RBNR Ch31: Still want to have a wedding?

At the Qin family estate, the old master had invited an old comrade-in-arms, and they were playing chess together in the garden tea pavilion.

Just as he was pondering what move to make next, Qin Bao stormed in from the outside, his face dark with stormy irritation: “Grandpa!”

Stepping through the door and noticing a guest present, Qin Bao reined in his aggressive aura, greeting the guest politely: “Hello, Grandpa Li.”

Grandfather and grandson hadn’t spoken for the better part of a month. The old master’s expression remained exceptionally icy. Standing by the door, Qin Bao didn’t lean in to watch the board or act spoiled like he used to.

Qin Bao looked as though he had something to say, but restrained by the presence of a guest, he merely squeezed out a single sentence: “I left something on your desk.”

The old master grew instantly alert: “What thing?”

Don’t tell me he followed the Shan family boy’s example and took out a newspaper notice to sever ties.

Qin Bao: “Take a look for yourself in a bit.”

With that, he said to the guest, “Take your time playing, Grandpa Li,” before rushing off as briskly as he had arrived.

The guest remarked, “This child of yours has been strikingly good-looking since he was little, but his temper is truly fiery.”

“Spoiled,” the old master snorted. “He’ll infuriate me to death sooner or later.”

The game was wrapped up in haste, with the old master suffering a crushing defeat. His mind was consumed by hallucinations of a newspaper notice severing familial ties lying on his desk. Lacking any mood to play another round with his comrade, he leaned on his cane and headed for the study, his steps quickening with every stride.

His high blood pressure had truly flared up over these past few days. When Qin Bao refused to eat, he hadn’t had an appetite either, quietly having someone come to the house to administer nutritional IV drips for two days. He regretted it—deeply regretting why he hadn’t kept a closer eye on them during the banquet on the night of the coming-of-age ceremony, allowing them to run wild.

Trembling, he arrived before the desk. The surface was neat and clean, bearing a strikingly bright red booklet.

The old master’s hands began to shake violently. After opening it, his trembling fingers gradually steadied, yet he stood rooted to the spot for a long, long time.

The joyful news spread like wildfire through both the Qin and Feng families.

Two children getting married was a momentous event. Within an hour, Qin Bao received four or five phone calls—from his parents, his maternal grandparents, and one from Feng Chu.

“Holy shit, you guys move crazy fast!” Feng Chu was ecstatic. “Qin Bao, I can finally call you little cousin-in-law properly and legitimately!”

Feng Chu had been completely in the dark about what had happened recently. Unaware of the massive tempest a single social media post of his had stirred up, he was still foolishly shipping the couple and eagerly waiting to sit at the main table.

During his peak fury, Qin Bao had indeed blamed Feng Chu, ignoring every message the boy had sent afterward.

Yet as he cooled down and reason returned, he knew full well this wasn’t Feng Chu’s fault. It was his own misunderstanding. Even without Feng Chu acting as the bridge, in the reckless state of infatuation he had been in at the time, he would have inevitably sought someone else’s help anyway.

Little cousin-in-law.

Ugh.

Goosebumps broke out all over Qin Bao: “…Use my name. Don’t force me to block you.”

Feng Chu: “Hehe, just indulging my mouth. I’m just way too happy! Ever since I found out you and my brother would end up together, I’ve been secretly observing you. Once, when you came to wait for Tu Yisen after class, I even thought you liked him, and I felt depressed for ages.”

Qin Bao scoffed, “Who would like a giant idiot?”

Feng Chu laughed, “That’s true enough. Hey, has he contacted you recently? Should we tell him to apply for leave in advance?”

Qin Bao: “He’s doing perfectly fine in the military base. Why would he take leave?”

“To attend the wedding, of course,” Feng Chu replied. “Speaking of which, Qin Bao, when are you and my brother holding the ceremony? It’d be great if it’s during my summer break so I can come back and help you guys out…”

Qin Bao was utterly dumbfounded: “We have to hold a wedding ceremony too? Who said there’s going to be a ceremony?”

Hanging up the call, he dialed Feng Chengyu immediately, snapping viciously: “Feng Chengyu! Did you know we have to hold a wedding ceremony?”

Feng Chengyu was currently having dinner at his parents’ place.

Given Qin Bao’s typical processing speed, he had assumed it would take at least another two days before receiving this accusatory call.

“I didn’t know,” Feng Chengyu lied without blinking. “Who said that?”

Professor Feng and Professor Lin, who had accompanied him to pick out wedding rings just two nights ago: “…”

A wedding ceremony truly had to be held.

Marriage was far from the simple matter of registration that Qin Bao had envisioned. Both were the sole children of their respective lineages; to both families, this was an affair of the utmost importance.

Ms. Rong hadn’t set foot in the Qin family estate for years, yet that very evening, she drove over in a rush.

Mr. Qin was flipping through the lunar calendar with the old master. Looking through the glass, he caught sight of the red sports car pulling up outside the garage. A slender silhouette stepped out of the driver’s seat, habitually slinging her bag over her shoulder while shutting the car door. This familiar scene left Mr. Qin somewhat in a daze.

The old master asked several questions in a row, but Mr. Qin was completely spaced out until that figure passed through the front foyer and headed straight up to the second floor.

“What’s the use of just staring? You don’t even know how to chase after her?” The old master bristled his beard. “Utterly useless.”

Mr. Qin kept his eyes lowered submissively, offering no rebuttal.

Ms. Rong pushed the door open to enter. Qin Bao was sitting cross-legged on the balcony floor, typing away on his laptop keyboard, working on assignments assigned in class.

“Bao Bao.” Tossing her bag aside, she crouched beside her son, her eyes already reddening. “Have you truly thought this through?”

During the days Qin Bao had been locked up by the old master, she had made countless phone calls, pleading with the elders by all means to spare the child’s dream.

Helplessly, her voice carried little weight. Just like Mr. Qin, whatever she said held zero significance before the older generation on either side.

Approaching fifty, she had even been slapped with a grounding order by her own father.

Back then, the thing Qin Bao had told Ms. Rong most over the phone was: “I don’t need your help. I will fight for my own career.”

“Isn’t getting married a good thing?” Qin Bao closed the laptop, using his sleeve to dab away his mother’s tears. “I thought you would be very happy.”

Ms. Rong asked, “Is it because of work? Did your grandfather use this condition as an exchange with you?”

She had even pulled together all her personal funds, intending to send Qin Bao abroad to start over. Even if he could no longer model, she didn’t want her child doing something he despised, just as she had.

The card had been placed in Qin Bao’s hands, but he had refused it.

Running abroad was no different from staying in the country.

Qin Bao was headstrong, yet he understood that if he ran away, this family would shatter beyond repair.

As if an invisible hand were squeezing his heart, Qin Bao acted completely unbothered: “No. Grandpa still doesn’t agree to let me work right now. Marrying Feng Chengyu was entirely voluntary; you don’t need to carry any mental burden.”

Ms. Rong: “But weren’t you previously…”

Not wanting to dwell on this, Qin Bao stood up, pretending to put his computer away: “There were a few minor misunderstandings before, but they’ve all been cleared up now. Don’t make wild guesses.”

Ms. Rong: “Really?”

With his back to her, Qin Bao answered, “Really. Truer than pearls. I’ve thought it through. You were right—he and I truly need to adapt to each other. Now that the issue is settled, there’s nothing left to hesitate over.”

Ms. Rong was remarkably naive when it came to matters of the heart. Seeing Qin Bao’s complete turnaround in attitude, she simply assumed they had quarreled and reconciled; never in her wildest dreams would she suspect anyone would treat marriage as a joke.

Fortunately, she had watched Feng Chengyu grow up and knew he was reliable, which set her mind somewhat at ease: “The two of you pulled off such a massive event without making a sound—it’s still far too sudden… You’re still so young.”

Qin Bao paused, then put on an arrogant front: “Well, he’s old, so he’s the one in a rush. If he hadn’t kept begging me, I wouldn’t have agreed to marry right now.”

To soothe Ms. Rong, he even offered an example: “Besides, it’s nothing major. Didn’t you marry Dad when you were eighteen too?”

Back then, Mr. Qin had returned to his alma mater as an honored alumnus, where he met Ms. Rong, who had just entered university. It was love at first sight. During their passionate romance, Ms. Rong’s heat cycle arrived; they formed a permanent mark and decided to marry on the spot. From start to finish, it took less than four months—a textbook whirlwind marriage.

Ms. Rong had married at eighteen and given birth to Qin Bao around thirty; she still looked very youthful today.

Though her son’s marriage announcement was abrupt, it was a joyous occasion after all. Coupled with a 78% compatibility rate, they were practically a match made in heaven.

The clouds on Ms. Rong’s face cleared entirely.

Now, only one concern lingered in her mind: “Your work… has your grandfather relented?”

Turning around to lean against the desk, Qin Bao retained that confident, casual demeanor: “We’ll see. Better to handle the immediate matters first. As long as I’m willing, going back is just a matter of when. Could they really not want me?”

“Of course they’d want you; everyone wants my Bao’er,” Ms. Rong chided affectionately. She hadn’t completely recovered from the shock of this sudden development, yet as a mother, her thoughts were already pushed to the next phase: “There are so many details in a wedding. We need to set a date with Big Brother Feng and his wife so both families can discuss everything together.”

…

The wedding date was set for June.

Qin Bao told only Xu Tangzhou about the contractual arrangement, agreeing that as soon as Xu Tangzhou finished the college entrance examinations, he would come to the capital to serve as his best man. By late May, Qin Bao needed to do suit fittings, and Xu Tangzhou needed to be fitted for his best man attire as well. However, when Qin Bao sent the photos over, there was no reply for the longest time.

Assuming the other boy was in seclusion for exam cramming and needed to concentrate entirely on reviewing, Qin Bao didn’t pay it much mind, asking An Qingyan, whose build was fairly close, to help test the fit instead.

Once the exams concluded, however, Xu Tangzhou’s phone still wouldn’t connect.

Qin Bao felt an uneasy restlessness. Had Xu Tangzhou’s parents gotten into another fight? He remembered that Xu Tangzhou’s father had a nasty temper and was an alcoholic—could something have happened?

After school that afternoon, he ran into Shan Yiming right at the campus gates.

Shan Yiming belonged to the very last batch of people to learn of the marriage. Had he not spoken to Shan Yike on the phone, he might have found out even later. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Qin Bao climbed onto the back seat of his motorcycle as always, and the two headed to their old haunt—that barbecue restaurant.

The restaurant’s manager had changed. Seeing them, they weren’t assigned their favorite spot from before, but were instead led to a small private booth overlooking the river.

“Why didn’t you tell me about something as big as getting married?” Shan Yiming asked.

Pouring water, Qin Bao answered lazily, “I was planning to send you an invitation this weekend, but you came back on your own first.”

“You threw fists whenever it was brought up as a kid, and now it happens out of nowhere?” Shan Yiming hit the nail on the head. “Did your family force you?”

Qin Bao’s heart jolted, but he denied it: “No. As long as I’m unwilling, who could ever force me?”

Shan Yiming said, “You skipped the Spring/Summer Fashion Week, and I haven’t seen you active in anything lately.”

Shan Yiming knew him far too well.

Qin Bao suddenly got busy, meticulously flipping through the menu: “Because I’ve been swamped with wedding preparations.”

Smack. Shan Yiming snapped the menu shut for him, rare anger surfacing: “Qin Bao, do you even like that Feng Chengyu? You just agreed to marry him—how old are you?”

Yelled at like this, Qin Bao’s temper flared right up: “What’s your problem? How old am I? I’m an adult! I can make decisions for my own life!”

Shan Yiming: “Then answer me directly: do you, or do you not, like him? Do you like that Feng Chengyu?”

Qin Bao parted his lips, then snapped back, “What are you interrogating me for? I’m not a criminal and you’re not a cop! If you don’t want to congratulate me, fine, but what gives you the right to be this fierce? Are you sick in the head?”

The atmosphere between the two turned completely rigid.

The waiter who came in to collect the menu acted terrified, deeply afraid they might come to blows and smash the restaurant’s property.

Once the dishes arrived, the two buried their heads and ate in silence.

Qin Bao was absently scrolling through his phone when several freshly peeled shrimp suddenly landed in his bowl.

“Eat,” Shan Yiming said. “Can staring at your phone fill your stomach? Look how thin you are—are you trying to trigger hypoglycemia again?”

A single sentence broke the ice.

Qin Bao stopped sulking, holding his bowl as he said, “I’m not just staring at my phone. A close friend of mine suddenly fell out of contact; I’m a bit worried.”

Shan Yiming: “A model friend?”

“Mm. Named Xu Tangzhou. We’ve known each other for many years,” Qin Bao said. “We agreed he’d be my best man, but for some reason, he’s been completely unreachable for nearly half a month.”

Qin Bao explained the situation to Shan Yiming, who found it rather fishy as well.

There was less than a week left until the wedding. Based on the description, the person didn’t seem unreliable, so Shan Yiming said, “Go to Qinan and check it out. Do you know his home address?”

“I don’t. I’ve only ever been to his school,” Qin Bao hesitated. “Besides, we agreed to go over the final wedding rehearsal procedures tomorrow evening.”

Not just him and Feng Chengyu, but both families had arranged to gather at the Qin estate for dinner together that night.

Shan Yiming checked the time and flights on his phone, saying, “Head to the airport right now, and you should make it back in time tomorrow. It just depends on whether you want to go or not. I’ll go with you.”

“Let’s go,” Qin Bao decided swiftly.