Chapter 172: Chapter 116: A Golden Catch (2)
"Ol— bah, no— Hello, Uncle. I’m Qi Sheng, Huahua’s boyfriend."
"I heard Grandma is sick, so I took the liberty of coming to visit. I hope you don’t mind."
Qi Sheng was nothing if not polite, and he took the initiative to shake Tan Yuheng’s hand.
"Hmph. It is quite forward of you."
Tan Yuheng snorted, looking displeased.
"Dad~"
Tan Hua immediately shot him a look of disapproval.
She was worried Qi Sheng would be upset and make things awkward for everyone.
"Tan Yuheng, what kind of attitude is that?"
Grandma Tan’s expression darkened. She scolded him disapprovingly, "This is Ah Sheng’s first visit. You absolutely cannot be so rude to him. I never taught you to behave this way."
"You’re right, Mom. It was my fault. Ah Sheng, please don’t mind me. I’m just having a hard time adjusting to my daughter suddenly having a boyfriend."
Tan Yuheng wasn’t a complete fool. He took the opportunity to gracefully back down and began chatting warmly with Qi Sheng.
After all, while people might give a poor son-in-law a hard time, who would ever do the same to a wealthy one?
What’s more, before they were even married, Qi Sheng had already put his daughter’s name on the deed of a 12-million-yuan mansion.
Not long ago, his daughter had come home wearing a watch worth over a million and driving a Porsche Cayenne.
Her clothes and jewelry were all from major luxury brands.
Frankly, for their family to land a son-in-law like Qi Sheng, their ancestors must have been smiling down on them.
Qi Sheng, for his part, understood Mr. Tan. All fathers were like this.
What father wouldn’t feel a pang of jealousy seeing the precious daughter he’d worked so hard to raise get swept away by another man?
"Dad, you two can stop chatting. Let’s eat while the food is hot."
Tan Hua first took out Grandma’s light lunch.
Then she took out her own meal and handed a pair of chopsticks to Qi Sheng.
"Try it and see if you like it. You must be starving since you didn’t eat on the way here."
"AHEM. Huahua, what about my meal?"
Seeing his daughter had eyes only for her beau, Tan Yuheng felt his heart overflow with jealousy. "And my food?" he asked, his tone dripping with sourness.
"Ah?"
Tan Hua stuck out her tongue, taking out another boxed lunch with a look of embarrassment.
"Dad, this one is yours."
"Good, you’ve still got a conscience. Your mother doesn’t have much of an appetite, so you can have the extra one."
Tan Yuheng doted on his precious daughter; he couldn’t bear the thought of her going without a meal.
He was planning to text his wife, who was out buying fruit, and ask her to pick up another boxed lunch on her way back.
"Really?"
Tan Hua’s face lit up, and she quickly unwrapped the last meal.
She portioned out all the meat and rice for Qi Sheng, leaving only the vegetables for herself.
"She’s not even married, and she’s already taking his side."
The old father, Tan Yuheng, felt his heart ache with bitterness.
He had never seen his daughter be so attentive to him.
Tan Hua knew very well what a big appetite Qi Sheng had.
Watching him eat always whetted her own appetite.
Qi Sheng didn’t hold back, devouring every last bite of the boxed lunch filled with Tan Hua’s affection.
"A good appetite is a sign of good fortune. This boy, Ah Sheng, is sure to be blessed in the future!"
Grandma Tan watched with delight, her heart filled with emotion.
’Her own little girl was finally at the age of marriage.’
She thought about how good-looking both Qi Sheng and Tan Hua were.
’Their future children would be absolutely adorable, wouldn’t they? I’d love them to death!’
Just the thought of it made Grandma Tan break into a wide grin, revealing her neat teeth.
If she hadn’t accidentally fallen this time, given her otherwise good health, Grandma Tan wouldn’t have been in the hospital for so long.
But at her age, a fall was a serious matter.
Tan Yuheng was worried and insisted that she stay in the hospital for a few days of observation before he would allow her to be discharged.
Even Tan Hua, who was working in Chengdu, had dropped everything, not caring about her meager salary, the moment she heard the news and rushed back immediately.
When Mrs. Tan returned, she was greeted by the sight of a very "harmonious" trio.
Her daughter was peeling an apple, with slices for Grandma and her boyfriend.
Only her father was left out, with no apple to eat.
Obviously, Tan Hua was still angry at her father.
Thankfully, Qi Sheng was magnanimous, and Grandma Tan was quick-witted.
Otherwise, Qi Sheng would have been met with a cold reception on his very first visit.
’How could I ever face Qi Sheng’s parents in the future?’
"My dear daughter, Daddy knows he was wrong. How about peeling an apple for me, too?"
Tan Yuheng gave his precious daughter a placating look.
He hadn’t expected his daughter to get so angry, and he was filled with regret.
"This must be Qi Sheng, right?"
Mrs. Tan walked over and gave her husband’s waist a sharp, discreet pinch.
Tan Yuheng almost cried out in pain.
"Hello, Auntie. I’m Qi Sheng. I brought a small gift for you since it’s my first visit. I hope you’ll accept it."
From the pile of gifts he had set down earlier, Qi Sheng picked out a complete set of La Prairie skincare, which Miduo had helped him choose. It retailed for over thirty thousand yuan.
"Oh my, this is far too expensive."
Han Yueying knew her luxury brands. She was so flattered she almost didn’t dare to accept it.
A wealthy colleague of hers used La Prairie.
Just one face cream cost several thousand yuan.
This whole set had to be at least twenty or thirty thousand yuan.
If the two of them were officially married, she could have accepted it as a gesture of filial piety from her son-in-law.
But they were still just boyfriend and girlfriend.
How could she dare to accept such an expensive gift?
What if they broke up in the future? How awkward would that be?
"Mom, just accept it."
Catching a look from Qi Sheng, Tan Hua helped persuade her mother to take it.
The look she gave Qi Sheng was full of smoldering adoration.
This surprise visit from Qi Sheng, complete with extravagant gifts, was an incredibly effective way to win them over.
As for Tan Hua, who was already head over heels for him, she now felt she loved him down to her very bones.
If they weren’t in a hospital, she would have thrown herself into his arms and let him have his way with her.
"Alright, Auntie will accept it this time. But please, no more gifts like this in the future. Let’s wait until your relationship is more settled."
Han Yueying accepted the skincare set, worth tens of thousands, with a wry smile. Then she shot another glare at her thoughtless husband.
’A perfect, wealthy son-in-law like this, and you dared to be rude to him?’
’Just wait until I get you home tonight. I’ll teach you a lesson.’
"Uncle, I brought you a couple pounds of Niu Langkeng Cinnamon."
"I can’t make promises about everything, but from now on, you’ll have more than enough tea of this quality. Just treat it as your daily brew."
Naturally, Qi Sheng wouldn’t play favorites; he had also brought a gift for his prospective father-in-law.
An Hermes belt or something similar would have been too tacky.
Qi Sheng remembered Tan Hua mentioning her father loved tea, and he’d filed that detail away. Through Xu Qinghui of Langyu Decoration, he was introduced to a friend who sold high-end teas. He ended up buying five kilograms of the "Beef"—the nickname for Niu Langkeng Cinnamon—to keep for himself and for gifting.
This Niu Langkeng Cinnamon cost five hundred yuan per brewing.
Whether for serving guests or giving as a gift, it was more than presentable.
If Qi Sheng had given any other gift, Tan Yuheng truly would have felt too awkward to accept it.
But this ridiculously expensive tea hit the nail right on the head.
"Well then, I won’t be polite! Later on, let’s find a place for dinner. The two of us can have a good drink, and we’ll call it a welcome meal for you."
Tan Yuheng accepted the tea and walked out of the hospital room to book a restaurant.
"What about Grandma? Should we leave someone here to watch over her?"
Qi Sheng wanted to have dinner with Tan Hua’s parents, but he didn’t feel right about leaving Grandma Tan there alone.
"You go on and eat. My condition isn’t serious. I can be discharged after another two days of observation, and besides, the caregiver is here to help."
Grandma Tan waved her hand amiably.
She was secretly hoping that a few drinks would help Qi Sheng and Tan Yuheng open up to each other.
And that Qi Sheng and Tan Hua could move on to the next stage of their relationship.
Then, she could spend her days doting on her great-grandchildren and enjoying her golden years.
The clever Tan Hua, of course, knew exactly what her grandmother was thinking.
’But some things can’t be achieved by my efforts alone; Qi Sheng has to pull his weight, too.’
’In order to get pregnant with Qi Sheng’s child sooner...’
’Even when I, Miduo, and Xu Ying were all with him, it was always me who completed the final act.’
But her perfectly flat stomach still showed no signs of a reaction.
’Fortunately, I’m still young. I can wait a few more years.’
’Sister Miduo, on the other hand, seems even more anxious than I am.’
When Tan Yuheng returned, he had clearly succeeded in booking a table.
To properly host his wealthy prospective son-in-law, Tan Yuheng had spared no expense.
He had booked a private room at Yu Tu, Chongqing’s most expensive Sichuan restaurant.
The minimum charge alone was ten thousand yuan.
But then again, his prospective son-in-law had given him rock tea worth tens of thousands.
And had given his wife similarly expensive skincare products.
And that wasn’t even counting the expensive health supplements Qi Sheng had brought for Grandma Tan, which were still sitting on the floor.
All in all, Qi Sheng must have spent at least a hundred thousand yuan on this visit.
Even a university professor like Tan Yuheng was secretly shocked.
This was just a visit before they were even engaged, and the bar was already set this high.
If they actually got married, he couldn’t imagine the sheer value of gifts Qi Sheng would shower him with.
It wasn’t about the money, of course. What he really appreciated was his prospective son-in-law’s class.
He might not be fabulously wealthy himself, but at least he could provide Tan Hua with a respectable dowry.
In his entire life, he, Old Tan, had never been outdone by anyone.
