SAG -Chapter 149 The Zhang Family’s New Year’s Eve Dinner

After taking the group photo, Prince Haiman was about to upload it to his social media account when he suddenly remembered something and glanced at Zhang Ran.

Zhang Ran said, “Just blur my face for me.”

Prince Haiman didn’t ask any questions.

Ever since reuniting with Zhang Ran, many matters had already been quietly handled by others.

Zhang Sicheng and the others didn’t understand why Zhang Ran wanted that, but they guessed that perhaps he simply wasn’t someone who liked publicity or showing off.

Once everything was ready, it was almost eight o’clock.

The Spring Festival Gala officially began.

“Come on, let’s all raise a glass first!” Zhang Ran said.

Everyone lifted their drinks.

The men had baijiu.

The women drank red wine.

The children drank water.

Each child also held up their treasured gourds to clink against the adults’ glasses.

“Arthur, don’t you love soft drinks? Today you can drink as much as you want,” Prince Haiman said in surprise when he saw Arthur drinking plain water.

Arthur looked proud.

“The water in my treasure gourd tastes the best.”

“Mm-hmm! The water in the treasure gourd is the most delicious!” Susu also chimed in, unusually being the first to agree.

Prince Haiman assumed the children were simply fascinated by their new toys and paid little attention.

But Arthur was unhappy to see his father’s skeptical expression.

He immediately handed over his gourd.

“Daddy, try it. It really tastes amazing.”

Prince Haiman took a sip theatrically.

He had intended to casually praise it and move on.

Instead, he froze.

“It actually tastes pretty good… Wait, isn’t this just a soft drink? You told me it was water!”

Arthur hurriedly explained, “It really is water! I only poured water into it, and it turned into this. And every time it’s a different flavor.”

The other three children quickly joined in, filling the dining table with excited chatter.

Seeing that they genuinely weren’t lying, Prince Haiman turned to Zhang Ran.

Smiling, Zhang Ran explained, “What they’re saying is true. That’s one of the gourd’s abilities. Originally, it was meant for storing alcohol, making the aroma richer and stronger. But apparently, it works the same way with water.”

He didn’t elaborate further, merely giving a brief explanation of the treasure gourd’s effects.

It was also the first time Zhang Sicheng and the others had heard how magical the gourds actually were.

They all stared at the four children.

“No! This is mine! Dad, you can’t take my things!” Tao Tao immediately hugged his treasure gourd tightly.

The other three children likewise looked at the adults with wary expressions.

The adults suddenly felt rather embarrassed.

Knowing how valuable these gourds were, Prince Haiman shifted his gaze toward the remaining three.

Seeing this, Zhang Ran teased him:

“You want one? Sure. Which Calabash Brother do you want to be? Second Brother? Third Brother? Or Sixth Brother?”

The moment those words came out, Prince Haiman instantly fell silent.

And so the two families continued eating, drinking, chatting, and laughing together in high spirits.

“I have to admit,” Prince Haiman sighed, “your Chinese Spring Festival Gala is wonderful. Just look at the production quality—it’s beautiful!”

“But honestly, I think it’s getting less interesting every year,” Zhang Sicheng said, feeling much more relaxed now.

Prince Haiman blinked.

“Really? I’ve watched almost every Gala. In my opinion, each one has been better than the last.”

Zhang Ran interrupted with a laugh.

“Alright, stop arguing. It’s simply a matter of different tastes. Sicheng means the comedy programs aren’t as funny as they used to be. He doesn’t pay much attention to the song and dance performances, and many people don’t really appreciate them anyway. You, on the other hand, can genuinely appreciate the beauty of those performances. So the two of you aren’t even discussing the same thing.”

“Fair enough.”

Prince Haiman nodded before suddenly asking, “By the way, Zhang Ran, do you have any plans after the New Year? You seem free every day. Why don’t you come to England with me for a while? Food and accommodation included!”

Zhang Ran glanced at Tao Tao and the other children and smiled apologetically.

“Not for now. The kids will be starting school soon, and someone needs to take them there every day. Once I have time, I’ll definitely come visit you.”

He truly couldn’t leave at the moment.

Besides caring for the children, he still had to watch over Zhang Sicheng and Zhang Siyan’s careers.

Although he appeared to let them handle things themselves, he had been paying close attention all along.

He could tolerate Zhang Sicheng stumbling once or twice.

But he would never allow him to fall into a pit deep enough to destroy his confidence.

And he absolutely would not permit Zhang Siyan to suffer even the slightest harm again.

On top of that, there were many other matters requiring his attention.

Without him here overseeing things, even Zhang Ran himself wouldn’t feel entirely at ease.

“That’s a shame,” Prince Haiman said.

“But when you do have time, you must come. Let me tell you—I kept quite a collection of fine wines after buying that winery. I saved them specifically for the day we reunited. Who would’ve thought we’d be separated for twenty-eight years?”

As he spoke, he couldn’t help but sigh.

Zhang Ran laughed.

“Twenty-eight years for you, perhaps. For me, it was only a few months. Fortunately, you haven’t changed—and neither have I.”

“That’s true,” Prince Haiman replied.

“But honestly, everything I have today started with meeting you. Without your guidance back then, I never could have lived such a free and comfortable life. I wouldn’t have enjoyed this much independence. And I certainly wouldn’t have married such a wonderful wife as Lin Mei.”

“Enough of that,” Zhang Ran said with a smile.

“If we keep talking like this, we’ll really sound like old men. Come on—cheers!”

The two clinked their glasses.

Zhang Sicheng and the others listened quietly.

The conversation sounded simple enough.

Yet everyone could sense the profound friendship between the two men—a friendship formed during a relatively short time together, but built on complete mutual respect and understanding.

Prince Haiman, in particular, had never forgotten that bond despite twenty-eight years passing.

When facing Zhang Ran, he remained exactly as he had been in the beginning.

Lin Mei, however, perceived things differently.

Although Zhang Ran had effectively skipped twenty-eight years, Prince Haiman’s status now was worlds apart from what it had once been.

Yet Zhang Ran still treated him exactly the same.

To her, that was even more remarkable.

At last, she truly understood why Prince Haiman had treasured Zhang Ran so deeply all these years.

Why a single sentence from Zhang Ran had motivated him to search for nearly twenty years without giving up.

For someone in Prince Haiman’s position, finding a person with whom he could share complete trust and sincerity was unimaginably difficult.

So difficult that such a friendship had to be cherished above all else.

During these days living with the Zhang family, Lin Mei had witnessed a completely different side of her husband.

A level of relaxation and ease that he had never shown even in front of her.

At that moment, she found herself genuinely grateful to Zhang Ran.

Grateful that he had returned.