Chapter 197 Proposing to Her at the Family Reunion Banquet
Qingning remained seated at the table, quietly eating her snacks.
She was really hungry; she was so excited that she didn't even eat dinner that night.
The desserts at the Vanstar Hotel tasted exceptionally good, but she detected a slightly bitter flavor.
Sheng Weiwei's phone suddenly rang, and she got up and went to the side to answer it.
"Qingning." A gentle male voice sounded in my ear.
It's Huo Shenyuan.
He had walked up to her without her noticing, his gaze falling on her face as she ate with relish.
There was a little bit of white cream on the corner of her mouth.
He naturally picked up a tissue and, as he had done countless times before, gently wiped her face.
His eyes and brows were filled with an unconcealable tenderness.
Li Qingning stopped moving.
She quickly picked up the carefully wrapped gift from beside the chair and handed it to him.
She used sign language.
【Happy birthday. 】
Actually, she had practiced saying "Happy birthday, Huo Shenyuan" for a long time and could pronounce it very clearly.
She wanted to give him a surprise.
But now, she suddenly doesn't want to talk about it anymore.
Huo Shenyuan accepted the rather light gift, a small hint of surprise appearing in his eyes.
He smiled gently. "The gift you bought for me?"
"Let me guess, it's not milk candy, is it?"
Li Qingning lowered her eyes and gestured again.
[I got it as a prize in a raffle at the supermarket.]
He laughed, his voice filled with indulgence.
"I like everything you give me."
"Thanks."
He reached out his warm, large hand and, as always, gently ruffled her soft hair.
Li Qingning gestured a couple more times.
The food here is delicious.
The smile in his eyes deepened. "Then eat more."
She hesitated for a moment, then suddenly gestured a sentence.
She asked him, "Do you still have any of my favorite snacks on you?"
Huo Shenyuan stood up and gently opened his arms. "Come on, search it yourself."
Li Qingning suddenly threw herself into his arms and hugged his waist tightly.
Her small hands were clasped tightly together, as if afraid that if she let go, he would disappear. But in the end, he no longer belonged to her.
Huo Shenyuan was stunned for a moment, as if his heart had been hit hard.
"Shen Yuan." A soft female voice interrupted, it was Xia Nan.
Li Qingning quickly released him, and as she turned around, he saw tears in her eyes…
Xia Nan walked over, familiarly took Huo Shenyuan's arm, and pulled him away.
Li Qingning turned around and looked at the forgotten gift on the table.
He didn't take it.
She reached out, her fingertips trembling slightly, and took the gift back.
She wiped away her tears, then lowered her head and used a spoon to finish the remaining snacks on the plate, as if completing some kind of task.
After finishing her meal, she picked up the gift and prepared to leave.
The pool water reflected the dazzling lights of the banquet hall, creating a shimmering effect.
As Li Qingning passed by the pool, a tremendous force suddenly struck her from behind, slamming her hard into her back.
She lunged forward completely unprepared.
"thump--"
The icy pool water instantly swallowed her up.
A bone-chilling cold swept over her entire body; she tried to scream, but no sound came out of her throat.
She wasn't a good swimmer and struggled desperately in the water, but kept sinking.
The gift slipped from her hand and drifted away. She looked at the gift and instinctively tried to grab it.
However, his body struggled uncontrollably toward the deep water.
"Someone has fallen into the water!"
"Help! Someone's in danger!"
A gasp broke the hustle and bustle of the banquet.
Upon hearing the noise, Sheng Weiwei turned pale with fright and rushed to the edge of the pool.
"Qingning!" she shouted, and without thinking, she was about to jump.
Suddenly, a large hand grabbed her arm.
It's Bai Yu.
He looked anxious and spoke rapidly, "You stay here, I'll go."
After saying that, he jumped into the water without hesitation and quickly pulled Qingning out of the water as she sank.
When Bai Yu hugged her, her hands were still futilely reaching forward, trying to grasp the gift that was drifting further and further away.
But in the end, they couldn't catch it.
He carried her ashore.
The waiter immediately brought two large, dry towels, one to Bai Yu and the other to Li Qingning.
Nearby guests gathered around.
Sheng Weiwei took the towel and wrapped it tightly around Qingning, who was soaked to the bone.
She tenderly wiped the water droplets from Qingning's face.
Gu Xingnian also walked over quickly and was terrified when she saw this scene.
"Qingning, how did you fall down? Are you hurt?"
Qingning shook her head, her lips were cold and purple, and she trembled slightly.
She gestured, "I'm fine, the gift just got wet."
She turned around, her gaze fixed on the gift floating in the center of the pool, filled with sadness.
Huo Shenyuan strode over, his face grim.
"What happened? How did you fall into the water?"
Qingning said nothing, she just trembled silently.
Xia Nan quickly stepped forward, her tone concerned.
"They're all soaked. Quickly take them to their room to change into clean clothes, or they'll catch a cold."
Her posture was that of the lady of the house.
Huo Shenyuan seemed not to hear her words.
He took off his suit jacket and draped it over Qingning's thin shoulders.
Li Qingning raised her head, met his concerned gaze, and slowly made a sign language gesture.
Huo Shenyuan's face instantly turned ashen, and in his fury, he shouted angrily.
"No one is allowed to leave!"
"Investigate! Find out who pushed her into the water! Check the surveillance footage!"
Xia Nan was startled by his sudden outburst of anger.
This little mute.
Shen Yuan's feelings for this little mute were indeed quite special.
Not long after, the waiter who had hit the person was brought over.
A little questioning revealed that the mastermind was... Xia Nan.
Xia Nan's face turned deathly pale instantly.
She hurriedly protested, "Shen Yuan, it wasn't me! I didn't do it!"
"This little mute girl conspired with the waiter; they're framing me!"
Sheng Weiwei was furious when she heard this. "Does our Sheng family's third young lady need to wrongly accuse an unknown green tea bitch like you?"
"Three keys for ten dollars, do you even deserve that?"
Huo Shenyuan's eyes were as cold as ice.
"Take her away. From now on, she is not allowed to set foot in Haicheng again."
"The Huo family has completely cut off her funding."
Two bodyguards immediately stepped forward and, ignoring Xia Nan's struggles, forcibly dragged her away.
Xia Nan's remorseful screams echoed in the night, but it was too late.
The surrounding guests watched this scene and began to whisper among themselves, pointing and whispering about Xia Nan's retreating figure.
"This woman looks harmless, but she's actually so vicious."
"She really thinks she's the matriarch of the Huo family. She dares to scheme in a situation like this. Her level is too low..."
Huo Shenyuan walked up to Qingning, his voice softening considerably.
"I'm sorry, I've made you suffer."
She looked up and smiled at him, a smile that carried a hint of detachment.
She made two hand gestures in sign language, then turned and left without looking back.
No one present understood the meaning of that sign language.
Only Huo Shenyuan understood it.
In that instant, the light in his eyes completely dimmed.
Gu Xingnian glanced coldly at Huo Shenyuan, "Please trouble Young Master Huo to retrieve the gift."
"Qingning smashed her piggy bank to buy it."
"That was all her possessions."
"If you can't give her everything, don't give her anything at all."
After saying that, he turned and left.
Back at the Sheng family home, the mansion was warmly lit.
Almost immediately, Sheng's mother rushed out of the living room and hugged Qingning.
"Quick, go upstairs and change your clothes."
She pointed to the brightly lit restaurant.
"Tonight, we've prepared a super feast for you."
The long dining table was overflowing with a dazzling array of dishes.
Beside the boiling hot pot, there were more than forty plates of various meats and seafood, as well as a small mountain of spicy crayfish, and special delicacies air-freighted from all over the country. The scene was even more lavish than during the Chinese New Year.
Qingning looked up, her eyes slightly warm. She smiled broadly at her mother, made a few excited hand gestures, and then turned and ran upstairs.
All of this was specially prepared by Sheng Weiwei's parents in advance.
Not long after, Qingning came down.
She changed into a clean white dress, and her slightly damp hair had been dried, falling smoothly over her shoulders. She looked fresh and clean, showing no sign of unhappiness.
The family sat around a steaming hot pot, clinking glasses and laughing in the warm air.
The temperature here is a thousand times, ten thousand times better than that freezing birthday party.
Lin Qi happened to appear at that moment.
He held the familiar 001 robot in his arms. "Madam, Mr. Fu asked me to deliver this."
"Okay." Gu Xingnian stepped forward, took it, and squeezed its little paw.
As soon as 001 landed, its wheels spun smoothly, and it enthusiastically waved its little mechanical hand.
Hi everyone.
Its electronic eye swept over the hot pot and emitted an exaggerated exclamation of praise.
"Wow, hot pot smells so good. Life is incomplete without hot pot."
This genuine exclamation instantly made everyone present laugh.
Only Sheng's father's expression remained rather unpleasant.
001 seemed to sense the low air pressure; it slid to Sheng's father and tilted its little head up.
"Mr. Sheng, you don't look too well."
"I have offended you greatly before, please forgive me."
Mr. Sheng let out a cold snort from his nose, "Get lost."
It seems that the program for 001 does not offer the option to give up, and it stubbornly speaks again.
"To express my apology, I will sing you a song."
As soon as it finished speaking, its little hands and feet began to move clumsily, shrilly with electronic sounds, and it sang at the top of its lungs.
"It's a pity you didn't stay with me until the end, and you even hurt my old back, oh oh oh..."
"Without you, it feels like nobody wants me..."
"Shut up!" Sheng's father finally lost his temper and got up to catch it.
001, however, glided faster than the wind, nimbly dodging in the spacious living room, leaving behind a string of mesmerizing songs.
The girls laughed so hard they almost fell over, tears streaming down their faces.
The night grew deeper.
On the top floor of the Vanstar Hotel, the birthday party had long since ended, and the evening breeze brought a touch of coolness.
Fu Beichen and Bai Yu were still drinking when Huo Shenyuan collapsed drunk on the sofa. Fu Beichen waved for someone to help him down.
Only the two of them remained on the terrace.
Bai Yu lit a cigarette, the scarlet flame flickering in the night.
He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled white smoke.
As the smoke cleared, his voice drifted over, "Jiang Kexin, it's not Xixi, she's a fake."
Fu Beichen didn't even lift his eyelids. He gazed at the dazzling city lights in the distance, his tone colder than the night wind.
"I thought you Bai family members were all blind."
Bai Yu's fingers, which were holding the cigarette, suddenly paused. He turned his head, his voice filled with undisguised shock, "The real Xi Xi is Gu Xingnian?"
Fu Beichen finally withdrew his gaze and spoke slowly, each word carrying an undeniable weight.
"I will not let her return to the Bai family until all dangers in the capital are eliminated."
"Jiang Kexin is the best example to learn from."
Bai Yu's expression turned extremely serious, and he stubbed out his cigarette.
"I received your items. Tomorrow, I'll start with the Lin family. I'll do another thorough cleaning to ensure there are no hidden dangers."
Fu Beichen picked up his wine glass and gently swirled the amber liquid inside.
"You know the importance of choosing sides. I'm going to propose to her at the family reunion banquet."
Bai Yu snorted coldly, his tone tinged with mockery, "I never thought that even the richest man in the world would need to pull strings."
Fu Beichen's lips curled into a very faint smile.
"You probably don't know, but Miss Sheng has a first love... who just returned to the country."
He paused, his gaze falling on Bai Yu's face, which froze instantly.
"That's not the one from the Gu family."
Bai Yu's face visibly turned ashen, and a sense of crisis instantly rose within him...
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