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Chapter 151: Do you like the seaside?
In a casual conversation, it was mentioned that Chen Wengang and Huo Niansheng were planning to hold another wedding ceremony in their home country.
Yu Shanding came out from behind, hastily changing into a pair of pants. The pants were made from torn fabric by Grandma Zhou, as baggy as a sack, but he didn’t care about his appearance, adjusting the waistband loosely and eagerly offering advice: “I’m familiar with this. I have experience. When is the wedding?”
Chen Wengang smiled somewhat sheepishly, “Not sure… Actually, we haven’t thought about it that much.”
“You need to plan ahead for this!” Yu Shanding counted on his fingers, “Let me help you make a list of what needs to be prepared. Firstly, setting a budget is essential—” he glanced at Huo Niansheng, “Of course, with Mr. Huo, we can go all out on every detail. Then, venue scouting is crucial, with considerations for environment, sound system, and lighting. Booking half a year to a year in advance is not too early. Speaking of venues, we need to consult a master for an auspicious date, and there’s the guest list—how many banquets to host…”
Grandma Zhou slapped Yu Shanding on the back of his head, “You’re too chatty, why is your mouth always running?”
Yu Shanding rubbed his head in mock pain, “Grandma, look outside, which family doesn’t plan a wedding like this?”
Everyone laughed.
Grandma Zhou sat down, chuckling, “Back in our day, we just followed along, it seemed like we were just following orders. When we reached a certain age, it was time to get married. We wore a two-foot-long red cloth as a wedding dress, carried over the threshold, and then it was just raising children and living life like that.”
She then turned to Yu Shanding and asked, “Why don’t you think about yourself? When will you bring a daughter-in-law home?”
Chen Wengang also smiled, lowering his head to drink some sweet water.
Huo Niansheng had been playing with his phone, then suddenly pushed it towards Chen Wengang. The screen lit up: “Take a look, which one do you like?”
Chen Wengang was surprised, reaching out to swipe a few times, “You’ve already researched this?”
Huo Niansheng leaned back, eyebrows raised mischievously, teasingly tapping his chin, then nudged the phone again.
Chen Wengang, spoon in hand, ignored his playful gesture, focusing on the screen.
Inside were various wedding themes, reflecting the diverse styles wedding planning teams could come up with, from romantic themes to traditional, forest, and country themes. Lu Chenlong curiously leaned over to take a look, “So many? Can’t even decide.”
Chen Wengang seemed overwhelmed too, his eyes darting around, hesitating.
Huo Niansheng put a hand on Chen Wengang’s neck and said, “Take your time; no rush.”
After finishing their sweet water, they walked back home. The sky was pitch black, with streetlights stretching ahead, their shadows elongating and shrinking. There was a night market across the street, with the sound of sizzling and various scents mingling in the air.
Chen Wengang held Huo Niansheng’s hand, who was holding Halley’s leash. They bid goodbye to friends and neighbors one by one, finally arriving home, packing up, and taking a shower.
After drying his hair, Chen Wengang lay on the bed, changed into pajamas, and was still looking at Huo Niansheng’s phone.
Compared to the last hasty ceremony, he finally felt the anxiety of taking care of his own marriage, and this was just the beginning—romantic themes were currently the most popular, with fresh and elegant decorations, mainly in macaron color schemes, either pink, light blue, or purple, a bit too dreamy. Traditional themes were suitable for those who liked traditional culture, with elaborate gold and red patterns, dragons and phoenixes, dignified and grand, but the bridal attire was indeed extravagant, better skip that. As for forest and country themes, one was returning to simplicity, the other pastoral, green fitting for nature, simple yet vibrant, both worth considering…
Huo Niansheng leaned beside him, flipping through Chen Wengang’s family photo album.
In the photo album, there were many pictures of Chen Wengang’s childhood. He had seen them many times before. He flipped from the back to the front, the further back he went, the younger he looked. Chen Wengang in primary school, kindergarten, the full moon celebration, even in the cradle… Going further back, there were even pictures of him in his mother’s belly. Huo Niansheng smiled at the pregnant woman in loose clothes, her gentle features suggesting she would be a good mother.
Chen Wengang glanced at what he was doing but didn’t pay much attention.
In Chen Wengang’s parents’ era, photographs were mostly taken with film, so there weren’t many images left, most of them were here. On the second page of the album, there was a photo labeled “Marriage Registration Commemoration,” with the groom in a smart suit and the bride not wearing a wedding dress but a white dress. Their young faces were beautiful and gentle. They were taking a picture on a breakwater, with the endless sea behind them.
The scene was adorned with a few sailboats and a lighthouse, red and white, the photo aged, with the white parts turning yellow.
Chen Wengang wondered where they went after registering, whether they went to have a big meal somewhere or had some other entertainment arranged.
At the same time, Chen Wengang finally stopped at a theme called “Sea Mist Love Letter.” He looked at it for a while, yawning, but hesitated to turn to the next page. Huo Niansheng closed the album, leaning over to him and saying, “This one seems good.”
Chen Wengang looked up at him and asked, “Do you like having the ceremony by the sea?”
Huo Niansheng smiled and said, “I like anything romantic, so let’s go with this one.”
With hardly any hesitation, the wedding theme was decided early on.
Huo Niansheng’s assistant, Amanda, was efficient. The next day, she contacted a well-known wedding planner who had their own professional team and only served high-net-worth clients. He had planned many wealthy weddings in the city, all extravagant affairs, leaving behind dazzling images. They met, and the planner was professional and attentive, agreeing to all the clients’ requests without hesitation, even offering to change anything during the planning period, from the theme style to the wedding schedule.
Two days later, Chen Wengang went with Huo Niansheng to the Huo family’s old mansion.
Huo Zhenfei was wearing casual clothes, having just woken up after working overnight.
He sat down on a high stool in front of the counter, lost in thought. Huo Niansheng sat across from him, pouring him a drink.
Huo Zhenfei seemed to wake up at that moment, giving him a glance.
He sat down on the high stool in front of the counter, lost in thought, while Huo Niansheng sat opposite him, pouring him a drink.
Huo Zhenfei seemed to wake up at that moment, giving him a glance.
This glance seemed to turn back time, back to the days when the two of them, cousins, used to drink together, only with an additional person beside them now.
Huo Niansheng poured another drink for Chen Wengang, who smiled and raised his glass towards Huo Zhenfei.
His profile was reflected on the glass beside him, and Huo Zhenfei studied Chen Wengang’s reflection. When he looked down, he seemed gentle and meek, but when he looked up, he had strong determination, like he could outsmart even Huo Niansheng.
The three of them toasted, drinking two glasses, before Huo Zhenfei’s gaze returned to Huo Niansheng. “Thank you for still thinking to inform me.”
Huo Niansheng grinned nonchalantly, “It’s only natural; there’s no need to thank me.”
Huo Zhenfei slammed his glass on the table and took a breath. “What’s with all this fuss abroad? You can be wilful there, but here, there are so many eyes watching you. You need to carefully consider the impact of your actions. So why bother with a wedding?”
Huo Niansheng chuckled, “What? Are you worried it’ll be too shabby? That people will think I can’t inherit the family fortune?”
Huo Zhenfei glared at him and said, “Don’t joke around. Are you serious, or are you just here to tease me?”
Huo Niansheng still had a playful smile, “I’m serious, of course.” He said, “It won’t be too shabby nor too grand. It won’t be a public event, either. So, any other requests you have, let me know.”
Huo Zhenfei brought the glass to his lips, but there was a loud noise from the living room, causing him to almost choke on his drink.
Turning to look, the culprit was his beloved son—Huo Yuxiang had grown taller, his face losing its baby fat and gaining a bit of rebelliousness. He was playing up against his parents, throwing his skateboard on the ground, when he entered the room.
Huo Zhenfei scolded, “Just because we said a few words about your homework, you’re throwing a tantrum?”
Huo Yuxiang shrank back a bit, his rebellious spirit dampened by half.
Huo Niansheng laughed and waved at him, “Hey handsome, come here.”
With guests present, Huo Yuxiang ran over, propped his hands on the counter, and sat on the high stool beside him.
He looked up at the three adults, feeling the novelty of being included and wanting to join in.
Regardless of Huo Zhenfei’s expression, Huo Niansheng waved his hand, and the maid quickly came over to pour Huo Yuxiang a glass of cola.
He looked up and asked his uncle, “Are you getting married? Then, at my age, can I still be a ring bearer?”
Huo Niansheng smiled and gestured towards his father, “Don’t ask me, I’m still seeking approval from him.”
Huo Zhenfei pinched his forehead, “Adults are talking, why are you fooling around?”
Huo Yuxiang admired Huo Niansheng a lot and spoke up for him, “Are you going to stop Uncle from getting married?”
He realized and asked Chen Wengang in surprise, “You’re not married yet? I thought you two were already a family!”
Huo Zhenfei furrowed his brow, “Who’s stopping him? Each of you does whatever you want, what do I care?”
The atmosphere became a bit tense for a moment. Huo Niansheng was not afraid of chaos, never worrying about giving his cousin high blood pressure. Huo Yuxiang was a bit worried about being held accountable later on, but fortunately, Chen Wengang made a couple of jokes to ease the tension a bit.
Huo Zhenfei pinched his nose and then talked about both company and family matters, finally focusing on Huo Yuxiang’s homework. Huo Yuxiang’s grades were actually okay, just not top-notch, but ultimately, it was him being too uptight as a father. Although Huo Yuxiang showed a hint of defiance, he also knew when to stop provoking. After finishing his cola, he dragged Chen Wengang to the garden to play.
As the summer vacation drew to a close, Chen Wengang’s doctoral supervisor would return from abroad for a while to guide the new batch of students.
Just as he was preparing for the new semester, he received a call from his two nephews, Chen Guangzong and Chen Yaozu, saying that the Mid-Autumn Festival was approaching and their parents had prepared delicious food, inviting him over. Naturally, this was a pretext taught to them by their parents.
Chen Wengang ignored his elder uncle and aunt for a while. Chen Xiangling was far away overseas, and whenever he asked, she’d claim the signal was bad. His parents couldn’t find her, even if they wanted to. After some thought, the only breakthrough seemed to be Chen Wengang himself.
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