However, before meeting his friends, Su Xiaofei and her husband needed to welcome her father's family first. The Qiao family had just arrived in time for lunch and the five of them moved to the dining area.
Su Xiaofei was sandwiched between her husband and younger brother, both eager to feed her more while Qiao Fengying and Liu Shulan were watching, looking amused.
"Xiaofei, are you sure that it's alright for us to stay with you here? Does your mother agree with your decision to have us here?" Qiao Fengying asked. He didn't want to make Yun Qingrong uncomfortable, being in her home to bond with his daughter.
"It's fine, Uncle. She was actually the one who suggested we invite you here after discussing it with us." Su Xiaofei smiled and glanced at her husband. "You are free to stay as long as you like." She added, ruffling her younger brother's thick hair in the process.
Qiao Yuhan pulled away from her hand and pouted. While he loved his big sister the most, he disliked being treated like a child.
"Fei Jie, not my hair please." He grunted.
Su Xiaofei's hand stopped midair and looked at her brother with confusion, before smiling awkwardly. His reactions reminded her of the time when Lu Qingfeng had reached puberty. Perhaps Qiao Yuhan had already reached the age where he was starting to become conscious of his looks.
For the next three days, Su Xiaofei tried to make time for the Qiao family and had lunch with them while her husband was away for work. At nighttime, they spent time playing Qiao Yuhan's games and would end the day with smiles on their faces.
Su Xiaofei could see that her father was trying his best to catch up with lost time. She could also sense that he was still walking on thin ice, hoping not to upset her in any way, which she found unnecessary. She wasn't expecting anything from him, now that he knew that she was his daughter.
While she was busy tending to her work and getting to know her father more, Lu Qingfeng had been on edge, nervous about the impending meeting of the brotherhood with his wife. Song Yiran dropped by his office and informed him that the rest of their brothers agreed with his request to meet the following weekend.
"You know this would happen, right? You can't really hide it from them for long." Song Yiran commented as he slouched on the couch across from Lu Qingfeng's hard mahogany desk.
The younger man scoffed at his words.
"They wouldn't have found out this early if you hadn't told them." He retorted.
"Hey! They were curious about what's stopping you from coming back to Shenjing. You haven't really told us that you would settle down in Qiying City with Su Xiaofei." Song Yiran momentarily paused. "I'm still surprised that you two tied the knot this early. I see that you didn't want to waste time at all."
Lu Qingfeng shook his head. His mother-in-law's condition was still not made public. Although this was the reason why Su Xiaofei married him, he wanted to convince himself that his wife married him out of love and not because of her obligation towards her mother.
"You didn't tell her anything about them?" Song Yiran asked him.
"No," came Lu Qingfeng's reply. "I didn't see the need to inform her about our business deals. It's not that I don't trust her, but I want to keep her safe, just in case."
Song Yiran nodded in agreement. The less people knew about their deals, the better. It wasn't like they were making money illegally, but the five of them prioritized their brotherhood whenever they encountered any opportunities and lucrative deals.
To be honest, the brotherhood Lu Qingfeng founded in Shenjing years ago was the one that saved him from his personal financial crisis and managed to help him to stand on his own. Though he wasn't as wealthy as their other brothers, Song Yiran was satisfied with the assistance and advice he was receiving from them.
"It wasn't like being married would change everything in our brotherhood. If that's what you are worried about, I can vouch for my wife." Lu Qingfeng added.
"I know you would say that, Lu Qingfeng, but I suggest against uttering such words in front of the rest. We trust you as our leader, there's no doubt about that. But you have to know that women would only complicate our deals." His friend commented.
The young man fell silent and glanced at the cityscape scenery that could be seen from his office. Lu Qingfeng knew that what Song Yiran said was true to some point, but he wanted to believe that Su Xiaofei had already matured and had become more sensible since her rebirth. And while it was true that he was physically younger than the rest of their brotherhood, he had already lived three lifetimes.
"How about Su Xiaofei? Did she agree to meet the rest of us?"
"En. She seems eager to meet them." Lu Qingfeng answered.
"What about Li Xiran though? Are you sure you want to recruit him for our brotherhood? His family business is currently on the rocks. If he and his brother don't do anything to save it, their father's legacy would be no more."
Ah, Li Xiran. Lu Qingfeng thought. He almost forgot one of the reasons why he insisted on returning to Qiying City. By now, Li Xiran should already be acquainted with Xi Qian. It was around this time that the Li Corporation faced a huge problem after the head of the Li family collapsed.
"Leave it to me. I expect to meet him very soon." He replied. He expected that Li Xiran would be attending the same event he would be attending next week.
Song Yiran shrugged and shut his eyes, intending to take a short nap on Lu Qingfeng's couch.
Lu Qingfeng only shook his head and returned to his work, knowing what kept Song Yiran up the whole night.
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