Translator: Paperplane Editor: DarkGem
The entire table raised their wine glasses, ready to down their drinks. Qiao Anhao, who sat beside Xu Jiamu, reached out and took glass from his hands in exchange for a cup of water. She then politely explained to the table full of people, "Brother Jiamu still canât drink alcohol yet. "
Assuming that Xu Jiamu had only just finished his cosmetic surgery, everybody didnât force him to drink.
Qiao Anxia teased Qiao Anhao with a bright smile, "Qiao Qiao, you sure are protective of Jiamu."
Xu Jiamu smiled wordlessly, and downed his cup of water with everyone.
The harsh alcohol ran down Lu Jinnianâs throat with a hint of raw bitterness.
Xu Jiamuâs dishes tasted superb. Everyone around the table assumed Xu Jiamu and Qiao Anhao were husband and wife, so they couldnât help but start teasing. "Xiao Qiao, youâre so lucky to be able to eat young master Xuâs exotic dishes everyday."
After one person started the teasing, others started to chime in as well. "That being said... Jiamu, your wedding ceremony back then with Xiao Qiao was far too sloppy. You didnât even invite some of us here. Now that your face has recovered, isnât it about time that you hold a bigger wedding ceremony?"
"Yeah, Jiamu. You didnât even have a wedding ceremony. Did you do right by Xiao Qiao, did you do right by us?"
Even though Xu Jiamu and Qiao Anhao knew that the ceremony they were crying about would never come true, the two of them agreed to not let it slip in the slightest before they got the divorce finalized. To do this, Xu Jiamu even played along with everyone, smiling and saying, "Definitely, Iâll definitely make up for the wedding ceremony to Qiao Qiao."
From start to end, Qiao Anhao kept a gentle smile and didnât say a word. When Xu Jiamu said those words, she couldnât help but glance over at Lu Jinnian from the corner of her eyes. His expression was cold and distant as usual as he silently drank his wine, as though the conversations at the table had nothing to do with him.
Qiao Anhao couldnât help but tightly clutch her chopsticks. Though she said she wouldnât love him again, whilst others were egging her on with another guy, it still pained her heart to see him so nonchalant.
"Not only make up for the wedding ceremony, make up for the proposal! Xiao Qiao, let me tell you... If young master Xu doesnât propose, by all means, donât agree to anything!"
"Theyâre already married, what canât she agree to?!"
"She canât agree to have kids!"
"Yeah yeah yeah, donât agree to have kids!"
"Xiao Qiao, when he proposes, remember to call upon us. Weâll help you see if heâs sincere enough. Until then, you mustnât give young master Xu a child."
Give him a child... Qiao Anhao and Xu Jiamuâs child... Lu Jinnian instantly thought about his own unborn child who was killed in the belly... His hand couldnât help but grip harder onto his wine glass.
He couldnât hear what was so funny about what they just said, but everyone around the table laughed cheerfully. His eyes calmly waited for everyone to change the topic, then when no one noticed, his eyes silently fell on Qiao Anhao. She had her head down, quietly chewing on a piece of chicken thigh that Xu Jiamu had picked up for her with his chopsticks.
Lu Jinnian only looked for five seconds before looking away. Then he raised his head and downed another glass of wine, stood up, and left for the living room.