MGASC -Chapter 224 The Wedding (Part 2)

When they had handed out the invitations earlier, Lin Tianyue and Zhang Qiao estimated there would be around twenty tables of guests.

But by the time the banquet began at noon, a full thirty tables were seated. Fortunately, Zhang Qiao had asked Li Enhua to prepare plenty of ingredients in advance. Otherwise, with so many people, it would have been embarrassing if there hadn’t been enough food.

With the number of guests far exceeding expectations, Lin Tianyue took a look around. Of the extra ten tables, a small portion consisted of relatives from Xiangshui County. These relatives were somewhat distant and didn’t keep in close contact with them, so the couple hadn’t even sent them invitations. Yet unexpectedly, they had all come.

It truly proved the saying: when you prosper, even distant relatives appear.

The rest were businesspeople and fellow merchants they had gradually met after moving to Jiangcheng, along with some of Gu Yu’s friends. Even his grandmother came, and the old lady gave Xia Xia a crystal-clear jade pendant as a gift for her hundred-day celebration.

With so many guests—some of them quite influential—Lin Tianyue and Zhang Qiao felt especially honored.

When the banquet officially started, Lin Tianyue was urged by everyone to say a few words.

As he spoke, Zhang Qiao tilted up her small face and gazed at him tenderly.

At some point, Lin Tianyue had completely shed his rustic air, transforming into a mature man—sharp yet restrained, composed and confident.

Zhang Qiao didn’t know how much of that change was due to her, but she felt proud all the same.

Hosting a wedding banquet was more exhausting than she had imagined. It wasn’t until she used feeding Xia Xia as an excuse that Zhang Qiao finally found a moment to rest upstairs.

After being passed around and doted on all morning, Xia Xia had grown tired. She had just finished eating and fallen asleep in Zhang Qiao’s arms.

Zhang Qiao placed her gently in the little crib they had prepared in advance when the door creaked open and Lin Tianyue walked in.

He had gone around downstairs toasting guests, and his handsome face was slightly flushed.

Even so, when he entered, he moved lightly and quietly, afraid of waking their daughter.

“She’s asleep?” he asked softly.

Zhang Qiao nodded.

Lin Tianyue bent down to look at their daughter’s adorable little face. “Xia Xia did great. She didn’t fuss or cry all morning. Whoever teased her, she just smiled.”

Zhang Qiao laughed. “You don’t know your daughter—she’s a little social butterfly. The more people there are, the happier she gets. She’s so young, yet she already loves going out every day. I bet when she grows up, she’ll be impossible to keep at home.”

Lin Tianyue gazed at Zhang Qiao’s radiant face. He thought her carefully styled hair looked especially beautiful, particularly the little flowers she wore—playful and delicate.

Unable to resist, he reached out and gently touched them. “That just means Xia Xia is cheerful and has a good temperament. And no matter where she runs off to, she’s still our daughter.”

Zhang Qiao looked tenderly at their child. “That’s true. So many people dote on her. Xia Xia is more fortunate than we are.”

“Qiao Qiao, don’t say that. Our blessings are still ahead of us.”

“Mhm. You’re right.”

Zhang Qiao believed Lin Tianyue’s words and believed their future would only get better.

In the book she had once read, the author had written that Lin Tianyue adopted three children in his lifetime and spent a fortune raising them into successful adults. Sadly, he never had a child of his own.

When she had read that part, she had felt a pang of regret for the male lead.

Perhaps she had been too immersed in the story—that was why one stumble had sent her straight into the book.

Because she had entered this world, she had come to see the other side of things.

It turned out that the Zhang Qiao in the book and Lin Tianyue did have a child.

Now, thanks to her efforts, everyone’s fate had shifted. Lin Tianyue’s regret was no longer regret. They had Xia Xia, and Xia Xia would grow up healthy and happy.

And though in her original world she had never found a husband she truly liked, she had met Lin Tianyue here. Wasn’t that, in a way, its own form of compensation?

So perhaps fate was fair to everyone.

Lost in thought, memories of her former world and her present reality overlapped in flashes. Even the way she looked at Lin Tianyue grew gentler.

Lin Tianyue had been looking at their daughter, but when he raised his head, he met Zhang Qiao’s gaze—soft as water.

Like a pebble tossed into a lake, his heart rippled.

He couldn’t resist hooking a finger under her chin and placing a light kiss on her rosy lips.

When he kissed her, Zhang Qiao smiled sweetly. He kissed the corner of her mouth again, as if trying to savor that sweetness.

“Qiao Qiao, I’m really happy today…”

The more he kissed her, the more carried away he became. Holding her by the shoulders, he gently pressed her against the wall. When Zhang Qiao reached up to push him, he instead caught her hands, lifted them above her head, and interlaced his fingers tightly with hers—a silent claim of possession.

Zhang Qiao didn’t even care whether her makeup would smudge. She closed her eyes and let him kiss her.

Outside, the noise of lively guests and drinking games carried on, but upstairs, in their little private world, affection deepened into tender intimacy.

Yet as they kissed, Zhang Qiao suddenly caught the scent of food. “You big oaf, what are you hiding on you?”

Lin Tianyue paused and lifted his lips from her glistening mouth.

His breathing was unsteady, and Zhang Qiao had already reached into his suit pocket.

She pulled out—a large chicken drumstick!

She stared at him in surprise, and only then did Lin Tianyue remember why he had come upstairs.

“Qiao Qiao, are you hungry? I saw you hadn’t eaten anything all morning. You were either taking care of Xia Xia or greeting guests. I brought you something to eat.”

As he spoke, he took the braised drumstick, unwrapped the plastic, and held it to her lips. “It’s still warm. Hurry and have a few bites.”

Zhang Qiao smelled the aroma and realized she really was hungry. Taking a bite from his hand—

It was delicious.

So the big oaf had been thinking about her all along. Wearing a designer suit with a chicken drumstick in his pocket—he must be the most down-to-earth domineering CEO she had ever seen in a novel.

And now that “CEO” was standing there eagerly feeding her, without the slightest bit of male lead airs.

In that case, she wouldn’t bother pretending to be ladylike.

Delighted, Zhang Qiao took several more big bites before pushing it back toward him. “You eat.”

But Lin Tianyue insisted she finish it. “Eat a bit more. There are so many people—I can’t look after everything. We’ll still be busy this afternoon.”

Zhang Qiao choked slightly, so Lin Tianyue quickly poured her a cup of tea.

After taking a sip, she asked, “You keep talking about me—have you eaten?”

“I’m not hungry.”

Seeing her frown, he added, “I grabbed a few bites while toasting. Qiao Qiao, don’t worry about me.”

“Who’s worrying about you?”

Concerned that guests might be waiting, Zhang Qiao pushed Lin Tianyue back downstairs to continue entertaining. She even reminded Jin Quan to keep an eye on him and not let him drink too much.

The banquet lasted until the afternoon. Even with Jin Quan and Gu Yu helping block drinks for him, Lin Tianyue still ended up slightly drunk.

Gu Yu helped him upstairs to rest in a guest room.

Meanwhile, Zhang Qiao held Xia Xia downstairs, seeing the guests off.

Neither her natal family nor her in-laws had come today, but she didn’t care at all.

After smiling the entire day, her cheeks were practically sore.