Fortunately, Lu Nannan, who inherited her mother's brilliant intelligence, didn't make her youngest uncle wait too long.
At one year and eight months old, the little one could already call out the word Uncle.
Even though she still pronounced it as Fufu, Third Brother Lu, as her youngest uncle, was already very satisfied. Every time he came home from a competition, he made sure to hoist his adorable little niece onto his shoulders and patrol the house a few times, making the little one giggle uncontrollably.
Grandpa Xu's eighty-second birthday was celebrated in Rong City.
Over the past few years, seeing that their grandson and granddaughter had both settled down and had children in Rong City, and their maternal granddaughter Yuan Xiaoyue was also attending graduate school there, the elderly couple and their daughter Xu Xuemei had moved over as well.
This was not only so the large family could reunite, but also because Rong City had a warm autumn and winter climate with good air quality, which was beneficial for the elderly couple's health.
Grandpa and Grandma Xu now lived in Xu Yanxia's villa, which was very close to their grandson Xu Zhanpeng's house. They could also grow flowers, plant vegetables, and take walks in the yard.
In particular, Big Orange and Little Tabby had also moved over with them. The two chubby little cats were still in charge of guarding the house and yard. Truth be told, they adapted even better than the humans.
Recently, it happened to be the opening of Jiushen's third branch restaurant, so Xu Yanxia specially booked the entire venue to invite relatives and friends over to celebrate her grandfather's birthday.
It also happened to be Lu Jingyao's day off at home. Before the banquet started at noon, he drove his parents and his little niece over to attend the feast together.
After getting out of the car, Papa and Mama Lu happened to run into some acquaintances, so they stopped to exchange a few pleasantries. Little Nannan was fussing to find her mother, so after Lu Jingyao greeted the acquaintances as well, he carried his little niece on his shoulders and went into the restaurant first.
However, as he looked around, before he could find any sign of Xu Yanxia, he heard a happy voice from the side call out, Nannan!
It was a girl's voice, clear and bright. Lu Jingyao and the little niece on his shoulders looked over together and saw a young girl with curly hair, wearing a denim jacket and a floral dress, skipping towards them.
Auntie...
The smart Lu Nannan immediately recognized her and called out sweetly.
Good baby! It's been two weeks since I last saw you, Auntie missed you so much!!!
Yuan Xiaoyue skipped over to them and was just about to reach out and hug her little niece, but the little one was riding on the shoulders of her tall and sturdy uncle, completely out of her reach.
So she turned her gaze to Lu Jingyao and smiled politely, Nannan's uncle, could you please lower my little niece a bit?
However, Lu Jingyao deliberately raised an eyebrow and said, Nannan's auntie, couldn't you just grow a bit taller?
Hey!
Yuan Xiaoyue's almond eyes widened into circles. I am one meter sixty-eight, I am not short at all, okay! It is you who is too tall!!!
Lu Jingyao continued to raise his eyebrow. Then what should we do, are you going to snatch Nannan away?
Yuan Xiaoyue was speechless.
To be honest, she didn't quite understand. As people of the same age, she was already very mature, so why did this Third Young Master Lu seem like he was still in his edgy teenage phase?
Men were indeed childish.
But this couldn't stump her. Yuan Xiaoyue gave a short laugh and immediately said to the little niece on Lu Jingyao's shoulders, Nannan, Brother Chengcheng is inside. Shall we go find Brother Chengcheng to play?
Brother Chengcheng was the son of Lu Nannan's maternal uncle, Xu Zhanpeng. His full name was Xu Jiacheng. Although his birthday was only three months earlier than Lu Nannan's, he was a whole size bigger than his little cousin, making him a veritable little tough guy.
At an age before they had even started kindergarten, the two little ones were the best of playmates.
Sure enough, as soon as these words were spoken, Lu Nannan immediately struggled to get down from her youngest uncle's shoulders, her little mouth mumbling, Find brother, find brother...
Lu Jingyao was left speechless.
It was bad enough that his precious little niece forgot her uncle the moment she heard about her brother, but why did she even pronounce the word brother more clearly than uncle???
However, he had no choice but to carefully put his little niece down first.
The next second, his little niece was scooped into the arms of her wavy-haired aunt, who waved at him triumphantly. Bye-bye.
Then she walked towards the direction of the private dining rooms.
Hey...
Lu Jingyao hurriedly called out from behind. Yuan Xiaoyue turned her head and looked at him with her beautiful almond eyes. What?
Lu Jingyao said, ...Be careful, Nannan weighs over twenty pounds now.
Seeing how skinny she was, could she actually carry her?
You can rest assured!
Yuan Xiaoyue raised an eyebrow at him. This is my own biological niece!!! I won't drop her.
With that, she continued walking forward.
Lu Jingyao thought about it and decided to follow them. Who knew that right at this moment, someone beside him called out, Third Brother Lu!
Hmm?
He hurriedly turned his head and saw his good buddy Xiao Xu walking over.
Why are you here?
Lu Jingyao looked surprised, remembering that his sister-in-law had booked the entire place today.
But Xiao Xu said, Nonsense, I am here to celebrate Grandpa Xu's birthday! Grandpa Xu is our neighbor after all!
Oh, right.
Lu Jingyao only just remembered.
His sister-in-law's villa happened to be in the same neighborhood as Xiao Xu's house, and they weren't far apart. Furthermore, Xiao Xu's grandfather and Grandpa Xu often played chess and went fishing together, so they had a pretty good relationship.
Third Brother Lu then greeted his good brother on behalf of his sister-in-law, Then eat a lot later.
He was about to continue chasing after his little niece.
Who knew that Xiao Xu would stop him again, Wait a minute, I have something to ask you.
Lu Jingyao raised an eyebrow again. If you have something to say, just say it. Why are you dawdling?
But Xiao Xu coughed lightly, Do you have the WeChat of that beauty from just now?
Which beauty from just now?
Lu Jingyao was still completely confused.
Xiao Xu suddenly became a little shy and smiled, saying, Xiaoyue, of course.
You mean that Yuan Xiaoyue from just now???
Lu Jingyao widened his eyes.
That's right.
Xiao Xu smiled quite brightly. I heard my grandpa mention her. She is currently studying for her master's at South University, right?
No,
Lu Jingyao began to scrutinize him from head to toe. What do you mean? You have taken a fancy to her?
Xiao Xu nodded. Yeah, she is such a pretty beauty, isn't it perfectly normal for me to like her?
Not to mention, his smile was actually a bit bashful.
No way...
Lu Jingyao found it increasingly unbelievable and quickly said, You don't know how fierce that little girl is! Three years ago when my brother got married, she was the one blocking the door. She literally stood in a lunge blocking the doorway, she was so incredibly fierce.
Nonsense,
Xiao Xu said dismissively. How many years ago was that? How old was she back then? Isn't it normal for a kid?
Saying that, he urged him, If you have her contact info, hurry up and give it to me. I want to chat with her.
No,
Lu Jingyao couldn't help but frown. Are you serious? Don't you have a girlfriend?
What are you talking about,
Xiao Xu also frowned. We broke up last year, okay!
He urged him again, Cut the crap, if you have it, give it to me quickly.
...I don't have it.
In that instant, for a reason he couldn't even explain himself, Lu Jingyao subconsciously lied, saying, If you want it, go ask for it yourself.
With that, he walked forward.
...
As coincidence would have it, when the banquet began, they all ended up sitting at the same table.
Everyone at the table was young, and as relatives and friends of the Xu and Lu families, they had all more or less met each other before. They chatted while they ate, making the atmosphere as relaxed as a casual daily get-together.
Especially since the dishes on the table were truly a feast for both the eyes and the palate!
However, Lu Jingyao was somewhat distracted today.
From time to time, he would glance at Xiao Xu beside him, and then sneak a peek at Yuan Xiaoyue sitting across from them.
Needless to say, Xiao Xu clearly looked like a man falling in love. Even across the round table, he constantly chimed in on the girls' conversations, chatting with great enthusiasm.
As for Yuan Xiaoyue...
Forgive him for not quite understanding the minds of girls.
Seeing her laughing and talking normally with everyone, he couldn't guess what she thought of Xiao Xu, her secret admirer.
But...
To be honest, compared to a few years ago, she did look a bit more feminine now.
This outfit, this wavy hairstyle... it actually looked quite pretty on her.
...
