1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 296 Extra Chapter 4: The Birthday Party Turmoil

"Your son isn't short at all. When he grows up, he'll definitely be as tall as Wang Fan."

Qiao Lin was biased towards Li Qing from the bottom of her heart, and deliberately steered the conversation toward Wang Fan.

"Wang Fan is just so-so, he's far inferior to my Liangzi."

Wu Meng failed to grasp her deeper meaning and casually chimed in, changing the subject again.

Qiao Lin gave her a helpless look.

"I'm just stating the facts."

Wu Meng continued talking to herself, praising her daughter: "My Nuannuan takes after her father. She's already half a head taller than other kids. She'll definitely be a tall girl when she grows up."

"Hey, hey."

Seeing that the topic had completely gone astray, Qiao Lin smiled helplessly and gave up on continuing to support Li Qing and her son.

-

The gift Wang Jiarui brought this time was, as always, dazzling.

Two miniature convertible electric toy cars, one red and one black, are especially popular with the children.

Da Bao was overjoyed when he saw the toy car. Without waiting for the adults to tell him to get in, he rushed to sit inside.

Xixi was quick to act; seeing her brother grab the black one, she grabbed the red one and happily turned the reverse wheel herself.

"Good heavens, is this a real car?"

"Can it be driven out?"

"A car isn't cheap, is it?"

"Kids these days are so lucky, they can drive cars at such a young age."

"His uncle has lived his whole life and still hasn't been able to bring himself to buy a car."

All the relatives and friends were very curious and turned around to look at the two sports cars.

"This can't compare to a real car; it's just a children's toy, only one size larger than a regular car model."

Wang Jiarui's answer was very tactful, without deliberately flaunting his wealth, which made people feel very comfortable.

Wang Fan's lips curled up slightly, showing more appreciation for his son.

Xue Fangyu noticed the change in his expression, his right hand clenched tightly, and the veins bulged.

What does Li Qing have to be proud of? She's just relying on having a son. It's not that easy for her son to inherit the family's glory.

Zou Yan is stupid; she squandered a winning hand. Even so, the son she gave birth to is Wang Fan's biological child.

With proper guidance, the outcome remains to be seen.

-

Li Qing watched her son teach the babies to drive toy cars, unaware of the fleeting jealousy in Xue Fangyu's eyes.

Unfortunately, Lin Xiyu happened to see his clenched right fist the moment she turned around.

She choked on a mouthful of grape juice, which made her cough.

"What's wrong? What's going on?"

"How can you choke on a grape?"

Wang Fan's expression changed, and just as he was about to get up, Gu Bin walked back from in front of the sports car, fussing over his beloved wife.

"nothing."

Not wanting to spoil the atmosphere of the birthday party, Lin Xiyu casually replied, "The grape I ate earlier was a bit sour."

Don't eat unripe grapes.

Gu Bin didn't think much of it and joked with a smile, "You're not pregnant anymore, so you don't feel any sourness when you eat anything."

"We grew them ourselves, so we couldn't bear to throw them away."

Lin Xiyu deliberately tried to cover it up and prove that she was indeed choked by sour grapes, so she deliberately pinched a green grape in her hand and held it to his mouth: "If I don't eat it, someone else has to eat it. Why don't you eat it?"

Gu Bin swallowed hard.

He had tasted green grapes before, and just thinking about their flavor made his mouth water.

"Eat it, it's not good to waste it."

Lin Xiyu said coquettishly, with a hint of coquettishness.

Gu Bin smiled helplessly, fulfilling her little wish, and put the green grape in his mouth.

"Is it sour?"

Lin Xiyu asked the question knowingly, and looked at him with a smile.

"Ah."

Gu Bin, with a grape still in his mouth, tried to brush it off.

"Don't spit it out."

Lin Xiyu suppressed a laugh, grabbed his arm, and stopped him from running away.

Gu Bin's plan to secretly vomit was brilliantly exposed by his wife.

"hiss"

Left with no other choice, he could only bite into the grape, and a mouthful of sour juice spread through his mouth, making him gasp for breath.

"hehe."

Lin Xiyu was happy, her eyes crinkling with laughter.

"So happy?"

Gu Bin pretended to be annoyed and pinched her cheek, seemingly angry, but the doting look in his eyes was obvious.

"We're husband and wife."

Lin Xiyu, though unconvinced, retorted confidently: "We should share both joy and sorrow."

"You're right."

Gu Bin was satisfied, smiled indulgently, and let go of her hand.

-

There was a moment of silence at the banquet.

Those who witnessed this scene had various expressions.

Wang Fan abandoned the idea of ​​going over, leaned back in his chair, and comfortably crossed his legs.

Xue Fangyu glanced at him, then at Lin Xiyu, a hint of jealousy flashing in her eyes.

Li Qing didn't miss it this time. Seeing her expression, a hint of mockery appeared on her lips.

Everyone at the table was so engrossed in the subtle power struggle between the three that they didn't notice someone at the next table whose expression changed when they saw the intimate interaction between Gu Bin and his wife.

-

When Zhu Luoxuan first entered Xingyao, she was overjoyed, thinking that she could finally get what she wanted and get closer to the person she had been longing for.

Unexpectedly, the harsh reality dealt her a heavy blow.

To avoid suspicion, Gu Bin simply stopped showing his face altogether, and he was nowhere to be seen during the internship.

Before long, she couldn't resist any longer and inquired about the president's whereabouts from someone in the know.

This insider is Chen Xiaoyi.

Chen Xiaoyi felt guilty and took care of him in many ways.

Ever since Zhu Luoxuan joined the company, he has been willing to be her slave.

During her internship, whenever she had to work overtime late into the night, he was always the one who volunteered to do it. If anything went wrong, he would take the blame and make excuses for her.

As time went on, even Li Hao and others couldn't stand it anymore. They used various pretexts to remind him not to be blinded by beauty, lest he end up with nothing and only hurt himself in the end.

Chen Xiaoyi let it go in one ear and out the other, not taking Li Hao and the others' words to heart.

In his view, Zhu Luoxuan would rather be fired than submit to her boss. Such a girl is as pure and beautiful as a blank sheet of paper, and should be cherished and protected.

Zhu Luoxuan could tell that Chen Xiaoyi had feelings for her, and she also understood that if she wanted to successfully start her job after her internship, she could only rely on his help.

Therefore, she did not reject his advances.

Even after learning that Gu Bin lived in Jinan year-round and rarely appeared at the head office, her uncontrollable delusions gave rise to a bizarre idea.

The only way to appear before him legitimately is as Chen Xiaoyi's girlfriend.

Chen Xiaoyi initially only wanted to make amends for his mistakes and did not believe that he was lucky enough to win the favor of a beauty.

A colleague's gathering became a turning point in their relationship.

Unfortunately, Zhu Luoxuan ran into her former boss from the advertising company at that hotel.

The man was still persistent and tried to harass her while he was drunk. It was Chen Xiaoyi who appeared at the crucial moment and knocked the scumbag to the ground with a single punch.

Startled, Zhu Luoxuan's legs went weak and she collapsed into his arms.

A beautiful woman weeps with tears streaming down her face; what passionate young man could resist her charm?

Chen Xiaoyi has fallen for her.

He held the soft, fragrant woman tightly in his arms, unwilling to let go.

When Xingyao's colleagues saw this, gossip inevitably started to spread.

For the sake of Zhu Luoxuan's reputation, Chen Xiaoyi publicly admitted that he was pursuing her.

This was exactly what the beauty wanted.

Zhu Luoxuan was secretly delighted, taking advantage of his pursuit to maintain a distant relationship with him.

Chen Xiaoyi mistakenly believed that she was too shy to take their relationship further, and instead of blaming her, he felt even more that she was innocent and pure and inviolable.

Zhu Luoxuan kept him hanging like this until the day of the babies' birthdays, when the long-awaited opportunity finally arrived.

-

Lin Xiyu is not a showy person. Publicly displaying affection and stuffing grapes into Gu Bin's mouth was a deliberate attempt to put someone in their place.

As for who this person was, Gu Bin knew perfectly well.

Playing along with her was also a deliberate act.

The couple, seemingly in perfect sync, put on a public display of their affection, a scene showcasing their deep love and tenderness.

Seeing this scene, a hint of loneliness flashed in Zhu Luoxuan's eyes.

She dared not show it, lowering her eyes and trying her best to hide her inner resentment.

In her opinion, Lin Xiyu had already given birth to four children, and her figure had changed, becoming plump.

Even if she takes good care of herself and has a beautiful face, her age is still a factor, and she can't compare to a young and beautiful unmarried girl.

She couldn't understand why Gu Bin was so good to her.

He willingly confined himself to this old courtyard house hidden in the city for her sake.

They lived a simple and unpretentious life.

-

Once all the dishes were served, the group of relatives and friends, who had been stunned by the sports car, snapped out of their daze and refocused their attention on the banquet.

Under the guise of offering a toast, Zhu Luoxuan followed Chen Xiaoyi to Gu Bin and his wife.

"Brother-in-law, you didn't expect this, did you?"

Chen Xiaoyi put his arm around her shoulder and boasted to himself with a hint of pride: "I've plucked the unattainable beauty of Xingyao. Your brother is pretty awesome too, isn't he?"

"Just dating doesn't count."

Gu Bin's lips curled up slightly as he gave Zhu Luoxuan a meaningful look: "If you want to keep her, you have to get married as soon as possible."

When Zhu Luoxuan heard him say that he wanted her to marry someone else, she felt an indescribable bitterness in her heart.

"I can do it anytime as long as Luo Xuan agrees."

Chen Xiaoyi had given her his whole heart and never imagined that she would have someone else in her heart and betray him.

“It better be this way”

Gu Bin glanced at Zhu Luoxuan again, a cold glint flashing in his eyes: "You are my and Xi Yu's younger brother, and I've watched you grow up since you were little. We both hope you can be happy. If anyone is blind enough to bully you, your sister and I will not let them off the hook."

Zhu Luoxuan's face paled, and a hint of panic flashed in her eyes.

"Brother-in-law, you're overthinking it. Luo Xuan would never bully me."

Chen Xiaoyi was only focused on her own happiness and didn't catch the implication in his words: "If anyone should be bullied, it should be me bullying her."

"It's best to think about marriage more carefully, as it's a lifelong commitment."

Out of consideration for Chen's relatives and friends, Gu Bin did not expose the scheming woman in public: "Your sister is an expert in this field. Let her give you some advice. It will only benefit you and not do you any harm."

"sister"

Chen Xiaoyi took it seriously and turned to Lin Xiyu, asking, "Do you think Luo Xuan and I are a good match? Aren't we a match made in heaven?"

"It looks fine to me."

In front of outsiders, what could Lin Xiyu say? She gave the two of them face: "As long as you two are in love, as your older sister, I will sincerely wish you a happy marriage and that you will be together forever."

“I love hearing that.”

Chen Xiaoyi grinned foolishly: "I knew my sister was the best, she would definitely bless us."

"If you're truly in love, then settle down on the marriage as soon as possible."

Gu Bin was about to give Zhu Luoxuan another warning when Lele suddenly came running over from the fishpond on her short legs, stood on tiptoe, and grabbed his clothes.

"Dad, Lele wants to drive a toy sports car too."

The soft, sweet voice in his ear instantly erased the coldness in the eyes of the doting father.

"Okay, Daddy will take Lele to drive a toy sports car."

Gu Bin put down his wine glass and let his daughter take his hand as they walked towards the sports car.

Zhu Luoxuan's face turned deathly pale, devoid of any color.

"My brother-in-law really does love his daughter as much as ever."

Chen Xiaoyi, oblivious to her odd behavior, continued to chatter in her ear: "Lele is his precious treasure, the apple of his eye, no one can compare to her."

You're only half right.

Gu Bin heard this, turned around, and corrected in a serious tone: "Lele is my darling, that's true. But even all four kids combined can't compare to their mother. Compared to the children, my wife is the one I care about the most. She will always be my number one priority."

"Tsk."

Wu Meng clicked her tongue and said sourly, "Gu Bin, please spare us. We're getting so frustrated watching you two show off your love all the time."

"Hahaha."

Chen Xiaoyi was amused and laughed heartily.

Zhu Luoxuan found the laughter extremely grating, her eyes reddened, and she ran out of the courtyard with her head down.

"Hey, Luo Xuan, where are you going?"

Chen Xiaoyi stopped laughing and chased after him in a panic.

"Your younger brother, he really is something else."

Li Qing's lips twitched as she watched. In front of her own sister, she hesitated for a long time, but still couldn't bring herself to say the word "stupid."

"He's not stupid; he should be able to see something's fishy by now."

Lin Xiyu breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Zhu Luoxuan leave the courtyard.

It would be best to resolve this privately outside, as she really didn't want her brother to be embarrassed or lose face in front of all their relatives and friends.

"What are you two whispering about?"

Wu Meng didn't hear clearly and asked with a surprised look.

"He didn't say anything."

Li Qing, believing this to be a secret between her and Lin Xiyu, raised an eyebrow with considerable pride.

Out of consideration for her younger brother, Lin Xiyu didn't say much and didn't respond.

"You guys are so disloyal, you actually kept things from me."

Wu Meng was unhappy and was about to express her dissatisfaction as a best friend when she was interrupted by her own daughter.

"Mom, I want a toy car too."

Nuannuan ran over from the fishpond, her big, watery eyes blinking as she looked at her expectantly.

Wu Meng rejected the idea without even thinking: "That thing is ridiculously expensive, we can't afford it."

Nuannuan's eyes darkened, and she lowered her head in disappointment.

"If Nuannuan wants it, the red one is for you."

Taking the opportunity, Lin Xiyu said, "It just so happens that our yard is too small to fit two cars."