Chapter 95

On the first day of the New Year, Qi Xutian was awakened before dawn by Li Shu breaking into his house and robbing him. His eyes were still closed when the two men helped him out of bed.

Qi Xutian’s fine tradition of respecting the elderly and caring for the young was evident here. The two men who came to wake him up were both elderly servants who had been with the old master for years. He was full of morning grouchiness, but the moment he opened his eyes and saw Uncle Li’s cheerful smile, his anger vanished instantly.

Of course, he also feared Uncle Li’s secret weapon: the medicinal dishes that appeared before him without anyone noticing, especially the ones with an extra sea cucumber.

“Ah, Uncle Li, good morning…” Qi Xutian was half asleep, and the words he wanted to say were already swallowed back into his stomach.

Uncle Li’s strength was no less than that of a young man, after all, he was the one who moved all the potted plants in the old man’s courtyard and did half an hour of weightlifting every day.

He lifted Qi Xu up: “Young master, today is the first day of the New Year, and we have to pay our respects at the old house. You have to get up quickly, or you’ll miss the time.”

Qi Xu closed his eyes and opened them again to find himself standing up, as if in a trance.

“It’s not even dawn yet.”

Li Shu urged him to wash up: “It gets light late in winter. It’s already six o’clock. The old master is waiting. Don’t make him angry again.”

Last night during the New Year’s Eve vigil, Qi Xu wasn’t present. The old master grumbled about going to the Xie family to find someone. The two hadn’t settled their affairs yet and weren’t at home, but the Xie family had already come knocking on the door first.

It turned out that the two young men weren’t at home either; they had vanished on New Year’s Eve.

Qi Xu walked into the bathroom like a zombie. Uncle Li was preparing clothes for him in the wardrobe room. After a while, he didn’t hear any noise from the bathroom, so he went over to take a look and found Qi Xu standing there asleep with a toothbrush in his mouth.

“Oh my god, how can you fall asleep standing up?” Uncle Li woke him up in a panic.

After much effort, Qi Xuxing finally managed to walk out of the room while awake.

According to the old house’s tradition, important festivals require a ritual of worship, and the master who had been specially invited back was already preparing in the Buddha room.

The old man was in good spirits. Seeing Qi Xuxing yawning constantly, he gave him a cane: “Did you go thieving last night? You’re so tired.”

The cane didn’t hurt when it hit him, and Qi Xu even grabbed the old man’s cane with his other hand to support himself, standing awkwardly: “Why would I go thieving when the family is so rich? Selling a cane would fetch five figures, enough to live on.”

The old man reached out to slap him, but Qi Xu dodged it. The old man glared at him: “Don’t talk nonsense. We’re not so poor that you have to sell walking sticks. Where did you go last night with that kid from the Xie family?”

“Yeah, we went to build a snowman. Old Xie even came to my place. Look at that thing at the door. I almost scared myself to death when I went out this morning.”

Qi Xu defended his boyfriend’s snowman-building skills: “You don’t appreciate it. This is art. Look at how round the head and body are. Who has such good skills?”

What changed Qi Xu’s tone was not conscience but humanity. Although nothing happened in the car last night, he no longer wanted to experience the cold fingertips roaming freely on his waist and groin. For him, it was simply an itchy torment.

The master interrupted the grandfather and grandson’s early morning communication about love, as the time had come to begin the worship ceremony.

Qi Xu looked closely and saw that the incense burner placed in the open-plan apartment had also been brought over. The master was performing the ritual to consecrate it.

Now it would truly become an incense burner spirit.

Qi Xu followed the old man’s example, burning incense and paper. The process wasn’t overly complicated, but it took time, and the worship ceremony lasted nearly an hour.

When the ceremony ended, the old house was filled with gods and Buddhas. The master gave the old man a good fortune, predicting peace and prosperity for the household. Upon leaving, they received a generous offering, enough to gild the Buddha statues in the temple.

Qi Xu sincerely said, “When I can’t make it in life, I’ll become a master too.”

Isn’t that the greatest benefit of reincarnation? To predict the future for the richest man, earn a fortune, and become a master in his team?

As expected, he was chased and beaten by the old man, who accused him of being unambitious and taking the wrong path.

Qi Xu, unaware of the danger, said, “So you also think it’s the wrong path.”

Li Shu tried to calm him down: “It’s not a good day to get angry.”

Seeing the old man almost uprooting the soil in the front yard, he hurriedly added, “It’s also not a good day to disturb the earth.”

The first day of the New Year at the Shen family’s old house began with harmonious relations between grandfather and grandson, and happiness and prosperity.

The Xie family also had to pay respects on New Year’s Day, but they went to the temple as a family, as they did every year, rain or shine.

As soon as Xie Huai entered the Shen family’s house, he received a red envelope from the old master. He took it with both hands and said a few auspicious words, which made the old master very happy.

Qi Xu stood at the door watching Xie Huai receive the red envelope.

Old Master Shen waved his hand: “Go play.”

Qi Xu turned to look at Xie Huai and heard him say, “I asked for an auspicious fortune, hoping to find the person I love this year.”

Qi Xu could always stir his heartstrings at any time. Xie Huai’s gaze was gentle yet possessive as he took his hand.

Before they had even stepped out the door, the old man saw Ah Hui handing the still-warm red envelope to his own spoiled brat, who accepted it without a second thought.

Was he spoiling him too much? How did their family end up with such a money-grabber?

Qi Xu trusted Xie Huai implicitly and used both Xie Huai’s and his own phones to snatch red envelopes in the car.

Xu Yichen was generous, sending red envelopes in every group chat, and Qi Xu’s luck was also quite good, receiving either the largest or second-largest amounts.

The five-person group chat had been active since last night’s New Year’s Eve, with messages about the New Year’s Eve dinner table, fireworks, funny group photos, and various other topics.

Qi Xu replied to a few messages, and when he looked up again, the street scene had changed dramatically. It was no longer a busy street, but exactly the same as the last time Xie Huai took him to Fanghua Garden.

He put down his phone, a hunch forming in his mind. Xie Huai glanced at his expression and said, “Uncle asked us to come back to the Qin family for dinner tonight.”

Uncle referred to Qin Jings, the eldest son of the Qin family. Qi Xu was startled for a moment and suddenly didn’t know what to say.

In fact, from the way Xie Lao had resumed his previous attitude toward him, he could tell that Xie Huai had already given his approval for him to be with Xie Huai. Whether it was because he couldn’t control it or didn’t want to see it, the two elderly members of the Shen and Xie families had reconciled.

Of course, the prerequisite was that the bet between Xie Huai and the two families still existed.

However, the Qin family was different. To this day, he still didn’t know the Qin family’s attitude towards him and Xie Huai being together. From the signs of Xie Huai being punished by kneeling and being confined, it was clear that the Qin family was the stick used to beat the lovebirds apart.

Now Qin Jing has invited them back to the Qin family, on the special day of the first day of the New Year.

This leaves one wondering whether it is a banquet of treachery or a welcome banquet.

Qi Xu does not approve of Xie Huai going to the Qin family without informing him first: “I didn’t bring any gifts. Is it too much of an intrusion to go there without notice?”

Xie Huai replied, “The gifts are in the trunk; I’ve already prepared them. It’s just a simple meal; it’s not a den of tigers and dragons, so there’s no need to worry.”

Qi Xu laughed, “Even if it were a den of tigers and dragons, you’re the one leading me there. You walk ahead of me, and I’ll be your backup; we’ll go together.”

This statement was not ambiguous. The Qin family was not a den of danger, but for the challenges and public opinion they would face in the future, two people fighting side by side was better than one person advancing alone.

Qi Xu had experienced advancing alone, and the hardships and burdens he had endured were far greater than he had imagined.

Upon arriving at the entrance of the Qin family compound, there were over a dozen cars parked in the open-air parking lot. The Qin family was a large clan, not to mention the Lin family, the maternal clan of the elderly Mrs. Qin.

Xie Huai noticed that Qi Xu seemed a bit nervous: “The evening banquet might involve drinking, so I’ll sit with you at the kids’ table.”

Qi Xu laughed upon hearing this, and the tension in his heart vanished instantly: “That’s fine, sitting at the kids’ table isn’t so bad. At least you’ll be there to share the embarrassment with me.”

Xie Huai brought Qi Xu to the Qin family compound, and the Qin family relatives immediately noticed Xie Huai’s arrival.

Although Xie Huai was the Qin family patriarch’s grandson by marriage, he had been raised by the patriarch himself from a young age, so in the patriarch’s heart, whether he was a grandson by marriage or a biological grandson, he was still a descendant of the Qin family.

Both the elders and peers greeted Xie Huai warmly.

Qi Xu, who had been brought back to the Qin family by Xie Huai, also received greetings and was asked who he was.

Qi Xu confidently introduced himself. Upon hearing Qi Xu’s name, everyone’s expressions changed. The turmoil in the Shen family was no secret.

Some looked at him with curiosity, others with pity, but all were kind glances, which Qi Xu accepted calmly.

When Qin Yue came out of the main hall, he saw his eldest nephew surrounded by a crowd of relatives and went over to break up the gathering: “The old master is waiting. There will be plenty of time to chat after dinner.”

Qi Xu and Xie Huai were led away by Qin Yue. As they entered the main hall, Qin Yue handed Qi Xu a red envelope and raised an eyebrow, waiting for that title.

“Uncle, Happy New Year. May you find your true love soon.”

Qin Yue: “…”

“What’s wrong? Now it’s your turn to nag me about marriage?”

Just moments ago in the main hall, he had endured the relentless marriage pressure from his aunts and uncles.

Qi Xu laughed: “I don’t have the nerve to do that.”

Qin Yue sighed and handed him the red envelope: “Ah Hui’s share is in there too. I’ll leave it all to you. Your family handles the finances, right?”

Xie Huai had no objections.

Xie Tingyao was also there. After exchanging a few words with him, he took him to meet Old Master Qin.

Entering the main hall, Old Master Qin was surrounded by several elderly people.

“Happy New Year, Grandpa Qin, Grandma Qin. I wish you good health and all the best.” Although Qi Xu was nervous, it didn’t show in his behavior. After all, he was Mr. Qi, who had been through many big events.

No one else knew about this; only the two elderly people were aware.

Being too weak would also make it hard to match with Xie Huai.

The Qin family members present noticed the unusual thickness of the red envelope the old patriarch had taken out and exchanged knowing glances, wondering how long he had been carrying it.

Perhaps he had been carrying it all day, waiting for this moment.

Fortunately, it wasn’t a “change of heart” red envelope; otherwise, the old patriarch would have waited until his neck grew long and still not received it.