Chapter 36 - The Feast Begins
When the weekend came, Xi Xiaye did not wake up early because she had worked hard until the wee hours of 3 to 4 a.m. of the night before, preparing and arranging the details for the South River project. Once she got busy, she lost track of time.
By the time she woke up, it was already close to noon. Her phone that had been on silent showed that there were quite a few miss calls. They were from Su Nan, but she already knew what she had called for. Pondering for a while, she decided not to call back.
After she washed up and had breakfast, she changed and prepared to leave.
She dressed up as usual in her black top and black pants. On the outside, she wore a black mid-length windbreaker. With her jet-black head of shiny hair tumbling onto her shoulders, she looked very thin and frail as a whole.
When she left the house, it was a rare cloudy day and the wind was dry.
It was the 70th birthday of her grandfather, Xi Jiyang, so she had to go.
If anything in that huge house was worth her recalling fondly even just a little bit, it would be her grandfather.
Xi Jiyang loved her rather dearly. She had not been back to see him for quite a few years. Even though she knew she should not have done that, she had no choice. There were too many memories that she did not want to remember in that huge residence.
Yes, Xi Jiyang’s birthday banquet would be held in that huge house: West Park.
West Park was the Xi family’s old residence, occupying a vast space. It was the kind of noble and lavish European-styled house that seemed like a castle.
At this moment, West Park was already lively. There was a beautiful arch at the entrance, a luxurious red carpet stretched from the door and into West Park while both sides were filled with gorgeous flower baskets.
Inside the residence, where the hall was decorated majestically, all sorts of dishes, desserts, and drinks were spread out on the tables that were neatly arranged while the seats on both sides were fully seated with people.
Well wishes kept on coming.
The banquet had not yet started. Up front greeting the guests were Yue Lingsi, Xi Xinyi, and the rest.
“Congratulations! May the Elder enjoy boundless longevity!”
“Thank you, Director Wang!”
Xi Xinyi’s sweet-tempered face had on a courteous smile as she gently thanked the guests who offered their well wishes.
“Miss Xi is really becoming prettier and prettier. The Xi family is very blessed to have such a beautiful and kind daughter. I just wonder who’ll be able to get married to such a lovely wife.”
“Yeah, she’s even a popular celebrity in the movies and television industry. Look at that charisma! How impressive! She is indeed Mayor Xi’s daughter. She just looks extraordinary!”
When they watched Xi Xinyi greeting the guests, many of the wives from wealthy families were privately discussing her while Yue Lingsi felt very proud on the inside as she listened.
This daughter of hers had always been Yue Lingsi’s pride and joy. Not only was she smart and capable, but she was especially understanding of others and she was pretty too!
“I wonder if Miss Xi already has a partner. I’d really like to introduce my son to her.”
“Don’t even think about it! I heard that she’s going to be engaged to Han Corporation’s new CEO, Han Yifeng. That CEO Han is a fine young man. I’m afraid your son won’t have that chance…”
“Sigh, what a pity!”
…
Yue Lingsi smiled as she walked up to Xi Xinyi.
She had looked for a long time and still did not see any signs of Han Yifeng, so Yue Lingsi suddenly asked, “Xinyi, where’s Yifeng? Why isn’t he here yet?”
“Yifeng came a while ago. He’s probably discussing something with Father in the study room. He should be coming over with Father soon, but earlier, Grandfather called Father over too. Maybe they’re a bit delayed,” Xi Xinyi explained with a smile.
“Your grandfather called your father over?” Yue Lingsi was a little surprised.
“Yes, Mother, entertain the guests first. I’ll go upstairs to take a look.”
Then, with a smile, she turned to walk up the stairs beside her.
At this moment, on the wide cemented road that led towards the West Park’s back entrance, a black Volkswagen Passat sped over. The brakes squealed before the car steadily parked beside the back entrance.
Xi Xiaye stopped the car and took the present beside her before swiftly getting down from the car. She walked towards the back entrance and was about to ring the doorbell when suddenly, the door opened from the inside.
A slightly chubby middle-aged man walked out. When he saw Xi Xiaye, he was suddenly stunned.
“Miss!”
His cry out loud was filled with pleasant surprise. “Why are you back?”
When she heard him, Xi Xiaye instantly frowned slightly. She looked coolly at the middle-aged man before her.
She obviously remembered that this person was West Park’s butler, Guo Fu, who had been working in West Park for quite a few years. Back then, he seemed to have been Deng Wenwen’s subordinate.
When he saw Xi Xiaye looking oddly at him, Guo Fu seemed to have realized something and smiled a little unnaturally. “I’m sorry, Miss. What I meant is that you haven’t been home in a long time. I didn’t expect you to come back for the Elder’s brithday. For the past few years you…”
Xi Xiaye took a look at him indifferently before she walked in as she said coldly, “I’ve troubled you, Butler Guo.”
Guo Fu suddenly remembered something and turned around to catch up with Xi Xiaye. “Miss, I remember now. Elder Madam said that if I see you return, I should get you to make a trip to her study room. She has something to discuss with you!”
“There’s nothing much to say between her and I. If there’s anything, just let her get Xi Xinyi,” she said this with indifference, then she walked into the residence.
The reason she had gone over today was simple. She just wanted to take a look at Grandfather, offer her gift, and then leave. She did not have the mood to join their banquet. Besides, based on what she knew, this entire function was probably not Grandfather’s wishes too. Grandfather was always a very simple and low-profile person. Such a feast did not seem like his idea.
It was probably Xi Mushan and the rest behind it.
However, Xi Xiaye thought to herself that all of these had nothing to do with her anymore.