Xiao Zhaoming shook his head, looking a little aggrieved.

"Mom and my grandparents went to see my uncle. Mom said that my uncle and aunt are getting married, but she won't take my sister and me with her. I really want to go too."

"Yanchen is getting married!"

Upon hearing this news, Xue Ningnan was so shocked that she jumped to her feet.

Her only brother is getting married. It's such a big deal, but his parents and sister didn't even consult her. Even though she had wronged Xue Yanchen and Luo Jingyan in the past, they won't even let her attend the wedding. Do they intend to cut off all contact with her for the rest of their lives?

She suddenly realized something: when her parents left with their luggage, were they going to a wedding in Jilin Province or to the military region?

If they go to Jilin Province, then it means that Xue Yanchen and Luo Jingyan's marriage application may not have been approved by the military region leaders, and Xue Yanchen may have already retired from the army.

If Xue Yanchen has really retired from the military, she won't need to fawn over his younger brother anymore.

But if they get married in the military region, it means their marriage application has been approved, and Xue Yanchen will definitely be able to stay in the army. His younger brother is so capable and has a bright future, so she has no choice but to stick with this powerful backer.

She quickly squatted down again and asked Xiao Zhaoming, "Mingming, tell your second aunt, where did your mother and grandparents go to attend your uncle's wedding?"

Xiao Zhaoming shook his head: "Mom said that place is very, very far away, and I don't know where it is."

Xue Ningnan didn't press the matter further; she figured she could just call Song Qingsong and find out.

She had only been gone a short while when Yuanyuan ran out of the house. Xiao Zhaoming told her, "My second aunt came just now. She asked me where my mom went. I said that my uncle is getting married to my aunt, and my mom went to see my uncle and aunt with my grandparents."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yuanyuan glared at him.

Why did you tell Auntie? Didn't Mom tell us not to tell Auntie?

Little Zhao Ming immediately covered his mouth with his dirty little hands: "Oh dear, I forgot."

Xue Ningnan rode her bicycle to the post office and used the post office phone to call the military region. After the call went through, the communications officer there had to find someone to notify Song Qingsong. Half an hour later, the couple finally got through.

Coincidentally, the couple started talking about the same thing.

"Your younger brother got married in the military region."

"Did my younger brother get married in the military region?"

Alright, those two sentences only took up the time of one sentence. I'm done, you can hang up now.

When Xue Ningnan heard that Xue Yanchen was getting married in the military region, she felt a mix of emotions. Suddenly, she asked, "Who is the bride? Is it still Luo Jingyan?"