Chapter 353 - 350: Engagement Banquet

Chapter 353: Chapter 350: Engagement Banquet

Watching the people come and go on the busy street, Jiang Xia strolled leisurely, holding his wife’s hand. The warm winter sun spilled down, making them feel toasty all over.

"Should we go buy rings?" he asked, turning to look at her, his eyes shining.

"Sure," Lin Yanwan answered with a smile.

"Babe, we’re getting engaged soon. Are you excited?"

"Are *you* excited?" Lin Yanwan countered with a smile.

Jiang Xia let out a soft breath. "I was really excited at first, but slowly, the excitement faded. Instead, it feels like a weight I’ve been carrying has finally been lifted."

Lin Yanwan looked down at their clasped hands and said softly, "Me too."

Husband and wife in their past life, they had reached this step once again after being reborn.

Hand in hand, the two walked into a nearby Zhou Dasheng. They noticed quite a few other couples were also there to buy rings, likely planning to get married while their friends and family were home for the New Year.

"Are you two here to buy rings?" a salesperson asked as she approached.

"Yes."

"Diamond rings or gold rings?"

Jiang Xia looked at her. "How about gold rings? The symbolism of the last one wasn’t great."

’The ad campaign was brilliant, something about "A diamond is forever," but we still almost got divorced in our past life.’

"I think so too," Lin Yanwan nodded.

The salesperson was completely baffled.

’What does she mean, "the symbolism of the last one wasn’t great"? They don’t look very old. Could they be on their second marriage?’

"Gold rings are a great choice. They hold their value well, and they’re very popular right now," the salesperson said, showing them the gold ring on her own hand.

The gold shimmered captivatingly under the store’s lights.

"Do you two have a price range in mind for the rings? I can give you some recommendations."

"Price isn’t important. If we find something we like, we’ll buy it," Jiang Xia said nonchalantly.

A typical gold ring cost a few thousand yuan, with better ones going for over ten thousand. To him, that really wasn’t much money.

Hearing this, the salesperson thought she’d run into a rich kid. While measuring their fingers, she couldn’t stop complimenting Lin Yanwan’s hands—how fair and delicate they were, with slender fingers. She said they were the most beautiful hands she had seen in a long time.

Jiang Xia just smiled. ’I didn’t need her to tell me that. After holding them for so long, I’m pretty sure I’ve developed a hand fetish because of my wife.’

Especially when it came to her masterful flute playing.

After laying on the praise, the salesperson brought out several pairs of the store’s more expensive matching rings for them to see, but Jiang Xia and Lin Yanwan didn’t like any of them.

They were either too gaudy and over-decorated or looked too bulky. They were heavy, sure, but they just weren’t attractive.

In the end, they chose a simple pair of matching pure gold rings. They were a perfect fit, and the gleam of the gold made Lin Yanwan’s hands look even more slender and fair.

Jiang Xia also wanted to buy his wife a necklace and bracelet, but Lin Yanwan didn’t want them. Wearing such things at their age would be too flashy; a simple ring was just right.

"Alright, whatever my wife wants."

After paying, they walked home hand in hand. They didn’t bother taking the rings off, figuring they would just symbolically put them in a box on the day of the engagement to go through the motions.

When they got home, Ji Wanqiu immediately noticed the gold rings on their hands. A smile spread across her face as she closely examined the ring on her daughter’s left ring finger and praised, "It’s beautiful."

◇

Time passed quickly. The fifth day of the first lunar month of the Geng-Yin year arrived—an auspicious day for engagements and weddings.

Lin Gaoyuan and Jiang Wende booked a large private room at a hotel, inviting only their closest family and friends.

The hotel staff had handled the venue’s decorations. The room was done up entirely in red. Against one wall stood an engagement party display board adorned with fresh flowers, featuring two small, loving figures and the names Jiang Xia and Lin Yanwan.

The tables were also laden with fruits and pastries, many of them decorated with the small "double happiness" character. A bouquet of 99 red roses sat in the center.

Jiang Xia wore a white suit jacket, while Lin Yanwan was dressed in a beautiful red gown. The air conditioning in the private room kept it from being cold. Standing together, they looked like a perfect match—a talented man and a beautiful woman.

An engagement ceremony was far less formal than a wedding. Seeing that all their friends and family were seated and the time was right, Jiang Xia took Lin Yanwan’s hand and led her to the front, before a large, red "double happiness" character.

Li Weiya had originally wanted to officiate their engagement ceremony, but instead, the couple took a microphone each. They started by thanking each other’s parents for raising them, then thanked the relatives and friends who had come to attend. Afterward, they spoke at length about how they met, got to know each other, and fell in love.

To outsiders, they were still young; even if they had started dating in high school, it had only been a year or so. But the reality was that their love story, spanning two lifetimes, had long since surpassed everything else.

Their journey from high school sweethearts to students at Tsinghua alone was enough to make many people sigh in admiration. They were a match made in heaven, the envy of all.

Lin Yanwan, beaming with joy, looked at Jiang Xia as she recounted their story. Compared to their previous life, their experiences this time were so much richer.

Then, Jiang Xia changed the subject, taking the bouquet and getting down on one knee before his love.

"Babe, for the rest of our lives, will you walk this path with me? I will love you forever, never leaving your side. I’ll spend my whole life cherishing you, giving you warmth, and bringing you happiness," Jiang Xia said with a joyful smile.

"I believe you," Lin Yanwan said, smiling as she looked into his eyes.

Without another word, she took the roses from Jiang Xia’s hands and hugged them to her chest. Then she pulled him up and gave him a gentle hug.

Just then, Lin Yanwan’s younger sister came out with the small ring box and handed it to her brother-in-law. Jiang Xia patted her head, took the rings from the box, and slid them onto each other’s fingers.

The room erupted in applause. Then, under the watchful eyes of everyone present and carrying the blessings of their family and friends, the two signed their names on the festive engagement certificate. The ceremony concluded with the blessings of both sets of parents, and Lin Yanwan’s father placing his daughter’s hand in Jiang Xia’s.

Wang Ming sat next to Shen Ying, watching Old Jiang and Lin Yanwan confess their love and exchange rings. He couldn’t help but feel a little envious. ’When will Shen Ying and I reach this step?’ he wondered.

As if sensing his thoughts, Shen Ying quietly took his hand under the table.

They looked at each other and smiled. Nothing more needed to be said.

’No need to compare themselves to that pair of lovebirds who were reborn without drinking Meng Po Soup. They were taking things one step at a time, so shouldn’t they have their parents meet next New Year?’

The banquet ended, and the guests all left satisfied.

From that day on, Jiang Xia and Lin Yanwan could be considered husband and wife in name. All that was left was to hold a formal wedding once they reached the legal age to marry.

「The next day, the sixth day of the first lunar month.」

After being seen off by a crowd of people, Jiang Xia and Lin Yanwan, along with Li Weiya and Wang Ming, officially boarded a plane to the Imperial Capital.

In the new year, the growth of Qitian Animation had only just begun.