Before the toast, Ying Yanluo went to change into her dress and Ye Shutong accompanied her.
"I don't know if you saw it or not, but when President Su called her Auntie Tao, the smile on that woman's face froze instantly."
If she were to say, the stepmother of the Ying family was really thick-skinned. If she said that she had a harmonious relationship with her stepdaughter, it would be fine if she sat in the position of the bride's mother, but what was the relationship between them like? How could she sit there so calmly and want to change her words when the newlyweds offered her tea? Was she worthy of that? Just calling her Auntie Tao was already giving her face!
Although the guests attending the engagement party today were not numerous, they were all direct relatives of their two families. She was really embarrassed!
Ying Yanluo naturally saw it. To be honest, the moment she saw her smile stiffen, she felt a secret sense of comfort in her heart.
Ye Shutong helped her zip up the side zipper, and then helped her adjust the hem of her skirt. "Well, it looks good. You can go out and toast beautifully later, and make her angry to death."
Ying Yanluo smiled silently and continued to stroke the bracelet on her wrist.
"Knock knock—" There was a knock on the door, and Su Weichu's voice came in.
"Yan Yan, can I come in?"
Ye Shutong looked at her with a smile, then immediately went over to open the door.
Su Weichu politely called her "Miss Ye".
Ye Shutong nodded to him and said, "It has been sorted out. Mr. Su, please go in and take a look."
Su Weichu thanked him and went in.
Ying Yanluo's face softened, "Why are you here?"
Su Weichu walked towards her and said, "Come here and take you out together."
Ying Yanluo felt sweet in her heart, her smile grew wider, and there was light in her eyes.
Su Weichu couldn't help but reach out and hug her in his arms, touching her hair.
Ying Yanluo sensed his silent comfort and leaned on his shoulder tenderly, her slender arms tightly hugging his thin waist. When she saw Tao Lanzhi sitting contentedly in the seat that should have belonged to her mother, she felt angry and a little helpless.
She also knew that the reason why Tao Lanzhi was able to sit in that position was with the tacit approval of her grandparents. Even if her grandparents no longer liked her, they would still give her some face in front of outsiders. This was not only for her, but also for the Ying family.
Su Weichu noticed that the person in his arms was in a bad mood, so he loosened his grip on her. Sure enough, he saw that her clear eyes were slightly misty, and the corners of her eyes were red. He touched the corners of her eyes with his warm fingers, "Don't cry. Didn't your husband vent your anger for you?"
Ying Yanluo burst into laughter after hearing his words and reached out to pat his shoulder.
Su Weichu smiled and clenched her fist, his eyes falling on the jade bracelet on her wrist. He remembered this bracelet. She had only worn it twice in front of him. The first time was the day they got their marriage certificate, and the second time was today. These two days should be very important days in her life, and jade jewelry is usually given by elders.
Ying Yanluo followed his line of sight and her eyes softened. "This bracelet was left to me by my mother."
…
Ying Yanluo and Su Weichu went out together to toast the guests. Fortunately, they only needed to take a sip at each table, otherwise they would not be able to leave the banquet hall after toasting dozens of tables. When it was the Ying family's turn, except for Ying Rutian and Tao Lanzhi, everyone else's expressions were normal, especially the eldest aunt Zhao Yunxiang, who smiled and said many words of blessing.
Su Weichu nodded to her politely, "Then I will accept your kind words, aunt."
When Zhao Yunxiang heard this, her smile became even brighter.
Ying Rutian looked at Ying Yanluo. Ying Yanluo looked at him for two seconds and then calmly looked away. Ying Rutian was almost provoked by her reaction and couldn't control the anger in his heart. Tao Lanzhi reached out and patted the back of his hand that was placed on the table at the right time, and her smile was as gentle as ever.
After the toast, they did not stay long and went on to toast the next table.
When Ying Yanluo came out of the lounge, she saw Ying Chixi standing in the corridor. He hadn't noticed her yet and seemed hesitant.
"Are you looking for me?" Ying Yanluo asked.
Ying Chixi suddenly raised his head and looked over.
Ying Yanluo walked towards him. She was 165cm tall, and the high heels on her feet were almost 10cm. Standing next to Ying Chixi, who was less than 180cm tall, she didn't feel any pressure. She asked, "What do you want to talk to me about?"
Ying Chixi shook his head and then nodded.
Ying Yanluo looked at him and asked, "Is it because of your mother..."
"No." Ying Chixi interrupted her.
"What is that?"
Ying Chixi reached into his pocket and fiddled with it for a while, but never took it out.
Ying Yanluo frowned, "You are sixteen or seventeen years old, why are you hesitating and procrastinating?"
Ying Chixi was startled and immediately took out the things in his pocket.
It is a rectangular black jewelry box, and it looks like it contains a necklace
Ying Yanluo was a little confused, "What is this?"
"It's for you, an engagement gift." After saying this, Ying Chixi thought of something else and said, "I bought this with the money I earned from my part-time job."
Ying Yanluo looked at the young man in front of her. Although they had the same father but different mothers, if one looked closely at their facial features, one could still see a lot of similarities. However, Ying Chixi looked more like Ying Rutian, while she looked more like her mother. This was something she had always been thankful for.
"Why do you want to go out to do part-time work? Doesn't your mother give you pocket money?" Ying Yanluo asked him.
Ying Chixi shook his head, "I just want to earn money to buy you a gift."
Ying Yanluo was stunned for two seconds, as if he understood something.
Ying Chixi couldn't help feeling anxious when he saw that she didn't answer, but he didn't know what to say, and his anxiety was evident on his face.
Ying Yanluo looked at him and found that he really hadn't changed at all. His expression was exactly the same as when he was a child. He sighed silently, reached out to take the rectangular jewelry box, and said, "I accept the gift. Thank you."
The anxiety on Ying Chixi's face suddenly dissipated, and there was a hint of joy in his usually calm eyes.
"I've accepted the gift. Let's go to the banquet hall." Ying Yanluo said to him.
Ying Chixi nodded obediently, "Then I'll go over first."
"Well, go ahead."
As soon as Ying Chixi left, Su Weichu came over from the other side. He looked at the thin back of the boy and knew that he was her half-brother. He asked, "What did he say to you?"
Ying Yanluo was a little surprised to see him suddenly appear, but she heard the concern in his tone, smiled, and raised the jewelry box in her hand, "Engagement gift."
"He gave it to me?"
"What else?" Ying Yanluo asked back.
Ying Yanluo lowered her eyes and looked at the jewelry box in her hand, muttering, "In fact, he was quite clingy to me when he was little."
Su Weichu didn't hear it clearly, so he asked, "What did you just say?"
Ying Yanluo looked at him with a smile, shook her head, and said with a relaxed look, "It's okay."
…
It was nearly eleven o'clock when the engagement banquet ended, and Su Weichu and Ying Yanluo saw the guests off together.
"elder brother."
The one who called him was his cousin, Shen Xuguang.
Shen Xuguang nodded to Ying Yanluo and called her sister-in-law.
Shen Xuguang: "Brother, come here for a moment."
Ying Yanluo smiled and said, "If someone calls you, just go over first."
Su Weichu touched the top of her hair and said, "I'll be back soon."
Ying Yanluo nodded, "Then I'll go change my clothes as well, you can come to the lounge to find me later."
Su Weichu nodded and walked towards Shen Xuguang.
Ying Yanluo walked towards the lounge and just as she turned around, she heard Ying Rutian's voice.
"Come here, I have something to tell you."
Ying Yanluo thought about it and walked over.
Ying Rutian's complexion did not look very good. Of course, she also knew why his complexion was so bad, and no one would be able to get better.
"You were sincere about what you did earlier, weren't you?"
Ying Yanluo said calmly: "I don't understand what you mean."
"If you understand, no one else will. You were sincere in offering tea to you..." Ying Rutian paused and continued, "I am embarrassing Aunt Tao, right?"
Ying Yanluo knew what he meant by the pause in the middle of his sentence, "So you also know that she is just Aunt Tao."
Ying Rutian heard the sarcasm in her words, and his voice was inevitably tinged with anger, "I know you don't recognize her, but in such a big occasion today, do you have to be so ruthless?"
Ying Yanluo's eyes cooled down, "You must have made a mistake. You shouldn't have said this to me. You can go find Su Weichu. I was just shouting along with him."
If Ying Rutian dared to go find Su Weichu, he wouldn't be standing here right now. "Then you dare to say that he did this for no reason other than you? And Su Weichu has shown no respect to your Aunt Tao since the first time he came to your house. Now, in such an occasion, he has made her lose face..."
Ying Yanluo watched him scold her and Su Weichu for Tao Lanzhi, her voice turned cold, "Today is my engagement party, and you let a third party sit in the seat that belongs to my mother, and you want to force me and my husband to call her mom. Who is giving whom face? Who doesn't want whom to step down?"
Ying Rutian was so shocked by her words that she forgot to refute. She knew that she knew everything...
"Father-in-law, you haven't left yet?"
Su Weichu's voice came from behind Ying Yanluo.
Ying Rutian and Ying Yanluo both looked over subconsciously.
Su Weichu strode towards them and stretched out his hand to block Ying Yanluo behind him. "I wonder if my wife did something wrong that made my father-in-law come over and give her a lecture?"
Ying Rutian was still looking at Ying Yanluo, but Ying Yanluo turned her face away and did not look at her. Originally, only they and his parents knew about these things. After all, no one would say such things in front of a child. But from the look on her face, it was obvious that she had known about it for quite some time. Ying Rutian suddenly remembered that she moved to his parents' place when she was ten years old. Now thinking about it, could she have known about it at that time
"Yanluo." Ying Rutian's voice was a little dry.
Ying Yanluo looked at him again.
"Yanluo, even if this is the case, your Aunt Tao has taken care of our family for so many years. Besides, she was very kind to you in the past. You should still remember her, right?"
Ying Yanluo was stunned for a moment, a hint of disbelief flashing in his eyes.
Su Weichu chuckled and looked at Ying Rutian. "Father-in-law, if I remember correctly, Yanyan moved to Mr. Ying's place when she was 10 years old. Even if Aunt Tao is taking care of her, she is only taking care of your family of three." Su Weichu emphasized the words "your family of three".
"Besides, I have never heard of anyone being grateful to a third party who came into the house with a purposeful kindness."