"I'll help Mom. You go give Elena a hand," Li Minxi said, walking over and nudging Guo Xuyang aside.
Elena was struggling to move uphill.
She had become excessively fat in such a short time.
"Yangzi, I won't be coming tomorrow. This is too strenuous; I'll just lie down and rest at home," Elena said, seeing Guo Xuyang approach.
"Alright. How about I take you to the hospital for another check-up this afternoon?"
"That would be good. It's been a while since my last check-up."
Guo Xuyang helped Elena slowly ascend. Just as they entered the private room, Cheng Xiuping also arrived.
"Sorry, I'm late."
"You're not late. We've just arrived too. Sit, please sit," Guo Xuyang beckoned.
As soon as everyone was seated, Lin Zixuan also arrived.
"Dad, Mom, Uncle, Aunt, these are the dishes prepared for Brother Hui's wedding banquet tomorrow. Try them first and let us know if anything needs adjusting, and we'll change it after we eat," Guo Xuyang said.
"Alright. Have the cigarettes and alcohol been finalized?" Guo Yixiang asked.
"They're all set, Dad. For cigarettes, we're using Hua Zi and Da Ji, and for alcohol, we have Guo Jiu, red wine, and beer. Yangzi arranged all of this," Guo Xuhui said.
"Good. This is our family's first happy occasion, so we must handle it properly."
"No problem. Yangzi has arranged everything. Tomorrow, Second Uncle will go with the car to Xiaoli's house, along with Mr. Wu. Manager Pi is in charge of the fireworks. The groomsmen and bridesmaids are all from the shop. The main sponsor is President Cheng..." Guo Xuhui detailed the wedding preparations.
"The preparations are very thorough. We just need to have a lively and successful event tomorrow," Guo Yixiang commented.
"Let's talk while we eat. Mom and Dad, let me introduce you. This is President Cheng, Cheng Xiuping, the largest real estate developer in our provincial capital and the main sponsor for Brother Hui's wedding." Guo Xuyang made the introduction.
"President Cheng, this is my father, Guo Yiyu, and my mother, Wu Shangqing. This is my Uncle Guo Yixiang and my Aunt Xu Wenli."
"Hello, Uncle and Aunt. I am Cheng Xiuping. If there's anything I can do better for this wedding, please don't hesitate to guide me," Cheng Xiuping said, standing up.
"President Cheng, you are too kind. Thank you for your trouble with Xiaohui's matter," Guo Yixiang quickly stood up and said.
"Please, sit down. Let's eat and chat," Cheng Xiuping quickly invited Guo Yixiang to sit.
Once everyone was seated, Liu He signaled the waitstaff to start serving the dishes. First came the eight cold dishes. After they were circulated and tasted, the hot dishes began to be served. After twenty-eight hot dishes were served, everyone was almost full.
"Uncle, Aunt, Mom, and Dad, do you see any dishes that need to be adjusted?" Guo Xuyang asked.
"They are excellent. Does anyone else present have any opinions?" Guo Yixiang asked.
"This table of dishes is very good. Both the ingredients and the preparation are first-class," Guo Yiyu remarked.
"As long as you approve, that's all that matters. We've tasted them over the past couple of days, and everyone has found them highly satisfactory," Guo Xuyang said.
"Brother Hui, this afternoon you need to have the bridesmaids and the others go to Xiao Li's house. You also need to arrange the groomsmen and the vehicles in advance. You must finalize the decoration for the lead car today. We need to depart early tomorrow morning as the journey is quite long, so please be extremely careful on the road."
"Don't worry, I've already made arrangements for these matters. Tomorrow, each store will only have three people left; everyone else will come to help," Guo Xuhui replied.
"You handle these arrangements as you see fit. We should try to be as thorough and comprehensive as possible, not to the point of being foolproof, but at least to avoid major issues. We'll leave it at that for today. Everyone, please come early tomorrow. Mr. Wu and Fatty, don't go back tonight; you can stay at my villa to the west."
"Alright. I'm fine wherever. I've been running around a lot with Mr. Wu these past couple of days," Pi Xiaoqian said.
"Shall we head back?" Guo Xuyang looked at his parents.
"Let's go," Guo Yiyu said, glancing at Guo Yixiang, and stood up.
Everyone rose from their seats.
"Mom, I won't be accompanying you any longer," Guo Xuyang said to Wu Shangqing.
"You go ahead with your business, don't worry about us. How much did this table of dishes cost?" Wu Shangqing asked quietly.
"It's our own hotel, so it's not expensive."
"Not expensive, but there must be a price, right?"
"Around fifty thousand."
"Fifty thousand? And you call that not expensive? I haven't even seen many of these dishes."
"If you'd like to eat them, I can have them make them for you every day."
"Forget it, I still have to go back to work. Let's talk about it after your child is born."
"Mom, there's something I didn't tell you earlier. The child Elena is carrying is mine."
"You little rascal, I knew it was yours. When you said this morning that it wasn't yours, I didn't believe you at all. How many months is she? When is she due?"
"I'm not sure of the exact number of months right now. But Elena said she's due soon. I plan to take her for a check-up this afternoon."
"What do you mean? You're not planning on letting me go back, are you?"
"Heh heh, didn't you just say the food here is delicious? You can have the chefs here make it for you every day from now on."
"You take Elena for her check-up first, then we'll talk. The winter break isn't far off; if necessary, I'll request sick leave first."
"Why would you request sick leave? Just resign. Your son is rich; we don't lack money."
"Are you trying to hire me as a nanny?"
"What are you saying? As long as you stay here, they'll treat you like an empress dowager."
"You're getting carried away! Like an empress dowager? Your mother doesn't have the fortune to enjoy such treatment."
"I'm just joking with you! As long as you stay here, I'll take good care of you with delicious food and drinks."
"I'll discuss it with your father later. You be careful, and don't push your mother into a fiery pit."
"Mom, what are you talking about? Am I that kind of person?"
"I can manage one or two, but if they all come, they'll drain the life out of me."
"That won't happen, Mom. Just rest assured. I'll have Xiao Yun take you around later. Buy whatever you like. Your son has plenty of money now."
"Alright, alright, you should hurry and take Elena to the hospital. We don't need you to worry about us."
Guo Xuyang saw everyone off and had Ye Zi drive Elena to the hospital for her check-up.
"Yangzi, I feel like Elena is going to give birth in the next couple of days," Li Minxi said from the front passenger seat.
"Shouldn't we let the doctor check first?" Guo Xuyang replied.
He hadn't actually used his abilities to observe the child in Elena's womb since she became pregnant. He quietly activated his perception abilities and looked towards Elena's belly. Elena was leaning sideways in her seat. The fetus in her womb was head-down, fully developed, though its tiny arms and legs were still very slender.