Chapter 766 It doesn’t sound like a serious place
The music in the banquet hall seemed to fall silent for a moment. My dad awkwardly reached for my grandmother's hand and said, "Mom, let's go sit down and talk slowly. Don't stand here at the stairs."
Grandma shook off my dad's hand and said unhappily, "Why are you so anxious? Not many people have arrived yet. What's wrong with me chatting with my grandson-in-law? His family is so rich, they can't just not give the betrothal gift."
My mother glared at my father, and my father awkwardly tried to pull grandma's arm again.
I was irritated by my grandmother's shamelessness. Xiao Shiqiu put his hand on my waist and pinched it gently twice. I turned to look at him, and he gave me a look that told me to stay calm.
"Grandma," he smiled gently, "according to custom, a betrothal gift is given when getting engaged, and a betrothal gift is given when getting married. Don't worry, I'm sincerely asking to marry Mengmeng, so I won't give you anything less."
Grandma opened her mouth without reacting. "Dowry?" she thought. "I'm afraid she's never heard of a betrothal gift before." She was afraid she'd misheard, so after three seconds she pressed the question, "Dowry? Have you given a betrothal gift?"
Xiao Shiqiu shrugged innocently, "Yes, the betrothal gift list was given to my father-in-law and mother-in-law by my father himself."
The old lady immediately glared at my dad, "I asked you how much money Mengmeng received as a betrothal gift, didn't you say you didn't receive any?"
After hearing what Xiao Shiqiu had just said, my father straightened his back and said confidently, "Yes, we're just engaged and haven't gotten married yet. How can you accept a betrothal gift? You didn't even ask about a betrothal gift."
Grandma was speechless for a moment, then asked, "Then, how much did his family give as a betrothal gift?"
With my father's cleverness, he certainly knew what kind of person his mother was. If she asked him how much he had taken, she would definitely find ways to make him give some back to leave for his nephew.
My father stiffened his neck and said, "It's hard to say how much it is. The betrothal gift is a testament to sincerity, and there's no price listed on the betrothal gift list. How can I tell you how much it is?"
Grandma didn't give up and continued to ask: "Then, then tell me what you have, and I want to hear how much it is worth."
At this time, the old couple following behind grandma also stared at my dad with shining eyes. The old man's eyebrows and eyes were 30% similar to my grandma's. I guessed he was grandma's eldest brother.
Since I can remember, I have been back to my hometown very few times. Now that I think about it, I really don’t know if I have met this uncle before.
My dad started to seriously pick out a book he thought grandma wouldn't be interested in and said, "A Song Dynasty ancient book..." Just as he started, grandma interrupted him, "What ancient book is it?"
“It’s an ancient book.”
Grandma curled her lips in disdain, clearly looking down on her. "Go on."
"A bronze sculpture by Raphael..."
Grandma interrupted me again, "What is that? Copper?" Grandma only heard one word in the whole sentence - 'copper'!
This metallic substance was seriously at odds with her values.
"There is also an exquisite Shoushan stone ornament, a horse, a set of emerald jewelry and a seaside villa..." My father finished speaking in one breath. He picked out the things that were the least likely to be liquidated and did not mention the gold items at all.
After listening to the end, grandma's eyes lit up, "Mingcheng, your family already lives in a villa, and Mengmeng will definitely have enough room to live after she gets married. Why don't you let your nephew live in the beach villa? Your family can't live in so many houses, right?"
My mother's face immediately darkened, my uncle's expression was a bit complicated, but my father smiled good-naturedly, "Which nephew of mine are you talking about?"
My uncle's expression remained unchanged, but his back was obviously tense. I knew that grandma had always favored Xia Junliang, which made my aunt very dissatisfied. She asked my dad to pay for everything, and my uncle to do the work. Grandma's beloved eldest son and grandson didn't have to do anything.
I don’t know if he is asking for something on behalf of Wensong and Wenbo this time, or if he is still asking for something on behalf of Xia Junliang.
I guess my uncle felt that since his eldest grandson was in jail, and now he only has two grandsons, it’s time for him to favor his own son.
But he forgot that Xia Junliang just went in, not died.
Sure enough, grandma scolded without even thinking: "Who else could it be? Of course it's your eldest nephew."
As soon as these words came out, the disappointment on my uncle's face could hardly be concealed. He couldn't help but said to my grandmother in a bad mood: "Mom, what are you talking about? Who would use their daughter's betrothal gift to subsidize my cousin? Is this reasonable?
Besides, Junliang will have to stay in there for several more years, why are you worrying so much?"
Grandma said unconvincedly: "You two uncles don't think about your nephew at all. Junliang will be released in a few years. After he is released, doesn't he have to find a wife and have children?
All the houses in town were given to that money-losing Jundi, and the second brother's family doesn't need a house, so what's wrong with giving one to his nephew?"
The old lady really loves her eldest grandson. Even after she was imprisoned, she was still worrying about him getting married and having children.
My dad continued to smile good-naturedly at my grandma, "Mom, I'm afraid Junliang won't be able to live in that villa. Not to mention him, I'm afraid we won't be able to live in it many times in our lifetime."
Grandma clearly didn't believe it. "Second brother, do you think I'm old enough to fool you? What do you mean by that?"
"Hehe," I actually saw a hint of pride in my dad's eyes, and said slowly, "The villa is not here, it's on the Aegean Sea."
Grandma's eyes flickered with confusion. "Where is the Aegean Sea? I know the East China Sea and the South China Sea, but how can there be an Aegean Sea? It doesn't sound like a serious place. Is it a foot massage parlor?"
I burst out laughing. "Grandma, the Aegean Sea is in Europe, not in China. It takes more than ten hours to fly there."
Grandma was dumbfounded. "It's so far away. My in-laws bought a house so far away, deliberately not letting us live there."
Xiao Shiqiu smiled elegantly and said, "Grandma, the villa over there is prepared for vacation. It can be rented out to a local agent to make money. It's not intended to be lived in permanently, it's just an asset."
His words silenced the old lady. Maybe she didn't understand the word "assets", but she understood the idea of renting it out to make money.
After thinking about it, he said unwillingly: "Second and third brothers, you can't just ignore Junliang when he gets out."
"Okay, okay, Mom, let's go sit over there first and don't stand here all the time." The uncle pulled grandma away impatiently.
Unexpectedly, something in my grandma's mind was touched. She suddenly turned her head and looked at Xiao Shiqiu with shining eyes. I immediately felt that she was going to do something weird again.
Sure enough, as if she suddenly remembered something, she stepped forward and tugged at Xiao Shiqiu's sleeve: "Grandson-in-law, you are so rich, you must have a wide network of contacts, right? Look, grandma has never asked you for anything, can you do grandma a favor?"
Xiao Shiqiu calmly pulled back his sleeves, smoothing out the wrinkles with his hands, and asked with an unchanging smile, "Grandma, please tell me what's going on."
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