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Chapter 664 New Year's Eve Dinner, First Hearing About the Owner's Parents

"The New Year's Eve dinner is almost ready, shouldn't we put the dumplings in the pot?"

Li Fulin walked over and took his wife's hand. "Just like before, let's go cook dumplings and let the two brothers go outside to set off firecrackers."

Tao Junman nodded, and before going to the kitchen, she reminded Jiang Hanying, "Hanying, stay away, don't get hit by firecracker debris."

As for his son and nephew, they are all thick-skinned and tough, how can they compare to his future nephew's wife?

The water in the kitchen for boiling dumplings had already been boiled in advance, just waiting to be put into the pot.

Meanwhile, in the courtyard outside, Jiang Hanying, who had been specifically instructed by Tao Junman, was receiving a lighter from her cheap owner.

Li Jingmo had just finished hanging up the firecrackers when he turned around and saw Jiang Hanying standing behind him, holding a lighter in her hand.

His eyes widened immediately. "Would you like some?"

"no?"

Li Jingmo immediately glared at his younger brother, "You..."

Before he could even open his mouth, Jiang Hanying pulled him aside, saying, "Get back, get back, we won't be responsible if you get hurt."

Pushing the people aside, Jiang Hanying stepped forward, grabbed the end of the fuse with one hand, and with the other hand holding the lighter, flicked the flame onto the fuse.

Seeing the fuse ignite and begin to hiss, it turned and ran.

After running a few meters and turning back, the firecrackers started going off one after another.

Hearing the sound of firecrackers outside, the couple immediately worked together to put the dumplings into the pot.

Meanwhile, the sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner was carried out of the kitchen and onto the outdoor dining table in a continuous stream.

Tao Junman came out of the kitchen carrying a plate of freshly cooked dumplings. When she saw Jiang Hanying returning from outside, she couldn't help but smile. "Hanying, come and sit down. It's time for New Year's Eve dinner."

As for the two brothers following behind, she couldn't be bothered to greet them.

"Auntie, I'm going to wash my hands first."

There were two tables set up for the New Year's Eve dinner.

One table was for the host family, and the other table was for the chefs and helpers who had been busy preparing the New Year's Eve dinner since the afternoon.

As for the others who were in charge of managing the old house, after finishing their work in the afternoon, they took their generous New Year's red envelopes and went home to celebrate the New Year.

The banquet hall is large enough that the two tables for the New Year's Eve dinner are set far apart so that neither side will disturb the other, making it more comfortable for the other table to eat their New Year's Eve dinner.

Otherwise, with the host family right next door, who would dare to talk and laugh loudly? You can imagine how dull the atmosphere would be.

Tao Junman opened a bottle of wine, and after the person washed their hands and returned, she asked, "Can Hanying drink alcohol, or would you prefer juice or a soft drink?"

"Can drink alcohol."

“Then let’s drink less, just a little tipsy is fine. Too much is not good.” Tao Junman said, pouring a small half-cup of slightly yellow wine into the glass in front of Jiang Hanying. “This wine is mellow and has medicinal herbs added during the brewing process. Drinking a little won’t make you feel unwell. On the contrary, it’s even good for your health.”

Jiang Hanying picked up the cup and smelled it curiously. Indeed, in addition to the smell of wine, there was also a faint fragrance of medicinal herbs.

"It smells quite nice." She took another small sip. "Hmm, the flavor is stronger now, but it's not spicy at all."

"Right. I can't stand other kinds of alcohol; they give me a headache. But I never get tired of this. If you like it, you can take a case with you. But it's best to only drink a small half-glass at a time, remember that?"

Tao Junman gave a series of patient instructions, and seeing Jiang Hanying nod, she put the bottle on the table, glanced at her husband, son, and nephew, and said, "You can pour yourselves. Divide the rest of the bottle as you see fit; there's no more than that." "That's enough!"

The three of them relied on their own efforts, and in the end, each of them only got about half a cup, and the bottle of wine, which weighed a little over a pound, was completely poured out.

"Try the dumplings we made ourselves first."

Although there are heating plates on the table to prevent the heat from escaping too quickly in such a large banquet hall, the cooked dumplings still need to be eaten as soon as possible, otherwise they will become dry and hard, affecting their taste.

There were three large plates of dumplings in total. Tao Junman had already witnessed Jiang Hanying's appetite at lunch, so this time she served her a large plate of dumplings separately.

The remaining two rounds were to be divided among the four of them.

With this New Year's Eve dinner, which was just as plentiful as lunch, she thought that this time, unlike lunch, there wouldn't be so little left over, with even the side dishes barely eaten.

The New Year's Eve dinner lasted for more than an hour, and it was almost 10 o'clock when we left the table.

The family then moved to the adjacent hall to stay up all night.

They also turned on the TV, and the sound of the New Year's Eve gala immediately added a lively atmosphere to the somewhat empty hall.

Jiang Hanying had just sat on the sofa and glanced at the song and dance performance on the TV screen. She was still wondering if Yuan Chaoyu's show had finished or hadn't started yet when her hand, which was at her side, was pulled over. Then she felt a coolness and a heaviness on her wrist and immediately looked down.

Then she saw a nearly transparent, azure-blue bracelet on her wrist.

She raised her hand and looked at it again.

"Like it?"

"Yes, I like this color." Jiang Hanying nodded without hesitation. "Is this a New Year's gift for me?"

Tao Junman smiled and nodded, "Consider it a New Year's gift from Shu Heng's mother to you through me."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Hanying sat up straighter and quietly asked while twirling the bracelet on her wrist, "Where is his mother?"

Tao Junman glanced at her nephew, who had just been called by her husband to make tea, and asked, "Didn't Shu Heng tell you about his parents?"

“Yes,” Jiang Hanying nodded, “I haven’t asked either.”

Although her current master has parents and family, these relationships are completely foreign to her, and she has no knowledge of them whatsoever.

If things were like they are now, and she had met and interacted with the people who were taking advantage of her, and could sense that the people who were taking advantage of her were genuinely kind to her, then she would naturally feel close to them as well.

But she couldn't remember to ask about anyone she hadn't met or had any contact with, not even her cheap master's biological parents.

However, since her aunt had brought it up herself, it seemed that the bracelet on her wrist was originally intended as a gift from the owner's mother to her daughter-in-law, so she took the opportunity to ask about it.

“Shu Heng’s mother, who is also your future mother-in-law, is named Ye Mingxin. Ming means bright and heart means mood. She disappeared a long time ago.”

"Missing?"

"Yes, this is what the whole family hopes for. Even if she is missing, we hope that she can live well somewhere in this world, instead of... I still remember that 26 years ago, Shu Heng's father returned to Beijing with his six-month-old son in his arms, looking distraught. He told us about your Aunt Mingxin's disappearance, and no matter how much we asked, he wouldn't say anything more."

"After that, he entrusted Shu Heng to me and your uncle, and embarked on the journey to find him. In the past twenty years, he has returned to Beijing less than five times. Shu Heng has hardly ever seen his father's face. When he first started to speak, he called us 'Mom' and 'Dad' along with his brother. He only changed his address when he became more aware of things. But who can we blame for that? I guess he won't be able to come back until you get married and see his daughter-in-law in person."

Jiang Hanying was listening attentively, but when she heard the last sentence, her eyes trembled slightly.

How did we suddenly start talking about marriage?