Chapter 308: Chapter 308

Hearing this, Wan Chu’er snorted with laughter, pushed the door open, and walked in, saying aloud, "Brother Lishan, talking behind someone’s back isn’t what a gentleman would do."

Lishan, calm and collected, responded, "I said it to your face."

Wan Chu’er scoffed and went straight to the steamy dinner table, which, besides dumplings, had three other dishes. She praised with a smile:

"Our New Year’s Eve dinner is really sumptuous."

Others had a full table of dishes for New Year’s Eve dinner, but their few dishes seemed quite sparse in comparison. However, taking into account that Lishan managed to prepare these, it was already quite impressive.

She took a seat right next to Old Sir Zhong without any reservations.

Old Sir Zhong picked up a cup of alcohol in front of him and said, "This is our first time celebrating the New Year together, let’s have a drink."

Lishan poured Wan Chu’er a glass of juice, while he himself picked up a cup of alcohol.

Wan Chu’er was not satisfied and switched to a cup of alcohol, "What’s the fun in drinking juice."

Old Sir Zhong glared at her, but that only earned him giggles from Wan Chu’er. The three of them laughed as they clinked their cups and drank up.

Wan Chu’er instantly felt a warm flow from her throat all the way down to her belly, burning hot. She quickly grabbed a dumpling to eat.

"Am I too late?" Suddenly, the voice of Yan Hui came from outside, and with that, the door was pushed open. Yan Hui, in a black overcoat, entered carrying a large thermal lunch box.

Wan Chu’er laughed, "You’re not late at all, just in time."

Now, the four of them – the grandfather and grandchildren – were all gathered.

Yan Hui opened the lunch box, revealing a fish and a dish of four-joy meatballs, thus their New Year’s Eve dinner became a little more lavish.

The four of them ate and drank casually, occasionally exchanging a few jokes. Tonight, Wan Chu’er was very proactive, taking on the task of telling jokes and livening up the atmosphere.

There was no helping it; Lishan was a tight-lipped person, and Yan Hui was a gentleman too proper to indulge in jest and banter.

Perhaps it was because of New Year’s Eve, everyone was in good spirits, even the old man did not keep a stern face but instead shared amusing stories from his own past New Year’s celebrations.

They stayed up until midnight, and then each retreated to their rooms to rest.

Early the next morning, Jiang Kechu came knocking to give New Year’s greetings, and after chatting with the old man for a bit, the old man unusually suggested, "Take Chuchu out for a walk, have fun, it’s okay to come back later in the evening."

Half asleep, Wan Chu’er smiled and asked, "Are you planning to do something behind my back, sir?"

Old Sir Zhong told Lishan, "Quick, hurry and take her out, she’ll go crazy staying cooped up at home every day."

Seeing that Lishan was about to actually do it, Wan Chu’er’s face twitched. When had she become so annoying?

Jiang Kechu smiled, protecting Wan Chu’er, and respectfully said to Old Sir Zhong, "Then I’ll take Chuchu out for fun."

Getting into the car, Jiang Kechu laughed and kissed Wan Chu’er, who was still pouting, then took a box from the back, "Your New Year’s gift."

Wan Chu’er opened the box to see two scarves, one red and one black, both felt extremely soft to the touch.

"Wow, are these couple’s scarves?"

Jiang Kechu laughed and said, "No, they’re both for you. This scarf style comes only in these two colors, and I thought both suited you, so I bought them."

Upon hearing this, Wan Chu’er was thrilled, choosing the red scarf to wrap around her neck first, "Today is the first day of the New Year, red is festive, I’ll wear the red one first."

Wrapped in the scarf, she felt much warmer.

"Uncle Jiang, what should I do, I didn’t prepare a gift for you."

Jiang Kechu said, "Later I’ll take you to the mall, and when we get there, you can pick out a gift for me."

"Okay, deal!" Wan Chu’er said cheerfully.

First, Jiang Kechu took Wan Chu’er to a suburban temple to burn incense and pray for blessings. Although the temple was in the suburbs, it was not deserted. There were quite a few people inside and outside of the temple buildings, a sea of red, festive and joyous.

Both bought incense sticks, worshipped devoutly, and then placed them in the incense burner.

In her last life, Jiang Kechu had brought her here once, but the second time she refused to come, saying what nonsense about feeding superstition, and from then on, Jiang Kechu never brought her here again.

Actually, burning incense and praying for blessings has nothing to do with feudal superstition; it is a kind of wish for a better life.

As they left the temple, Wan Chu’er said, "Uncle Jiang, let’s come here every year from now on, okay?"

Jiang Kechu held her hand and put it into his pocket, saying very solemnly, "Okay."

It seemed to be a promise, and a sense of contentment and joy filled both their hearts.

Around eleven in the morning, the car arrived at a large downtown shopping mall. The mall too was bustling in red, crowded with people.

Like an ordinary couple, they went from store to store. Finally, Wan Chu’er picked out a belt buckle as a New Year’s gift for Jiang Kechu.

"Uncle Jiang, you must use this belt buckle when you wear casual clothes," Wan Chu’er reminded Jiang Kechu.

Having chosen the gift, it was also time to eat, so the two directly picked a restaurant on the top floor of the mall to dine.

Midway through, Wan Chu’er went to the restroom to wash her hands, only to be cornered there.

The somewhat haggard Lin Jiayi looked at Wan Chu’er with complex eyes, then let out a dismal laugh, saying weakly, "Did you know? I’m getting married on the eighth day of the first lunar month. The groom is Zhu Er."

Wan Chu’er maintained an expressionless face, not responding.

Lin Jiayi let out a bitter laugh, "Marrying Zhu Er, my life is pretty much ruined. No, ever since that night at the bar, I’ve been ruined. I had no idea your tactics were so ruthless.

Had I known, I would have never crossed you again."

Wan Chu’er narrowed her eyes and said, "If you do evil, you should be prepared for retribution."

Lin Jiayi paused for a moment, then spoke again, "Can I beg you for one thing?"

"You can’t beg me for anything."

"No, this is something only you can do," Lin Jiayi suddenly grabbed Wan Chu’er’s hand, holding it tightly as if scared she would shake it off, "I don’t want to marry Zhu Er, I beg you... please don’t let me marry Zhu Er, I will never harbor any ill thoughts towards you again, I promise, I will never be an eyesore to you again."

"Whether or not you marry Zhu Er has nothing to do with me. If you don’t want to marry, then don’t." Wan Chu’er spoke indifferently.

Lin Jiayi’s eyes suddenly reddened, "As long as you agree, I won’t have to marry him, please agree. I’ve never begged anyone before, considering how low I’m stooping, please just agree."

Wan Chu’er sneered coldly. If she agreed, where would it leave Jiang Kechu?

Lin Jiayi, indeed, was a selfish person. She couldn’t bear the risk of her father going to prison and yet still wanted to lead a comfortable life, so she cast this burden onto her.

Wan Chu’er forcefully pulled away from Lin Jiayi’s hand and said, "I can’t help you," and left the restroom.

"Wan Chu’er..." Behind her came Lin Jiayi’s low, pleading voice.

Because she left in a hurry, Wan Chu’er ran into someone at the corner outside, the scent of men’s cologne hit her face. Wan Chu’er looked down, held her breath, and quickly said, "I’m sorry," before passing by.