ryethenovel Chapter 550: The Banquet
Chapter 550: The Banquet
Huang Yanguang recognized Lao Huang as soon as they met.
He sighed, "Shan Dong! You haven't changed much, you've just gotten older, but you look so much like your father."
Old Huang also lamented, "It's a pity he passed away so early, otherwise he would have been overjoyed to see you again!"
Huang Yanguang recalled, "The last time I returned to my hometown, in the spring of 48, I saw you there. Do you remember?"
Old Huang chuckled and said, "Of course I remember. I was twelve years old then, and you gave me a big piece of chocolate. To be honest, that was the first time I had ever eaten chocolate."
Huang Yanguang shook his head and sighed, "Getting old, I didn't expect you to be over sixty."
Although Old Huang was also somewhat saddened, he still comforted Huang Yanguang: "Uncle, please take it easy. Birth, aging, sickness and death are the natural laws."
After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Huang Yangguang finally had time to speak to Zeng Lijuan: "This must be Shan Dong's wife, right?"
Old Huang laughed and said, "Yes!"
Zeng Lijuan stepped forward and greeted Huang Yanguang: "Hello, Uncle!"
"Good, good, good!" Huang Yanguang was very happy and took a pair of mutton fat jade bracelets from his personal assistant and handed them to Zeng Lijuan.
"Shan Dong's wife! This is our first meeting, this is just a small token of my appreciation, please don't find it offensive."
Zeng Lijuan quickly declined, saying, "Uncle, you absolutely mustn't do that!"
Huang Yanguang feigned displeasure and said, "What's wrong? You think what I gave you is bad?"
Over the years, Zeng Lijuan has acquired many pieces of jewelry that she never dared to dream of before because of her son. She naturally knew the value of the pair of mutton fat jade bracelets that Huang Yanguang gave her, but she also had such bracelets.
Upon hearing this, Zeng Lijuan quickly replied, "No way! These bracelets of yours are too valuable; I, your niece-in-law, cannot take them."
The two started arguing and couldn't reach an agreement.
At this point, Huang Xiaochuan couldn't stand it anymore and advised, "Mom, your great-uncle gave it to you, just keep it!"
Old Huang also suggested that Zeng Lijuan accept the gift, since he could always return the favor with a generous gift later; isn't that how it works to give and take?
Seeing that her son and husband both said so, Zeng Lijuan accepted the bracelets. Huang Yangguang smiled happily after giving away his gift.
"That's more like it!"
The following conversation revolved around the Huang family's past, and Huang Xiaochuan and his mother Zeng Lijuan couldn't get a word in edgewise, so they just listened from the sidelines.
As they talked, Huang Yangguang and Lao Huang agreed to go to their hometown in Yuexi together the next day. Huang Xiaochuan wouldn't get involved in this. He had promised his children that he would take them to the zoo and play chess. As a first-time father in both his lives, he naturally cared more about his children. However, he would make the arrangements for Lao Huang and Huang Yangguang's trip.
Seeing that they had finished discussing things, Lao Huang invited Huang Yanguang to his home for a visit and a meal.
"Uncle, it's rare for you to come back, so I won't treat you to dinner at the restaurant. Let's eat at my place, and I'll show you around. You can come whenever you want!"
Huang Yanguang readily accepted Lao Huang's invitation.
The next day, after taking his two children to the zoo, Huang Xiaochuan returned home. Yu Xiang happened to be home as well. While setting up a chessboard with his son, Huang Xiaochuan discussed with Yu Xiang, "How about we invite Yu Min's family for dinner tonight?"
Yu Xiang was busy wiping the little devil's hands and face when she heard Huang Xiaochuan's words and replied, "Okay!"
Seeing that Yu Xiang agreed, Huang Xiaochuan continued to discuss with her, "How about we go to my brother-in-law's restaurant tonight? That way, Sister Wu and the others won't have to keep busy tonight."
"I'll call Yu Min later. Oh, and aren't you going to invite my dad and Yu Wei too?"
"Of course we have to invite them!"
After cleaning up the little devil for a while, Yu Xiang went to make a phone call.
While on the phone, Yu Xiang asked Huang Xiaochuan, "My mom asked if your mom is going tonight?"
Huang Xiaochuan was scratching his head in frustration. How could he be checkmated so quickly? Had his chess skills deteriorated? The younger generation was pushing the older generation aside; this was happening way too fast!
However, after hearing Yu Xiang's words, he still replied, "My mom, my dad, and my great-uncle went to their hometown in Shazhou. They probably won't be back tonight."
Upon hearing this, Yu Xiang relayed the matter to her mother, Zheng Aiying, over the phone.
After a while, Yu Xiang came over and told Huang Xiaochuan, "Alright! I've already told them. Don't forget to call your brother-in-law again, so that when so many of us go there, there won't be nowhere to sit."
Yu Xiang's concerns were justified, because Tang Jianhua's restaurant was incredibly popular, and there were definitely no seats available without a reservation.
Huang Xiaochuan, however, remained unconvinced: "Don't worry, there's definitely room!"
Yu Xiang was still worried: "Forget it, I'll call my brother-in-law and ask him to reserve a private room for tonight."
Yu Xiang then dialed Tang Jianhua's number.
Upon learning that my brother-in-law was going to treat his parents-in-law to dinner that evening, I had to make sure everything was arranged properly!
Upon learning that my brother-in-law was going to treat his parents-in-law to dinner that evening, I had to make sure everything was arranged properly!
Besides, regardless of whether the brother-in-law comes to the restaurant regularly or not, there's always a private room that's empty. Even when business is booming, that private room is never open to the public.
Yu Xiang was relieved after making the call.
That evening, the Yu family, consisting of seven or eight people, arrived at the restaurant. Tang Jianhua personally stood at the entrance to greet them, accompanying his brother-in-law.
"Uncle Yu, Aunt Zheng, you're here! Please come in and have a seat. The air conditioning in the private room has been on for a while now. It's so hot and humid outside."
Old Yu chatted with Tang Jianhua, saying, "Young Tang, your restaurant business is getting better and better. I heard you've opened quite a few branches?"
Upon hearing this, Tang Jianhua couldn't stop smiling: "Thanks for your kind words, business is doing alright."
At this moment, Yu Wei's son, Yu Chengping, and Yu Min's son, Yue Xiaoyong, took the initiative to call Huang Xiaochuan and Yu Xiang.
"Hello, Aunt and Uncle!"
"Hello, Auntie! Hello, Uncle!"
Huang Xiaochuan smiled and patted the two little ones on the head, saying, "Xiaodong and Xiaoduo are already inside. Go and play with them."
The two little ones ran happily into the restaurant first, and Tang Yuan and Yu Min quickly chased after them, afraid that the two children had gone to the wrong place.
Zheng Aiying and Yu Xiang followed them inside.
Huang Xiaochuan then called to his father-in-law, brother-in-law, and brother-in-law, "Dad, Zhiyuan, Yuwei, let's go in quickly!"
After everyone was seated, the door to the private room was opened, and more than a dozen waiters rushed in, setting out dishes and pouring drinks.
Within minutes, a table full of dishes was laid out.
Huang Xiaochuan also said to Yue Zhiyuan, "Zhiyuan, this Shanghai cuisine is a bit sweet. I specifically told the chef to put less sugar in it. Try it and see if it's okay. If not, I'll have them make some Huaiyang cuisine."
Yue Zhiyuan quickly waved his hand: "No need, no need, I can do it."
Tonight's dishes were arranged by Tang Jianhua at Huang Xiaochuan's request. Considering that there were both elderly and young people, Tang Jianhua arranged a banquet with both seafood and local Shanghainese dishes, aiming to make it suitable for all ages.
Before the meal began, Huang Xiaochuan asked Lao Yu to say a few words: "Dad, please say a few words."
Old Yu picked up his glass and said, "We're all family, no need for formalities. Come on, let's eat!"
Everyone raised their glasses, regardless of whether they contained alcohol or soft drinks. The three little ones followed suit and raised their drink glasses in a similar manner.
After a round of drinks, Huang Xiaochuan used a large spoon to scoop a large piece of yellow croaker and presented it to Lao Yu.
"Dad, please eat more fish!"
Now that Lao Yu has high blood pressure, Zheng Aiying won't let him eat pork. He can only eat fish, shrimp, and chicken, which makes Lao Yu very hungry. So he will sneak out to a small restaurant from time to time to get some braised pork to satisfy his craving.
However, with Zheng Aiying around tonight, Huang Xiaochuan could only persuade him to eat more fish and shrimp. Fortunately, these seafood dishes were delivered from the East China Sea that day and were very fresh. In addition, Tang Jianhua had specially invited several chefs from Ningbo who were particularly good at cooking seafood, so even Tang Yuan, who rarely eats seafood, ate a lot tonight.
After several rounds of drinks and dishes, the women in the family started talking about parenting, while the men, led by Lao Yu, discussed current events.
The main topic is the upcoming Olympic Games in September. This year's host country is Australia. China originally had the opportunity to host the Olympics this year, but unfortunately lost the opportunity for some reasons, which made many Chinese people resentful. Yu Wei and Yue Zhiyuan were naturally among them.
With the effects of the alcohol already kicking in, Yu Wei said angrily, "Just thinking about it makes me angry. I've decided not to watch the opening ceremony of this Olympics; watching it will only make me angrier."
Yue Zhiyuan's face also turned red: "I really didn't expect that someone would tamper with the rights to host such an international competition. It's truly eye-opening."
Huang Xiaochuan was certainly aware of this matter. In his previous life, it was rumored that the reason China failed to host the 2000 Olympics was because someone caused trouble during the voting process.
China consistently led in the first three rounds of voting, but strangely, in the final round, Australia overtook China by two votes to win the right to host the Olympic Games that year.
However, Huang Xiaochuan also knew that China had not given up on its Olympic dream and would continue to apply for the right to host the Games. In the end, China would successfully win the right to host the 2008 Olympic Games in 2001, which would be the grandest Olympic Games in history, allowing people all over the world to see the style and appearance of China.
However, Huang Xiaochuan couldn't comfort Yu Wei and Yue Zhiyuan with things that were about to happen. He could only listen to their complaints while drinking with his father-in-law, Old Yu.
"Dad! I'd like to toast you, let's have a couple more drinks!"
Old Yu never refuses a drink, and when his eldest son-in-law wanted to drink with him, he was naturally delighted.