Old Master Mo was no longer young; it was his 73rd birthday.
On this day, all the relatives of the Mo Family gathered in the Mo residence courtyard.
The Mo residence courtyard was huge. It was a military compound from the last century. After the reform and opening up of the nation, this land was given to the Mo Family for their outstanding military achievements.
However, the Mo Family was extensive. Even if they were to split the property, there weren’t that many rooms.
Mu Xichen’s mother had been given a house in the early days. It wasn’t a big house, it had only one living room and one bedroom.
This was where Mu Xichen had lived alone in his younger days. It was in close proximity to the main Mo Family residence.
The drill grounds of the compound was a two-minute walk away.
Arriving into the compound, Li Beinian and Mu Xichen could clearly feel the distinctive atmosphere of the place and naturally behaved respectfully.
This was the dwelling of military men!
Serious and disciplined!
Li Beinian brought a large suitcase and they arrived in her Range Rover.
Gu Mingye drove them and it was already evening as they pulled up at their destination.
Winter in Guang City was especially cold and wet.
Unlike the dry and cold conditions in the north, the icy air in Guang City was the sort that cut right to the bones.
Hence, Li Beinian wore a thick down jacket over her sweater. Apart from that, she also wore a pair of down-lined pants to keep warm.
Mu Xichen, on the other hand, was wearing a long cashmere jacket. It wasn’t thick, but it accentuated his tall figure.
At this time, someone in a thin military green vest was seen running on the field.
Then, more figures appeared. They chased each other in groups of two or three, half playing and half exercising. They wore broad smiles on their faces.
One of them was particularly slender and tall, with a silhouette more graceful than the rest.
Obviously, it was a girl.
They stopped when they saw Mu Xichen.
There was a look of unmistakable surprise on the girl’s face. She ran towards the car and shouted, “Brother Xichen! Brother Mingye!”
Mu Xichen had already gotten out of the car with Li Beinian following behind.
She noted that this girl in military vest had short hair that reached just below her ears. There was something boyishly dashing about her, and she looked a little more mature than Mo Shengyun. With deep-set features, she was rather androgynous.
Her eyes lit up when she saw Li Beinian. “Sister-in-law!”
She spoke with confidence and decisiveness as she addressed Li Beinian chirpily, “Hello! I’m Brother Xichen’s cousin. My name is Mo Shengge.”
She extended her hand towards Li Beinian with a grin.
Li Beinian shook her hand. “Hello, I’m Li Beinian.”
“Yes, yes!” Mo Shengge sized Li Beinian up and said bluntly, “You’re even more beautiful in-person than on television. I rarely watch television, but I did when I heard that you were starring in the Legend Of The Dragon Pearl. Damn, the female lead’s acting is a little overboard. I like your acting much better, domineering and oh so cool!”
Li Beinian smiled. “Thank you.”
“Are you done?” Mu Xichen asked as he glanced at Mo Shengge’s outfit. He remarked disapprovingly, “A girl should behave like a girl.”
Two other people came running up at this point. One of them had a very youthful face compared to the other two, he looked fair and tender. He glanced at Li Beinian, then said to Mu Xichen, “Isn’t that so? I’ve said it many times too. She’s so pretty with long hair, but it’s just getting shorter all the time!”
Mu Xichen pointed to this youthful boy and introduced him to Li Beinian. “This is Mo Shengran, my younger cousin. This is Mo Shengxiao, my elder brother.”
“How do you do.” Li Beinian greeted them with a graceful smile. “I’ve heard so much about you.”
“Hehe.” Mo Shengran looked at Li Beinian and scratched his face. “Sister-in-law is pretty. How on earth did she fall for stuffy Brother Xichen? Tsk tsk.”
“Shh.” Mo Shengge pulled Mo Shengran back. “Don’t say that, life is hard enough without having you burst the bubble!”
Mu Xichen glanced at him. “Are you itching for a beating?”
Mo Shengran smiled cheekily as Mo Shengxiao tried to smooth things over. “Enough already. Go put your things away. It’s almost time for dinner.”
“Ok.” Mu Xichen mumbled a response and took Li Beinian’s hand as he headed towards the trunk.
She lifted the suitcase and couldn’t help but turn around to look as she set it down.
Limbering up, Gu Mingye said to Mo Shengran, “You’ve grown up, haven’t you? Let’s have a spar?”
Mo Shengran replied eagerly, “Come on then!”
The couple shared a suitcase, and in it there were only clothes and toiletries.
After putting their belongings away, Mu Xichen took Li Beinian to the main courtyard.
There were many members in the Mo Family. Old Master Mo was not someone who liked to trouble a whole lot of people for his birthday celebration, hence only members of the Mo Family came.
However, the extended Mo family was also substantial in itself, and people now filled the entire courtyard.
Many came forward, in accordance to their seniority in the family, to wish him well.
Old Master Mo had always been a person who kept an expressionless face. However, he could not help but smile at the sight of all his grandchildren.
When Mu Xichen’s turn came, the man naturally had Li Beinian by his side as he gave his birthday wishes.
As the first grandchild of the family to have gotten married, Mu Xichen looked at his wife as though it was the most natural thing in the world, and as though he didn’t notice all these pairs of eyes that were on them.
On the contrary, it was Li Beinian who was a little nervous.
She was used to standing on stage with the full glare of limelight on her, and even then, she was never overly concerned. She’d smile and speak as and when she should. However, right now, because she was in the presence of her in-laws, her attitude was completely different.
Mu Xichen placed the gift on the table and said, “Grandpa, happy birthday.”
Mu Xichen had never been one to give fancy speeches. That was that, and everyone looked as though they had expected it.
Upon hearing this, Li Beinian blushed and said, “Grandpa, I wish you a full and blessed life. May you live as long as the mountains and the seas.”
The toast was nothing too creative. Li Beinian nervously handed the gift over and prepared to walk away.
Mu Xichen held her back by her hand and said, “That’s it?”
Li Beinian was a little nervous to begin with. After being held back this way, she was stunned and said, “What’s wrong…”
Did she miss something?
Probably… not.
It was rather refreshing for Mu Xichen to observe her being this nervous. He patted her arm as a comforting gesture and said, “Meet the others.”
Li Beinian felt distressed in an inexplicable way, but she was immediately reminded that many of them had not met her.
Sure enough, Mu Xichen put his arm around her in a big sweeping gesture and said, “This is my wife, Li Beinian. We’re holding our wedding event on the eighth day of February. I hope all of you can come.”
An old woman in her 60s or 70s looked enlightened at once and asked, “So is she your girlfriend now?”
In response to this, Mo Shengge said, “Grandaunt, Brother Xichen and Sister-in-law have already registered their marriage. They’re already husband and wife. It’s just that they haven’t held their traditional wedding ceremony yet.”
Grandaunt squinted, she was also hard of hearing, hence, Mo Shengge’s spoke particularly loudly.
The elderly lady nodded and sighed. “I see. It’s pretty good. Qingshen’s son is getting married now… how time flies.”
She was referring to Mo Qingshen, Mu Xichen’s mother.