Once the other party was settled, seeing that the auspicious hour had arrived, their engagement ceremony officially began.
In late November, although people in Rong City had already put on long sleeves, the daytime temperature remained pleasant.
Relatives from both families took their seats on the lawn in the courtyard. Lu Jingming, wearing a dark suit, led Xu Yanxia, who was dressed in a traditional Chinese cheongsam, into the venue.
The couple first bowed to the relatives and friends of both sides to express their gratitude. Immediately after, Uncle Shen, acting as the officiant, stepped onto the stage to read the marriage certificate for the two of them.
Next, they exchanged their engagement tokens.
Lu Jingming had prepared a mutton-fat white jade bracelet made of Hetian jade.
Xu Yanxia had prepared a hand-woven safety knot, which was also inlaid with a Tianshan jade ring.
He slipped the bracelet onto her wrist.
She tied the safety knot to the inner pocket of his suit, right against his chest.
After completing this step, the two smiled at each other, only to hear a wave of screams from the relatives and friends' seats—
"Wow, what a romantic scene!!!"
"So gorgeous! I'm going to faint from happiness!!!"
Ye Shu, the ultimate shipper of the couple, along with Yuan Xiaoyue, held up their phones and took several photos of them in quick succession.
Next came the final segment of the engagement ceremony.
The MC invited Xu Yanxia's grandparents and aunt, along with Grandpa Shen and Chairman Lu and his wife, to the stage. The couple served tea to each of the elders one by one and changed the way they addressed them. The elders also handed out their respective red envelopes as a sign of blessing.
Following that, the young couple drank the cross-cupped wine.
The engagement ceremony was officially completed.
Applause erupted from the friends and family seats. Lu Jingxi, the second son of the Lu family who had specially rushed back to attend their engagement ceremony, led his younger brother Lu Jingyao in cheering, "Kiss! Kiss!"
Immediately after, sister-in-law Luo Jiajia, cousin Yuan Xiaoyue, Ye Shu, and Xiaozhen also joined in the teasing, "Kiss! Kiss!"
Lu Jingming nodded and said, "Alright, I've been wanting to kiss her for a while now."
Then, he wrapped his arm around Xu Yanxia's waist, lowered his head, and planted a kiss on her lips.
"Ahhh, so sweet!!!"
"My brother is so manly!!!"
The relatives and friends below the stage screamed in excitement.
Even the elders on stage couldn't help but laugh along.
...
After the relatives and friends bustled about taking group photos, it was time for the banquet.
Today's banquet was also arranged in the courtyard of the villa. Mrs. Lu had specially brought in chefs from several private clubs to cook on-site.
Considering the tastes of the relatives and friends, the dishes mainly featured northern Shandong cuisine and local Cantonese cuisine.
Because there was still the toast to be made, Xu Yanxia took the opportunity while everyone was eating to return to her room to change into her toasting dress.
Ye Shu helped her change into the dress, and Xiaozhen quickly helped her redo her hairstyle.
Just as she was touching up her makeup, a voice suddenly sounded at the door, "Are you almost done? Is it convenient for me to come in?"
Obviously, it was Lu Jingming.
"We'll be done in a second, President Lu!"
Ye Shu raised an eyebrow at Xu Yanxia and immediately got up to open the door for him.
Following that, the tall, handsome President Lu in his suit appeared in their line of sight.
Xiaozhen quickly finished applying the last bit of lipstick on Xu Yanxia, then stood up and excused herself along with Ye Shu, saying, "We'll take our leave first, take your time."
Then they went out.
Xu Yanxia stood up from the vanity mirror and saw Lu Jingming walk up to her and reach out to hug her.
"Baby, you look so beautiful today."
He sighed in admiration, "Every outfit looks amazing on you."
Xu Yanxia also smiled and told him, "I haven't even worn the most expensive one yet!"
"But I can't wait any longer."
Saying that, he lowered his head to kiss her.
Xu Yanxia hurriedly dodged and said, "I just touched up my makeup. We still have to go toast in a bit!"
Given the experience of their last two kisses, she was a bit afraid to let him touch her.
Moreover, her makeup had indeed just been touched up, and it would be troublesome if it got ruined.
"Alright."
Lu Jingming agreed verbally but didn't let go of her. He lowered his head and kissed her neck and ears.
Xu Yanxia shrank her neck from the ticklish feeling and laughed, "Stop messing around."
He countered, "I'm not messing around. I'm being very serious, okay?"
"It's not easy finally getting to hold you."
True enough. Because they had to prepare for the engagement, after landing in Rong City from Europe yesterday, he had only hurriedly dropped off some souvenirs for her and her grandparents before returning home. It wasn't until now that they could be alone together.
As he spoke, he told her, "Thank you, baby. I really love the safety knot."
Xu Yanxia also smiled and said, "I really love the bracelet too."
She raised her hand to touch his cheek, saying with a hint of heartache, "You've been on business trips back-to-back these past few days, running from domestic to overseas and back again. You've worked hard."
He smiled and said, "Work isn't hard, but missing you is."
He sighed earnestly, "I really wish right now was our wedding."
"Wouldn't that be letting you off too easy?" Xu Yanxia joked with him.
He hummed in agreement, nodding, "Indeed, that would be letting me off too easy. After all, where else could I find such a wonderful wife?"
Saying that, he lowered his head and started kissing her again.
He kissed from the tip of her ear to her neck, then from her neck to her cheek, and finally captured her lips.
However, before the kiss could deepen, his younger brother Lu Jingyao's voice suddenly came from outside, "Bro, you and sister-in-law should go do the toasts now!"
"..."
Only then did Lu Jingming reluctantly let her go, replying to the third Lu brother outside, "Coming."
Xu Yanxia smiled and wiped the lipstick mark from his lips, then touched up her own lipstick in the mirror before blushing and heading out with him to toast the guests.
...
After the bustling luncheon ended, as evening fell, the two ushered in their engagement dinner banquet.
Mrs. Lu had arranged the venue for this dinner at another of the Lu family's private clubs.
Unlike the East Lake Club where the family dinner was held last time, this club was located on the west coast of Rong City.
The entire building was built facing the sea, featuring a modern, understated luxury style. The massive crystal chandelier in the main hall cast a gentle golden glow across the floor, and outside the high floor-to-ceiling windows was an unobstructed frontline ocean view.
It exuded a strong sense of modern aesthetics, which perfectly complemented Xu Yanxia's mermaid evening gown tonight.
Most of the guests today were friends of the Lu family from the business world. Thanks to the previous family dinner at East Lake and their recent connections through Jiushan, Xu Yanxia already knew most of the female guests present.
Seeing her now, they all praised her beauty.
It should be known that the news of Mrs. He attending their engagement ceremony as part of the bride's family at noon had already spread. As a result, even those who had previously looked down on her as the eldest daughter-in-law of the Lu family due to her background were now eagerly rushing to curry favor with her.
Xu Yanxia stood beside Lu Jingming, politely thanking the guests who came forward to congratulate them one by one.
After a while, taking advantage of a moment when no one was around, her future mother-in-law, Ms. Shen, walked over and said to her with a look of surprise, "Is this the dress I ordered for you last time? I didn't realize it would look this stunning!!!"
Xu Yanxia let out a sound of surprise, looking at her mother-in-law in confusion. "Didn't you order this as an extra for me this time?"
To her surprise, Ms. Shen looked equally bewildered. "I didn't order anything extra for you. Didn't you say last week that you wanted to wear the dress I ordered for you last time?"
"But I remember the one from last time was lace?"
What?
Xu Yanxia was completely stunned. "You didn't order it for me? Could there really have been a mistake?"
...The problem was, the name, phone number, and measurements were all hers.
While she was still baffled, Wen Jiajun walked over and asked Lu Jingming, "Why hasn't Dr. Feng arrived yet? Did something come up to change his schedule?"
"No," Lu Jingming replied. "I just received a message from him. He has to pick up his mother so they can come together, and he said they would be a little late."
What?
This surprised Xu Yanxia even more. "Is Mrs. Meyer coming too?"
Lu Jingming nodded. "Feng Yiheng said his mother happened to be returning to the country to visit relatives, so they figured they would drop by together."
"That is incredible!" Wen Jiajun immediately exclaimed from the side. "You have a lot of pull, Boss! She is a prominent figure in the Western food and beverage industry. If she makes an appearance at your engagement party, won't it make the front page of the financial news tomorrow?"
Indeed.
Xu Yanxia was also quite surprised.
Why would such a usually low-profile lady suddenly come to attend the engagement party of two strangers?
Could the laboratory collaboration really mean that much to her?
Just as she was pondering this, the club manager hurried over to them and said, "Mr. Lu, Miss Xu, Dr. Feng and Mrs. Meyer have arrived."
"Understood."
Lu Jingming nodded and immediately took her hand, leading her to the entrance to greet them.
