Tong Xiaohuai and her mother toured the kitchen. When they came out, Tong Laoda was still admiring his root carving with his magnifying glass.
Hearing footsteps, he didn't even look up, only saying...
"Xiao Yan will be over for dinner in a bit. Tell A Guan to prepare some snacks to go with the drinks. Xiao Yan and I will have a few drinks together."
Tong Xiaohuai and her mother exchanged a glance. Tong's mother understood something from her daughter's eyes, walked over, patted Tong's eldest son on the shoulder, and advised him.
"Drink less. I heard Xiao Yan has been quite busy lately. Drinking too much will cause trouble."
Tong Laoda refused to listen. "What's the big deal? It's not like I'm making him drink before going to work. Isn't tomorrow New Year's Day? Everyone has a holiday! Besides, this is the first time I've had a son-in-law drinking with me after raising my daughter all these years!"
Tong Laoda spoke with great enthusiasm, beckoning Uncle Yuan over, "Go to the wine cellar and bring up a jar of aged vinegar. Xiao Yan and I are going to have a good drink tonight."
Tong Xiaohuai frowned, wanting to say a few more words to persuade her father, but seeing his enthusiastic appearance, she couldn't bear to shatter his long-cherished wish.
"Dad, you can drink, but not too much. You have to stop as soon as Mom and I tell you to!"
Tong Laoda is just afraid of his wife; as for his daughter, he often just brushes her off.
"Alright, alright, I'm your father. Don't you have any sense of propriety?" Boss Tong waved his hand, signaling Tong Xiaohuai to relax.
Tong Xiaohuai pouted, "Mom, keep an eye on Dad for me later. Don't let him force Yanbo to drink. He's been working so hard lately, his alcohol tolerance must be terrible."
Tong's mother readily agreed. Tong the eldest pointed at Tong Xiaohuai, pretending to be so angry that his beard trembled. "Tsk tsk, you've already turned against your father so quickly! Ouch, it hurts so much! Xiaoyan is tired, Xiaoyan has a low alcohol tolerance. Why don't you tell me that your father is getting old, his alcohol tolerance is low, and his body can't handle it anymore?"
Tong Xiaohuai fanned himself and laughed, "Oh dear, what's that smell? It's so sour!"
Tong Laoda glared at her again, "They say daughters are like birds that fly away when they grow up, and I think it's true! Weiyao, just have Xiaoyan give her a dollar later and let him take her away. She's so annoying to watch!"
So, as soon as Yanbo arrived at the Tong family home, Tong's mother greeted him with a smile.
"Xiao Yan, do you have any change?"
Tong Xiaohuai, who came out to greet him, took Yan Bo's bag, stood on tiptoe and kissed his cool lips, and smiled.
"Ignore them, my dad's having another fit!"
Although Yan Bo was confused, he still greeted Tong's mother and eldest son in the living room with a smile, "Hello, Uncle Tong and Aunt Tong, I have a dollar, what do you need?"
Tong Xiaohuai then reached out and covered Yan Bo's ears, humming.
"Sigh, didn't I tell you to leave my dad alone? He's acting crazy!"
Yan Bo smiled and pulled her hand away, then took it and led her into the living room.
Old Tong was still fiddling with his broken tree root when he pointed disdainfully at Tong Xiaohuai.
"This girl only knows how to annoy me now. Give me a dollar and take her away! Out of sight, out of mind!"
Tong Xiaohuai rolled her eyes in anger, "Dad, are you selling your daughter?"
Boss Tong chuckled. "Oh? So you won't even let me earn a single yuan?"
Tong Xiaohuai stomped her foot. "Mom, aren't you going to do anything about Dad? Even if you're going to sell him, you should at least get a high price! It's only one yuan. How will I have any standing in his eyes after that?"
Tong's mother smiled, looking at her husband and then at her daughter. "So, selling isn't the problem; the problem is, don't sell it too cheaply?"
Tong Laoda pointed at Tong Xiaohuai with a magnifying glass, "As long as it's Xiaoyan, this girl will be fine, right?"
His face was full of disappointment and disdain.
Tong Xiaohuai was teased and disliked by her parents. Feeling helpless and shy, she took Yan Bo's arm and turned to leave.
"Fine, fine, since you all dislike me so much, I'll go with him now!"
Tong Laoda didn't try to stop him, but shouted at Yan Bo's back as she forcibly dragged him away, "Xiao Yan, you haven't paid the betrothal fee yet, why are you taking him away?"
Tong Xiaohuai huffed and puffed as she let go of Yan Bo, ran back to the locker, took Yan Bo's bag, took out his wallet, and rummaged through it, but there wasn't a single yuan in it; the smallest denomination was ten yuan.
Tong Xiaohuai didn't pay much attention to it, pulled out a bill, ran back with a "thump thump thump" sound, and slapped the ten yuan on the coffee table.
"Here, keep the extra as a tip!"
Tong Laoda smiled and glanced at the ten yuan note. "I only want one yuan. I won't sell it for ten!"
Tong Xiaohuai glared at Tong Laoda, "Dad, if you keep acting up, I'm sleeping with Mom later!"
Boss Tong snatched the ten-yuan note, shouting, "You dare!"
Tong Xiaohuai raised her chin and snorted again.
Yan Bo had already turned around, put his arm around her shoulder, and touched her forehead to comfort her, "Okay, Uncle Tong was just joking with you!"
Tong Xiaohuai spoke again, raising his head high.
Yanbo rubbed his stomach. "What should I do? I'm hungry!"
This trick worked better than any coaxing words. Tong Xiaohuai immediately put away her angry face and pulled Yan Bo toward the dining room.
"Then let's hurry up and go eat. Uncle Guan and Uncle Yuan have already prepared it."
Tong Laoda sat on the sofa and slowly put away the ten yuan. Tong's mother looked at his childish behavior and shook her head with a smile.
"Look at you! How old are you? Still playing such childish games with your daughter."
But Boss Tong said with a serious expression, "Who said I was playing?"
Tong's mother scoffed, "Not playing? Do you really intend to only accept one yuan as a betrothal gift from Xiao Yan?"
Tong Laoda stood up and helped Tong Ma slowly walk towards the dining room.
"We don't lack that little bit of money. In any case, wouldn't it be better to settle things as soon as possible while we're still here?"
Tong Laoda had his own reasons for doing all this.
However, at this point, neither Tong's mother, Tong Xiaohuai, nor even Yan Bo thought he was joking.
The four sat down around the dining table. Boss Tong gestured to the servant to pour three glasses of wine and one glass of juice. Then, he raised his glass and handed it to Yan Bo.
"Come on, Xiao Yan, drink this cup. From now on, you'll be our Tong family's son-in-law!"
Yan Bo and Tong Xiaohuai were both stunned. They looked at each other, and then Tong Xiaohuai leaned over and touched Tong Laoda's forehead.
"Dad, are you really okay?"
Tong Laoda glared at her and said, "Get lost! Your dad is perfectly healthy! What could possibly be wrong with me?"
Tong Xiaohuai frowned. "Dad, you don't look like you're alright!"
Even Tong's mother felt that Tong was acting a bit strangely.
"Yunxiang, although I also like Xiaoyan very much and hope that they can be together for a long time, these kinds of things are not something that our family can decide, right?"
Tong Laoda ignored Tong Ma and just stared at Yan Bo. After a while, he asked.
"Xiao Yan, why don't you tell Uncle Tong that you're a capable adult with your own abilities?"
[New novel "Adorable Baby's Secret Order: Daddy, Don't Force It" (search the title and add it to your bookshelf) is now available! It features Bai Shao and Zong Zhe, who are also Yan Shao and Yingzi's in-laws.]
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