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Chapter 643: The Engagement Banquet
Chapter 643: The Engagement Banquet
Lu Hongjun and his wife waited downstairs, and when they saw Lu Jiaxin coming down from upstairs, they were stunned.
Once everyone was downstairs, Lu An complimented, "Little aunt, you look so beautiful today. You're even more gorgeous than the celestial fairies."
"What? Am I usually not pretty?"
Lu An, with his sweet tongue, smiled and said, "You're always beautiful, but today you're exceptionally so. There's a saying that goes something like this—oh, right, it's that a woman is at her most beautiful on her wedding day."
Lu Jiaxin turned to her future sister-in-law and smiled, "Sister-in-law, with Lu An's silver tongue, you won't have to worry about him finding a wife."
"I wish he would settle down soon. That would be one less thing to worry about," Lu's sister-in-law said.
Lu An just laughed and didn't say anything.
Clearly, something was up! But now wasn't the time to ask about it. Upon hearing the sound of cars, Lu Jiaxin immediately took out a small mirror to check her makeup, which was still flawless.
Nie Zhan entered and couldn't take his eyes off the beautifully dressed Lu Jiaxin. "Jiaxin, you look so beautiful today."
Lu Jiaxin smiled sweetly and hooked her arm through his. "Let's go. We can't keep the guests waiting."
Everyone got into the cars, and Lu An whispered, "Aunt really treats us differently. When I say she's beautiful, she deliberately makes things difficult, but when Dad says it, she's all smiles."
Lu's sister-in-law lowered her voice and said, "Today is your aunt's big day, so watch your mouth."
They arrived at the hotel at 10 a.m., and by then, close relatives had already arrived. Upon seeing Lu Jiaxin, Yu Meotong showered her with compliments, causing Lu Jiaxin to laugh so hard her shoulders shook.
Zong Shimeng elbowed her and laughed, "If you want Jiaxin to design your engagement dress, just say so. There's no need to flatter her so much."
Yu Meotong disagreed, "I'm not flattering her. I genuinely mean it."
Zong Shimeng was just joking and asked, "Why did you come alone? Where's Jiang Yuanjiu? Why didn't you bring him along?"
Jiaxin and Nie Zhan were the two big bosses of the Wansheng Real Estate Company. It would benefit Jiang Yuanjiu's future in the company to attend the wedding. After all, as the best friend of the boss's wife, he would carry a lot of weight.
Yu Meotong explained, "His mom twisted her ankle, and when he went to take care of her in the hospital, he caught a cold from one of the other patients' families. He didn't want to risk infecting the other guests, so he didn't come."
Many of the guests today were either wealthy or of high social status, so it was indeed inappropriate to come with a severe cold. Just then, Nie Zhan came over and said that one of his granduncles had arrived, and they had to go and greet him.
Many guests from the Nie family had come today, but what surprised Lu Jiaxin the most was that the second generations of the four big families—the Guo family from Hongji Real Estate, the Li family from Hengji Zhaoye, and the Zheng family from New World—were all present. In addition, several heavyweight figures from the political world were also in attendance.
Once all the guests had arrived, both Nie's grandfather and Lu Hongjun took to the stage to give speeches. Nie's grandfather lavished praise on Lu Jiaxin, saying that she was capable and ambitious, and that it was Nie Zhan's good fortune to have found such a wonderful fiancee.
Lu Jiaxin's face lit up with a brilliant smile. In contrast, Zhang Lanlan, who was also Nie's granddaughter-in-law, lowered her head so that others wouldn't see the expression on her face.
After Nie's grandfather finished speaking, it was Lu Hongjun's turn. He expressed his hopes for Lu Jiaxin and Nie Zhan to cherish each other, support each other, and walk hand in hand through life together.
A distant relative of the Nie family, upon seeing Lu Hongjun's robust appearance, asked Zhang Lanlan curiously, "I thought Miss Lu's father was in poor health and had to be hospitalized as soon as he arrived in Hong Kong? He seems to be full of energy, which doesn't seem like someone who's unwell."
Zhang Lanlan smiled and explained, "Lu Uncle had a brain hemorrhage in August and underwent brain surgery. After he was discharged from the hospital, Jiaxin wanted to bring him to Hong Kong for rehabilitation, but he refused. As soon as he arrived in Hong Kong City for the engagement banquet, Jiaxin sent him to the hospital for a full check-up. The doctor said that with post-operative rehabilitation, he could recover faster."
She was quite envious of Lu Jiaxin and occasionally felt a twinge of jealousy. However, this was a family matter, and she would naturally defend them to outsiders.
"Why not bring the elderly Lu Uncle to live with you and take care of him?" the distant relative asked.
Zhang Lanlan smiled and said, "Jiaxin is busy from morning to night. If Lu Uncle lived with them, he would be taken care of by the aunt and a caretaker, and he wouldn't be able to speak Cantonese or English, so he would feel very bored at home. These past few days in the hospital, he's been saying that he wants to go home as soon as the engagement banquet is over."
The latter sentence wasn't something she made up; it was something Lu Hongjun had said himself. Although they had specially arranged for a nurse who could speak Mandarin to take care of him, he still felt cooped up. He had told Lu Jiaxin that he would rather recover more slowly if it meant he could go home.
Upon hearing this, the distant relative didn't say anything more.
Subsequently, Nie Zhan took Lu Jiaxin's hand and walked up to the stage. Nie Zhan also expressed his gratitude to his grandfather for his hard work and cultivation, as well as to Lu Jiaxin for her support and encouragement.
As for Lu Jiaxin, she shared the story of how she and Nie Zhan had met and gotten to know each other, and then she thanked the guests for attending the banquet. Usually, one would thank their parents at this point, but for Lu Jiaxin to thank Lu Hongjun… well, she decided to skip that and not waste everyone's time.
After everyone was seated, Lu An noticed the delicacies on the table—lobster, abalone, and bird's nest—and whispered, "How much does a table like this cost?"
Lu Ping smiled and said, "Just eat. Why are you asking so many questions?"
Lu An was quite amazed, "No wonder everyone is so eager to come to Hong Kong City. Look at how people live here, and then look at our lives back in the mainland…"
The cost of one meal here was more than his annual salary. The disparity was just too great.
Lu Ping said, "That's because you haven't been to the slums. The people there live even worse lives than we do."
Lu An didn't argue with that. Every place had its rich and poor, but the economy of Hong Kong City was undoubtedly better than that of the mainland. Here, the monthly salary of an office worker was four to five thousand, which was over a thousand yuan at the current exchange rate. His father's monthly salary was barely five hundred, and there was no comparison.
Lu Ping said, "There is quite a gap now, but one day we will catch up. Come on, eat up before there's nothing left."
Lu An took a look, and seeing that everyone else was already digging in, he quickly joined in. The chefs at the Peninsula Hotel were indeed exceptional. Everyone at their table ate to their heart's content, and by the end, there were only a few scraps left.
While the guests were dining, Lu Jiaxin still had to circulate and greet everyone. Watching other people's weddings always seemed so romantic and beautiful, but when it was her turn, there was only one word to describe it: tiring.
After seeing the guests off, Nie Zhan noticed Lu Jiaxin's exhausted expression and gently tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, smiling as he said, "Let's go eat."
"I just ate!" Lu Jiaxin exclaimed.
Nie Zhan laughed, "You only had a few bites. That doesn't count as eating. Come on, I've ordered an extra table just for you with all your favorite dishes."
Lu Jiaxin's heart melted, and she took Nie Zhan's hand as they walked into the private room.
After eating, Lu Jiaxin returned home, while Nie Zhan stayed behind to handle the aftermath. Exhausted, she fell asleep on the way back to the Lu residence.
(End of Chapter)
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