My older cousin, Lin Hai, is 24 years old this year. After returning from technical school, he opened a car repair shop in the county town. Two years ago, his family was eager for him to get married.
He had been going on blind dates but hadn't found anyone he liked. This time, however, he actually fell for a girl from Linjia Village. She's nineteen this year, but they can only get their marriage certificate next year. They're having their wedding banquet this year first.
They got married very quickly. They met through blind dates here, and if they hit it off, they moved very fast. The main reason is that they are afraid that the good ones will be taken by someone else, and in the end, only the less desirable ones will be left, so they have to act first.
From the blind date to the decision to hold the banquet, the time was a bit rushed. Lin Xiazhu and the others only found out a few days ago, and then took some time during the day to come back and help.
She didn't hide it from him; she even brought it up during dinner. But Young Master Bai didn't care to hear it. What he cared about wasn't knowing who was getting married, but that he hadn't been able to find Xiao An right away when he was in a hurry to find her.
When they arrived at Lin Shanfu's house, Old Mrs. Lin was greeting guests at the gate. When she saw Lin Xiazhu bringing a "city person" over, her eyes widened in surprise.
"Xiaozhu, who is this person? Where did you meet him? Why did he follow you home?" Old Mrs. Lin exuded a gossipy aura.
"An old acquaintance, he's bought mountain products from me a few times... He's a relative of Xiao An." After thinking for a moment, Lin Xiazhu revealed some information, but didn't explain too much, after all, she still needed to clarify this matter with Xiao An first.
"Xiao An's relatives?" Xiao An has found her family?
"Xiaozhu, then..." Old Mrs. Lin wanted to ask more detailed questions.
But Lin Xiazhu held up several stacked stools and waved with her other hand, "Grandma, you hurry up and greet the guests. I'm busy and don't have time to talk to you."
"Who should I give the red envelope to?" Bai Junbai asked, his handsome face tense and feigning calm.
As soon as he appeared, he became the center of attention, and everyone stared at him, crowding together to guess who he was.
"They look very wealthy."
"He was holding a red envelope; it was probably a boss Haizi knew in the county town."
"No, he doesn't look like one of those big bosses on TV. He looks like a celebrity, so tall and with his back straight. He must be a big shot." Some people do have good judgment.
"What do you think about me introducing my Xiaomei to him?"
"Don't waste your time. If you see someone who is rich and good-looking, you can't just rush to get close to them. It's fine if it's an ordinary family, but if a family is particularly wealthy, it's not a good thing to force your daughter into their arms."
"Exactly, let's be realistic and not be too ambitious. We can't handle people who are too outstanding."
The group chatted happily, but the conversation quickly died down. Everyone was a practical person and didn't daydream, so they soon dispersed.
Bai Junbai pretended not to hear. Although these people were talking very loudly and had no awareness of the need to lower their voices when discussing others, he twitched his lips and said, "Do you have a private room? I can pay extra."
"If you really don't like it, you can come to my house to eat, and I'll bring the food over," Lin Xiazhu said, suppressing a laugh.
During a wedding, firecrackers are set off almost constantly. There are two young men who specialize in setting off firecrackers: one sets off two-shot firecrackers, and the other sets off long firecrackers.
"My maternal grandparents are here, and my mother-in-law's extended family is here too! Quickly set off the biggest string of firecrackers!" Old Mrs. Lin shouted, peering outside.
For a moment, the sound of firecrackers rose and fell, mixed with shouts from adults and yells from children, creating a very noisy and exciting atmosphere.
I think these people are crazy.
"Bring Xiao An over, we'll talk at your house." Bai Junbai had to raise his voice to speak.
Lin Xiazhu smiled and nodded, took the red envelope he handed over and went inside. After finding Lin Shanfu, she gave him the red envelope, saying, "Uncle, this is a gift from Xiao An's uncle."
"...What do you mean? Xiao An has regained her memories?" Otherwise, how could she suddenly find her relatives?
"We'll talk about it later, I'm busy." Lin Xiazhu turned around and went to find Xiao An.
Lin Shanfu: "..." Isn't he the busiest one? His son is getting married.
Xiao An was helping to chop vegetables in the kitchen. Nowadays, when people hold banquets in the countryside, their own family members and neighbors help with cooking and serving. There's no such thing as going to a restaurant to invite guests; nobody wants to spend that money.
Zhang Li was invited to cook, Zhang Yu was also helping with the stir-fry, the Zhang Shengli brothers were chopping chicken and duck, Lin Chacha was preparing the side dishes, and Xiao An was slicing ginger with a cleaver; his knife skills were excellent.
"Xiao An, come with me for a second," Lin Xiazhu whispered in his ear, then raised her voice, "Cha Cha, come and slice the ginger, Xiao An is busy."
Lin Chacha didn't ask Xiao An where she was going. Without saying a word, she took the kitchen knife and started chopping quickly.
"Where are Xiaoxue and Taozi?" Lin Xiazhu hadn't seen them since she came in.
"You're all so happy to be in the new house watching the bride, you've filled a bag with candy and are eating it, aren't you afraid of getting cavities?" But she wants to work as a cook's assistant in the kitchen, can you believe it?
"Alright, it's all thanks to your ability. When you get married, I'll have your older cousin be your chef," Lin Xiazhu joked.
"...I won't get married for another ten years, around the age of twenty-five. I might go to college, and then I'd like to have a wedding banquet at a hotel, where everyone can just enjoy the meal without all this fuss."
Lin Chacha didn't feel embarrassed at all; she had actually already planned for her future.
"Chacha, aren't you ashamed? How old are you? You're already thinking about getting married. You love working so much, what's the point of studying so many books? You should have joined us in contracting work after graduating from junior high school." Zhang Yu laughed and teased.
“I’m different from you guys. Not only do I have the strength to do heavy work, but I also want to learn more and become a person with a brain,” Lin Chacha retorted directly.
"Hey, hey, hey, Cha Cha, that's not right of you. You're implying something about us, that's really hurtful!" Zhang Shengli yelled.
"Speak properly, and don't bully Cha Cha." Lin Xiazhu smiled and then took Xiao An out.
"Xiaozhu is so protective of her own. We can bully Chacha, but we should be grateful if Chacha doesn't bully us," Zhang Shengli couldn't help but complain.
The kitchen was filled with laughter and chatter.
Bai Junbai had already gone outside to wait on the street. When Lin Xiazhu and Xiao An arrived, they saw him standing there stiffly, sulking.
It's amazing he endured it; wearing a suit in this sweltering heat must have been unbearable!
Lin Xiazhu brought the people back home. The three of them went to the living room on the second floor. After inviting them to sit down, Lin Xiazhu went to the refrigerator to get some refreshments, chrysanthemum tea, cola, and mineral water.
"Just give me some bottled water." Bai Junbai felt like his throat was on fire.
After drinking water, Bai Junbo began to tell Xiao An about his older brother, Bai Junsong, and kept talking about how he took Xiao An's DNA for testing.
"The results came back this morning. They show that you are related to us by blood. You are definitely my older brother's child."
Seeing that Xiao An was unusually calm, Bai Junbai became uneasy. He took out the test results and handed them to Xiao An, saying, "Take a look, this DNA test result explains everything."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
