Chapter 447: Meeting the Parents, an Excited Fan Yue Mei

Chapter 447: Meeting the Parents, an Excited Fan Yue Mei

October 6th, Friday.

Suitable for: marriage, travel, cleaning, moving, engagement, housewarming, planting, burial, and worship.

At 8:00 AM, the relatives and friends invited by the clan members gathered at the entrances of their respective villas, preparing for the fire entry ceremony.

In the Baise region, the fire entry ceremony for the Hakka people is mostly the same, so there's no need to repeat the details.

After the fire entry ceremony, some clan members busied themselves with cooking at the entrance of the ancestral hall, while others entertained their relatives and friends in the villas, serving tea and chatting.

For this housewarming, Deng Shirong's eldest son and his wife returned, so Xiaodong'er and Dongzi naturally came back with them.

For these two siblings, taking two days off wouldn't affect their studies at all; Xiaodong'er remained the undisputed top student in her grade, and Dongzi was still a top-tier student in his class.

At this moment, Xiaodong'er and her brother were playing by the river with a group of cousins.

While playing, one cousin noticed many fish swimming in the clear river and remarked, "There seem to be quite a few fish in this river. It's a shame we don't have any fishing rods; otherwise, we could sit here and fish."

Dongzi asked, "Cousin, is fishing fun?"

The cousin nodded and said, "Of course it's fun. The most exciting part is when the fish bite the hook. Have you ever fished, Dongzi?"

Dongzi shook his head and said, "No, I'll go ask Grandpa if he has any fishing rods. If he does, we can fish here!"

The cousin replied, "Go ahead and ask. If he has fishing rods, bring them over, and I'll teach you how to fish."

The other cousins also chimed in, discussing the joys of fishing.

All the cousins had grown up in the countryside and had fished before. It was a simple activity that anyone could understand.

Dongzi ran into the living room and shouted, "Grandpa, do you have any fishing rods? We want to fish in the river."

Deng Shirong, who was having tea with his in-laws, smiled and said, "Yes, I do. Wait here, and I'll bring them to you."

"Great!"

Dongzi said excitedly, "Grandpa, bring all the rods you have. The cousins also want to fish."

Deng Shirong agreed and excused himself to go to the old house to fetch the fishing rods.

Thanks to Dongzi's reminder, Deng Shirong thought it would be a good idea to buy some fish fry to release into the river. At the end of the river, where the villas end, a small dam had been built to raise the water level and make the river look more beautiful.

If they raised fish, they wouldn't have to worry about them swimming downstream.

The villa complex was over 3,600 meters long, which was plenty of space to raise many fish. Even if some swam upstream, it wouldn't matter. He wasn't raising them to sell but to have something to do for fun when he had free time.

Soon, Deng Shirong brought several fishing rods for Dongzi to play with his cousins.

It's worth noting that boys are naturally interested in fishing, while girls generally aren't, and Xiaodong'er was no exception. She didn't join the boys fishing but played a game called "throwing stones" with her other female cousins.

"Throwing stones" is a popular game among girls in Shuangwang, also known as "picking stones," "picking pebbles," "picking bones," or "picking joints." It's so popular that even some boys join in.

After some time, Dongzi suddenly shouted excitedly, "I caught a fish! I really caught a fish, hahaha!"

Xiaodong'er glanced over and saw that Dongzi had only caught a small fish, about the size of two fingers, and couldn't help but tease, "Dongzi, you're making such a fuss. Anyone who doesn't know would think you caught a big fish, but it's just this tiny one?"

Dongzi ignored his sister's sarcasm and ran into the living room to show off, "Grandpa, Grandpa-in-law, Grandma, come and see, I caught a fish!"

"Oh, Dongzi, you're so clever, you caught a fish so quickly!"

"Dongzi is indeed clever; the fish isn't small at all!"

Dongzi's grandparents and in-laws couldn't help but praise him. Deng Shirong also joined in, noting that the boy knew how to show off. When he grows up, if he catches a big fish, he'll probably get lost in his excitement.

After showing off to the elders, Dongzi happily returned to the river, carefully removing the nearly lifeless fish from the hook and placing it in a nearby puddle. He then put a worm on the hook and continued fishing with his cousins.

Unfortunately, his luck ran out after catching that one fish, and no more fish bit the hook.

By around 10:30 AM, it was time to head to the ancestral hall for lunch, and Dongzi reluctantly packed up his fishing gear.

Deng Shirong couldn't help but laugh and said, "Dongzi, if you like fishing, I can take you to the Yong River next time. There are big fish there."

Dongzi's eyes lit up, and he said excitedly, "Grandpa, we have a deal! When you have time, take me to the Yong River to fish."

Deng Shirong encouraged him, "Dongzi, if you can get into the top fifteen in your class, Grandpa will take you fishing in the sea. That's really exciting. The big fish in the sea can weigh hundreds of pounds. Imagine how amazing it would be to catch such a big fish!"

Dongzi's eyes widened. Catching a small fish had already given him a great sense of achievement; catching a bigger fish would indeed be thrilling. However, getting into the top fifteen in his class was quite a challenge.

It seems that I'll have to work hard from now on.

...

After the meal, the relatives and friends of the Ye and Deng families dispersed.

Deng Shirong's family also drove to Nanning, along with Zhang Xiuping's brother and sister-in-law, who were now doing business on the snack street in Nanning. The shop space was provided to them for free, which was no big deal for the Deng family, who owned several hundred shops.

After staying in Nanning for just a couple of days, Deng Shirong set out again.

Taking advantage of the peak exchange rate of the US dollar to RMB this year, he decided to exchange some of his US dollars.

Although he was now the world's richest man in terms of wealth, most of his wealth was not in cash but in various valuable items and a large amount of goods. These items either needed to be kept out of the public eye for a while or required a long time to be gradually converted into cash.

Thus, he was only nominally the richest man, not in reality.

The US dollars in his possession were the only form of liquid wealth he had.

In the end, Deng Shirong spent more than two months traveling to over a dozen cities, exchanging several hundred million RMB.

He invested all this money in buying land.

He mainly bought land in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Shanghai, where the land prices were not yet too expensive. In the new century, land prices in these cities would skyrocket. By stockpiling land now, he could use it whenever needed or sell it for a huge profit.

After completing these transactions, Deng Shirong returned to Nanning.

By this time, students had started their winter break.

Upon returning, Deng Shirong immediately checked his grandchildren's report cards.

Xiaodong'er's report card was no surprise; she still held the top spot in her grade.

Dongzi, perhaps inspired by the promise of sea fishing, had worked hard and managed to rank sixteenth in his class, just one place away from the requirement for sea fishing. This left Dongzi quite upset and gloomy.

Seeing this, Deng Shirong smiled and said, "Dongzi, don't be discouraged. This time, I'll take you out to play. If you can maintain this rank next semester, I'll take you out to sea fishing during the summer vacation. I promise you'll have a great time."

Dongzi, surprised, asked, "Grandpa, are you serious?"

Deng Shirong nodded and smiled, "Grandpa never lies."

Dongzi instantly perked up and said excitedly, "Then it's a deal. Next semester, I'll definitely maintain this rank."

"I'll be waiting for your report card next semester."

Turning to his granddaughter, Deng Shirong asked, "Xiaodong where do you want to go?"

Xiaodong'er replied, "Grandpa, I want to go to Kunming. I've heard it's spring-like all year, and I want to see it."

Deng Shirong nodded and said, "No problem. What about you, Dongzi?"

Dongzi blinked, "Wherever sister goes, I'll go."

Deng Shirong smiled, "Alright, then we'll set off for Kunming tomorrow."

...

On the 25th day of the 12th lunar month, in the evening.

The Nanning snack Street was brightly lit, with stalls lining both sides of the street, offering a variety of snacks. The street was bustling with people, already taking on the appearance of a thriving night market.

At Qin's Sour Sn the shop run by Qin Fengzhen and her three children, they were busy beyond imagination. The business was so good that they could hardly believe how many customers in Nanning enjoyed sour snacks.

In the past, Qin Fengzhen had a mobile stall, moving from place to place. Her business was only so-so, and in comparison to now, it was like heaven and earth. If she had such good business back then, she would have been wealthy long ago.

Actually, not only Qin Fengzhen's business was thriving, but all the other merchants' businesses were also booming.

The snack street had become the most famous night market street in Nanning. Whenever someone wanted to eat night snacks, they thought of this place first.

There was nowhere in Nanning that offered a more comprehensive selection of night snacks.

With the concentration of traffic, the popularity of this snack street naturally increased, and the more popular it became, the more traffic it attracted. This positive cycle made the snack street increasingly prosperous.

In time, this snack street would surely become one of the most famous snack streets in the country.

While the mother and her three daughters were busy, Deng Yunhua walked over and greeted, "Auntie, busy?"

Seeing Deng Yunhua, Qin Fengzhen smiled broadly and greeted, "Xiaohua is here, come in and sit. What would you like to eat? Let Yue Mei prepare it for you."

Fan Yue Mei, who was slicing sour snacks, glanced at him and smiled, "Brother Hua, go find a seat, I'll come over in a bit."

There were many customers, so it wasn't the time for formalities. Deng Yunhua nodded and found an empty small table to sit.

Less than two minutes later, Fan Yue Mei brought a plate of sour snacks and said apologetically, "Brother Hua, it's busy now, I'll come over to keep you company soon."

Deng Yunhua nodded, "Alright, go ahead."

Fan Yue Mei nodded and continued to help slice the sour snacks.

Fan Yue Mei finally got a break after a good half an hour, when the customer flow eased up a bit. She walked over and said apologetically, "Brother Hua, I kept you waiting! I'm so sorry!"

Deng Yunhua smiled and said, "Don't be so formal with me. Your sour snack shop is doing so well; it looks like you've been making a lot of money recently!"

Fan Yue Mei smiled and replied, "We've indeed been making a lot. We earn in one day what we used to make in a week. My mother is over the moon with joy."

Deng Yunhua said, "But it must be very tiring. You're so busy even when you're back, and when you're not around, Auntie and the others must be even busier. It's not easy to earn this money!"

Fan Yue Mei laughed and said, "A little tiredness is nothing. With such a good business, it's worth the effort. Many people would be happy to work this hard but don't have the opportunity!"

Deng Yunhua nodded inwardly at her words. Since Fan Yue Mei became his girlfriend, her family had continued to run their business diligently without getting carried away. This was indeed commendable. If it were someone with shallower ambitions, they might have lost interest in business and expected him to support them financially.

It seemed that his father was right. Even if Fan Yue Mei had agreed to date him for the money, as long as she could stick to her principles and obtain wealth in a righteous manner, she was not to be blamed. After all, even a gentleman loves money; who in this world doesn't like money?

Thinking about this, Deng Yunhua smiled and said, "Yue Mei, my father wants to invite you for dinner tomorrow. Is that convenient for you?"

"Ah?"

Fan Yue Mei was first surprised, then overjoyed. Meeting the parents meant that he was serious about their relationship and was considering marriage. This was fantastic news for her. She quickly nodded and asked, "Of course, it's convenient. Where are we having dinner, and what gift should I bring for Uncle?"

Deng Yunhua said, "We'll be at the Nanning Hotel. You're a student, so you don't need to bring any gifts. If you really want to, just bring some of your family's sour snacks as a token of appreciation."

Fan Yue Mei nodded, then asked somewhat nervously, "Brother Hua, what kind of person is Uncle? What should I pay attention to when I meet him?"

Deng Yunhua laughed and said, "Don't be nervous. My father is a very approachable person. He's more open-minded than most young people. Just be sincere when you meet him; there's no need to put on an act."

Despite his reassurance, Fan Yue Mei couldn't help but feel nervous. The boss who could casually give one of his sons millions of yuan in annual income was a figure that would make anyone feel immense pressure, let alone when he was also her boyfriend's father. How many people could remain calm under such dual pressure?

However, Fan Yue Mei knew that if she wanted to marry Deng Yunhua, she would have to face this sooner or later. There was no other way but to be brave and face it.

...

Time quickly approached midnight. In the future, this time would still see many diners, but the night markets of this era were not as bustling as they would be later. By this hour, the number of diners on the entire snack street had significantly decreased.

There were only a few diners left at the Fan family's sour snack shop.

At this moment, Fan Yue Mei told her mother, "Mom, Brother Hua's father wants to invite me for dinner tomorrow."

Qin Fengzhen was overjoyed but then scolded, "You silly girl, why didn't you tell me about this earlier? It's already late; go take a shower and get some sleep."

Fan Yue Mei said, "I'm meeting his parents tomorrow, and I'm really nervous. I'm afraid I won't perform well."

Qin Fengzhen said, "As the saying goes, a homely wife must eventually meet her in-laws. I can't teach you much about this, but just be spontaneous and sincere!"

Fan Yue Mei: "..."

...

The next day.

Around 11:00 AM, Deng Yunhua drove over to pick up Fan Yue Mei for lunch at the Nanning Hotel.

When he saw her carefully dressed up, Deng Yunhua's eyes nearly popped out.

Fan Yue Mei, seeing his reaction, asked with a smile, "Do I look good?"

Deng Yunhua nodded repeatedly and said, "You look beautiful, absolutely stunning!"

Fan Yue Mei got into the car with the packed sour snacks and asked, "Really?"

Deng Yunhua sat in the driver's seat and praised, "Of course, you look just as beautiful as my three sisters-in-law!"

Hearing this, Fan Yue Mei was slightly surprised. She had been beautiful since childhood and was well-known for her beauty at Wuhan University. Over the years, she had never met a woman who could match her in appearance.

Now, hearing Deng Yunhua's words, it seemed that after all the effort she had put into her appearance today, she was only considered as beautiful as his three sisters-in-law. Did that mean his three sisters-in-law were also as beautiful as her?

Even, she might be more beautiful.

Surprised as she was, Fan Yue Mei quickly felt relieved.

After all, her boyfriend's family background was truly terrifying. With such a good family background, what kind of beautiful women couldn't his three elder brothers marry?

...

In a private room at the Nanning Hotel.

Deng Yunhua introduced, "Dad, this is my girlfriend, Fan Yue Mei."

"Hello, Uncle!"

"Ah Mei, hello! Come and sit down!"

"Uncle, it's our first meeting, so I brought you some pickled snacks my mother made, I hope you like them."

"Thank you, I really enjoy pickled snacks. Xiao Hua, call the server in to order some dishes!"

"Alright."

Deng Yunhua responded and called the server in to start ordering.

The process of ordering dishes won't be detailed here. After the server left the room, Deng Shirong praised, "Xiao Hua told me that you are a top student at Wuhan University, that's really impressive."

Fan Yue Mei smiled, "Thank you, Uncle! You flatter me."

Deng Shirong sighed, "My son, Xiao Hua, doesn't have a talent for studies. I emphasized from elementary school that he should study hard and try to get into a university, but unfortunately, this kid just couldn't get into it. He only managed to graduate from high school, which is quite embarrassing!"

Deng Yunhua, embarrassed, said, "Dad, please give me some face."

Deng Shirong glanced at him, "Face is something you have to earn. If you can't even get into a regular university, what kind of face do you want?"

Deng Yunhua weakly replied, "Dad, only a small portion of people can get into universities. Most people can't. You can't blame me for not trying hard enough!"

Deng Shirong snorted, "What kind of study environment do others have, and what kind of study environment do you have? You have the nerve to compare yourself to others."

Deng Yunhua: "..."

Fan Yue Mei, who was initially quite nervous about meeting the parents, felt her tension ease considerably after hearing this conversation between father and son. She smiled and said, "Uncle, Hua Ge told me that he did try hard when he was studying."

Deng Shirong said, "Ah Mei, you don't need to defend him. His efforts were sporadic, like fishing for three days and drying the net for two. It's just that our family's conditions were good; if he had been born into a poor family, he would probably have been destined to work as a laborer all his life."

Fan Yue Mei stifled a giggle.

Soon, the dishes started arriving.

During the meal, Deng Shirong asked, "Ah Mei, you will be graduating from university next year. What are your plans after graduation? Are you going to follow the state's arrangements and work for a public institution, or are you considering starting your own business?"

Fan Yue Mei replied obediently, "Uncle, if it were before, I would definitely choose to work for a public institution, as it is the best path for someone from my background. But now, since I am Hua Ge's girlfriend, I will follow his advice. If he wants me to work for a public institution, I will do so. If he wants me to start my own business, I will do that too. I am fine with either."

"Ah Mei, if that's the case, then you should choose to start your own business!"

Deng Shirong nodded in satisfaction and said, "When you graduate next year, we will hold a wedding, and you will take over Xiao Hua's appliance city."

"Appliance city?"

Fan Yue Mei blinked. Wasn't her boyfriend's business the snack street?

Deng Yunhua explained, "In addition to the snack street, the A Hua Appliance City at Wuyue Square is also mine."

Deng Shirong glanced at his fourth son and then looked at Fan Yue Mei, sighing, "Sigh, this appliance city was originally a very good project, but Xiao Hua isn't ambitious. He only runs this one store and has no plans to expand. When you take it over, see if you can make it even bigger and better."

Fan Yue Mei was truly moved. As a local from Nanning, she knew about A Hua Appliance City, which was the largest appliance city in Nanning. She never expected it to be her boyfriend's business. Although it might not be as big as the snack street, it was still a significant business. Just the thought of starting off by taking over such a big business after getting married was enough to make her excited.

"Thank you, Uncle! I will definitely make the appliance city bigger and better, and I won't let you down."

"I believe in your abilities. When the time comes, go ahead and do your best. If you encounter any problems, I will be there to support you."

The future father-in-law's trust made Fan Yue Mei feel like she had been injected with a dose of energy. She had already made up her mind to thoroughly understand the appliance industry in the coming months. Once she married into the Deng family and took over the appliance city, she would work hard to make it even bigger and better, to live up to her father-in-law's trust.

The meal lasted for about two hours.

Before leaving, Deng Shirong took out a red envelope he had prepared and handed it to Fan Yue Mei, saying, "Ah Mei, this is a red envelope for our first meeting. We are going back to our hometown for the New Year tomorrow. After we return from the New Year celebrations, we will invite you to our home for a meal."

"Thank you, Uncle!"

...

PS: Thank you to everyone for your concern. I have a heavy writing task every day and no time to take care of myself. It's also quite difficult to find the right doctor for such issues...

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end