Gently bite the jasmine

Around five o'clock, the Tan family entered the villa.

Duan Yiheng personally received him, exchanged pleasantries, and led the Tan family patriarch into the house.

Duan Yiheng didn't disturb the two elderly people as they were talking, and naturally, he didn't see the admiring look in Old Master Tan's eyes.

Tan Qi sat down in the garden and saw Duan Yiheng waving at him.

Just as Duan Yiheng was about to walk over, several more cars arrived.

Tan Qi turned around and said, "The Zhou family has arrived?"

Duan Yiheng suppressed his doubts and looked over.

A dignified and elegant couple stepped out of the car, followed closely by Zhou Zheng, a tall and refined man in a dark gray suit.

He is Zhou Li's second brother.

Duan Yiheng frowned. Why was he here?

Chen Baiwei and Duan Zheng greeted them with smiles, while Duan Mingxuan stood by with a cold face, seemingly about to explode.

“Your younger brother is really something else,” Tan Qi said sarcastically. “He said he didn’t like Lin Xi, but now that her blind date has come over, he doesn’t want to anymore.”

"What did you say?" Duan Yiheng wondered if he had misheard.

"What the hell?" Tan Qi was utterly speechless. "What kind of life are you living in this house? Don't you know your stepmother is arranging marriages for Lin Xi?"

Duan Yiheng kept a cold expression on his face as he watched the lively conversation taking place not far away.

Now that we've come to your door, Grandpa must know.

No wonder Duan Mingxuan was still giving guests a hard time when they arrived.

Just then, the heavens seemed to cooperate perfectly, showering down raindrops.

Without any instructions, Sister Mei immediately moved the guests to the inner hall.

We already had a Plan B in place to deal with unforeseen circumstances.

The weather forecast had been prepared in advance, and the inner hall had made ample preparations just in case.

The rain wasn't heavy; it fell on Duan Yiheng's black velvet suit like thin morning dew, transparent and fragile.

Lin Xi descended the stairs gracefully, just in time to run into them hurrying into the house.

She looked up and saw Duan Yiheng and Tan Qi at the entrance of the hall.

She nodded slightly to Tan Qi as a greeting.

Yu Guang tried his best to restrain himself and not look at Duan Yiheng.

Tan Qi turned to look at Duan Yiheng: "You two are the ones dressed like the main characters of a blind date."

Duan Yiheng, without batting an eye, said, "It was all prepared by Sister Mei."

Tan Qi said "Oh": "They're dressed as siblings."

Duan Yiheng: "..."

Lin Xi went down the stairs, and Chen Baiwei smiled and led her over, introducing her to Zhou Zheng.

Zhou Zheng had an extraordinary demeanor, and his eyes were particularly beautiful, like the clear lake water under the spring moon.

Upon learning that the other party taught at a university, Lin Xi was taken aback; he had assumed that the other party was also a cunning and manipulative figure in the business world.

Little did I know that he was truly noble and refined.

She wasn't familiar with the Zhou family; she had only seen Zhou Li at Duan Yiheng's manor before.

"Don't stand, everyone, please take a seat." Chen Baiwei smiled, but secretly tugged at Duan Mingxuan.

The two elderly people were naturally arranged together. Duan Yiheng and Tan Qi were opposite Zhou Zheng and Lin Xi, while Duan Mingxuan was on the other side of Lin Xi.

Chen Baiwei and Duan Zheng naturally accompanied Zhou Zheng's parents.

"I heard that the Tan family and the Zhou family are related by marriage," Chen Baiwei said first. "I had afternoon tea with Madam Tan and Madam Zhou a few days ago, so I decided to arrange to meet them today. Thank you all for giving me this opportunity."

Mrs. Zhou then exchanged a few polite words.

With the two elderly people as the dividing line, the two sides are clearly separated, but their goals are the same.

He was very satisfied with Tan Qi, but he didn't know much about Zhou Zheng, so he asked him a few more questions.

Everyone knows about family background; what the old man cares about is a person's character and values.

After chatting for a while, he found that the other person was well-mannered and knowledgeable.

He's just a bit older, a year older than Yi Heng.

However, a seven-year age difference is not a big deal.

Duan Mingxuan asked Zhou Zheng expressionlessly, "I wonder how many relationships Mr. Zhou has experienced?"

That's actually not very polite. Even if you want to know, you should wait until after the meal and ask indirectly when you're alone.

Zhou Zheng, however, didn't seem to care and replied gently, "Two relationships, and I've been single for three years now."

As he spoke, he turned to Lin Xi and asked, "Do you mind?"

Lin Xi shook his head.

Duan Mingxuan's face darkened even more.

Madam Zhou smiled and said, "I met Miss Lin two or three times when she was little. Now that she's grown up, she's become even more beautiful. It seems that the Duan family's food and water are very nourishing."

Chen Baiwei replied, "Xiao Xi has a good personality; everyone who has met her praises her."

"I can tell." Mrs. Zhou looked at her with increasing satisfaction. "She's quiet and well-behaved; I like her very much."

Zhou Zheng turned his head and spoke quietly to Lin Xi.

Duan Yiheng's gaze was distant and unreadable.

Duan Mingxuan couldn't lash out, but he was very puzzled. Had Duan Yiheng given up on Xiao Xi?

Indeed, a marriage alliance with the Tan family would be entirely beneficial; even a fool would know which option to choose.

Duan Mingxuan sneered inwardly, thinking that Duan Yiheng was nothing special.

Chen Baiwei was unhappy with the old man's favoritism, but she didn't dare to cause trouble for Duan Yiheng at the dinner table.

We cannot disrupt Duan Yiheng's marriage; at the very least, we must marry Lin Xi off.

To save her from thinking about Mingxuan all the time, and if the old man suddenly decides to force Mingxuan to marry Lin Xi, then it would be a loss for him.

Zhou Zheng picked up his wine glass, wanting to clink glasses with Lin Xi, when Duan Yiheng suddenly said, "She can't drink."

Everyone at the table was stunned, and Lin Xi was also on tenterhooks.

"She just recovered from a fever and is still in the recovery period."

Zhou Zheng awkwardly put down his wine glass and apologized to Lin Xi.

Lin Xi shook her head: "It's alright."

She looked up seemingly unintentionally, and her gaze met Duan Yiheng's.

Tan Qi followed Lin Xi's gaze and landed on Duan Yiheng's chest.

She smiled and said, "I was just about to ask you this. Your clasp chain is quite unique, and the matching gemstones are like women's accessories."

The old man frowned and looked in that direction.

Duan Yiheng made no attempt to hide anything, openly revealing, "It's a birthday gift from a friend."

Lin Xi's heart was in her throat again, fearing that Duan Yiheng would spout nonsense in such a situation.

Chen Baiwei seemed to have seized the opportunity and asked with a smile, "Your friend has good taste, but this yellow diamond looks like a gift from a female friend."

Duan Yiheng smiled and said, "Auntie has a good eye."

The old man frowned even more. Today was the day he was going on a blind date with Tan Qi, and he was wearing jewelry given to him by a female friend. What did that mean?

Are you afraid that others won't misunderstand?

However, it's really not appropriate to make a scene, so I can only explain it privately.

Of everyone at the table, only Duan Mingxuan had a dark expression.

He recognized the yellow diamond; he had accompanied Lin Xi to the auction.

He remembered that she liked it very much at the time, but unexpectedly, she gave it to Duan Yiheng.

As the banquet came to a close, the old man, wanting to leave the young people alone, waved his hand, letting them talk amongst themselves.

Zhou Zheng was very satisfied with Lin Xi and immediately invited her over. Duan Yiheng saw her nod.

He got up and left, heading straight for the restroom.

But they turned into an empty room halfway through.

Lin Xi left the bathroom and headed towards the backyard.

But as they passed the second-to-last room door, they were suddenly pulled inside.

Before Lin Xi could even exclaim in surprise, her lips were covered.

"Don't move, it's me."