In fact, on the second day after Sheng Liancheng and his wife arrived in the capital, they visited the Wu family and personally inquired about the local engagement customs and what the Wu family's requirements were.

The Wu family was very open-minded, saying that everything would be done according to the Sheng family's rules and they didn't have any demands.

The Sheng family has prepared a house for us, along with a full set of furniture and appliances. These conditions are top-notch even in the capital. What more could the Wu family ask for?

The children from both families have spent so much time together and have developed a deep bond.

Now that you've reached the point of engagement and marriage, stop nitpicking and finding fault. The most important thing is to get the engagement settled peacefully and happily.

The father and his two children were chatting inside the house, while in the kitchen, the mother and her two children were cooking the second batch of dumplings.

The gas stove was burning brightly, and soon the water in the pot was boiling. Zhang Shuzhen scooped half a ladle of cold water into the pot and then gently stirred the dumplings in the pot with a spatula.

Generally speaking, the dumplings are cooked after the water has boiled three times. So they were scooped out with a strainer, and the Sheng sisters, Sheng Yunfang and Sheng Yunfei, took the plates to the main room.

The family of six ate at a traditional eight-person table. The table was laden with plates of dumplings, small dishes, garlic sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, and other condiments.

When the last plate of dumplings was served, the family sat around the table, and Zhang Shuzhen pushed the second pot of hot dumplings in front of her son and daughter.

"Come on, everyone, have some dumplings. These are still warm. Try our homemade pickled cabbage; you'll definitely love it."

Sheng Xiping made his own dipping sauce, then picked up a dumpling, dipped it in, and took a bite.

"Mmm, delicious, this is the taste."

After leaving home, I couldn't find such authentic sauerkraut dumplings anywhere else. It has to be my mom's cooking; it's absolutely amazing.

When you're far from home, what you miss most is always your mom's cooking.

Sheng Yunfang, Sheng Yunfei, and the others nodded repeatedly, praising how delicious the dumplings were.

Zhang Shuzhen was overjoyed by her daughter and son, and kept urging the children to eat more.

Everyone ate a lot at this meal, and almost ate until they were stuffed.

After finishing their meal, they cleared the table and the family watched TV and chatted contentedly, discussing Sheng Xikang's engagement the next day.

Zhang Shuzhen meticulously organized everything needed for tomorrow, one by one, and everyone helped check to make sure nothing was missing. Only after confirming everything was in order did they feel relieved.

Sheng Xikang usually lives alone in the new house. Even after he got married, there are only a few people in the family.

So when the heating was installed, only the main house and the two side rooms were equipped with heating; the east and west wing rooms and the rear building were not.

In the evening, Sheng Liancheng and his wife stayed in the east room of the main house, Sheng Xiping and Sheng Xikang stayed in the west room, and Sheng Yunfang and Sheng Yunfei stayed in the east side room.

The heating was on quite well in the evening, so the room wasn't cold. I put a hot water bottle in the blankets and a glucose bottle filled with hot water in the bed. You get used to it.

The next morning, the Sheng family got up, washed up, tidied up, and ate breakfast.

Then Sheng Xikang went out first and invited two people over. One of them was the head of his department when he was studying, and the other was his current boss.

Logically speaking, Sheng Xikang and Wu Yuhua were in a free-love relationship, and in the capital, it's not customary to have an engagement or a matchmaker.

However, in order to show that he valued the marriage, Sheng Xikang still invited two high-ranking leaders to act as matchmakers.

Upon meeting these two, Sheng Liancheng naturally had to express his gratitude.

"Director He, Section Chief Liu, I'm really sorry to have troubled you two with my son's marriage."

"Comrade Sheng, you're too kind. Xi Kang has been with our department for over a year. He's been working diligently and proactively, and he's very intelligent. He's a very good young man."

"He's getting engaged, and as his superior, it's only right that I help him out." Director Liu said with a smile as he shook hands with Sheng Liancheng.

"Young Sheng was an outstanding student, and he was one of my most prized students. Comrade Sheng is so lucky to have such an excellent son."

Director He also came over with a smile and shook hands with Sheng Liancheng.

When a guest arrives, especially such an important person, we must invite him in to sit down, have a cup of tea, and chat for a while.

Around 9:30, the Sheng family finished their preparations and went out with gifts.

The Sheng family's residence is actually not far from the Wu family's; it doesn't take long to walk there.

To support Sheng Xiping, Director Liu specially arranged two cars.

So everyone got into the car, and the driver stepped on the gas and headed straight for the Wu family's house.

When they were about 100 meters away from the Wu family's house, the driver stopped the car, and Sheng Xiping got out and lit a string of firecrackers.

The two sides had agreed on a time in advance, so the Wu family arranged for people to wait outside the gate. As soon as firecrackers went off in the distance, Wu Yuqing and Wu Yucheng quickly lit firecrackers to welcome them.

As soon as the firecrackers went off, the people inside knew that the Sheng family had arrived, and Wu Bingzhong and his wife hurriedly went out to the courtyard to greet them.

"Director He, Section Chief Liu, please forgive us for not welcoming you properly."

Wu Bingzhong had met these two men before, but they weren't very familiar with each other. However, since they had come to his door today, they were honored guests.

"No, no, you're too kind, sir. We were invited by Comrade Xiao Sheng to act as matchmakers."

"We apologize for our intrusion in visiting, and hope the leader will forgive us." Director He and his companion were very polite to Wu Bingzhong.

Wu Bingzhong smiled and looked at Sheng Liancheng and his wife, "Brother Sheng, sister-in-law, please come in, everyone please come in."

The matchmaker went first, followed by the others, with Sheng Xikang, the groom-to-be, being the last to enter.

As the group entered the main hall, they saw Old Wu sitting at the head of the table, smiling at them.

The group hurried forward, first bowing to Elder Wu, and then everyone took their seats according to their status as guests and hosts, with Sheng Xikang still sitting at the last seat.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!