chapter 60 – made a proposal

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“What did my dad say to you?”

 

When Zhuang Yan came out of the room with his hands in his pockets, Xie Ning couldn’t help but ask this question.

 

Zhuang Yan showed him an innocent expression and slowly said, “He didn’t say much.”

 

Xie Ning didn’t really believe him.
“Acting so mysterious, and wouldn’t even let me listen in.”

 

Zhuang Yan suddenly reached his hand out and rubbed his hair.

 

There was a sense of doting in this movement, and before Xie Ning could react, he was pulled over and kissed.

 

Xie Ning looked around and, seeing how there was nobody nearby, let out a sigh of relief.
“Why’d you suddenly move like that?”

 

Zhuang Yan squinted, still thinking about the conversation he had with Xie Jing.

 

“From now on, my parents will be your parents.” He said, while holding Xie Ning’s hand.
“My home is your home.”

 

His hand had been in his pocket for too long and it was very warm.
His palm was wide, and gently cupped Xie Ning’s entire hand.

 

Xie Ning paused for a moment, his head tilted, and asked again, “What did my dad say?”

 

Zhuang Yan joked, “Your dad gave me a check to make me leave you.”

 

Xie Ning suddenly didn’t know if he should laugh or cry.
“You’re…who do you think you’re joking around with?”

 

“I’ll stop teasing you.” Zhuang Yan reached into his pockets and took out the red envelope.
“Your dad has already entrusted you to me, so from now on, you’re part of my Zhuang family.”

 

Xie Ning looked at him dazedly.
Zhuang Yan laughed at his expression, and couldn’t help but squeeze his cheeks.

 

Song QingQing had already returned to the living room for a while now, and looked at them while frowning.

 

“How is it?” Zhuang Yan asked.

 

Song QingQing shook her head.
“I tried to persuade her with a few sentences, but there wasn’t really an effect.
Aunt Xia…is very stubborn.”

 

Xie Ning wasn’t surprised at all, and even thought that that was normal.

 

His expression was a little cold.
“She’s always been like this.
She can’t be persuaded.”

 

Song QingQing hesitated and said, “I feel like she’s too paranoid about this subject.”

 

Xie Ning didn’t say anything.

 

He was already used to Xia Wan’s attitude, and he’d already expected that she would make a scene once he introduced Zhuang Yan to her, so he made mental preparations.

 

Right now, he felt light.

 

Song QingQing brought a gift when she came, and she didn’t have the opportunity to hand it to him later, but now she did.

 

It was a work she painted herself, in a similar style to the bird last time.
The colors and tones of the bottom half of the painting was on the darker end, but towards the top, it got brighter and brighter, as if someone was standing in the abyss but saw light.

 

Song QingQing smiled and said, “Happy birthday.”

 

“Thank you.” Xie Ning liked this painting very much.

 

“I really like to paint pieces in this style as well,” Song QingQing said while smiling gently.
“No matter how dark and painful the past was, the future is always full of hope.”

 

The three of them didn’t talk for much longer, and visitors started to trickle in.

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It was close to dinnertime, so people started to arrive.

 

Counting carefully, there really weren’t that many people.
There were only a couple people who had a good relationship with Xie Ning; they could be counted on one hand.

 

Zhuang Yan suddenly realized why he didn’t know that Xie Ning was Elder Xie’s grandson, even though their two families were still in contact.

 

He remembered that in the past, he’d participated in Xie An’s birthday celebration before, and it didn’t take place in the large compound.

 

At that time, the Xie family turned the birthday party into a social banquet with much fanfare.
People in their business circle and any business person with some fame were all invited.

 

The social banquet turned into a large drinking party, with people shoving cups at each other and making connections at the same time, making sure that everyone remembered Xie An.

 

But today, at Xie Ning’s birthday party, although there weren’t many people invited, they were all close friends or family, and even the venue was the large compound.

 

Elder Xie was always very clear about the positions of his two grandsons.

 

One is the heir that is pushed to stand in front of everyone’s gaze.

 

One is the little grandson that is hidden in his heart, guarded, and spoiled.

 

Yan Xi came just on time; he left before he was supposed to get off work, but since the large compound was a little far from his company, it was almost time for dinner when he arrived.

 

“You look good today.” He smiled and gave Xie Ning a hug.

 

Zhuang Yan’s face darkened, and he separated them while saying, “I chose it for him.”

 

Yan Xi raised his eyebrows and looked at him.
“Alright, when it comes to taste, there’s nothing for me to complain about.”

 

Zhuang Yan sneered at him a little, not giving him any face.

 

It was slowly getting dark, and when the lights in the large compound started to turn on, the drinks and food in the hall were almost ready.
There were a couple of hired hands to help out.

 

Elder Xie had changed into formal dress attire before coming downstairs, showing how much importance and respect he was showing to this event.

 

Xia Wan also came into the hall calmly.
Although she cried in the afternoon, after she washed her face and touched up her makeup, no one would be able to tell if they didn’t look closely.

 

Elder Xie looked around and asked, “A’Zun and the others haven’t come yet?”

 

Uncle Zhong said, “They said they were delayed by some company matters.
They’re on their way already, and will probably be here any minute.”

 

Elder Xie glanced at the door and shook his head.
“In the end, they still don’t respect this event enough.”

 

Uncle Zhong didn’t dare to continue the conversation, and helped Elder Xie into the hall.

 

As the main character of tonight, Xie Ning had to greet everyone.
Aside from his friends, there were some closer relatives of the Xie family, and though there was nothing they could really talk about, they insisted on finding a topic to discuss.
Xie Ning took care of the guests for a long time before he could leave.

 

Zhuang Yan couldn’t help but find it funny.
“Not used to it?”

 

“Mhm.” Xie Ning made a sound in response, “I’m really not used to it.”

 

Zhuang Yan then said, “Then you’d better get used to it quickly.”

 

Xie Ning: “?”

 

Zhuang Yan smiled and looked at him.
“When we get married in the future, the people you have to receive will be a lot more than this.”

 

Xie Ning: “…”

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When they still weren’t together, Zhuang Yan had already talked about marriage, and now, it was like they were about to get married right away.

 

But no matter how many times he heard it, Xie Ning couldn’t help but feel his face get hot.
“…What are you talking about?”

 

Zhuang Yan innocently spread his hands.
“There’s no other way.
I have too many relatives, so the scale of the wedding definitely won’t be small.”

 

Xie Ning’s face completely blushed, and he didn’t have the energy to say anything.

 

Zhuang Yan, seeing how he got shy, didn’t continue to joke around with him.
He followed behind Xie Ning, calm and composed, while enjoying his red ear tips.

 

Elder Xie watched them from afar and said, deeply moved, “They match quite well.”

 

Uncle Zhong responded, “The Zhuang family’s child is a good person and can take good care of the young master.”

 

“A person like me, with one foot in the grave already, only hopes that NingNing can walk out of the hole he’s in and live more comfortably,” Elder Xie said.

 

Uncle Zhong said, “The young master has changed a lot.
He smiled and laughed a lot more today than before.”

 

Elder Xie nodded.
“That’s right.”

 

When Xie Zun’s family arrived, the dinner party officially began.

 

Elder Xie stood up first and said some words to set the scene.
Perhaps because he was there, the night passed peacefully, much better than the ups and downs of the afternoon.

 

Xie Ning received a bunch of birthday gifts, and drank some alcohol.

 

But Zhuang Yan was afraid that he’d get too drunk and didn’t let him drink too much.
If someone came from behind to toast Xie Ning, they’d find themselves blocked by Zhuang Yan.

 

This was something that Yan Xi used to do in the past, so when the person doing the blocking was suddenly swapped out, others frantically tried to guess what the relationship between he and Xie Ning was.

 

They seemed quite close, and Elder Xie’s attitude towards him was also very polite.

 

Bystanders were hesitant and didn’t dare to ask directly.
But Xie An, as Xie Ning’s older cousin, didn’t hesitate.

 

Holding a glass of alcohol in his hand, he walked over and hooked his arm over Xie Ning’s shoulders, asking, “Is this your new boyfriend?”

 

Xie Ning furrowed his brows and glanced at him, but didn’t refute it.
“…Mmn.”

 

Xie An smiled.
“Your taste this time is better than the last.”

 

He also didn’t really like Xu Qing.
Although he and Zhuang Yan’s interactions weren’t deep, he did know Qi Rui.

 

They both dealt with malls and had met several times before.

 

Xie Ning didn’t answer the question and quietly asked, “Do you have a girlfriend yet?”

 

“?”

 

Xie An asked, “Why are you asking me this too?”

 

Xie Ning calmly said, “I’m not single anymore, so I’m afraid the relatives will put all their energy for urging marriage onto you instead.”

 

Xie An: “…”

 

Xie Ning then said, “I can see that Aunt is coming over, most likely looking for you.”

 

Xie An quickly said, “…I’ll be leaving first.”

 

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After saying this, he slipped away with his drink.

 

When the dinner was over and most people left, Xie Ning washed his face and sat in the living room with Zhuang Yan to organize the birthday gifts he received.

 

Xie Ning looked at Zhuang Yan, who insisted on staying close to him.
“Zhuang Yan, don’t you also live in the large compound? Why don’t you go back?”

 

Zhuang Yan turned his head and kissed him.
“I want to stay at my boyfriend’s place.
Is that not okay?”

 

In the end, Xie Ning wasn’t able to out-stubborn him.
“…Then I’ll ask Uncle Zhong to clean out a room for you.”

 

“There’s no need to go to such trouble.” Zhuang Yan shamelessly said, “I can stay in the same room as you.”

 

“…”

 

Xie Ning didn’t want to pay any attention to him, and turned around to open the presents.

 

Zhuang Yan said, “Let me help you.”

 

Xie Ning placed the presents in rows.
Most people gave him things that looked impressive but were useless; Xie Ning placed these to the side for Uncle Zhong to put into storage later.

 

Yan Xi gave him a mobile phone, as he did every year.
It was the newest model, black, and actually looked quite cool.

 

Zhuang Yan felt like the exterior was too dark and didn’t fit with Xie Ning’s style.

 

“You’d fit white better,” he said.
“Cool and cold, a bit more elegant, and it’d match your skin tone more as well.”

 

Xie Ning glanced at him and didn’t say anything, but immediately started to use this new phone.

 

Finally, he got to the gifts that Zhuang Yan gave him.
Xie Ning was silent for a few seconds.

 

There were too many.

 

First, Zhuang Yan’s grandfather gave him an out-of-print famous painting, so expensive that it made his hair rise.

 

The painter was a famous artist during the Ming dynasty; Xie Ning liked it so much that he planned to keep it in his collection.

 

Zhuang Yan’s father gave him a pair of collection walnuts, with a water dragon grain and lion’s head {figurative, not literal}, and they were four-sided and different in nature.

 

Maybe because they knew that Xie Ning learned art, the father-son duo both sent artistic presents.

 

Madam Qiao’s present was packed in a small gift box with very modern and exquisite packaging.
Xie Ning opened it and saw a pair of couple watches.

 

The logo on the watches was from an internationally celebrated luxury brand, and this couple watch model was quite famous when it was first released.

 

The designer said at the time that he specifically designed these watches for same-sex couples, and it was separated into male and female models.

 

Zhuang Yan commented, “This pair of watches is really nice.
Try it on and let’s take a look.”

 

He skillfully took the watch out of the box and put it on Xie Ning’s left wrist, then took off his own watch and switched it for the new one.

 

Xie Ning glanced at the watches on their wrists, and suddenly asked, “Didn’t Aunt Qiao say that…the gifts would arrive a few days later?”

 

Zhuang Yan made a sound in affirmation and responded, “That’s right, the gifts they bought are still on the way.
These are the ones I bought.”

 

Xie Ning: “…What did you go to so much trouble for?”

 

Zhuang Yan said, “I was afraid that your family would misunderstand and say that my family wasn’t giving you enough respect if my parents didn’t have any sort of gifts for you on your birthday.”

 

Xie Ning asked, “So these are ones that you picked out?”

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Zhuang Yan: “Yes.”

 

Xie Ning didn’t know what to say, and after a while, said, “This is…too expensive.”

 

Zhuang Yan smiled, and leaned over to give him a kiss.
“It’s not much.
Compared to those who give houses and cars, this is child’s play.”

 

Xie Ning didn’t avoid him this time, and let him kiss him on the lips.

 

Zhuang Yan said, “There are still more gifts.
You haven’t opened mine.”

 

Xie Ning said, “Aren’t these all from you anyways?”

 

Zhuang Yan curled the corner of his lip.
“Only this one is gifted in my name.”

 

Zhuang Yan’s gift was in a small red box, around the same size as the one Madam Qiao gave.

 

Xie Ning thought it would be something like cufflinks, a wallet, or the like.
When he opened it, he stopped breathing.

 

It’s a ring.

 

Silence surrounded them for a few seconds.

 

His heartbeat stopped–then returned, and Xie Ning turned his head, sinking into Zhuang Yan’s dark, deep eyes.

 

When their eyes met, Xie Ning could hear his own heart beating and beating, and he saw the corners of Zhuang Yan’s lips rise into a smile.

 

Xie Ning reacted only after a long while, and abruptly closed the lid.
“This is…”

 

“It’s a ring,” Zhuang Yan said.

 

His voice was obviously very close, and was right next to Xie Ning’s ears, but it seemed like it was coming from far away and very hollow.

 

Zhuang Yan affectionately said, “I originally wanted to propose to you when there were a lot of people around, but I was afraid that someone would interfere and ruin your mood on your birthday.”

 

“Although there aren’t a lot of people around…today still isn’t over.”

 

Zhuang Yan came closer, lowered his head, and kissed his forehead, saying, “NingNing, happy birthday.”

 

“And let’s get married, NingNing.”

 

The night was dark outside, but it was brightly lit inside.

 

The lights were so bright that Xie Ning could see Zhuang Yan’s shining, bright eyes.

 

He could see all the emotions that flashed by in those eyes.

 

They were filled with all the stars in the sky, as if the sky had gathered all his love in his eyes, and the overflowing affection that poured out was so hot that it could burn.

 

It was reminiscent of the time they first met.
Zhuang Yan had covered his face with a scarf and only showed his eyes; the first moment he saw Xie Ning, his eyes flashed with stars.

 

Zhuang Yan lowered his head again to kiss his lips.

 

Xie Ning didn’t move or close his eyes.

 

He was only looking at Zhuang Yan, as if his soul had left his body.

 

His heart seemed to be caught by that one, short sentence.

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