Everyone in the hall then looked towards the entrance once more.
A girl with a delicate and cute face walked in, arm in arm with a tall man.
The girl's face bore a strong resemblance to Qin Siye, and the man was tall, likely over 1.85 meters, though slightly shorter than Qin Siye.
He also shared some resemblance with Qin Siye, but his demeanor appeared less composed and steady, carrying a hint of wildness.
Su Chengyu followed behind the two.
"You're all here, come and meet Siye's girlfriend," Xu Zhilan said with a beaming smile.
The man's gaze was fixed on Yin Xi, a look of surprise, then admiration, on his face.
Qin Siye slowly stood up and introduced Yin Xi, "Yin Xi, this is my uncle."
"Uncle," Yin Xi said, already standing, her voice respectful.
"Ah," Qin Xiuyi's lips curved into a smile as he responded, then turned his gaze to Qin Siye with a knowing look.
It was as if he were saying: "You're quite something, kid. When did you get a girlfriend, and how come I didn't know?"
Qin Siye met his gaze as usual, then looked at Yin Xi and pointed to Qin Si Yue, "This is my sister, Qin Si Yue."
"Si Yue, greet your sister-in-law."
"How can she call her sister-in-law? She should be calling her sister-in-law," Xu Zhilan said, her expression turning displeased. She then looked at Su Chengyu behind them, "Chengyu, you should also call Xi Xi sister-in-law."
"Grandmother, I..." Su Chengyu's throat tightened at the words, a pang of bitterness in his heart.
Yin Xi's face flushed. Being asked to call her sister-in-law in front of so many people, she felt overwhelmed.
After all, her relationship with Qin Siye was a pretense.
"Grandma, Yin Xi and I have only been dating for a short while, and it's her first time here. It's not appropriate to call her sister-in-law yet, so let's just call her sister," Qin Siye said, noticing her discomfort and quickly intervening.
"That's fine. Look how much you care about her." Xu Zhilan's smile deepened.
The others chuckled in agreement.
Only Su Chengyu listened with a darkened expression, his heart filled with mixed emotions.
"Yin Xi? Are you perhaps from the student council at K University?" Qin Si Yue suddenly asked in surprise.
"Yes," Yin Xi replied.
Upon hearing this, Qin Si Yue excitedly walked over and took her hand. "It really is you! No wonder you looked a bit familiar earlier.
Hello, Senior. Officially, my name is Qin Si Yue, a second-year student at K University's School of Medicine. I saw your performance during the university's anniversary celebration, you were amazing!"
Yin Xi felt a sense of meeting a kindred spirit. "Really? It's nice to meet you."
After a few polite exchanges, Qin Si Yue's expression suddenly turned somber. "I heard that your family had an accident a few days ago. Your father died in a car crash, and your family is in a lot of debt. That's truly unfortunate. Senior, please accept my condolences!"
As these words were spoken, those in the hall who were unaware looked on in shock.
Judging by her attire and speech, they had initially thought she was a socialite from K City, but it turned out she was just a fallen young lady.
"Si Yue, shut up!" Qin Siye yelled, looking apologetically at Yin Xi.
Yin Xi smiled faintly at him. "It's alright, Si Yue is just stating the facts."
Jiang Jie and Qin Xue Lan exchanged glances, a hint of a sarcastic smile in their eyes.
"Are you talking about the Yin family from the southern district? I saw a report about it online," Qin Xiuzhi, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke. He looked up at Yin Xi,
"So you are Yuan Yin's daughter. I had some dealings with him years ago; he was a man of integrity and trustworthiness, and a very shrewd businessman. A very good person."
"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. You all have no tact, bringing up such sad matters," Xu Zhilan said sternly, glancing at them. She then pulled Yin Xi closer to her.
"Xi Xi, let the past be the past. You are Siye's girlfriend now, and in the future, you'll be part of the Qin family. If you have any difficulties, you can always tell him and let him handle it."
As she spoke, she slid the jade bracelet from her wrist onto Yin Xi's slender arm.
"Xi Xi, Grandma didn't prepare a gift for you either. This jade bracelet has been with me for many years, so consider it a welcoming gift."
It wasn't that she hadn't prepared anything; she had decided beforehand that if Qin Siye brought a girlfriend home today whom she approved of, she would give her this jade bracelet.
This jadeite bracelet was of excellent quality and very valuable. It was originally a pair, with the other one given to Qin Siye's mother, meaning only the mistress of the Qin family was meant to possess it.
Jiang Jie, who had been married into the Qin family for ten years, had coveted this jade bracelet for years, but Xu Zhilan had never considered giving it to her.
Qin Xue Lan, being a married daughter of the Qin family, was even less likely to receive it, yet a spark of jealousy ignited within her.
"Grandma, this gift is too precious, I can't possibly accept it."
Yin Xi was somewhat overwhelmed and hurriedly tried to take it off, but Xu Zhilan held her hand down.
"Xi Xi, what's precious and what's not. To me, this is just an object. What I care about is its meaning. I like you, that's why I'm giving it to you. You won't disrespect this old woman, will you?"
"I..." Yin Xi didn't know what to do for a moment and looked to Qin Siye for help. To her surprise, Qin Siye said, "Since it's Grandma's thoughtful gesture, you should accept it."
Reluctantly, Yin Xi didn't try to take it off anymore and said softly, "Thank you, Grandma!"
Xu Zhilan nodded with satisfaction and then looked at the other unmarried individuals.
"Chengyu, Si Yue, when you bring your girlfriends or boyfriends home, I'll have gifts for you too."
Suddenly, she seemed to remember something and fixed her gaze on Su Chengyu. "Chengyu, I heard from your mother a while ago that you had a girlfriend. Why didn't you bring her to meet me today?"
Startled, Su Chengyu glanced at Yin Xi and paused for a moment before replying, "She... she's away on a business trip and couldn't make it back today."
He regretted his actions now. If Lu Yushan hadn't actively seduced him, Yin Xi would likely be standing beside him now.
Instead, he watched helplessly as the girlfriend he had been dating for three years became his cousin-in-law.
"Alright. Bring her to meet Grandma when you have the chance."
"Okay."
Then, Xu Zhilan's gaze shifted to Qin Xiuyi, and her expression became increasingly displeased.
Qin Xiuyi felt a chill down his spine under her gaze. "Mom, why are you looking at me like that?
I haven't said a word. Have I offended you in some way?"
"Don't play dumb. Siye already has a girlfriend, and you, as his uncle, are still nowhere to be seen. I think you're planning to stay single your whole life, aren't you?" Xu Zhilan became more agitated as she spoke.
Qin Xiuyi leaned back into the sofa and said nonchalantly, "Since you've already given away both your jade bracelets, why am I in a hurry?"
"You... you rascal, are you trying to make me angry to death?" Xu Zhilan said, raising her walking stick and swinging it towards him.