Chapter 288: Family Zhao
Jing Yichen’s face was beaming with happiness. “You are enough for me. Honestly, I myself have also forgotten when my birthday is.”
Jing Yichen hadn’t celebrated his birthday for years. He didn’t care much about birthdays because Jing Zhongxiu didn’t care much about these things, either. He had never celebrated birthdays for his son and didn’t make his training easier just because it was his birthday.
Jing Yichen had spent numerous birthdays on strict training. Jing Yiran, however, didn’t do any training and received well organised birthdays every year by Mo Lan. Therefore, Jing Yiran looked like a real master on the surface in Family Jing.
Hearing that he had forgotten his birthday date itself, Shangguan Ning felt deeply concerned for this powerful man.
No one forgot about their own birthdays, easily. Everyone treated it as a special day and birthday banquets were held each year for family members and friends to gather and enjoy together. Even she had birthday celebrations despite growing up under the shadows of a stepmother.
She took Jing Yichen’s large hands in her own and asked softly, “So you never had a birthday party? Dad never celebrated it for you?”
Jing Yichen was used to not having a birthday celebration and it wasn’t so important in his opinion. But he felt happy when Shangguan Ning showed concern.
“Hmm, I didn’t have any celebrations because dad thought that it was a waste of time and didn’t hold any special meaning. He never celebrated his either. But you will need to celebrate it with me, because that is a wife’s duty and the benefit a husband enjoys. I am looking forward to it.”
Shangguan Ning agreed happily. “Alright, I will celebrate your birthday every year. Now, what should we do about grandmother’s birthday present?”
“Don’t worry, I have asked Tiger to get it ready. We just need to pick it up.”
They arrived home and got dressed in formal dresses. Jing Yichen wore a white shirt and a pair of ink colored pants. But Shangguan Ning dressed up in a shining red dress.
Seeing her dressed in such an odd way, Jing Yichen got a bit startled. “Why this one?”
Shangguan Ning didn’t like shining colors, so she had kept this dress in the wardrobe and never worn it.
Shangguan Ning spun in front of the mirror and said smilingly, “It’s Grandmother’s birthday! Old people tend to like happy colors. It is a good day, so I decided to wear it. She will definitely like me.”
So she had put it on just to please the seniors.
Jing Yichen shook his head with a smile. “You don’t need to care about what others think of you, as long as I like you. That is enough. You are going to spend the rest of your life with me. Just deal with the others casually.”
Maybe it had been because he lost his mother when he was little and lacked care, Jing Yichen didn’t hold family love in high esteem. He was just a little warm towards Jing Zhongxiu whom he admired. But he still held grandma Mo Lan and grandpa Jing Tianyuan at a polite distance.
Others didn’t even register on his radar.
This was the best he could do by participating in celebrating his grandmother’s birthday. He had forgotten about his own birthday, but not the seniors’.
They got ready and went downstairs with the present after Mu Qing and Zhao Anan arrived. They drove to Family Zhao together.
Shangguan Ning had already witnessed the luxurious nobility of Family Jing, but she was shocked by the fancy appearance of Family Zhao. Unlike Family Jing which kept a low-profile, Family Zhao showed off their affluency to people in every possible way.
They drove for a long time around the garden after they entered the villa before pulling over in front of the gate.
Bodyguards in black uniform bowed to them on the broad path, intimidating and impressive.
No wonder Zhao Anan didn’t talk much about her family to her. Her family was simply too rich for general folk to feel fair.
Family Zhao’s garden-like villa was located in the most luxurious area of A City, occupying thousands of square meters on this precious land. It was an aristocratic family true to its name. However, Zhao Zhao and Zhao Qing were the only heirs of Family Zhao. There was no man in the family and Zhao Qing had passed away in her 20s. Zhao Zhao had experienced a bad marriage and that had made her decide to not remarry. She had only one daughter Zhao Anan and focused all her attention on running the family business.
Zhao Anan wasn’t exactly healthy, so Zhao Zhao didn’t plan to tie her down. They had endless money to spend and she didn’t need to force her daughter to work in order to make money. She would leave plenty of properties to her daughter so that she could spend as much as she wished and in whatever way. If Mu Qing was willing to marry her daughter, all properties of Family Zhao would be given to her as dowry.
As for the Family Zhao’s Jewelry business, Zhao Zhao had planned it long ago to give it to Jing Yichen, because half of the company belonged to Zhao Qing and that was the part which Jing Yichen should have. She planned to give her own share to Jing Yichen as well, because her nephew was definitely going to take care of Zhao Anan once she was gone. If something happened to Family Mu or Mu Qing changed his heart, Zhao Anan would still have a family to fall back upon. She couldn’t trust Mu Qing completely but she trusted her sister’s son. As long as he had food to eat, he would not allow Zhao Anan to starve.
Of course, Zhao Zhao was just preparing for the worst. She thought that as long as Mu Qing accepted her daughter, he would not change his mind very easily. Family Mu was a decent family and no scandals had ever occurred there. Mu Qing’s parents were not very famous, but they were a loving couple and had educated their son well.
Zhao Zhao was already waiting at the gate eagerly.
She had received Mu Qing’s call in the morning that they were coming to celebrate the birthday with the Old Lady.
Seeing the two cars drive in, Zhao Zhao walked down along the marble staircases and came to them.
As the cars pulled over, two cute couples walked out.
One was her tall and handsome nephew with his beautiful, gentle wife whilst the other was her outgoing daughter and sunny son-in-law-to-be.
They were indeed a feast for the eyes!
“Aunt!”
“Hi Aunt!”
“Greeting, Aunt Zhao!”
“I am here, Mom!”
They greeted her cheerfully and made Zhao Zhao smile brightly. She nodded at them and said, “Greetings! Welcome to Family Zhao!”