Lin Family Birthday Banquet
On the way back from the cemetery, Jinnan drove alone. The phone rang twice before he found a place to stop and connect the Bluetooth.
The call was from Li Hongfang, and the background noise was filled with people's voices: "Nan, where are you?"
"I just got off the ring road interchange. What happened?"
"I'm at Jiuzi Garden. Isn't it Mr. Lin's birthday tonight? Have you picked out a gift?"
Jinnan continued on his way. The voice on the other end of the phone came from the car's Bluetooth. It was bustling and lively to listen to.
"I have a Brunei wood carving at home, so that should be enough to make up the number," Jinnan joked. "Young Master Li has fallen on hard times, and he has to buy a birthday gift out of pocket?"
There was silence on the other side for two seconds. Slowly, Jinnan heard a slightly smaller voice asking something, and he immediately understood.
Li Hongfang wasn't being picky. The one who should be given a gift now that his family was broke was Lin Jiaze.
"Jia Ze is next to you?"
"Yeah." Li Hongfang responded, "I'm not familiar with Jiuzi Garden and I'm afraid of being ripped off. Forget about Jiaze, he's always been the fat sheep. You usually buy most of these ornaments and stuff, so come and give us a look?"
Jin Nan sighed softly and said, "Why don't you go home? I'll find a buyer and come back to you with the goods."
"No, no." Lin Jiaze came forward, "You have to buy it yourself to show your sincerity!"
"You are the one who is always bothering me." Li Hongfang gave Jiaze a slap on the head first.
The voice was crisp, and Jin Nan laughed when he heard it: "You guys find a place to wait for me. Don't even look at the shops in Jiuziyuan, they'll all rip you off."
"What about Manhe?" Li Hongfang said.
Jin Nan agreed. Just then, Guo's housekeeper called to say that the repaired car had arrived home, and the birthday gifts for the evening had also been wrapped and delivered, signed by Xu Zhiyuan and Jin Nan.
"Where is Zhiyuan?" Jinnan asked casually.
"Mr. Xu has a meeting today and will go to the birthday party with Mr. Gao tonight. He said you don't have to wait for him."
"good."
I don’t know if it’s Jinnan’s illusion.
After returning from Paname, Xu Zhiyuan avoided him intentionally or unintentionally. He left earlier in the morning and had unscheduled social engagements in the evening. If Jinnan had not crawled into bed with him every day, he would probably not have seen him at all.
Going home is like returning to a steamer, heated and pressurized, and the emotions that have not yet taken shape are easily stewed and burned. No matter how much we kiss behind closed doors, we still dare not even hold hands outside.
Intimacy in secret also has conditions and limits. No matter how coquettish he is, Xu Zhiyuan will not be with him until the end.
It would be a lie to say I wasn't anxious, but this kind of thing is the most helpless and cannot be forced.
When the car arrived at Manhe, Jinnan found his home, familiar with the route. Surprisingly, the fingerprint lock hadn't been changed, so he swiped it and walked in. Li Hongfang, Lin Jiaze, and two strangers, a man and a woman, were sitting in the living room chatting. Jinnan looked a little familiar to the man.
"The savior has arrived." Li Hongfang was the first to notice him and waved, "Let me introduce you, Chai Xing, the principal of the Lido Song and Dance Troupe. This is Ms. Liu Ruiliu from Xinfeng Real Estate."
Jinnan nodded one by one. He should have met Mr. Chief once. Xinfeng Real Estate... was not unfamiliar to him, but they had almost no personal relationship except for official business.
The Chief was a bit shy, but Miss Liu was very graceful and extended her right hand to Jin Nan. "I've heard that Mr. Jin is young and promising, and today I finally get to meet him."
Jin Nan shook hands lightly, exchanged a few pleasantries, and was then pulled to sit down and talk by Li Hongfang. Lin Jiaze, who rarely stayed in the corner, was alone and troubled.
"What's wrong?" Jinnan asked him quietly.
"Jinnan, the place we're going to later won't be very expensive, right?" Lin Jiaze said, "I'm afraid I can't afford it."
Jinnan was momentarily lost in thought. He had said similar things to Lin Jiaze during their school days. How had Lin Jiaze responded then?
"I have plenty of money. Tell me what you like and I'll buy it for you."
After leaving the Lin family, the ever-present Second Young Master Lin finally understood how valuable money was. Jin Nan felt a little distressed, but seeing Lin Jiaze's slightly furrowed brows, he couldn't bear to say it out loud.
Others don’t understand Lin Jiaze, but Jinnan does, because he is also a child who has rejected his family.
"If it's too expensive, I'll help you pay for it," Jinnan said. "How about you give me a little bit of your shares in exchange for my investment in you?"
"My little shabby company..." Lin Jiaze laughed. "Brother Nan, I have to call you brother today. I will work hard to make money in the future, and you just wait for the dividends."
Jin Nan also smiled: "Okay, I'll wait."
Jinnan had originally thought of bringing someone over to look at the items, as there were so many. However, with so many guests, it wouldn't be appropriate to bring them all along. In the end, he decided to call someone. Lin Jiaze had reviewed the list beforehand and had no objections.
Old Master Lin, also known as Lin Mao, is Lin Jiaze's grandfather for the past twenty years. He was a soldier in the fifties and founded the current Maolin Group. He has more experience than Hua Lin, but the traditional industries account for too large a proportion and are difficult to reverse. In recent years, Lin Jiayi has been busy with transformation.
Old Master Lin had long since retired to the background, doting on his two grandsons, who were in charge of the first house. He taught Lin Jiayi with sternness, but doted on Lin Jiaze with unconditional love.
The old man is very old and still doesn’t know about Lin Jiaze and Chen Chen.
Jin Nan wanted to ask what Chen Chen was going to give this time, and was worried that Lin Jiaze would be unhappy, but he asked faster than anyone else. He knew from the beginning that Chen Chen and his girlfriend had bought the super large five-layer cake tower at the birthday party.
Lin Jiaze doesn't have this skill, so he can only seek help from outside.
An hour later, the buyers arrived with several large wooden crates, filled with various smaller boxes and jars. Li Hongfang wheeled over the empty shelf he'd been using for his wine and began placing the items on it, one by one, each a treasure trove from around the world.
There were quite a few good things there. Li Hongfang was buying wine glasses like he was collecting stamps, and he was completely bewildered by a set of silver-carved red wine glasses.
Jinnan looked around and decided to settle for a gyroscope, as he had plenty of things at home. Miss Liu, however, liked quite a bit of jewelry, and the prices weren't particularly expensive, even cheaper than those luxury brands.
There were two people sitting in the corner without saying a word, one was the shy chief Chai Xing, and the other was Lin Jiaze who was still struggling.
He could only afford one piece, so the gift for the old man had to be special and not cheap.
Chai Xing was not interested in these things. His eyes were always looking out the window, as if he was counting the floors.
Li Hongfang's models have all kinds of personalities, and he likes to bring them out to meet people. Jinnan has seen a lot of different types and is not surprised by them.
He simply stood closer to Li Hongfang and asked quietly, "Who did you let live in this apartment? The chief?"
"I'm on my own." Li Hongfang threw a piece of apple into his mouth. "Why do I have to give it to someone else?"
"You said before..." Jin Nan frowned slightly, "You already have Lido No. 1, why are you competing with me for a house?"
Li Hongfang did not buy his house at the current market price. He included all the transfer fees and calculated the price based on the peak housing prices two years ago. From the beginning to the end, Jinnan did not lose a penny.
Jinnan wanted to give him a discount, but finally gave him a 12% discount.
Li Hongfang himself lost two to three million yuan. What was he trying to achieve? He couldn't have just wanted the night view, right?
"Do you want to live over there with me? I'll vacate the room and it will be convenient for you to go to work." Li Hongfang chewed the apple with a crisp sound. Jin Nan didn't know why, but he also felt like he was chewing it into pieces and swallowing it.
However, Li Hongfang has been difficult to understand for a long time. Jinnan did not feel wary, but was just confused.
After Miss Liu picked out the jewelry, Lin Jiaze helped her put it on. She walked around the living room, and the glittering and colorful jewelry was so beautiful.
Everyone's eyes were on her, but it was just a fleeting glance, without any further appreciation.
Lin Jiaze finally settled on a beautiful jade plate, reasonably priced. Jinnan paid for it, and Li Hongfang also bought some small ornaments, though Chai Xing remained uninterested.
The strangers left, and the small gathering ended after afternoon tea, with the polite promise of seeing each other again at the birthday party tonight. Jin Nan wasn't too wary of others, but it was Li Hongfang who warned him, "Be careful of Miss Liu."
"Hmm?" Jinnan didn't understand.
"I only made an appointment with Chai Xing today," said Li Hongfang.
Uninvited guests.
"I understand." Jin Nan nodded. He didn't say anything more about it being impolite to talk about ladies behind their backs.
The birthday banquet was held at the old house of the Lin family in the evening. Jin Nan's car did not need anyone to guide it. It parked all the way to the parking space that once belonged to the second young master Lin and was now vacant. As luck would have it, there was a familiar Maybach next door.
The license plate number also matches.
As soon as I entered the venue, I saw Xu Zhiyuan. The weather was getting hotter. He was wearing a black shirt. Standing next to him was Gao Min, who was about the same height and looked like a male model. The two of them were chatting and laughing with the elders of the Lin family, looking very comfortable.
Lin's father and Lin Jiayi were receiving guests in front of the main gate. When they saw Lin Jiaze and his party, their eyes changed.
Lin's father continued to talk to the guests. Lin Jiayi walked away and came over, his hand naturally resting on Lin Jiaze's shoulder. Lin Jiaze did not refuse.
"Didn't you have dinner? Grandpa left a bowl of longevity noodles for you. Go quickly, or they'll clump up." After Lin Jiayi gave his instructions to his brother, he arranged for the other children. "Xiaonan, Hongfang, you two can come in and sit down. If you're hungry, tell the kitchen. The chefs will be here tonight."
Lin Jiaze choked up and handed the gift box to Lin Jiayi. He thought for a moment and took it.
The two brothers were almost ten years apart in age, so it's no exaggeration to say that Lin Jiayi personally raised the younger brother. Following Jinnan's suggestion, Lin Jiayi had a long, heart-to-heart talk with Jiaze after returning to China.
The Lin family respected the children's wishes, although no one felt comfortable about it.
Chen Chen was the happiest one. He and Bai Yi were both wearing aprons, patting the cake they made left and right, and they were so satisfied.
The guests laughed at the two of them for their disappointing behavior. Sister-in-law Liu Geyu finally stepped forward to stop them and hid in a corner to talk.
Chen Chen was fine. His girlfriend, Bai Yi, looked at the elegant and graceful Professor Liu Geyu of the Acting Department with her starry eyes. "Sister, I really grew up watching your TV series. Please sign an autograph for me."
Chen Chen was a little embarrassed to watch: "Sister, this is my sister-in-law."
Liu Geyu also laughed so hard that she couldn't stop. She really liked this funny couple.
Each individual spontaneously formed a small ecosystem, with interests intertwined and old friends meeting. Jinnan and his friends' treatment did not change at all because of Lin Jiaze. Lin Jiaze was still the youngest son in the family and was loved by everyone.
His nose turned red, he blew his nose, and went to eat his grandfather's longevity noodles.
Jinnan and Li Hongfang were like two mushrooms, huddled in a corner, praying not to be found.
In fact, they had been found a long time ago. As soon as they entered, Xu Zhiyuan noticed this group of young masters, or rather, everyone was paying attention to them. The consensus was that they were all second-generation rich kids and there was no need to provoke them.
Jinnan got a haircut during the day, with his forehead hair cut short to reveal his eyes, looking very cute.
Gao Min helped Xu Zhiyuan get a new glass of champagne and joked, "Mr. Xu, your brother is watching you."
Xu Zhiyuan murmured a response without turning around. When he turned around, their eyes met.
"Throwing a tantrum?" Gao Min clinked his wine glass against him. "Children are always difficult to deal with. Yours is no better than the Lins'. When Lin Jiayi got married, his brother cried uncontrollably at the wedding. I wonder what your wedding will be like? Will he throw a cannon at you?"
"I'm afraid so." Xu Zhiyuan said seriously.
Gao Min laughed out loud.
As the crowd gradually gathered and time was running out, Jinnan was about to fill his stomach with his fruit plate when he saw a wheelchair enter the door.
He recognized both the person in the wheelchair and the person pushing the wheelchair. Miss Liu Rui pushed Geng Guangsong into the house.
Geng Guangsong wasn't as famous as Jin Licheng in Lido's celebrity circles, but he was still a top figure in the business community. Miss Liu's appearance behind him immediately fueled speculation.
Neither of them sounds good.
Jinnan was about to close his ears when Li Hongfang pulled his sleeve.
Geng Guangsong led Miss Liu straight inside and went towards Xu Zhiyuan without turning around.
"Isn't he going to be a matchmaker for Xu Zhiyuan?" Li Hongfang asked and turned around, but there was no one around him.
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